The Baby Diaries Part II

Chapter 1: Teamwork?

~Baby~

And so, it begins…

…

Seventy-two hours. That's how long it had been.

Watching Spike and Faye attempt to handle a newborn had proven to be quite the comedy show for Jet, but he soon found the constant screaming and whining a bit too much for him.

Most of which, did not come from the actual baby.

Spike constantly accusing Faye of hogging him while she hounded him about being too lunkheaded to handle anything on his own.

Really it didn't feel like two days, it felt so much longer.

Neither were truly wrong. Faye did indeed hog the baby. She took him everywhere with her, even to the bathroom and was reluctant to let anyone else handle his needs. It was odd, considering she was hardly shy to accept handouts. Spike, on the other hand, was proving to be the klutz no one knew he was. He had already broken two bottles and still held the baby as if he were some kind of ancient orb.

Maybe Faye had a point.

Although, she really wasn't an expert herself. She kept confusing her "methods" and screwing things up in her own way.

Nevertheless, Jet tried his hardest not to intervene.

If they need my help, they can ask for it. They're grown adults…

It was hard to say how long he could bite his tongue for. As far as he was concerned, if the baby wasn't in grave danger, he didn't have an opinion. Or at least one he would voice just yet.

Still, Jet felt a guilty pang as he stood at the bathroom door while Ray was lifted butt naked into the cool air. A mighty wail soared from his lungs to further fill the chaos of the echoed room.

"Spike! He's cold!"

"You told me to pick him up-"

Spike and Faye were attempting to give Ray his first bath at home.

"Not all the way out of the water, look he's shivering!"

"Would you stop yelling at me and just do what you have to do? Hurry up!"

With a grunt and shoving of things, Faye attempted to replace the water in the little tub. Apparently, it grew cold during the prolonged prepping.

"Ah- shit!" Spike suddenly cursed.

Faye jumped back with a yelp as she witnessed Ray urinate directly onto Spike's clothed chest.

"Ew, he's peeing on you!"

"Yeah, I can see that Faye, would you do something about it?!" Spike was tense with disgust. He attempted to hold the baby further from himself, but it only caused the pee to move further up his torso.

"What do you want me to do?"

"Take him!"

"No! So he can pee on me? Let him finish."

"What?!"

Jet burst out with laughter, unacknowledged by either of them.

They have to learn…right?

…

Motherhood.

It hadn't hit her the way she thought it would. The books, the videos, all of it made everything seem so simple, but in actuality they were worthless. The reality of having a baby didn't take too long to show itself. The crying, the feeding, the annoyingly careful delicate nature of it all, it was beginning to drive Faye near crazy and it hadn't even been that long. Not to mention, the trouble of diaper changes.

Faye took a deep breath and basked a moment in her handy work on the yellow sofa. After some difficulty, Ray was finally swaddled tightly in his blanket. She had been working on the technique since he'd been brought home, but he did not make the job easy. She quickly found he wasn't very fond of restriction. He yawned as he laid out on a giant pillow; she didn't have enough woolongs to invest in one of those portable infant beds with the womb sounds. The money may have been needlessly spent on too many baby clothes.

Budgeting, a foreign concept to her still.

"There, that's not so bad, huh?"

The small victory of a good swaddle didn't last very long when she caught a whiff of something unpleasant. "Oh, really? Again?" she moaned.

"Did Ray-Ray poo again?"

Faye noticed Edward was leaned over from the back of the sofa with interest.

"I think so."

"Hmmm, that's the third time since this morning. Fifth diaper change overall."

Faye eyed her oddly, "gee, thanks for the stats Ed…any particular reason you're keeping count?"

Edward smiled wide, "Ed's keeping a look out for weird things."

"Weird things?"

"Right! Like how much poo is too much poo!"

She quirked a brow with interest, "so is it normal for him to go that much?"

"Mmhmm, newborns can go as much as 12 times a day!"

"12 times?!"

Edward giggled and bobbed her head up and down, "Uh-huh."

