Amanda returned to the quaint house she grew up in after a long day at work. She was tired after a long, exhausting day, and the modest home was her only true sanctuary. It was filled with childhood memories and also reminded her of her deceased mother.

After aging out of the foster care system, she reclaimed this house as her own. It was more than just a building; it was a link to her past and the love she cherished from her mother.

“Oh, I forgot to pick the newspaper,” she said upon seeing a folded newspaper near the doorstep. She picked it up and put it on the kitchen counter before preparing to make herself a refreshing cup of tea.

Once it was ready, Amanda sat at the kitchen table and unfolded the newspaper, expecting to scan through the headlines like always. However, today was different.

The newspaper had something shocking for Amanda. It had a photo of her father, Robert, standing beside his young new fiancée, Clara. It was an announcement of their future wedding events.

As she looked at the photograph, the pain of her father’s long-ago abandonment resurfaced sharply. It reminded her of the time her father broke his promise of always being by his wife’s side. He left his wife when she fell sick and never returned.

The pain and anger buried beneath years of determination had suddenly resurfaced. Amanda touched the silver stud in her ear as she thought of her mother. These were the same studs her mother had gifted her on one of her birthdays.

“Betrayal is nothing new to you,” Amanda whispered to herself as a plan began to take shape in her mind. Seething with hurt and betrayal, she decided to confront her father.

Early the next morning, she approached his house, a well-kept property that starkly contrasted her humble beginnings. She hid behind a large oak tree, waiting for the right moment.

Soon, the front door opened, and her father stepped outside. Behind him was the woman from the newspaper, Carla, who quickly kissed him goodbye.

“Oh God,” Amanda whispered and looked away. She couldn’t stand the sight of her father kissing another woman.

Amanda watched as Robert and Carla got into their respective cars and drove away. Once they left, Amanda stepped out from her hiding place and scanned the exterior of her father’s house. She wanted to find a way to enter the house.

“The window!” Amanda whispered as soon as her eyes landed on an open window on the house’s second floor. She had spent a lot of time climbing trees during her childhood, so entering the house from the window was not difficult for her.

In no time, Amanda found herself inside her father’s bedroom. With deliberate movements, Amanda approached the bed, her hands trembling slightly as she began to disturb the neatly arranged covers.

Then, she removed one earring—a simple piece, yet laden with meaning—and placed it on the bed. It was meant to sow seeds of doubt and discord. She quickly exited the house through the window and waited for the right moment to implement her next move.

Amanda watched from her hiding spot as Carla returned home, her heart pounding with anticipation. Moments later, her father’s car pulled up, and he entered the house with an air of contentment. A few minutes later, Amanda headed towards the door and rang the doorbell.

“How can I help you?” Carla asked, opening the door.

“I’m here to see Robert. Are you his maid?” Amanda inquired, feigning confusion.

“No, I’m his fiancée,” Carla responded, showing her engagement ring.

“Fiancée? That scoundrel! He told me I was the only one in his life!” Amanda exclaimed.

Carla, puzzled, denied Amanda’s claims. When Robert appeared, he too denied knowing Amanda, but she persisted, “Oh, but you knew me very well a few hours ago, didn’t you?”

Carla, now furious, believed Amanda’s lie.

“I don’t want to cause any trouble,” Amanda said. “I’m just here to take my earring that I lost here. It’s my mother’s and it means a lot to me.”

Robert refused to let her in but Carla allowed her to search for the earring. In no time, Amanda reached the bedroom where she had planted the stud.

“Oh, here it is!” Amanda picked it up from the bed.

“I can’t believe it!” Carla yelled at Robert. “You’re a cheater! How did the earring end up in our bed?”

“What? You can’t be serious!” Robert protested. “She’s a liar!”

“You betrayed me, then lied about it!” Carla accused, deciding to call off their wedding and leave.

Amanda apologized and quickly left the house. She felt satisfied after making her father feel the pain of betrayal.

“Finally!” she thought and heaved a sigh of relief while walking towards her car.

***

A week later, Amanda was wiping tables in the restaurant where she worked when she overheard her colleagues talking about someone’s grand wedding.

