READ THIS NOTE! The reason I say this is because this installment actually takes place a few days after Hoshiko's birth, so I just wanted everyone to understand that so nobody gets confused. Anyways, this one is a request from Valentine'sNinja, hope you enjoy!
Nighttime Care
Loud, distressed cries emanated from a tiny room, flowing quickly into the larger room just across from it, and almost immediately waking the parents of the tiny baby who was the very source of the noises.
"...I've got it..." ground out Rukia groggily, placing her forearms flat on the ground to lift herself from the futon. Before she could even get to her knees, though, a large hand right on her back stopped her, thwarting her attempts to rise higher. Rukia's head snapped to the side, her half-lidded gaze focusing on the very man who was halting her, his own eyes tired yet serious.
"No," he corrected, replying somewhat to her statement. "I've got it." Rukia sighed, rolling her eyes at the same time. It was their first night back home from the fourth division, where Rukia had rested for three days after the birth, and her oaf of a husband wasn't letting her walk around much. Despite countless assurances by Unohana-taicho that she was nearly fully recovered, Renji had set a 'rule' that she had to be sitting or laying down 95% of the time for at least another few days. And she grudgingly agreed, but for three reasons only. One, she knew that he wouldn't budge on his decision in the slightest, even if she pulled out her pouty, girly routine. Two, he was watching her constantly, making sure that she didn't become too active. And three, that little part inside of her that loved romance and flowers secretly made her heart melt at his blatant concern.
"She might need to be fed," argued Rukia, attempting to make him give in even though she knew her efforts were futile.
"You fed her just before we put her to bed," he countered back, the hand on her back not budging even an inch. "And besides, you made up some bottles earlier, so even if she is hungry, you're not needed." As soon as the words had slipped from his lips, Renji realized that the statement, 'you're not needed' had definitely been the wrong way to word his sentence. Rukia's eyebrows met, and her lips contorted into a scowl.
"I'm not needed, you say?" she asked rhetorically as a dark aura began to surround her, her tone filled to the brim with poison. "So, you're saying that you can just magically produce breast milk on your own, without any help from me at all?" Now, rather than anger, her attitude seeped of mocking sarcasm. Renji would've mentioned the product from the human world called 'baby formula,' but feared that if he did he would just be digging himself into an even deeper hole. Rukia continued on, saying, "You, Abarai Renji, are telling me that you could've provided all the genes and chromosomes for her all by yourself, and then you could've carried Hoshiko in your rapidly growing stomach for nine months? And that, after that, you could've had the anatomic ability to go through 12 hours of incredibly PAINFUL labor to bring her into this world? Is that what you're trying to tell me, Renji?" At this point, her words had driven back to the nature of ferocity.
"Um..." was his only response as he sweatdropped, somewhat afraid to take the conversation any further. But before he could do anything, Rukia just plopped back down on the futon, rolling over on her side immediately so she was facing away from him.
"Whatever," she said flatly, not moving. "Go take care of her, I don't care." Renji just stared at her awkwardly, unsure whether she was just tired of dealing with him or whether she was fuming and trying to guilt him into something. Either way, he was afraid of what would happen if he engaged her further, so the redhead simply slipped out of bed, standing up and silently making his way to Hoshiko's nursery, which was a good thing, because her cries were beginning to get more and more desperate.
"It's alright, baby..." cooed Renji softly, picking the tiny being out of her crib, her small body already wrapped in a gray blanket. Even with her father holding her, Hoshiko continued on with her wails, distressed for a reason that Renji hadn't yet deciphered.
"What's the matter?" he asked, though he knew that getting a verbal answer was impossible. He rocked her back and forth slowly, placing a small kiss on her forehead in an attempt to soothe her. The large man would've attempted to sing, too, but knew that his terrible singing voice would just hurt her ears. That was an advantage to having Rukia around, the fact that her soft, smooth voice sounded beautiful and could put Hoshiko out like a light. The babe's cries died down a little, but she was still upset about something.
"Are you hungry?" Quickly, Renji made his way downstairs, opening the door of the refrigerator and grabbing one of the bottles Rukia had made earlier. Holding it up to her mouth, the man prayed that his daughter's crisis was hunger, so that he could get her to stop crying. But sadly, her tiny hand just batted the bottle away, and her shrieks escalated.
"Hey!" he snapped. "I'm trying to help you here, don't cry louder just because I guessed wrong!" In truth, Renji knew that he must've looked silly, talking to a baby like that, but he was much too frustrated at the moment to care.
