"Like eagles! With their long wings, they swoop in to grab the cocoon so they can eat it!" I say, beginning to tickle Nen, making him squeal at the top of his lungs. "Nom nom nom nom, delicious butterfly!" I say teasingly, pretending to eat his shoulder as he lets out his bubbling laughter that makes my heart feel full. I relax, wrapping my arms around his waist and smiling. "Yum! I'm full now." I say, and Nen takes a minute to stop giggling. "Hey, Kimi-tan… Are you my mommy?" Nen says, suddenly seeming so adult like as I feel my heart stutter. "What makes you ask that, honey?" I ask softly, looking into his eyes as he stares right back. "Well, that guy from before, he asked me who my mommy was! I told him that I didn't know, but that my dad and brother always told me she was closer than I thought. And then he looked at you, and he pointed at you, and he said 'maybe that's your mommy!'. I always thought what dad and brother said was weird, how could my mommy be closer than I think if I never saw her, you know! But then that guy said that, and I was like- 'woah! Kimi-tan has always been there with me, dad and brother!" Nen says, and I feel my stomach begin to curl.
"I want you to be my mommy! I don't know if you are, but you're always so nice to me Kimi-tan, and you always take care of me, and you give the best hugs! I mean, only if you want me to be your baby." Nen says, his eyes dropping as my heart aches. "Oh my sweet bean bun, you will always, always be my precious baby. There has never been a moment that I haven't wanted to scoop you in my arms and hold you till the end of time. But it's not safe, I… I can't keep you safe yet, and I want to make sure I can keep you safe before I can really be your mommy. It's my duty as mom to keep you, my baby, safe. And right now, you're safe with dad and cousin, right?" I ask, and Nen slowly nods. "So you're looking for a daddy before I can be your baby, right!" Nen says, making me choke as I feel my cheeks burn. "W-what makes you say that?" I ask, and Nen just smiles. "Silly! It's a dad's job to make sure the family is safe, and to keep mommy happy! And it's mom's job to keep daddy happy and watch over the babies! But you're too busy keeping me safe to watch over me! That's okay, I can wait for you to be my mommy until you find us a daddy!" Nen says, making my heart squeeze.
"But find a really cool daddy, okay! I want him to be awesome, and I want him to treat me great like you do, oh! And I want a little brother or sister!" Nen says excitedly, making me laugh as tears gather in my eyes. "Hold on cowboy! Let's start with finding a daddy first, and making sure he actually wants to work with mommy. I'll find someone really cool who'll treat you great like I do." I say, and Nen just flashes me a big smile. "Okay! Don't take too long though, or else I'll be all grown up!" Nen says, making me smile. "I'll do my best!" I say, and he lifts his little pinky to me. "Promise?" He asks, and I cup his pinky with my own. "Pinky promise." I say, and he smiles widely at me. "Yay! Oh I can't wait! Make sure to let me meet daddy before you give me a baby brother or sister okay?" Nen says, just as Kanori peeks in through the head of the hammock. "I hear pinky promises? What are we talking about? I want in! Are we gonna get cookies and promise to share them?" Kanori asks, making Nen giggle. "We're promising to find me a good daddy so Kimiko can be my mommy!" Nen laughs, though I just smile at them both, nodding my head since I didn't trust my voice.
