"Lumin… Lumin… wake uup!"
A childish girly voice demanded. Her little hands shook slightly the small body of the sleeping boy.
Yawns.
The boy rubbed his eyelids.
"Wake uuuuup!"
The girl kept going.
"What do you want Selena?"
The half asleep kid asked his little sister.
"Get up! Breakfast is ready!"
Selena jumped on top of Lumin's prone body!
"Aghh. Don't jump on top of me! I'm getting up"
The young Lumin moved his hands swiftly, avoiding any defense attempts from the girl
"HAHAHAHA! Stop, Lumin! HAHAHA!."
Selena burst into laughter as Lumin started tickling her stomach.
"Ah. Stop it! I'm gonna wet myself if you keep tickling me!"
"Okay, okay"
Young Lumin chuckled as he stopped teasing his little sister.
"Lumin, Selena! Hurry up, the breakfast is getting cold"
A caring warm voice called both of them from the kitchen. A sweet delicate aroma flooded the room, invading the kids's senses.
"Let 's go! I'm really hungry"
Both of the kids were now smiling from eye to eye.
"Um"
The girl noded.
The two siblings went through the small hallway of the warm, cozy wooden chalet. The dining room is covered with toasted bread and burning wood from the chimney.
"Good morning, Mom!"
Lumin hugged the tall beautiful woman, who was laying at the table in front of them toasts, a jar of blueberries jam and some butter.
"Good morning, sweetie"
She hugged his small frame back.
"Now, go sit with your sister, i need to take the cake out of the oven"
Lunaria gave Lumin a little squeeze in the cheeks before going back to the kitchen to retrieve the cake, which was spreading a soft and sweet, vanilla aroma.
Without knocking, a man burst through the door. He was an average man in every way, especially when compared to his wife, who was extremely beautiful and had a noble aura surrounding her.
"Daddy!"
Both children jumped to his arms at the same time .
The man at the sudden action dropped the bag that he was carrying and caught each of his children with his arms.
"Hey! You can't just jump onto daddy like that! What if I don't catch you? You're lucky to have a great, powerful dad like me!"
He boasted proudly as he scolded the children.
Lunaria placed the cake in the center of the table and approached them. She gave him a little peck on the lips and smiled.
"Huh?~ Why did i marry you if not to spoil my children, Lyrien? It's your responsibility as their dad to spoil them until they grow up"
"Ha! You're right! I have to spoil my kids as much as i can while I can!"
He showered kisses at Lumin's and Selena's faces, who couldn't stop giggling in his arms.
Two weeks passed.
Lyren opened the door, and as he did every morning, the two kids jumped into his arms. This time, however, he barely caught them. Lunaria noticed a tired, worried look in his eyes.
After 5 seconds, Lyren set the children down on the floor.
"Daddy is tired now, so I won't be able to lift you up today, okay? I promise that after I rest, I'll carry both of you all you want, deal?"
"Yay!"
Selena exclaimed. However, Lumin, who was older and more intelligent,noticed something was off.
"Okay, Dad. Rest well. We need to keep playing after all"
Lunaria interrupted Lumin's speech, wanting to talk to Lyren alone.
"Selena, Lumin, Go eat, the food is getting cold"
The two kids didn't ask more and went to have their breakfast.
"Lyren… is everything okay? You looked tired and worried…"
"I've been feeling anxious, Luna. I don't want to hide it from you… Lately, my hands have been trembling while I hunt or chop wood, my vision has been blurry at times, and I've been having problems making decisions."
"Oh, honey… you should go to the village and see the doctor… I'll take care of the kids today. Are you sure you can go alone?"
"Thanks, Luna"
He softly pressed her lips against hers.
"I'll go after lunch"
The next day.
"Luna… this is important… it's not just overwork. Luckily there was a royal doctor in the village. He was on vacation, but he decided to check me."
"What is it, Lyren? Are you okay? Is it curable?"
Lyren lowered his gaze to the floor.
"They think it's a brain disease… The Doctor told me I can't be cured, even with high-level healing magic…I have at most a year left of life…"
The room fell quiet. Lunaria's eyes shed silent tears.
"No… no… This can't be! We are supposed to have a happy life with Lumin and Selena! We are supposed to grow old together and die peacefully in our sleep while holding hands!"
Lunaria's voice cracked as she spoke, she collapsed to the floor, gripping Lyren's pants as she sobbed uncontrollably.
Lyren got down on the floor with her, holding her tightly as he tried to comfort her.
"It's okay, honey… We'll figure this out… i promise"
It was too late for the kids to be awake, or so Lyren thought. Lumin had been hearing the entire conversation.
Laying his back against the door of his shared bedroom with his little sister. He was only 6 years old, but Lumin understood the gravity of the situation.
His father, the one he looked up to and admired, was dying.
He felt a wave of emotions wash over him: sadness, fear, anger, impotence. He tried to understand, but he couldn't process it.
Why? Why his dad? Of all people, out of nowhere, with all the people that deserved death out there, why his father?
He took a breath, wiped away his tears. He decided to make the most out of this year with his father, to make his last year together, as happy as he could.
But it won't be as easy as the young Lumin though…