After Searching For His Birth Mom For Years, He Realized He Worked With Her

Steve was a normal man who worked as a delivery driver in a home improvement store. He had a happy personal life, and he grew up with loving parents who had always supported him. However, there was one thing always on his mind- who was his birth mother? Steve’s adoption was never kept a secret from him. He knew since he was a child, but once he turned 18, his curiosity got the better of him.

A photo of a man with a hat on. / A photograph of a woman talking.
Source: Pinterest / Twitter

That’s when Steve decided to go looking for his biological mom. This process took a long time. It seemed as though his mother had fallen off of the face of the earth. He eventually found her after searching for almost four years. What’s strange about this story is where he ultimately found her. Steve’s inspirational story ended up making headlines all over the country.

Steve Hates Olives!

Steve is a 22-year old who grew up in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He sat down one day and opened his lunchbox, excited to see what his mom made from him. He got a toasted rye bread sandwich, a red apple, and a bottle of orange juice. He took a bite out of his sandwich, and something was wrong. He tasted cheese, tomatoes… and olives! Steve spat the bite into the trash.

A sandwich half with olives it it. / A man tidying up shelves at a hardware store.
Source: Pinterest / Pinterest

Sometimes his mom would forget how much Steve hated olives. Olives aside, Steve loved his mother, and most of the time, her sandwiches were great. After picking the olives out of his sandwich, he quickly ate it. He had a lot of deliveries to get to and needed to hurry up if he wanted to finish up on time.

Wondering About the Past

For the past couple of years, Steve was working as a delivery driver at a home improvement store. His plan was to go to college, but first, he needed to save some money. That’s why Steve was working hard and took on as many hours as he could. Luckily, Steve really enjoyed working there. He was always good at repairing things, plus he liked helping people.

A man photographed driving a tractor in the middle of a street.
Source: Twitter

However, there was something else on his mind lately, something pretty big. As an adopted child, Steve started thinking about his roots and birth family. His adoption was never kept from him, but it wasn’t something he really thought about… until recently. Something just brought the situation into his mind.

Inspiration

It was actually something on TV that brought these thoughts to the surface. There was a story about an American College student who went all the way to South America, in order to find and meet her birth mother. Basically, their country was extremely dangerous at the time, so her mom decided it would be a better idea to give the baby up for adoption in America.

A college girl is hugging her birth mother. / A man with a buzz cut about to talk.
Source: Imgur/ Twitter

When the girl turned 21, she traveled there in order to meet them. She didn’t speak Spanish or anything, but still, it was an emotional meeting. It got Steve to wonder. If this girl went through all of that just to find her mother and where she came from, maybe he could search for his mother too.

Déjà vu

Once when he was 18, Steve made an effort to find his birth mom. Choosing to go on this search wasn’t as easy as one might think. First of all, he didn’t want his adoptive parents to feel offended in any way. He didn’t even like to use the word ‘adoptive’ because, as far as he was concerned, the people who raised him were his real mom and dad.

A guy is hugging his mom on the front porch with the father looking on.
Source: Pinterest

They were the ones who took him in. All his childhood memories came from the two people who raised him and loved him. He never wanted to do anything to make them feel like he was replacing them in any way. He loved them; he was just curious about his birth parents.

Confused Feelings

As much as Steve adored and appreciated his parents, he couldn’t help but feel angry. There was a lingering feeling that someone had abandoned him when he was a baby. He was seven years old when he found out that he was adopted and it messed with his head just a little bit.

A photograph of sad young boy crying in a dark room.
Source: Shutterstock

I mean, if his mom didn’t want him then, why would she suddenly want him now? However, he knew that it wasn’t really fair to think like that. Steve knew that there could be a million reasons for a person to give up their baby. He didn’t want to judge before he knew the truth; he wanted to know the real reason why his biological mother gave up on him.

Supportive Mother

When Steve told his mom that he was interested in looking up his birth mother, she wasn’t at all surprised. She told Steve that she assumed he would be curious and knew this day would come. She assured Steve that it’s okay and that they won’t be offended if he looked for his birth parents. His mom knew her son wasn’t looking to replace her.

