I shifted awkwardly.
“It looked important,” I said.
“It is,” he said, voice shaking. “It’s my pension. All of it. I withdrew it this week.”
My chest tightened.
All of it?
He looked up at me, his expression overwhelmed.
“I don’t know how to thank you,” he said. “Please—take something. Anything.”
He pulled out a few bills, trying to hand them to me.
I shook my head immediately.
“No,” I said. “I can’t.”
“You have to,” he insisted. “Please.”
I stepped back.
“No,” I said again, more firmly this time. “Just… take care of it.”
For a moment, he just stared at me.
Then he started crying.
Not loudly. Not dramatically. Just quiet, relieved tears that made something twist in my chest.
“Thank you,” he whispered.
I nodded once.
Then I turned and left.
—
