Cher was thumbing through an old, tattered photo album on a gloomy Tuesday afternoon, as she listened to the pitter patter of rain droplets on the window; the air was stale and the lights dimmed. This particular album was filled with old, faded photos of her father and her; photos of the good times they had before he died in Iraq last year. Tears coated her eyes as she thought back to the most precious, heartwarming memory they had ever shared.

She eased herself onto the inviting plush couch, closed her tear dripping eyes and remembered: Cher could feel the warmth on her back, from the sun, and her father’s cold touch on her shoulder; he knew she had been crying. “Sweetie, what is the matter?” he asked with the softest tone.
She looked up at him as more tears overwhelmed her and whispered, “I… I’m… sorry.”
He looked at her with the oddest look on his perfectly featured face. His brow furrowed and, if you looked deep into his crystal blue eyes, you could see the concern he had for her.
Tears streamed down her face as she tried to calm herself and put her emotions into check. She flinched a little when the chill of her father’s breath shot down her spine.
“What happened honey? What did you do?” her father asked in a sharper tone.
“Daddy, I’m pregnant,” she said, her heart leaping out of her chest with fear and her stomach turning. He stood, staring out into the beyond, then he knelt down in front of his sixteen year old daughter.
“Cher, I’m not mad and I’m not going to yell,” he said with comfort behind every syllable. “You can do this; WE can do this. I understand it’s not easy telling me this, and it is definitely not easy hearing it, but accidents happen; trust me, I should know. But what I want YOU to understand is that I am here for you and if you need anything, DO NOT hesitate to ask for it. I am a man of my word and would go over the moon and back for you, baby.” He paused, and wiped away the tear pushing its way out, “I love you, and I love this child. Remember that no matter what happens, I’m on your side.”

Cher opened her murky green eyes and wiped away the tears hanging off the bridge of her nose. She stumbled into her five year old daughter’s room across the hall, knelt down, kissed her smooth forehead with her soft lips and whispered, “You are because of him.”