The adoption services center in Butte County.
Source: Butte County

In fact, Steve’s mom was so understanding that she told her son that if she were in his position, she would also want to know and would probably also go looking for her biological family. With his mother’s support, the decision was made. 18-year-old Steve went to the local adoption agency, and his search began.

Curiosity Killed the Cat

Steve remembered that day very vividly in his mind for the next four years. He would wake up extremely nervous, and his curiosity was only getting stronger. His parents didn’t want their son to be disappointed, so they warned him not to get too excited. I mean, there is always a chance that his biological mom doesn’t even want to meet him.

A man is standing in front of the receptionist desk.
Source: Pinterest

However, Steve couldn’t help it. He was very eager to meet his biological mother. He didn’t want to think of her, not wanting to be found. As he stood at the front desk at the adoption desk, he realized he wasn’t just curious. It was way more than that. Finding his mom was something that really meant a lot to Steve.

Nervous Steve

Steve’s heart was racing at the adoption agency. The woman at the desk finally looked up his records on the computer. As soon as Steve realized that she had found his name, his heart started beating faster. He was so nervous to hear what she had to say. To Steve’s surprise, his birth mother did want to reunite with her son one day.

A woman with shocked look on her face. / A photograph of an envelope with a yellow pencil.
Source: Imgur / Twitter

The woman told Steve that his biological mother left her records open, just in case he decided to look for her one day. Steve was understandably way too nervous to look. The lady at the adoption agency gave Steve the information in an envelope. That way, he can take it home and look at it when he is ready.

Research Time

Eventually, he eventually opened up the envelope and found out that his biological mother’s name was Christine Talladay. Steve couldn’t help but wonder what she was like, how was she doing, but more importantly, why did she give him up 22 years ago? Steve needed to give himself some time before he continued his research.

A photograph of a man searching the internet in a dark room.
Photo by ESB Professional / Shutterstock

A few days later, he took the next step, which was to use the internet. Christine did leave a phone number in the file, but unfortunately, the number was no longer in service. He opened up a soda, sat in his desk, and typed her name into the search bar. The young man was surprised by what he found. Or what he didn’t exactly find.

Harder than it Looks

He found nothing. Absolutely nothing. As far as he could tell, there was no such person. Well, at least nobody relevant. Two Christine Talladays popped up in his search, but neither of them could have been her. One was way too old to be his mom, and the other was far too young. It shouldn’t be this hard to find someone in this day in age.

A photo of case files.
Source: Tuul

Steve was understandably disappointed. All that nervousness, suspense, and build-up were for nothing. Then he thought, maybe she got married and changed her last name. If she changed her name, that might be the reason why he couldn’t find her. Steve contacted the local courthouse so that he can check the public records.

Developing Mystery

Sadly, this didn’t help Steve get any closer to finding his birth mom. The courthouse told him that there was no one by the name of Christine Talladay that got married and had changed her name. In fact, one of the Christine Talladays that he did find, changed her name to Talladay when she married her husband.

A photograph of a man surfing the internet in a dark room.
Photo by Sander van der Werf / Shutterstock

Steve had no idea what to say. He couldn’t believe that it would be this hard to track down. Especially since she apparently wanted him to find her. This made absolutely no sense. He thought for a minute that maybe she passed away. However, if that were the case, it would have been recorded. So, where could she be?

Dead End

Steve felt like he hit a dead end. With no leads, Steve decided to call the adoption agency again. He figured he might as well check to make sure that they had given him the correct name. The woman on the phone confirmed that his birth mom’s name is, in fact, Christine Talladay. If he had the right name, where is she?

A woman who looks like a customer service representative talking on the phone. / A man standing with his apron on.
Source: Pinterest

How is it that he can’t track her down? It seemed like she disappeared and erased all records and traces of her, except for the one at the adoption agency. Could it be that she didn’t want to be found? Steve didn’t know what do think. His parents then suggested a private investigator. If he wasn’t getting anywhere with the search, maybe someone can help.

Calling it Quits

Steve’s response to his parents was no. He told them that he would never ask them to spend that amount of money. He added that he wasn’t even that interested in finding her. I guess he thought that if she wanted to be found, she wouldn’t have just fallen off the face of the earth with no trace. He finally gave up.

