The Light Of Their Life

✪ Chapter-1 ✪

Ademaro Bernardi

Beep.

Beep.

Beep.

I groan and reluctantly open my eyes, reaching out to silence the intrusive alarm. As I glance at the date, my heart sinks. Today is that day, the day we lost her. Another year has slipped away since she left us.

With a heavy heart, I reach for the picture frame resting on my nightstand. I hold it delicately, as if it were a precious treasure. " I wish you were here with us, my princess. Life feels incomplete without you." A tear escapes my eye, catching me off guard, a silent testament to the pain that still lingers.
"Dad, please come and have breakfast," my son's voice echoes from outside the room, breaking the silence.

I let out a weary sigh, my emotions still raw. Reluctantly, I place the picture back on the nightstand, knowing that I must face the day ahead. It's time to begin my morning routine, but the weight of her absence hangs heavily in the air.

-----

Today, of all days, I never expected the entire family to gather in the dining room for breakfast. Normally, on this day, everyone would be locked away in their rooms, consumed by grief. But today, there was progress. They had chosen to be present, to face the pain together.

As I settled into my chair, I couldn't help but notice the heavy silence that hung in the air. The younger children, oblivious to the significance of this day, were the only ones making any noise. The older ones on the other hand were trying their best to forget they were trying to move on, but it was clear that they hadn't forgotten.

I began to eat my pancakes, the taste a bittersweet reminder of the past. The meal continued in silence until Ezio, always the curious one, broke the tension. "What is wrong with everyone today? No one is talking."

The room tensed at his question, and Callisto, trying to dismiss the inquiry, replied, "It's nothing. We just weren't in the mood to talk today." Ezio glanced suspiciously at each of us, but eventually let it go.

"Dad can we have a family day today -

"no , not today , we have some important business to attend "Alonzo said interrupting his son.

Just as we were about to leave the room, a servant entered and delivered unexpected news. "Capo, Mr. Herdenaz is here to meet you." I couldn't help but wonder why he had chosen today, of all days, to visit. But since he was a family friend, we couldn't avoid him.

He doesn't know about her.The younger kids can't meet him until he knows, and we won't discuss her in front of them.Turning to the children, I suggested, "How about you guys go play for a while? We need to have a talk with Mr. Herdenaz."With that, my parents, brothers, and our older sons followed me to the living room, where we found him sitting on the couch, engrossed in his phone. As we entered, he looked up and greeted us with a smile.

"Hey Maro, how are you? It's been so long since we last met, but you haven't aged a day," he said, coming over and embracing me. I returned the gesture.

He smiled at everyone else and took a seat again, addressing our sons, "You kids have grown up."

"Oh, yeah, your triplets' birthday was two weeks ago, and I bought them presents. Where are they?" he continued.

With just one question, the atmosphere in the room shifted. Nobody wanted to revisit the day we lost our light.

"What's with the long faces? I really want to see your beautiful daughter because I still remember how adorable she was," he said to me.