“This was our favorite spot by the window.”All those sunsets when we kissed here! Tyler, 30, weeping outside his bedroom window, remembering how you used to flush when I said something to you, tucking your hair strands behind your ears. Warm tears fell over his late wife Kylie’s framed photo, haunting him as he looked at the nighttime sky.
Tyler and Kylie had a great marriage, and the next big thing happened when she became pregnant. Tyler, a grocery store cashier, began daydreaming about starting a family. A storm landed a bomb in Kylie’s nest on the day she went into labor, shattering their idyllic image.
Tyler couldn’t hold back emotions as he remembered hearing their newborn baby girl Tiara’s loud cries from the maternity ward.
“Then they handed me my newborn baby to hold…” Her skin felt warm and silky. When I inquired about you, they showed you hooded up to your forehead. They patted my shoulders and murmured, ‘We’re sorry. We could not save her. “Why did you leave us, Kylie?”
Kylie had encountered last-minute problems during labor and di:ed after childbirth, leaving Tyler with a weight of duty to face.
Do not stop when you come upon a dark, rough path. Take one step at a time and keep moving.
Tyler’s heart was filled with ominous blackness as the sun set behind the trees. He was immersed in concentration when his six-month-old baby girl began wailing.
“I’m coming… I’m coming, honey!” Tyler ran to fetch some warm milk. He had nobody to babysit Tiara, so he quit his job to tend to her day and night.
“Awwww…lo-lo-lo…” he fed his baby. Tiara wouldn’t sleep without Tyler cradling her in his arms. Sometimes, she would take over an hour to fall asleep, and Tyler had sore arms carrying her around for a long time.
“Where did I keep it?” Tyler began searching for a metal box where he saved money for petty expenses. Baby Tiara was asleep, so he was cautious not to wake her because once she was up, it would only mean Tyler would have another sleepless night.
“Ah, here it is!!” he exclaimed and opened the box, quickly counting the money. Tyler wanted to buy a stroller. “My arms will ache less and baby Tiara will be happy too!!”
The next day, Tyler went to the flea market in town to buy the baby buggy. Tiara was asleep in his arms, as Tyler walked up and down, cradling her to sleep.
He marched toward the store selling baby essentials and saw a woman with a stroller.
Hello, miss…hey…hey…I adore this stroller. I need one of these for my baby.”
Tyler noticed a weird glow lighting up the woman’s eyes, which were red, unpleasant, and swollen. It appeared that she had spent several restless nights crying. Amanda teared up as she glanced at Tyler’s kid. She sighed deeply and replied, “You can handle this. “I’ll give it to you for $10!!”
“Only for $10??!” Tyler exclaimed.
“I changed my mind after seeing your baby. You need this stroller more than I do right now. “You can take it!”
Tyler was surprised by the great offer and instantly paid for the stroller. The woman accepted the money and vanished into the crowd, leaving Tyler perplexed but satisfied with the deal.
“Ah, honey, Dad finally got you a new buggy. We’ll go home, clean it, and you can relax in it, okay?!”
Tyler carried the stroller home, unprepared for what he was about to find.
He lightly dusted the stroller, which looked too good for its price. It was used, but not worn out. He decided to take Tiara for a walk in her stroller and gently placed her inside, only to hear a peculiar crackling noise from beneath the padded seat. It sounded like a package of chips being crushed.
“What is that noise??” Tyler instantly removed his kid from the buggy and placed her on the couch. He gently raised the cushioning and discovered a piece of folded paper.
“What is this?” he thought as he unfolded it and discovered a handwritten message addressed to a certain ‘Gigi.’
“To my beautiful baby child, Gigi. Darling, I miss you every minute every second. The first verse read, “Without you, my world has turned into a dark grave.”
Tyler sat close Tiara, who was fast asleep, and continued reading.
Sweetie, please forgive mama. I know you’re in heaven with your papa right now. Please know that I always love you. Please forgive me. I’m compelled to sell your stroller. Mama has nowhere to go, dear. I love and miss you, baby. “Love you, Mama.”
Tyler’s heart nearly missed a beat as he understood it was a mother’s emotional confession to her deceased kid.
“What happened with her daughter? Who is this woman? Where is she now?” he pondered, embarking on a mission to locate the devastated mother, ignorant of how fate would connect her to his life.
Tyler revisited the flea market the next day and returned to the store where he bought the stroller and inquired about the woman. Luckily, the CCTV footage in the store helped him track her down.
“Yeah, that’s her!” Tyler pointed to the screen.
“She came here to sell an old vintage clock. She told me it belonged to her late mother.”
“Do you know her house??”
“She told me her house is the last across the street.”
“Thanks, pal!!” Tyler said, hurrying to the woman’s house. There he saw the woman packing her things in a cloth bundle and an old suitcase.
“If you can’t pay your rent, you can’t stay here for free!” an older man yelled at her.
“Hey, miss, hey…you remember me? I bought a stroller from you yesterday, remember??” Tyler chimed in. “May I know your name?”
Moments of silence prevailed, and then she said, “My name is Amanda.”
“Amanda, hey, nice to meet you. I found your letter in the stroller,” Tyler added, and Amanda started to cry.
As it turned out, the baby buggy Amanda sold to Tyler was her only reminder of her de:ad child, who had lost her battle with cancer. Amanda was forced to sell it with the other old items in order to pay for her overdue rent.
My daughter, Gigi, was five years old. She seemed too youthful and naive… She had no idea what cancer was. Amanda screamed, “She was my only hope to live after losing my husband.”
Amanda was booted out of the house because the landlord wanted to lease it for a higher price. Amanda received social security benefits, but the money was spent on settling her late husband’s debts.
“Oh, Amanda, I am sad to hear that. Listen, I’ve got an idea. Why don’t you come and stay with me till you find a better place to stay?”
Tyler sympathized with Amanda and encouraged her to live in his home if she wished. Amanda was initially hesitant, but she couldn’t resist the pleasure of spending time with Tyler’s newborn child.
Amanda moved into Tyler’s home and cared for his baby while he returned to work. She cared for Tiara like a mother, and the baby enjoyed being around her.
Tyler’s grief subsided as time passed. He recognized his daughter needed both parents’ love and care, so he proposed to Amanda one day. They’d fallen in love by then.
Tyler and Amanda married shortly thereafter. They realized that in addition to needing each other’s support, they could also heal each other’s wounds in this way.
