My arms are around Blake as I seem to be spooning him from behind. I blink open my eyes to notice that morning light is peeking through the windows. We both fell asleep on a couch on which we can barely fit. It explains why I'm pressed against the back of the couch while one of Blake's leg seems to be resting on the floor.

A huge part of me doesn't want to wake him up but it seems impossible to get up without disrupting his sleep. But I don't stop myself from trying. I carefully withdraw my arms from his torso but he just takes that as an invitation to turn around and press my body further against the back of the couch.

I let out a huge sigh as I study his face. Even in his sleep, there's a small frown etched between his brows. I reach my hand out to soften it, my fingers caressing his skin lightly.

After Ella decided to eat something yesterday, we all sat down in silence. A long silence until Dad arrived. It way past dinner time but both Camille and Grandpa Will didn't step out of their room and none of us were hungry.

But then Dad came, cooked for everyone and practically force-fed Blake because Connor showed his concern how he hadn't had a meal in the entire day. Ella took some food for her father who let her in and actually ate a little. Camille joined us for a late dinner as well.

Mom and Dad took it upon themselves to clean the kitchen while everyone headed to bed. The place only has two guest bedrooms and Blake had offered the room he usually stays in to Camille. My parents had already booked themselves a hotel for the night and offered the same for me. They didn't know whether I would want to spend the night with Blake or not.

My thoughts are disrupted when he stirs a little in his sleep as his eyes blink open before he closes them again. I study his face patiently as he keeps one of his eyes shut close and opens another partially to stare at me.

"Hey." He whispers, his voice laced with sleep.

"Morning." I offer him a small smile.

He sighs, a tired sigh as he leans forward and kisses me. I expect it to be a morning peck but his lips linger against mine, pressed softly and the warmth of his action engulfs me. My hand moves to his face as I mindlessly trace the stubble growing on his face.

After a second he pulls away and looks down at my clothes, "We fell asleep, huh?"

"Yeah. Sorry." I try to sit up a little only to fail miserably due to lack of space.

"For what?" He frowns, moving aside to let me move.

I finally sit up, picking on the thread of my leggings from yesterday as I give him a sideway glance, "I don't want to overstay especially when your family's going through something so grave."

"You're not, Emma. We had just started talking when we fell asleep. And you're my family too." His hand takes mine, bringing it up to his face as he kisses my palm.

I smile at him, nodding. "How are you feeling today?"

"Honestly?" He sits up as well, his back against the armrest. "I'm just keeping it together for Mom. I still can't believe Nana's gone, just like that."

His words remind me of how we had just started discussing everything last night when we lied down on the couch and he was asleep within minutes. I am glad he got some sleep and some food in his system, courtesy to Dad.

"Did you get to see her last time?" I ask, the knot tightening in my stomach at the question.

He nods, "She was in ICU, barely awake when we arrived at the hospital. She didn't look like herself with all those tubes attached to her body and I—"

His voice cracks a little and I tighten my hold on his hand. "C'mon, hon. You can't keep it inside you."

"I just told her I love her." He shrugs, visibly biting on his inner cheek to stop the tears that reflect in his eyes. "Looking her like that, Emma... a part of me just knew, as horrible as that sounds. I didn't want to admit it. Very few come back for that, and I so badly wanted her to but she didn't."

Almost instinctively, I wrap my arms around him, pulling him into a tight hug. I want to offer him words of comfort but it hits me in the moment — sometimes words aren't good enough, no matter how much we want to piece them together to form the most comforting sentence, they just aren't enough.

So, instead, I hold him for as long as possible, as long as he lets me. I kiss his hair as he rests his face in the crook of my neck.

"Thank you for being here." He whispers.

"Shut up." I whisper back, shaking my head. "Your Mom's lucky to have you."

He looks up a little and I wipe his tears. "Yeah?"

I nod, smiling. "Yeah. You're a good son, babe."

"My Dad would argue with that."

"He won't." I scowl at him. "You know he won't, Blake. This is a hard time for your family but you've got to get your head out of your ass. You've built your entire relationship with him on an assumption that he disapproves of every action of yours. He might have some issues but he's your father, he's just concerned and sometimes, that's okay. You need to talk to him."

