There’s a strange kind of quiet that settles in a house when love lives there. It hums between the soft rustle of blankets in the morning and the gentle clink of a bottle on the kitchen counter at 2 a.m. It wraps itself around sleepy yawns, around arms that cradle too much and yet never enough, around a nursery painted in half-light and half-dreams.

Max never thought he'd find peace in a place with spit-up stains and lullaby playlists. Carlos never imagined that the boy with fire in his veins could hold their baby like she’s made of sunlight and stay up just to watch her breathe.

But here they are.

Racing hearts now beat in sync with the tiniest one between them. And for once, there’s no finish line—just moments. Just love. Just… this.

A family. Messy. Exhausted. Gloriously theirs.

….