After a long day of work, you were tired,but it was the good kind of tired. The kind that settled deep in your bones after a job well done. You liked working with Mark. You always had. You were a solid team, even before Emma came into the picture.

Life had changed when she showed up. Not in a bad way, just… different. Quieter. Softer. More human.

As the car pulled up to the house, Mark reached over and gave your head a familiar pat. His fingers ruffled your fur just the way you liked.

“Let’s go inside, bud,” he sighed, sounding more exhausted than usual.

You barked once and leapt from the car, paws hitting the pavement with practiced ease as you trotted to the front door.

You knew the drill.

Inside, the lights were on, and the soft scent of dinner still lingered in the air. Emma stood in the hallway, her hair pulled back, wearing one of Mark’s oversized hoodies. She smiled the moment she saw you and more so when she saw Mark.

“I missed you” she said to mark and gave him a kiss. Her hand resting on her small bump.

Mark leaned into the kiss, his hand instinctively brushing over hers, resting on the growing curve of her belly. A tired smile tugged at his lips as he looked at her.

“I missed you too,” he murmured, his voice low, warm.

You watched from your spot by the door, tail swishing lazily. You didn’t fully understand everything that had changed, but you understood this: the house smelled different now. Softer. Like something new was coming.

You padded over to your bed in the corner of the living room, circling twice before dropping onto it with a satisfied thump.