“Mike, good to see you. Thank you. Come on in—we’ve been waiting on you. Take off your jacket, wash up, and get to the table,” Eleanor said, already turning to slice dessert.
“Daddy’s home!” Polly squealed the second she saw him in the kitchen doorway. She jumped down from her chair, ran across the room, and wrapped herself around his neck. “Hey there, sweetheart. Want to see what I brought you?” Mike asked, pulling the surprise from behind his back.
“Oh wow… she’s beautiful! She looks just like me,” Polly whispered, hugging the doll to her chest. She couldn’t stop staring at the matching hair and blue eyes. “So? Did Dad do okay?” Eleanor asked with a smile.
“Okay? She’s the best present ever!” Polly said, glowing. She didn’t let go of the doll for the rest of dinner.
She was so busy admiring the dress that she forgot to eat. It took both adults working together to get a couple of pancakes into her. As soon as she was done, Polly darted off to her room to introduce the new doll to the rest of her toys.
“You’ve got a wonderful child,” Eleanor said softly, watching her go. “That’s the truth,” Mike said with a tired smile. “She’s the one bright spot in my world.”
“You know,” Eleanor began carefully, “it wouldn’t hurt if you found yourself some company one of these days. Polly could use a woman around too.” The older woman had raised the subject before. She worried about her thirty-five-year-old neighbor more than she let on.
“No,” Mike said quietly but firmly. “I’m not there. Everything I’ve got goes to my daughter. And nobody’s replacing Susan. There just isn’t another Susan.” He swallowed hard and looked away.
They didn’t stay up long. Before long, Mike and Polly headed back to their own apartment. He tucked her into bed and read her a bedtime story like always. She fell asleep quickly, clutching the doll against her chest. After closing her bedroom door, Mike went into the kitchen to make coffee.
He cracked the window, lit a cigarette, and let his mind drift back to Susan. The memories came in pieces—some sweet, some painful enough to stop his breath. It felt impossible that twelve years had passed since the day they first met.
Back then Mike had just finished trade school and was desperate for steady work. His mother, who cooked at a group home for children, had put in a good word for him. On his first day as a maintenance electrician, he was nervous enough to sweat through his shirt standing outside the director’s office early that morning…
