Tracking His 12-Year-Old Son, Rich Man Enters Abandoned House & Sees His Boy with Baby in Arms – Story of the Day

A man wanted to pick his son up from school but saw him entering an abandoned house instead. He was shocked to discover the kid holding a baby in his arms. However, the real surprise came when the boy revealed the truth.

"Have you noticed that Ethan's been acting a little strange lately?" Robert asked his wife, Carina, right after Ethan left for school.

She shrugged. "Well, you know he's reaching his teenage years. That happens sometimes. But you have also been so busy with work."

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"I know... I'm going to take the afternoon off and pick him up. Maybe, we can see the new Marvel movie. Do you want to come?"

"No, I think you guys could use some father-son bonding time. Nobody wants the stepmom to intrude on that," Carina shook her head and laughed.

"You wouldn't intrude," Robert rebuked, but he loved his wife's humor. Her statement was correct. He needed to spend time with his son.

***

Robert saw his car right outside Ethan's school and checked his watch as the other kids slowly trickled out of the building. Some parents picked their kids up while other children got into buses. Usually, Ethan took a bus, so he wanted to intercept his boy before he mistakenly got on.

Finally, Ethan exited the building, and Robert honked. But his boy didn't look up. He was focused on something in his hand, but Robert couldn't see what it was well. However, the kid didn't get on any bus. Instead, he started running down the street.

That wasn't like him. Ethan was a good kid. He was always home on time and never got into trouble. Could he be hiding something? Was this the reason he was so distant lately? Robert worried and started the car to follow the boy.

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To his shock, his son went into a weird side of town with abandoned houses and ran into one. "Oh, God. No. He must be doing something weird," Robert breathed, parking quickly and rushing out to protect his kid.

The sound of a crying baby and the smell of stale air assaulted his senses as he stepped through the door. "Ethan! Ethan! Are you here?" he called out, concerned.

"Dad?" Ethan answered, his tone confused, and Robert followed the sound of his voice.

"Ethan, what's going on?" he asked, desperate now.

"Dad, look," his son said, and Robert had to do a double take.

His 12-year-old son was holding a crying baby in his arms, and of course, he thought the worst. "Is that your baby?" he questioned, distraught. He had read that kids nowadays mature too fast, but this was the worst possible scenario.

"What? Dad, please no," Ethan said, exasperated, and reached into his pocket, producing a piece of paper.

Robert took it in his hands and started reading, frowning more and more as he kept going.

"He's my brother," Ethan added before his dad could say something.

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When Ethan was only two years old, Robert was not in his current position. He was insanely wealthy after his company took off a few years ago. But back then, he struggled, and his ex-wife, Sarah, Ethan's mother, decided to abandon them to chase someone wealthier.

This letter was written by the man she found, Luke, who had married her. But he revealed that she had died in childbirth, and he was not ready to raise a baby alone. So, he tracked Ethan's school and left the letter in his locker.

"When did you get this letter?" Robert asked, furious. "Is this why you've been weird and distant lately?"

"What? No, Dad. I got an F on the math test, and I didn't want to tell you," the kid responded, exasperated again. "The letter was there today, and there was this address. I had to come. He's my brother, after all."

Robert breathed deeply, trying to control himself. He didn't care about a stupid elementary school test. "No, that baby is not your brother. Your mother abandoned us," he said slowly.

"I know that. But he is my half-brother. What can we do? We have to take care of him. We can't just leave him here," Ethan said, rocking the baby and staring gently at him.

Robert knew his son was right, at least about not leaving the baby in this dangerous abandoned house. However, he was wrong about everything else. For now, they had to take him home.

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"Let's go. We'll talk more about this at home," Robert said, needing to see his wife. She would know what to say to Ethan so he would understand why they were not keeping this baby.

***

"What do you mean we can keep him? Are you insane?" Robert questioned Carina, who had suggested they raise the baby.

"He's your son's brother. We can't abandon him. He's family," Carina continued, frowning at him.

"CARINA! We can't! No! I can't raise my ex-wife's baby with another man! He's not my son or my son's brother either! No!" Robert replied, getting increasingly angry.

