Chapter 2
I tore the envelope open with trembling fingers.
Inside was a letter.
Behind it were several folded documents.
At the top of the first page, I saw the name of my dream college.
Briarwood University.
My breath caught.
Three months earlier, Briarwood had offered me admission to its nursing program.
I had cried when I received the acceptance email.
It was one of the best programs in Georgia.
But the tuition terrified me.
Even with my academic scholarship, I still needed nearly eighteen thousand dollars for my first year.
Books.
Housing.
Meal plans.
Clinical equipment.
Everything added up.
Arthur told me not to worry.
"We'll figure it out, sweetheart."
I believed him.
Because Arthur always figured things out.
Now I stared at a payment confirmation.
Eighteen thousand four hundred dollars.
Paid in full.
The payment date was the previous Friday.
I looked at Mom.
"Arthur paid this?"
She nodded.
My hands began shaking.
"How?"
Mom looked toward the parking lot.
"He sold his truck."
I stared at her.
"The blue truck?"
She nodded.
Arthur loved that truck.
He bought it years before marrying Mom.
He rebuilt the engine himself.
Every Saturday, he cleaned it in our driveway.
He used to tell me that one day he'd take it on a cross-country road trip.
I remembered asking why it disappeared two weeks earlier.
He laughed and said he was trying something new.
I thought he had traded it for another vehicle.
Now I understood.
"He sold it for my tuition?"
Mom wiped her eyes.
"Part of your tuition."
I looked down at the other documents.
A receipt from an equipment auction.
A withdrawal from a savings account.
And a college housing agreement.
I stared at the figures.
"Mom, what is all this?"
She took a shaky breath.
"Arthur had been saving to open his own auto repair shop."
My stomach dropped.
I knew about that dream.
He talked about it for years.
He wanted a small garage with three repair bays.
He wanted to hire young mechanics who couldn't afford trade school.
He even had a name.
Williams Auto & Family Service.
He planned to open it after I finished high school.
I remembered teasing him about putting the word family on the sign.
He smiled and said, "Because everybody deserves somewhere they belong."
I swallowed.
"Those were his business savings?"
Mom nodded.
"He used most of them to cover your first-year college expenses."
I looked toward the parking lot.
Arthur's car was gone.
My chest tightened painfully.
"Why didn't he tell me?"
"Because he didn't want you to feel guilty."
I looked down at the letter.
Then I began reading.
"My beautiful Maya,
Today you graduate from high school.
I still remember the first day I met you.
You were five years old, hiding behind your mother's legs.
You refused to speak to me because you thought I might leave.
I promised you something that day.
I promised that if you ever needed me, I would show up.
I have tried to keep that promise ever since.
I know Briarwood is your dream.
I know you worry about the cost.
But I also know how hard you worked.
You earned your place there.
Money should not be the reason you give up.
I had a dream of opening my own shop.
But that dream can wait.
Yours shouldn't have to.
I am proud of you.
Not because of your grades.
Not because of your awards.
But because of the young woman I believed you were becoming.
I love you, sweetheart.
Always,
Dad."
I couldn't finish the last line.
My tears fell onto the paper.
Mom wrapped her arms around me.
I began sobbing.
"Oh, Mom."
She held me tightly.
"I know, baby."
I shook my head.
"What have I done?"
Mom didn't answer.
She didn't need to.
I could still see Arthur's face.
His smile disappearing.
His hands tightening around the flowers.
The way he whispered congratulations before walking away.
I had taken the happiest day of his life and turned it into one of the most painful.
I pulled away.
"I need to find him."
Mom nodded.
"Then go."
I gathered the documents and ran toward the parking lot.
My graduation gown whipped around my legs.
Students stared as I hurried past.
I didn't care.
I reached the spot where Arthur had parked.
Empty.
I called him.
No answer.
I called again.
Voicemail.
"Dad, please call me."
My voice broke.
"I'm sorry."
I tried a third time.
Nothing.
I looked toward the road.
For years, Arthur answered every call.
When I forgot my lunch.
When I missed the school bus.
When I needed a ride home.
He always answered.
Now the silence terrified me.
I hurried back toward Mom.
"He's not answering."
She looked worried.
"He probably needs time."
I shook my head.
"I need to apologize now."
Mom touched my shoulder.
"Maya, sometimes an apology can't be rushed."
I looked at her.
"I know."
But I couldn't stand the thought of Arthur believing I didn't love him.
Then my phone vibrated.
I grabbed it.
Raymond.
My biological father.
"Hey, kiddo. Hope graduation was great."
I stared at the message.
My anger returned.
I had spent the afternoon defending a man who couldn't even show up.
Now he was sending cheerful messages as though nothing had happened.
I called him.
He answered immediately.
"Hey, superstar!"
I felt sick.
"Where were you?"
He laughed.
"Something came up."
"What?"
"Business."
I gripped the phone.
"You promised."
"I know, sweetheart."
"Don't call me sweetheart."
Silence.
Then his voice hardened.
"What's your problem?"
I looked at the college receipt.
"My problem is that you keep making promises you don't keep."
He sighed.
"Your mother has been filling your head with nonsense."
I stared ahead.
"No."
He continued.
"And that stepfather of yours probably loves playing the hero."
I felt anger rise.
"Don't talk about Arthur."
Raymond laughed.
"Why? He bought you some flowers?"
My hands shook.
I looked down at the letter.
Then I answered quietly.
"He did a lot more than that."
Raymond scoffed.
"Well, good for him."
I closed my eyes.
"Did you ever want to be my father?"
He fell silent.
For a moment, I thought he might finally answer honestly.
Instead, he said, "Maya, you're being dramatic."
Something inside me broke.
I ended the call.
Then I looked toward Mom.
"I don't want him here anymore."
She studied me carefully.
"That's your decision."
I nodded.
"But right now, I need Arthur."
Mom looked toward the road.
Then she frowned.
"What?"
I followed her gaze.
A police vehicle was approaching the graduation parking area.
Behind it was a tow truck.
The officer stopped near us.
He looked at Mom.
"Are you Nia Williams?"
She nodded slowly.
"Yes?"
The officer removed his sunglasses.
"Do you know Arthur Williams?"
My stomach dropped.
"He's my dad."
The officer looked at me.
Then back at Mom.
"I'm trying to locate his family."
My heart began pounding.
"Why?"
He hesitated.
"There was a traffic incident involving his vehicle about twenty minutes ago."
The world seemed to tilt.
Mom grabbed my arm.
"Is he hurt?"
The officer took a breath.
"He's been taken to the hospital for evaluation."
I couldn't breathe.
I looked down at the letter in my hands.
The last words stared back at me.
Always,
Dad.
I began shaking.
May you like
Because the last thing Arthur had heard from me was that he wasn't my real father.
And now I didn't know whether I would ever get the chance to tell him how wrong I had been.
