A young boy uses his mom’s phone to call an ambulance after seeing her ill. When they got there, she revealed that she had been starving herself to give him a memorable fifth birthday celebration.

“You will never feel abandoned, my sweet boy. Mommy’s here. I got you,” Ophelia cried as she cradled her young son Gabe. The poor child was only nine months old when his father left him and his mom to fend for themselves.

Since that day, Ophelia kept her promise to Gabe. She would work day and night tirelessly to provide her son with his basic needs.

Through the years, Ophelia raised Gabe to be a kind, polite, and intelligent little boy. She showered him with so much love and warmth, that he never had to search for a father figure in his life because his mom was everything he could ever need.

One day, however, when Gabe was four years old, Ophelia suddenly fell ill. She had just gotten home from work, where she served as a cashier at their neighborhood grocery store.

“What’s wrong, mommy?” Gabe asked after she collapsed on the couch. “Are you tired?”

“I’m not feeling so well, sweetheart. Mommy just needs to rest for a bit,” Ophelia replied, closing her eyes.

At first, Gabe thought that Ophelia was simply tired, so he grabbed his favorite blanket and covered his mom with it. “I love you, mommy. Goodnight,” he said, before sitting on the floor right in front of the couch, watching television.

After some time, Gabe didn’t realize that he had fallen asleep on the floor. He was awakened by a loud thud, and upon opening his eyes, he saw his mom on the floor. “Mom!” he yelled in fear. “Mom! Wake up!”

Gabe tried to tap his mom several times to wake her, but she wouldn’t. He began to cry, scared that something bad had happened. “Mommy, wake up!” he sobbed, pressing his face into her chest to listen to her heartbeat.

When he realized that his mom was breathing, he quickly stood up and rummaged through his mom’s bag to find her phone. Then he called 911.

“911, what’s your emergency?” the man on the other end of the line asked.

“Hello, mister operator. My mom fell asleep after going home from work, and now she’s on the floor. She won’t wake up. But I listened to her heart and she’s okay. Please help me,” Gabe said in-between tears.

“Thank you for calling 911, young man. You did a good job. Is there anybody else at home with you?” the operator asked.

“No,” Gabe told him. “It’s just my mom and me living together.”

Upon hearing this, the operator quickly traced the call to Gabe’s location. “Okay. Stay calm for me, little man. An ambulance is on the way to help you and your mom. Stay on the line with me.”

Gabe patiently stayed on the line with the operator until an ambulance came about five minutes later. A team of nurses lifted Ophelia to a stretcher and carried her into the ambulance. Gabe sat beside her the entire way.

When they got to the hospital, Ophelia woke up after being given some dextrose. “What happened? Where’s Gabe?” she asked as soon as she gained consciousness.

“Don’t worry, ma’am,” the doctor assured her. “Gabe is right there. Your little man saved your life,” he said, pointing to the side of the room where Gabe was eating a bag of chips.

Ophelia breathed a sigh of relief after seeing her son safe and sound. “He did? Why am I at the hospital?” she asked, still disoriented about everything going on.

“After doing some tests, we found out that you have diabetes. If you hadn’t been rushed to the hospital, you would have been at risk of a nutritional disorder. It could have led to a coma,” the doctor explained. “Have you been skipping meals?”

Ophelia had a guilty look on her face upon hearing this question, and she quietly nodded her head. “It’s just my son and me, you see. I’ve been raising him as a single mother since he was nine months old, and he’s about to turn five soon. Every year on his birthday, I would feel bad because I could never afford to give him a nice present.”

“I wanted to change that this year, so I’ve been saving up. Instead of buying myself lunch, I would keep the money in hopes of giving him a birthday party with the kids at the daycare he goes to. I didn’t know I had diabetes,” Ophelia admitted.

The doctor, who introduced himself as Mike, was surprised to hear that Ophelia had been raising Gabe alone. He was amazed at how intelligent the young boy was for a four-year-old, and how polite and soft-spoken he was.

“You raised your son well,” he commended. “I’m sure he’s content with the things you can provide for him. You shower him with love and care, and that’s more than enough. Don’t be so hard on yourself. You need to take care of your health, too,” he told her.

Ophelia sighed but gave the doctor a soft smile. “Thank you, Doctor Mike. I will take good care of myself starting now because I’m the only person my son has in his life. He needs me.”

That conversation with Doctor Mike was a wake-up call to Ophelia. She was determined to get well, so she cooperated with the hospital staff until she was cleared to go home. Throughout those few days, it was Doctor Mike who took care of Ophelia, and they got to know each other well.

“Thank you, Doctor Mike,” Ophelia said after she was discharged from the hospital. “I don’t know how to thank you enough for what you’ve done for Gabe and me.”

Doctor Mike shook his head. “Don’t worry about it, Ophelia. Just stay healthy; that’s good enough for me,” he replied.

