(redo) Chapter 2

2.

Everything. Everything here was black. The black air smelled of death. Everyone was wearing it. Everyone carried it.
Seth didn’t cry. Crying never helped anything. And so crying was not an option.
He sat on one of the wooden pews in front. The director of the Court Appointed Special Advocates, Jeff Greene, sat next to him. He knew Jeff. He’d known the black man since he was nine, he trusted him. Jeff put a hand on Seth’s shoulder.
“Do you need to leave?” he asked, reading Seth’s emotions in the way that he did.
Seth shook his head.
The brims of his eyes were wet. He couldn’t see. He wiped them with the sleeve of his black suit. He couldn’t cry.
He’d seen the way his little sister had looked. Dead, pale and cold in her casket. That simply wasn’t her. That wasn’t the Violet he’d grown up with, the Violet he’d played with, the Violet he loved.

After the funeral, Seth got into the car with Jeff. Jeff had some of her things in a box. Seth had it safely placed on his lap, protective hands held the sides tightly.
He remained frozen in the front passenger seat, staring forward. He was very close to crying now. He concentrated on the asphalt road whizzing by.
One tear finally broke free and rolled down his cheek.
He was going to a new home. Again. He didn’t know the people. He’d met them, but that wasn’t the same.

“Good morning…Seth, is it? I’m Blake, and this is Sasha…”

He remembered the interview clearly. It didn’t really matter to him. One place was just like another.
“You need to cry,” Jeff said matter-of-fact-like.
Seth slouched in the seat. “I can’t.”
Jeff glanced at him out of one eye. “Yes, you can. Anyone can cry. I’ve seen you do it.”
Seth just looked at him. His face was straight, but his eyes were sad.
“Look, I’m sorry, Seth. I know this is tough for you,” he flicked his left signal on and turned. “But they want to help.”
They passed a park full of bloomed oaks, encircled with a black, wrought ironed fence. This place was nice, the houses were huge. It was like Hollywood; everyone was rich.
“What if they’re mean to me?” he asked in a cracked voice.
Jeff looked at him. “We very carefully choose homes for you kids.”
“I know, but…still. I wonder.”

They passed a bunch of brick houses, engulfed in green ivy, looking very old. There were hedges that circled the gigantic yards bordered with more of the same gates he saw in the park. They pulled into a driveway and parked. Jeff opened his door.
“I don’t want to go,” Seth said quietly.
Jeff gave him a reassuring look and put a hand on the boy's shoulder. “I know, kid.”
He looked around.
Roses grew along-side a brick pathway leading up to the front door, which was glorious in it’s own. Made of some wood that he didn’t know the name of. It was pretty. There were four tall lamp-posts, and a big window that stood above the door. He could see a chandelier in through it.
Jeff opened Seth’s door.
“Let’s go.”