I laid the last plate down gently, my hands trembling just a little. There were three places set at the table—one more than we needed.
The third plate, with the silverware tucked neatly beside it, sat in front of the empty chair.
The same chair that hadn’t been used in two years. Still, I set it out every birthday. Like hope, it had become a habit I couldn’t let go of.
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney
Brad stood by the sink, drying his hands with a towel so worn it looked like it had lived through a hundred family dinners. He noticed the extra plate.
“This one’s for Karen?” he asked quietly. His voice was soft, like he didn’t want to break something fragile.
I didn’t answer. I just nodded, my eyes on the place setting. The table looked too perfect.
Meatloaf sat steaming in the center, the smell warm and familiar.
The mashed potatoes were fluffed just right, with little pats of butter melting in the middle like yellow stars. And there it was—my birthday cake.
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney
Small and round, with two candles shaped like a 4 and a 7 stuck right in the center. I didn’t even like cake anymore.
Brad walked over and lit the candles. The little flames flickered, dancing like they were trying to cheer me up.
“Go ahead,” he said, giving me a small smile. But I could see it in his eyes.
He was watching me closely, checking for cracks. I didn’t say anything. I couldn’t.
I shook my head and looked at the empty chair across from me. It stared back, cold and silent.
Karen hadn’t sat there in two years. Two long years of silence. No calls. No texts. No birthday wishes.
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney
Nothing. It was like she had disappeared, and I wasn’t allowed to miss her out loud.
I took a deep breath—one of those breaths that starts in your stomach and hurts by the time it reaches your chest.
Then I reached for my phone. Her contact still read “My Baby Girl.” I never changed it.
I called.
The phone rang and rang. It echoed in my ear like footsteps down a hallway that never ended. Then the call dropped.
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney
“She’s still not ready,” I whispered, more to myself than to Brad.
He didn’t say anything. He just walked over and pulled me into a hug. I crumbled.
The tears fell, fast and hot, spilling down my face like they had been waiting all day. I blew out the candles, and with that soft puff of air, I made one wish.
Just to hold her again. Just once.
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney
That night, after Brad had gone to bed and the house fell quiet, I sat on the edge of our mattress, the springs creaking beneath me.
The bedroom lamp cast a soft glow, its crooked shade making the light bend weirdly on the walls. It looked like memories dancing in corners.
I reached under the bed and pulled out the old photo album, the one with the frayed edges and a little flower sticker still stuck to the front.
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney
The drawer groaned as I slid it shut. I flipped open the album, and the smell of old paper and time hit me—dusty, a little sad.
My fingers paused on the first photo. Karen.
She must have been nine months old, sitting in her high chair with applesauce all over her cheeks and forehead.
Her hand was wrapped around my thumb, holding on like I was the only thing in the world she trusted.
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney
“She was mine,” I whispered to the quiet room. “Still is.”
But for the past two years, it felt like I’d become a ghost to her. I’d tried everything—letters, voicemails, emails. Nothing came back. Not even a line.
And maybe I deserved that.
You might wonder what kind of mother loses her daughter’s trust. The truth is, I never told Karen why I left her father, Nigel.
He and I had been falling apart long before I walked out that door.
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney
But when the break finally came, I said nothing. I thought I was protecting her from the ugly parts.
I was wrong.
Karen adored her daddy. He was her hero—softball coach, pancake maker, bedtime singer.
And me? I left without explaining a thing. I let the silence grow like a wall, and now… it felt too tall to climb.
“I need to try again,” I told Brad the next morning, my voice shaking as I bent to lace up my boots.
My fingers fumbled with the laces like they’d forgotten how to tie. “I need to face Nigel.”
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney
Brad didn’t say anything right away.
He stood in the doorway, watching me with that quiet, steady look he always gave when I was about to do something hard.
“Do you want me to come with you?” he asked, already reaching for his keys.
I looked up at him. “You sure?” I asked, squeezing his hand.
I knew it wouldn’t be easy for him—walking into my past like that. Facing the man who used to hold the place he holds now.
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney
He just nodded.
“I’ll be right beside you.”
The drive was silent. The kind of silence that sits between two people like a third passenger.
The tires hummed against the old county roads, and the trees zipped by, bare and brittle-looking.
I could feel my heart thumping in my chest, steady but heavy. Like it was trying to warn me.
When we pulled into Nigel’s driveway, I sat for a moment, staring at the porch. The paint was peeling around the railings, and the front step was cracked.
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney
Still the same as I remembered. I swallowed hard.
Brad reached over and gave my hand a squeeze. Then, before I could talk myself out of it, he got out and rang the bell.
Nigel opened the door. He looked different. Older. Sadder.
