Linnie jolted up awake as the sun hit him, waking up to see that Nora had already left for work. Oh dear…I wasn't awake to make her breakfast in time. I guess I'll just make her an extra nice dinner then to make up for it. After he had gotten up, to his surprise, he had time to take a shower and throw on his usual sweater outfit (that was starting to look a bit small on him), and cleaned his reading glasses thoroughly, sliding the frame underneath his seaweed hair before entering the kitchen, where his four year old son, Darren, was trying to reach for the cabinets.
"Good morning sweetie, oh..Darren, honey, get down from there please. You might fall and get hurt.", Linnie said, picking the child up and placing him on one of the chairs, "I'm sorry I woke up late. I know how hungry you must be. Here, let me make you some eggs and toast."
"Eggs? But I want cereal!", Darren whined, earning a soft, sorry smile from Linnie.
"Well, maybe you can have a bowl after, but I'd like you to eat something healthy first, honey.", Linnie said, turning around to grab the eggs from the fridge, "Did you sleep alright? Did sleeping with mommy and daddy help with your bad dream?"
"Yeah..but I don't think mommy wanted me there.", Darren sighed, as Linnie looked at Darren sadly.
"Now now, I don't think that's true. Mommy and Daddy love you very much. It's just that…well..I think she was a bit too tired last night. That might be why she's so grumpy.", Linnie said, not having the heart to tell Darren Nora's true feeling on him. But just thinking about the interaction made him a bit nervous as he patted his stomach. It was about a week now since he took that test, and felt guilty for not telling Nora. He had planned to tell her, but he wasn't sure how to approach it, not to mention she had been coming home in a bad mood recently. He looked over at his son, who had received some of Nora's yelling (but luckily no hitting) when he had asked her to play with him, and was told to bother his father instead. He was afraid to say something, but he knew it was only going to be a matter of time before she found out. Deciding that it was best to tell her before he got big, Linnie took a deep breath, deciding that he was going to tell her after work.
"Daddy? Your tummy's big.", Darren said, now laughing as Linnie smiled softly, placing the eggs in front of him. "Is that a balloon in your tummy?"
"Uhm..well..actually sweetie, it's a surprise!", Linnie said, catching his son's attention, "It's a surprise for mommy. I'm going to tell her after she gets home, so I'd like it if you don't say anything to her yet!"
"Did you eat a balloon, Daddy?"
"No sweetie, you're going to be a big brother! Isn't that exciting!", Linnie cheered, as Darren studied the stomach, "I have a baby brother or sister inside me right now, and they're so excited to meet you!"
"You ate a baby?"
"Oh..no no sweetheart. I didn't eat a baby, silly sweetheart. It's just..well..I think you'll understand better when you're older. But no baby eaters here..hehe"
"I want a brother!"
"Well, honey we'll see. We don't know if it's a boy or a girl yet.", Linnie smiled as Darren kept looking at the stomach.
"Can I touch?"
"Sure honey, but please be gentle.", he motioned for Darren to sit next to him, lifting his sweater up a bit so that Darren could feel his stomach, "Yes dear, that's your older brother. What do you think sweetie? Do you think mommy might like her surprise."
"I don't know..she doesn't like anything."
"Well, you never know. Maybe she'll come home in a better mood today. I'm going to be making her favorite tonight so I can tell her. But you're going to have someone to play with! Isn't that exciting?"
"When's the baby coming?"
"Usually takes 3 months, so you'll have to be patient. But I know you're excited. I'm super excited to!", Linnie cheered, "Why don't you finish your eggs, and then later, you and I can go to the library and find some books on babies! That'll be fun, won't it? We can also play at the park for a little while after, and read the books when we get back! I know you must have lots of questions, right now."
"I really really want a boy."
"Like I said sweetheart, we'll see. Now please finish your eggs honey, so you can get in the shower. You wanna be big and strong for your baby brother or sister, right?"