The next morning, Ace opened his eyes before the sun had fully risen. For a few seconds, he simply stared at the ceiling, letting the quietness of the room settle around him. His gaze soon drifted to the sunflower beside his bed, its bright yellow petals glowing warmly in the soft morning light. Slowly, he sat up, then looked toward the picture frame resting on his desk—a photo of him and David. His chest still ached every time he saw it, but this morning, the pain felt different. It no longer crushed him the way it once had. Taking a slow breath, he climbed out of bed, showered, brushed his teeth, and put on a clean uniform. It had been weeks since he had properly attended class, weeks since he had cared enough to get ready for the day. But today was different. Today, he wanted to try. When he finally stepped out of his room, he found his mother coming down the hallway, a basket of freshly folded laundry resting in her arms.
She froze.
Her eyes widened. "Ace?"
He looked at her.
"Morning, Mom."
For a moment, she simply stared at him. His hair was neatly combed, his uniform was clean and pressed, and his backpack rested comfortably over one shoulder. It was the version of Ace she hadn't seen in a very long time. The boy who looked like himself again. A smile slowly spread across her face, gentle and filled with relief, as if a weight she had been carrying had finally begun to lift.
"Good morning," she said softly.
"I'll make breakfast."
Without waiting for an answer, she hurried to the kitchen. Ace could hear her softly humming as she prepared breakfast, a sound he hadn't heard in months. When he entered the dining room, he found his father already seated at the table with a newspaper in his hands. The older man looked up, and his eyes immediately widened in surprise. For a brief moment, neither of them spoke. Then his father slowly lowered the newspaper, still staring at him in disbelief. "You... you're going to school?"
Ace nodded. "Yeah."
His father looked away, as though he didn't know what to say. After a moment, he quietly replied, "That's good." The words were simple, but they were probably the kindest thing his father had said to him in a very long time. Soon, breakfast was ready, and the three of them sat down to eat together. The silence that filled the room wasn't awkward or heavy—it was peaceful. His mother kept slipping extra food onto his plate with a gentle smile, while his father occasionally glanced at him, as if making sure this wasn't all a dream. When Ace finished eating, he stood up, picked up his backpack, and prepared to leave for school.
"I'm leaving."
His mother smiled. "Study hard."
"I will."
His father nodded once.
"Take care."
Ace blinked in surprise before giving a small nod.
"You too."
He walked outside, climbed onto his bicycle, and began pedaling through the cool morning air. The streets were still quiet, with only a few early risers out and about. But instead of heading straight to school, he turned onto a different road—a road he hadn't traveled in months. A few minutes later, he arrived at the cemetery. The place was peaceful, disturbed only by the gentle songs of birds and the soft rustling of leaves in the breeze. After parking his bike, Ace quietly made his way through the rows of graves until he finally stopped in front of one. David's grave. His heart tightened at the sight. Slowly, he lowered himself to his knees.
"Hey, bro."
A small smile appeared on his face. "I finally came to visit," he whispered. For a long moment, he simply stared at the name engraved on the stone before lowering himself onto the grass. "You know... a lot has happened." The words came more easily than he had expected. One by one, he told David everything—about the fight with their father, running away from home, the strange forest, the mysterious lake, the police officers who had found him, and the woman he had seen dancing beneath the moonlight. It felt as though David was still there, quietly listening to every word.
"I know it sounds crazy," Ace said with a small laugh.
"But I can't stop thinking about her."
A gentle breeze passed through the cemetery.
Ace lowered his head.
His smile faded.
"I miss you, bro."
His voice cracked.
"Every day."
Tears filled Ace's eyes, but he quickly wiped them away. "You were right," he murmured, his gaze fixed on the gravestone. "I've been wasting my life." His hands slowly tightened into fists as the weight of his own words settled over him. "I stopped caring about school. I stopped caring about myself. I blamed everyone." Another tear slipped down his cheek, but this time he didn't try to hide it. Taking a slow, steady breath, he lifted his head. "But I'm done doing that." His voice grew firmer with every word that followed. "I'll be serious this time. I'll study hard. I'll finish my degree. I'll become someone you'd be proud of."
The morning sunlight warmed his face, and for a fleeting moment, it almost felt as if David were sitting beside him, quietly listening—just like old times. Ace smiled through his tears. "I'll keep moving forward," he whispered. Gently, he brushed away a few fallen leaves from the grave before slowly rising to his feet. "Don't worry about me anymore." He wiped his eyes one last time and managed a small, genuine smile. "I've got this." A gentle breeze swept through the trees, their leaves rustling softly as if carrying an unspoken reply. Ace looked at the gravestone one last time. "Love you, bro." Slinging his backpack over his shoulder, he returned to his bicycle and began riding toward the university. As the wheels carried him down the quiet road, the weight that had burdened his heart for so long finally felt a little lighter. The road ahead was still uncertain. There would still be pain, unanswered questions, and wounds that would take time to heal. But for the first time since David's death, Ace wasn't running from his grief anymore. He was finally moving forward.