"Sheesh."

"What?"

Spike entered the room, wiping his hands on his clean shirt. He looked freshly washed, probably showered after the mess in the bathroom was cleaned up. She could sense his attitude as soon as his presence was made.

"Nothing," she dismissed.

"Baby Ray can poo-"

"Ed, hand me the wipes, would you?" Faye purposely interrupted. Edward went over to do just that, and Spike shook off the curiosity as he sat down in the nearby chair.

"Did you clean the mess?" Faye questioned.

"Yeah, seems like that's all you ever want me to do," he replied curtly.

"Here Faye-Faye!" Edward exclaimed as she handed Faye the wipes. Faye took them from her and began to dismantle the baby from his wrappings.

"I'm the mother."

"And?"

"It's the least you can do Spike, I just gave birth."

"Let's see how long you milk that excuse."

Faye's eyes darted up, "It's not an excuse!"

"Diapers too!" Edward handed that to her as well, which Faye roughly took from her grasp, but the girl wasn't phased in the slightest. Spike stared back with clenched arms, angled in that lazy way that made Faye want to shoot him right into the abyss. She carried on.

"I don't know why you're complaining, you're the one always looking for something to do."

"Except I never actually get to do anything with him." He was complaining in that calm way that Faye knew too well. And she didn't care one bit.

"Well excuse me for not wanting you to drop my baby, you're lucky I let you hold him in the first place." Her voice carried the arrogance he so detested.

"Our baby."

Faye took a moment before ignoring him and undoing the clasps of Ray's onesie.

"No? Is there something you need tell me?" he probed.

"Shut up."

"I'm not going to drop him Faye. Ever get the idea I don't wanna hurt him?"

Faye didn't truly have a fear of him physically harming Ray, but ever since Spike came back, she was put off by his eagerness to be so helpful. She more than half expected him to distance himself like he did with any other thing he didn't like, once he realized how much work a baby really was.

"You want to do something? You change his diaper." She sat back from Ray just before she undid his diaper clasps.

"That's another messy job!"

"You wanna do it or not?!"

"Ahh…" Edward was fully invested as she watched the exchange, Ein gave a small whimper next to her.

Spike's lips set into a straight line. "Fine." Faye moved out of the way and let Spike sit in front of Ray instead. He stared at the baby for a while and Faye wondered what he was expecting to happen.

"Can't do it with your mind Spike."

"I know that. Don't rush me!"

She sighed to herself and waited some more. Finally he turned to look up at her, cluelessness highly evident. "I…what the hell am I supposed to do?"

Faye folded her arms in disbelief. "How about you start with opening it?"

"You don't have to talk to me like I'm an idiot."

She scoffed again, "oh really?"

Spike was visibly peeved, but he turned back to Ray and attempted to figure it out himself. He undid the clasps and opened up the diaper to reveal its contents. It really wasn't so bad, but enough to get his nose wrinkled up.

The baby started to fuss quietly from the exposure. Spike looked over to the wipes, "I use these?"

"Clearly," Faye answered.

His eye physically twitched. He took hold of the pack and removed a handful of wipes, "you only need one," she sang.

He took one and stuffed the rest back into the pack. The baby's fusses became more pressed, so Spike quickly wadded the wipe up and began to clean the mess. Faye sat down on the table to lean in closer and give her five cents, "why did you wad it up?"

Spike clenched his jaw and turned her way, "I don't know what the hell I'm doing, I've never cleaned another person's shit before!"

"Well, you've cleaned your own, haven't you?"

He turned away from her and attempted to continue, when she interrupted again, "that's not how you do it!"

He stood up with a grunt, tossing the wadded wipe into the diaper along the way. "You do it then!"

Ray's fusses turned into whines; he was not pleased.

"I will!"

Faye took his place and got a fresh wipe. She gave Ray a quick once over with it and reached for a fresh diaper, ready to change him out.

Spike arched a brow, "that's it? You suck too, he's not even cleaned all the way," he pointed.

