Goodbye, Mr. Regret

After the nurse left the room, Henry finally let go of Sheila.

"Miss Sheila, I'm sorry. That nurse is actually my classmate's mom. I didn't want my classmate to find out about my mom, so I pretended you were my mother. Are you mad at me?"

Sheila squeezed Henry's little nose, smiling. "Of course I'm not mad. But, Henry, what you did wasn't right. No matter what, you shouldn't turn your back on your own mom. Do you understand?"

Henry pouted, his voice tinged with hurt. "She never comes home. She doesn't cook for me, and now, even though I'm sick, she still doesn't care..."

Thinking about Jessica, Henry's disappointment deepened, a trace of resentment flickering in his chest.

"Henry," Timothy's voice broke the silence.

Henry looked up.

"Sheila's right," Timothy said sternly. "You're her son. You can't just give up on your mother. You're still young, but if you start pretending now, that's a habit you'll need to change."

Sheila was momentarily taken aback. Last time Henry had said something like this, Timothy hadn't been so harsh. Back then, he'd said it was normal for a child to care about appearances as he grew up. But now...

into tears, feeling

unreasonable. She won't let Miss Sheila stay at our house, she never comes home, she doesn't cook for me, and

her thoughts and hurried to comfort

your mom's just busy right now. Grown-ups have a lot on their plates. Who knows? Maybe you'll see her

Timothy. "He's still a child, Timothy. If you have to correct him, do it gently. Being this strict will only scare him

was still sobbing, his breath catching in

parent wouldn't feel a pang of guilt

are. With time, Henry would grow up and come to appreciate everything his mother had

Timothy held his

asleep, Sheila carefully tucked

Let me walk you back to

it can come back in the middle of the night. I'd rather stay here and keep an eye

him. If it gets to be too much,

you need