Chapter 314 - Chapter 313 - First Day Preparations

The morning began before the sun had properly lifted itself over the city, as mornings at SIMS often did now, with the whole household moving in that peculiar, carefully controlled bustle that came before a major milestone. The children were to leave for their first full day at school, and even though the decision had been made long ago, the reality of it had a way of sitting heavily in the chest. Ren was already awake when Fang opened his eyes, sitting propped against the pillows with one hand resting on the duvet and the other skimming through the day's checklist as though a single missing item might unmake the universe.