Rosa was not just watching them; she was part of their world. She laughed along with them, her eyes crinkling in genuine delight as she praised their artworks and encouraged their imaginations. It was a side of her Adrian had never seen before, a side that revealed not only her kindness but her ability to nurture, to fill an emotional void he hadn’t realized had grown so deep in his children’s lives.

He felt tears welling up in his eyes, but not just tears of sadness or guilt for the moments he had missed, but tears of gratitude. In that moment, he understood that Rosa had given his children something priceless, something he had been unable to give—the feeling of being truly loved and cared for. She had become a surrogate mother, a beacon of warmth and comfort in the absence of their own mother.