A young guy takes care of a little girl whose father is serving in the army and receives a sincere surprise for his kind act.
11-year-old Sean lived with his single mother Linda and was a very responsible child for his age. His father died fighting for the country when he was five years old, so he was forced to become the master of the house at a young age.
Sean admired his father and wished he had been as brave as he was. The boy respected his heroism and courage as a soldier and did everything he could to make him proud while he was alive. However, Sean’s father was a strict man who never appreciated the boy. Sean longed to hear words of praise from him, but that day never came.
After his father died, Sean was heartbroken. He missed his father, and, more importantly, he would never have the chance to make his father proud. However, life has given him that chance in the most unexpected way…
One day Sean was playing in his neighborhood when he saw a little girl sitting sadly on the sidewalk. He recognized her immediately because she lived a few houses away from him. Looking at her, Sean wondered why she looked so sad. He decided to talk to her.
“Hi! I’ve seen you here before. What’s wrong with you? You look upset,” he said, taking a seat next to her. “My name is Sean, by the way.”
“My name is Melanie,” said the girl. “My mummy has gone to heaven and I miss her. I’m just sad.”
“My dad too. I miss him too,” Sean said. “Do you want to play with me?” – he offered. “I don’t have many friends.”
“May I?” – she smiled, and Sean nodded.
That day marked the beginning of Sean and Melanie’s friendship. They played together in the evenings, sharing the common experience of losing their parents. Sometimes Sean’s friends laughed at him when they saw him with a five-year-old girl, but Sean didn’t care.
One day, before going to school, Sean saw Melanie sitting outside his house, crying. There was no one around and Sean became worried, so he ran to her.
“Melanie? What are you doing here alone?” – he asked, worried.
“I miss Daddy!” – she replied, sobbing. “He left me! I told him not to go! But he left me!”
“It’s all right, Melanie. He’ll be home soon. Look, my father was a soldier too, and their work is very cool. They work hard for the good of our country. Aren’t you proud of your father?”.
“But… There’s no one at home to take me to school. My grandmother Molly is sick. I just want Daddy to be home.”
“I can help you,” Sean offered. “Just wait a minute.”
Sean hurried over to Melanie’s house and asked Grandma Molly for Melanie’s school address. Using Google Maps to get his bearings, he managed to get Melanie safely to school and then off to his place.
“You don’t have to worry about going to school alone because I will bring you every day, OK?” – he promised her.
From then on, Sean would always take Melanie to school and her grandmother would just pick her up. One day Sean got up late and was late. He knew that if he brought Melanie first he would not be able to get to his classes on time, but he decided to help her.
His teacher, Mr. Watson, was furious when he arrived in class. “Next time you’re late, Sean, I’d like you to bring your mother!” – he exclaimed.
Sean’s classmates laughed behind his back because they knew he was late because he was taking Melanie to school. Nevertheless, Sean continued to do so, while helping Grandma Molly around the house and looking after Melanie.
Although he was only 11 years old, Sean did his best to help Melanie with almost everything while her father was away. He knew how hard it was when Dad wasn’t around, so he didn’t hesitate to look after little Melanie.
One day Sean offered to pick Melanie up from school because Grandma Molly was not feeling well. When Sean and Melanie returned home from school, they found a large crowd of soldiers outside the house.
“What’s going on? Why are you all here? Oh no, is Grandma Molly all right?” – A worried Sean asked. Soon Melanie’s father appeared from the crowd.
“Daddy!” – Melanie shouted and ran towards him. “I missed you so much, Daddy! It’s Sean! He’s just like you, Daddy! Did you know that Sean was helping Grandma Molly while you were away?”
David, Melanie’s father, smiled. “Of course, I know how helpful Sean was! After my mum told me how the young lad helped her around the house while I was away, I had to do it… This is for you Sean!!!” he said and the soldiers saluted him together, followed by David who thanked him for taking care of his daughter.
“You’re an amazing young man, Sean. I’m sure your father would have been proud of you. My mother told me he was a soldier too. You made him proud of you today,” he said.
At the mention of his father, Sean burst into tears.
“If you don’t mind,” he only managed to say as the tears flowed down his cheeks. “Can I give you a hug? For some reason, I’m really missing my dad today.”
“Of course, Sean. Come here…”
Sean hugged David and cried. Since his father’s death, he had kept everything to himself and pretended to be very strong. But after all, he too was a child who needed his father’s love and attention.
“I never heard such things from my father,” he told David. “I never thought a soldier like him would be proud of me. But you are… thank you for that.”
“I should thank you, Sean,” David replied. “Believe me, you should be incredibly proud of yourself!”
David went to Sean’s house that day, and when he told Linda how proud he was of Sean, Linda’s eyes began to water too. “Oh, I’m so proud of you, darling,” she said as she hugged Sean.
From that moment on, David treats Sean as his son and the two families soon become close to each other. Linda and David soon fall in love with each other and decide to start a new life together.
Sean and Melanie, of course, were very happy to have two parents and live under the same roof. And Sean, like his father and stepfather, became a brave soldier.
