The Quiet They Welcomed

Ava hadn’t been an easy baby. From her first week home, she cried at odd hours, hated being swaddled, and refused to sleep unless someone held her. Mia had read every sleep blog and paced the nursery floor more nights than she could count. But something had changed recently.

A few weeks back, Ava began sleeping longer stretches, sometimes through the entire night. No sudden wake-ups. They chalked it up to development, relief washing over them in the quiet. But now, watching the monitor, Mia wondered if that silence had come with a presence. A presence they never noticed because it gave them exactly what they thought they wanted.