Jessica's Point of View

The next morning, Daddy woke me up. "Good morning, Daddy," I whispered. I knew it was a secret, so I had to be quiet whenever I called him that.

"Good morning, Jessica. It's time to get ready for the day. I'm going to be taking you and Ienzo to play with Kairi," Daddy prompted.

"That sounds fun," I mentioned.

"I'm glad you think so. I'll let you get ready," Daddy said. He kissed my cheek before leaving the room.

I dressed and put my hair up before meeting Daddy outside my bedroom. "I'm ready," I announced.

"Good for you. Let's go see if Ienzo is up yet," Daddy prompted. He started to walk in the direction of Ienzo's room, but I couldn't bring myself to go with him. There was a selfish part of me that wanted Daddy all to myself. Daddy turned back to me. "Jessica? What's wrong?"

"I... Can I have ten more minutes with you?" I requested.

"Ten more minutes? What for?" Daddy wondered.

"When we're with Ienzo, I have to pretend. I want you to be my daddy a little longer," I explained.

Daddy looked around, making sure that no one overheard me. "Alright," He agreed. We went back into my bedroom, and he closed the door so no one would see us. He knelt down and hugged me, and I hugged him back.

"Do you mean it when you say you won't leave me?" I asked.

"Of course I do, child. I don't say things that I don't mean," Daddy answered.

"Do you still mean it?" I questioned. I knew it was a foolish question, but I felt like I needed to hear the answer.

"I do. This time, I will stay by your side until that is no longer an option. You have my word," Daddy promised.

I started to cry, and Daddy hugged me tighter. "Why now? Why not back then? Why did you leave me back then?" I sobbed.

Daddy pulled away and placed his hands on my shoulders. I wiped my tears away. "Jessica, listen to me. If I could go back in time and take you home with me, things may have been different. I wanted to more than anything else in the world. I hope that someday you will understand that I did what I thought was best for you. I did everything I could to keep you and your mother safe. It was a decision I had to make, and I've had to live with the consequences every single day. You shouldn't have to suffer for my mistakes, but sometimes, that is how it must be. I'm sorry," Daddy apologized.

"Are we going to be okay?" I shuddered.

"While I cannot promise that we will be okay, I can say that I will make sure you will be so long as I am alive," Daddy swore.

I wasn't sure what to say to that, so after a few moments, I decided I was ready to move on with my day. "I think I'm ready to see if Ienzo is awake."

Daddy pulled me into one last quick hug. "Alright. I love you, Jessica," Daddy mentioned.

"I love you too, Daddy," I replied.