Chapter 1: The Name I Had to Read Three Times
I became a wish granter for my high school sweetheart's 12-year-old daughter — when she told me her final wish, I couldn't hold back my tears.
I had spent years granting wishes for terminally ill children — but when I saw the name on one application, I had to read it three times.
My first love.
Rebecca.
The girl I once thought I would marry.
She vanished after graduation 12 years ago without a single warning.
And now her 12-year-old daughter, Sophie, was seriously ill.
I went to their house myself, even though I never do that.
When Rebecca opened the door and saw me standing there, all the color drained from her face.
"Daniel…
what are you doing here?"
"I came because of Sophie."
She immediately shook her head.
"No.
Absolutely not.
I know what your foundation does, and I don't want you spending thousands of dollars on us."
Then a small voice came from behind her.
"Mom?"
Sophie stood in the hallway.
Something about the way she smiled at me made my chest tighten.
I crouched beside her.
"I hear I'm supposed to make your biggest wish come true."
She thought seriously for several seconds.
"Can I have pancakes at midnight?"
I actually laughed.
"Sophie, you can ask for anything."
"I know.
But I've never had pancakes at midnight."
So that night, at exactly 12:01 a.m., we were sitting on Rebecca's kitchen floor eating strawberry pancakes because Sophie insisted they tasted better there.
A few days later, I tried again.
"A real wish this time.
Disney World?
Meeting someone famous?"
She grinned.
"I want to ride in a red convertible with the top down."
So I found one.
After that, I stopped visiting because of the foundation.
I came because Sophie would text, "Are you busy?" and somehow, I never was.
We fed ducks, watched terrible movies, and built a blanket fort in her living room.
Somewhere along the way, that little girl stopped feeling like a child whose wish I was supposed to grant.
I cared about her.
Deeply.
And every time I caught Rebecca watching the two of us together, her eyes held an emotion I couldn't quite understand.
Then one evening, Sophie asked me to come upstairs alone.
She was sitting against her pillows, unusually quiet, holding an old photograph tightly against her chest.
"Daniel," she whispered, "I finally figured out my real wish."
I smiled and pulled my chair closer.
"Then tell me.
Whatever it is, I'll make it happen."
But Sophie didn't smile.
Her eyes filled with tears.
"If I tell you, you might be angry at Mom.
And you might walk out that door and never want to see me again."
My smile disappeared.
"Sophie, nothing you could say would make me do that."
She looked at me for a long moment and whispered a few words.
When I understood what Sophie was actually saying, my bl00d ran cold.
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What did Sophie whisper to Daniel — and what has Rebecca been hiding for 12 years?
Comment **"NEXT"** if you want Part 2.
