Guy Dumps Girlfriend for Career, Meets Her Years Later with Kid Who Looks Like Him – Story of the Day

A car accident leaves basketball player Andre badly injured. While trying to recover, he realizes that there are more important things in life than his career.

Andre woke up to bright lights and pain that throbbed in his shoulder and neck. Someone was crying nearby. His gaze panned over the plain white ceiling with its bright lights to a curly-haired woman at his bedside.

"Mom?" Andre croaked.

"Thank God you're awake!" Mom leaped to her feet and leaned over him.

"What happened?" A budding fear formed in Andre's chest, blooming into terror when he tried to reach Mom, but his right arm refused to move. "Mom? My arm..."

"Shh, it's going to be okay." Mom put her hands on his cheeks. "Look at me. You were in a car accident on your way to the game." Mom's voice broke, and fresh tears filled her eyes. "But you're alive, and that's all that matters."

Andre remembered looking at the traffic lights through his windscreen, waiting for them to change. He'd heard tires screeching and someone leaning on their horn. He'd turned around, and then...everything went black after that.

"How long until I recover?" Andre asked. "When can I play basketball again?"

Mom pressed her lips together and looked away. "The doctors said...well, you know it's a miracle you're alive. You should focus on that, baby."

"I need to know when I can play again." Andre's left arm still worked. He reached across his torso to grasp his right arm, but Mom grabbed his elbow.

"She doesn't know!" Mom shouted.

"Nobody knows, Andre. Your nerves were damaged, baby. It might take years to recover the full use of your hand. You might never be able to play professional-level basketball again."

Andre felt like the world had ended. All he'd ever wanted was to play ball, and he'd committed his life to fulfilling that dream. It almost slipped through his fingers when he wasn't picked during the draft. He'd considered moving overseas to play in the Euroleague when he was offered a chance to play as a free agent. He'd been so close to getting signed, but now...

"I won't accept that." Andre stared at Mom. "I dedicated my life to playing ball. I left everything and everyone back home behind when I got the chance to make that dream come true. I won't give up on it because of an injury. My life is meaningless if I can't play."

The doctor tried to convince Andre to be realistic about his recovery, but he refused to listen. When the hospital released him, Andre searched online for the best rehabilitation center in the country. He would play again after completing their program, but it was expensive.

"Matty will help me." Andre dialed the number of his teammate. He explained the rehabilitation program and asked if Matty would lend him money to cover the cost.

"Sorry, man, but you know there's really no guarantee with things like that, and I heard your injury was pretty severe..."

Andre tried his other teammates, but nobody was willing to give him such a large loan. He swore and threw his phone against the wall. He'd never be able to enter the rehabilitation program now!

Andre stared at the familiar luxuries of his upmarket apartment. Without a job, he couldn't even afford to live here anymore. Soon, he'd have to leave it all behind and move back home to Mom.

Mom tried to keep his spirits up. She invited Andre to church every Sunday and kept him busy helping her with errands, but nothing could distract him from the dark feelings in his heart whenever he thought about basketball.

One day, Andre went for a walk to escape another one of Mom's pep talks. As he rounded the corner, he noticed an attractive woman walking his way with a young girl. Andre stared at her in shock when he recognized her as an ex-girlfriend.

"Julia, is that you?" Andre asked.

"Andre?" The woman gasped.

"What a surprise to see you back in town."

Andre shrugged and nodded to the girl at her side. "Is this your daughter?"

"Yes, this is Louisa." Julia put a hand on the girl's shoulder.

Something about the way Julia was watching him made Andre uncomfortable. It only worsened when Louisa pointed at his right hand and asked what was wrong with it.

"Uh...my hand is resting. It has a super-important mission to complete," he said, trying in vain to imagine a day when he'd play again.

The girl cocked her head. "It looks like an eagle's foot."

"Louisa, why don't you run on home and get the chicken out of the freezer for dinner? I'll join you soon."

Once the girl was out of earshot, Julia apologized for Louisa's tactless remarks.

"It's okay, she's just a kid." Andre shrugged. "You know, it's really good to see you again, Julia. I'd ask you out for coffee, but Louisa's dad probably wouldn't like that very much."

"Louisa's dad?" Julia snorted and gave him that strange look again. "He left me before she was born to pursue his career. And he never looked back to see what he’d left behind. Now, if you'll excuse me."

