12-year-old David was excited to buy new sneakers after saving up for months but decided to buy boots for his classmate whose shoes were tattered. Little did he know that his kindness would be rewarded in an unexpected way.
David always found himself a window seat on the school bus back home. As always, he opened the window wide and let the afternoon breeze brush across his face as he recollected the game he played that day, moment by moment.
“That was unbelievable, what you did on the field today!” one of his mates had said.
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“I think we’ve got a national-level player on our hands, guys. Get your autographs while you can!” another player teased David, patting his back almost a bit too hard.
That was the distant dream — playing for his country and creating history, like all his soccer heroes.
David could almost taste it; the sweet air of victory and pride when his team and he held the golden championship trophy and smiled for the photographs.
David would constantly rehearse what he would say for the cameras and the papers at the end of the match. How he rose from humble beginnings. And how he owed his mother everything he had become.
“Excuse me, may I sit here?”
David was so deep in his daydream that he didn’t realize one of his classmates had asked permission to sit next to him.
The boy sat down next to David, hugged his backpack, and started dreaming his own dream. ‘I want to become the best soccer player in the school. Just like David. I can’t believe I’m sitting next to him!’
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The boy was a true fan of David’s game and wouldn’t miss a chance to watch him play. In his mind, David was everything he wanted to be. He wanted to play like him, have tons of friends like him, and even wear those fancy soccer shoes David was wearing.
‘These old tattered shoes should do…for now,’ the boy thought, hiding his feet under the seat out of embarrassment.
Guillermo was always shy and found it challenging to make friends. One day, the boy finally found the courage to talk to his hero.
“Hi, David! I’m Guillermo. I’m your biggest fan!”
“Oh? Hi, Guillermo! Thank you.”
There was an awkward silence as David went back to daydreaming.
“I…really like your shoes!” Guillermo blurted the first thing that came to his mind.
“These? These are really old, and the soles have already started to come off. You should see the new shoes I’ll be getting…” David’s eyes lit up, thinking about the dreamy pair of sneakers he had been saving up for.
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Getty Images
“Tell me more about them!” Guillermo said, slowly tucking his feet under the seat. He didn’t want David to see how ugly and tattered his own shoes were.
“Well, they’re perfect! They’re neon orange, and they’ve got unbeatable grip…”
It had been seven months since David had been raising money to buy the pair of sneakers he wanted. This was the first time the 12-year-old wanted to buy something for himself. And he wanted to do it without burdening his mother. He knew how hard his mother worked, struggling to provide for him and his two younger twin sisters.
“Mom, you don’t need to contribute. Tracy and Katie have their birthdays coming up soon, and you need to save up to throw a tea party, remember?”
David saved up enough money. He did it with the help of a short paper route every morning and the savings from the lemonade stand he had put up the last vacation. Until one day, his piggy bank was full, and he finally had enough to bring his dream shoes home.
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Getty Images
On the bus ride home from school that day, he couldn’t stop talking about it with Guillermo.
“Guillermo! I did it! I’m going straight to the store after homework this evening and buying the best sneakers in town. In fact, I’ll come and pick you up, and you can accompany me to the shop. It’s going to be the best feeling ever!”
Guillermo felt genuine happiness for his idol. That’s when the bus suddenly jolted over a pothole, and one of Guillermo’s shoes fell off onto the bus floor.
David was taken aback at the sight of the worn-out, blackened shoe. It was a pair of thin, low-quality summer shoes that had seen too many seasons. There were holes in the sole, the canvas was coming apart, and there was no sign of a lace.
Guillermo let the other shoe fall, giving in to the feeling of shame.
David had tears in his eyes when he looked at his friend, hiding his face in his palms, sobbing quietly but uncontrollably. The two boys didn’t know what to say to each other for the rest of the ride.
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“Be ready by 5 o’clock!” David finally reminded Guillermo of the evening’s plan to visit the store. There was no way David was going to the store alone. Not after what he had seen.
