Solflare: The Painter's Secret-Chapter 113: Silent Promise

’Should I tell her now?’ Leon stared at Lily’s amber eyes, the goodbye he had to deliver lodging in his throat like a jagged stone. ’No, I can’t change her happy mood.’

"Come here!" he said, forcing a playful growl, and grabbed her, tickling her on the sides.

Lily shrieked with laughter, squirming in his grip. ’She can’t handle it. I can’t let her know. She has to find out,’ he screamed in his thoughts.

He giggled, tickling her relentlessly for another five minutes until both of them became breathless.

"It’s time to go to sleep," he said, his heart heaving as he released her.

"I want to sleep by your side today," Lily stated, her face still shimmering with joy as she bounced on the mattress.

"Nah," Leon said, standing up. He playfully scooped her up and cradled her against his chest. "Okay, let’s play a game."

"What game is that?" Lily asked, her expression shifting into curiosity. "Is it the game we used to play whenever Dad came back from work?"

At the mention of the word Dad, Leon’s fragile heart crumpled into uncountable pieces. A fresh wave of loss washed over him like water.

Leaving now felt like hitting two birds with one stone.

He forced a smile on his face. "Mm, yeah, that game," he said, gently pricking her nose with his pinky finger. "But this time," he paused, staring into her trusting eyes, "ehh, don’t come search for me. I will come search for you."

Lily’s face brightened with understanding. "Hide and seek!"

"Exactly," Leon said, the words tasting like ash in his soul.

He carried her on his back and ran a laughing marathon down the quiet hallway. Their footsteps were muffled.

He skidded to a stop in front of Li Mei’s closed door, both of them giggling.

"Shh... shh..." Lily placed her index finger on Leon’s lips, her own laughter subsiding into a whisper. "Mom could be asleep. Don’t go and wake her up."

"Let’s go then," Leon whispered back, setting her down and holding her small hand in his.

Just as he stretched his hand for the handle of their mother’s door, Lily yawned. A huge, jaw-cracking sound echoed. She rubbed her eyes with her right arm.

"Leon, I want to sleep," she mumbled, the excitement draining and getting replaced by the heavy drag of exhaustion.

Leon’s heart clenched as he led her to her own room, which was adjacent to their mother’s. He stood by the door and watched her climb onto the large bed until her tired, smiling face turned toward him.

"Leon, come and hug me before you go," she said, spreading her arms wide.

Leon walked over and wrapped his arms around her in a tight embrace. Lily leaned into his left ear, her soft puff of breath prickling his skin.

"Make sure you sleep early," she whispered, then yawned again. Her body went limp against his, but she fought it for a second and brought her lips closer. "I will come there early in the morning."

Her body went slack as her words ended on a sigh.

Leon held her for a little longer, his eyes burning. ’I hope you become happy when you see what I will leave for you.’

He swallowed hard, then gently laid her back against the pillows, carefully tucking the cloth around her body.

He walked to the door, stood there for a while, then turned and watched her. With extreme slowness, Leon pulled the door shut until it clicked with a soft thud.

He inhaled deeply, feeling the hallway’s empty pressure. He doubled his steps the moment he neared his mother’s door.

He stretched his hand, but before he could touch it, he noticed the door was already ajar, her humming voice echoing in a sweet tone.

"Leon."

Li Mei sat in her wheelchair by the open window, a night breeze stirring her hair when Leon pushed the door open.

In her hands, she held a red cloth that looked to be freshly woven by hand.

"Come closer," she said, her blind eyes seeming to track the movement.

Leon moved to her, knelt by her side like a child, and rested his head on her lap. He inhaled the scent of her soap and the faint smell of her.

"Mom," he tried to speak, but Li Mei lifted a finger and placed it gently on his lips.

"Shh. Don’t waste our energy speaking," she said, her hand on his lips trembling slightly.

’How did she know where my lips were?’ he wondered.

"Take this," she said, raising the red cloth. She stretched her arm out toward the open window as if presenting something to him.

Leon stretched his right arm, guided her hand, and gracefully took the cloth. "I’m here, Mom," he said, tears welling in his eyes.

"I know," Li Mei replied in a voice that sounded strange. "I can see your father smiling at us from the skies."

’Dad?!’ Leon’s body stiffened. He tilted his head slightly, following the direction of her unseeing gaze.

He stared into the empty, star-flecked sky and saw nothing but the night.

"There is nothing there," he said softly, placing a comforting hand on her back. "Let me take you to bed. You’re tired. Dad is no longer here." He stood up and made the move to help her up.

Li Mei shook her head firmly. "No, Leon, look. He is right there, staring and still smiling at us." Her voice grew more insistent, tears snaking down her cheeks.

She raised her hand and kept pointing with conviction to a spot Leon hadn’t looked at.

Leon squinted and looked again. And there, under the black, moving clouds, he saw the single, unblinking eye he had seen from the hospital window above Alchemania. The very eye that seemed to be haunting him for days, weeks, and months.

’Is that Dad?!’ he screamed in his thoughts, his heart hammering against his chest as he blinked rapidly.

He looked at his mother’s tear-stained face, then whipped his head back to the sky, clenching his jaw.

His jaw loosened when he saw the spot empty.

"Take this and wear it around your neck whenever you miss us," Li Mei said, pressing the red cloth into Leon’s hands.

’Does she know I’m leaving?’ Leon looked at her, stunned. "Mom," he tried again, his voice cracking.

Once more, she quieted him. "Shh. Don’t say anything. I know it." She yawned. "Help me to my bed, my son."

Leon obeyed, carefully lifting her from the wheelchair and carrying her to the bed, then laying her down.

He arranged the pillows under her head with a tenderness that felt like breaking.

Li Mei’s hand shot out and held onto Leon’s. Her blind eyes stared at his, almost as if she could see.

"Don’t worry about me. Worry about your sister while you’re away." She paused, then coughed heavily.