Suddenly, a certain smell flitted past Renji's nose, and he immediately knew what the problem was, though he was dreading the solution. Walking a few steps into the living room, he yanked open a drawer and retrieved the soft mat that the couple used to change Hoshiko on. After also obtaining some wipes and baby powder, Renji quickly spread the mat out on the coffee table in front of the couch, placing the small baby on it as he proceeded to perform one of the biggest downsides, in his opinion, to having a kid.
Gently, he untangled her from the soft fleece blanket, setting the material on the floor behind him, and leaving Hoshiko in nothing except her cloth diaper. Unfastening the safety pin, Renji pulled it out, setting it beside the blanket as he opened the diaper to find that, yes, his daughter had gone number two. Sighing, he reached for a baby wipe, making sure to clean her bottom thoroughly before disposing of the excrement that lay in the diaper. After throwing the dirty cloth into the bin which he and Rukia had designated for dirty diapers, he snagged a new, clean piece of cloth from the same drawer where he had gotten the other baby products, and then started to wrap the material around Hoshiko's lower half. It took him a few tried until he could properly remember how it was supposed to be folded, but once he had achieved the right shape, he held the cloth in one hand as the other reached for the safety pin, being extremely careful not to poke her sensitive skin as he maneuvered the pin through the folds of the diaper, until clipping it back in place once again, and fastening the garment in place. The tattooed shinigami sighed in relief, glad that it was over.
...That was, until he noticed that Hoshiko still hadn't stopped wailing. Another sigh, this time of frustration, as he picked her up off the mat and placed her in the blanket once more, not bothering to put the baby products away. He strolled into the kitchen area once more, opening up the fridge again, but this time in search of something to eat for himself. And then, he saw a tiny pair of arms stretching, reaching for the bottles of milk that sat next to each other on the top shelf.
"So now you're hungry?" questioned Renji, reaching out and grasping one of the containers, and then holding it in front of her mouth as he had done only minutes earlier. This time, though, instead of acting repulsed at it, the tiny baby instantly began feeding, drinking greedily, her small hands attempting to grasp the bottle as Renji held it up for her, knowing that she wasn't old enough to hold it on her own. The redhead smirked triumphantly, glad that he had finally found a way to quiet her down, and being too relieved to care that she had gone from being on a hunger strike to eating like, well, eating like himself in just a few minutes.
Traveling back into the living room and continuing to ignore the forgotten changing tools, Renji reached into the drawer once more to retrieve a binkie, for when Hoshiko finished with her milk. Soon enough, the bottle was drained, and before Hoshiko could resume her crying, Renji replaced the bottle with the blue binkie, with seemed to make the tiny babe content, because she closed her eyes in relaxation as her father set the empty bottle on a table next to them. Then Renji redirected his attention back to Hoshiko, smiling down warmly at his baby as he felt pride and love surge through him, making the man feel warm inside.
Rukia awoke the next morning to an empty bed, her eyes traveling from the spot beside her to the position of her daughter's nursery. Standing, the small woman made her way into the small room, only to find that Hoshiko was gone as well. She quirked a confused eyebrow, before heading downstairs, only to see a sight that made her let out an immediate 'Awwww!' Renji lay on the couch, flat on his back, sound asleep and snoring softly. One of his arms hung down off the side of the furniture, while the other cradled Hoshiko to his partly bare chest lovingly, the small baby being asleep on her stomach, her tiny fists balled as she rose up and down in accordance with her father's breathing, a binkie present in her mouth all the while. Rukia couldn't help but smile at the adorable sight, only now realizing that Renji hadn't cleaned up from last night.
So, the female shinigami rolled up the changing mat, also scooping up the baby wipes and powder, making sure to be extra silent so that Renji wouldn't wake up and have a conniption at the fact that she was up and about instead of resting, but also because she didn't want to disrupt the cute scene of father-daughter love. Also retrieving the empty bottle, she went into the kitchen and placed it into the sink, grabbing the camera from a nearby drawer before reentering the living room and holding the object up to her face, positioning it so she could take a perfect picture of her husband being a loving dad.
"Say cheese, you two."
END OF THIRD INSTALLMENT
Aww! Renji's being a good dad! Isn't it cute? Hope you enjoyed, next installment is gonna be one of my ideas, but remember, I still love requests! Which reminds me, thanks to all who've left requests, including Valentine'sNinja, this one was for you! Tite Kubo owns Bleach, I do not, and I love and appreciate all comments and opinions!