Faye's gaze shot up at him with irritation, "you're telling me? The person who hasn't changed a diaper ever?"

"Oh like you have so much experience? It's only been a couple of days."

"It's still more than yours!"

Ray's whines turned into an outright cry.

"You asked me to do it!"

"No, I let you do it. I didn't ask you to do anything!"

"Woah, what's going on in here?!" Jet's voice interrupted their argument, he gestured to the crying baby on the cushion. Ray was red with frustration and his legs and arms were thrashing about impatiently.

Edward slinked down from the stairway. "Ray-Ray needs his diaper change," her voice fizzled with that playful sorrow she sometimes used when indicating a dramatic situation.

Spike tucked his hands deep in his pockets. "Fine, have it your way damn it. I won't help you with a single thing!"

He began to walk away.

"Oh my, I'm so upset I won't have your useless help Spike! That's perfectly fine with me!" She shouted this to his back before plopping back down onto the sofa with a huff and attempting to finish Ray's diaper.

Jet looked between Faye and Spike's retreating form. "What the hell?" He looked down at her handy work and noticed the diaper was obviously crooked, "hey, don't you think he needs-"

"I know what he needs!" she snapped.

He watched her as she lifted the baby into her arms to try and sooth him, the slightest glimmer in her eyes. Jet sighed, pride it was then.

…

Spike paced the metal floor as he lit his cigarette. He stopped to take the smoke in with a deep inhale, so deep he could have choked even with lungs so conditioned to the sting.

He was exasperated, tired, and so damn hungry.

How was he supposed to make it work? That was his question.

He was in over his head, he knew that, but it was there, and he couldn't deny it and that nagging piece of him wanted to hang on tight anyway. Stubborn, but that wasn't news to him. All he wanted was to actually try, but clearly, she didn't want him to. At least that's what it felt like. He replayed their conversations in his head, feeling mixed up and contradicted. He tried hard to understand her, to get it, but understanding Faye was just as new a concept to him as being a father was.

He sat there and gazed at his ship for a long, long time.

It would be so easy. Fall into the void somewhere. Just disappear.

Spike shook the thoughts.

Faye hadn't and that was saying a whole lot.

Maybe he just needed a walk. That was his subtle way of dealing with things when he couldn't revert to alcohol.

He stood to his feet, puffing through his cigarette and started his way outside.

Just around the block.

He stopped himself and looked over to the worktable where he knew some of the books were. Faye was near hoarding the things.

After a moment he decided to rummage until he found something that seemed mildly helpful.

'Baby Care: The First Year'

He stared at the cover, then tucked it into his pocket and headed for the exit. Maybe he would find something about diaper changes.

…

It was late and Jet was out, Faye wasn't sure exactly what he was doing. Could have been getting food or could have been trying to earn money.

Perhaps she was the one who took too much for granted.

During her entire pregnancy she didn't have to ask too many questions, everything somehow was always there. Right where she needed it.

All her life she'd been spoiled some way or another. She knew it.

Faye sat near her bed, staring into the small mirror on her wall. She looked awful, she felt awful. She was pretty sure she hadn't showered or slept properly since the hospital. She had never seen herself so visibly stressed and it hadn't even been an entire week yet. Just maybe, she was being overly dramatic, and this stage would pass, but she had this looming feeling that it would only get harder from then on out.

This is what I chose.

Ray slept nearby on her bed, occasionally she'd hear his tiny gurgles of breath.

Despite herself, the sound brought her a sense of peace.

I should be asleep.

Her body was aching for it.

The crackling of a tiny cry broke the silence. Faye glanced over with a sinking feeling.

It was just them two for the first time since they'd met.

Shit.

Faye moved to sit on the bed next to him, her nerves out of whack. The questions rolled through her mind.

Did he need to get fed or changed first? Newborns didn't need playtime, right? No, they just laid there like lumps who cried, ate and slept.

The crying ceased and she waited. He didn't do anything but stare up at the ceiling. She turned her eyes up as well to see if there was anything interesting up there.

