Surprise me?” I echoed, glancing around, still in disbelief. “Why—what is all this?”
Liam shifted from foot to foot, hands clasped nervously. “I found your old diary, the one from when you were a kid,” he explained softly.
My heart skipped a beat. That diary. I hadn’t thought about it in years, barely remembering the dreams I had written about.
“You wrote about how you wanted to be a seamstress and have your own clothing line,” he continued, his voice barely above a whisper.
A wave of emotion washed over me, squeezing my chest. I had buried those dreams deep within me, nearly forgotten. Here was Liam, reminding me of a part of myself I had long since neglected.
His worried eyes met mine. “I just wanted to make you happy, Mom,” he said, his voice cracking. “So, I asked Grace for help to build you a place to sew. We’ve been coming here after school to work on it.”
I was momentarily speechless, my heart swelling with a mixture of pride and love. “Liam…” I whispered, feeling overwhelmed.
“We saved up,” he said quickly, gesturing to the big cardboard box. “We found you something special.”
I looked to Grace, who stood beside him with a warm smile in her eyes. “He used all the money he saved from birthdays,” she explained softly. “We found a great deal on a sewing machine at a thrift store. It became a little project for us.”
A sewing machine? My heart raced as I sank to my knees, trembling at the realization of what they had done.
“You did all this for me?” I whispered, tears spilling down my cheeks.
“Mom, are you okay?” Liam’s voice was laced with concern.
I nodded, unable to find my voice. He rushed into my arms, hugging me tightly as I returned his embrace with all the love I had. My sweet boy had brought a dream I thought was lost back to life.
Grace quietly lifted the cardboard box, revealing a shiny, modern sewing machine. I gasped, my hand flying to my mouth. This wasn’t just any old machine — it was practically brand new.
“We wanted to surprise you, but I guess we didn’t expect you to find out like this,” Grace said with a soft chuckle.
Liam pulled back slightly, gazing into my eyes. “I just wanted to make your dreams come true, Mom,” he whispered. “Like you always do with mine.”
His words hit me like a tidal wave, and I broke down, sobbing harder than I had in years — not from sadness, but from overwhelming love and gratitude.
For so long, I had thought that part of my life was over, that I had missed my chance. Yet here was my son, with a heart so full, reviving that dream for me.
“I don’t know what to say,” I whispered through my tears. “Liam, you’ve given me more than I could ever ask for.”
Liam smiled, his own eyes shining with unshed tears. “I just want you to be happy, Mom.”
I pulled him into my arms again, holding him close as if to freeze this moment in time. The once-forgotten basement was now filled with light, hope, and love.
All because my little boy believed in me, even when I had stopped believing in myself.