“Triplets,” the doctor revealed.

Adam squeezed my hand and said, “We can do this. I’ve got you, Allison.”

I clung to those words, desperate to believe them.

But when we left the hospital with Amara, Andy, and Ashton, something felt wrong. I was overwhelmed, exhausted, barely keeping myself upright—and Adam felt distant, almost like a stranger.

“I—I NEED SOME AIR,” he blurted out.

Minutes passed. Then hours.

That was the moment I understood—he wasn’t coming back.

I called. I texted. I begged. There was no response. Adam disappeared completely, as if we had never existed.

In our tiny apartment, time lost all meaning. Nights melted into mornings filled with endless feedings and constant crying. Sleep was scarce. Tears were not.

I carried everything alone.

Twelve years later, by pure coincidence, our paths crossed again. I was sitting in a bustling café, taking a rare moment for myself, when I heard a voice I hadn’t in years. “Allison?”

I looked up, almost spilling my coffee. There he was, standing just a few feet away, looking older, wearier but unmistakably him. The air was thick with tension as memories flooded back—his leaving, those sleepless nights, the struggle to make ends meet.

“Adam,” I managed, trying to keep my voice even.

He sat down without waiting for an invitation, a look of desperation in his eyes. “Please,” he said. “I need your help.”

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. After all these years, this was what he wanted? “You disappeared,” I said. “I gave birth to your children, and you disappeared.”

He rubbed his jaw, then said it.

“Well, I need $5,000.”

The audacity knocked the breath out of me. I stared at him, trying to comprehend the man who once promised to stand by me now asking for money as if the past twelve years hadn’t happened. My mind raced: the diapers, the sleepless nights, Amara’s first words, Andy’s love for soccer, Ashton’s brilliant mind.

“I don’t have that kind of money,” I finally replied, keeping my voice steady though my insides quaked with anger. “Why come to me, after all this time?”

He sighed, looking away. “I fell into some bad decisions. I’m trying to get back on my feet. I thought maybe… given our past…”

“Our past?” I interrupted, incredulous. “You mean when you walked out on your children?”

The café seemed to quiet around us, other patrons caught in their own worlds yet oblivious to the drama unfolding at our table.

“I’m sorry, Allison,” he said, eyes pleading. “I really am. I’ve made mistakes.”

I took a deep breath, feeling the weight of my own journey, the one I had taken without him. “I’ve learned to manage without you, Adam. I raised our children without you. I’m sorry for whatever trouble you’re in, but I can’t help you.”

He nodded, slowly standing. “I understand.”

As he walked away, part of me felt a pang of sympathy, a whisper of the love that was once there. But stronger was the pride I felt for surviving, for thriving despite the odds. I had become more than I ever thought possible—a mother, a provider, a warrior.

I watched him disappear into the crowd, realizing that this time, it was my choice to let him go.