Welcome to the World: November 2nd, 2020
"Do you prefer straight out pee-on-a-stick, or stick-in-a-cup-of-pee?" Sydney held up two different pregnancy tests.
"Shh! I don't need the whole world knowing!" Kairi clamped her hands over Sydney's mouth. Her eyes sporadically scanned the room, like they were being watched and secret agents were about to swoop in and arrest them for talking so openly in public. Even if 'in public' meant Sydney and Joe's living room.
Sydney rolled her eyes and pushed Kairi's hands away. "Kairi, you're married, and you've been trying to have a kid for a month. What's the big deal if people know?" She put her hands on her hips. "I can't keep buying these things for you. Do you know the looks I get when I buy them? Today, the stupid cashier even told me that if I didn't know by now, I was blind. Not to mention you know I could go into labor at moment now."
Kairi glanced at Sydney's nine-month-pregnant swollen stomach. "I guess it's not that big of a deal, but I don't even know for sure if I'm pregnant. I've been disappointed so many times already." Kairi sighed and stared at the floor.
"That's why we have these, to be sure." She pushed the tests into Kairi's arms. "Now go pee."
Kairi blushed and walked off into the bathroom.
By the time Kairi came back out, Sydney had settled on the couch, watching Jade colour in a colouring book.
Kairi sat on the couch with a heavy sigh.
"I'm taking that as a negative?" Sydney gave her a sympathetic smile and Kairi mutely nodded her head in response. "They could be false negatives. Conception takes up to two weeks to occur. There's a reason the box says to wait a few days after your missed period to have the best results."
"I guess... I just don't understand. Am I doing something wrong? How hard can it be to become pregnant? I mean, you and Joe keep having it happen. And you're not even trying!" Kairi huffed and folded her arms.
Sydney frowned at her. "Trust me, it's no fun when you didn't even want to be pregnant in the first place," Sydney spoke grudgingly, staring at her stomach. "You'll get pregnant the moment you stop trying to get pregnant. Besides, it takes most couples up to a year to become pregnant. There's no need for you to hurry yet."
"It's not fair, none of your kids were planned. I mean, you got pregnant with Jade right after your honeymoon. Though I guess that must have been so hard for you and Joe. He was still in school and didn't exactly have a high paying job, plus you were newlyweds. And now you're pregnant again! Maybe you two just need better birth control or-"
"Kairi," Sydney's voice was low, a warning to Kairi to stop talking.
Kairi apologized and looked away.
"And for your information, Joe and I were talking about having another kid. So this pregnancy wasn't entirely unplanned."
"Yes, but did you two agree to anything? Weren't you two fighting recently over something? You know, you two seemed to have a lot of problems the past few months the more I think about it. Maybe you should get help, like therapy, and-"
"We're fine now," Sydney cut her off. "Really. And don't worry, you and Fred will have you're share of fights as well. Like when he finds out you stopped taking your birth control pills. Or have you finally told him you're trying to have a kid?"
Kairi bit her lip. "Not exactly. But I will."
"When? After you get pregnant? You can't keep lying to him like this."
"I'm not lying! I'm just not telling him everything." Kairi sighed. "I just don't know if he even wants to have kids yet. It's so soon after our wedding."
Sydney tilted her head and studied Kairi. "Do you really think you should be trying to have kids if he isn't ready yet?"
Kairi looked at her, knowing she was right. She couldn't not tell Fred. After all, it would be his child too. And who knew, maybe if she told Fred, he'd say he wanted a kid as well. Maybe then she'd actually become pregnant like she hoped she would. In the end, it was a two person job.
"You... what?" Kairi blinked at Fred. She couldn't have heard him correctly. There was just no way.
Fred laughed. "I know. Princess, you can't hide something like that and expect me not to know about it. I was wondering when you were going to tell me though."
"I... You're not mad?" Kairi couldn't stop staring at him. She was sure her jaw was hanging open, but she didn't care. How? How could Fred have known this whole time that she was trying to have a kid behind his back?