A photograph of a man typing in dark room.
Photo by Skylines / Shutterstock

With time, he had forgotten about his search. It wasn’t really a priority for him anymore. I mean, he would search her name every once in a while to see if anything comes up. He still wanted to find her or to at least find clues as to where she might be. But four years later, he decided to get to the bottom of this once and for all.

Back to Square One

Steve couldn’t take it anymore. He just wanted to know who his biological mother was. After stopping his search four years ago, Steve wanted to continue it. He still didn’t know where to start, so he went to the adoption agency, yet again. He was hoping that they might have some more information about his mother hidden somewhere.

A man standing in front of a reception desk. / A woman in blue scrubs is typing.
Source: Imgur / Twitter

He went up to the front desk, and he explained his situation. The employee that was helping him agreed with Steve. She also thought it was extremely strange that his mother seemed to have disappeared. She looked up Steve’s case on her computer and printed out the same results that he had gotten before. When he looked at it again, Steve felt really stupid…

Careless Mistake

When Steve looked at the records this time, he noticed something that he didn’t realize before. The entire time he has been spelling Christine’s last name wrong! It seemed crazy he didn’t double-check and that this hadn’t occurred to him sooner, but better late than never, I guess. He has been spelling her name with an extra ‘a.’

Stock photo of man's hands pour out beer from the bottle into the glass at the kitchen.
Photo by VGstockstudio / Shutterstock

Needless to say, he felt dumb, but that feeling quickly changed to nervousness. Suddenly, Steve felt just like he did on that day four years ago. This time he decided that he wasn’t wasting any time. He ran home, opened up a beer, and sat in his desk in front of his computer. This time, he typed the correct name into the search bar.

Same Home Town

This time when he looked up the name, he got an exciting result. There was a Christine with the right age and name living at Grand Rapids! The woman he found lived just a few miles away from him. Could it be that he finally found his birth mother after all this time? Steve’s mind grew even more curious.

A landscape view of the city.
Source: withfoodandlove.com

He immediately thought that he might have met her through the years. Of course, he wouldn’t have known she was his mother, but with such close proximity, they must have at least seen each other. She could have just been a customer at his workplace or something. It was a pretty crazy thought, but you never know. It’s possible.

Seriously?!

Steve was feeling really relieved. He spelled his mother’s name right and found her. When he got home that evening, he looked her up on social media. He wanted to get an idea of who this woman was. He had no idea what she was like or if she had a family. He just wanted to be prepared. Would he just be meeting his biological mom?

Stock photo of a man surfing the internet on laptop in dark room.
Photo by Stokkete / Shutterstock

Or will he be introduced to some brothers and sisters? Once he knew how to spell her name correctly, Facebook stalking should be a breeze. He clicked on her profile to see what he can find out about her but, what he saw make him do a double-take. Steve could not believe his eyes.

Figuring it Out

At work the next day, Steve went to the main office. He didn’t spend much time there. He worked as a driver, so he spent most of the time loading his truck and making deliveries. He did, however, know a lot of the other employees working there. If not by name, for sure by face.

A photograph of an office space with orange aprons hanging from the cubicle. / People in an office space hard at work.
Source: Pinterest / Pinterest

There was one woman, however, that only started working there a few months earlier. He really wanted to check what her name was. He described the woman to one of his colleagues who worked in the office; she has records of all the employees working there. It turns out, her name was Christine. Steve was stunned! It took him a second to process what was happening.

Can’t Believe it

Steve felt like he was in a movie. Her name was Christine?! What are the chances of this actually happening? His utter shock was written all over his face. He went completely pale, and one of his co-workers asked him if he was feeling okay? He looked like he was about to faint, but Steve managed to get himself together.

A woman holding a cup of coffee while sitting on the couch. / A man driving a tractor.
Source: Imgur/ Twitter

He was at work and still needed to do his job. He loaded his truck and went to make a delivery. He returned to get the next load, and as he was packing the truck, Steve kept looking across at the office. He kept checking for her, and later that afternoon, she was there. Steve found himself staring at her.