He lets out a frustrated breath, shaking his head as he gets up from the couch. "Okay."

"Don't be mad." I hold his hand, making him narrow his eyes at me. "You know that I love you, right?"

He nods at me and I mentally scold myself for saying what I did. This isn't the right time to discuss this. With my head in my hands, I let out a breath through my lips. I need to get my head straight, I have to be as calm with him as possible.

"Emily?" I almost jump from the voice as I turn around to find Connor standing by the staircase. "You alright?"

I nod, "Yeah. I'm sorry I fell asleep here last night. I'm just headed out."

"Hey, don't be ridiculous. It's completely fine." He assures me. "Where's Blake?"

"Probably in the bathroom." I shrug. "How you doing, Con-Con?"

He gives me a sad smile. "As well as I can manage."

"Did Ella get some rest?"

"Yeah, a little. Did Blake?" He asks and I nod. "Thanks for being here for him."

His words surprise me as I stare at him with a little wide-eyes before shaking myself out of it. "You don't have to thank me, Con. I really love him, you know?"

"God knows how that happened but I'm glad." He smiles at me. "Are you staying for the funeral this afternoon?"

"Yeah. Do you need any help?" I ask, standing up from the couch as I pick up my phone from the coffee table.

"No. Blake helped with everything," he tells me, clearing his throat. "He's a good kid."

I smile at his words, hoping that someday Blake can recognise the pride in his father's voice when he talks about him.

"Yeah, yeah, he is." I pick on my nails. "I'll go check on him."

He just nods at me as I wonder down the hallway to the bathroom. I slightly knock on the door, "Babe, it's me."

"What?" He calls from the other end and his voice is a little on the edge.

"I have to go right now but I'll be back in a while. I just wanted to let you know." I speak through the barrier of door between us.

A moment of silence follows before the door clicks open, his head popping out from the gap as he stares down at me with his lips pursed into a straight line.

"Where are you going?"

"I have to find myself a motel and freshen up." I explain.

"And you can't do that here? And a motel?" He scowls at me. "That isn't safe."

"It's okay, I'll be careful. I can't afford a hotel right now." I sigh, reaching my hand out to take his. "I'm sorry I pissed you off."

His eyes study me carefully before he looks away for a second. "It's fine. But don't go, Emma. You can stay here."

"We can't fall asleep on the couch again tonight." I remind him.

"Grandma Camille will leave after the evening tea with her daughter." He informs me. "We can stay in the room and you can freshen up in this bathroom."

I hesitate for a second. It's weird because I don't want to make it awkward for others. I don't want to invade in their personal space and make everyone uncomfortable. But then I look at Blake's face. He has a frown set between his brows, looks incredibly stressed. So, I just nod at him.

"Can I ask Connor if it's fine, though? I really don't want to overstay." I try to explain.

"It isn't his house. It's my grandparent's and you're my girlfriend. If I say you can stay here, you can stay here. Now, do you wanna take a shower?" He asks, opening the door a little wider to the bathroom.

"I'm not getting in there with you." I gape at him.

"Emma." He groans, taking ahold of my wrist as he pulls me a little closer to himself. "C'mon."

"Blake, no!" I laugh at how ridiculous he sounds. "I'm staying but no. We aren't going to even second base under this roof. Got it?"

He rolls his eyes. "And here I thought you were here to help me cope."

"Hey." I swat at his chest. "Behave."

He smiles at me, really smiles at me since the night he left in a rush with his parents. The dimple on his cheek is almost prominent as he leans down to kiss me. I mirror his actions, expressing my love and concern for him before we part away.

"I'm going to take a shower. You're going to get our stuff out of the car. Keys are in my purse in the living room," I tell him before entering the bathroom and pushing him out.

He chuckles a little, it sounding like music to my ears, "Yes, ma'am. Clean towels are right there. I'll knock after getting your clothes."

I smile at him before shutting the door close. I take a quick shower and by the time I'm done, Blake knocks with clean pair of clothes for me and the toiletry bag. After I've changed into a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, brushed my teeth and went through all the morning routine, I step out of the bathroom.

