"Diamond?"
"Hm?"
He leaned in and pressed a kiss to my lips, "I love you."
With a smile, I kissed him back, "I love you."
"Tallia."
Someone put their hand on my shoulder and turned me around. Looking at their face under the hood of their jacket, my...
"Happy birthday, sweetheart," daddy said, putting down his bag to pick me up from the ground. I smiled, "Thank you, daddy."
He smiled back and pecked my cheek softly before carrying me to the dining room. Mommy, Kristoff, KT, Sammy, and Dee-Dee were already sitting at the table, waiting for us.
Daddy placed me down in between Sammy and Kristoff before walking over to the head of the table.
"Let's eat," he said and I, being the smart kid, hopped off the chair and went to him.
"Daddy, can I have cake?" I asked him in the sweetest voice I could muster. He chuckled and picked me up, placing me on his lap, "No, you can't, Tallia. You have to eat your dinner first, okay?"
I pouted, "But I want cake..."
He tapped his finger on his chin before saying, "How about I give you your present? Will that make you eat your dinner?"
I nodded quickly and mommy took me to sit on her lap as daddy got up and went away. Mommy fed me a small piece of the egg from her plate before daddy came back. He was holding a large present behind him.
"Sweetheart, come here."
I looked at mommy and she placed me on the ground, letting me run my little feet towards daddy. He put the present in front of me and let me hold one of the ribbons, "Pull this and the present will open."
I pulled it and the ribbon came undone, causing the walls of the box to fall and reveal...a big teddy bear!
The teddy bear is white and has a purple bow around the neck. I hugged daddy's legs tightly, his purple tie draping across my head when he leaned down, "Thank you, daddy."
He patted my head softly, "You're welcome, sweetheart."
I let go of him and hugged my new best friend, "His name is going to be Mr. Snuggle Snow."
Mommy came and squatted down beside me, running her fingers through my hair, "Why is that, sweetie?"
I pulled away a little to give her a toothy smile, "Because his fur is white like snow and I can snuggle with him."
She smiled back and daddy took out his phone, "How about we take a picture?"
Kristoff and KT nodded, getting off their chairs, and walking to us.
Dee-Dee's daddy took my daddy's phone and we posed for a picture. KT placed Mr. Snuggle Snow next to me before standing next to mommy.
Tonight was the best night ever.
Daddy always said if I am a good girl, every daywill be a good day.
Saturday, 12th December 2020
I softly held the ribbon and noticed there wassomething on the underside. I took the ribbon off and read the sentence.
Under all jewelry, words to give you my all. –Dad
I raised an eyebrow and went to my vanity table.
"Under all jewelry..." I mumbled to myself and looked under the table. There was a thin brown packet there. I took off the tape and retrieved it to take a look at the words at the bottom.
Name: James M. Estrada Topic: Last Will and Testament (only to be opened by either Krystallia M.Estrada, Jason R. Estrada, or Elliot T. Collins)
Oh, god.
I ran out of my room and knocked on Kris' door before barging in, "Kris!"
He looked up at me before pushing himself to sit up, "Yes?"
"Dad's will."
He tilted his head in confusion, "Didn't Uncle Elliot say he didn't receive anything?"
I waved the packet in my hand, "Dad stuck it under my vanity. He wrote it on the ribbon of my teddy bear.
He held a hand out and I placed the folder on it. He looked at the bottom and read the words.
"Let's hand this to Uncle Elliot then," he said and I nodded, getting myphone to call him.
***
Monday, 14th December 2020
It wasn't a big funeral.
Dad never wanted it to be. He only wanted close family and friends. Mom was the same.
Currently, we stood in the backyard of the base. It felt a little awkward to dig up his old grave that never actually had a body inside, but the workers did it and we bought a new coffin for dad.
He laid inside the polished wood coffin, having shaved by the makeup artist, and changed into a bright white suit. His hair was combed and smoothened to look like his old self.
In one month of seeing him in hoodies, scruffy jeans, worn-out shoes, and a bag glued to his back, I couldn't get used to him being so...clean and relaxed.
The officiant allowed us to see him one last time before they close the coffin. I looked up at the twins and they smiled at me before Kris walked up first, followed by KT.
I felt Zach place a soft kiss on my bangs before letting go of my waist. I walked over to KT and gazed at dad's face one last time, remembering every little detail.
The mortician had moved his mouth into a smile too, the same smile he will wear to his grave.
I placed a hand on the edge of the coffin, smiling softly, "I'll miss you, dad."
With some kind of closure, I walked back to the group and waited for everyone to take a look at him one more time.
Zach went with Sam and I saw his lips move but couldn't make out what he was saying. Sam looked at him and patted his shoulder before they came back. Zach stood next to me while Sam stood behind.
The officiant asked if the family, us, wanted to stay and witness the coffin being closed and we accepted. Everyone who had no blood relation stepped inside while we stood still.
The coffin closed and it gave me the rest of the closure I needed.
Now, dad will rest with mom, wherever they choose to be. Be it heaven or hell.
Thank you for choosing to read HIC. Follow me (@lephantomsoh) on Instagram to get sneak peeks and random snippets of things.
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