The Meeting

Steve couldn’t take his eyes off of Christine. He was looking back at all the time they passed each other at work. They would sometimes greet each other with a polite hi, but that’s about it. Christine obviously had no idea who Steve was, but Steve knows who she is now. This all felt really weird for him.

A happy woman looking at a man in front of her.
Source: Pinterest

I mean, she was just going about her day and her business, and he is just staring at her. He knew that he was her son, and that she had no clue. Walking over to hear area, it was like a magnet pulling him over there, but he didn’t even know what he was going to see or do. Before he knew it, they were standing face to face.

What to do?

However, it was just for a moment. She continued walking. Steve soon realized that he couldn’t just walk up to her on work and break the news to her. He said, “It’s a bizarre situation. I was not 100 percent sure as to what to do about it, how to bring it to her attention.” He couldn’t just blurt it out.

Two workers in a hardware store talking behind the counter.
Source: Pinterest

He was worried it wouldn’t go well. Steve had no idea how to initiate this kind of conversation. He thought of maybe asking her coffee, but then she might think he was asking her out on a date. Given the situation, that would make things even more awkward. He knew he was going to tell her. He just wanted to give himself a few days to figure out how.

Plan B

Steve took a few days and really thought about the issue. Every day he would go into work knowing that his long lost mother was there too, right across the shop floor. He was painfully aware of how insane it was that he couldn’t bring himself to talk to her. He wanted to; he just didn’t know how she would react.

A man adjusting wooden panels on the back of a truck.
Source: Imgur

He also didn’t want to put her in an uncomfortable situation. He thought it might cause a scene if he put her on the spot. That’s when he came up with another idea. He called the adoption agency and asked them if they would contact her. Maybe if this was done more officially, it would be better for everyone.

Surprise!

Steve arranged that the adoption agency would inform Christine that her son’s name was Steve and that he had actually been working in the store with her. After Christine heard the news, her response was, “You’ve got to be kidding me.” Suddenly, she started thinking of all the Steve’s that worked there, wondering which one he was.

A woman in scrubs speaking on the phone. / A man standing in a warehouse.
Source: Pinterest / Twitter

She realized that there was one it could be. There was a polite young man named Steve, who drove a delivery truck. He seemed to be the right age to be her son. At work, she did some detective work of her own. Christine looked up Steve’s birthday, and that’s when she knew for sure. This young man was her son.

Happily Reunited

Eventually, Steve and Christine decided to meet in a restaurant. Christine explained that she got extremely emotional as soon as she walked in and saw him sitting there. She said, “We just hugged and hugged and hugged and cried and cried.” After a few minutes of talking, they learned that they were a lot alike. For example, Christine hated olives too!

Steve and Christine embracing for a photograph.
Source: Twitter

Steve found out that Christine was married and that he has two new siblings. He had a half-brother and half-sister, both around half his age. This was crazy! Steve and Christine were laughing, and both of them were happy to be reunited. But Steve still had one important question for Christine. Why did she give him up?

Happily Ever After

The story was pretty simple and kind of boring. The truth was that she was a single mother and way too young to take care of a baby. It seemed pretty ordinary. Christine’s husband knew all about her past and always stood by his wife. He was 100% supportive of her decision to meet her son, Steve. Thankfully, Steve’s introduction didn’t have a negative impact on Christine’s family.

Steve and Christine photographed in a selfie.
Source: Twitter

Christine also expressed that she was so happy to see how wonderfully Steve’s adoptive parents raised him. One of Steve’s friends reported that Steve seemed “infinitely happier” since meeting his mom. It’s a good thing he figured out the correct spelling of her name. Steve said, “It’s worked out wonderfully.”

Story #2

Unbelievable Twist

Life is a crazy thing. It can throw curveballs and surprise us out of nowhere. Take this story of a high school student named Patty. She really didn’t like her math teacher. His name was Jim, and he was very strict. It almost seemed like he enjoyed giving out harsh punishments for the smallest things. He wasn’t married, and he didn’t seem to have many friends.

