enough to change it himself, he’d not be annoyed doing it on his own.
He already loved to help me change it, and the needle through which the insulin would be injected into his body didn’t hurt him anymore.
He got used to it fast, but for a three-year-old, he was tougher than most teenagers.
Or even some adults.
“Are they winning?” he asked as the fight on the screen got more intense.
Luckily, there was no blood showing in the movie, and after all, it was made for people of all ages.
I even laughed a few times.
“Of course they are. They’re the Ninja Turtles! You know, daddy used to watch the cartoon version when he was your age.”
“Really?” he asked, his eyes wide with surprise.
“Yes. And the blue one was always my favorite. His name is Leonardo,” I explained.
“Because blue is your favorite color?” Ira asked, looking up at me.
“Yeah,” I said with a chuckle.” Which one’s your favorite?”
“The blue one,” he replied.
“Great choice.”
Even though some characteristics he had resembled Leah’s quite a bit, Ira was exactly like me.
He leaned back against my side to cuddle again, but he couldn’t stay that comfortable as we heard a knock at our front door.
“Rooney!” he called out, and this time I thought he might be right.
I paused the movie and got up from the couch, then let him grab my hand and walked over to the door with him.
I looked through the peephole, just in case it wasn’t Rooney, but there she stood with worry and a hint of sadness in her eyes.
I opened the door, and the second she saw us, she smiled.
“Hi, you two,” she greeted, running her fingers through Ira’s locks before moving her gaze to mine.
“I hope it’s not too late,” she asked, her voice filled with hope.
“We’re watching a movie!” Ira said happily.
“Oh, really? Sounds like you’re having a fun evening.”
“We are. Come in,” I said, stepping to the side to let her in. “We even have some dessert left. I was really hoping you could join us earlier. I didn’t know you’d have a visitor.”
Which was okay and nothing I had to be jealous about.
“AJ was at the coffee shop when I was about to leave, so I invited him over for dinner. He went home a while ago. I’m sorry if that was awkward. If I had known, I wouldn’t have invited him.”
“Don’t apologize, Rooney. I have to admit that I didn’t react the way I should’ve reacted. But I’m happy you’re here now.”
Ira ran back to the living room to sit on the couch and press play, and I opened the fridge to take out the bowl with chocolate mousse in it.
“This looks delicious,” she said, her eyes wide and lips smiling.
“Ira and I made it. It’s dark chocolate with a little bit of orange zest on top. Try it.”
She grabbed the spoon out of my hand and tried the mousse, then her eyes widened with delight.
“It’s amazing! You have to give me the recipe!”
“Can’t do that. It’s Ira’s and my secret,” I told her with a grin.
“Guess I have to come over more often when you make dessert,” she said, shrugging.
I smiled, thinking that wouldn’t be such a bad idea.
As we walked over to the couch, I picked Ira up and sat down to place him on my lap so Rooney could sit next to us.
My couch wasn’t big enough for two and a toddler.
“The blue one is my favorite,” Ira told Rooney with pride. “And Daddy’s too!”
“What’s his name again?” she asked.
She probably knew, but she was quizzing Ira, and I thought that was the cutest thing ever.
“Leonardo!”
“Oh, right! Leonardo is great,” she said, smiling and looking at the TV.
The movie suddenly wasn’t so interesting anymore, and I couldn’t take my eyes off Rooney.
Strange how someone could change the way you thought about things in only a few days.
Or hours, if we were to be exact.
I hadn’t known her for long, but I already felt like spending time with her would change the way I thought about relationships, and if I wanted to try and date again.
How bad could it be?
Rooney’s a sweet girl, but she made it more than clear that she wasn’t looking for anything more than friendship.
She must’ve felt me staring at her, but instead of questioning why I couldn’t stop looking at her, she smiled sweetly, then continued to eat the mousse and watch the movie.
Unbothered.
Maybe she liked being watched.
Not in a creepy way, of course.
I gave myself a slap against the