Nothing.

Faye leaned forward above him and couldn't help the startle she felt when he caught her eyes. He was wide awake and stared up at her as intently as a newborn could manage. It was hard to describe the feeling it gave her, something warm and inviting. She couldn't look away. Spike's words rang through her mind, it really was like looking into a light, but a beautiful and calm one that didn't make you flinch. Not blinding.

Love seemed fitting, but she hadn't truly felt anything like it in so long. There was something sort of offsetting about it. Like she couldn't fathom she had it. She was left with the question, what now?

…

12:40 AM

Jet and Ed were hunched over Tomato's screen when Spike stepped into the common room. Within moments he frowned at the sound of Ray's wails from down the hallway.

"What's going on?"

Jet shot him a sharp look, "where have you been?"

"The hangar," he pointed in the direction to indicate.

"I didn't see you there."

"I was tucked away."

Jet grumbled in reply and went back to his scrolling. Spike walked down the rest of the way, his eyes steady in the direction of the crying. "What's wrong with the baby?"

"I don't know, that's what we're trying to figure out."

"Ray has been crying for one hour straight!" Edward complained, about ready to pull her orange hairs out.

"What? Is that possible?"

"Well tell me Spike," Jet began, sarcasm drenched in his tone. "Do you hear a crying baby?"

"Yeah."

"So do we and we've been hearing him for one hour straight!"

Spike rubbed out the awkward tense feeling in the back of his neck. "Alright. Well, what's wrong with him?"

"I already said, that's what we've been trying to figure out!"

"Ed! Will you come here?" Faye's voice carried, muffled, from the direction of the sleeping quarters. Edward whined as she stood to her feet, ready to follow her calling, but Spike held his hand up to her. "It's fine," he muttered before making his way over to Ray's room instead.

He stood at the door to take in the sight before him. Faye sat in the middle of the floor, Ray loud and angry in one arm as her other sifted through a pile of clothes. The room, even with the minimal things there, was turned upside down.

Ray started to scratch at his face, which caught Faye's attention. She reached for his hands with her searching one, "no stop it!"

"Faye?"

Her eyes darted in his direction, strands from her ponytail falling in front of her face. He took a second to try and read her mood, the emotional roller coaster they'd been on was growing taxing.

"Help!"

That wasn't what he expected.

"Huh?"

"Help me!" She stood to her feet, arms still holding Ray's into place. "I'm losing it Spike, I'm seriously losing it!"

"Wha- what do you want me to do?" He became alert.

"I can't find his mittens. He's scratching at his face and I have no idea why he's so mad!"

Spike scowled as he moved into the room to search for the so called 'mittens.'

"Are they…blue or something?"

"I don't know! God, my brain is mush..." She started mumbling things to herself which indicated to him that her claims weren't exaggerated.

"I tried everything; nothing is working. He wasn't hungry, he wasn't wet, he didn't have a temperature. I even tried to sing and nothing!"

Spike bit back a smart remark at that one. He opened a tiny drawer in Ray's janky hand-made dresser and low and behold, there they were. A handful of them, neatly tucked away. He pulled out a blue pair and presented them to her.

"They were blue."

"I hate blue."

"Welp, it's what I got."

"Would you put them on?" her hands were full of baby.

Spike unfolded the pair and placed them on Ray's hands. He flinched at the various pitches the kid rang out. He could wail, that was for sure.

"I can't do this…"

It wasn't frustration that laced her voice, something more like disappointment and desperation.

Spike stepped back in thought and the first thing that came to mind, he decided to try. "Can I?" he gestured towards the baby. Faye hesitated a moment but gave in and held him upward. Spike reached down and picked Ray right from her arms. He winced at volume of the baby's shrieks but maneuvered through it and shifted Ray around gracelessly, yet carefully, until he found himself holding him against his chest. He remembered reading something about supporting the baby's head, so he made sure to do so. Once he was situated, Spike did the next thing that entered his mind and walked out of the room. Faye quickly followed behind him.