"No. I'll admit I was shocked at first, but I'm not mad. I'm totally down to have a kid. We've basically been married for years anyway." Fred brushed Kairi's hair away from her face. "You could have just told me, you know."
Kairi blushed. "I was worried you would say no. That it was too soon and we should wait a few years. How did you even find out anyway?"
"There were a few signs, like how often you were dragging me into the bedroom. Seriously, even for newlyweds you were going crazy. But I figured that was just you're way of saying I love you." Fred shrugged. "I honestly didn't know until Joe brought it up one day assuming I already knew."
"Joe told you? How did he know? I made Sydney swear not to tell anyone!" Kairi frowned, hurt at her cousin's betrayal.
"Sydney didn't tell him anything. Maybe you two should learn to be more careful with what you say in front of Jade? She's quite the talker and we all know she hasn't learned what not to say yet." Fred crossed his arms with a smirk.
"Oh." Kairi's blush deepened. She was embarrassed that she had been found out so easily, by a four-year-old no less.
"You look cute when you blush. Not that you're not cute all the time, but you look especially cute now." Fred smiled, his eyes lighting up in the process.
"I'm sorry, prince. I feel so guilty now. It wasn't fair of me to lie to you like that." Kairi couldn't get herself to make eye contact with Fred.
"It's alright, princess." Fred tilted her chin to get Kairi to look at him. "Like I said, I'm not mad. All I got out of this was more love making sessions with you." Fred kissed the tip of Kairi's nose. "So, have any of our endeavors been successful?"
Kairi shook her head, her embarrassment fading into sorrow. "I just took another test today. Negative for the umpteenth time in a row. At this rate we'll never have kids."
"Don't say that. You've been trying for what, a few weeks? That's not that bad. Besides, I've met my great-granddaughter remember? So I have to have a kid eventually."
"But what if it's not with me?" The fear instantly crept into Kairi's mind. She had never thought of that before. Everything had always seemed so good between her and her prince. She'd never considered the thought of them not making it. And what if she just couldn't get pregnant at all? Being dead for so long had had its side effects on her. Her pale skin for instance, or the fact that her hair never grew. Maybe being infertile was another one of those side effects.
"You need to relax. You and I will have a child together. I know it. I made a vow to love you and stick with you through good times and bad. I meant it then and I mean it now. Perhaps," Fred felt a smirk spread over his mouth, "you and I just need to keep trying." Without giving Kairi time to react, he swooped her up into his arms like he had done a hundred times before. He began to walk back to their bedroom. "And I think we should start right now."
"It's not going to be a girl. I'm too manly to have a girl." Fred smirked and flexed his muscles.
Sam rolled his eyes. "You're forgetting the other half of the equation, which is Kairi. Kairi's too girly to have a son."
After two months of trying, Kairi was finally pregnant. Fred had excitedly called Sam and Joe over to share his big news.
"I can't have a girl. They're too dainty. I need a son I can play video games with and take to baseball games. I can't do that stuff with a girl."
"Having a girl is not that bad, Fred." Joe smiled at Jade as he watched her play with some of Kairi's fabric swatches. "I love Jade just as much as I would if she were a boy."
"Yeah, but you're you. You're not as manly as me." Fred studied Jade as if she were a bad omen. "Why did you bring her over anyway?"
Joe was scowling from Fred's comment about his lack of manliness, deciding that maybe he would let his friend try to raise his child without any tips from him. "I told you, Sydney took the twins in for their one month check-up and I have to watch Jade while she's gone."
"She can't stay home by herself yet?"
"She's four."
"Still?"
"Do you know how birthdays work?" Joe sighed. "Look, I promise you whether you have a boy or a girl, it will not matter. You will love them just as much either way."
"I'm not saying I wouldn't love my daughter, I just wouldn't be able to have any fun with her. But a boy would be totally different. Boys and girls don't behave the same way. They don't think the same way."
