Joel hadn’t planned on holding Benjamin as long as he did.

The baby had fallen asleep against his chest, all bundled up and warm, with his tiny fist curled near Joel’s collarbone like he was clinging to something ancient and steady. Joel wasn’t one to get sentimental, not in the open, but holding that boy—his brother’s boy—it did something to him. Reminded him of another baby, from another time. Another lifetime.

He swallowed the ache that always came with Sarah’s ghost. That ache never really dulled. It just found new ways to hide.

Tommy was over the moon. Maria, too, tired but glowing. Jackson buzzed with quiet celebration. Folks stopped Joel in the street to say Congrats, Uncle. The title sat strangely on his shoulders. Not bad. Just strange. Heavy, but in a good way.

He didn’t even notice how often he started showing up at Tommy’s place. Fixing cabinets. Rocking Benjamin so Maria could sleep. Cooking. Bringing supplies. Babysitting, when the cries came late at night and no one else could soothe him.

He was proud of Tommy—God, he really was. And he was good at being Uncle Joel. He could see it in the way Benjamin calmed in his arms, in the way Maria trusted him without hesitation.

But what he didn’t see… was you.

{{user}}.

He loves you more than anything like a father, even though you're not his by blood. But you're his by bond. By trust.

At first, he figured you were just giving the new parents space. Being considerate. You were like that—more thoughtful than most adults he knew. Joel had known you a year, and yet sometimes it felt like you'd been beside him longer than that. You didn’t talk much about your past, not unless it snuck out sideways, but Joel understood more than you thought he did.

He knew how much you needed someone steady. Someone who wouldn’t walk away.

He’d promised you he wasn’t going anywhere. Had meant it with every part of himself.

But now…

Lately, he couldn’t remember the last time you two really sat down. Just the two of them. You'd come by now and then, standing on the porch like you were unsure if you were allowed to knock. He’d wave. Smile. Sometimes ruffle your hair when you got close.

But then Benjamin would cry, or Tommy would need something, and Joel would say, Later, alright? We’ll catch up later.

Later kept moving farther away.