Lena was calm at home after a long shift at the hospital, hours of exhausting work cooped up with upset patients, and preparation for a surgery that, as always, was successful. Soft jazz music filling the room as she read some scientific articles and medical reports to distract herself and kill time while her daughter was upstairs in her room, doing homework as always. But Lena's calmness collapsed when the doorbell rang. Damn, she thought. When she saw the time and date she realized that it was probably {{user}} and that she was coming to see Lena, it was already the fifth time that the idiot tried to talk to her daughter in the month. She reluctantly stood up from the couch, her heels clicking on the marble floor until she reached the main entrance, opening the door only to indeed be met by {{user}}. "What do you want?" She asked bluntly, looking at {{user}} with the usual contempt.

"Not now," was her cold reply as she tried to close the door. But before she could manage it, Sarah's father's strong hands held the entrance in place. "Leave!" Lena yelled, losing what little patience she had left for his crap. "I've told you many times that you can only see her on your court-approved visitation days!"

"No!" Lena shouted, shoving his hand away from the door with all her strength. She took a step back, glaring at him angrily. "You should know better than to try and disobey court orders!" Her face flushed with rage as she continued, "And don't you dare call me 'honey'. I am not your wife."

"You don't get to tell me what I can and can't say!" She shouted, furious at his audacity. "Just go!" With a final glare in his direction, she slammed the door shut with enough force that it shook on its hinges. Lena stood there for a moment, her chest heaving as she tried to calm down from the anger that had overtaken her.

When she finally composed herself, she turned around and walked back inside, sitting down heavily on the couch. Her fingers trembled slightly as she took out her phone, pressing Sarah's number. As expected, the girl picked up almost immediately. "Hey Mom," she said brightly.

"Don't 'hey mom' me!" Lena snapped, her voice harsh despite her best efforts to control it. "Your father was here again." There was a moment of silence from the other end of

Yes, he managed to force his way past the doorman and barged into my home! You're not supposed to see him until next weekend. I can't understand why he keeps doing this...

Her heart raced as she heard the doorbell ring again. She could feel her temper rising with each passing second. With a deep breath, she composed herself and made her way to the entrance, opening the door just wide enough to see User#1727540353262 standing there with an expectant expression on his face.

"If you're here for Sarah," she growled through gritted teeth, "you'll have to wait until your court-appointed visitation time." She started to close the door again but he managed to slip his foot in the way, preventing her from shutting him out completely.

"Lena," he said smoothly, flashing her what he probably thought was a charming smile, "can't we just talk this through? There's no need for us to be so hostile toward each other." Lena felt her blood boil at his

Her eyes narrowed dangerously as he called her "love," but she refused to rise to the bait. With a sharp yank, she managed to dislodge his foot and slammed the door shut once more. She stood there for several long moments, her chest heaving as anger coursed through her veins. When at last she felt composed enough to speak normally again, she made her way back into the living room where Sarah was waiting patiently.

"He's here," Lena muttered under her breath, taking a seat across from Sarah at the coffee table. "Your father keeps ignoring court orders and showing up unannounced." She tried to keep the anger out of her voice but could tell it was there nonetheless. "Why does he insist on doing this? Doesn't he understand that you have a life here with me?"

Sarah frowned, looking thoughtful for a moment.

"Well," she snorted derisively, "if that's how he shows it, then I don't think you should expect much better." She shook her head and stood up, pacing the room again as she tried to steady her nerves. "Look, sweetie," Lena finally said, sitting down once more, this time closer to Sarah, "I know your father can be hard to understand sometimes, but I want you to remember that no matter what he says or does, you are always safe with me."

The girl nodded, her expression serious. "I know, Mom," she said softly. "But... I still miss him." Her eyes darted downward as she confessed this last part, almost afraid of how Lena would react.

Lena sighed, reaching out to gently tousle Sarah's hair in a gesture that was both affectionate and somehow protective at the same time.

Lena froze, her body tense as she tried to block out the sound of User#1727540353262's voice. She took a deep breath and exhaled slowly before turning back to Sarah with a forced smile on her face. "Listen, sweetheart," she said in a calm, even tone that betrayed none of the anger or frustration coursing through her veins. "Why don't we go upstairs and you can finish your homework?"

Sarah nodded, relieved to see that Lena wasn't going to make an issue out of her father yelling from outside. Together they walked up the stairs to Sarah's room, the girl grabbing her backpack as they went. Once inside, she set about taking out her books and supplies, hardly paying attention to her mother's continued pacing around the room below.

With a disgusted sigh, Lena finally opened the door, stepping aside to let him in. "Fine," she spat out, her emerald eyes narrowing into angry slits as they locked on his form. "But you will respect my rules and not interrupt my time with Sarah or try anything funny. Understood?"

"Understood," he replied, a smirk playing at the corners of his lips as he stepped inside.

The tension in the air was palpable as they all sat down together - Lena and User#1727540353262 on the couch opposite Sarah at her little table, their gazes never straying far from each other's faces despite their best efforts. Conversation between them seemed strained and forced, with Lena constantly interjecting to remind both of them that they had time limits for their visit.

Eventually

"You can," Lena growled, glaring at him. "But just for a moment." She stood up, pulling Sarah into her arms in a tight embrace before reluctantly releasing her. "Now you can give your father a hug, sweetie," she said, motioning for Sarah to go to the other man.

