Mary took care of everything at home while her husband, Jorge, did nothing. Fed up, she decided to take a day for herself, leaving her daughter in his care. But while she was relaxing by the sea, her phone filled up with missed calls from school. Fear gripped her: what had happened while she was gone?
Mary was in the kitchen, moving frantically as she tried to prepare breakfast. She looked at the clock and groaned. She had fallen asleep again. Meanwhile, George continued snoring upstairs.
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He took the toast out of the toaster and saw that it was burnt. “He muttered, tossing it aside. Without pausing, he threw the eggs into the pan, but in his haste, they burned just like the toast.
Suddenly, the alarm went off again, making her jump. “Oh, come on!” she yelled, and in the confusion, she knocked over her coffee cup.
The hot liquid splashed onto his arm and stung his skin. “Damn it!” he yelled, grabbing a towel to clean up the mess.
With no time to waste, she ran to Missy’s room. She sat on the edge of the bed and gently shook her daughter awake. “Missy, honey, it’s time to get up,” she said softly. Missy groaned, rolled over, and pulled the blanket over her head.
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Mary picked up the still half-asleep Missy and carried her into the bathroom. As she helped Missy wash her face and brush her teeth, she looked at herself in the mirror. Her hair was disheveled, her pajamas were wrinkled, and a large coffee stain covered her shirt.
He led Missy down the hall, toward the bedroom. He pushed the door open with his foot and saw George lying on the bed, snoring softly.
“George, I’m late. Missy is going to be late for school. Can you help me, please?” Her voice was almost pleading.
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George groaned and rolled onto his side, burying his face in the pillow. “Five more minutes,” he muttered.
Mary sighed and hurried down the stairs, Missy following her. She placed Missy on the table, grabbed a box of cereal, and poured it into a bowl, adding milk.
“I don’t want this!” Missy whimpered, pushing the bowl away.
Mary took a deep breath, trying to stay calm. “What do you want, honey?”
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“Pancakes!”
Mary looked at her watch. She was almost out of time. “George!” she shouted toward the stairs. “I need your help! Dress Missy!”
Silence. George didn’t make a single sound.
Gritting her teeth, Mary grabbed the pancake mix and began braiding Missy’s hair as the batter sizzled in the pan.
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George finally entered the kitchen, rubbing his eyes. His gaze fell on the stove. “Oh! Pancakes!” he said with a smile, sitting at the table. Without any hesitation, he picked up a fork and began to eat.
Mary looked at him, her hands busy packing Missy’s lunch. Her shoulders ached from pacing all morning, but she kept quiet.
“Did you forget to grab the morning paper?” George asked between bites.
Something snapped inside Mary. The words hit her like a slap. “Your newspaper?” she yelled. “Why don’t you get it yourself? I was running around like crazy this morning getting Missy ready for school! I asked you to help me! You haven’t even tried.”
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George blinked, looking confused. “But I work, and you’re a housewife…”
Mary interrupted him. “You’re on vacation!” she yelled. “You know what? I’ve had enough. I’m taking the day off. You’re taking Missy to and from school. You’re watching her all day. I need a break.”
George scratched his head, frowning. “I thought she was still in kindergarten.”
“Aaagh!” Mary screamed, storming out of the kitchen. She ran upstairs to the bathroom, slammed the door, and bolted it behind her.
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Mary stood in the bathroom, listening to the faint sound of George and Missy leaving. The front door closed with a click, and for a moment, there was silence.
She exhaled a long sigh. Slowly, she turned on the shower and let the warm water wash over her. It felt good, calming her frayed nerves.
Then she dressed in comfortable clothes, grabbed a small bag, and packed a few essentials: her wallet, a book, and something to snack on.
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She left the house and locked the door. She got into her car, started the engine, and drove toward the ocean, eager for a quiet getaway.
Mary stretched out on the warm sand, feeling the sun on her skin. The sound of the waves calmed her, dissipating the morning’s stress. She swam in the cool water, floated on her back, and felt a rare sense of peace. For once, she left her phone buried in her purse.
After a while, he sat up and picked up his phone, thinking it was time to check in. When the screen lit up, his heart sank. There were more than ten missed calls from the school. Something was wrong.
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Mary’s hands shook as she dialed the school number. When someone finally answered, she could barely keep her voice steady.
“Hello? Did you call? Is something wrong?” Mary asked in a shaky voice.
“Yes, Mrs. Johnson,” an elderly woman on the other end answered. “Missy’s gone missing. She went out during recess and hasn’t returned.”
Mary’s stomach sank. “What do you mean? How come he hasn’t come back?” she almost screamed, her fear rising.
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“We tried to contact you and your husband, but we couldn’t.”
Mary felt her world spinning. “How could you let this happen?” she cried.
“Please, Mrs. Johnson, calm down,” the woman said gently. “We’re doing everything we can to find you.”
