Under The Moonlight

Epilogue (Part 1)

RAVEN POV 

The hustle bustle in the house woke me up from my slumber. I was exhausted from the previous night's exhibition and my body ached almost everywhere. I let out a huff and pulled myself up when Trixie came bounding up to me, jumping on my stomach and I fell back onto the bed, pain shooting up my arm.

"Hi grandpa! Wake up! Momma and papa asked me to bring you down for brunch." Trixie huffed as she tugged on my arm. 

"Okay honey. But I need a minute for myself so why don't you go down and help while I freshen up?" I smiled at the seven year old girl who gave a boxy grin before running out the door with my golden retriever Lucky in tow. I stared at the empty side of the bed, giving it a tiny pat after staring at it for a few seconds and sighed as I stood up. 

I brushed my teeth, feeling yet another slumber spell hit me and dozed off as I continued the action. I startled awake when a knock resounded on the bathroom door and after nearly shouting at my daughter Lucia, to give me a few minutes, I was out the room and in the dining hall. Lucia smiled at me when I walked in, giving me a hug and that was followed by another hug from her husband Felix. 

"You guys are here early. It's literally only twelve in the afternoon." I moaned in frustration when I felt my back hurt. Growing old was really a pain in the ass. 

"Come on, dad. If we had come any later, you would have slept through lunch and woken up in the evening to no food and a cranky dog. Besides we did not want to leave you alone on your anniversary." She said, arranging plates onto the table. 

"Right." I whispered as Trixie ran back to me, asking me if I could play with her for a while. 

"Bellatrix, let grandpa eat something first. Also don't you have homework to do?" Felix sighed as he held out a hand for Trixie. The girl was clinging onto my leg and I did not have the energy to pull her off. 

"Spider monkey. If you finish your homework, I play with you for as long as you want." I said, smiling as I patted her head and she finally let go with a pout. I was weak when it came to her pouts. I was going to give in and play with her then and there but she stopped putting up a fight and followed her dad quietly. 

"Dad?"

I hummed in response as I stared at Seb's coffee mug. It was getting dusty. He would hate that.

"It's nothing. How's the pancakes?" She mumbled and I smiled back at her.

"Tastes just like Seb's. You used his recipe, didn't you?"

She shook her head to say yes and I ruffled her black, curly hair. 

"That explains why I love it so much. He always made this for our anniversary. It's my favourite."

"I know." She said softly and I returned to staring at the coffee mug.

--

It was half past five when Leah, Mark and Liam arrived with their respective families. Jacob and Jesse, Leah's twin grandsons immediately rushed towards Trixie, talking animatedly with her about a cartoon show. The kids were also joined by Marcella, Mark's grand-daughter and they all rushed towards the backyard to play.

"Chris couldn't make it. He fell sick, food poisoning. He feels really bad though." Liam said, as he hugged me and I sighed in his embrace.

Leah and Mark joined in for a group hug and we were back to chit chatting about our lives. 

"I still cannot get over how pretty your house is." Leah walked towards the photo hung over the fireplace. "This is such a cute photo. Did you change it recently? It used to be Seb's and your wedding photo." 

"Yeah." I stared at the beautiful boy in the picture who had his eyes shut, grinning from ear to ear as I kissed his cheek. "Just needed a reminder."

"You guys will be sleeping over tonight, right?" I questioned, still looking at the photo.

"Obviously. We'll have a movie marathon as well."

"Okay."

--

The house was finally basking in serenity as the kids slept. I was out on the porch, Seb's letter in hand with two mugs of hot cocoa beside me. He had given me this letter a year after I got into Parsons and him into Julliards. It had become a ritual to read it every year on our anniversary and he used to always laugh when I did so. 

Giving it another read, I could feel the tears pricking at the corner of my eyes. When I was done, I placed it beside his coffee mug and looked up towards the starry sky.

I wished he was here.