Invisible String

55

The next morning came far too early—like they always do when your sleep is broken into ninety-minute chunks and your brain never fully shuts down. Baylor had been up three times, Mira twice, and Lily had somehow managed to rotate her body perpendicular in the bed and kick both me and Travis in the ribs before sunrise.

We were a mess. A loving, warm, chaotic mess.

I was sitting on the living room floor in sweats and one of Travis’s old t-shirts, bouncing Baylor in my arms while Mira sat next to me gnawing on a board book and periodically smacking my leg with it. Lily was still in her princess nightgown from the day before, watching cartoons and eating dry cereal out of a bowl she’d insisted on filling herself.

Travis walked in from the kitchen with two mugs of coffee, offering one to me like a peace offering.

“I think my mom and dad are gonna swing by soon,” he said, handing me the mug.

“Oh,” I said, blinking. “Like… today soon?”

He gave me a sheepish grin. “Yeah. They said late morning.”

I looked down at my milk-stained shirt and the floor covered in toys, burp cloths, and a pile of unfolded laundry we’d been stepping over for two days. “Of course they are.”

“Hey,” he said, crouching beside me, “they’re not coming to judge. They just want to see the kids. And you.”

I raised an eyebrow. “You mean me with greasy hair, spit-up on my shoulder, and raccoon eyes?”

He leaned in and kissed my cheek. “That’s my favorite version of you.”

I rolled my eyes but couldn’t help smiling. “You’re lucky you’re cute.”

Mira squealed and launched herself onto Travis’s lap, her book still clutched in one hand. Baylor stirred but didn’t wake, and Lily called from the couch without looking away from the TV, “Can they bring donuts?”

Twenty minutes later, just as I’d gotten Baylor to settle in the swing and was in the middle of brushing through my tangled curls with one hand, the doorbell rang.

Travis opened it to reveal Donna and Ed, both beaming with a bakery box in hand and a brand-new onesie folded over Ed’s arm.

“Hi, sweeties!” Donna said, her voice already full of grandma joy. “Where’s my grandbabies?”

Lily bolted toward them with a sugar-fueled burst of energy. “I’m four now! And I have a baby brother!”

Donna laughed and bent down to scoop her up. “We heard! Happy birthday, beautiful girl.”

I stood up slowly from the floor, smoothing my shirt, suddenly self-conscious in a way only parents can make you feel. “Hey,” I said, smiling, “Ignore the disaster, we live here now.”

Ed chuckled. “We raised two boys. This is nothing.”

Donna came in close and gave me a warm hug, careful not to jostle Baylor, who had just barely drifted off again. “How are you doing, honey? Really?”

I hesitated for just a second and then nodded. “Better. Some days are still heavy, but it’s getting easier.”

Donna squeezed my hand. “You’re doing amazing. Look at you—holding it all together with a baby in your arms and a toddler gnawing on furniture.”

We all laughed as Mira let out a proud grunt and offered her soggy board book to Ed like it was a sacred gift.

Travis set the donut box down on the counter and opened it. “Okay, Lil! One donut. Choose wisely.”