Woman Asks Park Janitor to Keep an Eye on Her Girl Briefly and Disappears for 7 Years – Story of the Day

A park janitor's life takes an unexpected turn when a woman asks him to watch over her little daughter for a few minutes and then disappears. She returns one day seven years later with an unexpected demand.

Victor, 23, was an aspiring football player who was offered an amazing position to coach a football team in a private school. Everybody adored Victor's tactics on the field and loved his coaching style.

But at the peak of his newfound success, Victor faced a painful blow that toppled his career. Just a few weeks before a critical interschool match, Victor injured his leg and could not coach his team well. The school lost the tournament and the golden chance to win the trophy, and everybody blamed Victor for their failure.

The demeaning comments he amassed almost every other day from his peers lowered his self-esteem. Depressed and heartbroken, Victor vowed never to return to the field again. He gave up on his dream career and settled for an average job as a janitor in a local park...

Two years fleeted by as Victor adapted to his new life. He never disclosed his identity to anyone and did his best not to return to sports again. He hated how everyone blamed and condemned him for the school's failure in the football match years ago. The more he recalled all their hurtful slurs, the more he refrained from returning to the field.

None who frequented the park knew what an acclaimed former football player Victor was. According to them, he was just some random janitor working hard for a living.

On one typical day at work, Victor was making rounds at the park after disposing of trash when a strange woman greeted him. She had veiled her face except for her eyes.

"Excuse me, can you please keep an eye on my daughter? I need to use the restroom urgently."

Victor saw a little girl fast asleep in a stroller.

"Sure, miss, I'll wait here with your child."

Victor watched over the little girl, anxiously looking around for the mother. Minutes swelled by, and even half an hour later, the woman didn't return. The girl started crying as Victor grew anxious and tried comforting her. That's when an envelope in the child's stroller drew his attention.

You heal when you forgive others and grow stronger when you let go of grudges and mistakes.

Victor scooped it up and found a note inside. As he unfolded the letter, a broken link to his dark past unraveled, terrifying him.

"Dear Victor, I hope you are fine. Remember me?" began the letter.

"We met at the party three years ago. I left you a gift—Hannah is a living, laughing, and breathing symbol of our one-night stand. I cannot care for her anymore, so she's your responsibility from now onward."

Victor could not believe his eyes as an incomplete chapter of his past flashed in his head. He had traveled to a neighboring city three years ago for a football tournament. One night, he locked eyes with a beautiful woman named Maria, and the two hit it off instantly. Their one-night stand resulted in Maria's unplanned pregnancy, and Victor had no idea he had a kid.

Reality struck Victor hard when he realized that little Hannah was his daughter. He took her home and immediately reached out to his friend, a cop, to find out if there were any reports of a missing child.

"Hey, no, Victor. We didn't get any complaints as such the last few days. Why, is everything alright?"

"Hey, yeah, no... no... Everything's fine. I was just checking. Thanks, man!"

"And you're coming trekking with us this weekend, yeah?"

Victor had promised his friends to go trekking with them but changed his mind as he could not leave Hannah unattended.

"Uh, something's come up, pal. Will let you know if I'm free, yeah?"

How will I raise my daughter alone? Why did Maria do this to me? Victor wondered as tears endlessly flowed down his eyes. He decided not to give Hannah away to a foster home and began working hard to raise her. Victor knew this would be a mountainous challenge, but he was determined to do it.

But why did Maria suddenly abandon the baby? The thought constantly haunted Victor.

Time flew by too soon as Victor devoted his heart and soul to raising Hannah.

One day, a football team manager taking a walk in the park noticed Victor teaching kids some football tactics. He was impressed by Victor's field knowledge and obtained his contact details.

Although Victor tried his best not to return to the sport again, destiny put him on the track. He was hired as a substitute player for a football team. Everybody made fun of him and mocked him: "Hey look, we have a senior player in our team. Will his aching joints allow him to lift his leg and kick the ball... Yuk! Yuk!"

But Victor answered them politely and with dignity:

"Talent does not have an age limit, pals. See ya on the field!"

As time went by, Victor exhibited his game tactics on the field and soon earned his ticket as the team's assistant coach. His strategies and technical skills catapulted his team to win all their matches. A year later, Victor was promoted as the team's main coach, leading them to the trophy for the first time in eleven years.

With success came more commitment to his daughter, who turned seven. Victor and Hannah were more of best friends than dad and daughter. They played together during their free time in the evenings, painted pictures, and loved taking thrilling rides in amusement parks.

Victor and Hannah lived the best days of their lives, assuming this joy was eternal. But one day, Victor's heart almost dropped to the floor when he saw Maria in the sports club where he worked.

Why has she come again? Is she going to take my Hannah away from me? I will not let that happen, Victor feared as he marched to meet Maria.

"How are you, Victor? And how is our daughter?"

"Our daughter??? She is my daughter and only mine. Why have you come again?"

Maria pressed her lips tight before revealing why she'd abandoned Hannah seven years ago.

"Victor, what happened between us that night was an accident. We parted ways as promised, but I got pregnant. I wanted to move on without this baby, but it was too late."

"I gave birth to our daughter and raised her for two years. My parents kicked me out and cut me off from their lives. I struggled a lot, and then I met Dave, my new boyfriend. But he was not ready to accept my child. I then decided to find you and leave your daughter with you, but you had changed all your numbers."

"I tracked you down and found out you had quit your job and worked as a janitor in the park. I wanted to move on with Dave, so I devised a plan to leave Hannah with you so that you raise her."

"Jesus, Maria! How could you do this to our daughter? She's not an object. She is our baby. And why have you come here?"

Maria then proposed the unthinkable and left Victor shaken.

"Dave and I broke up recently. I have nobody, and I want my daughter back. I want to raise her."

Furious and worried that Maria would take Hannah away from him, Victor refused and told her off.

"Go away... I won't let that happen. She's my daughter, and she's not going with you."

Maria stormed out, and a few days later, a court notice arrived at Victor's address, summoning to bring Hannah to the court.

At the hearing two weeks later...

"Your Honor, I cannot trust this woman with my daughter. She abandoned her as a baby. What's the guarantee she will not do it again?" Victor argued his point.

Maria jumped in self-defense, saying: "Your Honor, I had no choice or means to raise my daughter. I wanted to move on, so I had to leave her with her birth father."

After listening to both sides, the judge declared Victor as Hannah's legal guardian, adding:

"Do not bestow your grudges and greed upon your children or make them victims of your past. They deserve love and support throughout their lives. Children are not objects to be abandoned."

Hannah and Victor marched out of the court as a happy family. Although defeated, Maria still yearned to be with her daughter, and Victor could very well see that. But he did not bother.

A few days later, he gave it a second thought when Hannah told him about her desire to meet her mom. Victor realized his daughter needed the love of both parents. He forgave Maria and gradually built bridges with her for their daughter's sake.

What can we learn from this story?

• Love and support are the bricks that build a beautiful and strong family. Despite their ups and downs, Victor, Maria, and Hannah found the love and support they needed in each other and became one happy family.
• You heal when you forgive others and grow stronger when you let go of grudges and mistakes. Although Victor was furious with Maria for abandoning their baby, he realized that his daughter needed the love of both parents. He let go of their grudges and forgave Maria.

Share this story with your friends. It might brighten their day and inspire them.

A poor widowed janitor adopts an abandoned baby girl on the runway and faces an unexpected twist when her birth mother shows up sixteen years later. Click here to read the full story.

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.