Jade spoke up, momentarily disinterested in the colourful patterns in front of her, "Mommy says that girls are smarter because boys have too many heads and they never think with the right one."
Joe blinked at her. "And just when did mommy say that?"
Jade simply shrugged and returned to playing with Kairi's vibrant fabric samples.
Sam shook his head. "You two really need to buy her earplugs or something. Is there anything she doesn't hear?"
Fred snickered, "Better be careful or soon she'll be asking why mommy gets so religious in your bedroom at night."
Joe responded by hitting Fred in the back of the head, which only made Fred laugh more.
"I hope you do end up with a daughter, Fred." Joe smiled a smug smile. "The perfect punishment for you will be to have to participate in manicures, tea parties, midday fashion shows, and impromptu waltzes. And then experience how surprised you'll be when you find out how much you'll genuinely enjoy it all."
"Wait, wait, wait..." Fred held up his hands and looked at Joe incredulously. "Are you telling me that you have tea parties?" Fred burst into laughter, a few tears building up in his eyes. Even Sam couldn't hold back his chuckles this time.
Joe rolled his eyes and slumped down in his chair. He mumbled, "You'll understand when you have a daughter of your own."
"If I had known pregnancy was this awful, I never would have wanted a child." Kairi huffed and crossed her arms. "I knew morning sickness was a thing, but it turns out, it's all-day sickness!"
"Preaching to the choir, honey." Sydney continued to type away on her laptop, only half-listening to Kairi's rant.
"Cade, consider yourself lucky that you've never had to go through this."
Cade frowned and looked away. "Yeah, lucky."
"It's miserable! I'm always nauseous, I've been having the weirdest cravings, and everything smells bad now! Like seriously. I cleaned our entire house the other day and it still smells like something died in there. Speaking of which, Sydney you should really consider going through your fridge. I can smell it all the way from here." Kairi made a big show a plugging her nose and sticking her tongue out in disgust.
"Yeah, sure thing, Kairi." Again, Sydney was barely paying attention to them. Her focused remained locked on her laptop.
"Are you even listening? If I'm boring you that much, you can leave." Kairi scowled.
"We're in her house." Cade shook her head at Kairi's suddenly rude attitude.
Suddenly wasn't a good way to describe it. Ever since Kairi became pregnant three months ago, her attitude had taken a turn for the worse. She'd lost any semblance of the bright, cheery girl she was before. Pregnant women were supposed to get moody sometimes, sure, but this was ridiculous.
"Well, I'm not going anywhere. I'm supposed to be taking it easy." Kairi tossed her hair over her shoulder with another huff.
Their moment ended when a half crying, half gurgling sound came from one of two bassinets set up next to them. Cade and Kairi looked at Sydney expectantly, waiting for her to get up and sooth her infant child.
"Ugh, please shut that thing up," Kairi groaned and covered her ears. "It's giving me a headache."
"Um, Sydney?" Cade waved her hand in front of Sydney's face.
"Huh?" Sydney belatedly registered the crying. "Oh." She moved to pick up a dissatisfied Riley and grabbed a brightly coloured rattle to shake over his head. Riley promptly stopped fussing. His blue and green eyes widened and he reached for his toy, his tiny hands swiping the air with no results.
"What are you working on anyway? You've been distracted all day." Cade leaned over to see what Sydney had been so fixated on this whole time.
Sydney's hand shot over and slammed her laptop shut before Cade could even get a glimpse of it. "It's nothing."
"Clearly not. You're acting crazier than Kairi."
"Hey! I'm not crazy. I'm pregnant."
Sydney kept her face away from them and continued to entertain Riley. "It's a work thing. Sky's supposed to be helping me, but Anna is still... recovering, and he hasn't been able to leave home much. It's really not that big of a deal."
Cade eyed her with uncertainty. "Whatever you say."
"Anyway, I get to find out the gender of my baby at my next ultrasound appointment!" Kairi clapped her hands. "I really hope it's a girl, especially since boys seem to cry so much." She stared at Riley with disdain.
