Breakfast tastes more delicious than it usually does, probably because my heart is now filled with contentment.
I watch with a smile on my face as Aiden drinks his milk. Even though we've told him that he can skip school today if he's still not feeling better due to the accident yesterday, he insists that he still wants to go to school, all because he'll have his favorite subject today. Art.
After we finish our breakfast, Ms. Langston helps Aiden sling his backpack across his shoulders. Aiden looks like he can't wait toreach his school.
"I'm so excited for my first class today," he says with enthusiasm. "The teacher is going to tell us to watercolor on a really big paper, in a group."
Ms. Langston smiles, while Aiden continues blabbering about his project at school. Luke gets up from his seat too, and that's when I notice something.
His tie is slightly out of place.
As Luke walks around the table to approach me, I step closer to him. When he halts in front of me, I adjust his tie accordingly and smile, looking up at him.
Again, the look of adoration in his eyes makes my heart beat twice.
Abruptly, he pulls my arm to give me a passionate kiss on the lips, but I stop him.
"Aiden is watching," I whisper, giving him a warning look. "He's underage."
He tsks. "He's not looking," he says, keeping his voice down too.
I glance at Aiden, and indeed, the boy is still talking animatedly to Ms. Langston. Luke notices me off guard, pulls me and gives me a sound kiss on the lips, surprising me.
When I look at him in disbelief, amusement crosses his expression.
Oh, well. At least, it was just a quick kiss.
A hug from Aiden startles me. He grins, looking up at me. "Bye, Cassie."
I bend down and kiss his forehead. "Enjoy your day, Aiden."
He shoots me another grin before rushing toward the door. "Let's go, Luke," he exclaims, so eager to arrive early at school.
"I'll see you later," Luke says before giving me another peck on the lips. He walks off behind Aiden, and I sigh as I watch them go.
While I sit back at the table to finish my orange juice, Luke steps back into the dining room.
"I forgot my phone." He rushes back to the table, and indeed, his phone lies on it.
After grabbing his phone, Luke approaches me again, and I stand up from my seat.
"Kiss me again?" he asks with a hopeful look.
I roll my eyes, trying to suppress my laughter. I give him a quick kiss on the lips, and that's when Aiden's voice outside startles us.
"Luke! Hurry up!" his shouts echo in the air. "I know that you just want to kiss her."
Both Luke and I laugh. I shake my head in disbelief, watching as Luke strides out of the room again.
"Roger that, big boss," Luke shouts back at Aiden.
My heart is filled with joy from watching them. I feel like I'll never get bored with this kind of morning. A glance at Ms. Langston shows me that she has the biggest smile ever, a happy tear rolling down from the corner of her eye as she sniffs, and that sight melts my heart.
???
I couldn't move my body as I lay on the hard concrete. The shouts and whispers around me began to fade out as I started to lose consciousness.
I couldn't feel anything but pain. Pain in my body and in my heart.
