HAT: You thought it was over? Nah, son. That was only the beginning. You have two more chapters after this of emotional wrecking. Good luck with that. I hope you enjoy despite how... feelsy this entire thing is.
Disclaimer: I don't own Gravity Falls- Alex Hirsch does- and the one OC in this, I don't own either (she belongs to jamiekinosian on tumblr). I simply own the plot of this story.
The day of the funeral- once I see his body I don't be able to deny it anymore- or I could and say it's a clone or a wax figure or something, but I decided that once I got there and saw him and felt his cold skin, I'd accept it. Until then, they can't make me- I refuse!
I curse a little under my breath when I can't get the stupid tie to do what I want. Grunkle Stan would've probably been the one to help me and reteach me in my frustration and I almost expect him to come out and do as he's always done when I'm nervous or frustrated and put a hand on my shoulder and say "let me do it" and fix the tie for me.
When a hand is placed on my shoulder I look up expecting Grunkle Stan- I knew he wasn't dead!- but immediately my heart sinks when I see that it's Great Uncle 'Ford. He gives me a small, sad smile. He probably saw the disappointment on my face after seeing him.
"Let me help." I lower my head to look at our shoes- he's wearing black, polished dress shoes that are similar to mine, but they're rounded at the end instead of squared like mine- while my hands fall to my sides. He fixes my tie for me with a somber look on his face and once he's done he stands back and smiles at me. "There y'go... you look good."
"Thanks," I mumble.
Black suits- that's what we're wearing. I know Mabel's gonna wear a black dress that reaches down to her mid-calves and would be long sleeved, but very breathable- after all, I picked it out for her since she was too out of it to choose any funeral clothes.
"Let's go get your sister."
I feel a six fingered hand rest on my shoulder and lead me toward the attic where she's getting ready. I walk beside him and find myself glancing around and trying to find Grunkle Stan still. I want him to pop out and scare us more than I even wanted to know who the author of the journals was when I was twelve. I want him to be alive more than I've wanted anything to be honest.
Great Uncle 'Ford knocks on the door and calls, "Mabel, sweetie, are you ready?"
After a few moments, Mabel opens the door and she looks... rough around the edges. She's done up nicely, but her eyes are puffy and red. I suddenly feel terrible for putting myself before her, but I wanted to prove that Grunkle Stan wasn't- isn't dead so that neither one of us would be sad and we'd have our grunkle back.
"Let's go," Mabel says quietly.
Without any other words they make their way to the backyard. Along with our father, Soos, Melanie and their daughter, Wendy, Pacifica, Candy, and Grenda were there all wearing black.
It's an open casket funeral and it hurts seeing Grunkle Stan lying there pale and unmoving. My limbs feel like lead and I don't want to walk forward.
Maybe he'll sit up and scare us- that'd be just like him, after all.
We take turns saying our goodbyes and when I get there I feel for a pulse for a full two minutes before it suddenly crashes down that Grunkle Stan is dead. His skin is cold and feels like actual skin, and his hearrt should have beat at least once by now if he were drugged. This is all real- not a sick, twisted prank- and this is his cadaver. He's never gonna see us graduate, get married... have kids... or...
I feel tears in my throat immediately and my vision becomes blurred. I feel arms hug me and I look to see my tearful twin sister. After gulping in attempt to get the tears down, I hug her back and bury my face in her shoulder right before the first sob tears through my lips. I feel so weak for crying so openly in front of everyone- Grunkle Stan would've told me to man up at this point- but after a good minute I manage to pull myself together.
"Go sit down," Mabel murmurs quietly.
I go and sit in the front row while Mabel goes up to speak- Grunkle Stan requested that she specifically speak at his funeral since she'll try her best to make everyone happy. I don't blame him- if I die first, she'll speak at my funeral (and if she does, I'll be forced to speak).
Mabel takes a deep breath and then says, "Grunkle Stan was a great man... sure he lied, cheated, and stole, but he had a good heart. He cared about his family and the people he considered family. He protected us and he made us laugh and helped us get through everything from break ups to pterodactyl attacks. A lot of us probably want to curl in a ball and cry about him being gone- heck, some of us probably already have... but Grunkle Stan told me that everything has to end... and... and that we have to look back at them with fondness.
"Just because he's gone doesn't mean we can't look back on the times we had with him and smile and laugh. So long as we remember him and keep him in our hearts, he's never really gone... he's never really gone because of the impression he's made in each of our lives. So instead of thinking about all the things we didn't get to do, we should think about all the things we did get to do. That way we'll have a reason to smile instead."
I feel a small, proud smile tug at the corner of my lips at her speech and I clap louder than anyone else- even dad and Great Uncle Ford. I refuse to cry- not here in front of everyone again- and when Mabel sits next to me I smile and whisper "good job" before our other grunkle- living grunkle- goes up to speak about his brother.