“Yes. He doesn’t want anything to do with the baby. He told me to get rid of it because he’s not going to be a father now,” Molly replied.

“What an idiot! I can’t believe he would evade his responsibilities like that! What are you going to do?” I questioned.

“I don’t know. I don’t want to get rid of it, but I’m in college. I can’t be a single mom. My parents are going to kill me,” she cried.

“I’ll step up. We can get married, and I’ll help you raise the baby. You won’t be alone,” I suggested without thinking about it twice.

“I can’t ask you to do that. I’m sorry, Mark. But I don’t think I’ll ever feel that way about you,” Molly said apologetically.

“Don’t worry. It’s not about that. We’ll get married so that no one will look down on you, and you won’t be a single mother,” I continued. It sounded crazy even to me, but I couldn’t let Molly go through this alone.

“Are you sure? That’s a lot to ask of a friend,” Molly whispered, still hesitant about this insane idea. I assured her I was serious, and we went down to the courthouse later that week. Two of our friends served as witnesses, and it was a short affair.

I helped Molly get through this pregnancy as best I could. It was difficult as we were both college students, but we would make it work together. I grew more excited every day, thinking of becoming a father.

But Molly was not that enthusiastic. I could tell that she missed being able to go out with her friends and enjoying regular college life. But as a mother, she had to sacrifice a lot. Eventually, Amelia was born, and she was the most beautiful baby in the world.

I adored her immediately and became her dad. Molly loved Amelia as well and settled into being a mother better than I expected. We became a wonderful little family, and no one suspected that Amelia was not mine because she looked exactly like her mother.

But Molly grew less and less excited. When Amelia was five years old, Molly broke down after putting her to bed. “I can’t do this anymore. I lost everything!” she cried.

“What are you talking about?” I asked her.

“I lost my entire youth. I shouldn’t have had a kid at all!” Molly continued.

“Molly, please. Amelia might hear you. She’s in the next room!” I said, raising my voice only a bit.

“I don’t care. I want out of this. I’m filing for divorce, and I don’t want to see any of you again,” she said, shocking me to my core. I asked her to stop and think about this, but Molly had already packed her bags and left us forever.

I went to Amelia’s room only to discover that our daughter had heard the entire commotion. “Mommy left?” she cried.

“Baby, your mother is going through something right now and needs some time away. She’ll be back soon,” I assured her.

Unfortunately, Molly did not return, and I became a single father. It was harder than I ever expected, and Amelia would cry almost every single night for a year afterward. But soon enough, we both got used to being on our own. My daughter was the light of my life, and I would do anything to get us through.

Molly did not call once but would update her social media often. She had the college life she had missed all this time. It was one party after another with her old college sorority friends. I felt awful seeing those pictures.

How could she abandon her child to go out and have fun? It was unforgivable. Several years after her abandonment, I saw that she and Tanner had gotten back together, which only hurt worse. This was the guy who dumped her at her most vulnerable and didn’t want to step up for his baby.

I couldn’t do anything about it except move on, but Molly decided to come back into our lives just when we were doing so well. “What do you mean you want Amelia back?” I asked when Molly showed up at my house unexpectedly.

“Molly is my daughter, and I want her to live with me. Tanner is finally ready to meet her. She’s her father,” she said nonchalantly.

“Tanner is not her father. I’m her father. I raised her all these years, especially when you abandoned her,” I said with disdain in my voice.

“Mark, don’t do this. I will take you to court for custody if I have to. That’s my child. Tanner and I are engaged. She is going to be so happy with her real family at last,” Molly continued.

“I’ll see you in court then,” I replied and threw Molly out of my house. Amelia was almost a teenager by then and saw how worried I was. My lawyers advised me to settle things out of court because most judges side with the mother.

But how could a judge side with Molly after her abandonment? My name was on Amelia’s birth certificate, and I saw her grow up. I was her only father. Molly’s lawyers were fierce, and our battle was harsh. But Amelia’s testimony sealed the deal.

“I only have one father,” she said, pointing at me. “My mother left many years ago after saying she regretted me. I don’t want to live with her.”

Luckily, the judge listened to my little girl, although my lawyers didn’t think it would happen. He gave me full custody, while Molly got visitation on the weekends. I encouraged Amelia to forgive her mother and build a relationship with her, which they did.

But she told me every day that I was the best father anyone could ever have.

What can we learn from this story?