Sydney rolled her eyes. "All babies cry, Kairi. And if you haven't noticed, he isn't crying anymore. Riley loves his rattle, don't you?" Sydney grinned for her son making Riley giggle. "See? Riley's my little sweetheart. Yes, you are."
"I don't know why you bother talking to him. It's not like he can respond to you," Kairi spoke in an annoyed tone.
"Well, studies have shown that parents who talked to their kids a lot as infants have higher IQs and a larger vocabulary than other children," Cade suggested.
"See? I talk to him so that one day he'll be a super genius. Isn't that right, Riley? Are you going to be mommy's little brainiac? Maybe you'll even put Uncle Sam and Aunt Cade out of business."
Cade scoffed. "We'll see about that. The commission we got on our last invention for the US government was more than generous." Cade couldn't help but grin as she watched Sydney play with Riley. "But more scientists in the world wouldn't hurt. There is a significant shortage of STEM students nowadays."
"Why does the conversation keep changing to things I don't care about?" Kairi pouted. "Can we focus on me for like, two seconds? I'm practically dying over here."
Sydney and Cade both visibly tensed up in irritation. Their jaws clenched, holding back any comments they were about to make. Six more months. They only had to put up with it for six more months. After that, Kairi should be back to her normal always happy self. At least, they hoped she would. The desire to put her back in her place couldn't be held down forever.
Fred now had a deeper understanding of karma.
He reflected on the conversation he had had with Joe and Sam a few months back when he first told them that Kairi was pregnant. Fred insisted that it wouldn't be a girl. He'd even taunted Joe about all the girly things and games he had to play with Jade. Thinking of Joe sitting down for a tea party still made Fred snicker from time to time.
But now Fred was starting to regret his words and images of himself sitting down for a tea party with a little girl filled his mind.
Today was the day he and Kairi were learning the gender of their baby. And of course with Fred's luck, it was...
"A girl!" Kairi bounced up and down in her seat. Her eyes were wide and her whole body shook. "This is amazing! Just think of all the outfits I can make for her! Oh! We can paint the nursery that pretty, soft pink colour I liked. I'm so happy right now. Aren't you?"
"Of course." Fred threw his arm over Kairi's shoulder and kissed her temple.
And Fred was happy, a little disappointed, but happy nonetheless. He may not have a son to take to all the big sporting events, or to teach all the cheat codes to his favourite fighting game, but he was still going to a have a child. Tea parties couldn't be that, right?
Kairi was still babbling on about all the things she wanted to do with her future daughter. Makeovers, trips to the mall, gossiping about boys. It all seemed a little overwhelming to Fred, but he loved seeing Kairi so happy like this. He had been effected by her sour mood too, and having her back to her old self, at least somewhat, was nice. He much preferred this Kairi.
So they were going to have a mini-Kairi. But who knew, maybe his daughter would actually be into sports. But with Kairi as its mother, Fred had his doubts. Still, there was that slim possibility that Fred clung to.
Fred absolutely loved his new job. It was everything he hoped it would be and more. His favourite part, besides the money and free tickets to any and all sporting events, was choosing what girls to put in the commercials. Every so often he and a team of other media executives would interview young actresses and models looking for their big break on television. Today was one of those days.
For the most part, the girls were kind and down-to-earth, aware of how appearance base it all was. They didn't exactly love it, but if they were pretty enough to get the job, no one ever complained. These types of advertisements always had the best responses from their target audience, and if the people wanted it, Fred was more than happy to give it.
Fred had never told Kairi all of his career tasks, specifically this one. It's not that if he told Kairi she'd get upset, she wasn't the jealous type, but Fred still had the feeling that Kairi shouldn't know, especially given her pregnancy attitude. And unless Fred told Kairi, she would never find out. She had never come to visit him at work. She knew where his office was, but she was usually busy with her own job. Though some days, like today, her pregnancy symptoms went into overdrive and she chose to stay home.