“How can you say that?!” Mary cried. “You don’t know what’s happened to him!” Her voice cracked as she spoke. Without waiting for a reply, she hung up, her hands shaking uncontrollably.
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She dialed George’s number, stuffing her clothes into her bag. When he answered, she didn’t waste a second.
“Where are you?” he shouted into the phone, his voice filled with panic.
“I’m with the police,” George replied. “I’m giving them information about Missy.”
Mary froze for a moment, trying to calm her racing heart. For once, Jorge was taking a step forward, doing something for his daughter.
“But they told me the school couldn’t reach you,” Mary said.
“Yeah… I was at the bar with a friend, but I saw the missed calls and called them back right away,” George replied, sounding guilty.
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“Okay,” she managed to say, her voice firmer now. “I’ll be right there.” She hung up, grabbed her keys, and ran toward the car.
She got into her car, her hands shaking as she fiddled with the keys. The engine roared to life, and she sped out of the parking lot. Her heart pounded in her chest as she weaved through the traffic, ignoring the honking horns and angry shouts of other drivers.
She gripped the steering wheel so tightly her knuckles turned white. Tears blurred her vision, but she blinked and focused on the road.
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Finally, he stopped in front of the school. He barely closed the car door before he hurried inside. The teachers and staff crowded around him, their faces filled with concern.
“Missy didn’t come back to class after recess,” one of them explained. “We’ve been looking everywhere for her.”
Mary didn’t wait to hear any more. She ran through the halls yelling Missy’s name. She checked every bathroom, looked under desks in classrooms, peered behind doors, her desperation growing with every step.
“Missy! Where are you?” She started to feel dizzy and gasp. Her mind screamed, ” It’s my fault! I never should have left her with George!”
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Mary sat on the school steps, burying her face in her hands. Tears streamed down her cheeks and her body shook with silent sobs. She felt helpless. Missy was still missing, and she didn’t know what to do.
Suddenly, her phone rang. She jumped and quickly wiped her eyes. It was George. Her hands shook as she answered.
“What… what does the police say?” he stammered, his voice breaking.
“I found her,” Jorge said, his voice firm.
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Mary froze. “Have you… have you found her?” she whispered, hardly believing it.
“Yes, we’re at the park. Come here right now,” Jorge replied.
Mary jumped up and ran toward the park, her heart pounding. When she saw George and Missy sitting on a bench, she felt a surge of relief. She ran over, knelt down, and hugged Missy. Tears streamed down her face, soaking Missy’s hair.
“Honey, what happened?” Mary asked, hugging Missy.
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Missy looked up, her eyes wide. “Dad said we’d go for a walk later. I got tired at school, so I came to the park,” she said, her voice breaking.
Mary turned to Jorge, giving him a furious look. He looked down at the floor, guilt visible on his face.
“Honey, you can’t just leave school like that,” Mary said, her voice shaking. “We were so scared. We didn’t know where you were.”
Missy frowned. “I’m sorry. I won’t do that again,” she said. “I just wanted to go for a walk with Dad.”
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Mary sighed, feeling the weight of her daughter’s words. She squeezed Missy’s hand. “All right, let’s go home,” she whispered.
On the drive home, the car was quiet. Missy had fallen asleep in the back seat, her head resting on the window. Mary gripped the steering wheel, her mind racing.
She wanted to yell at Jorge, tell him how careless he’d been, how he’d ignored his son for so long. But before she could open her mouth, Jorge broke the silence.
“I’m sorry,” he said softly.
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Mary looked at him with hard eyes. “Sorry isn’t enough,” she retorted sharply. “Our daughter could have been hurt today. Do you understand?”
George nodded, looking down at his hands. “I know,” he admitted. “I haven’t been the best father.”
Mary shook her head, anger bubbling up again. “He had to disappear for you to notice? Really?”
George took a deep breath and reached into his pocket. He pulled out a slip of paper and handed it to her. Confused, Mary looked down. It was a cruise ticket.
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“What is this?” she asked, still angry but now curious.
“You deserve a break,” Jorge said firmly. “When you left this morning, I saw the burnt eggs, the cereal, the pancakes. You made three breakfasts in one morning. And that’s just a small part of what you do every day. I’m sorry I didn’t see it sooner or appreciate you.”
Mary looked at the bill and then back at George. “And who’s going to take care of Missy?” she asked.
“Me,” he replied, looking into her eyes. “I’m her father. It’s time I started acting like one.”
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Mary pulled into the garage and parked. She turned to Jorge, and her eyes softened. Slowly, she leaned toward him and hugged him, letting the tears flow.
“I’ll do better,” George promised, holding her tightly. Mary nodded, feeling a weight lifted. She finally understood.
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If you enjoyed this story, read this one: Sheila became a mother at 16, sacrificing her dreams of going to college to raise her daughter, Kaylee. Now that Kaylee is headed off to college, Sheila makes a surprising decision: she enrolls at the same university. But will this unexpected turn of events bring them closer or further apart?
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