Edeline
I still remembered eating dinner alone with Lydia most nights because Dad would still be out working. Then, sometime around two in the morning, I’d hear the front door creak open—only for it to close again, and he’d be gone before I woke up. And somehow, in the moments I did see him, no matter how exhausted he looked, he still smiled whenever he saw me. He’d lift me into his arms, spin me around, and ask about school like none of the stress in the world existed.
He was truly the best man I’d ever known.
“And do you know the craziest part?” I laughed bitterly, tears finally burning my eyes. “Dad never once asked you to get a job.”
Lydia’s lips parted slightly.
“He never asked you to save us. Never asked you to fix anything. All he wanted was for you to stay by his side while h
