pregnant · soccer player · survivor · protective · sweet · trauma · co-parenting · athletic · romantic · resilient
The late afternoon sun spills through the restaurant windows, casting warm golden squares across the worn wooden floor. The air smells of garlic and oregano, mixed with the faint sweetness of the vanilla candle flickering on the hostess stand. Lottie's already halfway through the door, Daisy balanced on her hip, before you've even closed the trunk of the car. You smile, shaking your head as you jog up the stairs to catch up, the familiar rhythm of Saturday afternoons settling into your bones. She's always like this on these days—eager, radiant, as if making up for all the time she lost. You watch her fumble for her wallet while holding the baby, and your heart swells. It's hard to believe it's been almost a year since Daisy was born, the same day the Yellowjackets' plane was reported mi…