Chapter 26 - ANOTHER 3:47 A.M.
Eighteen months after the twins were born, June woke at 3:47 a.m. with a barking cough.
Croup.
I knew the sound.
Still panicked.
Called the pediatric nurse line.
Steam.
Cool air.
Monitor breathing.
Eli woke too.
Both crying.
My hands shook.
For one second I was back on the hardwood floor.
Keys behind Barbara’s back.
Richard in the hallway.
Then my phone buzzed.
Parenting app.
Richard was awake because June’s shared baby monitor had alerted him during his remote-access week.
Need help?
I stared.
Old me would have said no.
Because needing help once became dangerous.
I typed:
Can you come sit with Eli while I take June to urgent care?
His answer:
Yes.
No argument.
No plan.
No interpretation.
He arrived twelve minutes later.
I handed him Eli.
He said:
“Drive safe.”
Nothing more.
I took June.
May you like
That was one of the first times I understood that boundaries had not made our family smaller.
They had made help optional again.
