They left the newborn on the maternity units doorstep at dawn, and the first person to spot the bundle was the nightshift caretaker, Uncle Joe. He rose before the sun was even thinking about showing up and immediately set about his appointed duties.
Uncle Joe was a diligent sort, taking his work as seriously as a man who once kept books for a living. After a long career as an accountant, hed taken early retirement on a modest pension of a few hundred pounds a week and, unable to sit still, swapped the ledger for a broom. He wasnt in it for the money he simply couldnt bear a quiet day.
When he saw a plain cardboard box on the porch, he instinctively knew it concealed a baby, even though not a single sound escaped it. He opened the lid, confirmed his hunch, and started banging on the maternity units door. All he could pray for was the childs wellbeing the little fellow was unusually silent, which made Uncle Joe nervous. To his relief, and to that of the nurses, the infant was alive and reasonably healthy.
The incident took place in a tiny English village where everybody knows everybody else, so guessing the mother wasnt hard. All suspicion fell on Poppy Hargreaves. She gave birth roughly every year, always turning the child over to the state. She never appeared on any official register and never bothered the hospital during her pregnancies.
A thorough inquiry, however, proved Poppy completely uninvolved this time. The mother remained unidentified, and after the necessary checks the baby was sent to the local Little Ones Home, just a short walk from the village.
As soon as the infant was unwrapped, a nurse shouted, Well, look at that little watermelon! How did such a tiny chap end up on the step? No one could answer, but the staff nicknamed the child Watermelon because he was plump, rosy and surprisingly cooperative.
Eventually the boy got a proper name. Uncle Joe suggested Graham, and the nickname Watermelon stuck like a burr, even at the Little Ones Home.
His stay there was brief; a foster family took him in right away. Everyone was thrilled, especially Mrs. Allison Mathews, the matron of the home. Three years later, the surprise was complete when Graham was returned to the home. It turned out that the foster family had their own baby, and Graham suddenly became surplus to requirements.
When he came back, he was no longer the chubby Watermelon theyd known. He was leaner, handsome, and oddly precocious for his age. Clearly someone had been looking after him, yet no one could fathom why theyd let him go so easily. His new caretakers hearts ached at the sight of him the boy wept, calling for mum, dad, granny, staring out the window for what felt like an eternity, but no one ever arrived.
Summer arrived, and the children spent most of their days outside. Graham, now a bit more guarded, stopped waiting for absent adults and stopped trusting them entirely. He couldnt click with other kids either, preferring solitary play in quiet corners.
Then a feline companion entered his life: a cat named Munch. The cat had wandered onto the homes grounds about a year earlier. Since pets were strictly forbidden, Mrs. Mathews tried to get rid of him. She handed him to the local cook, Aunt Jenny, who fled with him back to the home. The cat was expelled five times, yet each time returned with stubborn determination.
Munch proved clever and mischievous. Aunt Jenny once tried to take him home, but every morning hed follow her to work, trailing behind as if on a secret mission. She warned herself never to let him out, yet his antics forced her to release him at the gate. She nicknamed him Munch for his habit of chewing through rules.
Mrs. Mathews eventually waved the cat away, noting he never bothered the children, preferring to perch on the roof of the watchdogs hut. Yet Munch became Grahams unexpected confidant. After befriending the cat, Graham opened up and grew more sociable.
Seeing this, Mrs. Mathews sighed, placed Munch in a carrier, and drove him to the vet for a checkup, just to be sure he was healthy. Only then could she relax. Graham barely noticed the brief absence; Munch, however, nursed a silent grudge against Mrs. Mathews and refused any treats she offered.
Soon a prospective family expressed interest in adopting Graham. When they first met him, something about the boy didnt sit right, and they left, promising to discuss the matter at home before returning. Mrs. Mathews knew they wouldnt be back, and indeed Graham stayed put.
Life for him changed little, except now he and Munch were inseparable. The cat even presented him with gifts a dead mouse here, a stray feather there. Aunt Jenny once scolded Munch with a broom, adding another enemy to his list.
Eventually another couple arrived, this time genuinely interested. They already had a daughter but wanted to give a childless home a chance at happiness. Their kindness impressed Mrs. Mathews instantly. Graham liked them right away, and when they learned of his double abandonment, they resolved to adopt him without hesitation.
Graham, of course, gravitated toward his future parents, Tanya and Serge. Soon enough, Tanya, Serge, and Serges parents turned up. Serges father was stunned to discover that the boy his son and daughterinlaw wanted to adopt was none other than the Watermelon Uncle Joe had found on the step years ago.
Holding the boy on his knee, Uncle Joe chuckled, Well, would you look at that! Seems weve known each other forever. I even gave you the name! It just goes to show, you never know where life will take you. Youre my proper, albeit slightly lost, grandson now. Dont worry, dear the granddad will make up for the lost time!
Graham didnt grasp the full meaning of the old mans rambling, but he smiled and nodded. Everyone else was gobsmacked by the coincidence, yet all were undeniably happy.
As the adults said goodbye to the nurses and headed for the car, Graham suddenly stopped and burst into tears. Tanya rushed to comfort him, bewildered by the sudden upset. Watching from the doorway, Mrs. Mathews explained: it was Munch, sulking a short distance away, that had triggered the boys sorrow.
That day the family of Tanya and Serge grew by two: a wonderful son and an equally wonderful cat.