He took the long route, walking at a slow pace through the dark clanky halls and eventually into the common room where Jet and Ed were. They passed them and went further up, into the control deck. Once there, Spike stepped up to the windows where it was dark outside except for the lights of other ships and the city in the near distance. Faye stepped up next to him and mirrored his gaze.

The baby wasn't crying anymore.

"Unbelievable," she breathed, her tone was unfamiliar.

Spike was silent with his disbelief.

A few small whimpers continued from Ray, but his breathing had returned to normal. Faye was looking at him, "He was so frustrated before- did he just want to be held? But I was holding him…"

Spike smirked to himself, a little proud, "maybe he just needed a walk."

"Yeah…or maybe he hates me."

His side glare let her know he thought her statement was ridiculous. She sighed heavily and looked away, "It's just…it was me and him for eight months, you know? He went everywhere with me and…he didn't even wanna stay in long enough." She absently touched her tubby stomach.

"I don't think that means anything. I know I was curious about him, maybe he was just curious about you."

Faye almost wanted to smile at the cliché sentiment.

"Maybe."

And here we are.

Faye ran a hand over her face as she looked at her reflection in the window. "I don't feel like myself." Spike couldn't agree more as he looked at his own.

"We're just not used to this. We will be."

We.

…

Minutes later – Ray's room.

The two of them stood over the dresser, turned diaper change station.

Spike stood in front of the fussy Ray, ready for action and Faye stood next to him with the book from earlier in hand.

"Are you sure Spike?"

"Yes, I'm telling you it's all in there."

"Where did this one pop up from?" she flipped the book over to see the cover, "wait a sec, I read this…I think."

In all truth, she read so many books that most of the information didn't stick past its completion.

Spike took the book from her in search for the chapter on diaper changes.

"There's a whole chapter on it. Even gives you a step-by-step guide," he pointed it out to her as they came upon it. "See? Pictures and everything."

"Ooh, convenient! Okay, let's try it out."

They went through each step with close attention, Faye calling out each one and reading the descriptions while Spike followed as best he could.

"The middle…no- the middle."

"I heard you, hang on."

Spike was focused as he secured Ray's diaper to the middle of his belly then placed each wing over to bring it to its closure.

"Tight, but not too tight. That look okay?"

Faye looked at the picture, then at Ray, "yeah I think so."

Spike smiled at him, for the first time. The baby looked so content and sleepy. "Hey, what do you know?"

"Not too bad." Faye smiled too.

Their moods were lifted for just a moment, a sense of excitement at understanding one measly thing about their child. He soon fell asleep, but they didn't move, until Faye felt the weight of her discomfort and exhaustion beg her to surrender.

"I really, really want to shower," she whispered.

He looked at her with surprise, then chuckled quietly. Faye was the type to shower or bathe three times a day if she could, "go ahead."

Despite her need, she hesitated, "are you sure?"

"Sure."

"I wanna sleep too."

Spike looked down at Ray and felt a ping of nerves suddenly strike him, but he could see how genuinely tired she looked. "Uh- I mean he's asleep so…I think I got it."

"Okay then." Eventually she peeled herself away and Spike put Ray down into his crib.

And things were just fine.

At least for the next two hours.

~The Baby Diaries~

A/N: And here we are!

Thank you for continuing the journey with me (:

I have several chapters in the works at the moment, so I should update close together for now. yay! I'm gonna do my best on the baby knowledge, but honestly might be loosey goosey here and there...just please don't take baby advice from me lol.

So, I decided I am going to do some work on part I as well (slowly). I know, I've said this a few times and I am super glad those of you who have enjoyed it as is, but there are some things I wasn't fully satisfied with so I just wanna fix. It will stay where it is, just might change a little here and there haha.

Hope you enjoyed this first chapter! Let me know your thoughts or what you'd love to see from them as parents...again someone tell me why I did this to them LOL.

Tumblr for this and Bebop thingys: @beccanoodles

http/beccanoodles.