And he did it constantly. Once a week, sometimes twice if he managed to pick up an extra shift. He brought blankets, canned goods, socks, and anything else he could gather. Some weeks, that meant skipping lunch. Other weeks, it meant telling Nina they couldn’t afford new school supplies yet.
But Ethan couldn’t help himself. Something inside him needed help, even as he drowned.
Ethan didn’t know that someone was watching him. Someone had noticed every act of kindness, every carefully folded blanket, and every note he left. And that someone was about to change his life forever.
A month passed. Winter enveloped the city like an icy blanket, bringing temperatures that turned breath to fog and fingers to numbness.
Ethan continued his quiet morning trips to the park, leaving as much as he could.
He left them blankets, food, hand warmers, and even a small teddy bear for a homeless woman who cried when she found it.
One morning, something strange happened. The blankets Ethan had left the night before were gone, but in their place was a folded piece of paper, weighted down with a smooth, gray stone.
With trembling hands, Ethan picked it up and read the words written on it.
“Thank you, whoever you are. You’re a lifesaver.”
His eyes suddenly stung with tears.
He hadn’t heard words like that in years. No one thanked him for working three jobs and holding his family together with duct tape and hope. No one noticed the sacrifices he made every day.
But someone noticed it.
Yet life continued to crush him.
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