I Was Their Inside Joke

Douglas had just stepped into the bathroom when his iPad lit up on the bedside table. A SnapChat notification popped up.

Aurora: What mushy message did she send you today? Forward it, I’m waiting for a laugh.

I reached out and tapped SnapChat. The pinned chat wasn’t mine, it was Aurora’s.

At the top of the chat window was a screenshot of the message I’d sent Douglas that afternoon.

Me: A kid at the kindergarten told me I have a pretty smile today, and my first thought was to tell you.

Below it was Douglas’s added comment when he forwarded it to Aurora.