When Nella noticed her husband, Eric, acting strangely, she couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling in her chest. They had been married for 12 years, and while their relationship had weathered challenges before, this was different. Eric had always been the steady, reliable one in their marriage. But now, he seemed distant, as if carrying a weight too heavy to share.

It began one evening when Eric mentioned he needed some space.

“It’s not about us, Nella,” he assured her with a faint smile. “I just need time to think.”

His words were calm, but they left her heart racing. He packed a small bag and started sleeping in his car, leaving every evening after dinner and returning just before dawn. His explanations were vague, brushing off her concerns with, “Trust me, it’s nothing like that.”

But as the days passed, Nella couldn’t ignore the changes in him. His eyes were sunken, his movements slow, and the warmth in his voice seemed to fade. Her mind spiraled with questions and worst-case scenarios. Was Eric cheating? Was he slipping away from her and their family?

By the fifth night, her patience broke. She decided to follow him.

Nella tailed Eric’s car to the local park, parking a short distance away. She watched as he pulled up under a tree, turned off the headlights, and settled into the driver’s seat with a pillow and blanket. There was no one else, no secret rendezvous—just Eric, alone, staring at his phone or lying back in silence.

Night after night, the pattern repeated. Eric would sit in his car for hours, returning home exhausted but still unwilling to explain. Frustrated and worried, Nella confronted him on the tenth night. After putting the kids to bed, she drove to the park, knocked on his car window, and demanded answers.

“What’s going on, Eric? Why are you doing this? Are you seeing someone?” she asked, her voice trembling with fear and frustration.

Eric sighed, his shoulders sagging under the weight of her questions. He motioned for her to sit beside him and, after a long pause, revealed the truth.

“I didn’t want to worry you,” he said softly. “But a few weeks ago, I went to the doctor. They found a tumor, and it’s cancer. It’s… it’s bad, Nella. I don’t have much time.”

The words hit her like a freight train. Tears welled in her eyes as she gripped his hands tightly. “Why didn’t you tell me? You shouldn’t have gone through this alone.”

Eric explained that he didn’t want to burden her or disrupt the children’s lives with his diagnosis. Instead, he had been using his nights in the car to record bedtime stories for their kids—something to leave behind for them to remember him by.

“I wanted to give them something… something to hold on to when I’m gone,” he said, his voice breaking.

From that moment, Nella vowed to stand by him. Together, they faced the storm of treatments, doctor’s visits, and emotional hurdles. Eric spent every moment he could with their children, creating memories they would carry with them forever. Despite his determination, the disease was unrelenting. Eric passed away on a quiet winter morning, leaving behind a family who loved him dearly.

In the days following the funeral, Nella found the recorder Eric had used to create his stories. Among the files was one labeled “Our Story.” With trembling hands, she pressed play and listened to his voice fill the room.

“Once upon a time,” he began, “there was a princess. She was kind, smart, and braver than any knight in the land. But most of all, she had the biggest heart anyone had ever known.”

Through tears, Nella listened as Eric recounted their love story in the form of a fairytale, speaking of their life together with reverence and gratitude. His final words were a message of hope: “Even though I can’t be with you anymore, your fairytale must go on.”

The recordings became a source of comfort for Nella and her children. Whenever the weight of grief felt too heavy, she would listen to Eric’s voice, his love echoing through their home. It reminded her that while he was no longer with them physically, his presence, his love, and his stories would always be a part of their lives. And with that, she found the strength to carry on, knowing their fairytale would never truly end.