The morning light seeped through the blinds, casting golden rays onto Alex’s face. He stirred and glanced at the clock. For once, it didn’t matter. Today wasn’t about meetings or deadlines—it was about Max. Alex sat up, smiling to himself, already imagining the joy on his son’s face.
Max burst into his parents’ room with a loud commotion, spreading his arms like an airplane. “Papa! Mama! I’m awake!” he declared, his voice ringing through the air.
“Max, my buddy,” Alex said, “I’ve got a surprise for you. Today, I’m not working. Just you and me. All day. What do you think?”
Max’s face lit up like the morning sun. “Really? Just the two of us? Can we go to the beach? Throw shells? Or…”
Alex laughed, raising a hand. “One thing at a time, bud. But yes, the beach sounds like a great idea.”
The waves sang their eternal song as Alex and Max stood on the shore. Max had already filled his small hands with shells and rapanas, enthusiastically flinging them into the water.
“Papa, look! This shell went so far!” Max beamed.
“Not bad for a little guy like you,” Alex said, tossing a shell of his own. “But I think mine went farther.”
Max gasped dramatically. “No way! Mama says it’s not good to cheat or lie!”
They both laughed as they kept throwing shells and rapanas. The endless sea stretched out before them. “You know, Max,” Alex said, watching his son with a warm smile, “a day like this… it’s like the sea. It feels endless. So many things could happen…”
Max paused, pondering. Then suddenly, he turned to his father with a serious look. “Papa, what are you afraid of?”
Alex blinked, surprised. “Hm. Good question. What about you? What are you most afraid of?”
Max’s small face wrinkled in thought. “The dark. And… Mama, when she’s mad. And… other kids, when they make fun of me.”
Alex knelt down to his son’s level, placing a hand on his shoulder. “Hey! Big deal if someone makes fun of you. You know, they probably do it because they’re scared too. And as for your mom,” he chuckled, “I’m scared of her when she’s mad too. But don’t tell her, okay?”
Max giggled, the tension easing. “Okay! But Papa?”
“Yes?”
“How do knights kill dragons? Can they use rockets?”
Alex burst out laughing. “Rockets? Max, there weren’t rockets back then!”
“Well, there should’ve been,” Max said, gesturing with one hand crashing into the other as if a rocket were striking a dragon. “Then the dragon problem would’ve been solved.”
“That’s actually a pretty good idea. I don’t know why they didn’t think of rockets,” Alex joked, ruffling his hair.
Later, sitting in a small seaside restaurant, sunlight poured over them as they shared a plate of fries. Max’s curiosity bubbled up again.
“Papa, do you know what my favorite car is?” Max asked, his eyes gleaming.
“Hmm, let me guess… a race car? Ferrari? Or maybe a Mustang? Oh, I know—Chevrolet, like McQueen!” Alex replied excitedly.
“No!” Max shook his head with a wide grin. “Monster trucks! Vrrroom! They can smash everything!”
Alex laughed. “Monster trucks, huh? Sounds like something scary and dangerous.”
“But…” Max added thoughtfully, “I also like your car, Papa. Can I have it when I grow up?”
Alex laughed. “My car? By the time you grow up, buddy, it’ll be like it’s from the Stone Age.”
“It’s still cool,” Max said, chewing on a fry.
“Well, when you grow up, you’ll have something way cooler. But cars cost money, you know. How do you think you’ll earn it?”
“You’ll give it to me, of course!” the boy joked. Then Max began counting on his fingers. “First, I’ll be a policeman and catch bad guys. Then I’ll be a doctor and heal everyone! I’ll even find a pill for immortality, yeah! Then I’ll work on a computer like you and Mama. Then a spider will bite me, and I’ll become a superhero like Spider-Man! And finally, when I’m tired, I’ll become a football player, of course!”
Alex laughed, shaking his head. “All that, huh? You might just be the first superhero-footballer who catches bad guys and heals the good ones in his free time.”
As the afternoon sun began to lower, Alex turned to Max with a mysterious smile. “Hey, Max. I’ve got another surprise for you.”
Max tilted his head, intrigued. “What is it?”
“You’ll see,” Alex said, his smile growing wider.
Excitement filled the air as they arrived at a karting track. Max’s mouth and eyes widened as he realized where they were. “Papa! I can’t believe it! We’re at a karting track!”
“That’s right, and we’re not just watching—we’re racing!” They climbed into a two-seater kart and launched into a thrilling race together on the track. Their laughter trailed behind them as they sped around, almost as if they were moving at the speed of light.
As they headed to the car, the world had quieted into the stillness of night. Max gazed out the car window, noticing a bright red dot in the sky. “Papa, look at all the stars and planets. Someday I’ll visit all of them! Is that red dot Mars?”
“I think so, buddy,” Alex said with a smile.
“This was the best day ever,” Max whispered, his eyelids growing heavy.
Alex’s heart swelled, and he smiled. “Mine too, Max.” Moments later, Max was fast asleep in the back seat, his hands clutching the small kart toy Alex had bought him as a keepsake.
The aged and tired hand of 87-year-old Alex fell still. His final breath carried the memory of that perfect day with Max into eternity—a fleeting happiness, etched with a gentle smile.