Ten years ago, my wife Vanessa walked out on me and our disabled infant son, Aiden. “He’s a burden,” she said before disappearing from our lives. I became both mother and father, raising Aiden with the help of kind neighbors and sheer determination. Over the years, Aiden and I built a life together.

Then, out of nowhere, Vanessa emailed. She was full of regret and wanted to see Aiden. Against my better judgment, I agreed to meet. At the café, she dropped a bomb: she’d had an affair. Aiden wasn’t biologically mine. A DNA test confirmed it. Still, I knew in my heart Aiden was my son. I told her as much.

But her real motive soon surfaced. Vanessa wanted access to the government aid I received for Aiden’s care. I was livid. This wasn’t about love it was about money. She backed off eventually, but the damage was done.

Though I allowed her to meet Aiden briefly, it became clear she couldn’t offer the stability he needed. I told her goodbye for the final time. Now, Aiden and I continue on a team, a family forged by love, not DNA. No matter what, we face life together, hand in hand.