Chapter 16: "Can You Be My Dad?"

Soon after, the little boy returned and sat on the small chair beside the hospital bed, swinging his legs and sighing.

"Do you have a dad?" the sudden question startled him, and he did not know how to answer.

But the little boy didn't wait for an answer and continued speaking: "It must feel good to have a dad, right? If I had one, he would protect my mom and me and not let anyone bully us. But I don't have a dad..."

Was this boy trying to confide in him?

Matthew sat down in front of the boy, their eyes meeting.

He hesitated a bit but asked, "Where is your dad? Why did he abandon you and your mom?"

"I don't know," the boy shook his head.

"Since I was born, I have never known who he is, and my mom has never told me. My grandma said he was dead, but my mom...every time my sister and I asked about him, she would cry, so I stopped asking. Can you tell me why my dad doesn't need us?"

Since he was young, the boy had been very understanding and caring for his younger sister, not whinin