It was three in the morning, and I had the house to myself. My parents had decided to leave for a while so I would have no one's thoughts in my head other than my own since they believed I needed time to process everything. They weren't wrong.

I was in my room laying on my bed listening to random music on Spotify. The algorithm was in my favor as the melodies matched my mood; they were upbeat or fast past. I was enjoying one song and comparing it to Bella and me when my phone chirped, alerting me I had an incoming text. Not knowing who would be texting me at this hour, my curiosity peaked. I got up. At a speed no human was capable of I crossed the room and went over to my desk, grabbed my phone, and returned to my bed.

Laying back down with my head on my pillow, I flipped my phone open. I was beginning to expect a text from one of my siblings, instead it wasn't from any of them. Every nerve ending was electrified as nervous excitement shot through me because it was a message from Bella. I opened it up.

Hey.

It was a simple message. Yet, it made me smile. I quickly typed out a reply.

Hi. It's late. What are you doing up?

Since my device is a flip phone there was no typing indicator to appear. No way of knowing if she was responding. I wished there was a way to tell because I wondered if she had drifted off to sleep as I stared at the small screen. Three minutes later, she responded.

I've been awake for a few hours. But we're always up at 3am.

Her reply surprised me. It made me curious. I quickly typed out my simple question.

Why?

Almost immediately she answered back.

Why have I been awake since one am with no hope of going to sleep any time soon? Or why am I always awake at 3am?

Well, that wasn't the answer I was expecting.

Both.

I sent that one word and waited for her to text back. This time it was taking her longer than before and I wondered why. Keeping my eyes glued to the screen I waited some more. Nine minutes went by, and I was becoming anxious. Finally, she replied with two texts back-to-back.

I can't really answer why we aren't getting any sleep tonight. All I can say is Anthony is very… irritable right now. He woke me up at one and was crying. Loudly. He woke a few other people up, too. Someone complained and I had to speak to one of the directors about why Anthony was screaming. It was a long talk. I did manage to quieten him down, but he's not very happy.

As for waking up every night at 3am, well, that's simple. Because your son enjoys getting me up at that time for a diaper change. He also insists I give him milk he never really wants to drink.

Tentatively, I typed out my response, the whole time I was wondering what was wrong with my son. Was it normal for babies to wake up in the middle of the night and cry? I wasn't sure. That was something I would need to ask my parents since both of them knew more about babies than I did.

Why was Anthony crying?

Five minutes went by with no reply. Just as I was wondering if she was going to continue texting, she did.

If I knew why he woke up with the temperament of an angry badger on a warpath, I would tell you. But since I don't know why he is in such a bad mood, I can't say.

I stared at my screen not knowing how to reply. Reading her text again, I started coming up with possibilities that might make small humans irritable. Turning the possibilities over in my head, I began to type.

Is he sick? Does he have a fever? Do you need me to bring a thermometer?

Again, it took her a long time to respond.

To answer all of your questions at once: No, he isn't sick or fevered, and thanks so much for offering to bring a thermometer, but it's not needed. You would literally run over here with one if he needed it, wouldn't you?

My reply was fast and simple.

Yes.

Not two seconds later she responded.

Thank you.

I smiled as I typed.

Of course. Is he still awake?

My phone went silent for several minutes. It made me wonder why she responded quickly to some of my texts and slower to others; until her next text came in, that is.

Yes, he is. As I'm texting you, I'm trying to get our moody boy to drink milk. This is taking a lot of effort on my part. He keeps latching on, spitting up, then crying, but keeps insisting we do it all over again. It's exhausting, not to mention time consuming. It's also the reason why it's taking forever to respond, just in case you're wondering why I'm slowly texting you.

That sure did explain a lot. I didn't comment on any of it because I didn't feel the need to. However, her words did prompt a question to ask her.

You're texting me in the middle of breastfeeding?

Five minutes passed and nothing. Thirty more seconds went by as I anxiously stared at my screen, then finally a text came in.

More like texting you and trying to bribe him into drinking some milk so he can have a full tummy so we can go to sleep. But at this point, I think I have a better chance at training a desert kangaroo rat not to hop.

I found that hilarious and was laughing as my fingers pressed the keys.

*Laughing face.*

Her reply came in quick this time. Seconds later another text followed.

LOL!

Nice to see you still have a strange aversion to emojis. Guess some things never change.

I began laughing even harder than before as I read her text. She always did have a silly way with words and knew exactly what to say about this situation.

Haha! Very funny. I'm on a flip phone. It's very basic - no video, and no cute little yellow emojis. So, I spell out the faces I want.

This time it took her ninety seconds to text back.

I know. I was just teasing. LOL! Besides, your phone is basic like mine.

She never did mention what kind of phone she had, nor did I ask. But now, I wanted to know about the device she was using to communicate with me.

Don't tell me you're on a flip phone, too?

I was half joking, half fishing for answers. Thirty seconds went by until her text popped up.

No. Government phone.

