David blinked. Her words struck deeper than she could have known.
“Maybe I do,” he said quietly. “But tonight… I wasn’t.”
Lily smiled — a genuine, glowing smile.
“Goodnight.”
She started down the sidewalk, clutching the bags of food, her small silhouette growing smaller and smaller.
David stood there long after she disappeared.
He didn’t know how yet… but he knew one thing for sure:
He wasn’t going to let Lily and her mother face the world alone ever again.
Not if he could change it.
And for the first time in a long, long while… He felt purpose.