"Out of all the girls we've seen, I think Miranda is the top contender," one of Fred's coworkers spoke. "She's got the most experience and she actually knew a thing or two about football, which is a lot better than most of the other candidates."
"You like her because she looks like your wife," a different coworker teased. "But she is a good choice. Smart, experiences, she gets my vote."
Other members of the meeting mumbled their agreement. With their new ad girl chosen, the meeting was adjourned. Fred was just getting up to leave when his assistant stopped him.
His assistant was a young college student who was only interning in the offices for the summer. He wasn't the smartest kid in the world, but he was energetic and handsome. He reminded Fred of himself at that age, which was only five years younger than the age Fred currently was.
"Excuse me, sir. You have a visitor her to see you." His assistant turned to lead Fred to his visitor.
Fred followed his assistant back to Fred's office. "Visitor? I didn't think I had any more meetings today."
"Oh, she's not here for a meeting."
"She?" Fred immediately thought it was another girl who was coming to audition for the TV spot who had been running late. He wasn't going to enjoy telling her that the position had already been filled.
"Yes, sir. You see, it's-"
"Prince!" Fred soon himself in a tight hug from his wife.
Fred nodded to his assistant to leave them alone and was grateful when he shut the door on his way out.
A list of reasons why Kairi had decided to show up while Fred was at work ran through his head. Something was wrong with the baby, something was wrong with Kairi, or she'd found out what Fred's job was forcing him to do today and she was not happy. Fred inwardly cringed, imagining what Kairi would do to him. The old Kairi would do nothing, but the pregnant, temperamental Kairi might not.
"Princess," Fred put on a grin, "what a nice surprise. What are you doing here?"
Kairi gave him a cheeky grin. "Guess."
Fred paused. Kairi didn't seem angry or upset so it clearly wasn't any of the reasons he had initially thought of. Then what could it be? "Uh..."
"I can't wait. I'll just tell you," Kairi hurriedly spoke and placed her hands on her baby bump. "I felt her kick! I actually felt it! Usually it's only a flutter and I can't tell if it's really her or not, but this time I'm sure it was her. I came all the way down here so you could feel it too."
Before Fred could even blink, Kairi pulled his hand onto her stomach grinning wildly the whole time.
At first, Fred could feel nothing. He was beginning to think Kairi had just imagined it, when he felt it. A small poke coming from inside Kairi's stomach. At this point, Fred had seen his daughter on a sonogram, even heard her heartbeat, but neither of those things compared to this. It was the smallest little kick, and yet Fred was floored by how amazing it felt.
Fred laughed, not able to hide his joy. "Novella, that's fantastic!"
Another kick came, stronger than the first. Fred was genuinely surprised at the strength the baby had. He never thought it would feel that powerful.
"I know!" Kairi matched his excitement. "I'm sorry I had to interrupt your work day. I hope you weren't doing anything important."
"Nothing is as important to me as you and our daughter." Fred winked at her. "You can visit me any time you like."
In all of Joe, Sam, and Fred's time travelling adventures, Fred prided himself on how often he had remained calm. Sure, he had his moments, but he was nowhere near as bad as Sam was. Fred was good about staying cool in stressful times.
This was not one of those times.
His foot tapped the floor faster than a rabbit on speed. A cold sweat ran down the back of his neck and he didn't even bother to wipe it away. He had to remind himself to breathe.
He was not ready. How was anybody expected to be ready to be a parent after only forty weeks? That was not enough time! Fred didn't know what, but he was going to do something wrong. He just knew it. He would drop his daughter. He would overheat the bottle. He wouldn't hear her cries and she'd go hungry.
Fred needed to get some fresh air, but he had been sent out to get a cup of ice chips for Kairi since the epidural prevented her from consuming anything else. He would be expected to return soon.
Kairi, for the most part, had been doing surprisingly well, except for the expletive-laden yells at every contraction. She seemed more concerned with getting the baby out of her. Fred didn't want that at all, not yet at least. He needed more time.