Andre stared after Julia as she strode away. The implications of his ex-girlfriend's words struck him like the shockwave from an explosion.

"I'm a father?" Andre said. He ran to catch up to Julia.

"You can't just drop that on me and walk away," Andre said as he drew level with Julia. "Is Louisa mine?"

Julia side-eyed him but said nothing.

"Julia, speak to me, please!" Andre stepped in front of her. "Is Louisa my daughter?"

"Yes, she is. I didn't tell you because I knew it wouldn't mean anything compared to your bigshot basketball career." Julia crossed her arms and looked away.

"You made your choice, Andre, and I made mine. I knew it would be tough raising Louisa alone, but we're living a great life."

Julia stepped around him and continued walking. This time, Andre let her go. He couldn't stop thinking about what he would've done if Julia had told him she was pregnant. It hurt to realize she was right: nothing would've prevented him from pursuing his dream, not even impending fatherhood.

Andre turned and watched Julia cross the street at the end of the block. Did it matter to him now? Did he want to be a part of Louisa's life?

It took a few days for Andre to gather the courage to knock on Julia's door. He'd brought a gift for Louisa, but now he was here, he worried she might not like it, or Julia might not let him see her.

"Are you serious?" Julia gave him a skeptical look when she opened the door.

"I'd like to see Louisa, please, and get to know her. I understand if you don't want to tell her I'm her father, but can you at least give me a chance to make up for not being around?"

Julia sighed and opened the door. "You can have one hour, but don't make a habit of this. I'd hate for her to get attached to you when you're probably going to leave again at the first opportunity."

When Julia opened the door to let Andre into her bedroom, Louisa was reaching under the bed.

"Am I interrupting something?" Andre asked.

Louisa glanced around the room and lowered her voice: "Can you keep a secret?"

Andre stared in horror as the girl reached under the bed once more. He set Louisa's gift aside as his imagination was filled with terrifying guesses about her secret. It was a relief when she removed a box filled with screws, nuts, and small metal slats of varying lengths.

"Why is this a secret?" Andre asked as Louisa started assembling the pieces.

"Because the girls at school think I'm weird for playing with a boy's toy." Louisa shrugged.

"I tried to get them to play with me so they'd see how much fun it is to create things, but they didn't want to. Will you play with me?"

"I would love to play with you, Louisa, but unfortunately, my hand...well, it's still resting."

"Oh." Louisa hunched her shoulders and hung her head. "But doesn't it have a...super-important mission to complete? Maybe it's time to start prepping for it?" the girl asked, an almost desperate hopefulness shining in her eyes.

"I guess we can give it a shot." Andre sat across from her on the floor. "But I don't think I'll be much help to you."

"That's okay." Louisa grinned at him. “At least you’re willing to try.”

Andre tried to hide his embarrassment and frustration as he struggled to push one of the tiny screws through a hole in the metal slat. Louisa was twenty steps ahead of him by the time he reached for a nut to secure the screw. It was too small and too flat for his uncooperative fingers to grasp. Louisa reached across and put her hands over his.

She gripped his fingers and manipulated them to grasp the nut, lift it, and place it on the end of the screw.

"See, you can do it," she said. "You just need a little help. Mom says everyone needs help sometimes, and it's nothing to be ashamed of."

"Your mom is very wise." Andre bit his lip. Louisa had no idea how momentous this moment was, and he struggled to hide his emotions. He didn’t want to upset her or lead her to believe she’d done anything other than help him perform a miracle.

"Yup." Louisa smiled sweetly at him and then pointed at the nut. "Tighten it yourself, Man with a Mission!"

For the next half an hour, Andre and Louisa worked together to assemble a car from the various metal parts. Louisa helped him pick up and manipulate any parts he struggled to hold, but he managed to use one finger to spin the nut until it was tight.

Andre began visiting Louisa regularly. Julia wasn't eager about the arrangement initially, but eventually, she gave in.

"I guess Louisa might as well enjoy it while it lasts," Julia said when Andre appeared on her doorstep again. “She clearly enjoys having you around.”

Julia even permitted Andre to take Louisa out for ice cream or to the nearby park. However, the pair spent most of their time building with Louisa's construction set. Andre had since bought several more sets for her, so their only limit was their imaginations.

Louisa had her heart set on entering a STEM competition at her school using one of her constructions, and she insisted Andre help her build it.

