For a moment he just stared.
Then his shoulders dropped with relief.
“I thought it was gone,” he whispered. “That’s my pension money.”
His hands trembled as he flipped through the bills.
He pulled out a hundred-dollar bill and tried to hand it to me.
“Please,” he said. “Take this.”
I shook my head.
“I didn’t bring it back for a reward.”
He looked at me carefully.
Then why did you return it?”
“Because it’s the right thing to do.”
He studied me for a moment, then smiled softly.
“You’re a rare man, Evan.”
He invited me inside for tea, but I told him my mom was watching my kids.
When I mentioned the triplets, he laughed.
“You’ve got your hands full.”
“Yeah,” I said. “But they’re worth it.”
I drove home that night feeling lighter.
Like maybe the world still worked the way it was supposed to.
