"Alright. Emergency phone numbers are on the fridge. If you need anything—-"
"We'll call." Finnick finishes with a grin. He and his precious love, Annie, accepted the duty of residing at his sister's house and watching his eight-month-old niece for the weekend while his brother-in-law took her on a three-day getaway. "We've got this. We'll take care of Olivia just fine."
After a few more detailed instructions such as what to feed the infant and when to put her to bed, Finnick's sister kissed her daughter's cheek lovingly and departed.
Turning to the chubby baby girl in Finnick's arms, Annie gives a wide, excited grin. As she begins to gently stroke the infant's few soft, light blonde curls, Finnick joins her in smiling.
"Well, Livvy, it's just you me and Annie now. What would you like to do this weekend? Shop? Fish? Get a tattoo maybe?"
"Your sister would kill us, Finnick!" Annie exclaims, laughing softly at his bizarre utterances. He's so ridiculously adorable, Annie thinks. How fun would it be to have a child? He'd be such a great father…
Finnick walks around the room with his tiny niece in his arms, and he continues to speak to her as if she's an adult. She only stares up at her crazy uncle with wide emerald-green eyes as if trying to understand his foolish babbling. Not that she was old enough to understand her emotions nor she tell anybody, but little Olivia loved her Uncle Finnick already. She loved his gentle cradle, and she loved his soft voice.
While gently bouncing the little bundle of joy, Finnick sits on the couch, and Annie sits beside him, looking at Olivia almost longingly The brunette's ever-present grin widens even more when the baby begins to gurgle and smiles toothlessly up at them. Annie reaches over toward Olivia's hand, and her tiny fingers wrap around Annie's index finger. She gently lays a kiss on the back of the beautiful girl's hand before looking at Finnick.
"She's so adorable, Finn. Imagine what it'd be like if we had a child. Wouldn't that be amazing?"
Finnick looks up at her before looking down at his niece and giving an almost indiscernible nod. He can imagine having a baby. They'd both be so extremely happy. Their life would feel a little more complete.
What he cannot imagine is the responsibility.
Were they ready to bring a child into the world? Were they in the right place emotionally to be able to handle having someone to take care of everyday? Finnick still felt as if he had to care for Annie too much to be able to take care of a whole other person. She was okay at the moment, but one tiny remembrance of the past can set her back. Don't get him wrong: he'd never ever complain about taking care of his love. That's why they were together. He's promised time and time again that he'd always be there for her. He just didn't know if he was ready to make that commitment for someone else yet.
He's thankfully dragged away from his musing when he heard a very soft and high-pitched voice coming from the someone in his arms.
"Dada-dada-dada," Olivia mumbled, her eyes looking from Annie to Finnick. "Dada!"
With a chuckle, Finnick, shifted her in his arms and continued listening to her persistent babbling.
"Dada!" she cried, becoming irritated. What's wrong?, Finnick wondered. She had just been fed minutes before her mama and daddy left, as her diaper was changed before he'd arrived at their house.
Suddenly, the soft mumbling turned into sobs, and the sobs turned into wails. Finnick cradled Olivia to his chest and rubbed her back soothingly in an attempt to calm her, and Annie looked at them in concern.
"What's wrong with her?" Annie inquired.
Finnick shrugged. "She's getting cranky. I guess we can put her down for a nap…"
"No," Annie said quickly. "I'll take her," she offers, holding her arms out for the distressed child.
Finnick hands her over without hesitation, and Annie stands up with Olivia in her arms. She walks around the room with the baby cradled to her chest, patting her back in an attempt to pacify her cries.
"Shh, baby girl… Annie's got'cha. You're okay, little one." Annie whispers soothing words to the baby until her breathing evened out and her eyelids fell closed. Smiling down at her, Annie continues pacing around the room, thoroughly enjoying her time with the child. "There, Livvy Bug. Rest now."
Maybe a baby wouldn't be such an outrageous idea, Finnick thinks. Look at how happy Annie is.
And Annie was indeed happy. She was so happy, that in a few years' time, they would have their own baby boy who they named Noah. Other than each other, they'd never loved anyone as much as they loved their pride and joy of a child. They'd never wished for anything more than to have a family of their own and to be in love forever, and that's exactly what they had gotten.