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“Molly, look! Your dad’s here!” someone from the funeral told the 17-year-old girl who was mourning over her mother Daisy’s coffin.
Danny, Molly’s dad, and her mom had divorced ten years ago. Since then, Molly had only heard terrible things about her father—like he was a ‘drunkard’ and such.
Though Molly didn’t have any bitterness towards Danny, she often missed their dad-daughter connection. But after her mom’s funeral, things were going to change for Molly…
“Hey, sweetheart!” Danny greeted his daughter and hugged her before placing a wreath on his ex-wife’s coffin.
“Sir, is that truck yours? It’s blocking half the parking. You mind moving it?” a guest asked Danny, who was a truck driver.
“Yeah, that’s ma truck. Gimme a second. I’ve just met ma daughter. Hope ya understand. Thank ya!”
Danny was delighted to meet Molly. The only link he had with her all these years was through the child support he paid for her. Daisy never allowed him to see Molly because she feared he would become a bad influence.
The funeral was over, and everybody left. Danny packed all of Molly’s stuff and told her they were going to his house.
“A parcel? Who sent it?” he wondered. A card on it read: “For Dad of the Year”
“But why, dad? I can’t leave this house. Mom and I lived here. It’s filled with our memories.”
Molly frowned because Danny wouldn’t listen. He knew he could not leave his daughter alone, particularly considering she often used a wheelchair when she didn’t need crutches. Due to an underlying condition she had developed in her left leg when she was six, Molly limped.
Two days later, Molly moved in with her dad. Though the house was compact and untidy, it comforted her and made her feel loved and included.
As days passed, Danny had difficulty doing things for Molly. Since he never saw her grow up, he did not know how to tackle most things, like braiding her hair, for example. He learned how to do it by watching online videos. But that was not all.
He vacated his bedroom so that Molly would have a nice space to sleep. He even bought a fluffy new bed so that she could rest well. Danny did everything on his end to make his daughter feel at home, but if there was something he kept a secret, it was his constant disappearance at night.
Molly had no idea where her dad had been going at night after she fell asleep. She could only guess he was loitering with his friends in the pub, just as her mother often told her.
A few days later, Molly stepped down from the school bus and entered their home, crying. She found the door was locked. There was a note tucked behind a plant. “The keys are under the pot. I will be back soon. See ya! – Dad.”
Molly scowled and recalled her mother telling her about her dad’s ‘odd’ habits in the evenings. She frowned thinking her father was out drinking at four in the afternoon.
Hours passed, but Danny never returned home. Molly cooked herself pasta, leaving some for her dad. Then she lay on her bed crying.
“If only I was normal, I wouldn’t be the odd one out. I would have found a date for the prom.”
It turned out that Molly’s teacher had informed them about their upcoming senior prom. All her classmates had found prom dates except for Molly. Nobody was interested in taking her. She figured—who would want to dance with someone with a limp?
Molly cried so loudly that Danny heard her as soon as he arrived home.
“What happened, darling? Why are you crying?”
Molly told him about the prom. “I don’t have a date. I even asked some boys if one of them would at least dance with me during prom, but they refused and laughed. I don’t want to go to the prom, daddy! I want to be alone! Goodnight!
Molly turned her back on Danny and pretended to sleep, tears soaking her pillow.
Danny couldn’t just leave his daughter in distress. The next day, he bought Molly a beautiful prom dress. And on prom day, Molly was in for a huge tear-jerking surprise. Her dad was taking her to prom.
Senior students and their parents were flocking outside the hall when a loud screeching roar of an engine drew their attention.
Danny jumped down from the truck. He put a wheelchair on the lawn and helped Molly get out. He pushed the wheelchair on the red carpet as the gathering watched in amazement.
Danny hit the dance floor with his daughter as the music rolled. He lifted Molly and carried her around in circles, syncing with the melodious musical night. For a moment, Molly forgot that she had a disability and laughed her heart out as her dad kept swaying her in his arms.
“My dad is my real superhero. I love him more than anything else in this world. I feel blessed and proud to say I’m his daughter,” Molly cried to her friends after the dance.
Meanwhile, Danny became the show stealer. All the parents flocked around him to praise and applaud him. Danny then shared a bit about himself and his daughter, knowing little about how that evening would soon change their lives.
Danny and Molly returned home, talking about the fun they had. Then Danny put Molly to sleep in her bedroom and silently crept out of the house.
It turned out Danny had been working a second job as a caregiver at a local nursing home. Besides his part-time day gig as a truck driver, he worked overtime to save money for his daughter’s treatment. When Molly’s disability was diagnosed years ago, many told Danny and Daisy that she would never be able to walk.
But one doctor had assured them he would treat the girl and restore her ability to walk. So Danny quit partying in pubs with his friends and started working two jobs.
Daisy had misunderstood him and thought he was wasting his time at the pub. Danny tried explaining to her, but she never trusted him. Her constant doubts and heated arguments led to their split shortly after. Danny never bothered because he was only focused on saving money for Molly’s surgery and worked hard for the next several years.
It pained Danny whenever he recalled his past. Even that night, while driving to work, he could not shake his thoughts off the terrible things his ex-wife told him. He finished his shift and returned home, unprepared for the surprise that awaited him and Molly.
That morning, when he returned home from work, Danny was in for a sweet surprise when he found a package in his mailbox.
“A parcel?? Who sent it?” he wondered. A card on it read: “Dad of the Year!”
Inside, Danny found a check for $10,000 and another note:
“Dear Danny, we hope this will improve your daughter’s life. Good luck with her surgery, and we hope you spend more time with her in the evenings. Best Wishes, Your Prom Buddies!”
Danny realized the parents he’d met the previous night were behind this. He shed tears of joy and shared the good news with Molly.
“Really?! My God, daddy…This is unbelievable!” She laughed and cried on his shoulders.
With the money Danny had saved and the $10,000 check, Molly got her surgery. It was successful, and gradually, she was able to walk without crutches.
Meanwhile, Danny quit his second job to spend more time with his daughter. She earned a scholarship to study architecture in another state and was set to leave in three months.
Danny wanted to make the best use of the available time he had with Molly. He taught her to cook, dance, cycle, and even run. He just wanted his daughter to live a normal life and never look back to the days when she was using a wheelchair and crutches.
What can we learn from this story?
