Trent’s world unravels when he finds a cryptic note in his nine-year-old daughter’s backpack: “I’m your real dad, come and see me.” Suspicion gnaws at him, but nothing prepares him for the shocking truth he uncovers.

I stood at the kitchen sink, staring at the half-full coffee mug in my hand. The morning sun filtered through the curtains, casting a soft glow over the quiet street outside.

Mornings like this used to mean something to me — peace, warmth, the simple comfort of knowing Lily was just upstairs, getting ready for school. But lately, things felt different.

A man staring out his kitchen window | Source: Midjourney

I set the mug down with a sigh, listening to the faint sound of Lily’s footsteps from above. She used to charge down the stairs, her hair a mess, talking a mile a minute about her dreams or whatever happened at school the day before.
Now? Now, she dragged her feet, barely speaking, like there was a weight on her shoulders.

Something was wrong, and it worried me.

A worried man | Source: Midjourney

“Lily,” I called, hoping for some kind of response that would ease the tension. “You

want pancakes? I can make some before you go.”

“Not hungry,” she muttered from the top of the stairs, her voice as flat as it had been for weeks.

I winced. She hadn’t sounded like that before: so sharp, so cold. It wasn’t like her at all. Drying my hands, I turned to face her as she came down.

“Hey, kiddo, what’s going on? You’ve been kinda quiet lately.”

A man standing at the foot of the stairs | Source: Midjourney
She shrugged, still not meeting my eyes. “Nothing.”

I hated that response. She used to tell me everything, but now it felt like she was shutting me out. She pulled on her backpack and moved toward the door like she couldn’t wait to leave.

“Lily, wait.” My heart was in my throat. I hated how distant she’d become, and it frightened me more than I wanted to admit. “You know you can talk to me, right? About anything.”

She paused with her hand on the doorknob.

A girl standing by the front door | Source: Midjourney

For a second, I thought maybe she’d turn around and open up to me. But then her shoulders stiffened, and she just nodded.