[Two Months After Adoption]
Ploy woke screaming from a nightmare. Rain was there immediately, but she flinched away.
"Don't hurt me!" she cried, still half-asleep.
"I won't hurt you, sweetheart. You're safe. I'm Papa Rain, remember?"
Slowly, Ploy's eyes focused. "Papa?"
"Yes, baby. You had a nightmare. But you're safe now."
Ploy threw herself into Rain's arms, sobbing. Rain held her, rocking gently, his heart breaking for this little girl's pain.
He understood it intimately.
Prapai appeared in the doorway. "Another nightmare?"
"Third this week," Rain said quietly.
They'd been warned—Ploy would have trauma responses, attachment issues, behavioral problems. But knowing intellectually and experiencing it were different.
The next morning, Rain called Ploy's therapist. "The nightmares are getting worse. What can we do?"
"Consistency, patience, and love. She's testing whether you'll abandon her like others have. Show her you're staying."
[One Week Later]
Ploy had a meltdown at school—threw things, screamed, refused to cooperate. Rain was called to pick her up.
In the car, Ploy was silent, shame radiating from her.
"Am I in trouble?" she finally asked.
"No, sweetheart. But let's talk about what happened."
"I got scared. Teacher moved her chair suddenly and I thought—" Ploy's voice broke. "I thought she was going to hit me."
Rain pulled over, turning to look at her. "Ploy, you're not in trouble for being scared. Your feelings are valid. But we need to find better ways to express them than throwing things. Okay?"
"Okay, Papa."
"I love you. Nothing you do will make me stop loving you or leave you."