Over the next few weeks, Holly's pregnancy wore on, even though she had a bit of a hard time handling with the morning sickness. She would vomit a few times almost every single day and sometimes the smell or even the very thought or mention of food would make her sick; she didn't want to eat anything since she figured she would just throw it back up again later, but she also knew that it was very important for her to eat. She was also really tired during the day and often took naps. After the first four months, the morning sickness and fatigue had finally disappeared altogether, much to her relief.
As more time went by, Holly thought that she should be suffering from violent, crazy mood swings sometime soon, but luckily she didn't. However, her appetite has increased; she would often get cravings for different kinds of food, but her all-time favorite thing to eat was her husband's candy… especially the chocolate.
One night, Willy was in bed reading a book on how to be a good parent when Holly walked into the room, her now rounded middle hanging out. She walked over to the bed, looked at the cover of her husband's book, and smirked at him.
"What are you reading?" She asked.
Willy quickly closed his book and tried to hide it as he said, "Nothing."
"Is that a parenting book?" Holly asked as she sat down in bed next to her husband.
"…Maybe." He responded as nonchalantly as he could.
He glanced at his wife who was giving him a look he couldn't quite read.
"What? One can't be too careful… right?" Willy said, shrugging his shoulders nervously.
Holly sighed and shook her head before saying, "Willy, I know you're worried about me and the baby, but don't you think you're going a little overboard here?"
"Uh… Define 'overboard'."
"No offense, but you have been pretty overprotective lately."
"What do you mean?"
"Remember dinner? I reached out for a knife and you snatched it away just before I could grab it saying that I could accidentally cut myself. I can handle a butter knife just fine."
"Uh, well…"
"And what about a couple days ago? I nearly tripped in the Chocolate Room and you thought I'd seriously hurt the baby if I fell. But I caught myself before I did fall, didn't I?"
"Well… yeah, you did, but—"
"But nothing. Look Willy; I know you're excited about this, I am too. But you need to take this whole thing down a notch; I may be pregnant but I'm not helpless, you know."
Willy sighed and put a hand over his face in embarrassment; he put his book down and turned his head to face her.
"You're right. I'm sorry, Holly." He said. "I just can't help it. This is going to be my first time being an actual parent; I hardly know what to do in a situation like this and right now, I need all the help I can get… Plus, I won't be able to forgive myself if anything bad happened to you or our baby. I just want you to be healthy and safe, both of you."
Holly scooted closer to Willy and gave him a kiss on the cheek; she gave him a loving look.
"I appreciate that, Willy." She said. "But next time something happens, try not to make a big deal out of it, okay?"
"Okay, I'll try my best. But for now…" He sighed, leaning closer to his wife; she smiled and leaned in closer to him.
Before their lips could touch however, Holly gasped and her eyes widened when she suddenly felt something; she put her hands to her stomach.
"Holly? W-what is it? What's wrong?" Willy asked worriedly.
"Willy… it's the baby." Holly said in an excited whisper. "It… it's kicking. I can feel it."
"Wait, really?"
"Yeah. Here, give me your hand. Quick."
"Uh…"
Holly sighed in slight annoyance and grabbed Willy's wrist. Then she took off his glove and placed his bare hand on top of her stomach.
"Hey! What are you—?"
"Shush! Just wait…"
The two of them sat like that for a few long moments of silence until finally, Willy felt something underneath his hand. His eyes widened and he almost gasped in response; he almost couldn't believe that there really was a real living thing inside of his wife. He looked at Holly who was staring back him with a thrilled expression on her face.
"Feel it?" She asked.
"Yeah, yeah I do. Wow, that's… that's really something. It's amazing!" Willy replied, his eyes wide with wonder.
"I know." Holly softly giggled.
Willy pulled her closer to him and kissed the side of her head; Holly smiled and rested her head on his shoulder.
"I love you." He said.
"I love you too." She replied.
Then Willy looked down at his hand, still resting on Holly's belly; he smiled.
