a sound she hadn't heard before

forty-seven.

Taylor and Joe wake next to each other to the beeping of an alarm clock. The day is finally here: they're headed off to London.

Taylor rolls over and smiles at Joe. "You ready?"

"Ready as I'll ever be," he laughs, his voice raspy and his hair messy from the deep sleep that he has just been awaken from. He and Taylor share a quick kiss before they both climb out of bed to get dressed.

They're all ready for the flight. They packed everything into the car last night, except for their essentials, which they'll throw into their carry-on bags this morning. 

It's the first day in a new chapter of their lives. This is a big step for them, both professionally and personally. Both of them are tackling new goals in their careers, and really, though they've spent countless nights together, living in London is going to be their first time officially living together.

"Can you go get breakfast started while I wake Ayla?" Taylor asks Joe, once they're all dressed.

"Absolutely," Joe nods. The only food that is left in the house, short of snacks for the trip, is the ingredients for three yogurt parfaits this morning. Taylor figures that they can easily make those in plastic cups and eat them with plastic spoons, so that they don't have to worry about cleaning dishes this morning. Joe walks out of the room, and just before Taylor does the same, she checks her phone, which is plugged in and will stay that way until the last minute.

Her screen is full of well-wishes from her friends and family. She can't help but smile as she quickly scrolls through them, even noticing a video from Jane and her mom. Ayla will be thrilled to see that. She's really going to miss her best friend, more than anything else in New Jersey.

Taylor quietly walks into Ayla's room and sees her daughter sleeping peacefully. Her curly blonde hair is sprawled out on the pillow and a smile is on her face, even as she's asleep. Taylor hates to wake her from her dreams, but she knows that she must. She lightly shakes her daughter's shoulder. "Ayla, sweetie pie, it's time to wake up. We're flying to London today."

Ayla slowly opens her eyes. "London?" she mutters.

"Yep, today's the day," Taylor tells her, letting out a little giggle. This has been all that Ayla has talked about for the last few days, so of course she knows that it's travel day, but she's trying to think straight right now, as she transitions from being asleep to awake. "Come on, let's get you dressed."

Ayla climbs out of bed, then Taylor helps her daughter to take off her pajamas and put on the outfit that she picked out- black leggings and a sweatshirt that Dani got her from her university, Rutgers, as a going away present.

"Look at you, my little college girl," Taylor teases her daughter, tickling her ribs.

"Will you braid my hair?"

"Yep. Anna or Elsa hair?" Taylor asks. Ayla giggles. The terms were coined when the little girl was much younger, to indicate whether she wanted one or two braids. 

"Anna."

"Done," Taylor smiles. "Sit down." Ayla does as she is told and Taylor quickly braids her daughter's hair. "You look beautiful, sweetie."

"Thanks Mommy," Ayla smiles.

"Joe's downstairs making breakfast. Go ahead and go down, and I'm just going to make sure that we have packed up everything that you need, okay?"

"Okay," the little girl nods, giving her mom a quick hug before walking out of the room. Taylor can't help but feel her heart melt at how sweet her little girl is. She couldn't have ever imagined a more perfect daughter.