Theo rubbed my back and chuckled. “If only I could claim the same thing,” he said, looking down at me all teary-eyed himself. “Our little girl is growing up.”
“She really is.”
We stood there for one more beat, staring back at the door like we were waiting for her to come sprinting back out.
But she didn’t.
Because she was brave.
I pulled out my phone as we walked down the sidewalk. “I’m gonna send a few photos from this morning to the grandparents before I forget.”
“Good call.” Theo smiled. “I’m sure Grandma Vanderbilt has probably been staring at her phone all morning waiting.”
He probably wasn’t far off, since Alisha’s mom had already FaceTimed us before school to wish everyone good luck.
I opened my camera roll and found my favorite shot of Charlotte, standing in front of the school with her oversized backpack.
Then I tapped into the group thread I had with Theo and the Vanderbilts.
And just the sight of it made my chest soften.
Because the first time I’d ever talked to them… I’d been terrified.
Terrified of what they might think of me. Of what Mrs. Vanderbilt might do when she found out that Theo and I were getting serious. That I wasn’t just helping out with Charlotte anymore. That I was becoming part of the life their daughter had once shared with him.
And it had taken some time for them to trust me—time for all of us to figure out what it looked like for me to step into Theo and Charlotte’s world without anyone feeling like I was trying to erase what came before me.
Over the past two years, we’d come so far.
Far enough that when Theo and I told them about the baby, they asked if we’d be okay with them being honorary grandparents to our little one, too.
And as someone who’d grown up with such a small circle of people to call family, their desire to be part of Charlotte’s future sibling’s life had touched me more than I could ever say.
Because the more people there were to love my children, the better.
I hitsend.
Me: First day of kindergarten We survived drop-off!
The reply came almost instantly, like she really had been waiting by the phone.
Candice: What a darling photo. I hope she has the best first day. Thanks for sharing that with us!
I smiled and typed back:
Me: Of course. We’ll have her call to tell you all about her day when she gets home.
I slipped my phone into my pocket and looked up at Theo, who seemed just as happy as I felt in that moment.
“Well, now that that's done…” Theo kissed my temple. “Are you ready to go see how our little one is growing?”
Because yep, we had our ultrasound in fifteen minutes.
Today was the day we’d find out if the little human who’d been growing inside me these past four months was a boy or a girl.
When we made it to the hospital, and Theo opened the car door for me, I tried to step out gracefully.
But after guzzling a ton of water an hour ago, simply gliding out of a vehicle without feeling like I was going to pee my pants was impossible.