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“Come on. Let’s go get breakfast.” I drove them back to the square and went to the diner. As much as I knew what the girls liked to eat, I was not as good of a cook as Gabe, and they both knew it.

Tammy was a close second. So, when it was just the girls and me, she was my best option.

I knew that Tammy would try to give us our food for free, and I would pay anyway. For some reason, her kindness with Gabe extended to me as well, and I didn’t want her to lose out on business.

Gabe didn’t either, and when he was here, they both fought over whether or not the food would be free. It was one of my favorite pastimes, watching those two battle it out.

When we walked in, we were taken to our usual table, and Tammy immediately got all our drinks. The girls were quiet as I made sure our order was in, and I had to poke them both when we were alone.

“Penny for your thoughts,” I asked them both. “You’re not planning a robbery, are you?”

Both girls seemed oddly sullen. They looked at each other and then at me.

“What are you?” Agnes asked.

I blinked at the question. It wasn’t very often that I was confused by something they were asking. For kids so young, they had great communication.

“What do you mean, what am I? I’m Jade.”

“I wanna call you something else. You’re like a mom. You help us.”

I looked at Beatrice, who also nodded excitedly. I felt like I could melt onto the floor. When I took on this role, I never expected to get anything in return. I simply liked the girls, and I wanted them to have another parental figure in their lives. I would have been content to simply be called “Jade” for the rest of my life.

“You two have a mom, though.” I said it slowly, hoping it wouldn’t start a meltdown.

“We call her Mommy,” Beatrice said. “I like her and I miss her a lot.”

“But we like you too and want you to have a special name.”

“I’m not using ‘Mommy.’ That one is taken. I’m really fine with just being called ‘Jade.’”

They both frowned again. Now we were heading into dangerous territory.

“But we can make a new one,” I offered.

“Poophead?”

“Turd?”

I sighed. Ever since starting at the elementary school, they had discovered different curses. To me, they were cheesier, but to them, they were brand new.

“I feel like those are reserved for people you don’t like. You just said you like me.”

Agnes sighed and Beatrice poked out her bottom lip.

“I don’t know what to call you. Do you have any ideas?”

“What about Ammie?” I asked. It wasn’t a term I’d ever heard for a mother figure, but that didn’t matter. The second I said it, it sounded right.

I watched the girls carefully, hoping they wouldn’t immediately deny it. If they did, I’d come up with something else and deal with it.

Then they both nodded and it felt like my heart could burst.

I never thought this would be my future, but it was perfect. Even if it was messy, even if it was busy, I had everything I could have possibly dreamed of.

It didn’t come from the grant. It didn’t come from some mysterious magic that I was always chasing.

It came from Gabe. It came from the town.