Aria's first birthday party went by in a blur.
Lauren had just taken a moment to herself once the last guests had left to close her eyes for just a moment while moments of the day flashed behind her closed eyes.
Aria's wide grin,
Her mom's soft eyes,
Nico engaged and social with the guests,
And Nathan fitting right into the whole celebration.
She came down the steps to see the colorful wrapping paper crumpled in a bright heap and Aria's pink balloon floating lazily against the ceiling.
The house smelled the vanilla frosting and wax from the single candle that had burned down into a puddle.
Lauren stepped onto the porch with her mug of chamomile tea,
The night air cool against her skin.
Nico followed,
Then Nathan,
Carrying the leftover cake like a peace offering.
They sat side by side in the soft,
Familiar quiet that only came after long days when nothing needed to be said,
But everything could be.
The porch light cast a warm circle around them,
Catching the steam from their cups.
Across the lake,
The tree whispered their usual secrets.
Inside,
Adriana had fallen asleep in her grandmother's lap,
Her little hand curled around a string of ribbon.
It was Nathan who broke the silence first.
"'You know,
' he said,
Staring into his tea,
"'I thought I'd lost everything "'when we found out that Adriana was coming.
"'Well,
Really,
About you two.
' "'Instead of that,
She gave me something back "'I didn't know I needed.
' His voice cracked slightly.
"'She made me want to be here,
Grounded,
Balanced,
"'like she somehow settled something wild inside of me "'that I had no idea how to do on my own.
"'This past year has been full of surprises.
' Nico nodded,
His eyes fixed on the porch railing.
"'I was so afraid I wouldn't know how to do this,
' he said.
"'How to be a father,
How to not run away "'with the intensity of everything that happened this year.
"'I kept waiting for the part where I'd ruin everything.
"'But she looks at me like she doesn't believe in ruin,
"'only beginnings.
' Lauren smiled,
Softly tracing the rim of her cup.
"'You both have no idea how much she adores you,
' she said.
"'Sometimes I think she arrived "'just to show us what love looks like "'in all the different ways that love can be.
' "'They sat for a while.
"'The air between them was easy now,
"'without any sharp edges,
"'no ghosts demanding their attention.
"'Just the three of them who all shared "'an unconditional love for Adriana "'and a deep,
Sincere understanding "'and love for each other.
' Nathan lifted his cup.
"'Okay,
' he said like a radio announcer "'looking to wrap up the year.
"'I want us all to share one true thing that hurt "'and one true thing that helped over this past year.
' Lauren laughed.
"'Wow,
That's quite the question,
Nathan.
' Nico,
With a thoughtful exhale,
Went first.
"'One true thing that hurt,
"'watching how much I'd already missed "'before she was born and when she was a little one.
"'One true thing that helped,
"'realizing it's never too late to show up differently.
' "'Lauren sat quietly while she took it in.
"'She knew taking that time for herself "'to continue healing after Adriana was born "'was really tough for Nico to understand.
"'Looking back over the year,
Though,
"'it felt like they were on stronger ground because of it.
' Nathan nodded.
"'One true thing that hurt,
"'losing what I thought my life was going to look like,
"'and one true thing that helped,
"'accepting that I haven't lost you,
Lauren.
"'Our love just changed form.
"'That we'll always be brothers,
Nico.
"'And if we can make it through this,
"'well,
I think as brothers,
We're unbreakable.
' Nico and Nathan exchanged a warm smile that exchanged so much without another word having to explain a thing.
" Nathan added,
"'And Aria,
Beautiful,
Amazing Adriana.
"'She's opened my heart in directions "'I didn't even know it could.
' "'Lauren took a deep breath,
"'reflecting for a moment "'on how much had happened over this past year.
"'One true thing that hurt was realizing "'I could love two people at once,
"'and using that as a reason to be at war within myself.
"'One true thing that helped was deciding "'to treat my heart like something tender and wise,
"'instead of some kind of problem to fix,
"'and letting honesty be the first kind of healing.
"'For a long time,
None of them spoke.
"'The moon hung low just above the lake,
"'and the sounds of the crickets felt comforting.
"'Whatever it took to bring her here,
' "'Nathan said finally,
It was worth it.
"'They all nodded,
Eyes damp,
Hearts settled.
"'The depth of honesty hung in the air.
"'Inside,
Adriana stirred in her sleep,
"'making a small sound "'that was somewhere between a sigh and a laugh,
"'the kind of sound that carried so much weight with it,
"'grief,
Love,
And the strange ability to continue on "'beyond what they each thought "'could have been a breaking point,
"'but instead lived in each of them "'as if their own personal breakthrough.
"'Lauren looked through the window at her daughter "'and thought,
This is how the story changes,
"'not with grand gestures or perfect endings,
"'but with nights like this,
"'where truth and tenderness could sit side by side "'without fighting for space.
"'She reached for Nico's hand and then for Nathan's,
"'and the three of them stayed that way for a long while,
"'hands linked,
Hearts open,
"'watching the moonlight slip across the porch,
"'each feeling a sense of peace and connection.
"'How much they each loved that little girl "'could take their breath away.
"'It was love that asked for nothing "'and gave everything back,
"'a love that softened what had once been "'so edgy between them.
"'Looking at her,
They could see all the pain "'that had brought them here,
"'and somehow it no longer mattered.
"'Adrianna's laughter,
"'her tiny hands reaching for the world,
"'had rewritten the story "'they thought they were doomed to repeat.
"'She was proof that something good "'could grow from something broken,
"'that love in its purest form was never wasted.
"'The night settled around them like a promise "'that life could be gentle from here on out,
"'that whatever unexpected challenges came,
"'they would find a way to navigate them together "'in this unique family that had formed around Adrianna.
