In the two months that Maggie had been with them, Sage had learned a lot about herself. She had always doubted she would be a very good mother, given the circumstances, but even after four years of not having her daughter around, it was shockingly easy to love her. She supposed she had never really stopped, but to be faced with it now, day in and day out, was another thing entirely.

It was hard though. Harder than she ever would have cared to admit.

In an effort to keep the burden off her sisters, Sage had taken up the night shift permanently. That way she was working while Maggie was sleeping and all Sage had to do was rely on somebody to be there in case Maggie woke up. From what she could tell, it wasn't that often, which was good. Nobody was complaining either, but she still felt the guilt and the responsibility weighing her down. Sleep was hard to come by, broken up in a few hours before her shift and a few hours after in the time Maggie was still asleep. It had been fine at first. She had gotten used to it, but now she could feel that added to the pressure and she knew she was close to breaking or getting sick and she couldn't afford either. The exhaustion was bone deep and she was struggling, but she didn't want to admit it.

The night had been relatively quiet, so Sage had curled up on the sofa in the break room to try and catch a few more minutes. Even a twenty minute power nap would help, or so she hoped. It wasn't unusual for those working overnight to take a quick snooze break, so she hoped nobody would hold it against her. No sooner had she drifted off (mercifully quick) than somebody came into the break room, the door closing loudly behind them, startling Sage into sitting up. It was a good try. Coffee. She could use some coffee instead.

Blinking back the fatigue, Sage moved toward the kettle to start the water.