I took my grandpa to prom after he raised me alone — when my bully mocked him, what he said into the mic made the whole gym go silent.
Then Grandpa reached back and squeezed my hand. “Told you, dear!”
I laughed. “You did.”
“Most handsome date there.”
“And the best one I could ever ask for!”
Grandpa patted my hand once as I pushed him toward the car under all those stars. I thought about a night 17 years ago when a 67-year-old man walked back into smoke and came out carrying a baby.
“Most handsome date there.”
Everything good in my life had grown from that one act of love.
Grandpa didn’t just carry me out of the fire that night. He carried me all the way here.
And he promised me the most handsome date at prom. He was also the bravest.
He carried me all the way here.
