I make it back home safely. I tiptoe past my sisters' and mum's room as I make my way to my room. I see Rae-na curled up in my bed with a blanket wrapped around her small body. She's clutching on her teddy bear as she snores lightly. I smile at her and try my best to be as quiet as possible when I change and get into bed beside her. Dad's sudden leaving must be hard for her. She's just a little girl after all.
"Luna?" She mumbles and opens her eyes.
"Did I wake you up?" I ask softly.
"Mhm," she sounds and turns to face me.
She nuzzles into my body and I wrap my arms around her as I whisper, "What's wrong?"
"It's weird without dad here and mum is acting strange, she doesn't care about me much anymore," she mutters.
"Things will get better," I say even. "I know mum is trying her best to be happy again."
The young girl nods slowly and sniffs. I hug her tighter and lean my head against hers. I'll never leave her side, I'll be the older sister she needs me to be. I'll protect her and take care of her, just like how Mina looks after me. I'll be Rae-na's role model and I'll love her unconditionally. She'll have the happy childhood she deserves, like any other kid in a happy and whole family.
"Luna?" she asks.
"Yeah?" I murmur with my eyes closed.
"Will dad come back? Will he and mum be together again?"
I hesitate before answering her, although it's clear that dad will never come back. There's no reason for him to be here. He must be at some random girl's house and hooking up with her right now. Even if he really does come back, he's not welcome here. He's toxic to Rae-na, I won't let him come back and I know neither will Mina or mum.
Yet, still I reply, "Maybe. Do you want dad to come back?"
She's quiet for a while, "I don't know."
"I want the old dad to come back," she says as she sobs softly. "I miss it when dad was always smiling and played with me."
"Shh..." I say and rub her back gently. "We can can play together too. You, me, Mina and mum. We'll have fun together, okay?"
"Okay," she replies.
"It's late, we should go to sleep. Close your eyes." I say and kiss the top of her head.
---
I wake up when I feel someone nudging my arm. I slowly open my eyes and see Rae-na kneeling by my side. She has already changed out of her pyjamas and is wearing a bright yellow dress with a pink bow in her hair.
I groan as I squint my eyes from the sunlight shining through my window, "Why are you all dressed up?"
She's jumping up and down on my bed giddily as she replies, "We're going to have a tea party!"
"Tea party?" I ask in confusion and she nods her head energetically.
I sit up from my bed and reach my hand out to her, "Stop bouncing, Rae-na. You're giving me a headache."
She sits back down on my bed obediently, "Mina says we're going to have a tea party, she decorated the house and I helped out too."
I'm still puzzled as I look at my little sister with a blank expression, "Huh?"
"Just dress up," she says enthusiastically and drags me out of bed.
She dashes out my room with a wide smile plastered on her face.
I stand in my room as I blink in bafflement. My hair is tousled and my pyjamas are crumpled. Maybe my brain isn't processing information as quickly because I just woke up.
Moments later, Mina comes into my room and says, "Why are you just standing there? Go get changed, we're having a tea party."
Mina is all dressed up as well. She's wearing a long sky blue wrap dress and she has an artificial flower tucked behind her ear. She's holding onto a flower crown. My flower crown.
I stare at it and she notices, so she says, "Oh, here. I found it laying around in one of the drawers outside. Now's the perfect time to put it on. You used to love it so much when we were younger. Do you remember it?"
I nod, "Yeah, you made it for me."
"Mhm," she says with a smile and lays it on my desk. "Anyways, go and change."
"Why are we even having a tea party?" I ask.
"I just thought we could do something fun," she says and I nod.
She leaves my room and I start to rummage through my closet for something nice to wear. I end up wearing a short off-white dress with lace details, and I place the flower crown on my head before leaving my room.
I'm slightly astonished when I see that the dining room is decorated. There's a white cloth over the table and there are various desserts displayed upon it, as well as a set of teacups and a teapot. There's a vase of different coloured roses placed in the middle of the table. The walls are adorned with banners and fairy lights. There are even flowers placed on every desk and shelve of the room. I look around me in amazement. The whole room has been transformed, it looks so much more lively and beautiful.
Rae-na skips over to me and grabs my hand. She pulls me over to the table and ushers me to take a seat as she sits down beside me. Mum is sitting opposite me with Mina beside her. She's in a floral dress and her hair is slightly curled.
"Shall we start our tea party?" Mina asks and begins pouring the tea for each of us.
"Yes!" Rae-na instantly replies excitedly and reaches out to take a cupcake.
I smile at her and take a red velvet cupcake as well.
Rae-na looks so happy as she stuffs herself with all the food and she's grinning with every bite she takes, which makes me feel somewhat joyful as well. I momentarily forget about all my problems. All I can focus on is Rae-na's happiness which I definitely don't want to ruin, so I keep eating and smiling along with her. Even mum is trying her best to be merry for her sake.
"You have frosting all over your mouth," Rae-na giggles as she points at me.
"You have frosting on your face too," I say to her and quickly wipe away the frosting at the corner of my mouth with my finger and dab it onto Rae-na's nose.
"Hey!" she says with a frown and I chuckle.
Mina laughs too and Rae-na says upsettingly, "Hey, why are you laughing at me? You're both so mean."
"Mommy... Mina and Luna are bullying me," Rae-na whines.
Mum just shrugs and grins. This is the first time I've seen mum smile ever since dad left. Or maybe even ever since several years ago, when she and dad started having disagreements.
Rae-na wipes away the frosting and dabs it back onto my nose, "Ha! Now it's on your face."
"Not anymore, it isn't," I say as I stick out my tongue as I wipe away the frosting and reach to dab it on Mina's cheek.
"Hey! What did I ever do to deserve this?" Mina says and pouts.
Rae-na and I laugh at her as she continues looking at me with puppy eyes, before dabbing the frosting onto mum's face.
Mum looks slightly astonished by Mina's action, but chuckles either way, "Am I your victim now?"
She smiles as she wipes away the frosting with a tissue and ends the frosting dabbing game.
We're still laughing as we continue acting like little girls. I feel like a normal teenaged girl with no troubles at all. We're all so full of joy that we're laughing and playing around. Mum is finally smiling and I am too. I'm elated, the most cheerful I've ever been in a long time. I bet we can all agree that today has been the happiest we've been in years. This is the first time we enjoyed something as a family ever since mum and dad began quarrelling and ever since I got diagnosed with depression. We're all so full of spirit, the atmosphere feels so much more comforting and relaxing, there is no longer tension or frustration between us. There is only pure euphoria.
I'm grateful Mina had the idea of having a tea party and I'm glad that I'm having fun with my sisters and mum. I'm glad I didn't choose to wallow alone in my room and drown myself with sadness. We deserve to be carefree and joyous after such a long period of gloominess and darkness. I hope this contentment would last forever and we no longer need to be in the shadows of despair.