My Son Came Home Carrying a One-Eyed Ginger Cat Because He Said They Were Alike – But Two Days Later, the Note Hidden Beneath the Collar Left Us in Tears

“Even if he only has one eye?”

I dried my hands and turned toward him.

His black patch rested perfectly over the place where his left eye used to be. Two years had passed since the diagnosis, the surgery, the endless hospital nights, and the medical bills that still covered part of our counter.

“Especially then,” I said.

He nodded quietly, though the smile never came.

A moment later, he asked softly, “Mom? Am I ugly?”

I hurried across the kitchen so quickly my knee slammed into a chair.

“Noah, look at me.”

He lifted his eyes.