I stood up from the table, my heart feeling lighter and fuller than it had in weeks. The heavy cloud of anxiety that had been hovering over me since the morning had finally begun to lift.
Walking back out to the sunlit courtyard, I clapped my hands together to get the children's attention. "Alright, everyone! I have to run to a training session, but I promised the caretaker I’d be back soon."
The playground erupted into a chorus of excited gasps and cheers.
"You're really coming back?" Toby asked, abandoning his wooden sword to run over to me, his eyes wide with hope.
"Absolutely," I smiled, crouching down one last time to look him in the eye. "Next time, we’ll see who can make the biggest mud splash. Deal?"
"Deal!" he cheered, high-fiving my hand. Even little Lily offered a tiny, shy
