A/N: Thank you all for the wonderful reviews. Another update, yay!
If you want to know how Stella looks (the baby in the cover image is Zack) then go on Pinterest (the homepage) and type this at the end:
/pin/69102175502798793/
That's Stella!
Stella sat down on a chair and looked at the baby in her arms. Zack was playing with the bow on her blouse. She rubbed his cheek and he looked up. "You like that bow?" She asked as Zack looked back down and continued tugging at it. He looped it around his finger before turning back to Stella. "Dadda?" He said.
"Daddy's gone to work." Stella answered. "He'll be back soon."
Zack turned his attention back to the blue bow. Stella rubbed his head, massaging it. When she was little, her mother used to do that to her all of the time. And she loved it. It seemed like Zack enjoyed it too. He was swaying side to side with his bottom lip stuck out, and playing with the bow. Stella spotted a jar on the counter, labeled 'Gummy Bears'. She opened it and took a handful out, offering them to Zack. Zack took the red one and put it in his mouth, sucking on it slowly. After a while, he took another red one and sucked on it. Stella smiled. "You like the red ones, huh?"
Zack patted her chest, as if telling her yes and then looked up at her. "Lala." He said patting her chest again.
Stella frowned. "What?"
"Lala, Lala." Zack repeated. Stella had no idea what 'Lala' was. Zack turned his head towards the second door and wiggled in Stella's lap. "Lala."
Stella stood up and walked towards the door, finding herself in the living room. She looked around, trying to see if there was something 'Lala' related in there. Finding no success, she was about to turn when Zack pulled her long ponytail. "Lala! Lala!" He giggled, jumping up and down in her arms. Stella turned back around and saw where Zack was pointing to. A stuffed lion lay on the sofa. Stella picked it up and handed it to Zack who instantly clutched it in his chubby hands. "Lala." He said with a satisfied sigh. Stella grinned and kissed his cheek, while walking out of the room. She walked upstairs, hoping to find Zack's nursery so she could get him some more toys.
Stella was wondering around on the top floor when she saw a door slightly ajar. She opened it a bit further and looked around. The room was dark but even so, Stella could see that it was painted pink. A pink crib occupied a corner and there were various baby furniture scattered around in the room. Dust had settled on the furniture, covering it in a thick grey. It looked like a baby's nursery. But definitely not one that had been used in a while.
Stella continued to look around until Zack patted her on the cheek, bringing her back to reality. She shook her head slightly and walked back out of the room. A few doors away, she saw a blue sign saying, 'Zack' on it. Entering the room, she realized it was the nursery, well, the other one. Stella saw that Zack's nursery was like a paradise for babies. It had everything a baby could want from a personal library to shelves full of toys. Stella walked to the crib and saw that there were various buttons on the railings. 'Massage', 'Warm', 'Cool, and 'Wrap' were a few options on the remote. Stella pressed the 'Massage' button and instantly the crib started whizzing. Bumps began to appear on the bottom and Stella realized it was to massage the baby. She quickly turned it off and placed Zack in the crib. Turning to the library she pulled out a thin book, 'Goldilocks and the Three Bears'. Stella walked back to Zack and found him rolled up in a ball, talking to his lion. Stella caught a few words, mainly 'Dadda' and 'Lala'. He finished his tale and hugged his lion. Stella picked him up and sat down on the rocking chair. She opened the book, placing Zack in her lap in such a way that the book was on his lap. He clapped and giggled as he realized which book it was. Stella began reading, "Once upon a time, in a far away land, here was a small cottage in the woods. Living in the..."
Zack listened to Stella's words intentionally, patting the book whenever he saw the bears and giggling whenever Stella pretended to be a scary Papa Bear. Stella read 'Rapunzel' and 'The Golden Goose' next.
"Come on, Zack, say aah." Stella said as she held up the spoon to Zack's mouth. Samantha had came to cook dinner and had left as soon as she was done. Stella had been feeding Zack the soft bits of macaroni ever since then. She would eat one spoon and offer him the next. Zack clapped his hands whenever he swallowed the macaroni. Zack opened his mouth again and Stella gently put the spoon in. He smacked his lips as he tasted the lemony tinge to the macaroni and clapped his hands again. Stella smiled and kissed his head before taking the plates and carrying them over to the sink. She rinsed and dried them before placing them on the rack. She then picked Zack up again and walked into the TV lounge. "Alright, Zack. Now do you want to watch a movie?" She asked. Zack patted her chest and Stella took that as a yes. She placed him on the sofa and built a cushion fortress around him to make sure he didn't fall. Stella saw two CD racks on one side of the TV screen. Skimming through one rack she realized that the CDs there were probably Cato's. The other rack was more satisfactory. She pulled out an episode of Sesame Street and placed it in the CD player. Grabbing the remote, Stella sat back down on the sofa, pulling Zack into her lap. Elmo entered the screen and the movie began.
An hour and 3 Sesame Street episodes later, Stella tucked Zack into bed. Cato had been right about him being an easy baby. He hadn't bothered her at all during the day. She kissed his forehead and turned off the lights. She walked back into the TV lounge and opened her binder. She had a bit of Algebra homework left, that was all. While Zack had been watching Sesame Street, she had managed to complete most of her homework.
Settling back on the sofa, Stella opened page 465, and set out on finding x. It took her ten minutes to finish the last of her homework and then she put everything back in her binder, zipping it closed. Stella glanced at the clock and saw that it was 8:27. When had Cato said he would be back home? 8:30?
Just then, the front door opened and Cato walked in. He dropped his laptop bag on the sofa and plopped down next to Stella. "Hey." He said.
"Hello." Stella answered offering Cato a smile.
"How was the little munchkin?" Cato asked, running a hand through his hair.
"Wonderful. He was absolutely wonderful." Stella answered without hesitation.
Cato let out a sigh of relief. "Oh thank God. He didn't bother you?"
"Oh not at all. He was an angel. We read books, played with his stuffed toys, ate macaroni and watched Sesame Street." Stella replied. Cato nearly passed out in happiness. "Good, very good."
"No problem." Stella stood up. "I think I should go now. "
Cato nodded. "Thanks Stella. Thanks a lot."
