"Unca Den!" Jessa screamed when we walked up to him.

Aiden was standing outside of the movie theater pacing when he looked up and smiled at us. Jessa's tiny fists were squeezing into a little ball with her excitement as she tried to pull away from me.

"There's my girl!" He stopped to bend down and open his arms to her. I let go of her and she half skipped, half ran to him. He wrapped his arms around her and swung her up high to pull her closer to him. He squeezed her tightly and she giggled when his short facial hair touched her soft skin. Jessa's dark curls bounced, reflecting the light of the sun off every soft wave. She was the most beautiful little thing I had ever seen.

"Hey, Ry." Aiden said when I finally caught up to them.

Behind Aiden was a girl with too much makeup and thin lips. Her platinum blond hair was tinted black at the ends and it was pulled back into a painfully tight ponytail. She must have worn it so snugly to keep her face from drooping from the sour looks plastered all over her face. She was standing with her arms crossed as she looked at me like I had three heads. This must be "the" Darla.

"Sorry, we're late. You know how hard it is to get a three-year-old ready. Especially this crazy one." Aiden laughed at me and Darla rolled her eyes.

Aiden crossed over to me and placed his arm around me. He squeezed me in a tight hug. I melted into him under the familiar pressure and warmth. I didn't realize how cold I was feeling after crashing into Ezra on the street. Even if it was an accidental encounter, it shook me until my bones were aching.

Jessa pointed her little finger at the Princess poster on the wall. She screamed with excitement, which caused Aiden to erupt in another round of laughter. He fake screamed with her until the smile was so big on her face that I could barely see the blue in her eyes. He was the one who suggested we take her to go see this movie when it came out. He knew what he got himself into when he offered. She had been talking about it for weeks.

"Hey, Darla. It's nice to meet you finally." I said, moving to stick my hand out to the grumpy looking woman. She was giving me a death stare as she watched Aiden near me. She didn't uncross her arms or even move to acknowledge me. She was one of those girls, I guess. The kind of girl who didn't understand that guys and girls could be just friends. Previously complicated friends, but just friends.

I glanced back over at Aiden, who hadn't even noticed. He was too busy singing Jessa's favorite song with her. Aiden and Jessa sounded perfect together. Jessa had perfect pitch and an uncanny way of picking out a melody that most adults would be jealous of. Aiden could harmonize with her and she wouldn't miss a note. She had a beautiful little voice that tugged at my heartstrings every time she sang.

We began walking to the theatre and Aiden was still carrying Jessa. Aiden never put her down if he could avoid it. Most days, I could barely pry her out of his hands. He carefully pulled her little sundress down so it covered her legs when the wind tried to gust it up. I moved next to him on one side and watched as grumpy Darla moved to the other side.

"I need to talk to you later." I whispered to Aiden.

He nodded and pulled open the door to the theater and held it so Darla and I could walk in.

Two hours, four potty breaks, and three tubs of popcorn later, we were walking out of the theater. Jessa was snoring softly on Aiden's shoulder. She had climbed on his lap as soon as we got to our seats. I tried to get her to sit in her own seat since he was here with a date, but she threw a fit and latched onto him. Aiden belonged to Jessa; no girl was going to get in her way.

She had fallen asleep before the epic fairytale ending. Poor Darla couldn't even hold his hand during the kid's film. I was secretly laughing on the inside. That was what she deserved. She had been rude to me since the moment I met her. I looked back at her and her arms were crossed over her chest, her thin bottom lip was sticking out in a pout. Aiden was going to get an ear full later, I was sure of it.

I reached my hands out for my little sleeping beauty and Aiden kissed her before reluctantly giving her back to me. Aiden adored Jessa and I was thankful he was so involved in her life. If Darla wasn't here, he would have carried her back to the car and asked us if we wanted to come back to his house for a sleepover. Jessa loved staying with her Unca Den at his house. He spoiled her more than my parents did. I told him once before that she was going to become a brat if he kept it up. He laughed at me and said she deserved the world just like her Momma.

I gave up after that, Aiden was going to do what he wanted to do and there was no stopping him. I would have to perform the damage control after.

"Thanks for the movie. You made Jessa's day." I said to Aiden. "Nice meeting you, Darla." I nodded in her direction. She rolled her eyes at me and gave me a slightly sarcastic wave.

"Call me later." I told him. I had wanted to tell him what happened on the street today, but I didn't want Darla in my business. Aiden and I didn't keep secrets from each other anymore. It was part of the reason our relationship survived after all these years. No more secrets, no more lies, all honesty, even if it hurt.

"I'll just stop by the house later. Your Mom owes me dinner for cutting the grass." He said smiling as he bent down to kiss my sleeping girl again. She snuggled deeper into me. I still thought it was amazing that no matter how big she got, she still fit into me perfectly.

I slowly walked the couple of blocks back to my car, cradling Jessa to me. She was so soft and warm. I loved her smell. A few months ago, she had decided that she wanted to use Momma's peach and cherry blossom shampoo. I could still smell it mixed in with her scent. I was secretly glad she wanted to use it, we had the same type of hair and hers was getting harder and harder to brush every day with baby shampoo. I had spent a fortune on no more tangles spray to keep her from screaming and crying every time I brushed it.

I got to my car and opened the door. I gently laid her down in the car seat and fastened her in. She mumbled something in her sleep that sounded like "unca popcorn". I smiled and bent down to kiss her forehead. She was my whole world.

I closed the door and climbed into the driver's seat to head back home. I hoped Aiden wouldn't be too long before he came by. I really needed to talk to someone and my Mom and Dad wouldn't be any help right now. They had too much going on without me adding to their list of worries. I would tell them eventually, but I had to talk to someone else first to get some advice.