Invisible String

14

Kylie was bent over a folding table, scraping frosting off a paper plate while trying to keep Bennett from sticking her hands in the leftover cake. “No, no, baby, we already did cake—like three times,” she said with a sigh, pushing a stray strand of hair behind her ear.

Jason, meanwhile, had Elliott and Finnley hanging off either arm like koalas as he tried to scoop wrapping paper into a trash bag. “Hey, Wyatt! Can you come help your sisters? I’m down a limb here!”

Wyatt, their oldest and the self-declared “grown-up” of the group at just six years old, rolled her eyes but obeyed, trotting over with a determined little march, her curly ponytail bouncing.

Austin was stacking chairs near the deck, doing a surprisingly good job keeping out of the tangle of little girls running in every direction. “I swear this is what it’s like wrangling puppies,” he muttered, glancing at me with a grin.

“You’re not wrong,” I called back, voice low but amused.

Inside, Travis was quietly washing cake off plastic plates, his movements a little more methodical than usual. We were still carrying the weight of what Emma had pulled, but for today—for Lily—we had set it all aside. Our sweet, bright girl deserved a beautiful day, and despite the whirlwind of emotion underneath it all, we gave her one.

“She had a good time,” Kylie said gently as she stepped up beside me, Finnley now on her hip, rubbing tired eyes. “That big smile when she saw the bounce house? Worth every second of chaos.”

I nodded, swallowing down the lump in my throat. “Yeah… she needed today. We all did.”

Kylie looked at me with that soft, understanding gaze only another mom could give. “I know things are messy right now,” she said, glancing toward Mira’s little head nestled on my chest, “but you’re doing so good, Tay. Both of you are. And you’re not alone, okay?”

I couldn’t speak right away, but I offered a small smile, reaching out and gently brushing a crumb off Finnley’s shoulder.

“Thank you,” I whispered.

Behind us, Lily let out a gleeful squeal as Wyatt chased her around the lawn, streamers stuck to her sandals, and I let myself laugh for the first time all day.

Even through the stress, the uncertainty, and the fear—this was our family. And we weren’t going down without a fight.

“Alright,” Travis said, coming out with a fresh garbage bag. “Let’s divide and conquer.”

Jason groaned dramatically. “Don’t say ‘divide.’ We’ve been trying not to divide children all day.”

That made everyone laugh.

And for a moment, the world felt a little lighter.

The yard was finally starting to look less like a tornado had swept through it. Kylie was buckling Bennett and Elliott into their car seats, and Jason was juggling the leftover gifts into the trunk while Finnley held onto his pant leg for dear life. Wyatt climbed into her booster seat all on her own, humming the “Happy Birthday” song under her breath.

Inside, I was rocking back and forth in the kitchen, gently patting Mira’s back while Travis rinsed frosting off the table. Lily was on the floor nearby, sorting her new toys into piles and whispering to herself in that little voice that was half baby talk, half fairy tale.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen this house so trashed,” Travis said with a tired chuckle, scrubbing at a pink smear on the countertop.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen it so full,” I murmured, my fingers stroking Mira’s back. “Of people. Of laughter.”

“Of fruit punch in the carpet?” he added with a grin.

I smirked. “That too.”

There was a knock at the door just as Jason popped his head in from the garage. “We’re loaded up. Let us know if you need anything, seriously. You don’t have to go through all this crap alone.”

I nodded. “Thank you. For helping. For staying.”

Kylie stepped in then, reaching for a container of leftovers. “You’re gonna want this. Don’t even think about cooking tomorrow.”

I laughed, grateful. “We’ll take all the help we can get.”

Once they were gone and the house was a bit quieter—still messy, but quieter—I sat down on the couch next to Travis. Mira was fast asleep on my chest now, and Lily, surprisingly, was winding down in her beanbag chair with her new pop-up book.

Travis looked over at me, exhaustion clear in his eyes. “Think we pulled it off?”

“I think she’ll remember it forever,” I said softly, glancing toward Lily, who was now pointing out something in her book to no one in particular.

We sat there in silence for a moment, soaking it all in.

Then I whispered, “I don’t know what’s going to happen, Trav. With Mira. With court. With Emma.”

His arm slid around my shoulders, pulling me close.

“I don’t either,” he said. “But we’ve got this. We’ve got them. And I’ll do whatever it takes.”

I nodded, blinking fast.

“I just want them to feel safe. Like they belong. Like they’re home.”

He kissed my temple. “They do. Because you’re their mom. That’s the part Emma doesn’t get to change.”

I looked down at Mira and reached over to touch Lily’s little head, still curled in the corner.

Home. Yes. No matter what came next—this was home.