“I believe I’ve got enough here.”
“You do,” Daniel said.
He pointed to the bills Dad had placed on the counter.
“That’s exactly right.”
Dad smiled faintly.
“Still got it.”
“You certainly do.”
I laughed, and the knot in my chest finally loosened.
Then a soft beep came from the card terminal.
Daniel looked down.
The screen showed that the payment had gone through.
Dad stared at his cash.
“But I haven’t given you the money.”
Neither had I.
A woman stepped closer.
It was the customer who had defended us.
“My name’s Ellen,” she said.
She put her card back inside her wallet.
“You’re all set.”
Dad looked stunned.
“Ma’am, you didn’t need to do that.”
“I know.”
“I have the money.”
“I know you do.”
He began gathering his bills.
“Then please, let me pay you back.”
Ellen hesitated.
“I’m sorry. I should’ve asked first.”
Dad stopped.
She looked at him, not at me.
“I wasn’t trying to suggest you couldn’t afford your groceries.”
“Then why?” Dad asked.
Ellen glanced toward the entrance where the angry man had disappeared.
“Because I believe in paying things forward. I heard how that man spoke to you.”
Her voice softened.
“I didn’t want that man’s words to be the last thing you took home today.”
Dad went completely still.
For a moment, nobody spoke.
Then he looked at the groceries, at the bills in his hand, and finally at Ellen.
“That was very kind of you,” he said. “But I don’t want you thinking I needed rescuing.”
“I don’t,” she replied. “You were doing fine before he started shouting.”
Dad studied her face.
Something changed in his expression.
He folded his money and slipped it back into his wallet.
“Alright,” he said. “Just this once.”
Ellen smiled.
“Just this once.”
Daniel began bagging the groceries.
Dad cleared his throat.
“My wife used to say something about people.”
I looked at him.
He rarely spoke about Mom in front of strangers.
“She said there were more good people in the world than bad ones,” he continued. “You just had to pay attention to the good ones.”
His voice broke on the last word.
He pressed his lips together.
I reached for his hand.
“She was right, Dad.”
He nodded, blinking hard.
“I’d forgotten that for a minute.”
Ellen’s eyes shone.
“So had I, sometimes,” she admitted.
Dad held out his hand.
“Frank.”
She shook it.
“Ellen.”
“Thank you, Ellen.”
“You’re welcome, Frank.”
Then he turned to Daniel.
“And thank you for bringing me that chair.”
“You’re very welcome.”
Dad glanced at the register.
“I hope I didn’t get you in trouble.”
Daniel shook his head.
“Not a bit.”
The manager, who was still nearby, spoke up.
“Daniel handled the situation exactly as he should have.”
The young cashier looked a little embarrassed.
Dad gave him a firm nod.
“Good.”
Daniel handed me the last bag.
I checked that the eggs were on top and the ice cream was tucked safely between two frozen packages.