A photograph of high school students in their classroom.
Photo by LStockStudio / Shutterstock

He wasn’t friendly when it came to other teachers, and Patty said she never saw him smile. The math teacher gave Patty and weekend punishment, which would ruin the blood drive at the school that she was organizing. When she went to the hospital to sort it all out, she discovered that Jim had a big secret.

Embarrassed in Front of the Class

When the math teacher glared at her in class, Patty felt herself blush. She lost the page they were on in her textbook, and her mistake was asking the teacher. She wanted to ask the student next to her, but she knew they aren’t allowed to talk in class. Despite his old age, his ears were amazingly sharp. He could always hear when his students would whisper, no matter how quiet.

A photograph of a student raising their hand.
Photo by LStockStudio / Shutterstock

Sometimes Patty felt like her teacher could read her mind. As soon as she asked him the question, she regretted it. He stopped teaching and just stared at her. After giving her an icy glare, Patty lowered her hand, felt discouraged, and the teacher went on teaching.

After Class Meeting

Clearly, Jim wasn’t going to let her get away with that. Patty just wished she knew what his problem was. Why was he so unpleasant? Could it be his age? Maybe he was just a grumpy old man. Patty got through the rest of the class, but right when the bell rang, the teacher asked her to stay after class.

A woman holding a pen while looking intensely at her desk. / A teacher standing in front of his desk.
Source: Pinterest / Twitter

Jim basically told Patty that her lack of focus was disrupting the rest of the class. Patty tried to explain her side, but he shut her up with that scary glare. She didn’t understand what his issue was. The reason why she even asked him what page they were on was because she was trying to pay attention. He took out a piece of paper and wrote a long list of numbers in small precise handwriting.

Big Trouble

The numbers he had written down were page numbers from her textbook. Basically, her punishment was extra homework. Patty thought to herself; there goes my weekend. At least her punishment wasn’t personal. She knew that her teacher has no patience for anything or anyone. Everything had to go exactly his way.

Pen on paper with math exercises. / Jim is standing in front of his class.
Source: Imgur

Patty never saw him crack a smile or even speak to anyone outside of the classroom. His punishments for what he considered misbehavior were pretty harsh. Patty’s heart sank when she received her punishment because she made plans to go out with her friends on Saturday night. Plus, she didn’t really do anything wrong. She literally just asked the teacher what page they were on… that’s all.

So Not Fair

After their little chat, the teacher dismissed Patty, and she ran off to her next class. It was English class. They were going over some book, but it was difficult for her to focus, she was so upset. She couldn’t stop thinking about her punishment. It wasn’t fair that she got in trouble in the first place. The worst part is that Patty was actually good at math.

A close-up photograph of a woman writing in a notebook.
Photo by ShotPrime Studio / Shutterstock

It used to be her favorite subject. Her math teacher before was great. She was helpful, friendly, and made math interesting for all her students. Patty felt inspired and motivated. Her teacher now would give them boring technical lectures. He has probably been giving the same lectures for 50 years.

Mean Teacher

When Patty’s teacher went on maternity leave, they needed someone to fill in. That’s how Patty and the rest of her class got stuck with the grumpy old man. They all thought he was a monster, but she later found out his name was Jim. Since his first day on the job, Patty knew that math wouldn’t be fun anymore.

A man talking. / A woman crying with tissues in her hand.
Source: Pinterest / Twitter

The one upside about Jim is that he wasn’t discriminatory towards anyone. He was mean to all his students equally. His biggest pet peeve was students who weren’t good at math already. People were scared of him. Students learned really quickly that if they were to ask him a question, the answer wouldn’t be positive. He always responded with rude comments.

Causes Tears

In fact, the teacher was so mean that even made students cry. And this wasn’t an isolated occasion. Patty witnessed one of these scenarios personally. The teacher gave his class back a pop quiz and one of Patty’s friends, Lisa didn’t do very well. Math was very difficult for Lisa, and she needed some more help.

A photograph of a man talking. / A kid sitting in class concentrating.
Source: Imgur / Twitter

Jim, of course, thought the right thing to do was announce her score to the rest of the class. He tried to use her as an example of why it’s so important to study. Needless to say, Lisa was mortified. She just burst into tears and tried to leave the class, but Jim wasn’t going to let her leave. Lisa was forced to sit in her chair, humiliated and miserable until the bell rang.

