(Y/n) had an important meeting to attend hours from where she lives. She was nominated for an award. She was nervous. Sure she's only been working with kids for about four years, people say she's the youngest person to ever be nominated. The pressure was killing her.

"Thank you so much Joshua. You don't know how much stress you've relieved from me", she said, grabbing her purse.

"Of course. You know I love Sophia. I have a lot planned for us to do today", Joshua smiled.

Sophia is her six year old daughter. She had her quite young. Sophia's father was hardly ever in the picture. He used to come around maybe once every two weeks but he hasn't seen Sophia in a month.

"Okay so she gets out of school early today. I already notified the school that you'll be picking her up. I'm not sure I'll be back before dinner but I'll let you know. I have food in the fridge. You just have to heat it up in the microwave and you're good", she said.

She nodded and was about to head out but she turned back around.

"Oh! And she gets bored easily so don't have her on the tablet for more than thirty minutes. Have her run around in the backyard or-"

"(Y/n), don't worry. I wasn't planning on just letting her take care of herself while I literally watched her. I have plans with her that doesn't include being in the house all day. I got this. Now go or you'll be late", Joshua chuckled while shaking his head.

"Alright. I'll see you later", she said before getting into her car and drove off.

~~~

"Joshua!", Sophia smiled as she ran towards him.

He kneeled down and hugged her, picking her up.

"Hey bud, how was school?", he asked.

"It was fun. But I fell when I was playing with my friends. I scraped my knee. See?", she showed him her knee that had a pink bandaid that covered up the scrape.

"Ouch. That must have hurt. Well what do you say we get something to eat and after we'll get ice cream. How does that sound?",he asked her.

"It sound awesome!", she smiled.

He smiled and put her in his car, making sure she was buckled up. He took her to children's play place that also sells food. When they finished eating, she went over to play in the playground. After about twenty minutes of playing, they went to get ice cream.

"...and I thought that I was gonna get the gold star but the teacher said there was a square that wasn't colored in. She said it was because I was absent that day I was sick. But I did the homework that I missed so she gave me a sticker", Sophia smiled as she helped Joshua with two grocery bags.

"You're really smart. I can see why you got a sticker", he chuckled.

He opened the door and let her in first. They put away the groceries and after he helped her with her homework.

"It's best if you add with your fingers. That way you won't forget", Joshua smiled.

Sophia nodded and bit her lip as she kept tapping her pencil on the desk. Joshua noticed something was wrong.

"Are you okay?", he asked.

"Did you know mommy is sad?", she asked.

"Sad? Why?", he asked.

"Every week she goes out. She always tells me she's meeting a friend but she doesn't know that I know that she's really with a guy. She's sad. I want to make her happy", she said, slightly pouting.

He can see how upset she is. He stood up and went over to the kitchen.

"Aha", he said, grabbing a small box from the kitchen counters.

"Soph, how about after you're finished with your homework, we can decorate something for your mom and make some cupcakes?", he asked.

"Yes!", she yelled excitedly while jumping.

~~~

(Y/n) was pulling up to her driveway. It was almost past midnight and she found it weird how the light was still on.

"Hello?", she called out.

When she walked over to the living room, Joshua motioned her to stay quiet. Her daughter was sleeping. Her head was resting on Joshua's lap while her body was curled up and covered by a blanket.

(Y/n) glanced down at the coffee fable and noticed cupcakes surrounded by a few drawings that said 'I love you'.

"What's this?", you whispered.

"Can we talk? I mean, after Sophia is sound asleep on her bed", Joshua said.

"Sure", she said.

She was about to get Sophia but Joshua carefully carried her and placed her on her bed, covering her with the blankets. Right after he slightly shut the door, he made his way towards (y/n) who was sitting on the couch, admiring the drawings that her daughter made for her.

"Hey so again thanks for doing this for me. I promise I'll pay you soon. I'm having trouble with my card but I'm getting that fixed soon so-"

"You don't have to pay me. I love being around Sophia. We had a lot of fun today", Joshua said.

"I'd feel bad if I don't pay you. I mean it's been hours and I'm sure you had plans-"

"(Y/n), I said it's fine", he smiled while lightly squeezing her hand.

"...alright then. Did you guys do all this?", she asked.

"Yeah, mostly Soph, she said you've been sad lately and wanted to cheer you up", he said.

"Oh..she worries about little things. She's so sweet. So what else did you guys do?", she asked, clearing her throat.

"(Y/n), there's clearly something wrong. Sophia told me you've been meeting guys. But that she hears you crying at night. What are you not telling me?", he asked.

"..I just..I miss being in a relationship. But all the guys I've gone out with remind me of my ex. Sophia needs a father figure in her life", she said.

"You know..I'm a little disappointed. You go out with these guys you hardly know and don't even notice the one who has a close relationship with your daughter, one she feels comfortable with", he said.

"What are you talking about?", she asked.

"Am I not a guy? Do you not think that I'm capable of handling Sophia and you? (Y/n) you know I've had feelings for you for a really long time now. What is so wrong with me that you don't see me more than as a friend?", Joshua asked.

"Because I don't want to lose you. You're an important person in my life and Sophia's. I don't do so great in relationships. I begin to freak out and do something that'll ruin it. That's why I stopped going out on dates", she said.

"You're not gonna lose me. I'm sure if something happens, we'll be able to find a way to resolve it. I'm not that type of person that gives up right away. I love you and Sophia so much that not even an insult from you can make me run away. You two are important to me too", he said.

"..did you just say you love me?", she asked, face flushing.

"Yes I did. Is there a problem with that?", he asked.

"..no....alright I'll give it a try. But if you don't feel something right about us, I want you to be honest. Okay?", she asked.

He smiled and intertwined their hands together. They glanced over at the cupcakes and cautiously looked back at each other. After a few seconds they began throwing each other cupcakes, laughing and becoming messy due to the frosting. Surprisingly Sophia didn't wake up but if she was she would've been happy to see her mom genuinely smiling.