I’m Nico. 32 years old. Handsome, muscular… or I don’t know if I can even be called that with my appearance now. Before, people used to look at me because of my good looks. Now? They look at me out of pity… or maybe disgust.
It’s funny, isn’t it? Before, I held the world in my hands. I have a wife, Teresa. She was 29 years old at the time, simple but very sweet. And my princess, Bella, 7 years old. I still remember the last time they hugged me at the airport before I left for Australia. I told them, “This is for you. Just be patient, we’ll be rich. I’ll give you the world.”
That was my courage. How arrogant. I thought that my love for them was enough to make me strong. But it wasn’t. You’re not a “good” person if you give in at the first temptation.
I arrived in Australia. Sydney. The place is beautiful, people don’t seem to have any problems. I started working, hoeing buffalo. Every dollar I earned, I immediately converted to pesos, and sent it to Teresa. Video calls every night. “I love you, Pa,” Bella said. That was my fuel.
But in a foreign country, your enemy is loneliness. The cold of the night, penetrating to the bone. I looked for fellow countrymen, to relieve homesickness. That’s where I met the gang. Drinks, chat. And that’s where I… that’s where I met Caroline.
Caroline. 30 years old. Beautiful. Very beautiful. Single, independent. She’s different from Teresa. Teresa, “the light of the home.” Caroline… she’s the fire.

I’m used to being made fun of. They say I’m handsome. I’ve been approached by women there a few times, but I just laugh at them. I said, “I’m married, boss.” But with Caroline… it was different.
It started with coffee. “Nico, come with me for a coffee break.” I went with him. It was just a chat. Until it turned into dinner. Until it turned into drinks. Before I knew it… my defenses were slowly coming down.
One night, we drank a little more. I took him to his apartment. He smelled so good. His eyes were so beautiful as he looked at me. My brain said, “Nico, go home. Teresa is waiting for you on the video call.” But my heart said… or my flesh… “This is just a one-time thing. No one will know.”
I was tempted.
I thought it was just a “one time thing”. A mistake that I would take to the grave. But I missed him. The heat. The thrill I hadn’t felt for a long time with my husband who was far away. Repeated. And repeated.
Until it became normal. I forgot that I had Teresa. I forgot that there was Bella waiting for my call. I was blinded by the happy days and nights with Caroline. Our life was so good. Travel here, eat there. It was like we were a couple.
I no longer send money to the Philippines. My reasoning to myself was, “Teresa has a job, she can handle that.” My face is thick, isn’t it?
Until Teresa found out. Of course, she will find out and she will. The world of Filipinos is so small. When she confronted me in chat, I didn’t apologize. I even got angry. I even scolded her. The ending… she blocked me. On Facebook, on Messenger, on everything.
I didn’t care about that. I said, “It’s okay, Caroline is here. I’m happier here. We’re live-in. This is my life.”
But life has a way of taking its toll. And the charge against me… was swift and cruel.
One morning, I woke up feeling like half of my body was numb. I couldn’t move my left arm. I wanted to scream, but nothing came out of my mouth. Mild stroke. I was only 32 years old, but I was hit.
I was taken to the hospital. I was bedridden for days. Unable to work. And that’s when I saw the true colors of my “paradise”.
Caroline… the woman I thought loved me so much? She gradually grew cold. When she found out that it would be a while before I could return to work, and that I needed a pet… the wind changed.
One day, she came into my room. All dressed up, carrying a suitcase. She said, “Nico, I can’t do this. I didn’t sign up to be your nurse. I’m leaving.”
It was as if cold water had been poured over me. “Caroline, what about me? You love me, right?” But she just turned her back on me. What hurts more… before he left, he took my last savings. He didn’t even spare me a ticket.
Because I had no money to pay for the hospital and no visa support, the government sent me home. REPATRIATED.
When I landed at NAIA… I was in a wheelchair. I was so thin. Look at how dirty I was. I didn’t have a big balikbayan box with me. All I had was a small bag full of dirty clothes and medicine.
I no longer have parents. They’ve been gone for a long time. The only family I have… is the family I abandoned.
As I sat in my wheelchair outside the airport, my hand shook as I grabbed my old cellphone. I still had Teresa’s number memorized.
Ring… Ring… Ring…
My chest was pounding so hard. “Teresa, answer me. It’s as if you have mercy. Forgive me. I’ll come back.”
But no one answered. I tried again. Cannot be reached.
That’s where I started sobbing. People are looking at me. A once handsome OFW, now crippled, crying like a child at the airport.
I have nowhere to go. I have no money.