No Phones, No Exceptions

Patty remembered another incident which involved a mobile phone. In general, students shouldn’t use their phones in class. Most teachers have a no-phone policy, and it makes sense. However, teachers are also human and understand that there are emergencies and give exceptions when necessary. Well, not Jimbo.

A man handing someone else a cell phone. / Two students having a discussion.
Source: Pinterest / Pinterest

Some kid put his phone in his pocket on silent because his sister just went into labor. His family said they would notify him when the baby was born. When the student’s phone buzzed, Jim was not happy. He took the phone away before the kid can read the message. He told him he could get his phone back at the end of the day… after detention. The kid begged his teacher just to let him look at the screen, but Jim refused.

Bathroom Breaks

Asking to go to the bathroom was a whole different issue. He never exactly said no, but he made it clear to the students that they were being disruptive and interrupting the class. How dare they go to the bathroom and not feel bad about it. It didn’t bother some of the students, but for others, it was super embarrassing, so they didn’t even ask.

A student sitting at her desk taking a test.
Photo by Chinnapong / Shutterstock

At the end of the day, Jim was just a miserable old man. All of his students dreaded his class and got in trouble all the time. Now Patty was stuck with hours of extra homework to do, just because she asked her teacher a question. She didn’t do anything wrong. Her only mistake was forgetting how her teacher reacts.

Charity Work

On her way home from school, Patty called her best friend, Chloe. She told her all about what happened in math class. Chloe was just as upset as Patty was. Her punishment was so unfair! Chloe also knew that with all this extra homework, Patty wouldn’t have time to hang out over the weekend. Especially with all her charity work.

A female student standing outside of a school building.
Photo by Inspiration GP / Shutterstock

Basically, Since Patty was thinking about college, she figured some extra-curricular activities and charity work might help her get in. She was highly involved in the school and was in the middle of organizing a blood drive. It wasn’t easy with all her classes and now, extra homework. However, Patty really did have a big heart and convinced her fellow students to donate blood.

Frustrating Weekend

Over the weekend, Patty worked on making posters for the blood drive. In the evening, instead of hanging out with her friends, she was stuck doing math. She opened up her textbook and started working on her punishment. It didn’t take long for her to notice that Jim gave her extra-long assignments.

A woman sitting in front of a lot of open books trying to concentrate.
Photo by Fizkes / Shutterstock

It was like he handpicked them, and specifically chose the ones that would waste as much of her time as humanly possible. What really bothered Patty was that the teacher didn’t look in the textbook when he assigned her extra homework. That means that knew all the punishment exercises by heart. It’s like he’s ready to punish someone at every given moment.

Standing Up to Jim

Monday morning, Patty was back at school. After a very unrelaxing weekend, her first period was math. This was a terrible way to start the week; she just dragged her feet and wanted to get the class over with. As she turned a corner, there was a scene going on outside the math classroom. Jim was embarrassing Lisa once again. At this point, Patty has had enough.

A girl standing with her arms crossed.
Photo by Rob Stark / Shutterstock

Patty lost her temper and did something very gutsy and out of character. She couldn’t stand to see her friend crying again. She walked right up to her teacher and told him to leave her friend alone. As soon as she said that, the temperature in the hallway went up about 20 degrees.

Don’t Mess with the Teacher

Lisa ran off crying, and Jim told Patty that she needs to stay after class; he then walked into the classroom. Patty considered chasing after Lisa; she wanted to make sure she was okay. However, Patty knew she was already in deep water, so she followed Jim into the classroom and sat down in her seat.

A girl sitting by the lockers with her hands in her hair, looking stressed out.
Photo by Antoniodiaz / Shutterstock

Patty prepared herself for her punishment, and after class, Patty was ready for her extra homework assignment. However, her punishment ended up being way worse than she thought. As predicted, he gave her extra homework, but this time, she had to do it in school, during detention, on Saturday! He’s so mean! Ruining weekends seems to be his specialty.

