Chapter 436
“I wanted to write a message to my mom saying I miss her,” Joy explained, her expression hopeful.
“That’s a wonderful idea,” Eric encouraged, gesturing toward the whiteboard. “Go ahead and write it.”
“Okay.”
Joy approached the whiteboard with the marker in hand but hesitated, stopping short.
Eric, curious, asked, “What’s stopping you?”
Tears welled up in Joy’s eyes as she said, “I… I can’t write yet.” Overcome with emotion, she burst into tears before she could say more.
Taken aback and unsure how to respond, Eric quickly lifted Joy into his arms, trying to soothe her sobs.
“There, there, it’s okay. I’ll help you write your message, okay?”
Joy, still sniffling, nodded in agreement.
Eric gently took Joy’s small hand, noticing the dimples on her knuckles, and led her toward the whiteboard.
“What message do you want to send to your mom?”
“Tell her, ‘Mom, Joy misses you,’” Joy replied softly.
“Okay, let’s write that,” Eric responded as he helped guide her hand. As he wrote, Eric paused and looked at her curiously. “Is ‘Joy’ your name?”
Joy, slightly confused by the question, blinked up at him and answered simply, “Yes.”
Eric stood still, a sudden realization washing over him. “What a stupid question to ask, Eric! Of course, it’s her name! What else could it be?” he thought. He then silently acknowledged, “It’s a lovely name.”
At last, Joy’s frown turned into a smile as she admired their handwriting. “Is this word ‘mom’?”
“Yes, that’s right,” Eric confirmed with a warm smile.
“And this one is ‘Joy,’ isn’t it?”
“That’s correct, very clever!” Eric said, impressed. He gently ruffled her hair.
Joy’s grin stretched wide, nearly closing her eyes. “Mom showed me these words; I know them now!”
“Joy!”
Just then, a nurse appeared at the doorway.
Joy stiffened slightly. “Oh, my nurse is here. I need to go now.”
“Alright then.”
“Bye-bye!” Joy called out cheerfully, stepping away, but then paused. With a burst of energy, she darted back to Eric, wrapped her arms around him, and planted a quick kiss on his cheek.
“Time for me to head out! Bye!”
With a twist and a giggle, the little girl dashed away.
By the entrance of the playroom, a nurse gently lifted Joy. “It’s quite late; bedtime now, isn’t it?”
“Understood!”