Dylan sat hunched on the wooden bench outside the Shoe Emporium, his hands gripping a sign that read, “Will clean your shoes for $1.”
The spring chill bit through his tattered coat, but he barely noticed. It had been two years since his life had turned to absolute shambles. Two years since he lost everything.
His job, his home, and Tina, the woman he thought he’d spend his life with.
A close up of a man | Source: Midjourney
Tina’s departure had been swift and brutal.
“You’re stuck, Dylan,” she had said, her suitcase by the door. “And now… Gavin is offering me a life you’ll never be able to give me.”
That was the last time he saw her. By the time she left, his drinking had already started. In fact, it spiraled out of control after that, taking his career down with it.
Soon after he lost his job, his apartment followed, taking him even further down his spiral.
A woman standing in a doorway | Source: Midjourney
The scrape of designer heels against the pavement yanked Dylan back to the present. He looked up, ready to ask if they wanted him to clean their shoes. But when he saw who it was, he froze.
A woman in a cream blazer and gold bracelets was rummaging through her oversized handbag. Vanessa.
Tina’s best friend.
Dylan shifted uncomfortably, praying she wouldn’t notice him. But Vanessa’s sharp gaze landed on him like a hawk spotting prey. Her expression morphed from surprise to distaste.
A wealthy woman | Source: Midjourney
“Dylan?” Her voice was filled with amusement. “Is that really you?”
He couldn’t ignore her, so he nodded hesitantly.
“Yeah. Hi, Vanessa,” he said.
“Well,” she let out a short laugh. “Life’s been kind of hard, hasn’t it? How the mighty have fallen.”
She looked him head to toe, gesturing at his disheveled appearance.
A man with his hand on his head | Source: Midjourney
Her words stung, but Dylan didn’t bite. He’d heard worse.
Vanessa tilted her head, her lips curling into a smirk.
“Did you ever figure it out?” she drawled.
“Figure what out?” Dylan asked, frowning.
What could she possibly be on about?
A woman with folded arms | Source: Midjourney
“Oh, for God’s sake,” she rolled her eyes. “The kid. Tina had a kid. Your kid. Didn’t she ever tell you?”
Dylan’s heart stopped. The noise of the street faded, replaced by the roar of blood in his ears.
“What did you just say?”
“Oh, goodness, Dylan. Wake up. Get with the program!”
“Please, Vanessa, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Vanessa looked at him for a moment, her eyes almost softening. She sighed.
A pregnant woman | Source: Midjourney
“Tina had a baby after she left you,” Vanessa said, checking her manicure. “Gavin wasn’t too keen on playing stepdad to the kid. And she was about a year old when Tina dumped the poor thing in some care facility. It’s been, what, two years? No, wait. Yeah… I think she’d be about three by now.”
Dylan staggered to his feet.
“You’re lying, Vanessa.”
Vanessa snorted loudly.
A wealthy woman looking away | Source: Midjourney
“Why would I make this up? I saw Tina at a party last month. She was practically bragging about how she’d ‘fixed’ her life. She said that Gavin is going to propose any day now. She’s living in luxury.”
Vanessa leaned closer, her tone dripping with condescension.
“Maybe it’s time you fixed yours.”
Before Dylan could respond, she strode away, her heels clicking against the pavement.
A shocked man | Source: Midjourney
The next day, Dylan stood on the porch of a sprawling mansion in one of the city’s wealthiest neighborhoods. He knew where Tina lived because he had spent a few nights parked outside the house after she moved in with Gavin.
At least, it was before the car had been taken away.
His fist clenched as he stared at the ornate door in front of him. He knocked twice.
When the door swung open, Tina stood there in yoga pants and a silk top, holding a glass of white wine. Her eyes widened in shock.
A woman standing in a doorway | Source: Midjourney
“Dylan?” she gasped. “What are you doing here?”
“I need answers,” he said, stepping forward. “Vanessa told me about the baby. Our baby.”
Tina’s face paled. She stepped outside, closing the door behind her.
“Who the hell does she think she is, running her mouth like that? Just because I didn’t invite her to my massage party last month. She’s so bitter.”
A pamper party setting | Source: Midjourney
“Tina,” Dylan said firmly. “Is it true? Do I have a daughter?”
Her shoulders slumped and she set her wine glass down on the hallway table.
“Yes, Dylan,” she said. “It’s true. Her name is Lila. I named her that because there was a character on a TV show that I liked with the name. She’s three now.”
Dylan’s chest tightened, the anger bubbling under the surface.
How could Tina just casually mention these things?
“Why didn’t you tell me? Why did you…” he stopped himself, swallowing hard. “Where is she?”
A smiling little girl | Source: Midjourney
Tina stiffened, defensive.
“Do you have any idea how hard it was? I tried to raise her on my own, but Gavin didn’t want a kid in the picture. And the thought of coming back to you just gave me migraines. Constantly. So, Gavin gave me an ultimatum. I did what I had to do.”
“You abandoned her!” Dylan spat. “Your own child!”
Tina’s jaw tightened.
A man with folded arms | Source: Midjourney
“Don’t act like you’re some saint, Dylan,” she said. “You were a mess when I left you, barely holding onto that job as a grocery store manager. I mean, really. You think you could have taken care of a baby back then?”
“Where is she?” he demanded.
Tina hesitated.
“She’s at Sunnyside Care Center. It’s downtown. But look, she may not even be there. Maybe some family took her in, adopted her, and she’s living the life. I asked for a clean break, so they cannot contact me at all.”
The hallway of a Care Center | Source: Midjourney
Dylan’s hands shook. How could someone be so cold?
“I need proof, Tina. I need something that shows I’m her father.”
Tina scoffed.
“To do what? But fine, wait here. I had you put onto her birth certificate.”
She disappeared down one of the hallways and returned with a folded piece of paper.
A birth certificate on a table | Source: Midjourney
“Here’s her birth certificate. Now, leave me alone, Dylan. You’re wasting your time. If she’s there, there’s no way they’ll ever give her to someone like you.”
Dylan’s heart raced as he entered the Care Center, clutching the birth certificate in his trembling hands. The director, a kind-faced woman named Sheila, met him at the front desk.
“I’d like to see my daughter,” he said, handing her the document. “Well, I’d like to know if she’s here.”
Sheila examined the paper before nodding.
The reception area at a Care Center | Source: Midjourney
“Lila! Oh, Lila is a wonderful little girl. She’s an artist, sir. Her hands are always covered in some paint or the other.”
“So, you’re telling me that my child is here?” he asked, sighing in relief.
“Yes, she is,” Sheila smiled. “Follow me.”
She led him to a brightly lit playroom. There, sitting at a small table with a little boy, was a little girl with chestnut curls and wide brown eyes. She was beautiful.
A smiling little girl | Source: Midjourney
Dylan’s breath caught in his throat.
“That’s her?” he whispered.
Sheila nodded.
“That’s our Lila-girl,” she said, smiling fondly. “We’ve battled to find a home for her. People come in and love her, but they seem to have trouble committing toward the end.”
A smiling woman | Source: Midjourney
“That’s because she’s not theirs…” he said.
Dylan stepped closer, his legs feeling like lead. Lila looked up from her coloring book, her eyes meeting his. She didn’t smile, but there was curiosity in her gaze.
“She’s beautiful,” he muttered out loud.
