I’m a single dad, 32, raising my two kids — Jake, 15, and Lily, 7. Last month, I had to fly out of town for a quick one-day work trip. My sister usually babysits when I travel, but she was busy. So I told Jake he’d be in charge for the day.“Just keep an eye on Lily, make her dinner, and don’t open the door to strangers,” I said. He rolled his eyes, muttering about me not trusting him.I left early that morning for the airport. But when I got there, my phone pinged — flight cancelled. I called work, rescheduled for the next week, and headed home. I figured I’d surprise them and maybe we’d all go grab lunch.But when I walked in… silence. No TV, no Lily singing to herself, no Jake’s music blasting upstairs. The house felt empty.
I called Jake. No answer. I called again. Still nothing. My heart started racing. I called my sister — she hadn’t seen them.That’s when I remembered the “Find My” app. I opened it and saw Jake’s location… across town. My stomach dropped.When I got closer, I realized it was a neighborhood I knew — one of Jake’s friends lived there. But the street was packed with cars, music thumping from inside one house.I parked and walked in without knocking.It was a full-blown teenage party — flashing lights, kids dancing, beer bottles everywhere.
And there was Jake, right in the middle of it all, grinning, holding a soda like he was king of the world.“Where’s Lily?” I demanded.He froze. “Uh…”“WHERE. IS. SHE?”Everyone turned to look at us. One girl pointed to the corner of the room. There was Lily, curled up in an armchair, hands over her ears, looking terrified.I scooped her up, grabbed Jake by the arm, and marched them both out. The drive home was silent except for Lily sniffing into my jacket.When we got home, I sent Lily to her room with a snack and told Jake to sit down.“You were supposed to take care of her, not drag her to some party where anything could have happened,” I said, my voice shaking with anger. “You broke my trust, and it’s going to take a long time to earn it back.”
He muttered an apology, but I didn’t let it end there. His phone privileges? Gone. Weekends with friends? Gone for a month. And until further notice, he’d be spending his free time helping around the house and taking care of his sister — with me there to supervise.That night, after I put Lily to bed, she whispered, “I didn’t like it there, Daddy. I was scared.”I hugged her and promised, “You won’t have to feel like that again.”And I meant it.