Goodbye, my dear child
It's a normal morning in New York. As always, Jessie is the first to wake up and get ready. The young woman yawns exhausted and opens her door to wake the children up. A normal new working day. As every morning, Jessie knocks on the room doors to wake the kids and runs downstairs. Bertram is already in the kitchen and making breakfast. Jessie takes a cup of coffee and sits on a bar stool. "Bertram, I have an audition this afternoon. Please take care of the children." Bertram rolls his eyes. "Couldn't you do your job for once?" Now it's up to Jessie to roll her eyes. "You don't make yours either." At next moment a yawning Ravi comes in and drops onto a chair. "Good morning, Ravi," Jessie smiles and the Indian boy returns the greeting. "Where are your siblings?" Ravi looks at Jessie incredulously. "You know them." Jessie smiles. Yes, now she knows the children very well. With a smile she gets up and is about to go upstairs when Emma and Zuri come to meet her. Of course there is no sign of Luke. "Morning. I'll be right there. I'm just going to get your brother." With these words, the young woman goes up the stairs and to Luke's room. She knocks again. "Luke? Luke, are you awake?" No Answer. Great, so he's still sleeping. And soon the children have to go to school. Jessie carefully opens the door. The room is dark and she recognizes a calm figure in bed. Jessie sighs. He's probably been playing video games all night again, so he's not getting out of bed. The red-haired girl goes to the window and opens the shutters. Luke is still not moving. He lies on his stomach, his bed is untidy, as if he had rolled around a lot, his mouth opened slightly and his eyes closed. The picture appears peaceful and calm. "Luke, wake up!" But the freckled boy doesn't respond. Jessie walks up to him and shakes his shoulder lightly. "Luke?" But the boy still doesn't respond. Jessie shakes harder. "Come on, Luke. You missed the bus." Still nothing happens and Jessie starts to worry. That's not normal. "Luke, that's really not funny." But when the boy still doesn't awake, Jessie begins to think that this may not be a joke and something is wrong. And with that thought comes the panic. "BERTRAM! FAST!" Jessie carefully turns the boy on his back and there is still no emotion from him. What's wrong with him? At next moment there is an annoyed Bertram in the door frame. "Jessie, where are you staying? The kids are alone downstairs and -" Jessie immediately panics. "Bertram, Luke just doesn't wake up! Something's wrong!" The butler sighs annoyed. "You know Luke. It's just one of his stupid jokes." With these words, the man pushes past the frightened woman and shakes Luke's shoulder. "Luke, stop messing up and get up." In the meantime, the other children have also been attracted by the noise and are now standing in the door frame. Apparently Bertram is also beginning to notice that something is not quite right here. Because he too is getting nervous. And Jessie does something that she never thought she would have to do. Carefully she puts two fingers on Luke's neck and hopes for the regular throbbing under her fingers, but when there is nothing, her heart pauses for a moment. She stares in horror at the butler, whose eyes are now also wide with horror when he realizes what that means. "Bertram, call the emergency doctor immediately!" The man wastes no time and walks past the frightened and shocked children. Emma has put her hands over her mouth, Zuri run tears down the face and Ravi stares at his brother stunned. Jessie sits shakily next to Luke and gently strokes his hair. Tears are burning in her eyes because she already knows that any help is too late for Luke. She knows internally that one of her beloved children is no longer with them and will never return. But she refuses to accept that. She can not. But she doesn't want it at all. The young woman gently strokes the young man's hair down to his cheek, where she leaves her hand. "It'll be all right, Luke. Help is coming." She feels that her voice is about to break. With every minute that passes, her heart breaks more. It just shouldn't have happened! Shortly afterwards, a rushed Bertram comes in with several medics who push Jessie aside and examine Luke. But it doesn't take long for one of the paramedics to turn to the family. Meanwhile, Jessie has gone to the other children and is trying to comfort them. When the young woman sees the man's look, she immediately realizes what is going on. And that is also the moment when her heart breaks. "I'm very sorry, but there is nothing more we can do for him. He must have had a seizure while sleeping. If you want, you can go to the hospital, they can probably tell you more about it, but we and neither you can help him." At next moment, tears run down Jessie's cheeks. How can that be? "No! That is impossible! He is completely healthy! It cannot be!", Zuri screams at next moment before she goes to the floor crying. Emma also kneels next to her crying and takes her in her arms. Ravi is stunned in the middle of the room. Jessie knows that the loss is particularly bad for him. The two were more than brothers. They were best friends. Bertram is also in shock. "We'll take him with us now," says the medic, and the young woman only nods. It is as if all the words have been lost. The pain in the heart is unbearable. How can that just happen? He was so young and still had his whole life ahead of him. Bertram is the first to also sit down next to the children and hug them. Jessie also settles down with the children and gently puts her arms around them and at that moment everyone starts crying. She doesn't know what to do herself. It is incomprehensible and Jessie knows that it will probably take a while before they understand and can handle it. Again and again the young woman sees Luke laughing and dancing in front of her. He was so incredibly talented and always happy. Even if he's gone, Jessie knows that she will never forget him. She loves him too much for that. The pain is unbearable, but for her it is also proof of how important Luke was and still is to her. She has been his nanny for so long and is grateful for every moment she has spent with him. They are incredibly valuable memories that Jessie always wants to carry in her heart. She will never forget this always happy boy. 'Goodbye, my dear child.'