Unexpected Family

I Think I'm In Over My Head

Billie's POV

I haven't called my mom in weeks. Not because I'm mad at her or anything we're fine. I've just been... drowning.

In noise. In toddler chaos. In feelings I don't know how to name.

But tonight, after Skylar finally fell asleep with her hand still curled around mine,

and Mackenzie's soft snores filled the room from her little bed, I slipped out quietly and grabbed my phone.

I stared at her name for a long time before I pressed Call.

She picked up after one ring. "Hey, baby."

Her voice nearly broke me right there.

"Hey," I whispered. I was sitting on the kitchen floor, back against the fridge, hoodie pulled over my knees. "Can you talk?"

"Of course. What's going on?"

I didn't answer right away. I could feel this lump in my throat getting bigger by the second. My eyes were already stinging.

"I think I'm in over my head," I finally said. "With the girls."

She was quiet for a moment, and then, "Talk to me."

And so I did. For the first time since they got here, I said it all out loud.

How Skylar flinched the first time I tried to brush her hair.

How Mackenzie draws pictures of the three of us like we're already a family. How Skylar called me Mommy and I haven't stopped hearing it in my head since.

I expected her to tell me it was too much. That it was okay to be overwhelmed. That I could walk away when this was over.

But she didn't.

Instead, she said, "You love them."

I didn't respond.

"You do," she said gently. "And you're scared because it wasn't supposed to happen like this."

I leaned my head against the fridge, eyes burning. "What if I'm not good enough for them?"

My mom's voice didn't waver. "You already are. Because you care.

Because you show up. That's what they need. Not perfect just present."

And then she added, "The fact that you're asking that question tells me you're already doing more for them than anyone else has."

I wiped my face, annoyed I was crying. "This was supposed to be two weeks.

A stunt. I wasn't supposed to feel like this."

"You didn't choose them," she said. "But maybe they chose you."

I didn't say anything. I just sat there in the dark, letting it all sink in.

And in the quiet, I realized something terrifying:

I don't want to let them go.