"Emily?" Ella's voice surprises me when I see her coming out of a room at the end of the hallway.

"Hey." I smile at her awkwardly. "How're you, El?"

"I'm fine, hon. Blake put your bag in this room while Camille's using the other one. You can feel free to use it." She explains.

She looks a little better than yesterday but there are still bags underneath her eyes. I nod at her, "I'm sorry about all this, El. I don't mean to be in your way."

"Don't worry about it. C'mon." She gestures for me to follow her as she opens the door further.

I hesitantly follow her inside the room and find my bag lying on the desk. I quickly move towards it, pushing my dirty clothes inside before zipping it up. I can feel her eyes on me the entire time which makes me suck in a deep breath before I turn towards her.

"I can get out of here, you know? You just have to say the word." I try to rush out the words. "You're going through enough and I don't want to upset you further."

"You aren't." She shakes her head but her body says otherwise with her arms crossed across her chest.

"I—" I shut up. I don't know what to say. I want to comfort her but there's also a little hesitance on both of our ends because we haven't been alone since Christmas. We haven't talked.

I exhale out a long breath before moving to her and she reads my actions patiently but doesn't move away when I hug her. It's a hug that's familiar to both of us. I've held onto this woman for comfort more times than I'm willing to admit and right now, I want to provide her with the same.

"I'm so incredibly sorry for your loss, El. I can't even imagine what you're going through, but I'm here for you, we all are." I express my emotions, not holding back. "I know you might be mad at me because I'm dating your son but please don't let that come between me being there for you. You just have to say the word and I'll be at your service anytime."

"Oh, Emily!" She hugs me back, finally and I feel like I would cry from her little action.

When she pulls away, there's evident trail of tears on her cheek that I reach out to wipe. She offers me a sad smile, almost a heartbreaking one.

"I'm not mad at you, sweetheart." She assures me when it's the last thing she should be doing.

"We don't have to talk about this right now." I insist, shaking my head.

"No." She puts her hand on my shoulder, making me look at her. "We do. We haven't really talked at all but this is as good moment as any. I've lost a lot in last couple of days which has made me realise that life is too short to wait for anything. So, yeah, it took me by surprise that Blake and you are together, it kinda hurt a little that he didn't tell me about it himself like he fills me in on any other detail of his life... but I understand. And I'm not mad at you, either of you. You're both good kids and I'm happy as long as you two are."

Her words overwhelm me with everything going on, the tears stinging in my eyes as I nod at her. "He wanted to tell you but I wasn't sure about everyone's reaction. I'm so sorry."

"It's okay. Now we know, all of us. And I'm happy as long as my kid is happy." She gives me a small smile, tears emerging in her eyes. "Don't break his heart, Em."

"I won't." I promise her, because breaking Blake's heart would mean breaking my own. "So, we're good?"

"More than good." She beams at me, patting my head lightly. "Who would've thought Blake's childhood crush would come true."

"Wait, what?" I scowl at her. "Childhood crush?"

"Of course." She shakes her head, sighing. "He was crazy about you."

I don't respond to her, instead I take my time processing what she just said. I notice the way Ella seems to zone out during conversations, it happened yesterday as well, just like right now. I don't know how exactly she feels, but her face reflects a lot about her inner state.

The door to the room creaks open and Connor steps in, and he seems surprised to see me. His eyes move to his wife almost instantly and worry takes over.

"I'll make breakfast, you need to eat," I say as I start to move towards out of the room to give them space.

"You don't have to." Ella starts but I shake my head, not taking no for an answer.

If I'm going to be an unwelcome guest, I'm at least going to make myself useful. When I pass the bathroom door, I hear the shower inside which makes me realise that Blake must be the one inside. I silently make my way to the kitchen and start pulling out pans to make eggs for everyone.

When I'm midway through the food, someone clears their throat and I look up to find Grandpa Will staring at me with curious eyes. I almost freeze under his gaze. I haven't seen him since the moment I arrived yesterday because he refused to leave the room.

"Hey." I start, wiping my palms against my jeans as I blink at me. "Remember me?"

