After years of trying to have a baby, we finally adopted Luca—a gentle three-year-old with eyes as blue as the ocean. But the moment my husband went to give him a bath, he came running out, pale and shouting, “We have to take him back!”
At first, I couldn’t understand. Then I saw it: an unusual mark on Luca’s foot. My heart stopped.
I never imagined bringing Luca home would nearly destroy my marriage. Yet some blessings come wrapped in pain, and life has a cruel way of revealing truths we’re not ready for.
“Are you nervous?” I asked Dario as we drove to the agency. I kept fiddling with the soft blue sweater I’d bought for Luca, picturing him wearing it.
“Me? No way,” Dario said, but his knuckles were white on the wheel. “Just… eager.”
“You’ve checked the car seat three times already,” I teased.
“Ha! Yeah… maybe you’re the nervous one,” he muttered.
We’d waited so long for this moment. Months of paperwork, interviews, home visits—I’d handled most of it while Dario immersed himself in his business. Initially, we’d wanted a baby, but endless waiting lists made me consider older kids.
That’s when Luca’s photo caught my eye: a tiny boy with a heartbreaking smile and eyes that seemed to reach into my soul.
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