June 4th 2022

Chapter 155
Our Love of Family

Twice before she had reached this point. Twice before, even as a good part of her was just ready to be done being pregnant, there would also be moments where she stopped and told herself… I'm going to miss this… And every time, without fail, this thought was brought on because of Lucas. His relationship with their children once they were born was easily one of the sweetest things she'd ever experienced, and the only reason it was not the absolute champion was because she also got to experience his relationship with their children while they were still growing inside her. It would always be so important to him to get involved at once, the best way he could when he wasn't the parent that carried these babies. Her bond was immediate in that way, but then so was his, in his way, in the way he held her at night, in his morning conferences, and just in how he'd be around her throughout these months…

At some point, she'd started turning over in the night, so she started off with her back to him but, come morning, she'd be on her other side, facing him. She was certain that this had come subconsciously. She knew his tendency to just go and end up sitting on the floor by the bed as he'd talk at her belly before she woke. At least now he could stay right where he was as he did on this morning, halfway through the month of April. Nearly there… Days now, not weeks to go.

"Tiny's really feeling this conversation today, huh?" she spoke quietly, awakened primarily by the baby's movements. She didn't have to tell him, not with his hand already there, feeling and seeing it.

"We were discussing dogs," Lucas smiled, and she chuckled. Of course.

Starting off the day now required patience, from all involved. She wasn't nearly as fast as she normally was, and it was easy enough for most of them to understand, but it was a bit harder where the triplets were concerned. If they called for their Mama and it took a while for her to show up, they'd keep calling, and they'd grow agitated… It was not their fault, and no one blamed them. Once she did arrive, all anguish would be forgotten. Eventually, Lucas would take off with Marianne, and the morning would begin, bringing the day's 'home backup.' This time, Maya and the triplets were expecting Cara and baby Felix. They weren't going to the theater, but it was still movie day. Only, when someone showed up next, it wasn't them, not yet…

"What are you doing here?" Maya asked in pleased but baffled surprise as Lucas returned, with Marianne and Winnie. He looked like his short trip away had been complicated.

"School's shut today, electrical problem," he revealed. The girls looked confused about their change of plans, too, but at the same time they were together, here, so it wasn't bad either, was it? "Called her mom, said we'd take her for the day," Lucas went on, nodding toward Winnie.

"Yeah, of course," Maya smiled down at her and Marianne both. "You're going to help me look after the girls, huh?"

"And Felix," Marianne added with the nod of a big sister gearing up for a new baby sibling.

"And Felix, too," Maya confirmed. Feeling her small hand at her belly, she reached down and gave a one-armed embrace to the Grayson girl before looking back to Lucas. "What about you?" she asked. The idea had just come to her, and she was happy to see how quick he caught on to it. She never even had to say it. She wanted him to stick around, spend the day with them, make it into their favorite thing: family day, home day.

"I have one thing I really shouldn't delay or delegate, so I'll go and do that, and a quick round, but I'll be back in an hour," he offered, and they were on.

In the time he was away, Cara arrived with her son. As impossible as it felt to think it, little Felix was already two months old. He had already grown so much, or it felt that way, to his mother and father, to his godparents… Maya couldn't get enough of her one and only nephew, and whenever she got to see him, and hold him… She wasn't the only one either. His young cousins would just crowd around him. Marianne would hold him and always dread having to let him go, a sentiment which the triplets shared. Oh, they were fascinated by him, but then they were also all of twenty months old, so for them to hold him, they'd have to be held themselves as well. The other alternative, recently started, was for them to place Felix on one or another of the triplets as they lay down. They would put their arms around him and just keep him there with so much patience and sort of innate skill… They couldn't get enough of watching the cousins together, even as they would resist whenever it would be time to take the baby away, either because it was someone else's turn or because it was time for him to head home.

Lucy had the privilege of holding baby Felix like that when Lucas returned from the ranch. Maya and Cara were both so taken with watching the smallest triplet, always gentlest and quietest, so happy as she was to hold on to the baby boy, that they didn't realize Lucas was back until Kacey and Remy bolted to him with cries of 'Dada!' It woke the sleeping Felix and made him cry, in turn making Lucy cry, which stalled her triplets mid run and made them turn around. Cara was already on the case, scooping both her niece and her son in one go and comforting them together. She had grown so much more confident in all those weeks since Felix was born. She wasn't so sleep deprived anymore, so defeated in her attempts to calm her son herself.

