"Alright Munchkin, time to go to bed", Felix carried his five year old daughter Ara and carefully placed her under the covers of her bed, tucking her in.

"I'm not tired yet. Can you tell me a story?", Ara asked while pouting.

"A story? Sure. What book do you want me to read?", he asked, about to go towards her little bookshelf but she said she wanted him to come up with a story.

Felix smiled and sat down on her bed so she can cuddle up against him.

"I think I know one. It's very special. I will try to make it short–"

"NO! I wanna hear all of it", she said.

She's always wanting to know the whole story, no matter who tells it. But she absolutely loves it when her dad reads to her because they hardly see each other.

"Alright then, better hug your Bitty Bunny", he said before starting the story.

"It all started a few years back, way before you were born. There were two kids, both ten years old, who love adventure......."

"You can't catch me!"

"Wait, you're running two fast!"

Both children were running along the dirt, sometimes jumping over fallen trees. They were racing toward their favorite spot. There was this tree, a really old tree with vines wrapped around and leaves of different colors, slighted slanted or leaned over so they could climb on it and sit to either talk about the future or the possibility of running away and starting their own treehouse club.

"Ha! I win!", the girl jumped excitedly before climbing on the tree.

"Not fair. You cheated. You ran before me", the boy hopped on as well and sat next to her.

She chuckled and shrugged her shoulders before setting her eyes on the sunrise. They'll always get up at 5 in the morning and meet up at the corner of their street before racing to their tree. They promised to do that everyday.

"What do you think will happen if we stop being friends?", she asked, looking down at her lap.

"Why would we stop being friends?", he asked.

"It's just...curiosity. What would you do?", she asked.

The girl is someone who focuses on all possibilities when it comes to the future. She feels like she needs to be prepared because she hates surprises.

"I would try my hardest to become your friend again and be the bestest friend out there. What makes you wonder there's a possibility we won't be friends?", he asked.

"I'm not always lucky, remember? When something gets good, something worse happens. Promise we'll be best friends forever?", she put up her pinky, waiting for him.

"Promise", he smiled while intertwining their pinkies together.

"So did they stay best friends??", Ara asked, hugging her stuffed bunny so tight.

"Hold on now, I'm not close to the ending yet. Anyway, two years pass. They become closer and closer. Eventually, the boy starts falling in love with the girl. He would do anything to make her happy. Sure they were young but that didn't matter to him. Though he was afraid to tell her how he feels because  he didn't want to ruin their friendship. There were times when he'd buy her small gifts. And when he didn't have money, he'd make her these crazy things. She got annoyed a few times because she kept telling him not to buy things for her but he wouldn't listen. It wasn't until he saw her talking to another boy. He could see how wide her smile would get when the other boy would make jokes. So he did the impossible", Felix said.

"He flew like a bird?", Ara guessed.

He chuckled and said, "No."

The boy wrote on a piece a paper and folded it before putting it in the girl's backpack. Even though they already met in the morning to watch the sunrise, he wanted to meet her again after school.

So he waited and waited for about 20 minutes. He wondered if she even read the letter...probably not.

"Hey!"

The boy looked back and smiled when he saw her climbing up the tree.

"What's up with the note? We never meet here after school", she said, getting comfortable on the tree.

"I feel like we should start. We have more time to hang out and we can talk. We can do homework here", he said.

"On Mondays and Wednesdays I have Gymnastics after school but all the other days sound good. But what if one of us can't make it?", she asked.

The boy placed a finger on his chin as he thought.

"We can let each other know in the morning when we meet", he said.

"Oh. Okay!", she smiled and looked forward, watching the boats floating on the ocean.

The boy scratched the back of his neck, opening his mouth to say something but he hesitated. Then he thought about the other boy who made her smile and laugh. He wants to be the only one to do that.

"There's..also something else", he said as he got her attention.

She smiled softly which made his heart do something. His chest hurts..but in a good way.

He's hesitating again. Sweat started forming which he hates because he doesn't want to smell in front of her.

"..Will you be my girlfriend?"

"That's it?? He just asked her?? Well what did she say??", Ara sat up and threw her stuffed bunny to the side.

"What do you think she said?", Felix asked her.

"Ummm..I think she said yes. Because they're best friends, right? And nothing changes because they're best friends except there will be a lot of hugging and kissing, right?", she said.

"What do you know about hugging and kissing? You're only five", he chuckled while patting her head.

"Are you gonna tell me what happens?", she asked.

"Yes but you're gonna have to sit your butt down", he said to her.

Once she did, he continued on with the story.

"After asking, he was afraid of the answer he'll get. She became quiet and her cheeks turned red. He thought he did something wrong and regretted right away asking that question. She stayed quiet for a few seconds and he was about to apologize but he got an answer. She said yes. It was a simple yes but it meant everything to him. On the outside he was calm and just said 'cool' but on the inside his heart and stomach were doing flips and turns", he said.

"Did they get married? Did they live happily ever after? They love each other so much, don't they? What about their family?", Ara asked.

"Their family? They were happy for them....for a while. The girl's parents noticed she kept sneaking out of the house and banned her from leaving and seeing the boy. His parents felt bad because they knew they loved each other with all of their hearts. The reason why they feel bad was because they were reminded of them when the two were young. The boy's parents tried to speak to the girl's parents but they wouldn't listen. Eventually the girl snuck out and met up with the boy at their special spot. Throughout the years, they have built around the tree so it'll become their treehouse. Once they saw each other, after three months of not being together, they felt complete again. They were in their mid-teens so of course they'll feel so much emotion", he said.

"Were they only together for that day? Did they not see each other anymore? What about their moms and dads? Were they really angry?", Ara asked.