“Ah, David! Here to pick up your new pair of soccer shoes? I’ve got them packed and ready right here.”
“Hold on, sir. Could you show me a pair of those in a smaller size?” David said, pointing at a pair of comfortable boots.
Always help the needy whenever you can.
The shop owner, Mr. Manning, was confused. “But the ones I packed are your exact size, Dave.”
“Not for me, for my friend here,” Dave replied.
Guillermo couldn’t believe what he had heard. He couldn’t possibly let David do that.
“No, David, I don’t need—”
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David squeezed Guillermo’s hand and blinked softly to quiet him. “I’ve got this, Guillermo. You’re always calling me your hero. Let me try and be one for you.”
Mr. Manning heard this exchange between the boys and felt a warmth of love and affection rise in his chest. He knew exactly what to do.
“Woah, this one looks great on you, friend. And it’s the absolute best we’ve got in this store.”
David was finally satisfied with the pair of boots he had bought for his friend. Guillermo’s shame had turned to overwhelm, gratitude, and pure joy over his unexpected gift.
As the boys left the store and cycled away, Mr. Manning signaled his staff. “Listen, there’s something we need to do right away…”
“David! There’s someone at the door for you! He arrived with an entire truck, actually.” David’s mother couldn’t make heads or tails of the strange visitor, either.
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David rushed to the door and found a familiar face. It was Mr. Manning, the shoe store owner. “I heard you talking to your friend at the store, Dave. I know what you did.”
David’s mother leaned in with a crease of suspicion sitting on her brow.
“I know how much you wanted those spiked sneakers, and I’ve seen you selling lemonade and delivering newspapers. And today, I saw you let all that desire go, just so you could help a friend who was in deeper need than you were.”
David lowered his head out of shyness, catching a glimpse of the proud look on his mother’s face from the corner of his eye.
“And I think this kind of kindness and friendship ought to be celebrated in this day and age. So come on! Get on the back of this truck and pick up as many pairs of shoes as you’d like. For you, your mother, and the twins… Don’t worry about the money; this is all on me.”
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Getty Images
David hesitated, looking to his mother for approval. As soon as she nodded, he dashed towards the truck with eyes shining in excitement.
“Hurry, we’ve still got to get to your friend’s house. There are free shoes for him and his family, too!”
What do we learn from this story?
Always help the needy whenever you can. Although David worked hard to buy new sneakers, he used the money to help Guillermo, who was wearing torn shoes.
An act of kindness can be infectious. The shoe store owner noticed David’s kindness. He was inspired by the boy’s actions and decided to help his and his friend’s family.
Share this story with your friends. It might brighten their day and inspire them.
If you enjoyed this story, you might like this one about a boy who received his favorite sneakers from the thrift shop as a gift on his birthday. He noticed an inscription on it and was shocked to learn about its previous owner.
This piece is inspired by stories from the everyday lives of our readers and written by a professional writer. Any resemblance to actual names or locations is purely coincidental. All images are for illustration purposes only. Share your story with us; maybe it will change someone’s life.
I Found a Note in My Daughter’s Backpack Saying, ‘I’m Your Real Dad, Come and See Me After School’ – I Went Pale When I Found Out Who Did It
Trent’s world unravels when he finds a cryptic note in his nine-year-old daughter’s backpack: “I’m your real dad, come and see me.” Suspicion gnaws at him, but nothing prepares him for the shocking truth he uncovers.
I stood at the kitchen sink, staring at the half-full coffee mug in my hand. The morning sun filtered through the curtains, casting a soft glow over the quiet street outside.
Mornings like this used to mean something to me — peace, warmth, the simple comfort of knowing Lily was just upstairs, getting ready for school. But lately, things felt different.
A man staring out his kitchen window | Source: Midjourney
I set the mug down with a sigh, listening to the faint sound of Lily’s footsteps from above. She used to charge down the stairs, her hair a mess, talking a mile a minute about her dreams or whatever happened at school the day before.