So Not Fair

Not only did Jim ruin Patty’s last weekend, but this time, she has detention on Saturday. Do you remember what’s happening that weekend? Patty’s blood drive that she has been working on. Thanks to Jim, she had to postpone the charity event because she has detention that day. She almost told Jim about the blood drive, but then she remembered who she was talking to.

A photograph of a woman concentrating on studying.
Photo by Antonio Guillem / Shutterstock

Patty was understandably frustrated. How mean can one teacher be? After leaving the classroom, Patty decided she was going to go speak to the principal. Maybe he will understand how ridiculous the punishment was. Even if she did deserve the punishment, does it have to be on the day of the blood drive?

Help Me!

Unfortunately, the principal wasn’t much help. He told Patty that he doesn’t feel like it’s his place to intervene when a teacher disciplines a student. So Jim can give her whatever punishment he wanted. The principal also told her to postpone the blood drive. He said that the blood drive would get the same amount of blood next week.

A principal sitting behind his desk conversing.
Source: Pinterest

He then told her, she should have thought about that before she disrespected a teacher. Patty was noticeably upset, and suddenly the principals face became softer. He looked at Patty and sympathetically told her that Jim was close to retirement. She noticed she wasn’t getting anywhere with the administration, and there was nothing else she can do.

Change of Plans

Patty went home and couldn’t get over what just happened. She picked up the phone and reluctantly called the hospital. She was so disappointed. She spent so much effort into organizing the event and was actually really excited about it. She even made posters that she wanted to put up, but they advertised that the blood drive was on Saturday.

A photograph of a nurse talking on the phone behind the nurses station.
Photo by Gorodenkoff / Shutterstock

She worked with the hospital, which organized personnel to be there, ready to take blood from students who want to donate. Everything was already set up with the hospital, and she planned to put up the posters she made. And now, she has to change everything? All because her teacher is the most unreasonable guy on the planet?

Postponing the Blood Drive

Patty got in touch with the doctor who was helping her plan the event. Patty informed her that the blood drive needs to be pushed off for one more week. When the doctor asked her why, Patty was so embarrassed to say she had detention. She ended up telling the doctor who didn’t seem to mind and helped her postpone the blood drive.

A photograph of a female doctor on the phone.
Photo by Syda Productions / Shutterstock

She also reminded Patty that she needed to come in and fill out some forms. She decided to go in that evening. She figured it would help keep her mind off of things. Plus, she really wanted to make sure to get it done (in case she gets detention again). However, her hospital visit didn’t turn out the way she expected.

Hospital Visit

When she arrived at the hospital, Patty met with a new receptionist and explained that she was from the high school, and needed to fill out some forms for her school’s blood drive. The receptionist asked Patty which high school she goes to and when Patty told her, she was extremely surprised by the receptionist’s response.

A close-up of the new receptionist. / A photograph of Patty.
Source: Twitter / Twitter

She said, “Oh, so you must know Jim. Isn’t he wonderful?” Patty just looked at her. Who can she be talking about? There is no way she’s talking about Patty’s teacher, Jim. He definitely didn’t seem like the wonderful man that she was talking about. If she said grumpy man, it would make more sense. Patty then asked the receptionist who exactly she was talking about.

Name on the Board

It turns out that the receptionist was talking about Jim, her math teacher. Ironically, he is the reason Patty is even there postponing the blood drive. Not knowing what to say, Patty just smiled and nodded. I mean, how strange that the receptionist knew who her math teacher was. What was stranger was her positive opinion of him.

A board with names on it. / A close-up of Patty.
Source: Pinterest / Twitter

Patty walked through the main doors, very confused. She took a quick pause when she saw a new board on the wall. The board displayed a list of people who donated the most blood that month. As a very charitable person (and blood drive organizer), Patty wondered if she could get her name on that board. It wasn’t such a far-fetched thought.

Logical Explanation

As she looked down the list, there was one name in particular that jumped out on her. That’s when everything became clear; Jim probably donates a lot of blood. That would explain how the receptionist knew him and described him as “wonderful.” Patty, however, still wasn’t impressed. It didn’t justify how he acted. Lots of people give blood….

