Chapter 16 - Growing Up
Lily entered her fifteenth year.
The age of silent rebellions and closed bedroom doors.
Small arguments began to surface.
"You don't understand me!" Lily shouted one evening.
Ethan stood frozen in front of the door that had just been slammed shut.
He knocked.
"Lily."
No answer.
"I might not understand you," Ethan said through the crack in the door. "I have never been the father of a fifteen-year-old girl before."
Inside, there was still silence.
"But I promise, I will always try to learn."
The door slowly opened.
Lily stood there, her eyes red.
"I'm sorry, Daddy."
Ethan pulled his daughter into a hug.
"It's okay. Growing up is exhausting work."
He wiped away her tears.
"But you don't have to grow up alone."
They sat on the hallway floor, talking until midnight.
About the pressure at school. About fake friends. About vague, heavy fears.
Ethan didn't offer the advice of a billionaire.
May you like
He simply listened with the ears of a father.
And that was everything Lily needed.
