I Pretended to Be an Old Woman's Son at the Nursing Home Because Her Real Family Paid Me – After She Passed Away, the Director Said, 'She Left One Last Request for You'

"She's my mother."

Margaret tilted her head. "She's the sweetest soul here. You're lucky."

Something in the way she said it made me look away.

I started skipping lunch to make the drive across town.

Tim called that Friday. His voice was clipped.

"You don't need to go midweek, Jeremy. This is just a job. Keep it simple."

"She gets lonely."

"She has dementia. She forgets the second you leave."

I gripped the phone tighter. "Maybe. But she remembers while I'm there."

He hung up.

Weeks blurred into months. I started skipping lunch to make the drive across town. I read the newspaper to Rosie. I rubbed her hands when her knuckles ached.

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