Reading her simple answer, I began to form a plan. One, I hoped she'd agree to. Wishing on stars, I began pressing the keypad and typing out what I wanted to say.

Seems like both of us could use an upgrade. That way you could send me pictures and videos of Anthony and I could send you emojis. Would you be opposed to me buying you a new phone tomorrow, if I get one too? Don't think of it as a gift, it wouldn't be. It's more like… back child support. You're the mother of my child, I owe you my life and I'll also be giving you a prepaid credit card for what I owe you for child support. So, what do you say? Can I buy you a phone?

Not caring about my text being extremely long, I read it once and pressed send. This time there was no reply for eleven minutes and that made me nervous. Was she waiting so long to respond because she was busy with Anthony? Or did I offend her by offering to buy her a phone? My stomach was in knots until her text came in.

Sure.

It was one simple word, but it made me so happy to see. She was going to allow me to buy her a phone and help her out financially without trying to talk me out of it. This was good.

*Big smiley face.*

Almost immediately, her text came in and quickly another one followed.

LOL!

Hey, my tired brain just thought of something. It's a question I wanted to ask you earlier - the reason why I texted you in the first place but got sidetracked and forgot.

Reading what she wrote, my curiosity was spiked. I wondered what was on her mind.

What did you want to ask me?

I quickly sent my text, but she was taking her time. Not knowing if she was properly wording what she wanted to ask. Or if she was merely busy, I patiently waited. Finally, she replied back.

Have you seen Anthony's pacifier? I can't find it and haven't seen it since we left the store. He likes to use it at night, and I think that might be why he's so upset. Oh, no. He's crying again.

Still holding my phone in front of me, I scrubbed my free hand down my face. I had totally forgotten to inform her about the artificial nipple meeting its doom in the storm drain. Now, it was my turn to take my time replying as the song Bad Idea Right? came through the speakers in my room.

The lyrics hit home and made me pause. Was it fate or coincidence that had a tune about two people reconnecting playing now, when that's what Bella and I were doing? I wasn't sure. Nevertheless, the melody was fitting since we were reuniting. It felt like we were picking up from where we left off, but that wasn't quite right. There was one factor that made this relationship brand new: Anthnoy. That thought alone made me realize – not for the first time – that I made a mistake.

An enormous mistake. But by some miracle I was given a second chance; a do-over to make things right with Bella. Even if it were just a platonic relationship and co-parenting our son.

As the song drifted to a close and another song quickly came on, I tuned it out and began thinking about my texting conversation. It took me a minute to come up with a reasonable answer. But once I figured out what I would tell her, I typed it out.

I owe him a pacifier.

She was quick to answer.

Oh, no! That was his last one until I'm able to buy him another one on the first. What happened to it?

I groaned. This was not easily explained.

It's a very long story - too long to type. I'll tell you when I see you in the morning.

Retelling the story in person would be best, at least, I believed so. I hoped she wouldn't be mad at me as I waited for her to respond. When her text came in I released a breath of air I didn't realize I was holding.

Okay…

What time will you be here?

I thought about that for a few minutes. We never decided when I would be picking them up, only that we would see each other in the morning, and the three of us would spend the day together. Part of me wanted to say I would arrive in a half hour since I was anxious to see her and our son again. However, it was still dark out, and they should get some sleep. So, I decided to answer her question with one of my own.

What time do you and Anthony start your day?

Once again, it took her ages to respond.

6am on the dot. He doesn't seem to know what sleep is. LOL! Therefore, I don't sleep much. I do rest in the morning - like a kindergartner - when he finally decides to nap.

Staring at her text I was wanting to tell her I'd be there as soon as the sun was up, but I didn't. She was human and needed sleep. Apparently, she also needed midmorning naps, which I wouldn't deprive her of. Seconds passed, finally, I thought of a reasonable time to pick them up.

9?

Three minutes later her text came in.

9 is good. We'll be outside waiting for you.

Reading that, I began to feel giddy. I couldn't wait to see them as I typed.

I'll be there.

I sent it and waited a few minutes before she sent a response.

Sounds good.

Feeling satisfied and enjoying our late conversation very much; I didn't want it to end, but it must. There was no denyingshe was human and should be sleeping, especially if we were going to go out in the morning.I had to end our conversation, for her sake. There was no two ways about it

The sun will be coming up soon. You should get some sleep.

Almost immediately she texted me back.

I should… if he'll let me. Hopefully, he'll fall back to sleep soon. Well, okay, see you in the morning.

I read it and rapidly sent her one last text.

Sleep well.

One minute later she sent her reply.

Good night.

Smiling like an idiot I set the phone down on my nightstand. Placing my hands behind my head and staring up at the ceiling; I replayed our texting conversation over in my mind. It was so easy to be myself around her. Even a simple conversation brought me great joy.

Listening to the music coming out of the hidden speakers in the walls, I began counting down the minutes. In less than six and a half hours I would be picking up Bella and our son. Laying there, I began making plans for where we would be going.