My eyes were already filling. I pressed my hand to my mouth.
“He never told me,” I whispered.
“I figured that from how you reacted when I came to pick him up. Nathan tutored Ethan every day for almost a year and wouldn’t even let my mom thank him properly.”
Tears slid down my face before I could stop them.
“Ethan made the honor roll last spring, Miss Walker. He’s a different kid now. And the whole time throughout those two years, I’d see Nathan in the cafeteria, eating by himself. It broke my heart knowing what he’d done for my family. Knowing nobody at our school had any idea.”
Madison drew a shaky breath.
“I called to tell you that I didn’t ask him to the prom as a joke. I did it so that everyone could finally see him. I specifically chose prom because I knew that’s where he’d feel the smallest. I wanted him to feel big, just for one night. He deserves that. And everyone here loves him tonight. They just didn’t know him before.”
