Growing

Prologue

Mark:

I didn't open my eyes when I woke up. I didn't know what time it was but I had the feeling that it was definitely too early to get up. Normally I would go back to sleep in such a case. But something stopped me.

The boy next to me was snoring loudly and had stolen the most of our actually shared blanket. I sighed and opened my eyes to see Jackson sleeping peacefully, wrapped into the warm fabric.

We always shared a bed when he slept in my apartment. And it wasn't the first time that was snoring or stealing blanket. Normally it was enough to lightly hit his arm so he would turn around but sometimes I also had to wake him up.

I sat up with a long yawn and ran a hand through my hair. A short glance on the clock told me that it was nearly 6:30 a.m. It was a bit earlier than usual but I only had 30 minutes to sleep anyway.

I decided to get up to prepare breakfast. It was Friday and normally we didn't have much time to eat something before school. But today was a very special day. Not for me but for my little girl.

It was the 16th March, Lily's birthday. My wonderful baby was turning one year today and she definitely deserved it to have a little family breakfast before my mum would pick her up.

I couldn't believe that Lily's birth was already a year ago. It felt like the time was flying. So many things had happened during the past year and I could happily say that my life was doing great.

I was a senior in high school and would graduate this summer. My parents, especially my dad, had been very proud because of the grades in my exams which had been surprisingly good.

During the summer vacation I had found a part-time job at a nice place called "Starlight Cafe" which was near the school. My boss was a very nice guy who even allowed me to bring Lily to work.

There had been three or four times when I hadn't found a babysitter for her and bringing her with me had been the last possibility. Luckily my boss absolutely loved children. Especially babies.

Of course, I didn't earn the world but the payment was very good and I made enough money to care for me and Lily. My parents were very happy that I was slowly getting more mature and a little independent.

And so they had decided that they wanted me to have the chance to give my daughter a better future. I hadn't believed it at first but my parents would really pay for my college education.

I was so thankful that they were giving me this possibility. We had chosen a good college which wasn't far from my high school. I was able to study music production and fulfill my dream to become a producer.

The past year had shown me how much luck I had. I had supportive parents, supportive friends and a wonderful and loving boyfriend who was always there for me and our child.

A soft but happy smile appeared on my lips and I lightly pecked Jackson's lips before I quietly left the bedroom and walked over to my daughter's room which was at the opposite of mine.

The door wasn't closed. I could already see my little princess sitting in her crib. She didn't cry when she woke up anymore and so it could happen that she was awake before I checked on her.

Her gaze moved over to me when I entered the room and a bright smile appeared on her lips. I could see that she was trying to get on her feed but the mattress wasn't stable enough for someone who could only barely stand.

I chuckled lightly and lifted her in my arms. She quickly held on my pajama shirt. "Happy birthday my beautiful princess." I said and pressed a kiss on her cheek what caused her to let out a short giggle.