Michael looked embarrassed.
Then he laughed, too.
It was a small moment, but Emma would remember it for years.
It reminded her that ordinary happiness had not disappeared completely.
Their lives were difficult, but laughter could still find its way into the house.
When Emma felt overwhelmed, Michael stayed beside her.
One particularly difficult evening, after Sophie had cried for hours, Emma broke down.
She sat on her bedroom floor, exhausted and frightened, saying she did not think she could manage another day.
Michael knelt beside her.
He did not tell her to stop crying.
He did not remind her that other people had worse problems.
Instead, he took Sophie gently from her arms, placed the baby safely in her cot, and sat with Emma until she could speak again.
“You don't have to know how to do everything,” he told her. “Nobody knows everything at the beginning.”
Emma shook her head.
