Liliana got up early in the morning, had just managed to comb her hair and wake up her son, when Jiho suddenly entered her house beaming.

"Ah, yes, don't bother knocking. Make yourself at home. " She glanced at him fleetingly.

"Oh, sorry. " He smiled at her and then ruffled Ben's head while eating breakfast.

"So? " Blonde asked and handed her friend coffee. "How did it go? "

Song blushed slightly.

"Thank you, Lily, I really do. " He said happily. "We explained each other everything and... " He breathed a sigh of relief. "We made it. "

Liliana smiled hearing these words.

"I'm happy for you. " She said as she sipped her hot drink. "You deserve happiness. I hope..." She fell silent for a moment and then looked at her friend again, smiling faintly. "I hope you're getting the best of your life now. You deserve it. " She added, then set the mug on the counter and approached her son. "Eaten? " She asked pleasantly.

"Mm! " Benjamin nodded. "Now, a muffin for dessert. " He was delighted to see the treat.

Jiho watched his friend sadly. He wanted to say something, to lift her spirits, to tell her that she too would be happy again, but he lacked the right words.

"Ah, Lily..." He glanced at her and scratched his head. "You know..."

"You don't have to say anything, Jiho. " She looked at him, stroking her son's head.

"I should say something. " Man said. "It's hard to find the right words for this, but..." He looked at his friend again and sighed softly. "You can still be happy too, Lily. "

Woman nodded.

"I have a son I have to take care of. "She said with a hint of sadness in her voice. "That's what I'm focusing on right now."

"I understand, but you can still feel what it's like... You know, falling in love. "

"I know what it's like, Jiho. " She interjected, glancing at him. "I felt the taste of love. I experienced the happiness I once dreamed of..." She smiled sadly. "It's enough for me. "

"But..."

"Thank you, Jiho. " She didn't let him say what Song meant. "But for me, Jikyo is the only one. " She said confidently. "I don't need another love. " She added then went to the bedroom and put on a green jacket. "Hurry up, sweetheart. We'll be late for school. "

"I'll take him. " Jiho suggested. "Go to work and I'll take care of Ben."

"Are you sure? You... "

"I have time, and you're still in a hurry to work. " Man interjected. "Go, don't worry. We'll be fine, won't we, laddie? " He looked at the boy with a smile.

"All right. " Woman nodded and kissed her son on the head. "Be good. "

~*~

Liliana had a lot to do at work, she didn't even have time to eat. Woman took the appropriate medication on a small tray and went to the next patient for whom she was to change the drip. What she saw there made her both sad and touched at the same time.

An unconscious man was lying on a hospital bed, and a young woman who was his wife was sitting right next to him. She held her beloved's hand, sleeping right on the edge of the bed.

Wilkinson quietly walked over to the drip and went about her work. Moments later, the woman woke up and looked at the nurse.

"Don't worry, I'm just changing the drip." Lily said.

"Is he getting better? " The wife asked hopefully.

"You should talk to your doctor, Mr. Williams. "

The woman sighed heavily.

"I'm afraid of what I may hear... " She admitted honestly, which caught Liliana's attention. "The only thing that can help us is a miracle. " She giggled nervously, tears streaming down her cheeks, which she wiped away immediately.

"Please don't lose hope. " Wilkinson said and put the rest of the things on the tray. "If you give in, he will too." She looked at the unconscious man.

"I'm trying, but... It's so hard. " She cried. "We recently buried our son. He was taking drugs, he couldn't control his addiction and he didn't want to listen to us even though we tried to help him for so long. " She said broken. "Now my husband..." She looked at the man. "It's too much... "

Liliana lowered her head sadly, listening carefully to the desperate woman's words.

"And you... Do you have a husband? Kids? " She asked, wanting to change the painful topic.

"I had. " Wilkinson replied sadly, which caught the attention of her companion. "I recently buried my husband... Now my son is the only reason I'm still alive." She admitted honestly. "I perfectly understand you, ma'am. " She nodded.

"How do you deal with it? I feel like I'm losing strength... I don't know what to do. "

"This is hard. " Blonde said. "It took me quite a long time to recover from the loss of my husband. I still miss him and it won't change... But I promised him that I won't give up... " She lowered her head sadly. "And I won't break my word."

