Chapter 3

Motherhood (Kind Of)

Kory spent the rest of her shift feeling like she was in a daze, Adrian’s worried thoughts still echoing in her mind. The fact that she could hear him, even though he was in a coma, was enough to send her spiraling. What kind of weird cosmic joke was this? She’d always had bad luck, but now she had a superpower? A very inconvenient superpower, at that.

By the time her shift ended, she felt like her brain had run a marathon. The strange thing was, despite the chaos in her head, she couldn’t stop thinking about Lila. The poor girl had no family here, no one to turn to. How long could she just stay in the hospital?

Kory had never exactly seen herself as a mother. Heck, she had trouble keeping a houseplant alive. But as she looked at Lila’s sleeping form, something shifted in her. That little girl needed someone, and if Adrian didn’t wake up, Kory realized with a start, she might be that someone.

The next day, Kory found herself in a strange new position: at social services, filling out paperwork. Apparently, being a mind-reader didn’t help you skip bureaucratic procedures.

"So, you're interested in being Lila Rivers' temporary guardian?" the social worker, a stern woman with glasses perched on the end of her nose, asked.

Kory gulped, nodding. Why did I say I would do this? She could still hear Adrian’s voice, the worry for his daughter, and that had been enough to push her into action. But now that she was sitting there with forms in front of her, it suddenly felt very real.

The social worker eyed her skeptically. “You don’t have any experience with children, do you?”

Kory hesitated. “Does… babysitting my neighbor’s goldfish count?”

The woman raised an eyebrow.

“Okay, no, I don’t have experience,” Kory admitted, “but I’m really great with people! And Lila’s only two, right? How hard can it be to handle a two-year-old?”

There was a moment of silence before the social worker chuckled—a sound that was more ominous than comforting. “You’ve never spent time with a toddler, have you?”

Kory blinked. “I… uh, no?”

The social worker handed her a packet of papers with an amused smile. “Good luck.”

---

Later that day, Kory found herself back at the hospital, nervously clutching the papers that gave her temporary custody of Lila. She had never been more terrified in her life. What if she hates me? What if I accidentally feed her something she’s allergic to? What if I lose her in a grocery store?

Her thoughts were spiraling as she stood outside Adrian’s room, the hospital lights flickering softly above her. She had never done anything like this before. Caring for another human being was a huge responsibility, and she didn’t even know where to begin.

Kory peeked inside the room and saw Lila sitting on her little hospital bed, hugging a stuffed bunny and watching some cartoons. She was so tiny, with curly brown hair and big, bright eyes that made Kory’s heart squeeze. Lila looked over at her, curiosity lighting up her face.

“Hi,” Kory said softly as she stepped inside, forcing a smile. “I’m Kory. Do you… remember me?”

Lila stared at her for a moment before nodding slowly. “You saved Daddy.”

Kory’s heart clenched. “Yeah… I did. And I’m going to help take care of you for a little while, okay? Just until your daddy wakes up.”

The little girl blinked at her, processing the information, before breaking into a grin. “Okay.”

That was it. Just okay. Kory was stunned. No tantrum, no crying. She could do this. She could handle one little kid, right?

---

Wrong. So very, very wrong.

Later that evening, Kory was standing in the middle of her living room, holding a spoon, covered in applesauce, and watching in horror as Lila zoomed around her apartment like a tiny tornado. The toddler had gone from sweet and quiet in the hospital to a ball of endless energy the moment they’d left.

“Lila, please, sit down! It’s dinner time!” Kory begged, waving the spoon like a white flag of surrender.

Lila giggled and ran around the couch, her little feet stomping loudly. “Can’t catch me!”

Kory sighed, sitting down on the floor and rubbing her temples. “What have I gotten myself into?”

She heard a faint laugh in her head. You're doing just fine.

Kory froze, her eyes widening. Adrian’s voice. Was he laughing at her?

“Oh, easy for you to say!” she muttered, glancing in the direction of her bedroom where she’d set up the baby monitor linked to Lila’s room. “You’re not the one covered in applesauce!”

The voice in her head chuckled again. You’ll figure it out.

Kory let out a groan. “Great. Now I’ve got parenting advice from a man in a coma.”

But, strangely enough, hearing Adrian’s voice calmed her down. He trusted her. And even though this was all completely overwhelming, she couldn’t help but feel… capable. Maybe she didn’t know exactly what she was doing, but she wasn’t alone in this.

Later that night, after what felt like an eternity of chaos, Kory finally managed to get Lila into bed. The apartment was eerily quiet now, and Kory sat on the edge of the couch, completely drained. She stared at the ceiling, wondering how parents did this every day without losing their minds.

“Note to self,” she mumbled, “get more applesauce and buy every parenting book in existence.”

As Kory lay back on the couch, exhaustion creeping in, Adrian’s voice appeared once more in her mind. Thank you for taking care of her.

She smiled softly, closing her eyes. “You’d better wake up soon, Adrian,” she whispered. “Because this parenting thing? It’s no joke.”

But even as she said it, there was a small part of her—a part she didn’t fully understand—that didn’t want to let go of the bond they were forming.

And as Lila slept peacefully down the hall, Kory wondered what the future would hold for the three of them.

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