My One Night: An On My Own Novel by Carrie Ryan (life books to read .txt) 📕

doctors had all explained that there was nothing we could have done, even if we had been at Corinne’s side. According to the authorities and those in the know, she had died quickly and without pain. I wasn’t sure if they had said that to alleviate her parents’ fears or if it was the truth. My sisters-in-law had all explained that what the doctors had said was true. It had been swift and sudden. She might’ve felt a slight headache before everything changed. But then again, we weren’t sure what to believe. Not when the girl I loved was in so much pain.

And it wasn’t like I could tell her what I felt or what I wished I could do to make her feel better. This wasn’t the time, and I was honestly afraid there wouldn’t be a good time. But this wasn’t about me. It wasn’t about any of my friends. It was about a friend we had both lost, and the girl I loved, watching her best friend be laid to rest.

“How does something like this happen?” Miles asked from behind me. It wasn’t the first time he had said something like that. The others were all in their Sunday best, saying goodbye to a girl they might not have known well but had known enough. Pacey was dressed in all black. Even his shirt and tie were dark. He wasn’t speaking to anyone, wasn’t saying anything. He just stood there looking lost while Nessa leaned into him, tears pouring down her face. I had known that Corinne and Pacey were close, but I never knew what the relationship was. It wasn’t that of a boyfriend and girlfriend, Corinne had explained that to us. But it had been something. And now, the girl was gone, and there was nothing we could do. My family and all their significant others stood behind me, even though they had only met Corinne once when she came to the bar.

But they were there for me, Elise, and for the girl who had died far too young. Because that’s who my family was. They were good people who cared about those in their care, even if we were all too late to do anything about it.

Natalie stood between Tanner and Miles, tears sliding down her face as both men tried to console her. Mackenzie and Sanders were off to the side. Mackenzie wasn’t crying at all, but her eyes were wide, her face pale. I hadn’t heard her utter a word, not even when Sanders asked her how she was doing. She was just as lost as the rest of us, and nobody knew how to deal with grief. We had dealt with our fair share of heartache, at least in my family, and I knew sorrow must’ve touched everybody here, at least in some respects. Nobody lived in this day and age without understanding at least some semblance of it. But this was different. This made no sense. There were no answers, and damn it, it wasn’t fair. But as my brothers had said before when they lost their friend when I first moved to town, life wasn’t fair, and it ended far too soon for too many of us.

Elise wasn’t speaking at all, and she sure as hell wasn’t talking to me. I didn’t know what to do about that. She wasn’t doing anything. We stood there, watching the proceedings take place. Her parents had come for the start of the funeral but had left soon after. They hadn’t even spoken to her. I had only known who they were because Corinne’s parents had mentioned their names.

What were you supposed to do with something like that? With people who didn’t even acknowledge their daughter but still had time to say goodbye to her childhood friend? Maybe they had done it because they knew the drama of seeing her would be too much for a funeral. If that was the case, I understood that. They’d still come to pay their respects but hadn’t wanted to intrude. I really wanted to think that was the case.

When the final words were spoken, and Elise leaned into me for a second before stiffening, I squeezed her hand. She let me go almost immediately and walked away towards Corinne’s parents. I stood there, not knowing if I should follow her or not. Pacey didn’t move. Neither did Miles or Natalie. Nessa still leaned on Pacey; Mackenzie, and Sanders did the same with each other. But it was Tanner who moved forward and reached out to squeeze my shoulder.

“Come on. We have to settle dirt on top of the casket, or the rose in your hand, and then we’ll head to Corinne’s family home for the wake.”

He said it, and we all nodded like we understood.

“Thank you,” I whispered. “I don’t know what I’m doing.”

“We’ve got you,” Violet said from behind me, and I sighed as my sister-in-law spoke. They had all been through this before when they lost their best friend. It had been heartbreaking for them, and I hadn’t even known the woman they’d buried. But they had gone through it, too, and yet somehow found a way to heal.

Maybe we would be able to do the same.

I didn’t know what I was supposed to do for Elise.

“Come on, she’s going to need you, even if she doesn’t say so,” Violet said, and then we moved. I laid the rose on top of the casket while others gently tossed in dirt and muttered blessings and memories. I had never done this before. I didn’t know what I was supposed to do, but I followed along and copied what others did. I looked at Elise, but she looked right through me as she stood by Corinne’s parents. Corinne’s mother held Elise’s hand in a tight grip, and I knew that Elise needed space to help her friends’ parents. I would be there when she was ready.

I would do what I could to make things better. I