“Which wedding are you guys talking about?” she asked them.

“Come on, Amanda!” Stacey, one of Amanda’s coworkers said. “Don’t you keep up with the news? Haven’t you heard of that businessman, Robert something?”

“He got married to this woman, Carla. They spent millions on their wedding. It was huge!” Sarah, another coworker, said.

“What?” Amanda was shocked, but she concealed her emotions. “I mean… who spends millions on a wedding? That’s shocking.”

While Amanda pretended to be bothered by the overspending, she felt like a failure inside. She didn’t want Robert to build a new life after what he had done to his wife and Amanda.

“Anger is like a heavy stone, Amanda,” her mother’s words echoed in her mind. “You carry it with you, and it weighs you down. Sometimes, you have to let it go. Sometimes, forgiveness is the only option.“

Whenever Amanda got bullied as a child, her mother would say these words. She always encouraged Amanda to forgive the people who hurt her.

Closing her eyes for a moment, Amanda reflected on her actions. Soon, she realized causing harm or ruining her father’s relationship wasn’t the answer to her resentment. She needed to confront him.

***

Later that week, Amanda stood outside Robert’s house, no longer fueled by anger, but by a newfound curiosity. Taking a deep breath, she rang the doorbell.

“Why are you here again?” Carla opened the door.

“I’m here to talk to Robert,” Amanda said. “I’m not his girlfriend. I lied. I’m… I’m his daughter.”

“What?” Carla’s eyebrows furrowed. “Is this a joke or what?”

“It’s not. I—”

“Who’s there, Carla?” Robert asked his wife before coming to the door.

“Why are you here again? Leave us alone, please!” Robert yelled at Amanda.

“Dad… It’s me,” Amanda said. “I came here to—”

“Amanda? Is it really you?”

Tears welled up in Amanda’s eyes. “Yes, Dad. It’s me.” Her voice choked with emotion. “I just… I needed to know why you left. Why you left Mom and me.”

Robert’s face softened, a flicker of pain crossing his features.

“Come in, Amanda. Come inside.” He ushered her into the house, Carla still lingering awkwardly at the doorway.

Once inside, Amanda sat down, clutching the silver earring tightly in her hand.

“Mom got so sick after you left,” she began, her voice barely a whisper. “We struggled a lot. Then the foster care took me after her death. It wasn’t easy…”

Robert hung his head, his hands clenching and unclenching.

“I… I didn’t know things were that bad,” he muttered. “I thought you were well cared for after…”

“Who did you think would have cared for us? We had no one. We needed you the most, Dad. Mom needed you!” Amanda said.

The weight of their shared history pressed down on them. Amanda spoke of the anger and confusion she carried for years, the bitterness that festered inside her. She confessed her earlier plan, wanting to destroy his new relationship out of a twisted sense of revenge.

As Amanda poured out her heart, Robert listened intently. Shame and regret etched lines on his face.

“I understand your anger, Amanda,” he said finally, his voice hoarse. “There’s no excuse for what I did. It was a cowardly thing to run away.”

He took a deep breath and began his own story. He spoke of the crushing guilt he felt after leaving his wife, Amanda’s mother, to deal with her illness alone.

He revealed a period of self-destruction, poor choices, and financial struggles. Building his business back up had taken years of relentless work. Shame had prevented him from returning, a twisted logic that only deepened his isolation.

“I never meant to abandon you both,” he said, his eyes filled with tears. “Every day, I regretted my decision. But by the time I could have returned, I was afraid. Afraid of the rejection, afraid of seeing you both in pain. Please forgive me, Amanda. Please.”

The enormity of his regret hit Amanda. His story wasn’t one of a villain, but a flawed man crippled by fear and guilt. The anger that had consumed her began to recede, replaced by a flicker of understanding.

“I guess I forgive you, Dad,” she said, the words surprising even her. “It doesn’t erase what happened, but I can’t carry this anger anymore. It’s a heavy burden.”

Relief washed over Robert’s face. He reached out and grasped her hand, the warmth of the contact a bridge across the years of separation.

“Thank you, Amanda,” he said, his voice thick with emotion. “Thank you for giving me a chance.”

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