With the addition of Oka to the house, Kaede's vision of a family was close to complete. Oka had integrated nicely into their daily lives, and it was fun to have her around. She liked Kaede a lot, but for as much as she liked the blonde woman, she always snuggled up next to Shuichi when he collapsed onto the couch at the end of a long day.
He'd smile over at her, and then smile down at the dog, and they'd sit there for a little while, snuggling together. Oka licked at his hands and face gingerly, and it warmed Kaede when he gave a little laugh for the dog's efforts. Oka seemed to know the effect she was having, too. The wagging of her tail increased when he laughed, and she seemed a little more excited that it was working.
It had been a month since they'd gotten her, and she'd already grown accustomed to the both of them. Likewise, it had also been a month since she had found out that she was pregnant. To her credit, she did try to tell him a couple times. That ultimately failed, however, as she was too nervous.
Sure, they'd been trying - but did that mean he really wanted this? Were they ready?
Because of this, she'd been ghosting and dancing around the topic, even as they kept trying for a baby and she knew that they were already on the way to having one. Morning sickness hadn't quite kicked in yet, and Shuichi didn't seem to know.
Looks could be deceiving, however. She needed to tell him soon, before she started showing.
She'd called Maki about it - who'd bluntly said that she'd have no idea where to even start; so why was she asking her? And she'd called Rantarou - who had some pretty good advice.
And Kirumi. Kirumi had the most solid advice of all, simply saying that she should treat him to a meal and tell him afterward.
So that's what she did.
She had stopped practicing very early that day, and then went out to the store and got the ingredients she would need. Kaede was a pretty good cook.
She first made a lemon pie - she had her mom to thank for that recipe - and then put it in the fridge to settle. Next, she made steaks, mashed potatoes, and macaroni. The macaroni recipe came from her grandmother, and it gave her strength and relaxed her when she ate it, bringing back memories of their time together before she died.
Saihara walked in just as she was finishing - shutting the heavy door behind him. She heard him sigh, and the rake of Oka's claws on the wooden floor. He'd probably bent down to pet her, and then smelled the food.
Footsteps came her way, and she smiled to herself as she heard Oka approaching, too.
He stopped at the doorway, but Oka came over to her, nuzzling her legs affectionately. The blonde woman giggled.
"You're cooking?" He asked quizzically. Kaede could almost see his mind in motion, thinking about what this could be about.
"Yep!"
Shuichi came closer, standing behind her and looking over her shoulder. She shifted back slightly, and he took this as a sign to place his arms around her midsection and chin on her shoulder. "What's the occasion?"
The blonde smiled to herself. "You'll see."
He sighed, but didn't ask anything more for the moment, instead opting to just stand there with her like that. The moment was broken, however, when Oka started to nudge the both of them with her nose. Kaede laughed, but gently pushed her away.
"How did work go today?" She asked. The oven beeped, and he backed away and sat at the chair that they kept in the kitchen. "It was alright, nothing too special happened today."
His wife nodded, moving to take the macaroni from the oven.
Shuichi wasn't quite sure what was up with her silence, so he opted to pick the food route, knowing she would tell him in time. It smelled divine. "What are we having?"
Kaede giggled lightly. "Someone sure is hungry," Shuichi huffed a little at the comment, and she laughed. "But, we're having steak, mashed potatoes, macaroni, and lemon pie for dessert.
A wistful look came over his face for a fraction of a second, stomach growling from just the thought. "That sounds….really good." He managed at last, trying not to give away his growing hunger.
Kaede sighed happily; knowing that he was hungry. "Well, good, because it's almost done. Set the table for me?"
He nodded. "Of course,"
As he set the table, Kaede finished cooking everything and got out two plates. Shuichi came back into the kitchen at that moment, and noticed her getting ready to plate the food. "I-"
"I'm making your plate for you. Now, shoo. Sit down at the table."
He sighed, but obeyed her and sat at the table. "What do you want to drink?" She yelled from the other room.
"I don't really care." He yelled back.
Thankfully, Oka had traveled upstairs to get her trusty bone from their bedroom, so the yelling only sounded like muted talking to her.
A minute later, Kaede came swooping in with their food.
He thanked her, and the both of them sat down as he began to dig in. Halfway through the meal, Kaede cleared her throat.
He looked up, noting that she seemed awfully skittish and nervous all of the sudden.
"I, um...I've got something that I need to tell you."
Shuichi nodded, already having a feeling that it was what he had theorized it was. It was one of two things - she was about to tell him something bad, or she was about to tell him that she was pregnant. "Go on."
She blushed and fidgeted. "Well...umm," she shifted in her seat. "I'm, um, pregnant?"
He had expected to hear it, but it still shocked him a little.
The detective blinked. "Come again?"
"I'm pregnant." She said slowly, starting to smile a little.
"You're...pregnant." He repeated dumbly.
"Yes." She smiled even wider now, and it stretched across her face and seemed to shine down at him like warm beams of sunshine on a cold winter day.
"You're pregnant."
"Uh-huh!"
"You're pregnant!?"
Kaede laughed. "Yes! I'm pregnant with your kid!"
He resisted the urge to scream and jump from his chair, instead opting to lean over the short table and kiss her on the lips, hard.
He felt her smile into the kiss, followed by a couple giggles.
After he had pulled back, he breathed, "We're going to have a family."
"You, me, Oka and our little baby." Kaede said back, smiling.
In spite of himself, he grinned in excitement.
Kaede laughed at him joyously, and then pressed their foreheads together. "I love you."
"I love you, too."
He almost couldn't believe it, still reeling from the revelation.
He was going to be a dad.
Shuichi Saihara was going to be a dad.
He and Kaede were going to have a child.
At that moment, he didn't think he could be happier than he was.
But, he'd be proven wrong when their little girl arrived into the world.
She was beautiful.
Just like her mother.
A/N: this is so pure
i love my kids?
so much?
asdfg
they're so cute
and saihara's reaction to it all was just so lovely
i loved writing this so much
Anyway, maybe leave a review or favorite if you enjoyed? Even a little comment would be amazing! 3
Thank you for reading!
