INT. JO AND LINK'S APARTMENT — LIVING ROOM — NIGHT

The house is quiet now.
The kitchen light is off.

A single lamp glows in the living room.

Maureen and Eric sit on opposite ends of the couch, mugs cooling in their hands.
Low voices. End-of-day tired.

Link comes down the stairs.

He looks different. Softer. Spent.
They look up.

MAUREEN
She asleep?

LINK
Yeah.

MAUREEN
That was fast. 

She smiles. Small, knowing. 

MAUREEN (CONT’D)
That’s how I know she needed you. 
Bedtime’s been harder these past few days.

Link nods.

LINK
It went surprisingly smoothly.

That’s all he says. 
It’s enough.
 
Maureen exhales.
Eric nods, slow.

Link sits between them.
Not collapsing, just finally allowing himself to stop moving.

A silence settles.
Comfortable. Earned.

ERIC
How’s Jo?

Link takes a second.
Chooses his words.

LINK
Better.
Still fragile.
But better.

He rubs his palms together.
A nervous habit he hasn’t noticed in years.

MAUREEN
What are the doctors saying?

LINK
The second procedure went well.
The pump’s doing what it’s supposed to do.
(a beat)
Ndugu’s cautiously optimistic.

That word hangs there. Optimistic.
Careful. Earned.

LINK (CONT’D)
If things stay steady…
she might get to see the twins tomorrow.

Maureen’s eyes soften immediately.

MAUREEN
Oh. That’s good.

LINK
Yeah.
That’s been the hardest part for her.
 
A quiet understanding there.

MAUREEN 
I can’t imagine.
 
Another beat.

ERIC
And then what?

LINK
The heart still has to do the work on its own.
So she’s not going anywhere yet.
(a breath)
A few weeks, at least.
Mostly monitoring. Recovery.

ERIC
But out of the ICU?

LINK
Soon.
Hopefully.

Link looks at them.
 
LINK (CONT’D)
Once she’s out of the ICU…
the kids can come.
Short visits. Nothing big.
 
Maureen nods, already planning in her head.

MAUREEN
That’ll mean the world to Luna.
And to Scout too. He’s very attached to her. 

A beat.

ERIC
(quiet, proud)
You and Jo…
(a beat)
You’ve built something good.
It shows…
(quiet, grounded)
And that matters. Especially now.

His voice softens.

Link absorbs it.

LINK
(smiles faintly)
Yeah, but—

He stops. Thinking.

LINK (CONT’D)
Right now…
Wherever I am…
it feels like I’m failing someone.

A beat. 

ERIC
Your kids are tougher than you think.

Maureen smiles.

MAUREEN
And they’re not alone.

She gestures lightly around the room.

MAUREEN (CONT’D)
We’re here.
And it hasn’t all been hard.
(a beat)
We’ve had good moments too.
(gentle, knowing)
More than you’d think.

That gets a small laugh out of him.

LINK
I hope so. 

A quiet moment.
Then softer:

LINK (CONT’D)
I don’t think I’ve said thank you enough.
(a beat)
For staying.
For the kids.
For… everything. 

Eric waves it off gently.

ERIC
That’s what family does.

Maureen reaches for Link’s hand. Squeezes.

MAUREEN
There was never another option.

That almost breaks him.
He nods. Swallows.

MAUREEN (CONT’D)
I can’t wait to meet my granddaughters.

LINK
(soft)
Yeah.

A beat.

MAUREEN
Have you… chosen their names yet?

LINK
Yeah.
We have.

Maureen smiles, then notices he doesn’t say more.

MAUREEN
Aren’t you gonna tell us?

Link doesn’t hesitate.

LINK
When Jo meets them.
She should be the one to say it. 

A beat. That lands.

MAUREEN
Of course.
She’s already missed so much. 

Link nods. Then worry. 

LINK
She’s really fragile emotionally right now.

MAUREEN
She’s been through so much.

A beat. 

He pulls out his phone.

LINK
I’m just going to text her.
Make sure everything’s alright.

He types.

TEXT — LINK (TO JO)
How are you?
Luna’s asleep. She’s okay.
Can’t wait for all of us to be home.
I love you.

He sets the phone face down.

LINK
If Jo and the twins stay stable…
I’ll try to come home every night.

ERIC
Good.
It’ll make things easier for them.
 
Link nods. Leans back.

Another silence. This one is different.

He glances at his phone.
No reply.
He exhales. Half relief, half worry.

Maureen catches it.

MAUREEN
She’s probably sleeping.

LINK
I know.

That doesn't quite settle him. 

He leaves the phone where it is.
For the first time all day, he lets the quiet hold him.

FADE OUT.