“Molly, look! Your daddy’s here!” someone at the funeral said to the 17-year-old mourning over her mother Daisy’s casket.
Danny, the teenager’s father, and her mother had been divorced for ten years. Since then, Molly had heard nothing but terrible things about her dad, like how he was a “drunk” and the like.
Although the young girl had no hard feelings toward Danny, she often missed the connection between father and daughter. But after her mother’s funeral, things were about to change for her.
“Hi sweetheart!” greeted Danny to his daughter and hugged her before placing a wreath on his ex-wife’s casket.
“Sir, is that truck yours? It’s blocking half the parking lot, would you mind moving it?” a guest asked Danny, who was a truck driver.
“Yes, that’s my truck. Give me a second. I just ran into my daughter. I hope you understand. Thank you!”
Danny was delighted to be reunited with Molly. The only bond he had had with her all these years had been through the child support he paid for her. Daisy would not allow him to see her because she feared he would become a bad influence.
The funeral was over and everyone left. Danny packed up all of Molly’s things and told her they were going home.
“But why, Dad, I can’t leave this house. Mom and I live here. It’s full of our memories.”
Molly frowned because Danny didn’t want to listen. He knew he couldn’t leave his daughter alone, especially since she often used a wheelchair when she didn’t need crutches.
Due to an underlying condition she had developed in her left leg when she was six years old, Molly limped.
Two days later, the teenager moved in with her dad. Although the house was compact and cluttered, it comforted her and made her feel loved.
As the days passed, Danny found it difficult to do things for Molly. Because he hadn’t seen her grow up, he didn’t know how to approach most things, like braiding her hair, for example. He learned how to do it by watching videos online. But that wasn’t all.
He gave up his bedroom so Molly would have a nice space to sleep. He even bought a new soft bed so she could get a good night’s rest.
Danny did everything he could to make his daughter feel at home, but if there was one thing he kept secret, it was his constant disappearances at night.
Molly had no idea where her father went at night after she fell asleep. She could only guess that he was lounging around with his friends at the pub, as her mother often told her.
A few days later, the young girl got off the school bus and entered her house in tears. She found that the door was locked. There was a note hidden behind a plant. “The keys are under the potted plant. I’ll be back soon. see you! Dad.”
Molly frowned and remembered her mother telling her about her father’s “strange” habits at night. She frowned thinking he was drinking at four o’clock in the afternoon.
Hours passed, but Danny didn’t come home. Molly made some pasta and left some for her dad. Then she lay down on her bed crying.
“If I were normal, I would have found a date for prom.”
It turned out that Molly’s teacher had informed them about the upcoming prom. All of her classmates had found dates for the event except her. No one was interested in taking her. “Who would want to dance with someone who limps?” the girl thought.
Molly was crying so loudly that Danny heard her when she got home.
“What happened, honey, what are you crying about?”
The teenager told him about the prom.
“I don’t have a date. I even asked some guys if one of them would at least dance with me during the prom, but they refused and laughed. I don’t want to go to prom, Dad! I want to be alone! Good night!”.
Molly turned her back on Danny and pretended to sleep, tears soaking her pillow.
Danny couldn’t just leave his daughter distraught. The next day, he bought her a beautiful prom dress. And on the day of the prom Molly got a big surprise that touched her. Her father was going with her to be her chaperone.
The seniors and their parents were congregating outside the classroom when the loud roar of an engine caught their attention.
Danny climbed out of the truck. He set a wheelchair on the grass and helped Molly down. He pushed the wheelchair onto the red carpet as everyone watched in amazement.
The father jumped onto the dance floor with his daughter as the music played. He lifted Molly up and wheeled her in circles, synchronizing with the melodious music.
For a moment, Molly forgot all her troubles and laughed out loud as her father continued to rock her in his arms as she danced.
“My dad is my true superhero. I love him more than anything in this world. I feel blessed and proud to say that I am his daughter,” Molly told her friends after she finished dancing.
Meanwhile, Danny became the center of attention. All the parents gathered around him to praise and applaud him. The man then talked a little about himself and his daughter, never imagining that night would soon change their lives.
Father and daughter returned home, talking about how much fun they had had. Then, Danny put Molly to bed in her bedroom and quietly left the house.
It turned out that Danny had a second job as a caregiver at a local nursing home. In addition to his part-time job as a truck driver, he worked overtime to save money for his daughter’s treatment.
When Molly’s disability was diagnosed years earlier, many told Danny and Daisy that she would never be able to walk.
But a doctor had assured them that he would treat the girl and restore her ability to walk. So Danny stopped partying in pubs with his friends and started working two jobs.
Daisy had misunderstood him and thought he was wasting his time in the pub. Danny tried to explain it to her, but she didn’t trust him. Their constant doubts and heated arguments led to their separation soon after.
The man never bothered because he only focused on saving money for Molly’s surgery and worked hard for the next few years.
Danny ached every time he remembered his past. Even that night, as he drove to work, he couldn’t get the terrible things his ex-wife had said to him out of his thoughts.
He finished his shift and prepared to go home, unprepared for the surprise that awaited him and his daughter. That morning, when he returned home from work, Danny was in for a sweet surprise when he found a package in his mailbox.
“A package? Who sent it?” he wondered. The card read, “Dad of the Year!”
Inside, the father found a check for $10,000 and another note:
“Dear Danny, We hope this makes your daughter’s life better. Good luck with her surgery and we hope you spend more time with her in the evenings – best wishes, her prom friends!”.
Danny realized that the parents he had met the night before were behind this. He shed tears of joy and shared the good news with Molly.
“Really!!! Oh my God, Daddy… This is amazing!” she said laughing and crying on her daddy’s shoulders.
With the money Danny had saved and the $10,000 check, Molly was able to undergo the operation, which was successful and she was gradually able to walk without crutches.
Meanwhile, the father quit his second job to spend more time with his daughter. She got a scholarship to study architecture in another state and was scheduled to leave in three months.
Danny wanted to make the most of the available time he had with Molly. He taught her how to cook, dance, ride a bike and even run. He just wanted his daughter to live a normal life and never look back to the days when she used a wheelchair and crutches.