Now? Now, she dragged her feet, barely speaking, like there was a weight on her shoulders.
Something was wrong, and it worried me.
A worried man | Source: Midjourney
“Lily,” I called, hoping for some kind of response that would ease the tension. “You want pancakes? I can make some before you go.”
“Not hungry,” she muttered from the top of the stairs, her voice as flat as it had been for weeks.
I winced. She hadn’t sounded like that before: so sharp, so cold. It wasn’t like her at all. Drying my hands, I turned to face her as she came down.
“Hey, kiddo, what’s going on? You’ve been kinda quiet lately.”
A man standing at the foot of the stairs | Source: Midjourney
She shrugged, still not meeting my eyes. “Nothing.”
I hated that response. She used to tell me everything, but now it felt like she was shutting me out. She pulled on her backpack and moved toward the door like she couldn’t wait to leave.
“Lily, wait.” My heart was in my throat. I hated how distant she’d become, and it frightened me more than I wanted to admit. “You know you can talk to me, right? About anything.”
She paused with her hand on the doorknob.
A girl standing by the front door | Source: Midjourney
For a second, I thought maybe she’d turn around and open up to me. But then her shoulders stiffened, and she just nodded.
“Yeah. I know.” Her words were hollow, as if she didn’t believe them herself. She opened the door and slipped out without another word.
I stood there in the silence, feeling it close in on me. Something was wrong. I just didn’t know what it was yet.
A worried man | Source: Midjourney
That afternoon, I was going through the laundry, like I always did on the weekends. Lily had tossed her backpack onto her bed, and it looked like it had survived some kind of battlefield.
I figured I’d clean it out before throwing it in the wash, so I started digging through the mess of crumpled papers and snack wrappers. That’s when I found the note.
A folded piece of paper slipped out of the side pocket, so worn that it was practically falling apart.
A folded note | Source: Midjourney
I stared at it for a second before unfolding it, something heavy settling in my chest.
“I’m your real dad. Come and see me last Monday of September behind the school.”
My heart stopped. The words blurred for a second and it seemed like my brain couldn’t process what they meant. Real dad? What the hell was this?
I was Lily’s dad… I’d raised her since the day she was born.
A shocked man | Source: Midjourney
Kate, my wife, who’d been gone for six years now, wouldn’t have kept something like this from me. She loved me. She wouldn’t have cheated on me.
Would she?
I felt sick to my stomach. The note wasn’t just some random thing. It felt targeted. Like someone knew exactly how to hurt me, using Lily to get to me. But who? And why?
I wanted to confront Lily right then and demand answers.
A confused man | Source: Midjourney
But something stopped me. I couldn’t do that to her, not yet.
The note said to meet on the last Monday of September, which was in two days. I needed to know who was behind this.
Two days later, I was sitting in my car, watching the school. I hated doing this; following my daughter like some kind of detective, but I had no choice. I needed to know what was going on.
A man sitting in his car | Source: Pexels
I watched as Lily walked slowly to the back fence of the school, her shoulders tense, like she knew this wasn’t right. And then I saw him: a tall guy, slouching a little, standing by the fence. It took me a second, but when I realized who it was, my blood ran cold.
Jeff. A guy I knew from work. He’d always been quiet and kept to himself, but I never thought much about it.
Until now.
A man leaning against a fence | Source: Midjourney
Lily hesitated for a moment before walking up to him. I cracked the window, just enough to hear their voices.
“You came,” Jeff said, his voice low and almost too calm. “I wasn’t sure you would.”
Lily didn’t respond, but I could see her fidgeting with the straps of her backpack. She was nervous. I could feel it from where I was sitting.
“I know this is a lot,” Jeff continued, his voice gentle in a way that made my skin crawl. “But your mom wanted you to know the truth. She didn’t want to hurt you. Or… him.”