"You're very strong. "

"No. " Woman interrupted her. "I'm just pretending." She said. "I pretend all the time... I'm not really strong at all." She added then sighed heavily. "I have to get back to work. " She said and left the room.

The woman hurriedly went to the room where all the medicines were. Lily put down the tray, then placed one hand on her stomach and the other covered her mouth. Blonde slowly took a deep breath and sighed heavily, trying to control her emotions.

"It's okay..." She whispered to herself. "It's fine..." She shook her head, feeling that she had tears in her eyes. "I'll keep my word, Jikyo. I will..."

After a few minutes, when she managed to calm down, woman confidently left the room and returned to work.

After her shift ended, Wilkinson went to pick up her son. On the way, she went to the cemetery and laid fresh sunflowers on her husband's grave, smiling sadly.

"Are you watching us? " She asked in a half whisper. "Jiho finally got along with Trent, both are doing well. " She said with a smile. "Ben is doing great in school. He has many friends and discovers more and more talents in himself. We have a really great son. " She looked at the tombstone sadly. "I'm doing fine, too... Or so I think." She sighed heavily. "I won't let you down, Jikyo. " She said confidently, looking at her husband's name.

Woman stood there in silence for a few more minutes, then ran her hand through her hair and sighed heavily.

"I miss you..." She whispered feeling tears on her cheeks.

Blonde glanced at her husband's watch. It was one of the things that had left after her husband died. Seeing what time it was, Lily said goodbye to her beloved and went to fetch her son.

When she got there, the teacher called her to her place.

"What happened? " Wilkinson asked, seeing her son's injured knee.

"The boys were chasing each other in the playground and that was it. " The teacher said. "And I've asked them so many times to stop. "

"It hurts a lot? " Lily crouched across from her son, who shook his head. Boy tried to hide his tears but his mother saw them anyway.

"Fortunately, nothing serious happened. " The other woman said.

"This shouldn't even be happening." Liliana interjected, glancing at the teacher over her shoulder.

"Accidents happen, we can't control everything. "

"Yeah, I know something about that. " Wilkinson replied, then took her son's hand and led her home.

Once they were there, woman tended to her son's wound and carefully watched his reaction.

"It hurts a lot, doesn't it? " She asked looking at Ben.

"N-no..." He lied.

"Sweetheart. " Blonde took his hands. "Look at me." She asked, and boy did. "Tears aren't bad, baby. You should openly show what you feel. You don't have to suppress your emotions. "

Benjamin listened carefully to his parent's words, and after a while he began to cry softly.

"I can't be sad. Surely someone has it worse than me... " Little boy said wiping tears from his cheeks. Hearing these words, Liliana remembered her conversation with Jikyo.

"Sweetheart. " Lily took his face in her hands and smiled kindly at him. "You know what? Someone once told me something very important, and I agree with what he said. " She said then added. "Saying you can't be sad because others have it worse is like saying you can't be happy because others have it better."

Ben stopped crying and looked at his mother curiously.

"Who told you that, mom? " He asked.

"Your appa. " She replied with a smile. "Your dad. " She patted her son on the head. "These are very wise words, aren't they?

"Mm..." Boy nodded. "Appa was very smart..." He added sadly.

"So are you. " Woman said. "Dad has taught you a lot. "

"I miss him, mom..." He admitted timidly.

Blonde sat next to the child and hugged him, which the boy reciprocated.

"I miss him too, baby. " She nodded and kissed her son on the head. "So much."

"Do you think he's watching us from up there?" Ben looked at his mother curiously.

"I think so. " She said, stroking his head.

"I'll draw something new for dad, we'll go show it to him later? " He asked hopefully.

"Mm, okay. "

Benjamin went to his room and began to work while Liliana stayed in the living room and sadly glanced at the pictures of her husband standing in front of her.

"He's so similar to you..." She whispered with a sad smile.

"Mom! Can you help me here? " Boy called.

"I'm coming, sweetheart. " Blonde said and after a while went to her son.

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Apart from this chapter, there are only four chapters left, including the epilogue (っ˘̩╭╮˘̩)っ

That time passed very quickly (╥﹏╥)

Have a nice day/evening! (⌒‿⌒)