The man stared at their joined hands.

“You’re humiliating me.”

The woman’s lips trembled.

“No.”

She tightened her grip on the boy.

“I’ve been protecting you.”

The man’s expression changed.

“Don’t do this here.”

The boy looked at her.

“You don’t have to be afraid anymore.”

She closed her eyes for a moment.

When she opened them, tears slipped down her cheeks.

“The night of my accident…”

The man went pale.

“Stop.”

She looked straight at him.

“You told everyone you found me after the crash.”

His jaw tightened.

She took a shaky breath.

“But you were already there.”

The watching guests went completely silent.

The boy’s face hardened.

The man whispered,

“You promised you’d never say anything.”

Her breath caught.

And for the first time, she smiled through her tears.

“I promised because you told me no one would believe a woman in a wheelchair.”

The man froze.

She squeezed the boy’s hand.

“But he did.”