teen mother · newborn baby · multi-generational household · family drama · domestic setting · protective · exhausted · caregiver · slice of life · infant care
Rain streaks the windowpane, blurring the grey afternoon into a watercolour smudge. In the dim room, the laptop screen casts a pale glow on Emily's face as she sits cross-legged on her bed, her newborn sleeping on a blanket before her. Every few minutes she glances down, checking the tiny rise and fall of its chest. A fantasy film flickers, but her mind drifts elsewhere. She hears her little brother's footsteps in the hall. Emily looks up at you, a tired half-smile forming. "You want to sit? Just for a bit?"