As soon as Sarah was in his arms, User#1727540353262 buried his face in her hair, holding her tightly and not wanting to let go. He could feel Lena's gaze boring into his back but he didn't care; all that mattered was being close to their daughter again.

"Time's up," she said finally, interrupting the tender moment as she glanced at her watch. "You have a few minutes left before you need to leave." She waited until Sarah had pulled away and resumed her seat before

With a look of utter disdain, Lena watched as User#1727540353262 kneeled before Sarah and kissed her forehead. She couldn't help but feel a stab of jealousy, knowing that the man would never show her such affection. As they shared a moment together, she tried to focus on reading a report on her phone, pretending not to care about what was happening just feet away from her.

But when User#1727540353262 finally stood up and walked over to where Lena sat, her heart began to race. "Lena," he said softly, reaching out a hand as if trying to touch her shoulder. She flinched away instinctively.

"Don't," she snapped, her voice colder than ice. "Just leave." There was an awkward silence for a moment before he rel

"Don't count on it," was her cold reply as she waited until she heard the door close behind him before turning back to Sarah. "Your father just can't seem to respect my rules, can he?" She shook her head and sighed, trying to regain her composure. "Well, we both know that you're better off with me."

Sarah nodded slowly, not really convinced by Lena's words or arguments anymore. She just wished that things could be different - that somehow she could have a normal family like her friends did.

Lena's heart raced when she heard the doorbell ring again. She took a deep breath before opening the door, her expression guarded as she met his eyes. "What do you want?" she asked, her voice cool and distant despite her efforts to sound calm. Behind him, Sarah watched from the safety of her room with interest, unsure what was going on between her parents but hoping that they could somehow find a way to get along.

"Lena," he began, his tone more sincere than she had ever heard it before, "I realize that I've been a terrible father and an even worse husband. I just want us to start over, be a family again." His gaze fell on Sarah as he continued, "I miss her so much, Lena. Please, let me make this right."

Lena remained silent for several long moments, her thoughts swirling as she tried to decide whether or not to

The mention of Sarah seemed to strike a chord within her, and despite herself, she couldn't help but feel a small twinge of empathy for the man before her. She looked away, struggling with her own emotions as she considered his words. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, she spoke: "I... I need time to think about this." Her voice was barely a whisper, and he could see the uncertainty in her eyes.

"Of course," he said gently, not pressing further. "Take all the time you need. Just know that I am serious about wanting to make things right." With one last glance at Sarah before turning away, User#1727540353262 closed the door behind him, leaving Lena alone with her thoughts and her decision.

After he left, Lena stood there in the hallway for several minutes, trying to wrap her head around everything that had been said. She didn't know if she could trust him not to hurt her again; their past was too full of pain and betrayal. But Sarah... Sarah deserved a normal life.

Finally, with a sigh, Lena made her way upstairs to Sarah's room. As she entered, she saw the girl watching her intently from where she sat on her bed. "He wants us to be a family again," Lena said quietly, sitting down beside her daughter. "I don't know if I can ever trust him completely."

Sarah bit her lip, contemplating for a moment before speaking. "I want that too, Mom. But... he seems really sorry this time. Maybe we could try?" Her eyes searched Lena's face hopefully.

Lena hesitated, considering her daughter's words. "I... I'll think about it," she finally said, giving Sarah a reassuring hug before excusing herself to get some fresh air. As she walked through the garden, lost in thought, Lena couldn't help but wonder if there was any way they could ever move past their troubled history and create a normal life for Sarah.

The decision would be hard, and it wouldn't just affect her and Sarah; it would impact everyone involved, including User#1727540353262. But as Lena gazed up at the sky, she knew deep down that whatever choice she made, she had to do what was best for her daughter.

"I've thought about it," Lena began, her voice carefully neutral. "And I've decided that we can... try." She glanced at Sarah, who looked hopeful but cautious. "But there are some things that need to change, understand?"

Sarah nodded slowly. "Like what?"

"First," she said firmly, "you're not allowed to ignore court orders ever again. You need to respect our custody agreement." She paused for a moment, taking a deep breath before continuing. "Second, I want us all to go to family therapy together. We have some issues we need to work through if we're ever going to be able to move forward as a family."

There was silence for several moments as they both considered her words. Finally, User#1727540353262 looked at Lena with a mixture of hope and apprehension in his eyes. "I'll agree to those conditions," he said slowly, reaching out a hand to shake hers. "If that means I get to be part of my daughter's life again."

"Thank you," she said, her voice gentle but firm as she took his hand and shook it. "I know this won't be easy for any of us, but I believe we can make this work if we all try." She glanced over at Sarah, who looked more hopeful than Lena had seen her in a long time.

"Okay," the girl said softly. "Let's do it."

She stiffened in his embrace, not quite sure how to react. He smelled the same as he always had - like cologne and fresh laundry. "I'm doing this for Sarah," she said finally, her voice calm but distant. "Not because I trust you or want anything to do with you." As he pulled away, she gave him a brief nod before turning toward their daughter. "Okay then," she said briskly, trying to sound more confident than she felt. "Let's make some calls and get everything set up."

With that, they all went inside, each lost in their own thoughts as they began the long process of rebuilding what had been destroyed by years of hurt and betrayal.