Bixanna Week – Beautiful Soul
Day 3 – Baby
"You're sure you'll be okay?" Mira asked for the hundredth time.
Lisanna nodded in a reassuring manner. "I promise it'll be fine, Mira," Lisanna said. "Honestly, he's no trouble at all. And Bixlow's here to help me."
Mira nodded. "I'll be back in an hour, okay?"
Lisanna waved in a reassuring manner. Mira slung her purse over her shoulder and glanced back one last time at the baby in her sister's arms. She smiled a little before turning away and leaving the guild.
With a sigh of relief, Lisanna sat down in one of the empty chairs. "She worries too much about you," she said to the baby. "You're always good for Aunty Lisanna though, right? You like when she takes care of you, don't you?"
Mira's baby cooed and wiggled his fingers a little. Lisanna giggled, planting a kiss on his forehead. Bixlow watched in amusement, one hand resting on the back of the chair Lisanna was seated in.
"You're not too bad at this," he said.
She stuck out her tongue playfully. "It's not so hard. Besides, he's such a calm baby. He barely cries at all, this one."
"Mm," Bixlow hummed. "Can I hold him?"
She nodded and stood up to hand him the baby. Bixlow took him from her with more ease than she expected. He expertly cradled him in the crook of his arm, gently swaying and bouncing his legs. It was impressive, to say the least.
Her eyes widened. "I'm pleasantly surprised, Bixlow. You're actually really good with babies."
"Not really," he said. "Just working off intuition here."
"I highly doubt anyone's intuition could be that good on a first try," she said. "Seriously, you're like a certified pro. Mira had to show me how to hold him the first time."
Bixlow grinned down at the baby. "You're pretty cute, you know that?"
The baby gurgled a little. He reached out a tiny hand to grasp one of Bixlow's fingers, much to Bixlow's delight. "Smart, too," he added.
Lisanna felt her heart rate pick up at the sight. "Are you doing this on purpose?" She mumbled.
"What's that?"
"Nothing," she said.
Without any warning whatsoever he asked, "You like kids?"
She looked away nervously, suddenly feeling very shy. "I guess so," she said. "I mean, Mira's son is really cute and I like helping take care of him and –"
"I meant do you want kids for yourself someday?"
Lisanna's blush increased exponentially to the point where her face was redder than Erza's hair. A few incoherent stutters escaped her mouth as she made a point of looking everywhere except at Bixlow. She finally snuck a peek at him, sure that he would think she was a nut. He was still cradling the baby in his arms, his attention completely focused on rocking the infant. She wondered if maybe she'd lucked out and he hadn't just seen her spluttering like a fool.
Those hopeful thoughts flew out the window a second later. He glanced up so casually it almost seemed scripted, and slowly raised one eyebrow at her. Well, so much for that, she thought.
She coughed. He stared. The baby slept. Lisanna could have heard a pin drop amidst the silence, and she flattened the back of her hair in a desperate attempt to occupy herself with something, anything, to distract herself from the awkwardness that was the current situation. Eventually, Bixlow turned his attention back to the baby.
"Was just a question, Lis. Although now I'm curious what got you so worked up about it," he said. She noticed his usual grin slipping back into place and she rolled her eyes with a huff.
"I haven't really thought about it," she answered honestly. "I mean, maybe I do."
"Maybe?" He asked.
"Maybe," she said. "I'd want to get married first, though."
"What, you don't think you'll get married?"
She smiled a little. "Why Bixlow, are you proposing to me?"
He grinned. "Not yet."
Lisanna coughed again, more than a little taken aback by his answer. "That wasn't fair."
"Never said I played fair, Lis," he said. "But since we're on the subject, I can't help but wonder. If I did ask you properly, what would you say?"
She mimed zipping her lips shut. "Not telling. And anyway, that's cheating."
"Suppose that's what I thought you'd say," he said. "Still, couldn't hurt to try."
She mimicked his grin, adding in a wink. "You'll just have to find out when you ask me for real, then."
I'll leave it up to you to guess who Mira's husband is.