His beard was untrimmed, and his flannel shirt looked like it hadn’t been washed in a few days. He squinted, like he didn’t believe I was standing there.
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney
“Hey,” he said. His voice was rough, like gravel in a tin can.
“Hi,” I whispered. My hands were sweaty. My heart pounded louder.
He stepped aside, and we walked in.
The house smelled like old coffee and cedarwood, like time had just stopped inside. We sat in the living room, each of us holding our breath.
“I came to ask about Karen,” I said, doing my best not to cry. “I’ve tried to reach her… but she won’t answer.”
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney
Nigel rubbed the back of his neck. “She moved. Over a year ago. To Canada. With her boyfriend.”
I sat up straighter. “What?” My voice cracked. “And you didn’t tell me?”
“You didn’t ask,” he muttered, eyes on the floor.
“I called. I wrote. Nothing!”
“She changed numbers,” he said. “She didn’t get your letters.”
Everything tilted. I pressed my palm to my forehead, feeling dizzy. “I… I didn’t know.”
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney
Then, as if something just popped into his head, Nigel stood up suddenly. “Oh! I almost forgot—she left something for you.”
He turned toward the old side table by the couch, the one with the wobbly leg, and opened the top drawer.
Papers rustled, pens clinked together. Then he pulled something out and held it toward me.
It was a card, folded neatly but creased in the middle, the edges soft with time. The envelope was yellowed and slightly curled.
“Here,” Nigel said, handing it over. “She wanted me to give it to you.”
My hands trembled as I took it. Just touching it made my throat tighten. I opened the card slowly, like it might break.
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Sora
The front had shiny glitter letters that read: Happy Birthday, Mom! It was the kind of card a daughter picks out with care. The kind that means something.
Inside, in the familiar handwriting I hadn’t seen in years, it said: Happy 46th Birthday, Mom…
I blinked, confused.
“I’m 47,” I whispered, my voice shaky. I looked up at Nigel. “She gave this to you last year?”
He scratched his head and looked away. “I meant to… I forgot. Guess time got away from me.”
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney
“You forgot?” I stood up fast. The anger bubbled up like a pot boiling over. My chest burned.
“You had this for a whole year? A whole year! While I stayed up at night crying, thinking my daughter hated me?”
“I didn’t mean harm,” he said quietly, stepping back.
“I hate you for this,” I snapped. My voice shook, but I didn’t care. “You kept her from me.”
Brad stood and gently placed his arm around my waist.
“Come on,” he whispered.
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney
I let him guide me to the door, but I clutched the card tightly in my hands, like it was made of something more than paper. Like it could somehow bring her back to me.
In the car, I opened it again and read the whole thing out loud.
“Mom, I know I’ve been distant… At first, I was angry you left Dad. I saw how much he hurt, and I blamed you. But you kept calling. You kept writing. And I started to realize… maybe I never knew what really happened. Dad’s been pressuring me not to talk to you. I felt torn. So I ran. I’m sorry. I really am. I miss you. I love you. Here’s my address. If you ever want to visit… I hope you do. Happy Birthday, Mom.”
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney
Tears rolled down my cheeks again. But this time, they didn’t come from pain. They came from something else. Something that felt a little like hope.
The next morning came fast. I didn’t sleep much—maybe an hour or two. My suitcase sat by the door, packed with more hope than clothes.
As I walked through the airport, I held the birthday card close, pressed flat against my chest. Like it was a piece of my heart that had finally come back.
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney
The flight was quiet. I stared out the window most of the time, watching clouds drift by like soft promises.
Every mile we passed in the sky felt like a stitch sewing me back together.
By noon, I stood on the sidewalk in front of a small brick townhouse in Ontario. The wind tugged at my coat.
My fingers clutched the note with her address—wrinkled, soft from being held too tight. I stared at the door, my breath quick and shaky.
I raised my hand to knock, but the door opened before I could touch it.
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney
There she was.
Karen.
She looked older, more grown-up than the last time I’d seen her.
Her hair fell past her shoulders, and her eyes—those were mine, exactly—searched my face.
For a moment, we didn’t say a thing.
Then she stepped forward and wrapped her arms around me.
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney
I dropped my bag and held her tight. Her hair smelled like lavender and honey.
I closed my eyes and let the warmth of her arms melt every hurt, every empty birthday, every night of crying.
No words. Just love.
We were whole again.
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If you enjoyed this story, read this one: I planned a romantic getaway for the two of us—a mountain resort, spa, everything included. I packed with a smile, heart full of hope. But the next morning, as I grabbed my suitcase, he looked at me and said, “You… were coming?” That’s when the truth hit like ice water. Read the full story here.