"I know you'll need help sometimes, but I'd like you to build the frame so I can work on the mechanical parts," Louisa said. "Is that a deal?"

Andre couldn't help but smile at her bossy, businesslike tone and her thoughtfulness in offering her left hand for him to shake.

"It's a deal." Andre shook her hand and then looked at the plan she'd sketched on paper. "We'd best get to work immediately."

Andre helped Louisa every day. He struggled at first with the small parts but soon noticed it was getting easier to assemble the pieces by himself. The day he pinched a nut between his fingers and tightened it onto a screw all by himself was one of the proudest days of his life.

"I knew you'd get better with practice," Louisa said with a smile.

Andre didn't have words to describe the surge of emotion her calm confidence roused in him. Louisa believed in him in a way he wished he could believe in himself.

"You should carry on now." Louisa pointed at his work with her screwdriver. "We only have a few weeks before the competition and I'm going to need time to test everything before I present it."

"Yes, ma'am," Andre replied. He wondered if she got her fierce determination from him. If so, it was something he was happy to pass along to his daughter.

He watched how Louisa bit her lip as she worked on a compact gear mechanism for her build. A near-overwhelming sense of pride filled him, combined with disbelief that a man like him had been part of creating someone so wonderful.

When he arrived home that evening, Andre did something he hadn't done in over a year: he picked up his old basketball in the garage. Andre passed it from one hand to the other at first, testing to see whether the fingers on his right hand would flex the way he needed them to.

They were stiff but good enough to try some basic ball control. The hard slapping of the ball hitting the concrete garage floor roused an unexpected sense of loss and nostalgia. Andre wept as he bounced the ball in front of him, swopping his hands every time he hit it.

"Oh my God."

The ball bounced away on its own as Andre turned. Mom was standing in the doorway connecting the garage to the kitchen with her hands over her face. A loud sob escaped her as she rushed to hug Andre.

"I thought I was hearing things but you're really playing again," Mom said.

"Still a long way to go, Mom, but yeah...I think I'm ready to start working on my ball skills."

The next day, Andre went to the basketball court at the community center. He practiced on the edge of the court while some teenagers and young adults played a game, then he went home.

His fingers were gradually becoming more flexible, and Andre discovered he could use his left hand to make up for some of the dexterity issues he still faced with his right hand. When the regular group of basketball players at the community center was a person short one day, Andre eagerly accepted their invitation to join their game.

Andre felt like he'd come home as he dribbled and passed the ball to his teammates. He had a moment of doubt when he found himself in possession of the ball and perfectly positioned to score the game's final point, but he tried anyway.

The ball didn't leave his hands as smoothly as he liked. It bounced off the backboard, caught the hoop's rim, and circled around before skipping off the edge.

"Good shot." One of his teammates patted Andre's shoulder. "Better luck next time."

Andre nodded. He thanked the others for letting him play, then walked over to his bag. As Andre toweled his face dry, a man spoke behind him.

"I know who you are, Andre."

"So?" Andre turned to face the man.

"So, it's good to see you back in action." The man grinned. "That hand of yours seems to have healed pretty well and your form is looking good for a man who's had time off for an injury."

"Thanks. I'm sorry, but you didn't give me your name...?"

"It's Mike." Mike reached into his pocket and offered Andre his business card. "I know this is pretty unexpected but I'm a scout."

Andre's hand shook as he read the name of the team on Mike's business card. "You've got to be kidding me."

"Definitely not. I like what I saw here today, and I want to offer you a chance to practice with the team. If it goes well, we'll cover your medical costs to go to the best rehabilitation center in the country so you can get back out there and do what you do best."

"You have just made my dreams come true." Andre held back tears as he shook Mike's hand. "Just give me the time and the place, and I'll be there."

After telling his mom the good news, Andre went straight to Julia's house. He wanted to shout from the rooftops that he'd finally gotten a break. He'd be going to that amazing rehabilitation center after all. Andre's life was finally back on track for success.

Louisa answered the door. Her face lit up when she saw Andre, and she took his hand to lead him inside.

"You're just the person I wanted to see!" Louisa said. "I figured out the last of the problems, and the machine works perfectly now. Just in time for the competition tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" Andre's heart sank. He'd agreed to travel to Chicago that night to practice with the basketball team tomorrow.

