An ambitious single woman whose life is entirely dedicated to work tries to get a single father with a crying baby kicked out of a cafe. Surprisingly, she encounters him again a year later, but this time the roles have been reversed.
It was a busy Monday evening when Libby walked into the restaurant, ordered a regular coffee, and settled into the seat overlooking the bustling streets of New York City.
What a terrible, terrible day it had been for her. With long meetings and tight deadlines for projects, she hoped to find some time to relax before heading home for her pre-bed yoga meditation.
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“Thank you,” she said softly when the waitress brought her order while she checked her schedule on her iPad. More meetings and work for the next day. Nothing fancy.
Libby put down her iPad and sipped a hot coffee. That’s when she glanced disgustedly at the table next to her, where a baby was staring at her with wide eyes and applesauce all over his mouth…
Libby assumed the decent-looking man talking on the phone while his baby laughed at a stranger was a single father. Otherwise, why would he be in his evening clothes in a cafe at 7 p.m., feeding a child, his office bag beside him?
“Disgusting!” Libby muttered before looking away.
She hated babies. She despised the fact that they were cranky and always needed affection. But it seemed the baby she found disgusting loved her.
Everyone has a story to tell. You can’t judge someone until you know their story.
As Libby looked away, the baby began to cry, her tears cascading down her cheeks.
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“What a mess!” she thought angrily.
When Libby turned back to look at the table a few seconds later, she saw that the baby’s father was still on his phone, which irritated her. She’d had a long day at work, and the last thing she needed to hear was the baby crying.
“Excuse me, sir!” she shouted. “Ask your baby to be quiet! He’s crying like it’s his last day!”
The man turned around and apologized before continuing the call, rocking his baby. But nothing changed. The baby wouldn’t stop crying, and Libby was so angry that she called the waitress.
“I’m a regular at this establishment, and this is the bare minimum you can do for me. Please move them to another table where I can’t hear that stubborn baby’s cries! Or simply evict them! Do whatever you want, but keep them out of my sight!”
“Madam,” the waitress said apologetically. “As you can see, all the tables inside are currently occupied, and the only free slots are on the terrace, which may be too cold for a baby. I’ll talk to them…”
The waitress approached the man’s table, said something to him, and Libby noticed the man hang up his phone.
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“Well, if she has a problem, it’s up to her to move,” the man retorted. “It’s not even my fault, but I apologize for the inconvenience.”
Libby couldn’t contain her anger when she heard these words. She walked over to the man’s table and asked him to leave. That’s when the crying child threw applesauce all over Libby’s outfit, which enraged her even more.
“Jason, my boy!” the man shouted. “This is not right. Calm down!”
“Hey, listen, I’m sorry about this,” the man said to Libby. “I can make it up to you, and…”
“This is ridiculous!” Libby exclaimed. “From you and the kid! I’m done with this place,” she said as she stormed out of the cafe, glaring at the man and the waitress.
Libby never visited the cafe again, and she hoped never to meet that man and his child again. She despised him as much as she despised that baby.
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A year passed, and Libby found herself a handsome man at the company she worked for. Trevor was just a contract employee, but he was charming, polite, confident, and had everything Libby had ever wanted in a man. He was the first to fall in love with her, but she loved him even more, and soon after, she discovered she was carrying his child.
When her baby bump became visible, Libby told her parents, but they didn’t like it.
“We’d prefer you remain single for the rest of your life,” her father said grumpily. “I don’t want that man involved with you or our family, Lib.”
“Your father is right, dear,” said her mother. “He doesn’t deserve you. He’s not of our social standing, and well, the baby… you can choose to keep it. We’ll see what we can do to help you raise your child.”
Libby was shocked. She expected her parents to be happy, but the opposite happened. Because Libby was adamant about marrying Trevor, they were both kicked out of the company (they worked for her father’s company), and Libby’s parents excluded her from their will.
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A few months later, Libby moved into Trevor’s studio apartment because she could no longer pay her rent. Trevor was working for a small private company at the time, supporting her and their child.
Months later, when God’s little gift came into Libby and Trevor’s lives, they decided to give him all their love despite life’s challenges. Trevor worked two jobs, and Libby also began looking for work.
One day she was called for an interview at a publishing house and had to take baby Eve with her.
Libby had loved writing since she was a child, so she was very excited about the interview. However, as she approached the interview room, the other candidates judged her because she was the only one carrying a baby.
“I’m afraid you can’t bring him inside,” the woman outside the room told him when his turn came.
“I’m sorry,” Libby said. “If I leave her alone, she’ll be a nuisance to the others. Please bear with me.”
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The woman sighed and finally agreed.
Libby walked into the room, unaware of what awaited her. When she saw the interviewer’s face, she froze. It was none other than the man she’d been rude to months ago.
“Do I know you?” He raised an eyebrow as he asked Libby to sit down. “You look familiar.”
“Well,” Libby said shyly. “We met at the cafe, and your baby was crying…”
“Ah!” he smiled. “So, we know each other. Please sit down. Also, I hope you know that babies aren’t allowed at work.”
Before Libby could say anything, Eve started crying non-stop.
Libby was embarrassed.
“Oh no, I’m so sorry. I can’t leave Eve home alone, and it’s just that…”
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“May I?” he asked.
“What?” she said, confused.
“Can I hold her for a moment? I think I can calm her down.”
Libby nodded because she had no other choice. She handed Eve over to the man, and the little girl stopped crying as soon as he started playing with her.
“She seems to like you,” Libby said. “That’s not her type!”
“I love babies,” the man said. “My name is Jonathan. In addition to being the director of the company, I am the single father of my little boy. He is currently with my sister. I don’t like leaving children with strangers.”
Libby couldn’t control her tears. “I don’t know how else to say this, but I can’t leave Eve alone. I’m not in the best financial shape of my life, and since I can’t bring her to work, I don’t think I’m going to be a good fit for the job. Sorry.”
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“No, it’s fine. I’d like to interview you. We don’t want to lose an important candidate. Please…”
Jonathan interviewed Libby and hired her. He also allowed Libby to bring Eve to work as long as it didn’t interfere with her job.
“I’m a father too, and I understand,” he said. “Not to mention, at the end of the day, we’re all human, Mrs. Walsh. I guess having a little employee with us would be great!”
Libby was beyond grateful to Jonathan. Not only did she land a job that day, but she realized there was more to life than just a job.
Jonathan was a single father who shouldered most of the company’s responsibilities, and she saw what a wonderful father he was. While raising a child alone, he also did his best for his company and others. He taught Libby that being human comes first.
What can we learn from this story?
- Everyone has a story to tell. You can’t judge someone until you know their story . Libby despised Jonathan and his crying baby and regretted it months later when she met the real Jonathan, the kind man who hired her and accepted her situation.
- Life is a circle. The more things change, the more they stay the same . When Libby found herself in a situation where Eve was crying, she realized how wrong she was to despise Jonathan’s child.
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If you liked this story, you might like this one about a waitress who rushes to the restaurant across the street to offer a sandwich to a hungry boy, who returns the favor.
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