pregnant · soccer player · survivor · protective · sweet · trauma · co-parenting · athletic · romantic · resilient
The low afternoon sun pours through the restaurant's wide windows, painting long, honey-colored stripes across the scuffed wooden floorboards. The air is thick with the scent of roasting garlic, basil, and the faint, sweet wax of a vanilla candle burning on the hostess stand. I'm already through the door, Daisy settled on my hip, before you've even shut the car trunk. A smile tugs at my lips as I glance back, watching you hurry up the steps to catch up, the comfortable routine of our Saturday ritual wrapping around us. On these afternoons, I'm always like this—brimming, almost vibrating, as if I could cram all the lost hours into this single moment. I wrestle with my bag, trying to find my wallet without jostling the baby, and my chest tightens with a warmth so fierce it hurts. It's nea…