"Uh-huh." Louisa beamed up at him. "You're going to be there, right? I plan to thank you in my victory speech and it won't be the same if you're not there."

"Okay, little Miss Confidence." Julia interrupted. "Why don't you give Andre a moment? He looks like he has something to share as well."

Andre couldn't bear the expectant look on Louisa's face as she stared up at him. He forced himself to smile as he asked her to give him and Julia a moment to speak privately.

Once they were alone, Julia crossed her arms and glared at Andre. "You're leaving again, aren't you?"

Andre sighed. "Yes, but you've got to understand—"

"I don't need to understand anything." Julia raised her hand to cut him off.

"I'm a big girl, and I knew all along that you'd disappear again when you got the chance. I just wish I hadn't let Louisa get so attached to you."

Guilt, outrage, and an inexplicably keen sense of loss swirled through Andre. He felt like he might collapse under the weight of his emotions. He wanted to tell Julia it wasn't his fault, that he had to follow his dream, but he only managed a mumbled 'sorry.'

"Get out!" Julia pointed to the door.

"Let me at least explain to Louisa. I’ll send you money for her, maybe I can visit—"

"I told you to get out!" Julia whirled on him. "If I don't see that door closing behind you in the next ten seconds, I'm calling the cops."

Early the following day, Andre and his mom waited on the curb for Mike. The scout had insisted on giving Andre a ride to the airport, where a private plane would fly them to Chicago.

"You don't look as happy as you ought to." Mom nudged Andre with her elbow. "What's on your mind?"

"I just..." Andre sighed. "It didn't feel this bad when I first left home to play ball."

"You were a boy then, Andre. It hurt to see you leave, but every parent knows their kids will eventually go out to make their own way in this world. Things are very different this time around." Mom smiled sadly at him. "You've been spending a lot of time with Julia and Louisa."

"I have this voice in the back of my mind telling me that leaving is a huge mistake, but this is my dream, Mom. I dedicated my life to making it here, to playing on the same court as the men I looked up to in school. How can I give that up? How do I know which is the right choice?"

Mom laughed just as Mike's car pulled up to the curb. "Oh, Andre. Don't you know by now that the only guidance you need is in here?" She pressed her hand against his chest. "You got to follow your heart, baby."

Andre climbed into the car. Mike chatted as the driver headed for the airport, but Andre stared out the window. He couldn't stop thinking about what Mom had said. For so long, his heart had guided him to pursue his goal of playing professional basketball, but now...now he didn't know what it was trying to tell him.

"...already booked an appointment for you with our team doctor and physiotherapist. They're going to see you first thing tomorrow. Isn't that great?" Mike said.

Andre straightened in his seat. They were passing the neighborhood school, and there was a big banner outside for the STEM competition Louisa had entered. His heart sped up as the car continued past the school gates.

"Stop the car." Andre grabbed his bag and opened the door.

"What?" Mike clung to his seat as the driver stepped on the brakes. "Andre, we don't have time for this. The plane is scheduled to leave in an hour."

"I'm sorry, Mike. I can't tell you how much I appreciate the chance you gave me, but I can't go with you." Andre leaped from the car and started running toward the school gates.

"You won't get another chance at his, Andre," Mike called after him. "It's now or never."

"I know!"

Andre followed the signs across the school and into the auditorium. He was out of breath, heart pounding in his chest, but none of it mattered when he saw Louisa on stage. He jumped in the air and waved his arms until she noticed him.

Louisa smiled at him like he was the most important person in her world. Andre knew then that he'd made the right decision. He felt like he might burst with joy and pride when the judges announced that she'd won the competition.

Afterward, Andre fought his way through the crowd to meet Louisa.

“I thought you weren’t coming,” Louisa said as she hugged Andre.

“How could I miss your winning moment?” Andre knelt to kiss her forehead and continued, "Remember that super-important mission my hands had to complete?"

For the first time in his life, Andre lifted his daughter into his arms and said, "Mission accomplished!"

What can we learn from this story?

• Let your dreams be flexible. Sometimes we focus so hard on our goals that we fail to notice when life offers us a better opportunity.
• You are the master of your own happiness. Our lives are defined by the choices we make, so if you want to be happy, you need to make decisions that bring happiness into your life.

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

If you enjoyed this story, you might like this one about a man who learns the value of family when his son is arrested.

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.