The question comes out before I can stop it, and I immediately worry it’s too personal. But Alexa doesn’t seem to mind.
“Always. My grandmother used to say I was born to be a mother.” Her expression clouds slightly. “Of course, I thoughtI’d be married when it happened. Had the whole thing planned out.”
There’s a story there, but she doesn’t elaborate, and I don’t push. Whatever happened with Ash’s father is clearly not something she wants to discuss in the middle of a grocery store.
The absence of a wedding ring, the way she talks about raising Ash alone, the careful way she mentioned having things “planned out”—it all points to someone who left. I find myself wondering what kind of man walks away from a woman like Alexa and a kid like Ash. Someone who clearly doesn’t know what he lost.
But it’s not my business, and the last thing I want to do is pry into something painful. I know what it’s like to have parts of your life you don’t want to explain to strangers.
We make our way to the checkout line, the cart now full of baby supplies that cost more than I typically spend on groceries in a month. Alexa helps me organize everything on the conveyor belt, explaining the purpose of each item as we go.
“These are for teething,” she says, holding up a package of rubber toys. “Henry’s probably going to start getting his first teeth soon. When babies are teething, they want to chew on everything.”
“How will I know if he’s teething?”
“Drooling, fussiness, wanting to put everything in his mouth. Some babies get a low fever.” She pauses the checkout process to show me the toys. “These are safe for him to chew on, and you can put them in the freezer. The cold feels good on sore gums.”
The cashier, a teenager who looks like she’d rather be anywhere else, scans items with mechanical efficiency. But even she smiles when Henry babbles at her from his seat in the cart.
“He’s cute,” she says. “How old?”
“Six months,” I answer, feeling a small surge of pride that I knew the answer.
“Is this your first?”
I open my mouth to explain that Henry is my nephew, but Alexa smoothly intervenes. “He’s learning as he goes.”
The girl nods knowingly. “My little brother was like that. It gets easier.”
As we load bags into my car, I’m struck by how different this shopping trip was from my usual quick runs for the basics. This felt like… family. The easy interaction between Alexa and Ash, the way they both naturally included Henry in everything, the assumption from strangers that we belonged together.
It’s been a long time since I’ve felt like I belonged anywhere outside of the hospital.
“Thank you,” I tell Alexa as we secure Henry’s car seat. “For all of this. I would have been completely lost in there.”
“It’s no problem. Everyone needs help sometimes.”
Watching her navigate all of this while keeping Henry happy makes me realize just how out of my depth I really am. But more than that, it makes me realize how much I need someone like her in my life right now.
“You make this look so easy,” I tell her as we wait for Ash to get buckled in.
“Trust me, it wasn’t always this smooth. The first few months with Ash were…” She shakes her head. “Let’s just say there was a lot of crying. From both of us.”
Ash looks up from fastening his seat belt. “I was a difficult baby, wasn’t I, Mom?”
“You were spirited,” Alexa corrects with a laugh. “There’s a difference.”
The easy affection between them is obvious, and I find myself envying their relationship. Not just because they have each other, but because they’ve built something stable and warm despite whatever challenges they’ve faced.
By the time we pull into the driveway, I’ve made a decision. I need help, and Alexa clearly knows what she’s doing. More than that, Henry responds to her in a way he hasn’t responded to anyone else, including me.
“Alexa,” I say as we get out of the car, “I have a proposition for you.”
She turns to look at me, eyebrows raised. “What kind of proposition?”
“I need help. Not just with grocery shopping, but with everything. I have no idea what I’m doing with Henry, and you clearly do.” I take a breath, trying to find the right words. “Would you be willing to help me learn? I’d pay you, of course. Whenever you’re available around your work schedule.”
Alexa exchanges a glance with Ash, who’s unbuckling Henry from his car seat with the confidence of someone who’s done this before. “Actually, I’m between jobs right now. So my schedule is pretty flexible.”
