OUR FIRTS DAY

GABRIEL

I couldn’t believe it. After months of fighting, the court had finally granted me full custody of Maddie. I should be elated, ecstatic even, but I couldn’t shake this feeling of unease. Winning custody meant that Maddie would live with me full time, and that was all I ever wanted. But at what cost?

Kira, the woman I loved, had been devastated since the ruling. I had never seen her so defeated before. And it was all because of me. I knew I fought hard for Maddie, but I couldn’t help feeling guilty. Kira was Maddie’s mother, and she deserved to be in her daughter’s life. But she made that choice when she withheld Maddie’s identity from me. How was I supposed to raise a child I didn’t even know existed?

I tried to be fair. She didn’t want me in Maddie’s life, and that hurt. I couldn’t understand why she would deny me the chance to be a part of my own daughter’s life. So I fought for full custody, and I won.

Maddie was going to grow up without her mother. That was not something I