‘Candy or Life?’ Orphan Boy Asks Policeman on Porch Not Knowing He’d Be Getting a Family Instead – Story of the Day

On Halloween, a police officer answers his door and sees a young boy dressed as Harry Potter waving his wand happily. “Candies or life?” he chirps, drawing a smile from the officer. Little do the two realize what fate has in store for them.

While his wife was expecting a child, Officer Dalton dreamed about having more children who would carry on the Dalton family legacy and follow in his father’s and grandfather’s footsteps as good policemen.

But unfortunately, it only took a moment for those dreams to crumble and Officer Dalton’s wishes to be dashed as the long-awaited arrival of Dalton Jr. came to a halt.

One night, Officer Dalton’s wife, Josephine, complained of a sharp pain in her stomach, which resulted in a miscarriage and took away the couple’s joy of becoming parents.

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Officer Dalton was sitting outside the hospital room with his head in his hands when a doctor approached him with another terrible news: “I’m sorry for your loss, but there’s something else you should know…Your wife cannot conceive…She’s infertile.”

Hearing this, Officer Dalton froze in place and couldn’t react. Watching his wife lying like a corpse on the hospital bed, he could not believe it. After selflessly serving others for years, why had God done that to him? Why did he take away his hopes of having a family?

***

“We can always adopt, honey,” Josephine told him one night after she was discharged from the hospital. “We can give a child love, and he will become our world.”

“That’s what you believe, Josephine!” he said bitterly. “An adopted child can’t fix you! It can’t fix our relationship either! You know why I wanted this child! I wanted him to continue our family tradition…Become a cop like me! Without him, nothing makes sense.”

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“Honey…” she said in tears. “What—what are you trying to say?”

“I’ll sleep in the guest room tonight, Josephine. And every night from now on,” he said rudely and left.

Josephine slept alone in their bedroom every night after that, crying. Officer Dalton had changed. The agony of not being able to have his own child had made him someone different.

When God closes one door, he definitely opens another.

One day, he abruptly packed his bags and left for his mother’s house. Josephine tried asking him where he was going, but he didn’t bother replying to her.

But the bag in his hands told a lot of things. It told her he wasn’t going to come back, not anytime soon. And his silence told her that he didn’t care about her or their relationship.

For a moment, Josephine had thought their relationship would improve, but that didn’t happen, and it crushed her from the inside.

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***

“Sean! What—what are you doing here?” Officer Dalton’s mother, Darlene, asked him, confused to see him on the doorstep with a bag.

“I’ll be staying here for a while,” he replied and walked in.

“Staying here? What do you mean?”

“What do you think, mom? Can’t a man get peace anywhere in this world?” He tossed his bag on the floor and slumped on the couch.

Darlene understood what this was about. After being in a beautiful marriage for 60 years with a man she dearly missed after his demise, she knew why her son was upset.

“Did you and Josephine argue again?” she asked.

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“Argument, my foot!” yelled Officer Dalton. “She wants to adopt! I don’t want to raise someone else’s blood. I wanted MY son to be an officer like my father and grandfather! I wanted MY son to do it!”

“Well,” Darlene said gently. “What difference does it make?”

“It matters, mom. Would you still love me if I were adopted?”

“I would,” said Darlene confidently. “In fact, I did that. You were adopted, Sean.”

“Come on, mom. You’re lying, aren’t you?”

“I’m not,” said Darlene, and Officer Dalton’s face fell. “Mom…are you serious?”

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“Yes, I am,” Darlene said. “It never mattered to me, honey, that you weren’t my blood. I loved you regardless, and you see, that didn’t stop Dad from loving you either.”

That made Officer Dalton rethink his actions. It reminded him of how indifferent he’d become to Josephine just because she suggested adoption. He had hurt her, and he wanted to make amends.

So three days later, on Halloween, Officer Dalton returned home early in the morning and spent hours decorating the house for the trick-or-treat occasion Josephine so loved.

He carved scary faces in the pumpkins and lined them on the front porch. Then he put candles in the lanterns outside, kept a bag of candies near the living room table for the neighborhood kids, and made Josephine a special breakfast.

When she woke up, he gently kissed him and apologized. “I’m sorry, babe. Let’s consider adopting a child.”

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As shocked as Josephine was, she couldn’t stop herself from holding him close and crying her heart out. “I love you, honey,” she whispered. “I just love you so much.”

Suddenly, a squeaky voice accompanied by the ringing of the doorbell interrupted the romantic moment. “TRICK OR TREAT?” the voice said.

Officer Dalton opened the door to find a boy dressed in a Harry Potter costume on his front porch, waving his wand in the air like a magician. “Candy or life? I’ll cast a spell on you if you don’t hand over the candies!”

Officer Dalton laughed. “You got a cool outfit, Mr. Potter. Is that your mom’s work?” he asked, looking at the woman who had accompanied him.

“Call me Harry, not Mr. Potter! And that’s my guardian, Stacey. I live at the shelter three blocks away. My parents died two years ago.”

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“Sorry to hear that, buddy,” Officer Dalton replied. “I’ll get your candies, just a sec. No spells, please!” he joked as he went inside.

Soon, the boy was gone, but Officer Dalton’s thoughts wandered. Something about the boy moved him, made him feel like he had an odd connection with him that he hadn’t felt with anyone before.

Two days later, Officer Dalton visited the shelter where the boy lived, and the young soul had no idea his life would change soon.

***

“You wanna adopt me? Why?” the boy, Aiden, asked with wide eyes.

“You can only come home with us if you want, buddy,” Officer Dalton said. “We’d foster you for a while and then adopt you if everything goes well.”

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“Yes, darling. Would you want us as your parents?” asked Josephine.

“Well, you’re kinda cool,” Aiden said to Officer Dalton. “I think I’d be okay…”

Well, Aiden was more than just okay because a month later, he couldn’t imagine his life without Officer Dalton and Josephine. They became the family he had lost, and he filled the only void in the couple’s life.

“You’ll see, dad! I’ll become a cop just like you! That’s a promise!” Aiden told Officer Dalton one day, but the young cop shook his head.

“You can become whatever you want, son. Always remember that. I’ll love you and be proud of you regardless.”

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What can we learn from this story?

• When God closes one door, he definitely opens another. Officer Dalton thought he’d never be able to experience the joy of fatherhood, but after talking to his mother and changing his mind, he got that opportunity with Aiden.
• If you give love to a child, they’ll embrace you too. After learning his own adoption story from his mother, Officer Dalton realized families are built with love, not necessarily biology.

Share this story with your friends. It might brighten their day and inspire them.

If you enjoyed this story, you might like this one about an older woman who decides to feed a starving boy on Halloween and is shocked when the boy removes his mask—he’s her missing son’s carbon copy.

This piece is inspired by stories from the everyday lives of our readers and written by a professional writer. Any resemblance to actual names or locations is purely coincidental. All images are for illustration purposes only. Share your story with us; maybe it will change someone’s life. If you would like to share your story, please send it to info@amomama.com.