Before they left the hospital, Doctor Mike handed Ophelia a small box. “A small gift for you,” he told her. “Open it when you get home.”

Ophelia smiled. She had not received a present in a long time, and she didn’t expect to receive one from Doctor Mike at all. “Thank you,” she blushed as she took the box from him.

“Here’s my calling card in case you need anything. If you ever find yourself in the area again, give me a call. I would love to see you and Gabe again,” he said. Ophelia tried to stop herself from blushing some more, and simply nodded her head.

“Bye, Doctor Mike!” Gabe waved as they boarded the bus.

“Bye, good boy,” he waved back, waiting for the bus to leave before heading back inside the hospital.

It was a short five-minute ride back home, and Ophelia was smiling the whole way.

“Why are your cheeks red, mommy?” Gabe asked her.

“Huh?” she said, snapping out of her daydream. “It must be the air conditioner,” she laughed, touching her cheeks. They were red hot, not cold. She was blushing, as she couldn’t stop thinking of Doctor Mike and the gift he gave her.

When they got home, she quickly opened the gift and was surprised to see an envelope. It had $500 inside, and a note that read: “Please enjoy Gabe’s birthday. I hope this is enough to give him a memorable birthday party.”

Ophelia’s jaw dropped upon seeing the money. “What is it, mommy?” Gabe asked her.

“It’s a gift for you, sweetheart,” she replied. “You’ll see when you turn five in three days!”

“Am I going to have a party?” he innocently asked and Ophelia nodded her head and hugged her son.

“Yes, you will! With all the kids at the daycare. Would you like that?”

“I would LOVE that, mommy! Thank you! But…” Gabe suddenly said.

“But what, sweetheart?”

“But… can we invite Doctor Mike? He’s my new best friend!” Gabe’s eyes were gleaming with excitement.

Ophelia smiled because it wasn’t just Gabe who wanted to invite Doctor Mike. She secretly wanted that too. “Of course, sweetheart. We’ll give him a call,” she assured.

Three days passed, and it was the day of Gabe’s fifth birthday. Ophelia organized a Safari-themed party at the daycare with cake, goodie bags, and games and prizes for all the kids there.

Gabe was jumping for joy when she saw the party that Ophelia had prepared for him. “Mom! This is the best birthday ever! I love you! This is awesome!”

“I’m so glad you like it, Gabe. Mommy will do anything for you,” she said, giving him an embrace.

And as she looked up at the door, she smiled upon seeing someone familiar. “There’s someone else you need to thank, Gabe,” she said, pointing to the door.

Gabe turned his back, and his eyes lit up. Doctor Mike had entered the room. “Doctor Mike!!!” he said, jumping to hug him. “You’re here!”

“I wouldn’t miss it for the world, Gabe. Happy birthday!” Doctor Mike greeted. “Are you enjoying your party?”

Gabe nodded his head and introduced Doctor Mike to all his friends. They enjoyed an afternoon of games and capped it off with a delicious afternoon snack.

While the children were having fun, Ophelia and Doctor Mike found themselves enjoying each other’s company. They exchanged glances and smiled every time their eyes met. By the end of the party, Doctor Mike couldn’t take it anymore.

“I think I have feelings for you, Ophelia,” he admitted. “Would you like to go out on a date with me?”

Ophelia blushed, surprised that Doctor Mike felt the same way. She had been harboring feelings for him since they met but didn’t think she was worthy of his love.

“I would love to go out on a date with you,” she finally told him.

The two were unaware that Gabe overheard the whole conversation and he started to squeal. “Mommy, am I going to have a daddy?” he asked for the very first time in his life.

Ophelia was taken aback by Gabe’s sudden question and was worried it would scare Doctor Mike away. However, what he did next melted her heart.

“I would love to stand in as your dad, Gabe,” Doctor Mike said, kneeling to meet Gabe at eye level. “If your mom would have me, of course.” He smiled.

Ophelia couldn’t help but smile too. She was always afraid of finding love again because she was afraid of how men would react to her having a child. But here was Doctor Mike, making it clear from the very start that he wanted to step in as a father figure to Gabe.

The next few months seemed like a real-life fairytale for both Ophelia and Doctor Mike. They got to know each other well and fell madly in love. They would have date nights as a couple, but they also made sure to include Gabe in most of their activities.

By year-end, Doctor Mike was sure that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with Ophelia. The pair got married in a simple ceremony, and Doctor Mike decided to legally adopt Gabe as his son.

“You’ll never be alone ever again,” he told Ophelia and Gabe after the adoption was finalized. “I love you both so much.”

For the first time since Gabe’s birth, Ophelia felt secure, loved, and of course, happy. She kept her promise to Gabe that he would never feel abandoned, but in the process, she ended up not feeling abandoned, too. And it was all because of the love that Doctor Mike was showering them.