22 July 2026, Freewriters Community Daily Writing Prompt Day 3172: second best

“I don't even understand, Captain, why you married a woman who had a first husband – don't you know women like them see men like you as second best?”

Eleven-year-old Eleanor Ludlow overheard this, and then grinned when her grandfather, Capt. R.E. Ludlow, cracked up laughing.

“Listen, man, get offline and touch grass and trust the Lord and get what He has for you – Thalia Green Ludlow is taken, but if you stop being a complete fool and stop listening to complete fools, the Lord will help you!” he said at last. “My first wife was the one who saw me as the paycheck – my second is the love of my life – God is good and you are missing out!”

“Really, Captain? That really happened for you?”

“Yes, it did – let me tell you... .”

Eleanor went to talk with her adopted siblings, cousins ten-year-old Andrew and ten-year-old Glendella.

“Yeah, laughing at people on the phone is definitely most effective for Papa!” she said to them. “They can't talk over him and then they listen – maybe Mr. Tifton is going to get it now!”

“As often as he has called here this year, I hope so!” Andrew said.

“It's real sad when you are falling in love and you are fighting it because you are so scared,” Glendella said. “But, I get it because Grumps and Bad Grandma maybe should have been scared before they got together.”

“Yeah, but, you wouldn't have been here if they didn't,” Andrew said.

“Yeah, but, I wouldn't have known about that, and they wouldn't have been in decades of misery,” Glendella said.

“Yeah, but, you had to be here,” Eleanor said. “God wanted you in His family and ours, and it's not your fault that your bio grandparents and parents can't get it together just like its not our fault that our bio grandparents other than the Ludlow set can't and our parents couldn't get it together.”

“Yeah, but – well, I can't even argue with all that!” Glendella said. “I'm glad to be here!”

“And we're glad you're here,” Eleanor and Andrew said as they hugged their sister.

“It's a good thing Upgrade Papa and Good Grandma weren't scared and got it together, too!” Glendella said.

“Yeah, thank God!” Andrew said.

“God was looking out for all of us before we even got here,” Eleanor said, “because Papa and Grandma were not scared to make it happen!”

“I love the way that they love each other – it's so refreshing!” Glendella said. “Living where people actually are not scared to love each other is so refreshing!”

“And stay sober while they do it,” Eleanor said.

“Yeah, because I heard Uncle Vanderbilt talking about how Grumps and Bad Grandpa were drinking up half the stock,” Glendella said. “He was exaggerating a little, but it had gotten kinda bad around the time I left. Still, trying to keep three mistresses happy is kinda rough, and if only Bad Grandma had told him that she was cool with them because that gave her time to be with her mistress, he might not have been as stressed.”

“That's kinda complicated,” Andrew said, “but I read that addiction situations usually are. We don't do any of that here.”

“Thank God,” Glendella said. “Simple life where people love each other is way underrated.”