"In life, there are bound to be surprises. Some bad and some good. Their surprise caused tension and problems with the girl's family. So they kicked her out and did not want to see her again. Luckily, the boy's family took her in and gave her all the love that her parents didn't give her. And their surprise grew as weeks have gone by."

"Are you still feeling sick? I can tell my mom to make you chamomile tea", the boy caressed the girl's head, pushing strands of hair behind her ear.

"I'm fine. It's just something I ate. Though I am craving some chocolate. You think you can get me some?", she asked.

"Of course. Anything for you", he smiled before kissing her cheek and then looking down at her stomach which is now at five months.

Anything she'd ask for, he'll go out and get it for her. Doesn't matter the time or weather, he would do anything to make her happy.

His parents treat her as if she's their own. They buy her clothes, not just for her but for her surprise as well. They're excited and can't wait until the time comes.

"The doctor's appointments would get their blood pumping with joy. But for the girl, she had received another surprise, one that turned her smile into a frown. She had kept that surprise a secret and thought that if she tell the boy and his parents, they won't be happy anymore. Something good and bad will come out of this surprise", Felix said, staring off out the window.

"What did she do?", Ara asked.

"Like I said, she kept it a secret. She would have good days and bad days. On the bad days, she'll just say she ate something not right for her stomach. The boy was there 24/7 to take care of her. She loved him so much and he loved her as well. On her good days, they'll go to their treehouse and talk. There was one question she asked that made the boy wonder."

"What if...one day, something happens that makes us not be together?", she asked.

"What do you mean?", he asked.

"I mean...what if one day, we won't see each other again? I know you'll say that that won't happen because we love each other too much but..I wanna know how you would feel", she said.

The boy held her hand tightly, softly kissing it before holding it close to his chest, "no matter what happens, we'll always be in each other's hearts. Because we have a bond, a connection."

She smiled softly before resting her head on his shoulder. Her smiled slowly disappeared and her eyes became watery.

"What was her secret? Is it really really bad? Did she fall in love with someone else?", Ara asked.

"Technically, yes. The surprise growing in her stomach, her other happiness. But that wasn't her secret because it was obvious that she loved two people. Her secret is bad, one that will bring terrible pain and suffering. But she'd rather suffer on her own than to cause it onto other people she cares about. Selfless is what the boy would describe her", Felix chuckled.

"She was protecting the boy, right? She didn't want him to be sad? But what about the surprise?", she asked.

He smiled and looked at her, noticing her eyes sparkling.

"Every night the girl would talk to her surprise, saying how much she wishes it was over. She'd tell stories, sing, talk about how she was feeling. There were times she'd feel kicking and felt scared at first. But the boy's mother explained that it was normal. One night the girl wasn't feeling well. They took her to the hospital and admitted her. It was a few weeks early for the surprise to arrive but the doctors said they had no choice. Hours and hours of waiting with other people who were waiting to hear news about their families. The boy paced back and forth, looking at his parents a few times for reassurance. Nothing in the world ever made him more worried than that moment", Felix said.

"The surprise is a baby, right? Was the baby okay?", Ara asked.

"Yes. The surprise turned out to be a beautiful baby girl, their daughter. When he carried her, he felt happiness, additional happiness. A young teenager never felt so much love and happiness...but also so much pain. That is what life can bring. Some are lucky and others aren't. For the girl, she was lucky until that moment she had their baby. The secret she was hiding, the doctors told her she had a weak heart. She'd known for months and the boy had no clue. He was devastated and blamed himself. Days after, he couldn't eat or sleep. He'd just lay in bed, wishing for the love of his life to return", Felix said.

"That's so sad", Ara said, pouting.

"It is. But every sad little thing, you must find something good of it. The boy had his daughter and his goal is to make her the happiest in the world. He would tell her short stories of his loved one, sing to her the songs she adored, and cuddle her when she had nightmares. The little girl was always happy to be with her father. She had a picture of her mother on her nightstand so she can always connect with her through her dreams. And she always does", he said.

"Is she happy now? With her dad?", Ara asked.

"I would say so, yes. But he sometimes wishes his love to be around to help her with a few things that he still doesn't understand. Every day he gets reminded of her from looking at his daughter's face", he said.

"Wow. I really like that story. I like it better than the donut story", Ara said.

Felix chuckled and glanced at her before thinking about something.

"Alright, it's time for bed. Goodnight", he kisses her forehead before tucking her in.

The next day, Felix woke up at 5 in the morning, got ready, and woke Ara up.

"I know it's really early but do you wanna go with me somewhere?", he asked.

Ara smiled and nodded excitedly.

He helped her put on her shoes and sweater before putting on her beanie. Ara skipped towards the living room where her grandma was, reading a magazine. She gets up at 3 in the morning. That's when her day starts.

"Hey bean, where you goin'?", she asked.

"Dad is taking me somewhere", Ara said.

"Yeah, somewhere special", Felix said.

His mom understood and gave Ara a hug.

The two got into the car and drove off. Ara kept counting every tree she sees and after twenty trees, Felix parked the car.

"Oooooh the forest", she hopped excitedly.

He held her hand and walked forward until they reached their destination.

"A treehouse! Look dad, a treehouse! Just like in the story!", Ara smiled and wanted to climb up.

Felix helped her and they sat down, facing the view. The sunrise caught her attention, making her more curious and happy.

"That's so pretty", Ara said.

"It is, right? Your mom and I used to come here. This was our spot. I have a few pictures of her and I always bring flowers. You know she's always looking out for you. She loved you so much", Felix said.

"I love mommy too. Can you show me more places where you went with her?", Ara asked.

"Yes. I was planning to do that anyway", Felix smiled as soon as the sun was going, being reminded of old times.

He can't wait to show Ara the whole world.