Okay?

Two

At the end of the lunch shift, I had Harry clock out. I wasn't planning on keeping the shop open all day since we had been decently slow.  Harry kept himself there, though, staying in the coffee shop. Either he didn't have anything else to do, or he wanted to look at good as possible. My money was on the first one.

"So Liam's was in a rush because-"

"His wife's pregnant. And we were supposed to hire someone ages ago so if this happened, I wouldn't be left single handed," I explained.

"But you still are," Harry commented.

"Not really. I mean, you did really good today." I looked up from the drawer I was counting. "Like, when..." I paused and shook my head. "When we started this bakery, It was a mess for a while." Then she died and I almost couldn't come back. "But you did really well today."

Harry smiled. "Thanks." I noticed a light pink on his cheeks as he looked down for a second.

I shrugged, smiling. "Its true." Just as he looked up and started grinning, my phone started ringing. I pulled it out and answered my mom's call while shutting the drawer. "Hi Mom."

"Hey, Lou." I knew that tone, that was the I need you to get Mason and I'm sorry tone. "I think Mason is getting sick. Do you want me to watch over him the next few days."

Okay, maybe not the tone I thought it was. "I can handle him being si-" then I cursed, realizing the situation. "Actually, yeah. Cheryl just went into labor, so Liam's gonna be out of the shop." I groaned, setting my forehead on the counter. "I'll come by after my shifts and give you a break."

"Lou, baby, I have no problem taking care of Mason. You just worry about the shop and then give yourself a break, alright?"

"Alright mom. I'm still stopping by after work to see him."

She laughed. "Of course you are. I'll see you in a bit."

Harry watched me for a second. "You have a son?"

"Yeah, Mason. He's only 7 months," I said with a smile. "Single parent," I pointed to myself. "My mom helps out a ton by watching him for me."

"I'm not sure it's my place,"Harry started, folding his hands over the counter, "but what happened to his mom or-"

"Uh, his mom died not too long after giving birth."

I felt a small bit of relief after saying it. It was the first time I had openly said what had happened to Kara, and It didn't bring more weight like I thought it would have.

There was a a light pause, then Harry spoke in a rush. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked," He apologized, making me shake my head.

"Actually, it feels better to say it. Everyone who knows Mason and me already knows the story. I was devastated, but Mason, he makes it better. Easier, maybe."

Harry nodded. "It makes sense. She's not totally gone, as long as you have him."

"Yeah. For a while, no one really knew how I was gonna react." I paused, looking at the string from my apron. "I guess it's pretty normal for the father to shut down and refuse to take care of the baby after something like that. I distanced myself, but I took care of Mason. I couldn't imagine doing anything else."

I looked up to see Harry running a hand through his hair. "Makes sense to me."

I nodded, then took a step back from the counter. My phone went off for and I pulled it out, seeing a text from Liam.

I opened the message and smiled at the picture of him and an obvious newborn in his arms. He had a huge grin as he cradled his baby to his chest.

"Bear?" I asked with a slight chuckle. "Original."

"What?" Harry asked.

"Liam, he named his son Bear." I chuckled again as I showed Harry the picture.

Harry grinned immediately dimples appearing on his cheeks. "He's adorable."

I watched Harry's expression carefully, not really noticing that's what I was doing. But something in the way his eyes lit up, the way he bit his lip just slightly to stop himself from breaking out into a full grin made me pay a little more attention.

"I'll probably go see him later tonight," I said, returning the phone to my pocket. "And trust me, you'll meet him and Mason plenty. I bring Mason all the time and I'm sure Liam's gonna do the same."

"It's really cool that you guys are close, you know?"

"Best friends," I agreed. "He's the only way I've survived this besides my mom."

I finished with the drawer and put everything away, doing one last walk through. After nodding to myself, Harry and I walked out of the building and I locked it up.

"I'll see you tomorrow," Harry said, his dimple back out.

"Yeah, see you tomorrow, Harry."