Really, Emily? Really? That's how you start a conversation with someone who's suffering a huge loss? Oh, god. I'm pathetic.

He narrows his eyes at me, studying my face with great scrutiny. But before he can speak up, Blake appears behind him. He looks just as surprised to find him here but he speaks up, to break the tension in the room.

"Grandpa." He calls out, approaching his grandfather who looks at him before focusing his gaze back at me. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah." He nods, still staring at me.

Blake looks a little tense as he speaks up next. "You remember Emma, I told you about her on thanksgiving?"

It takes me by surprise that Blake mentioned me to his grandparents. But I don't say anything. I just patiently wait for his grandfather to acknowledge me. I don't blame him if he doesn't remember me. I've met him a few times when he has visited on the vacations and I haven't seen him in more than a year now.

"She's your Emma?" He looks a little confused. "That's Diana's daughter."

"Yeah." Blake rubs the back of his neck. "Same person, Grandpa."

"Oh." He nods, processing as he looks at me. "Are you cooking?"

"Yeah. Can I fix you a plate?" I ask him, and he blinks at me. "Please."

He nods at me, taking a seat on the dining table by the kitchen. I try not to be unnerved by his gaze as Blake comes to give me a hand. I swat his hand away when he tries to take over everything.

"I got it." I hiss at him. He doesn't say a word. Instead, he moves to chop the fruits.

"You've grown up since last I saw you." Grandpa Will comments, still staring at me like he's trying to decode me as a person.

"Yeah, it's been a while." I meet his eyes. "I'm sorry for your loss, Grandpa Will."

He nods at me. "It's okay, dear. We all have to go someday, don't we? She lived a beautiful life."

"Yeah, she did." Blake gives his grandfather a small smile.

"Dad?" Ella's surprised voice travels down to the kitchen as she enters the area with Camille and Connor. "I thought you were in your room."

She moves to hug him, holding onto her father for the loss they both understand better than anyone.

"I was just chatting with my grandson's girlfriend." He pats his daughter's hair.

"You two are an item?" Camille comments, taking a seat as well.

"Yup." Blake comments, obviously not a fan of that term.

"You didn't have to do this, Em." Connor looks at the kitchen.

"Please, it's the least I can do."

Blake doesn't look at anyone. He just fixes a plate and goes to give to his grandfather while I make another one for Camille. When I'm serving food to Ella, the doorbell rings and Connor gets up from the table to go check.

My parents enter the dining room, Mom's eyes meeting me in surprise when she sees me cooking breakfast. I just shrug it off as she focuses her attention to Grandpa Will. She moves over to hug him.

"How you doing, Will?" She asks, holding onto him for a bit longer.

"Been better, girl." He pats her head. "Your daughter's force-feeding us."

"She learnt it from her father." Dad gives me a proud look, moving over to give his condolences to the man.

The entire interaction focuses around Nana and I notice how Blake just seems to disconnect himself from everything. Every once in a while I see the way Ella forces herself to smile at her father, to be strong for him. Their grief can be sensed in the air.

Dad comes to stand by my side, looking over at Blake who seems to be staring hard at the kitchen counter. He frowns at him before speaking up, "Blake?"

He snaps out of his thoughts and looks at Dad with a little surprise. "Yeah?"

"Did you eat?"

Blake lets out a small groan which makes me smile, "Stop being the food-police, Aaron."

"We can't have you falling sick, son," Dad tells him seriously. "Now, go sit with everyone and eat."

"Your Dad's a pain in the ass." Blake gives me a look, speaking loud enough for Dad to hear him. It only makes my old man smack him on the head. "Ow, what was that for?"

"That's not how you talk about your in-laws, kid."

"Woah." I put up the spatula in the air that I was using to make pancakes. "In-laws?"

My reaction only makes both of them snicker as they exchange a look and I scowl at them. Dad pats my head lightly, "Don't worry about it, Em."

"This is going way opposite than it's supposed to. You two aren't supposed to team against me."

"You said to give it time to smooth things over. Things have smoothed over." Blake grins at me, his annoying smile making me roll my eyes.

