Hello again! This chapter took a little bit longer to upload since I finally had a chance to get my computer fixed, and it took a while. It is also a little longer because I didn't really want to end in too big of a cliffhanger so I tried to wrap it up as much as possible.

I hope you are all enjoying it! I sort of know where I am going with it, but make up most of the stuff as I go with it. The writing feels a little sloppy so if that's a problem let me know. I will do my best to make sure that the characters feel realistic.

Also, would you guys like a side in the Land of the Living? I was planning on keeping it mostly in the Land of the Dead, but if you feel otherwise, let me know!

On to the story…

...

Miguel caught himself holding Héctor's hand, and he felt his nonexistent stomach cramp up as they strolled to the Rivera household.

They were both silent, walking side to side, Miguel looked down, attempting to drag his feet along. The streets looked different than he remembered, and the city had a different vibe during the day. He looked at the pattern of the floor and counted the bricks, amazed that he could make it all the way to 500.

Héctor, on the other hand, looked straight ahead, not thinking of anything. He snapped out of it when Miguel suddenly grabbed his hand; the thought of stopping and pulling the boy for another hug crossed his mind. But he quickly brushed it off realizing that Miguel had not reacted at all.

They had taken the long way home, trying to kill some time to work up the courage to let the family now that Miguel had passed early. Héctor knew that the worst reaction would come from Imelda. The reaction that scared him the most, was Coco's; she wasn't a little girl anymore. He had spent the last year getting to know who her, and had found that she had Imelda's strength, but saw a lot of himself in her. He knew that when Imelda would hurt, she'd get angry, but she hadn't seen Coco hurt yet.

He felt his hands shake as he recognized the Rivera household, and he automatically turned to Miguel. The boy was still looking down with and expression that Héctor recognized right away. It was the expression that Héctor once wore when he was rejected by Imelda after she had passed. It was an expression of hopelessness, of a man without a home whose world was falling apart; an expression of powerlessness.

"Mijo?" He asked softly.

"Mmm?" Miguel responded suddenly snapping out of his thoughts and looking up at him.

Héctor signaled to the house in front of them, "We're here".

Miguel looked up and was surprised to find that the house looked the same in the world of the living, "It's the same?"

"Oh yeah", Héctor smiled, "Imelda's parents built it and she refuses to move"

"Are her parents still here?" Miguel asked curiously.

"No, they passed after we got married, so Coco didn't get to meet them" Héctor couldn't help but chuckle. Imelda's father wasn't happy when he asked for his blessing to marry her. He did not like the orphan that played at a local bar for money, and would come to his house to serenade his daughter at very late hours. In the end he accepted it, and was even kind enough to leave the house to the couple in his will.

Miguel began mumbling quietly, but quickly stopped himself.

"What mijo?"

"I'm just not ready" Miguel looked down feeling the need of crying building up in his throat; only to find that there weren't any tears left to cry, he was completely dry.

"I know" Héctor answered and they both grew silent.

They were both thinking the same thing; as soon as they delivered the news to rest of the family, it would become real. Even though both were aware that Miguel's passing was permanent, it still felt surreal. Death was funny, quick and confusing. It left them both hanging without any room to breathe. And now they had to face it head on. Face the consequences of a decision that they didn't make. This wasn't just Miguel's pain and sorrow, it was everybody's.

"Let's go" Héctor took a deep breath and squeezed Miguel's hand. He felt a light squeeze from Miguel's end as they prepared.

Héctor moved quickly to give a soft knock on the door.

"You don't have your own key?" Miguel aksed

"Imelda stopped giving them to me more after I lost the first 3"

"Ah"

The door opened quickly and to Héctor's relief it was Julio.

"Ah, Papá Hector" Julio smiled, "It's dawn, and Mamá Imelda is not happy with you" Julio cringed, "You might have to sleep on the couch again".

Miguel gave a quiet chuckle, making Julio notice his presence.

"Miguel?" Julio looked at the boy from head to toes, trying to comprehend the situation. It quickly hit him. "Oh", he could barely articulate as he felt his legs turn to jelly.

Héctor stepped forward and grabbed Julio's shoulder softly, they were both silent. Julio had expected to see the boy again, and looked forward to bonding with him. He had a feeling that the boy wouldn't grow up, but knocked on wood every time the feeling returned

"I'm sorry Miguel" Julio could barely articulate and stepped forward to pat the boy in the shoulder.

Miguel nodded, avoiding his gaze.

"Are you ready?" Héctor asked.

"If not" Julio quickly stepped in, "We can sneak you in so you can get some sleep while we tell everyone else"

"I…" Miguel stuttered, "I'd like to get some sleep". The boy felt ashamed at his weakness of facing his family like a man. He knew they'd want to know how he passed, but the reality of being murdered had not settled yet; he had barely wrapped his head around the idea of his own dead. And he wasn't ready to remember.

