A child calling twice from a house where he has been told not to cry is not complicated.
That is the alarm.
You answer it.
Weeks later, Noah started sleeping through the night again.
Not every night.
But more often.
He wore his sling longer than the doctor said he needed to because it made him feel protected.
Derek came over every Saturday morning with donuts and let Noah beat him at board games without making it obvious.
Lena began supervised visits and parenting counseling, and to her credit, she did not ask me to make it easier for her than it was for Noah.
She had consequences to face.
So did I.
Because I had to live with the fact that I disliked Travis but stayed quiet to keep the peace.
Peace is not always peace.
Sometimes it is just fear wearing polite clothes.
I do not ignore second calls anymore.
Not from Noah.
