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...

burst into tears, feeling

comes home, she doesn't cook for me, and even now that I'm sick, she still doesn't care about me. And now Dad's mad at

out of her thoughts and hurried

Henry. Maybe your mom's just busy right now. Grown-ups have a lot

you have to correct him,

still sobbing, his breath catching in his

pang of guilt

he might have been too harsh. Kids care about saving face-it's just how they are. With time, Henry would grow up and come to

held his

Sheila

must be exhausted. Let me walk you back to your

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

after him. If it gets

need anything, just