A man talking to a girl | Source: Midjourney
I couldn’t just sit there anymore. I pushed the car door open and stormed toward them, my heart pounding so hard I thought it might explode. “What the hell is going on here?”
Jeff flinched, his face tightening for a second before he composed himself. “Trent. I was hoping we could talk about this.”
“Talk?” My voice shook with rage. “You think you can just show up and tell my daughter you’re her father?”
A shouting man | Source: Midjourney
Jeff glanced at Lily, who looked more confused than I’d ever seen her, and then back at me. “She deserves to know. Kate and I… we had something. Lily is my daughter.”
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. My hands clenched into fists, my whole body shaking with disbelief. “No. You’re lying. Kate wouldn’t do that to me. She wouldn’t keep that from me.”
“She didn’t want to hurt you, Trent.” Jeff’s voice was so calm, so sure of himself. “She thought it was for the best.”
A man and a girl | Source: Midjourney
I turned to Lily, my heart breaking at the look on her face: wide-eyed and terrified. “Lily, don’t listen to him. He’s lying.”
Lily’s voice was barely a whisper, but it cut through me like a knife. “Is it true? Dad… is it true?”
I dropped to my knees in front of her, my hands resting on her arms. “It doesn’t matter what anyone says. I’m your dad. I’ve been there every day of your life. That’s what makes me your father. Nothing else.”
A girl standing near a fence | Source: Midjourney
She didn’t say anything, just stared at me, her lip quivering. I could feel her shaking beneath my hands, and it killed me to see her like that. I turned back to Jeff, my rage flaring again.
“Get out of here.”
Jeff sighed, looking almost sad. “I know this is hard, but I’m not going anywhere. She deserves to know the truth.”
“You’re not her father,” I growled, barely holding back my anger. “You never will be.”
A man shouting | Source: Midjourney
Jeff gave me one last pitying look before turning and walking away. I wanted to chase him, to demand answers, but Lily’s small sob pulled me back.
I wrapped my arms around her, holding her as tightly as I could. I wouldn’t let anyone hurt her. Not ever.
That night, I lay in bed, staring at the ceiling, my mind racing with thoughts I didn’t want to have. Could it be true? Could Kate have hidden something like that from me?
A man lying in bed | Source: Pexels
I thought about every moment we’d shared, every laugh, every conversation. Nothing made sense anymore.
The next day, I started digging into Jeff’s past. I couldn’t just sit around waiting for answers. I needed to know the truth.
It didn’t take long to find out that Jeff had been fired from our company a month ago for lying on his résumé.
A man using his laptop | Source: Pexels
He had a history of manipulation, of using people to get what he wanted. The relief I felt was overwhelming. He’d lied about everything.
A few nights later, Lily and I were sitting on the couch, watching some show that neither of us were really paying attention to. I knew I had to talk to her. She deserved to know the truth.
“Lily,” I said softly, “we need to talk about Jeff.”
A girl sitting on a sofa | Source: Midjourney
She tensed, curling a little closer to me, but she didn’t say anything.
“He lied to you, kiddo. About everything. Jeff is not your real dad. He’s just… sick. He was trying to hurt us.”
Lily looked up at me, her eyes wide and scared. “But… what if it’s true?”
“It doesn’t matter what he said,” I told her, pulling her closer. “I’m your dad. I’ve always been your dad, and nothing will ever change that.”
A worried girl | Source: Midjourney
She stared at me for a long moment, her lip trembling, and then she nodded. “I love you, Dad.”
“I love you too, kiddo. Always.”
A few days later, I got a call from the police. Jeff had been arrested for stalking another family. Turns out, the guy had a history of lying and manipulating people. It was over. I hung up the phone, feeling like I could finally breathe again.
A man standing in his home | Source: Midjourney
Lily was at the kitchen table, drawing quietly. I walked over and kissed the top of her head. We were going to be okay.
We had to be.
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