I tangle my fingers through Noah's brown hair and stroke his head until his eyelids flutter closed. His bottom lip drops and soft snores escape his lips. I would usually hate the sound of snoring but I could never hate anything about Noah. I smooth his hair aside and kiss his forehead. He's lucky he's so damn cute when he sleeps, it's very redeeming after a long day of terrorising me.

He snuggles in closer and my heart melts. I soak in Noah's warmth before etching away. I crawl to the end of the bed and slowly climb out, careful not to wake him. I slip on an item of clothing and topple onto a rouge Lego. I bit my lip to contain the scream. I peer over and thankfully Noah's still asleep.

I wander out of the room and slowly close the door behind me. I head to my bedroom and frown at the neatly made bed and the stupid pile of display cushions on it. I throw them onto the floor and slide under the covers. Sometimes cold fresh sheets feel amazing after a long day, but today it just feels lonely and cold. I open the latest book I'm reading and flick through the pages until I find the one I left off.

My phone pings and Daniel's name appears on the screen. Nothing can contain the big grin on my face. I unlock the phone to read the message.

'Hey, Ellie, how are you?' - Daniel.

I want to write good but I'm far from that. I'm still freaking out over Noah's outburst over Craig's question. How will he go if I tell him I'm seeing someone? Maybe he's too young for me to date. I don't know what to do here.

'I'm okay, thanks for checking in.' - Ellie.

'How is Noah? Is everything okay now?'- Daniel.

I tap my finger against the side of the phone and nibble on my lower lip. Technically he's okay because I assured him I love him and nothing would come between us. Do I tell him about Noah's freakout? Would he understand the position I'm in?

'He's asleep but he was pretty upset today.' - Ellie.

What if Noah doesn't like Daniel? What if Daniel thinks this is too hard and just leaves? I haven't felt something like this in a long time about anyone and I'm scared to lose it. My palms sweat and my heart races its way to a panic attack. The phone buzzes and thankfully pulls me from my thoughts.

'What's wrong?' - Daniel.

I take a deep breath before hitting send on the next message.

'Craig asked Noah if I was on a date today.' - Ellie.

Typing dots appear and then they disappear. I don't think that's a good sign.

I lock the phone and wait for the screen to light up with a notification. A few minutes pass and nothing comes through, so I flip the phone over and roll onto my back.

"What am I doing?" I massage my forehead and stifle a yawn.

I flip the phone over and there's a message from Daniel.

'Do you think that's why he was upset?' - Daniel.

'Yes.' - Ellie.

'Oh.' - Daniel.

'He was pretty upset and I don't know what to do, or if this is a good idea.' - Ellie.

Seconds later, the phone rings and I toss it away. I slide further under the covers and bury my face into a squishy pillow. I want to scream until my throat burns but I don't want to wake Noah up. He will certainly suspect something is wrong if I do that.

I curl the blanket around until I'm swaddled in a comfy ball. Ice cream would be delicious right about now, but that's not a good coping mechanism. I shove the blankets aside and wander into the bathroom to splash cold water on my face.

I glance at the mirror and sigh at my tired appearance. Smudged mascara doesn't help the purple bags under my eyes, so I rub the remained of the mascara off and tap my cheeks to bring some colour into them.

Washing my face doesn't help, it just makes me realise I look as miserable as I feel. Should have gone with the ice cream, it hasn't failed me yet! I head back to bed and my phone pings again. Curiosity gets the best of me and I peek at the message.

'I'm at your door.' - Daniel.

I drop the phone and glance at my pjs which have holes and stains on them. There's no way I'm wearing these to answer the door! I race to the dresser and rip through the drawers for something cute. I settle on a grey nighty which has hearts on it. The phone pings again, so I run to the door and open it.

His hands are shoved in his pocket and he's staring at the ground.

"Daniel?"

His eyes snap to mine and he sheepishly smiles.

"Hey, Ellie."

"What are you doing here?"

"I'm sorry for turning up like this, well, I'm not that sorry. I panicked when I got your message and you didn't answer the phone so I jumped straight into the car. I care about you, and I don't want to lose you."

