Blacktail Deer Plateau If I die Young

Grayday was silent for several long moments, working through the grief that struck him every time Sunny spoke like this. He always felt like such a failure when Sunny talked about doing better, being better, making him proud. The man wished things could have been different for him and his boy, but that didn't change how Grayday saw him.

"I have always been proud to call you my son," he said quietly, remembering the other times he had tried to express this to the boy. "You're every bit as precious to me as Dawn and your younger siblings, Sunny. I'm so thankful I got to be your dad."