Moonlight

12 |One year later|

The home of the Madrigals was dark and quiet, the sun haven't yet risen. Every family member, including Bruno, being asleep....all except for one. 

Quiet giggling woke Bruno up, he didn't open his eyes since it was still early and he was exhausted. His daughter had been developing a habit of waking up early but she usually went back to bed, so he didn't think too much about it.

"Psst, Papa." Oh boy, it was one of those mornings. Bruno glanced over his shoulder and saw familiar purple eyes staring back at him. The seer turns to face the six year old Luna "Mija..we've talked about this. It's too early to play right now, go back to sleep." He mumbled. Luna giggles "I know but Luisa is having a funny dream about donkeys." She explained.

Ah, so that's why she's up early. Bruno sighs, he was relieved that it wasn't another nightmare that scared Luna awake. He sat up a bit and looked outside the small cracks in the walls to see it was still dark outside, Bruno rubbed his eyes "Luna, por favor. It's still very early in the morning, it's still time to sleep." He says.

Luna fiddles with her fingers "Can I sleep with you?" She asks, Bruno nods and made room for her on the mattress. He was used to Luna wanting to sleep with him for comfort or just because it was easier for her to fall asleep again. Luna made herself comfortable and Bruno turned onto his side, sleep just within his reach again "Papa?" "Hm?" "I'm thirsty..." This child of his.

Bruno groaned but got up to get Luna a glass of water. He walked out of the small room and down the hall until he got to their makeshift water pipe. Bruno had managed to divert one of Casita's bamboo pipes so he and Luna had access to water. He remembered how excited and impressed Luna was after he finished.

He walked back to the room after filling up Luna's glass and handed it to her "Thank you Papa." "No problem." He yawned before climbing back under the blankets. Luna moves closer to Bruno and he wraps his arm around her "Buenas noches Papa.." "Buenas noches Luna..."

They both fell back asleep and woke up later when the sun rose, alerting the Madrigals to start their day. Despite having energy earlier, it took Bruno a few minutes to make Luna get up.

Bruno brushes his teeth while Luna opens her journal to write about her most recent dream. Bruno had given her the idea to start writing about her dreams to help keep track of them.

"Why does Luisa keep having dreams about donkeys?" Luna questioned, Bruno shrugs "Luisa does spend a lot of time with having to rebuild the gate to keep them in, so that could be it." He explained. Luna nodded "That makes sense." She says, Bruno sits down next to her "Did the dream keep you up for too long?" The girl shakes her head "No, I think it kept me up for an hour but I already couldn't really sleep. I was up before Luisa started to dream."

Bruno frowns at that "Luna, we've talked about this. This new sleeping habit of yours isn't healthy for you. You need sleep." He says, "I know Papa but you don't have to worry about me." Luna reassures. Bruno brushes a few of her hair strands behind her ear, pretending not to notice the bags under her eyes "Oh, I'll always worry about mi mariposa pequeña. That's one of things that come with being a parent."

He kisses her on the cheek and Luna giggles "Now, go brush your teeth then we'll figure out what to do today." Bruno says. Luna groans "But Papa..." "Luna, this isn't up for debate. Go brush your teeth." The girl pouts but stomps off to do it.

The day consisted of Bruno patching up some of the cracks in the walls while Luna colored some of the sets that were used for Bruno's telenovelas. Luna often wanted to help but given her size, Bruno always worried she would get hurt.

Luna fed some of her arepa to Dolores and Pedro as she watched Bruno fill the cracks in the room with sand. Laughter from outside the walls caught her attention and she looked out one of the cracks to see her Mirabel and Camilo chasing each other around Casita. Luna felt sadness go through her, she really missed her family. Of course she was glad to have Bruno, but she missed Dolores, her baby cousins, her tías and tíos.

Bruno glanced behind him when he heard her sigh "Hey, are you ok?" He asks, Luna quickly wipes away her tears and smiles "Yeah, I'm ok!" She exclaims. Bruno knew better though, he hears his niece and nephew's laughter and connected the dots "Are you missing your cousins again?" He asks. Luna nods "A little...but it's already been a year and I still see them!"

The seer sighs and kneels down to Luna's height "Luna, you can miss your family. Yes it has been a year but you're still adjusting and that's ok. I miss our family too." He says. Luna fiddles with her hair "But...I have to be strong for you." She mumbles. Bruno's heart broke at that "Oh mi vida, you're the strongest girl I know. Why, you might even be stronger than Luisa!"

Luna giggles at that "No I'm not." She laughed, Bruno pretended to look shock "What? Are you saying I'm wrong? I'm the Papa, I'm never wrong!" He exclaims, the dreamer smiles at that "Aw, there's that smile I always love to see." Bruno pulls her in to smother her with kisses which causes the girl to squeal and laugh "Now, I believe you have some finished telenovela sets to show me."

Bruno couldn't help but reflect on the past year as Luna showed him the finished sets she colored. Yes, the year had been difficult but he was proud how they had both overcame. There were plenty of times he thought he made the wrong choice but seeing Luna being able to feel more like herself and not worry about everyone else's criticisms made him know he made the right choice.

Her smile was worth it. She was worth it.