"Oh, Daniel."

"Can I come in and talk?"

I open the door wider and we go to the lounge room. We awkwardly sit next to each other and Danial takes my hand and rubs his thumb over my fingers. I take a deep breath but it doesn't soothe my nerves.

"Before I took Noah to Craig's house, Noah said he just wants it to be the two of us. I think it's been the two of us for so long, he's afraid of losing me and things changing." To be truthful, I'm afraid of things changing as well.

"Change isn't easy, it's uncomfortable and hard. I don't blame him for being upset and worried about losing you. Change can be gradual. You could introduce me as your friend and we can see how it goes from there."

"What if he doesn't like you?"

"I just want a chance."

"Okay." I nod.

"We could go somewhere Noah likes."

"I think that's a good idea." I nod.

"We can take this as slow as you like."

"I'm scared."

He pulls me to his chest and squeezes me nice and tight. Daniel kisses the top of my head and I sigh.

"I'm scared too."

I stifle a yawn and he squeezes my arm.

"I don't want to leave, but I should go."

I think about the cold bed and being alone and I don't want that right now.

"Or you could stay."

His body goes ridges and then he holds me tighter.

"Are you sure?"

I peer up and nod.

"Yes."

"Really?" His eyes search for any hesitancy but I just smile wider and nod. This could go terribly wrong, but after today, I want to be wrapped in his strong arms.

"Yes, I'm really sure."

"Okay." He grins.

"If Noah comes in, run to the bathroom because he's afraid of going in there at night time. It's pitched black and he thinks a monster is living in my shower."

Daniel frowns but I shrug my shoulder and laugh.

"Sometimes it's best not to question children and their train of thought."

"Okay." He chuckles.

I lead him to the bedroom and he eyes the pile of clothes on the floor. I smack my palm against my forehead and groan.

"So, the reason I took longer to answer the door is because I changed my pjs. My comfy ones are a little old and have holes and stains on them, so I had to change them. I thought wearing them would be embarrassing, but this is also pretty embarrassing." I groan.

I've never had a spontaneous guest like this since having Noah, so I've never had to think about the state of my house.

Daniel hooks his arm around my shoulder and pulls me against him and he kisses the side of my head.

"I don't care what you wear, just as long as you're happy."

"Thanks."

I scoop the clothing up and shove it into the drawer.

"If you need the bathroom, it's just through here." I point to the door beside the dresser.

"Okay, thanks."

I swing my arms behind my back and twist my fingers together. We look at the bed, then at each other, and nervously laugh.

"How about you go on the side closer to the window?"

Daniel looks over his shoulder and chuckles.

"I suppose it's good if I'm closer to the emergency exit."

"I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"For everything." I sigh. "Are you sure you still want this - me?"

"Ellie I drove through the middle of the night to convince you to be with me."

"True."

"Let's go to bed." He smiles. "Are you okay if I strip down to my underwear? I don't like sleeping in a lot of clothes."

"Um, sure."

I hop into bed and take a sneaky side look at Daniel pulling his shirt over his head, revealing the slight tone of muscle. He lifts the blanket and slides under it. He frowns and then pulls my book out.

"So this is the book you're reading?" He inspects the cover as I reach for it. Daniel pulls it away and I pout. "I can read you a chapter before bed. Where are you up to on it? Don't you have a bookmark?"

"I just remember the page number."

He frowns and shakes his head.

"I'm on page 103."

He lays down and opens his arms for me. I snuggle into his chest and wiggle around until I'm comfortable. He opens the book and begins reading.

"He tangles his fingers through her hair and presses a soft kiss against her forehead. His heartbeat raced in his chest." He tangles his fingers in my hair and kisses my forehead. "I'm liking this story already." He winks.

Just wait until he finds the smutty parts.

Daniel continues to read the story and I snuggle in and listen to his voice. Now I understand why Noah asks me to read him books before bed, it's rather soothing.

Despite being weary about my choice, this feeling and his voice reassure me I've made the right choice. Change is scary and sometimes you just have to take a leap of faith.

Here's me jumping, and here's me hoping it all works out.

If only falling was easy.

* * * * *