After this, Lucy would spend much of the morning either sitting with or trailing by her mother, holding on to her hand at any and all times if she could or, if she couldn't, waiting until she could hold it again. It never really seemed as though she was scared, or uncomfortable, just that she was feeling very much like she needed this contact, and Maya freely gave it. Some people who had seen the toddler do this had suggested that they should try and change that behavior in her, that it would only make things worse later somehow. Maya didn't pay them any mind. If her daughter, who wasn't even two whole years old yet, wanted to hold her hand, she could do so for as long as she needed. She would eventually wander off, back to her sisters, or her father, or the dogs… She did so today when they started looking into lunch.

"When is the baby going to come out of there?" Winnie asked as she and Marianne aided in bringing things to the table while Lucas and Cara were at the counter and Maya saw to getting the triplets in their seats. She looked down to her daughter's friend now and smiled.

"Uh, hard to say for sure, but about a week, maybe more, maybe less," she explained. "Are you looking forward to seeing it?" Oh, she was, very much.

"I wish I had a baby brother or sister," she told her, and Maya wished she could do more than nod in understanding, but what was she supposed to say? Winnie's mother had definitely sworn off dating for a while after her divorce, and as of yet there was still really nothing in the way of prospects. The likelihood of Winnie's getting to be a big sister any time soon was only lessened because of it.

"You can be like my sister," Marianne affirmed at this. Winnie looked at her, and it only reinforced Marianne's confidence. "Then they're your sisters, too," she indicated the triplets. "And the new baby can be your brother or sister, too. And Ella!" Oh, Winnie liked this idea a lot, but she was also shy.

"Sounds good to me," Maya promised her, and the five-year-old's smile was good and bright. "You know what…" Maya went on, coming off like an echo of her daughter's confident voice as she had an idea. "I'm going to see if we can have a Sleepster this weekend," she told the girls, and Marianne gasped at once.

Over at the counter, both Lucas and Cara looked over, catching Maya's eye as though to ask if she was serious about this. Did she really want the house overrun with people when she could go into labor at any time? The question, unasked as it was, only served to make her certain. Yes, she did want that. She really did. They were about due for one, and once the baby was born, it would be even less ideal. If she was really sure about this, then… yeah, of course they wanted this, too. Sleepster was right up there with their favorite traditions.

Their decision was only part of the process, and now they had to see where everyone else stood. One of the biggest pieces to consider was the guest list. Specifically, they had to think of those who were outside of Texas. The Tucson Hart-Lanes, the Chens, the Olsens out in Arkansas… Were they available? Could they make it? Maya put out the call, but seeing as it was daytime on a Tuesday, all she could get so far was a promise that Abigail, Luna, and Charlie would all look into it, see with the kids when they got home, and then get back to her. The same went with the little Hunters when she spoke to her father. Maya briefly considered texting the twins to ask them, but this just made Cara point out that she would in effect be risking the chance that they'd take out their phones in class, at the school where she worked, and get them in trouble. She would wait until later. Sam was called, and Teddy, too. Eliza and Emma would have to be asked when they got back at the end of the day.

"What about her friends?" Lucas whispered in French, that afternoon, as they watched 'the big show.' Marianne and Winnie were leading Kacey, Remy, and Lucy in a little dance, to the triplets' giggling delight. Winnie would be at the Sleepster, and Lily, too, assuming Priya would join Teddy for the sleepover. What about Harper and June?

"Of course, they have to be here," Maya replied in kind, smiling at their bit of 'double covertness.' They couldn't use sign language for that, not when Marianne was right there and would definitely be drawn to look at their hands if she saw them signing, without realizing she was doing it. As of yet, she had not picked up on her parents' other spoken language.

"And what if the baby comes when they're all here?" Lucas had to ask. Maya knew they had to think about it, couldn't just settle herself in how any mention of their new child's imminent birth would just make her smile.

"We'll figure that out if it happens. Don't worry so much, alright? Anyway… I think I'd like it if they were all around on that day. Not in the room, and not like when Felix was born, but… there… to welcome 'Tiny.'" She used the nickname in English still, knowing that trying to translate it would only invite the suggestion that she knew what their baby was. They were so close now, and she wasn't about to ruin the surprise for him just because she'd had it spoiled for her. If Lucas suspected it, he didn't show. He only smiled back at her, his hand drawn as ever to rest at her belly, counting down to The Day, Tiny's Day.

TO BE CONTINUED


See you tomorrow! - mooners