Melon shouldnât have been thrust into this harsh reality at such a tender age.
Ariana had always wished for him to enjoy a carefree childhood.
Tears streamed down her cheeks as Ariana knelt, enfolding Melon in her arms.
After contemplating, she said, âDaddy loved us very much.
He must be watching you growing up and missing us terribly.
â
Arianaâs voice broke several times as she continued, âBut Daddy turned into a star in the sky to watch over us.
Heâll always be there, guarding you and me.
â
Understanding dawned on Melon, and he couldnât help but cry in Arianaâs embrace.
His quiet sobs soon escalated into heartrending wails.
âIâm truly a fatherless child! I donât have a dad!â
Arianaâs heart ached as Melonâs cries pierced the room.
The weight of her decisions bore down on her.
Her arms wrapped around Melon, tears streaming down her face, she whispered, âIâm right here with you, Melon.
Always.
â
Those words were all she could muster.
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At that moment, Mitchel dropped by.
Noticing Ariana hadnât descended from upstairs in quite some time, he went up.
The scene that greeted him, Ariana and Melon in tears, caught him off guard.
With a surge of concern, he rushed to them.
âWhatâs going on? What happened?â
Melon, upon recognizing Mitchelâs voice, clung to him, his face stained with tears.
Mitchel embraced the child, patting his back gently, trying to soothe him.
Pulling herself together, Arianaâs voice trembled.
âI messed up.
I hired someone online to pretend to be Melonâs dad, and he found out⦠I told him about Theodore.
â
Tears blurred Arianaâs vision as she continued to dab them away.
Ariana gazed at Melon, her heart weighed down by guilt.
It dawned on her: hiring someone to pretend to be Theodore had been a grave mistake.
Perhaps honesty from the start would have spared Melon the heartbreak.
Mitchel, seeing Arianaâs distress, gently guided her head to his shoulder
âYou acted out of love, trying to give Melon a complete childhood,â he whispered.
12
His hand reached out to smooth Melonâs hair.
âMelon, your dad is still with you, just in a unique way.
He was there when you both needed him most.
His love remains.
â
Melon nodded as tears continued, but as they flowed, exhaustion took over, and he drifted to sleep.
Ariana, eyes still swollen, looked at him and then slowly regained her composure.
She turned to Mitchel, her voice hesitant.
âThe man I hired to play Melonâs dad is Holden.
â
Mitchel blinked, his emotions churning.
This revelation was startling.
After a pause, he asked, âHave you ever seen Holden face-to-face?â