I Found My Future Adoptive Son in the Trunk of a Rental Car - Story of the Day

A woman who just learned she can't have children goes on holiday and finds a little boy hiding in the trunk of her rental car, and it transforms both their lives.

You never know what's coming next, do you? One moment you're living through the worse moments of your life, and the next, you unexpectedly find hope.

That's what happened to me. My husband and I had been struggling to conceive for over twelve years, and now the doctors told me my time had run out. I would never be a mother. They were wrong.

Gary and I sat in the doctor's office listening to her. It felt like her voice was coming from very far away, I didn't want to hear her. I didn't want to understand.

"I'm so sorry, Mrs. Davidson," she said. "Any more attempts would place your life in danger. There is nothing more we can do."

Sometimes prayers are answered in the most unexpected way.

We walked out and I felt numb. Gary kept hugging me and holding my hand. I knew he was talking to me, but I couldn't hear him. "There's never going to be a baby, is there?" I asked him.

"Honey," Gary said. "We can adopt..."

"Adopt?" I screamed. "Bring some stranger's child into my home? I wanted my own baby, OUR baby!"

"I know," Gary said. "But..."

"I don't want to hear it!" I cried. For the next two months, I walked around like a zombie, and much as he tried, Gary couldn't get through to me, so he brought out the big guns.

One evening, when I came home from work, my sister was there. Wanda is my big sister and she is the most down-to-earth person I know. "What's going on, Fran?" she asked.

No small talk for Wanda, she just wades right in. "I'm sure Gary's told you," I snapped. "Since he called you in to 'deal' with me!"

"I hear you're feeling sorry for yourself," Wanda said. "Moping and crying and so on..."

"I can't have a baby!" I cried. "You have four, so don't you judge me!"

"I'm not judging you, Fran," Wanda said gently. "I'm worried about you, and so is Gary. I think you need a break, OK? Go somewhere sunny. Find time for yourself, figure out what comes next."

"What comes next?" I asked angrily. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Well, Fran," Wanda said. "You know you are not going to be a mom, so you have to discover what you're going to do."

It made sense. I had been living the last 15 years since my marriage thinking of myself as a future mother. It was time to reinvent myself. Who was I? Who was Fran Davidson?

Three days later, I caught a flight to Tampa. The plan was to rent a car and drive down to Boca Grande and stay at a pretty inn close to the beach.

There, I hoped, I'd find my center again, rediscover my tranquility and a new direction for my life. I knew I had a wonderful husband in Gary, I had a successful career, and now I wanted a new motivation.

I picked up my car keys from the rental agent, threw my bag into the backseat, and set the GPS for Boca Grande. Driving the eighty or so miles to the resort town, I found myself humming.

It DID feel good to be on my own. Wanda was right. This might just be the way to get my head back together. I turned into the parking lot of the inn I'd booked, and then I heard a strange sound.

I frowned. It sounded like the noise came from the trunk. I parked the car and went to investigate. I opened the trunk, and there, blinking like a little owl in the bright sunlight, was a boy.

"What?" I gasped. "What are you doing here?"

The boy sat up and I could see he was very small, maybe six or seven. "Please, lady," he said. "Don't take me back!"

"Back where?" I asked.

"To the group home," he explained. "I ran away because the other kids were mean to me. I was the smallest kid, you see..."

I did see. There were bruises all over his thin arms and legs. I helped him out of the trunk and his T-shirt rode up, revealing more bruises on his skinny back.

"Did the other kids do that to you?" I asked gently. He nodded and looked ashamed. "What's your name?"

"I'm Kevin," he said. "What's yours?"

I smiled and replied, "I'm Fran."

"You're really pretty, Fran," he said. "Would you like to be my mom?"

It felt like I'd been run over by a 10-ton truck. I wanted to be a mom, yes I did. I wanted to put ointment on those bruises, feed him up, protect him from the bullies...

I wanted to be a mom, and I wouldn't mind if I was Kevin's mom. "Kevin," I asked. "How come you were in my trunk?"

Kevin shrugged and scuffed the dirt with his sneaker. "I ran away from the group home," he explained. "I was running from the big kids, and I had nowhere to hide. I saw this car parked on the street, and the trunk was open, so I hid in there.

I must have fallen asleep because when I woke up the car was moving...Then it stopped, and then it moved again. I was scared so I just kept very quiet."

"Kevin, you have to go back," I said firmly. "I'm driving you back to Tampa." He looked crest-fallen but he nodded his agreement. I sat him in the back seat and buckled up the seat belt.

We drove back to Tampa, but on the way, we talked a lot. I learned that Kevin had been abandoned by his family as a very young child. He was as hungry to receive love as I was to give it.

We didn't just talk, we laughed. He made me laugh for the first time in months. We stopped for a burger and I discovered we were both Star Wars fans.

Kevin was so bright! He was funny and sweet and had the kindest heart. He was also addicted to puns, so we had a competition and sang road songs. By the end of the trip, that little scamp stole my heart.

So when we got to the group home, I had a chat with the director. I showed her Kevin's bruises and told her my next stop was the local precinct to report child abuse. She vowed that she would keep an eye on the bullies and protect Kevin.

"I'll be back," I told Kevin. "That's a promise, so wait for me!"

The next day, I set my own plan in motion. I went home and talked to Gary. He was overjoyed. We applied to adopt Kevin and after jumping through a lot of hoops, he was finally ours.

He wasn't a stranger's child. He is my son. When people ask me how I became a mom, I tell them, "I found my son in the trunk of a rental car!"

What can we learn from this story?

• Sometimes prayers are answered in the most unexpected way. Fran wanted to be a mother, and life brought her the son she needed -- just not how she expected.
• Families are built on love, not biology. Fran learned that being a mom had everything to do with heart and very little to do with blood.

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If you enjoyed this story, you might like this one about a childless woman who attends the funeral of her best friend from college and becomes the adoptive mom of her two children.

This piece is inspired by stories from the everyday lives of our readers and written by a professional writer. Any resemblance to actual names or locations is purely coincidental. All images are for illustration purposes only. Share your story with us; maybe it will change someone’s life. If you would like to share your story, please send it to info@amomama.com.