« I know. »
« But Mom stayed. »
Tears welled up in Mark’s eyes.
« Yes. »
« And Grandpa stayed. »
« Yes. »
« You should have stayed too. »
Mark’s face clouded over.
« You are right. »
Liam opened the blue box and took out a small silver music box.
You protected her?
» Every day. «
Liam listened to the soft melody.
Then he said:
Tomorrow we are going back to the ocean.
Mark nodded.
You can go together.
Mark looked bewildered.
But Liam added:
Please don’t walk away again.
Mark wiped his eyes.
« I won’t run away. »
The next morning, the three of us went to the beach.
I hadn’t forgiven Mark yet.
But that day wasn’t about me.
It was about Liam.
He was building a sandcastle and Mark was sitting next to him.
The rushing wave washed away half of the castle.
Mark immediately rushed to repair it.
Liam stopped him.
« It’s okay, Dad. »
He grabbed another handful of sand.
« Sometimes things break. You can repair them. »
In the following months, Mark kept his promise.
He used to come to the hospital sometimes.
He often read stories to Liam.
She sat next to him when he was scared.
And this time he didn’t leave anymore.
After seven months, Liam became very weak.
One evening, he asked me to turn on the sound of ocean waves on my phone.
I held one of his hands.
Mark is another one.
Liam looked at him.
« Well? »
« I am here. »
« You stayed. »
Mark burst into tears.
« Certainly, friend. I’m staying. »
Liam smiled.
« Okay. »
These were some of his last words.
Mark could never get those four lost years back.
But he got one last chance to be Liam’s father.
And this time he stayed until the very last moment.
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