"Dad! This is not fair. He's just a baby, and mom died. He's innocent in all this, and it would be cool to have a brother," Ethan started, but Robert turned and raised his finger.

"Go to your room, Ethan. Please," he said, tight-lipped.

The 12-year-old shook his head and turned to his room. When Robert and Carina were finally alone, Robert looked at her seriously.

"No. We're not doing this. I can't have that baby in my house. Aside from hating my ex because she abandoned us at our worst time, this is just like what my father did to my mother," Robert began quietly so he wouldn't get angrier.

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"Robert," Carina breathed, but he stopped her.

"No, please. You know about this. My mother left us, married someone else, and had a baby with him. She expected me to love that boy like my own brother while I watched my father be a shell of himself and watched her love him more than me. I can't. I can't. This is just a reminder of all of that. I don't have a brother, and neither does Ethan," Robert finished, slashing his hand across the air.

"You do have a brother. A brother who loves you, Robert," Carina said.

"Carina! For God's sake!"

"He saved you!" she shouted, and Robert's eyes widened in shock.

"What?"

"He saved you from bankruptcy. From losing your first house. From not being able to feed your kids! It was him!" Carina shouted, revealing things she had promised never to say.

"What are you talking about?"

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"It was him. Your brother, half-brother, whatever you want to call him. It was all him. I lied," Carina continued, her eyes showing exasperation and relief simultaneously. "Remember my inheritance, the one I told you about? The one we invested in your idea and turned it together into a huge business? I never had an inheritance. Your brother gave me that money."

"No…" Robert breathed, shaking his head.

"Yes. He did. Because despite how you grew up and how you rejected him all those years, he loved you. Your mother loved you too, but you wouldn't give her a chance after she divorced your father. I understand how you felt and why you didn't want a relationship. But your brother saw how you struggled, and I couldn't reject his offer."

"I already loved you all those years ago, even though we had been together only for a few months back then. I did this for you," Carina finished explaining, her voice trailing off.

Robert plopped down on the couch. "So, my entire business belongs to my half-brother?"

"No, he doesn't want anything from the business. That money came from your mother's estate, but he arranged for me to give it to you because he knew you would reject it immediately. It was the right thing to do, and he has been buying the company's product and telling his friends to support you," Carina added. "Despite everything, honey, you do have a brother. One who loves you and wants to meet you."

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Robert sighed. "Ok, but what does that have to do with that baby?"

"Well, he's Ethan's half-brother, and you only resent that baby because of your past and what your ex did, which was really worse than your mother. But still, that baby is innocent. It needs a family, and separating brothers is not right. I think it would be a great idea to keep him," his wife added, sitting next to him and patting his shoulder.

***

The "solution" never came. That baby looked just like Ethan growing up; his son loved him dearly. So, Carina and Robert talked to a family lawyer about getting legal guardianship, and they started the process of keeping him. They also started calling him Julian, a name Carina had always loved because they had no idea what his birth name was.

But that was only one issue. The other problem was Robert's brother, Kevin, who he finally called up and met.

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His brother explained in detail what his wife had told him, and slowly, Robert started to heal from his past. He talked to Kevin once a week and met him for a few beers once a month.

They talked about everything, including the hard truths about Robert's mother leaving and marrying Kevin's dad. Robert also went into therapy to work on his resentment and got better.

That Christmas, Kevin received an invite to Robert's house, which he gladly accepted and brought his family. Kevin met Ethan and the baby, and they all laughed together, making Robert realize that having a family to love was more important than holding a grudge.

What can we learn from this story?

• It's important to spend time with your kids. Robert was worried about his son's distant behavior and realized he needed more bonding moments with him.
• Don't hold a grudge because allowing love in your life is always better. Thanks to Ethan and the baby, Robert discovered the truth about his brother and how he had helped him out. That's when he decided to let him be in his and his family's life, and eventually, he adopted the baby.

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If you enjoyed this story, you might like this one about a woman who moved into an abandoned house after her wealthy husband divorced her. But her ex-mother-in-law was living there.

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.