A woman abandons her newborn baby on a business plane seat because she fears she won’t be able to care for him, but when things improve for her several years later, she decides to find him and take him in.
“PREGNANT?! You must be out of your mind, Rhonda!” her father, David Harris, yelled at her when he found out she was pregnant with her boyfriend Peter’s child.
Rhonda, unlike Peter, came from a wealthy family, and her father owned a large textile company. Unfortunately, her mother died when she was just two, so her father had raised her alone.
Mr. Harris provided the best of everything for his daughter – clothes, food, and education – but he was also a very controlling man who didn’t want his daughter to ever go against his wishes.
When Rhonda found out she was pregnant, she tried to hide it from her father by wearing oversized clothes, but as the baby bump became more visible, she couldn’t hide it anymore. She decided to tell Mr. Harris about her pregnancy, but he was anything but impressed by it. “You’re going to get rid of that child, Rhonda. Do you get it?”
“No, dad,” 16-year-old Rhonda declared adamantly. “I will not terminate the pregnancy. It’s too late now, and I can’t abort the baby.”
“Then you’ll have to figure out how you’re going to raise that child yourself,” Mr. Harris warned her. “No one in our family has ever dared to marry someone from a lower class. So if you want to raise that man’s blood, get the hell out of my house!”
“Fine, dad,” Rhonda said after a brief pause, her eyes welling up with tears. “Maybe if mom was still alive, she would have supported me. But that’s fine. I’ll raise the child alone and prove you wrong.”
Rhonda packed her belongings and left that evening, cutting all ties with her father. Mr. Harris didn’t budge at all and slammed the door behind her, ordering her to return only after she had aborted the child or placed it in an orphanage.
Rhonda didn’t utter a word and booked an Uber to Peter’s house. When she arrived, she explained that she’d left her father’s house because he refused to accept their child and that she wanted to start a new life with him. But to her shock, Peter refused to take responsibility for the child.
“Look, babe,” he said. “I am not ready to become a father. And why did you leave your father’s house? He could have helped us financially when we marry and decide to start a new life. Get rid of that child or forget about me, Rhonda.”
A shock ran through Rhonda as she heard that. “But Peter, this is our baby. How can you….”
“Look, Rhonda, that baby and you are causing me nothing but trouble right now. You know what, just forget about us! It’s over!.”
“Peter!” Rhonda cried. “You were so happy when you found out about the pregnancy! What happened?”
“Because you’re nobody right now, babe. Your dad kicked you out, and I can’t raise that kid, so goodbye,” he said and slammed the door in her face.
Rhonda’s life was turned upside down in one night! She couldn’t believe she was heavily pregnant and neither her father nor her boyfriend was concerned about her! She left Peter’s house that evening, crying inconsolably, and wandered the streets, unsure of where life would take her.
Suddenly, she felt a sharp pain in her abdomen and went into labor. The pain was excruciating, and she kept pleading with passersby to help her. Fortunately, one woman noticed her and with the help of her driver, assisted Rhonda to her car and rushed her to the hospital.
Rhonda gave birth to a baby boy that night, and when she awoke, the woman who’d assisted her, Angela Bamford, was sitting by her bedside.
“Thank -Thank you for helping me,” Rhonda told her in a low voice. “My child… .he’s safe, right?”
“He’s perfectly fine,” Mrs. Bamford assured her. “Are you new in town? I noticed you were carrying your luggage.”
Rhonda couldn’t hold back her tears. She burst out crying and told Mrs. Bamford the story of how she ended up there. “I don’t want to live here any longer,” Rhonda sobbed. “I just want to get out of Texas. But I’m not sure I can provide a good life for my child.”
Mrs. Bamford felt terrible for Rhonda, not only because she was a homeless mother deciding whether or not to raise her child, but also because she reminded her of her own daughter.
“Don’t say that, dear,” Mrs. Bamford consoled her. “I used to have a daughter your age. When we found out she was pregnant, we were furious and kicked her out of the house.
“My husband owns an airline company, and we were wealthy enough to support our daughter. But we were opposed to such a young pregnancy. I wish I could have helped her. She took her own life because she couldn’t bear all of it. I don’t want someone else to go through that! It’s a terrible place to be in.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Rhonda said, wiping away her tears.
“I, too, feel sorry for her,” Mrs. Bamford added. “However, it’s too late now. Don’t worry, I’ll help you. I can book the ticket for you. Make sure your child lives a good life in a new place.”
“Oh no,” Rhonda exclaimed. “You’ve already done a lot for me. I’m afraid I won’t be able to return this favor.”
