I do not own Warm Bodies. It's just awesome.
R and Julie: The Simple Life
Chapter 7: The Devoted Cheeseball
Month 4. . .
R's favorite time in Julie's pregnancy was her second trimester. . .
Her energy level was through the roof. Her nausea diminished significantly and other hormones kicked in. The fun hormones. The hormones that had led to her pregnancy in the first place. The unusual part of it was the triggers for these hormones.
"Oh, R! I love it when you brush those sexy crooked teeth! Come here!"
Can I spit first?
"Aww, R, look at you folding those towels for me! You're so sweet! Come here!"
Okay, but we may have to wash those again if you're going to do that.
"Whoa, R, your feet are really hairy! Come here!"
Are you serious?
Sometimes he just felt as though he were just trying to keep up . . .
"Octopus!" Julie gasped.
Stingray! Wait, what?
Julie froze in the middle of the path they were walking and clamped her hands to her stomach. Fear clenched R's chest. He immediately reached for her.
"What? What's wrong?"
Julie remained still for a moment, then burst into excited giggles and smiles.
"R! I can feel the baby! It feels like an octopus squirming around inside me!"
Just my luck. My wife is giving birth to a marine animal. Marcus is never going to let me live this down.
Julie grabbed his hand and pressed it to her slightly rounded belly. They stood without moving for a long moment. R focused his entire being on the flesh under his waiting hand.
"There! Feel it?" Julie squealed.
R waited a moment longer.
"No," he finally said, clearly disappointed and trying to hide it.
Julie frowned.
"Oh. I'm sorry."
Silence stretched out between them for a moment before Julie piped up brightly.
"Don't worry, you will. I'm going to grow the biggest, healthiest baby you've ever seen and you'll definitely feel him. Her. Whatever. Okay?"
R nodded and they continued walking, hand in hand.
Month 5. . .
"R, do I look fat?"
Julie stood sideways, posing in the morning light. It was obvious she was trying to thrust her still-small belly out as much as possible.
Even as a Corpse, I would have known better than to shuffle into that question.
"Nope."
Julie grinned.
"You liar. I've gained seven pounds already! And I'm gonna get bigger," she announced confidently. "I'm going to get huge and explode with baby! It's going to be great! Our baby's gonna be the most perfect thing you've ever seen!
R smiled affectionately at his excited wife. Leave it to Julie to be thrilled about baby weight gain.
Better than tears anyway.
She put her hands on her hips, a huge smile on her glowing face. Sunlight streamed in the window, bathing her in its warm glow. She looked an angel. A beautiful, pregnant angel.
"You'd better still love me when I'm so big I've got my own gravitational pull," she demanded, laughter in her voice.
"Of course. My life revolves around you anyway."
He meant it. She grinned wider.
"Cheeseball."
But her eyes were misty and she pulled him close.
Month 6 . . .
On Christmas morning, Nora, R, Marcus, Julie, and John Grigio split up and worked in teams to distribute food and supplies to needy people around the city. Some were human, some were recovering Corpses, and some were newly reborn humans. Former minister Fred had come up with the idea and anybody who was in need went on his list, regardless of background. He pretty much drafted them into service along with some other people. They didn't mind. It felt right.
Almost every time they attempted to give to someone, the person presented them with baby goodies in return: clothes, toys, blankets, cloths, cleaning items, other assorted supplies. Just found it lying around, the person would say. Thought I'd clean it up and see if you'd want it, they'd casually say. But it wasn't casual. Each item was a symbol, an offering of kindness, of love. It all meant so much, this outpouring of hope.
Overwhelmed with the spirit of kindness shown to the them, they finished their good work and went home. Christmas afternoon was spent together at the Grigio house. They shared a simple meal and exchanged a few gifts. They relaxed and enjoyed each other's company, basking in the glow of peace and happiness.
After a while, R grew restless. He wandered around and found some color markers left over from the child supervision work detail. Inspiration struck.
"Do you trust me?" He came back and asked his wife.
Julie smiled and replied without hesitation.
"Yes."
R instructed her to lay on her back. She did, reclining near the tree and he knelt next to her. He gently lifted up her shirt over her growing belly, kissed it, and began to work. She watched, smiling with delight.
R drew on Julie's pregnant belly with the color markers. He drew a tree with different colored lights and a star at the top. He drew packages of presents under the tree. He drew himself and Julie standing next to the tree, holding hands. He drew a little arrow pointing to picture Julie's belly reading "R's Favorite Present".
As R worked, Nora joined in the festivities. She grabbed a marker and pulled up R's left pant leg. On his calf, she drew a Santa Claus carrying a giant bag of toys. Nora's drawing made it really difficult for R to concentrate. He kept getting the chuckles from the markers tickling his skin. His artwork was in jeopardy, but it was okay.
Marcus couldn't resist the temptation. Grabbing another marker from the dwindling pile, he sat down on the floor with them and grabbed Nora's bare left foot. He drew a reindeer with a red nose on it. She struggled to work properly with him tickling the bottom of her foot. After a while Nora paused in her work, looked at her foot, and gasped.
"Marcus! Is that . . . is that . . . poo coming out of that reindeer?!"
"Yeah, it's the Christmas runs. Happens sometimes."
Marcus grinned wickedly. They all laughed and Julie looked over at the Colonel.
"Hey, Dad! You want me to draw on you? I'll put it on your back where no one can see," she offered, with a fiendish grin.
John Grigio sat in a chair, peacefully observing the odd spectacle. He smiled, shook his head, and spoke in a serene tone.
"No, no. I think it's enough just to be a witness to this. It may be the oddest Christmas activity I have ever seen. You go right ahead."
Simple human contact. Acceptance. Love. Peace. Joy. Yeah.
Happy holidays and thanks for reading!