So here I am now. Wandering the streets. Sleeping everywhere. Begging for money to buy medicine and food. Every day, I think about Bella. She must be 8 years old now Because I’ve been in Australia for over a year. Is she mad at me?
Teresa… is she happy now?
I wish… I wish that night Caroline invited me for coffee, I would have just gone home. I wish I had just called my mother and father. I wish I hadn’t given in to the call of flesh and the spark of false love.
To men… don’t be like me. Family, that’s not replaced.
Trust, once broken, is hard to rebuild. And short-term happiness… the price is very high. Sometimes, the price… is everything you have.
It could be a child’s picture
One night, while Nico was sitting on the edge of the church, his hand shaking as he held the alms can, a little girl approached him.
“Brother… here it is,” the child said, handing over the bread.
Nico didn’t look up right away. He was embarrassed. But when he heard the woman’s voice following the child—
“Bella, don’t go far from me.”

It was as if the world had stopped.
Nico slowly raised his head. Tears welled up. He saw the girl… very similar to his former princess. Taller. More mature.
He held her to his chest.
“Be… Bella?”
The child looked up. Her forehead creased. She didn’t immediately recognize the man in the wheelchair, thin and wounded in appearance.
“Mommy… do you know him?”
Teresa slowly approached. Her face was no longer angry. But there was no tenderness either. She just looked at him silently.
Nico burst into tears.
“I’m sorry… even if you can’t accept me anymore… I just want to see you before I disappear completely.”
A long silence enveloped them.
Bella approached. She stared at Nico’s face… then slowly hugged him.
“You’re still my Papa.”
Nico sobbed.
Teresa was so good at raising our son with a good heart.
Teresa’s tears fell silently. Not yet ready to forgive… but also unable to completely abandon the man she once loved.
And for the first time after all the mistakes, it was not money, not arrogance, but a simple hug that gave Nico a reason to live again… and change.
Could be a picture of a child
Nico knelt in front of Teresa even though he was struggling to move his body. His hands were shaking as he tried to hold on to the wheel of the wheelchair.
“Teresa… I’m not asking you to accept me as your wife again. I know I have no right. Just one time… even as Bella’s father. Even if I just see her grow up… that’s enough for me.”
Teresa was silent. Her tears were welling up but she was trying to hold them back. She had spent many nights crying, in anger, in pain. She thought there was no mercy left in her heart.
But when he looked at Bella hugging her father, something melted in his chest.
“Mommy… let’s not leave him… Papa is sick…” Bella said softly while crying.
Teresa closed her eyes. She took a deep breath.
“Nico…” she called softly.
Nico immediately looked up, his eyes filled with hope and fear.
“I can’t forget what you did. Bella and I have not been easy. There were nights when we had nothing to eat. There were days when she cried because she was looking for you… while I… I don’t know how to explain why her father is gone.”
Nico bowed. Her tears fell to the floor.
“But…” Teresa continued, her voice shaking, “I can’t let you die on the street. Not because I still love you as my wife… but because you are still the father of my child.”
Nico sobbed.
Teresa slowly approached and grabbed the handle of the wheelchair.
“Let’s go home. But listen… this is not a return to the past. This is an opportunity to make amends. You will prove if you deserve to be forgiven.”
Nico nodded repeatedly while crying.
Could be a child’s image
Nico gradually underwent therapy. It was painful. Slowly. He gave up many times. But every time he saw Bella waiting at the edge of the therapy room, his courage grew stronger.
“Dad, you can do it,” the child always said.
Teresa, on the other hand, was quiet. She was taken care of, fed, made sure she took her medicine. No tenderness. No anger. Like a nurse with a distanced heart.
One day, after therapy, Nico struggled to stand up using a walker.
His legs were shaking.
“Bella… look at Papa…” he said softly.
He took one step… then another.
Bella screamed with joy while clapping her hands.
Teresa looked at him. She couldn’t hold back her tears. Not because of the return of Nico’s ex… but because she sees that his repentance is true.
🌿 ONE NIGHT
While Bella was sleeping, Teresa had coffee in the kitchen. Nico approached, walking slowly.
“Thank you… for not abandoning me,” she said softly.
Teresa was silent for a moment.
“I forgive you, Nico,” she replied directly.
Nico looked at her, shocked.
“But that didn’t mean I was ready to love you again. Forgiveness… doesn’t always come with a return.”
Nico nodded. There was sadness… but there was peace.
“It’s enough for me that you gave me the chance to be a good father to Bella.”
For the first time after everything, Teresa smiled—small, but true.
END.
🌸 LESSON OF THE STORY
Forgiveness is not always going back to the past, but giving you the opportunity to correct the future. True repentance is not measured by tears, but by change and perseverance.