The rest of the world was still fast asleep as she was propped up against the headboard of the bed that she shared with John in the early hours of an early January morning, her lips curled up into a loving smile as she held her precious newborn in her arms and William's perfectly fragile hand cupped the round swell of her breast in its palm as he sucked sleepily upon her nipple and filled his tiny stomach with the warmth of her milk. Anna Bates had never been a fan of early mornings and she had always despised not being able to wake naturally, but she had found, since bringing William into the world after six hours of unending agony, that she adored his late-night and early-morning feeds. She found immense joy in cradling him protectively against her chest for forty-five minutes every two hours, committing his perfect features to memory as he sucked slowly on her breast. She had thought that breastfeeding would take several weeks or even months to become accustomed to, considering she had never experienced the sensation before and it was foreign to her, but, to her surprise, she had taken to it like a duck to water. She knew now that there would never be another feeling more incredible than her son at her breast.
She couldn't resist the urge to shift William slowly into one arm in order to bring her hand up to graze his perfect cheek with the backs of her fingers, a gentle giggle leaving her as he shivered in her hold when the cool metal of her wedding ring brushed against his warm skin. She felt her heart swell with the unending love that she possessed for him as his eyes, which were the same midnight blue as all newborns, fluttered open slightly just moments later and his tiny fingertips grazed against the warm skin of her breast whilst he gazed up at her and continued to suck sleepily upon her nipple. She couldn't find the words to convey how incredible it all felt: the gentle tugs upon her nipple as he drowsily took his milk; his warm and rapid breaths hitting against her skin when he pulled away every now-and-again to catch his breath. He was the most perfect baby that Anna'd ever clapped eyes on. 'My miracle boy.' She whispered as she stroked the tips of her fingers soothingly against the warm skin of his arm, William shifting slightly in her hold to find a slightly more comfortable position to lay in as he continued with his feed. 'You and your Daddy are the most important things in the world to me, do you know that?' She asked.
She cast her loving gaze downwards to the incredible man that was sleeping soundly beside her with his hand tucked neatly beneath his cheek as his hair was now finally free of pomade, her heart swelling with love for him as his thick dark hair had fallen into his face and he was releasing the gentlest of snores. She knew that she was terribly blessed to have such a gentle and patient man for her husband, and she knew that William was just as blessed to have such a caring and protective father. John had always been so loving and understanding with her, even when she hadn't been the same towards him, and she knew in her heart that there was no way on earth that she would've gotten through the last few years without him by her side. Even though it had almost been four years since the evening of the house-party - since the evening of her attack - she still suffered from nightmares occasionally and had also found herself putting herself down over the scars that had been left behind to remind her of the horrors that she experienced. There was a scar just beside her eye, a scar just below her lower lip and a scar on her brow-bone. There were many others, but those three were the most noticeable to her. Throughout her pregnancy, due to her hormones, she had been much more emotional which meant that she had spent many evenings curled up in her husband's lap as she had sobbed into his chest due to the worry that he would always remember what she had been through every time he looked at her. He'd sworn to her that he didn't. That he only saw pure beauty.
It was a few moments later when she brought her gaze back to the beautiful baby boy that was nestled in her arms and her soft rosebud lips curled up into a warm smile as she saw that William had managed to drift off whilst feeding, a loving sigh escaping her as she swept her hand soothingly through his light dusting of dark brown hair before dipping her head to kiss him lingeringly upon the temple. 'Sweet dreams, my sweet one.' She whispered softly into his ear before lovingly drawing him away from her breast so that she could pull the strap of her nightgown back up her arm, her deep blue eyes sparkling with affection when she brought him slowly to her shoulder and began to alternate between tenderly patting and rubbing his tiny back to bring up his wind. The feeling of his warm breath against the soft skin of her neck and the way that she was able to feel the steady rise and fall of his tiny chest against her collarbone was indescribable as she held him close, her lips next to his ear as she hummed a lullaby to him and nuzzled her nose gently against the dusting of dark hair on his head. She had known from the moment that her pregnancy had been confirmed that she was going to enjoy being a mother, but she was unable to deny that the joy she felt now, as she held William as close as possible to her shoulder and coaxed up his wind, exceeded any expectations that she'd had at the start.
Laying him back down in his cot after he had released the softest of burps just ten minutes later, Anna couldn't help but stroke the backs of her fingers down his cheek once she had slipped his pacifier carefully back into his mouth. He looked so incredibly perfect when he slept, his tiny hand clenched into a fist as he sucked subconsciously on his pacifier and his dark eyelashes fluttered delicately. 'Night-night, darling.' She whispered with a gentle smile before kissing the tips of her fingers and pressing them gently to his smooth forehead. She lay back down slowly a few moments later, a tired smile appearing upon her lips as she felt her husband shift closer to her before his strong arm wrapped around her hips and he pressed himself up against her back with a soft open-mouthed kiss to the side of her neck. 'Mmm..' She hummed in satisfaction as she leaned back against him.
'Sleep well, my beautiful girl.' He whispered sleepily into her ear as she laced their fingers warmly upon her still-deflating stomach, Anna turning slightly to kiss his lips tenderly.
'And you.' She smiled as she stroked his cheek with the back of her palm. 'I love you so much.'
'I love you too.' He pressed a slow kiss to her warm brow.
The two of them began to settle down to sleep, then, John burying his face in his wife's shoulder as she brushed her thumb lightly across his rough knuckles and sighed softly in contentment at the feeling of his warm breath upon her skin. She couldn't get enough of her boys' steady breathing against her flesh. As she drifted off to sleep in John's strong arms, she couldn't help but giggle softly to herself as a realization that she never thought would hit her, did.
She really did adore those early mornings.
Author's Note: Please Review!