One sunny morning, Dad was getting ready for work. He carefully packed his bag, put on his hat, and reached for his favorite work tool.
But suddenly, he stopped.
“Hmm… where is it?” Dad asked, looking around the room.
He searched on the table, under the chair, and inside his work bag. The tool was nowhere to be found.
CUTIS sat quietly in the corner, pretending to play with his toys.
“CUTIS,” Dad asked gently, “have you seen my work tool?”
CUTIS quickly shook his head. “No, Dad!”
But his little face looked nervous.
Dad continued searching while CUTIS secretly watched him. Mom noticed something strange and smiled. She had a feeling that CUTIS knew exactly where the missing tool was.
Finally, Dad sat down and sighed. “I really need that tool for work today.”
CUTIS slowly walked toward him with his head down.
“Dad…” he whispered.
Dad looked at his little son. “Yes, CUTIS?”
CUTIS suddenly wrapped his arms around Dad and began to cry.
“I hid your tool,” he admitted.
Dad was surprised. “Why did you do that?”
CUTIS looked up with watery eyes. “Because if you can’t find it, maybe you won’t go to work today.”
The room became completely quiet.
Dad gently held CUTIS’s tiny hands. “Why don’t you want Dad to go to work?”
CUTIS sniffled. “You work so much. Yesterday, I wanted to show you my drawing, but you came home very tired. I miss playing with you. I just wanted one whole day with my dad.”
Mom, who had been listening nearby, became emotional.
Dad’s eyes filled with tears too. He pulled CUTIS into a warm hug.
“Oh, my sweet boy,” Dad said softly. “You should never feel that you have to hide something just to spend time with me.”
CUTIS held Dad tightly. “So… are you angry?”
Dad smiled. “No. But next time, just tell me how you feel.”
CUTIS then brought Dad’s work tool from behind a basket.
Dad looked at it, then placed it back on the table.
“Today,” Dad said, “the most important thing I need to do is spend time with you.”
CUTIS’s eyes widened with joy.
That day, Dad took CUTIS outside to play, helped him finish his drawing, and listened to every little story he wanted to share.
And CUTIS learned that sometimes, the sweetest thing was simply telling the people you love, “I miss you.”