"Okay, Miguel" Julio smiled, "I'll set you up in the guest room"

...

Héctor and Julio sighed triumphally as the gave one last gaze at Miguel. As soon as Miguel's head hit the pillow, he was sound asleep. But just as Héctor and Julio were about to exit the door, the boy began weeping uncontrollably; they quickly checked and found that he was still asleep. Julio sat next to him and began stroking his hair while Héctor looked for his guitar. They looked at each other puzzled, since both only had daughters, they didn't have experience taking care of boys. The boy finally calmed after Héctor played Remember Me, just as he played for Coco when she was a baby.

The last challenge was to face the family, and both were worried about Coco. Julio knew that she didn't believe in evil, and always tried to look at the positive side of the situation. She had always been the strong one, the one to pat everyone in the back and trust that the situation would get better. But now, Julio wasn't sure of what was coming.

"Did he tell you what happened?", Julio asked quietly as they left the room.

"He said a man tried to take his wallet" Héctor felt the anger returning and filling his chest, "He had a hole in his shirt covered in blood, it could have been a stab or gunshot"

"A murder?" Julio felt his bones tense up as the thought filled him with anger.

Héctor nodded, "how are we going to break it to them?".

"Knowing Mamá Imelda, you might want to stay by his side" Julio suggested, "I'll stay with Coco and tell them".

Héctor smiled and grabbed his son-in-law's shoulder. After the past year of getting to know his family, he was especially fond of Julio, (fond of all his family, really). He found that each member of his family was special with different qualities, and Julio's was his strength. The man had a sweet and kind side, always speaking softly to Coco, and being cooperative in the shoe business. It had always been hard to imagine his little girl married, but he was glad that Julio and Rosita had joined the family.

...

The living room had a strange aura, Héctor and Julio had called all the family to the living room, and it was obvious they had some news.

"Why were you late?" Imelda asked Héctor raising an eyebrow.

"That is actually the reason we gathered all of you here" Héctor answered and grabbed his wife's hand.

Julio stood next to Coco's chair softly grabbed her shoulder, "This is about Miguel"

"What did he do NOW!" Imelda was the first one to speak.

"Mi vida…" Héctor looked at her attentively, "Miguel didn't do anything this time".

"I'm afraid Miguel has been m…" Julio stopped himself when he realized what he about to say, "Miguel has passed"

"I found him today, and that is why I was late" Héctor quickly stepped in, "He's resting in the guest room"

Victoria's hard expression turned into shock, Rosita collapsed onto the couch, Oscar and Felipe turned to look at each other in shock. Imelda collapsed into Héctor, and he held onto her.

Julio looked over at Coco, and noticed that her expression was blank, "Coco?" He asked softly; in response she pulled her hand to her shoulder to grab his.

"I have to see him" Imelda regained her balance and began walking out of the living room, but Héctor placed a hand on her shoulder, stopping her.

"Amor, it might not be the best idea"

"How?" Coco finally snapped out of her trance and looked at both Héctor and Julio.

Julio looked at Héctor. Héctor nodded and looked at Imelda, she pulled her lips together and turned back to her family.

"He was in shock", he explained, "but I understood that it was a robbery gone wrong", he tried to sugarcoat the situation as much as possible.

"Robbery gone wrong?" Victoria asked, "you wouldn't mean…"

The whole room fell silent.

"#$ &%*!"

The family turned to look at Imelda in shock, she was usually tough and got angry easily, but always avoiding swear words.

"Imelda…" Héctor reached out to her, expecting for her to push him away, but she instead pulled him in for a hug. She buried her face in his chest and he felt her warm tears. Héctor felt proud as he wrapped his arms around her, she barely showed her weak side to anyone, and he was grateful that she finally relied on him. For the past year it had been long and awkward since she was used to running the family on her own, but her brothers took advantage of the seniority that Héctor held to get away with many things. Little by little she began to let him in, and it had seemed like such a big victory when she finally agreed to share her room with him.

"Mamá Imelda…" Victoria whispered. Imelda softly pulled Héctor away and composed herself before turning to Victoria. "What do we do now?".

Imelda turned to look at Héctor, letting him take control of this situation.

"For now, it's best to let Miguel rest", Héctor spoke firmly, "I'll see if he might want to go to the police station to see if the man has passed" he could not hold back a sigh, "If not, then he might want to see his death counselor"

The silence filled the room once again, the environment feeling odd since it was the first time Héctor acted as the alpha of the family.

"At least tomorrow it's Sunday, so we can all spend some time with him"