The question hung in the air.

“How old is Sophia?”

Emma lowered her eyes.

For five years she had prepared herself for this moment. She had imagined hundreds of different answers. But now, with Ethan sitting across from her, every word felt heavier than her own heartbeat.

Sophia was happily coloring another page in her drawing book, completely unaware that her future was about to change forever.

Emma took a slow breath.

“She turned five last month.”

Ethan did the calculation in his mind.

Five years.

Exactly five years.

The same five years since the night he never came to the station.

His heartbeat became uneven.

He looked at Sophia again.

The little girl smiled exactly the way he used to smile as a child.

The same blue eyes.

The same tiny dimple on her left cheek.

The same habit of biting her lower lip while concentrating.

His hands began to tremble.

He looked back at Emma.

“Tell me the truth.”

Emma remained silent.

“Please.”

“I deserve to know.”

Tears gathered in Emma’s eyes.

“You lost the right to know the night you left.”

“I know.”

“And I’ve regretted that night every single day.”

She looked at him for a long moment.

There was no anger in his face.

Only guilt.

Only pain.

Only hope.

Finally…

Emma whispered the words she had carried inside her heart for years.

“Yes.”

Sophia is your daughter.”

The world stopped.

The sounds of the café disappeared.

Ethan stared at Emma as if he had forgotten how to breathe.

His lips moved, but no words came out.

After several seconds he finally whispered,

“My daughter…”

Emma nodded silently.

“My daughter…”

he repeated again, unable to believe it.

A tear rolled down his cheek.

He had dreamed of becoming a father one day.

He had imagined teaching his child to ride a bicycle.

Helping with homework.

Reading bedtime stories.

Watching birthdays.

Holding tiny hands.

But all those moments…

Had already happened.

Without him.

He covered his face with both hands.

“I missed everything.”

Emma’s own tears began falling.

“I never wanted to keep her away from you.”

“Then why?”

“Because after seeing your engagement on television…”

“I believed you had chosen another life.”

“I couldn’t destroy your family.”

Ethan looked up immediately.

“There was never another family.”

“There was only loneliness.”

“I searched for you.”

Emma looked surprised.

“You searched?”

“I hired investigators.”

“I visited every address I knew.”

“You had disappeared.”

Emma smiled sadly.

“I moved before Sophia was born.”

“I couldn’t stay in the same city.”

“Every street reminded me of you.”

Silence returned.

Not an angry silence.

A broken silence.

The silence of two people who had loved each other all along.

---

Sophia walked toward them carrying her teddy bear.

“Mommy.”

“Why are you crying again?”

Emma quickly wiped her tears away.

“I’m okay, sweetheart.”

Sophia looked at Ethan.

His eyes were red too.

“Are you crying?”

Ethan forced a smile.

“A little.”

Sophia climbed onto the chair beside him.

“My mommy says crying isn’t bad.”

“It means your heart is talking.”

Ethan laughed softly through his tears.

“Your mommy is very wise.”

Sophia smiled proudly.

“I know.”

She reached into her pocket and took out a small chocolate candy.

“This always makes me happy.”

She placed it into Ethan’s hand.

“You can have it.”

His heart broke all over again.

His own daughter…

Trying to comfort him.

Without knowing he was her father.

---

At that moment…

Ethan’s phone rang.

The screen showed one name.

Richard Blackwood.

His father.

Ethan answered.

“What is it?”

His father’s voice sounded unusually serious.

“Come home.”

“Now.”

“I’m busy.”

“It can’t wait.”

“What happened?”

After a long silence, Richard finally spoke.

“Victoria knows.”

Ethan’s expression changed instantly.

“Knows what?”

“She knows about the little girl.”

Ethan stood up.

“What?”

“She hired someone to investigate you.”

“She believes Sophia is your daughter.”

Emma’s face turned pale.

Ethan ended the call immediately.

“What happened?” Emma asked.

He looked at her.

“Victoria knows about Sophia.”

Emma felt the blood drain from her face.

“How?”

“I don’t know.”

“But if she knows…”

“The media will know soon.”

Outside the café…

Across the street…

A man wearing a black cap slowly lowered a camera.

He had secretly taken dozens of photographs.

Emma.

Ethan.

Sophia.

Together.

He immediately sent the pictures to someone.

A few seconds later…

His phone buzzed with a reply.

Good. Follow them. Don’t lose the child.

The photographer smiled.

“Understood.”

Inside the café…

None of them realized they were already being watched.

None of them knew…

That the peaceful afternoon had just become the beginning of a dangerous game.

And this time…

It wasn’t only their love that was at risk.

It was Sophia’s future.