Kevin had a seemingly normal childhood. He was raised by his father, Lucas, in Cleveland, where he attended high school and made a few close friends.
One day, while sending college applications, he found out by pure chance that he has been deceived by his parents his whole life.
Kevin’s mother passed away when he was still very little. His father used to say that she was a heartless, lazy woman who only cared about herself.
When she discovered she was pregnant, she wanted to have an abortion, but he convinced her otherwise.
As it turns out, none of this is actually true, not even the boy's name. Kevin didn't remember much of his childhood until he was about six or seven years old.
He and his father had always been very close.
They also shared common interests, like fishing, soccer, basketball, and hiking.
He even played basketball with Kevin's friends sometimes.
Even Kevin's friends were jealous of their relationship, as their parents were much stricter and close-minded. Kevin used to tell his father everything.
He was the person he would go to when he needed life advice, but things started changing when Kevin entered high school.
Kevin was worried about his first day of high school.
He wasn't a very good looking guy and feared he would get bullied for his looks.
Eventually, Kevin became more comfortable in his skin.
He entered high school without knowing anyone, and by the end of the second week, he had his own group of friends.
However, what mattered to Kevin the most was being a good student and person. His life-long dream was to get into a prestigious university, so he made sure his grades were always high.
Little did he know how that would affect his future.
Learning has always been easy for him, and he was happy to pass on his knowledge to others.
He often helped his classmates prepare for tests and exams.
When Kevin was in 10th grade, he first brought up the topic of higher education to his father.
He wanted to hear his opinion on colleges and programs, but his father's response left his speechless.
His father didn’t like this idea in the slightest, and he told Kevin that he would be better off working somewhere full-time after he graduated high school instead of going to college.
He believed going to college wasn't worth it. Kevin was taken back by his response.
That's not what he expected to hear from his father, as most parents would be happy to know their child is going places.
Every time Kevin mentioned college applications, his father would get annoyed.
He tried to convince him to take a year off, claiming he was making a big mistake.
Kevin still wanted to go to college, so when the deadline approached, he filled out his college applications without giving it much thought.
Little did he know what he was in for...
After a couple of weeks, Kevin got a call from his school counselor regarding his application.
He sounded concerned and asked to see him in person.
The counselor told Kevin there was a problem with his college applications. His personal information that he submitted, including his name and ID, weren't matching up.
There was also an issue with his security number.
His security number didn't match his name, and the schools were flagging his application because of it. Kevin couldn't understand what was going on.
He informed his father, hoping he would help him resolve the matter, but he refused to help him.
Kevin desperately wanted to find out what was going on with his college applications, so he approached his school counselor and asked her for help. After a few long stressful days, he learned the horrifying truth.
The social security number he submitted in his application wasn't matching his name because his real name wasn't Kevin; it was Jason.
He has been listed as a missing child for many years—the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children had him on their list.
They listed some photos of him as a child, and another photo that had been age-progressed.
He has been missing since he was five years old. His father's name wasn't Lucas either; it was Peter.
He kidnapped Kevin after losing a custody battle with his mother and brought him to Cleveland. His mom is still alive and lives in Alabama, where Kevin was born.
When Kevin was five years old, his father had agreed to take him to preschool.
He packed his baby blanket, went to a bank, drained all of his accounts, and took off to Cleveland with him.
Unfortunately, Kevin was too young to realize that his act was malicious.
His mother was devastated; she was desperate to find him and left his bedroom untouched all these years, hoping he would come back home.
She was deeply affected by his disappearance, and her hurt carried on for thirteen long years.
Her son’s kidnapping changed the way she lived her life.
Her son's disappearance has been on her mind every hour of the day.
She had no idea if Kevin had a stable home, and if he was being taken care of.
Kevin's father was arrested and sentenced to four years in prison.
The day he learned the truth about his father, he packed his bags and went back to Alabama to see his mother for the first time in years.