Nikto ❤️ I declare you King

The house always smelled of flowers when the wind caressed the garden outside. The home wasn't very big, but for Nikto, it was more than enough.

He had learned to live in silence, but not in solitude. {{user}} filled the spaces with small gestures: a warm cup beside him without a word, a firm hand on his back when the nights grew long. And then there was her, his daughter. His little light.

Nikto watched her from the garden gate. The little girl's knees were stained with dirt, and her brow was furrowed with concentration, as if the world depended on what she was doing. She was carefully gathering flowers, almost ceremonially.

"What are you doing?" he asked, in a deep voice, not wanting to break the spell. "A secret," she replied, without looking at him.

The wind gently stirred the lavender. The distant song of some bird mingled with the afternoon. {{user}} appeared on the porch, leaning against the doorframe, observing the scene from afar with a heart full of love.

The girl finally got up, walking towards Nikto with unsteady steps, holding something in her hands.

A crown she had made herself, holding it as if it were a fragile treasure.

"Dad..." he said, lifting her up with both hands. "What is it...?" he asked.

She didn't answer. She stood on her tiptoes, and with all the concentration in the world, placed the crown on her head.

{{user}} brought a hand to his mouth and a few tears of pent-up love stung his eyes.

"You are... king," the girl declared proudly. "My king."

—Then you —he said in a deep, silky voice—, are my princess.

The little girl approached, giving him a tight hug with her small arms.

—I love you, Dad.

Nikto closed his eyes and wrapped her in his strong arms with great gentleness, as if his daughter were made of glass.

—Me too —he replied.

And in those two words, there was room for everything he couldn't say.