I'm glad that this entire conversation can provide him a distraction enough to smile. Dad scolds Blake again to go eat which he reluctantly does. After everyone has eaten, I eat a little as well on the kitchen island.

"Hey." Mom slides onto the barstool next to mine. "You okay, sweets?"

I nod at her, sipping on the coffee. "Fine. Just worried about everyone."

"They're going to be okay, you know?" She looks back at the table where there's barely any talk.

"When?"

"As sad as it is, honey, life doesn't stop for anyone. It might seem like that for a while, I mean, I was devastated when my mother passed away. I found it hard to get out of bed, but eventually things fall back into place when you have people around to support you and love you." She takes ahold of my hand and gives it a light squeeze. "Will has his daughter and his daughter has us. They'll make it through this."

Her words might seem a little harsh at first, but she isn't wrong. This is the first time I'm experiencing a situation, a death situation, and it's worse than I could've imagined. It makes me feel helpless for everyone.

"I hope so, Mom." I sigh, brushing my hair with my fingers into a low bun, my eyes set on Blake who seems to be just moving his fork on the plate. He has barely eaten. "I'm worried about him."

Mom follows my gaze, looking at Blake before turning to me, "He puts on a brave front, have to give him that."

"I think he knows he has to be there for his family. If he breaks down, it will be just harder, you know?" I rub my temples. "I'm afraid that once we're alone back home, he's going to break apart. And that's good, he shouldn't have to run away from his emotions. But I just hate to see him hurt."

At this point, I'm just rambling. I don't know who else to convey my thoughts to. Blake and I have barely gotten time to ourselves. A part of me is desperate for this to be over so we can move back to the apartment and I can sit him down to voice out his emotions. I don't want to push him here about this.

Connor and Dad offer to do the dishes. While they do that, Blake sits with his grandfather and Camille. Ella and Mom disappear in the room, probably to have a good heart to heart. Everyone keeps checking the time once in a while, dreading what we all know cannot be avoided. The funeral ceremony.

"Blake?" Connor looks at his son. "Get dressed. We should head out early."

"Yeah, okay."

I have been pacing all around the house, not sure what to do. When Blake enters the dining room where Dad and I are sitting with Connor, he looks a little distressed.

"Dad?" He starts, catching Connor's attention. "Mom isn't doing so good. I think you should stay with her. I can go early to make sure all the arrangements are done."

"Are you sure?" Connor asks.

"Yes. I'm sure. Diana's with her right now but you should go too." He informs him.

"I'll go with him." Dad offers and I nod along.

"Yeah, me too. We got this, Con-Con. Go!" I give him an assuring smile. He nods at us before getting up and probably going to be with his wife.

"Emma?" Blake catches my attention. "Can I talk to you?"

"Yeah, of course."

Dad doesn't say a word as Blake takes my hand and leads me upstairs. When we're in the hallway, he pulls me into one of the bedrooms and closes the door behind him. I look into the room, it looks very similar to the one downstairs, only smaller in size.

"What are we doing here?" I ask Blake.

"I needed to get away from everyone before the funeral." He lets out a tired breath, pulling me to the edge of the bed as he takes a seat and I stumble into his lap. "Everyone but you."

Slowly, I wrap my arms around him. His body relaxes slightly under my touch but his grasp around my waist tightens. I feel his breathing heavy against my neck.

"You can cry, you know?" I run my hand through his hair, my voice low.

"Not yet, I can't." He shakes his head. "I'm afraid if I start, I wouldn't be able to stop."

His words tug onto my heart, making me feel the slight of pain he must be constantly feeling. "Whenever you want, I'm here."

"I know. I love you, Emma." He kisses me, it's a light peck but he lingers onto it.

"I love you." I offer him a sad smile.

"I've never attended a funeral before." He sighs. "Let alone arranged it. I did everything Dad asked, took Diana and Aaron's help too because I didn't know who else to call. But I just want to do right by Nana. She deserves a good good-bye."

"And she will get one. If she could see this, she would be proud." I assure him, meaning every word. "And if it's any condolences, I have never attended a funeral before either. Not one I remember, at least."

"Your Granny's?" He asks and I nod. "God, death sucks."

"Indeed."