First Crush, My Forever

Chapter 109

  Dinner comes together easy. The chicken sizzles, the rice finishes, the veggies soften in the pan. KK hums while she stirs nothing in her pot and Dani keeps sneaking bites of her pickles like she is trying to pretend she is not. Her back still aches a little so I handle most of the cooking while she stays close and talks with me. She leans on the counter every few minutes and stretches like she is trying to get the pressure off her spine. Small things, but I see all of it. It feels steady. It feels like home.

  We sit once everything is ready. KK has her plate with the chicken cut into tiny squares. Dani lowers herself into her seat slow, one hand at her back, the other brushing her hair behind her ear. I set her plate down and she gives me that soft, tired smile that hits straight in my chest.

  "This looks good," she says.

  "You look good," I tell her, quiet so KK will not start repeating compliments she does not understand.

  Dinner is simple and warm. The kind of meal that settles a house. KK talks the entire time, bouncing between stories about school, frogs that do not look like frogs, and how she wants a giraffe for a pet. Dani eats like her body finally got what it needed. I watch the way her shoulders drop and her whole energy shifts. She has been carrying too much today and she is finally letting some of it go. She finishes first and pushes her plate back with a content sigh.

  "Full?" I ask.

  She nods. "Thank you for cooking."

  KK taps her fork. "I helped."

  "You did," Dani tells her. "Thank you too, Chef KK."

  We clean up together. KK dries plastic cups. I wash. Dani sits on one of the stools because her back pulls again. She rubs her belly in slow circles. She watches me more than anything else in the room. There is something about the way she does it that hits deep every time.

  Once the kitchen is clean, KK heads to the living room with her toys. The house shifts into that soft end of the night feeling. Lights low. Dishwasher humming. Dani comes up behind me and rests her head on my shoulder. Her arms slide around my waist and I pull her in. Her body settles against me like she needed a place to land.

  "You okay?" I ask.

  She nods against my chest. "Yeah. Just tired."

  "Sit down somewhere comfy. I'll get you something to drink." But she stays there. Hands on me. Eyes closed. Like she needs to anchor herself for a moment. She lifts her head, studies my face and I can tell something is turning in her mind.

  "You good?" I ask.

  Dani hesitates. "You seemed a little off when KK and I got home earlier."

  I slide my hand up her back. "I'm fine, but I need to tell you something."

  Her body tenses. She looks up at me. "Okay. What is it?"

  "It's nothing terrible," I say as I touch her cheek. "I just want you to hear it from me." She nods once and waits.

  "I ran into Natalie at the store."

  Dani closes her eyes like she already knew trouble was coming. "Of course you did."

  "She flirted with me," I say. "Again." Her jaw tightens. Not at me, but at the situation. Her hand moves to her belly, almost a protective reflex. She listens without a single interruption. I tell her everything. What Natalie said. How she acted. How I shut it down hard and told her it was never happening. How I told her to stay in her lane. Then I walked away.

  When I finish, Dani releases a long breath she has been holding. "Thank you for telling me."

  "I wasn't going to hide it. But I didn't want to dump it on you the second you walked in."

  She nods, calm but tired. Hurt flickers across her face, not because of me but because this crap is coming from her own sister. "I'm sorry she put you in that position," Dani says.

  "I handled it," I tell her. "I'm always going to handle it."

  Dani steps closer and wraps her arms around me. She sinks into my chest like all she wants is to breathe somewhere safe. I hold her tight and steady.

  "I love you," she whispers.

  "I love you too." She lifts her head and kisses me. Slow and real. Her lips soft, her breathing calm. It is not about sex. It is about reassurance. About making sure we are on the same page and staying there.

  KK calls from the living room. "Mama T, can you help me build a tower?"

  "I'll be right there," I call back.

  Dani kisses my chest once more and pulls back. "Go. I'm going to get some water and lie down for a minute."

  "You want to go upstairs?" I ask.

  She shakes her head. "No. The couch is fine. I don't want to do the stairs right now."

  "Alright."

  She gets her water and walks to the couch slow, one hand on her back. She moves like the day is finally catching up to her. She eases down and curls onto her side with a pillow tucked under her stomach. Her breathing shifts into a deeper rhythm almost instantly.

  I'm sitting on the rug with KK and help her build her tower. She stacks the blocks in every direction, crooked and leaning. She is proud of every single one.

  "That is the tallest tower I've ever seen," I tell her.

  "It is going to touch the ceiling," KK says, dead serious.

  "Maybe. If we reinforce the middle." She nods like she understands. I help her steady the next few pieces. She giggles when it wobbles then catches it like she has saved the entire world.

  Behind us, Dani watches with her eyes half open. She looks calm. Safe. The tension from earlier has slipped off her body. She shifts a little and lets out a soft sound when her back tightens again.

  "You okay?" I ask, turning slightly toward her.

  "Yeah," she whispers. "Just my back."

  "I'll rub it in a minute. Once KK finishes her masterpiece."

  Dani smiles at that. "Take your time."

  KK keeps building until the tower tips over and crashes. She gasps, then laughs like that was the best part. She starts rebuilding right away. Same crooked foundation. Same excited energy.

  I stand and walk to Dani. I kneel beside the couch and brush a strand of hair off her cheek. "You want to sit up or stay on your side?"

  "Side," she says.

  "Alright. Is this normal with the back aches?"

  She hums softly as I run my hand along her lower back, slow and steady. Her eyes close. Her shoulders loosen. Her whole body unwinds like I flipped a switch. She needed this more than she wanted to admit.

  KK calls out, "Mama T, the tower is back!"

  "I see it," I say, still rubbing Dani's back.

  Dani murmurs, "That feels so good. And yes, back pain can be normal. My back hurt with KK too."

  "I hope this helps," I tell her. "I've got you." She nods, eyes still closed. A small smile at the corner of her mouth.

  For a few minutes the house is perfect. KK building. Dani resting. Me right between them. My girls. My home. The life we built and the one growing inside her. Whatever Natalie tried to start earlier is gone. This is what matters. This is everything.

~ Thank you to everyone for reading, liking, sharing, voting and commenting on the story. It truly means a lot. I hope everyone is enjoying this story as much as I am with writing it. Please feel free to comment and leave feedback and happy reading.        ~ Eden Shay