The house was sparse and decaying. In the ceiling two gaping holes yawned. One had been covered with two sheets of beige construction paper in a desperate attempt at repair. The tiled floor was arranged with red and dull orange squares laid in a checkerboard fashion. The floor itself was covered with recently plucked pine needles, needles that stuck to one’s shoes as you walked and gave the room a faint smell of Christmas and cold December nights. In the corner, propped up on two identical metal stands was the casket that held the young man.Read more