A Blood Donor Center sign hanging on the wall. / A close-up of Patty’s face.
Source: Imgur / Twitter

Patty herself gave blood as often as she could, and she didn’t feel the need to be rude to the people around her. In Patty’s book, he was mean whether he gave blood or not. She figured that Jim must have been really polite to the people working at the hospital. That would be the only logical explanation for them to think he’s a good person.

Hiding from Jim

Next to the board was a vending machine. Patty decided she will get herself a soda before going home. After she put money in the slot, she turned to the right, and guess who she saw. Jim, of course! She noticed him walking towards the main entrance, which was right where she was. Jim was the last person she wanted to see.

A blonde woman getting something from a vending machine.
Photo by Mate Kastelic / Shutterstock

She didn’t want to be around her teacher if she didn’t have to be, especially after he gave her an unfair punishment. She hid behind the vending machine until he walked by. Thankfully, he didn’t see her. Patty even waited a few extra minutes before leaving herself. She didn’t want to risk bumping into him in the parking lot.

Donating Blood

The next day during math class, Patty decided she was going to donate blood after school. She figured that with everything going on, helping others might make her feel better. It was just so frustrating for her to sit in a classroom where Jim is the teacher. He completely messed up her week, and it didn’t seem to bother him at all.

Jim is standing in front of his class teaching. / A student sitting in class concentrating.
Source: Pinterest / Twitter

The whole situation was extremely frustrating for Patty. Giving blood usually cheered her up. It made her feel like she was doing something worthwhile. She stopped by the hospital after school, but she had no idea what she was about to walk into. Patty was about to see something at the hospital that she would never have guessed.

Jim Again?!

Things seemed normal at first. The nurse was had just finished up drawing Patty’s blood. She put a bandage over her arm and told Patty she was free to leave. Patty picked up her stuff and left the room. She immediately went back in and ducked. She saw Jim walking in her direction. Her favorite person was at the hospital once again.

A nurse taking blood from a woman.
Photo by Happy cake Happy café / Shutterstock

The nurse looked at her and seemed quite surprised. Patty was getting sick of this. Why was her teacher there? Was he following her? It was like she couldn’t get away from him. She has to deal with him at school and now she sees him at the hospital… twice! That’s when Patty realized something doesn’t really add up.

Spy Kid

He was at the hospital two days in a row. Was everything okay? Patty knew that he wasn’t donating blood because you have to wait two months in between donations. That means he most likely wasn’t there for that reason. At this point, Patty was a little confused and decided to investigate. Even though she didn’t want to see her teacher outside of school, Patty was curious.

A photograph of a woman standing in the hall. / A photograph of a school hallway.
Source: Imgur / Twitter

She came out hiding and turned right. She was going in Jim’s direction and started to follow him. She made it just in time to see him make a left turn and then disappear. She continued to follow him, but she stayed very quiet. She definitely didn’t want to get caught.

Detective Work

As Patty turned left after Jim, she saw him made a right turn into a ward. Patty was extremely confused. She was even more surprised when she noticed he was walking into a maternity ward. She looked through the glass door, and a nurse smiled at Jim and led him into a cubicle. What is going on? Why is he there?

A photograph of a woman who looks surprised.
Photo by Zoriana Zaitseva / Shutterstock

Patty just wanted to understand what was going on. She pushed open the door and walked right up to the cubicle and opened the curtain. Patty was in complete awe. What she saw took her breath away. This was the last thing she would have ever expected. When Patty saw her teacher, she was at a loss for words.

Another Side

Patty watched her teacher hold a newborn baby. He was humming a lullaby and rocking the baby back and forth. For the first time, Patty saw love in Jim’s eyes. He looked up and saw Patty looking at him and smiled. She never saw him smile before. She found out Jim’s secret; he has been volunteering for years at the hospital.

Jim comforting a newborn baby.
Source: Twitter

He would go comfort babies when their parents were either away or sick. It was actually pretty inspiring. Who would have thought? When Jim noticed Patty, he offered her a deal. He promised her that if she kept his little secret, he would cancel her detention on Saturday. She just looked at him, still stunned, and nodded.