KAIZA'S POV :-
Days are changing now.
Her bump is growing bigger with each passing day, her curves becoming more visible.
Most of her clothes don't fit her anymore, so she has officially started stealing mine.
For her, they're loose and comfortable.
And honestly, I don't mind.
Not even a little.
Her tiredness is growing too. Her cravings are getting weirder by the day, and her mood swings…
Well.
Only I know how many of those I've survived because she couldn't have her beloved sushi right now.
I still remember the day she stared at me like I'd personally committed a crime against her.
It was just sushi.
Apparently, it was not just sushi.
But the checkups are still continuing. Everything is being taken care of, and every time the doctor tells us that the baby is doing well, I feel a kind of relief I can't explain.
Some days, I just find us sitting by the seaside, our hands intertwined.
Sometimes, one of my hands rests over hers while the other rests gently against her belly.
And we just sit there.
No talking.
Just imagining.
A life with all three of us together.
A child.
Our baby.
A tiny, living little person who would one day look at us and call us Mama and Papa.
I can't wait to hear those words.
Even if Ash insists that she can still do everything around the house, I barely let her lift a finger anymore.
She complains.
A lot.
But I'm not changing my mind.
Her mother is here, and I trust her with Ash.
Maybe she's not her real mother in the way blood says she should be.
But she's still a mother.
And somehow, that's enough for me.
Sometimes, she says she can feel something moving inside her.
And every single time, her face lights up.
I put my hand over her belly immediately, hoping I'll feel it too.
Sometimes I do.
Sometimes I don't.
But even when I don't, I pretend I did.
Because the thought of our baby moving inside her is enough to make me smile like an idiot.
I've imagined it so many times.
Her holding our baby in her arms, being careful not to hurt that tiny body.
Her eyes filled with tears.
That smile on her face- the kind of smile I've rarely seen from her.
I want to see it.
More than anything.
Days are just passing now.
Each one quietly becoming another memory.
From the very first moment I found out that our little one was coming, I've been waiting for this.
Waiting to hold that tiny baby.
A tiny neck that I'll have to support carefully.
Soft little hands.
Tiny fingers.
Those little feet.
Maybe eyes like hers?
No.
Maybe mine?
Definitely mine.
I smiled to myself at the thought.
I've imagined so much that I don't even know how to put it into words anymore.
What will they look like?
Who will they resemble?
What will their first cry sound like?
Will they be quiet?
Will they be stubborn like their mother?
Probably.
God help me if they are.
A small laugh escaped me.
Slowly, everything seems to be getting closer now.
And then, one random day, I found Ash standing in front of the mirror.
She was staring at herself, one hand resting beneath her belly as she carefully turned to the side.
I stopped at the doorway.
She looked at her reflection for a moment, almost as if she couldn't believe how much she'd changed.
Then she placed both hands over her belly.
And suddenly, it hit me.
It's coming.
After all these months, it's actually coming.
It felt like just yesterday.
And somehow, all that time had passed like a gust of wind.
Those months were memories now.
The tiny bump.
The first checkup.
The first time we heard our baby's heartbeat.
The cravings.
The arguments over sushi.
The sleepless nights.
The laughter.
Everything.
And now...
It's close.
Anytime now.
"It's big," she muttered, staring at her reflection.
I walked closer and stood behind her.
"It sure is."
She glanced at me through the mirror, narrowing her eyes.
"You're enjoying this way too much."
I chuckled and wrapped my arms carefully around her from behind, making sure not to put pressure on her belly.
"Maybe."
She rolled her eyes, but a small smile appeared on her lips.
We've already got their names.
If it's a girl, we'll call her Kaira.
If it's a boy, we'll call him Akai.
I think they're perfect.
Because they're ours.
A little piece of both our names.
A little piece of both of us.
"What are you thinking?" she asked suddenly.
I looked down at her.
"Nothing."
She turned around and walked toward me, slowly because her belly made even the simplest movements a little harder now.
She reached up and fixed my collar with careful fingers.
"You're lying."
I smiled.
"Maybe."
She stared at me for a moment before her expression softened.
That nothing held every thought I'd been carrying.
Our baby.
Our future.
Her.
Me.
Everything we'd built.
Everything we were about to become.
"Our baby is coming," she whispered.
Her voice trembled.
Her eyes were already filling with tears, and she blinked quickly, trying to stop them from falling.
I reached for her hand.
"Yes."
I smiled softly.
"Our baby."
I pulled her into a gentle side hug and pressed a warm kiss against her forehead.
She rested her head against my shoulder.
"Let's sleep," I whispered. "Maybe it's tomorrow."
I squeezed her hand.
"Or the day after."
I smiled.
"Anytime now."
She let out a tiny laugh through her tears and wiped them away with the back of her hand.
"Yes."
She looked down at her belly, then back at me.
"Anytime."
"We'll be holding them."
Her smile grew.
"We'll be holding our baby."
I nodded.
"Together."
We slowly made our way back to our room.
Her tiredness was already catching up with her.
The moment she reached the bed, she barely had the energy to complain about anything else.
She simply slipped beneath the covers and closed her eyes.
Within minutes, she was asleep.
I stayed beside her.
Just watching.
Her breathing was slow and peaceful.
One hand rested near her belly, almost instinctively protecting the little life growing inside her even in her sleep.
I couldn't help but admire her.
Her pregnancy glow was unreal.
Somehow, her skin looked even healthier than it already had, and there was something different about her now.
Something softer.
Calmer.
Beautiful.
I reached out and gently moved a strand of hair away from her face.
"You're going to be an amazing mother," I whispered, even though she couldn't hear me.
My eyes drifted toward her belly.
Soon.
Very soon.
This house wouldn't be this quiet anymore.
There would be tiny footsteps.
Tiny hands.
Sleepless nights.
Laughter.
Crying.
Chaos.
A whole new kind of life.
And somewhere in the middle of all of it...
There would be us.
A family.
I smiled to myself.
Soon, this house would be filled with the cries of our baby.
And I couldn't wait to hear them.