Zayn was jolted awake from the nightmare. His eyes were wide open as he had not recovered from the shock.
His mind turned blank when the dream ended, but the fear continued to haunt him even after he had woken up.
It took him a while to pull himself together. He placed his palm on his forehead, trying to regain his composure.
He looked out of the window and realized it was already the next morning.
The sky was drizzling, and he could hear car noises from a distance.
Zayn looked at the clock and noticed it was only seven in the morning. He wanted to go back to sleep, but something seemed to have triggered him, causing him to open his eyes.
He could see now.
In fact, his vision was so clear that he could see everything around him.
Unlike how weak and stiff his body was last night, he felt energetic today.
False alarm, I see…
I don't think I'll die so soon. At least not now. Thank God!
Zayn took a deep breath and got up from his bed. He must not waste any time as he had to accomplish as many plans as possible while he still could.
"Daddy, Daddy!" Randy, Josh, and Venus barged into his room.
"Hey. Welcome home." Zayn bent down and extended his arms to embrace them.
While Josh and Venus ran up to Zayn and hugged him, Randy observed him from a distance with knitted brows.
"It's time to go to school now." Zayn rubbed Josh and Venus's head. "You're half a semester behind, so you must work harder to catch up!"
"Okay, Daddy!" Josh and Venus responded with a nod.
Randy remained silent. A glint of confusion continued to flash across his eyes.
"What's wrong, Randy?" Zayn turned to him and asked. "Don't you want to go to school?"
"Don't you remember, Daddy? I'm learning much faster than what the school taught because I have a private tutor, " Randy answered softly.
Zayn reached out his hands and embraced him. "Are you not bored? You should go to school with Josh and Venus if you're bored."
Josh stepped in and said, "We'll go together tomorrow. There'll be a celebration in school tomorrow, and Mommy has given us permission to bring Alpha, Beta, and Gamma with us."
"I'm so excited! I wonder if they'll like our school, " Venus chuckled. "Can they come with us, Daddy?"
"Go ahead, since Mommy has given you the green light." Zayn gave Venus a peck on her kiss. He then turned to Randy, "Will you join them?"
"Yes, " Randy replied. He then turned to Josh and Venus, "You two should better get going."
"Oh, no. We're going to be late soon!" Josh took a glance at his watch. "Mr. Bugara, prepare the car! I'll go and grab my bag now."
"Wait for me!" Venus, too, dashed out of the room. Before leaving, she turned around, ran to Zayn, and kissed his cheeks. "Bye, Daddy! Bye Randy!"
"Bye, Venus." Randy waved at her.
"Have you taken your breakfast?" Zayn asked.
"Yes, at Mommy's place…" The two little ones put on their bags and scurried to the car.
After sending Josh and Venus off, Zayn squatted down and rubbed Randy's head gently. "You don't look happy. Is everything okay?"
"Are you sick, Daddy?" Randy asked. "You couldn't see anything last night, right? You made up a story because you couldn't read the words in the book. Are you sick? Tell me now." Tears started rolling down his cheeks.
Zayn looked at Randy and froze right there. So that's what's bothering my poor child. He doesn't deserve to go through this. He's only six years old…
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