For My Little Princess
He pulled out his phone.
“Can I show you something?”
I nodded.
A video played.
Lily sat in a hospital playroom, laughing as Michael struggled to fit into a ridiculous pink unicorn costume.
“You look like a giant marshmallow!” she shouted.
“An extremely handsome marshmallow!”
“You need a horn!”
“I need a bigger costume!”
I laughed through my tears.
Michael stopped the video.
“She designed those costumes herself. Said she wanted to remember more than needles and medicine.”
I wiped my eyes.
Michael opened a drawer and handed me a sealed envelope.
“There’s something Daniel left for Lily. Something I haven’t had the courage to give her.”
“What is it?”
“I think you should see it first.”
Inside was a photograph of Daniel holding newborn Lily.
On the back, he’d written:
‘For my little princess.
I hope your life is filled with adventures, laughter, and people who love you as much as I do.
Love, Daddy.’
I pressed the photograph against my chest.
“He asked me to put it on the last page of her album,” Michael whispered. “But I couldn’t do it without telling you the truth first.”
“And the Elsa dress?”
“Her final challenge. If she got to go home, I had to wear it.”
I closed my eyes. Daniel had tried to give Lily happy memories through Michael, but I couldn’t forgive what he’d taken from us.
“Part of me wants to hide this from Lily,” I admitted.
“To protect her?” Michael asked.
“That’s what Daniel thought he was doing. I won’t repeat his mistake. She deserves the truth, even if it hurts.”
May you like
Michael nodded.
I drove home carrying more grief than I’d known was possible.
