The house was huge. Probably about three times more space than Coral thought they would need. Triplets didn't mean a whole clan of children, after all. But her husband looked far too eager about their new place for Coral to say anything.
"Wow!" Marlin chorused for the tenth time that hour. He had just returned to her after exploring every room again. "Did your man deliver, or did he deliver?" He puffed out his chest in pride before his wife, who was laying down on their only piece of furniture at the moment, their queen sized bed.
"My man delivered," Coral replied sheepishly. "And you know, it wasn't easy." Coral rolled her eyes as he started for his fifth retelling of how he got the place. "Cause a lot of other couples were after this place," she said before Marlin could continue. The man deflated a bit, realizing he was being annoying. "Well... Yeah."
Coral noticed that she had hurt him more than intended and clumsily tried to get off of the bed. Marlin quickly rushed to her aid and helped her up. "You did good," Coral said, patting his hand while bringing him to the closest window. "And the neighbor hood is awesome."
Outside the street was busy with suburban life. A man and woman were jogging down the street in sweat suits; kids played in a yard; a father was playing football with his son. Everything seemed so peaceful. Coral had to suppress a shudder.
Marlin caught her lack of enthusiasm and turned to his wife with concern. "You do like it, don't you?" Coral smiled with sympathy. "Of course I do" She was going to leave it at that but Marlin looked unconvinced. With a sigh, Coral continued, "It's just... Do you really think we need this much space?"
"Oh..." Marlin's shoulders fell. "Well... You know... We won't have to worry about moving." Marlin tried to explain his reasoning as best he could. "No matter how big the kids get, this house will always fit them. Unlike our apartment back in the city."
Coral nodded in agreement. He was right. The kids would be able to grow up in one place. They'd have friends for life just down the street. Plus, it would be much safer here than in the city. "I guess I didn't think of that~" Coral said before leaning in to kiss her husband on the cheek.
When she pulled back, Coral noticed his cheeks were tinted pink. "Really? Still?" she asked through a giggle. Marlin's eyes darted down and he scowled at the floor. "Shut up."
Coral quickly took his hand and led him to the bed. "It's still as cute as ever," she said with a smile. Marlin tried to stay annoyed but couldn't when she was looking so beautiful. He brought his hand down to her bulging stomach and rubbed it happily. He whispered a few words of love to both the children growing inside his wife and the woman he loved.
"We still have to name them," Coral suddenly stated. "What? You want to name them NOW?" Marlin was shocked she wanted to when they didn't even know their genders yet. "Yeah... At least have some ideas."
Marlin looked as if he was deep in thought before brightening with a smile. "I got it!" he exclaimed, quite pleased with himself. "We'll name the boys Marlin Jr. and the girls Coral Jr." Marlin still held his smug smile before Coral's laughter cut through it.
"You can't really do that!" Coral said, wiping tears off her cheeks. "Why not?" Marlin said with one hand firmly on his hip in defiance. "Because that would get confusing for the two that share a name." Coral was practically dying from laughter.
"Fine." Marlin said, defeated. "Do YOU have any suggestions?" The man was down right annoyed now and not even his wife's glistening cheeks, with their soft freckles, could make him smile. He really did want to name his kids after himself and Coral.
Coral took a few moments to compose herself. Once she was no longer giggling, she rubbed her tummy in contemplation. "I like Nemo."
Finally, Marlin's defiance fell as he understood what Coral meant behind that name. She wanted their children to be unique, not like anyone else. So that they'd each have their own identity despite being triplets. "All right," Marlin said, "we can name one Nemo... But I'd like to name one Marlin Jr. as well."
Coral grinned happily, caressed her husband's cheek, before yawning. "It's been a long day," Marlin said with a shy smile. "I think it's time we went to bed." Marlin got up to change but his wife was still in her nightgown. She was on maternity leave from her work so hadn't bothered to get dressed this day. She had decided the world could know her as 'pajama lady' for one day.
It wasn't long before her husband returned in his own long sleeved pjs and turned off the lights before crawling in next to Coral again. Light laughter could be heard and a sigh soon after. "What is it now, Coral?" came Marlin's annoyed voice. "Your pajamas... They reminded me of our first night together."
Marlin was thankful the lights were off as his cheeks blazed up once more. "Go to bed," he stated curtly. He turned to face the wall and tried to calm himself down while his wife's laughter faded away. Marlin soon dozed off to the sound of Coral's easy breathing.
