Girl Who Refused to Play Chess with Sick Dad Opens Chess Set He Gifted Only after His Death — Story of the Day
A girl is embarrassed by her sick father and refuses to play chess with him. However, after his death, when she opens the chess set he’d given her, she is filled with regret.
Lacey Stewart missed her father. One month ago, her parents decided to part ways, and Lacey’s mother, Linda, was awarded custody. There were moments when Lacey wanted to spend the whole day with her father, Dylan, but he worked in San Francisco, California, which was at least an 8-hour ride from her mother’s house.
Dylan visited Lacey on weekends and sometimes during a weekday when he’d be off from work, but their meetings wouldn’t be any more than 2 to 3 hours. Dylan was a busy man, plus Linda didn’t really fancy his frequent presence at her house.
Dylan gifted Lacey with a wooden chess set | Photo: Shutterstock
To that end, Dylan started meeting Lacey at a small park not far from their home, where Lacey usually played with her friends. Dylan loved chess, and Lacey was no less in awe of the board game. “Checkmate, dad! You lost!” The girl would joyfully exclaim upon winning. “I won another game. Yay!”
“NAH! I DON’T THINK SO!” Dylan would tease her. “You know, since you’re my daughter, I always let you win.”
“Oh really? Then shall we play another game?” Lacey would grin. Dylan would gladly agree just to see his daughter smile. And he had indeed lost a few matches so that Lacey would be pleased. But sadly, these happy times did not last long.
When Stacey turned 10, Dylan was diagnosed with cancer. The doctor stated that his condition was deteriorating and that he would need to be admitted to the hospital for some tests.
Lacey’s birthday was only two days away when Dylan received the devastating news. He couldn’t attend her birthday party, but he sent her a gift that Lacey adored. It was a wooden chess set that had Lacey’s name engraved on the inside of it.
Both Dylan and Lacey loved chess | Photo: Unsplash
One day, after he was discharged from the hospital, Dylan called Lacey to meet him at the park. Lacey was overjoyed. “Mom! I’ll be back in a while! I’m going to meet Dad!” The little girl chirped as she walked out of her house, holding a chess set.
However, it took her a long time to figure out that the slender figure sitting on their usual spot was her father....