Fred decided to go for a walk. He wouldn't take long and he'd be back before anyone even knew he was gone. He headed to the main waiting area where all his and Kairi's friends and family were gathered. It was a similar situation to when everyone had come together when Joe and Sydney were about to have Jade.
Fred froze. Joe had been through this before. Twice. Joe could help Fred. He hoped.
He spotted his friends sitting together on the opposite end of the lobby. Sydney and Cade were playing with the twins, holding on to their hands to help them stand up right and walk around. Joe was behind them with Jade sitting on his lap as he talked to Sam. Fred hurried over to them.
"Hey, Joe. Can I talk to you for a sec?" Fred hid his wringing hands behind his back so Joe wouldn't see them.
"Sure." Joe picked Jade up and set her down near Sydney. "Jade, why don't you help your mom teach your siblings to walk?"
Jade frowned as she watched her younger siblings, as if that was the last thing she wanted to do.
Fred led Joe away from the others so they wouldn't overhear anything they said. "I need your help," Fred pleaded. He hoped his voice didn't sound as panicked as he felt.
Joe jumped at Fred's sudden desperation. "Okay, calm down. With what?"
"I don't know! Everything! What do I do? I'm not ready to be a dad!" Fred hands raked through his hair, turning it into a completely dishevelled mess. Fred stopped trying to hide his nervousness, there was no point. It didn't help that Joe had started laughing at him.
"That's why you dragged me over here?" Joe continued to laugh. "Dude, what you're going through is normal. Remember how nervous I was before Jade was born? It's okay to feel this way. Trust me, it'll all go away the moment you hold your daughter."
"Hold her? I can't hold her. What if I drop her?"
"You're not going to drop her."
"But I could!"
Joe sighed and shook his head. "You need to relax, Fred. Which is a lot easier said than done, I know. Kairi is going to need you."
Fred took a deep breath, attempting to calm himself down. "I know, I know. But I have no idea what to do in there. You have to help me. Come with me!"
"I'm not going anywhere, and I doubt Kairi would want me in there anyway." Joe pinched the bridge of his nose. "Look, when it comes time, and it will be here before you know it, Kairi is going to need you. All you have to do is hold her hand and talk her through it, she'll probably yell and scream at you, but you just have to push through it. The doctor will ask you if you want to take a look and see the baby come out. Say no."
"Why?"
"Just say no. Trust me, that it something you never want to see and can never unsee." Joe shook his head to clear his thoughts. "The important thing to remember is that no matter how bad you think it is for you, it is a million times worse for her. You can't give up because she can't give up. It'll be over and done within an hour and soon you'll be holding your new baby girl. Believe me when I say, there is no greater feeling in the world than holding your child for the first time."
Fred nodded, trusting Joe's advice because it was all he could do.
"You have a name picked out for her, right?"
Again, Fred nodded.
"Good, just focus on the moment you look into her eyes for the first time and speak her name." Joe placed his hand on his friend's shoulder. "You can do this."
Fred never knew Kairi had so many swear words in her vocabulary. Half of the things that came out of her mouth during delivery were things Fred had never heard before. Which is saying something considering the amount of angry, screaming sports fans he'd been around.
But the moment it was all over and the room was filled with the cries of his newborn daughter, it was as if someone flipped a switch inside Kairi. Almost instantaneously, she reverted back to her old self. Any trace of the crazy, rude, and malicious behaviour she'd had while pregnant vanished. Fred had never felt so relieved in his life.
The doctor said that the baby was a perfectly healthy and beautiful baby girl.
Beautiful didn't even began to describe her. As Fred held her for the first time, he realized how true Joe's words were. There were no words to describe how it felt to be holding her for the first time. The warmth of a thousand suns exploded inside his heart. Fred wanted to do everything he could to protect her and give her anything her little heart desired.
She stared up at Fred with light grey-blue eyes, similar to the ones he had. Small tufts of white-blonde hair stuck out of her pale-skinned head. Her head was still odd-shaped from being born, but the doctor said that would go away soon enough.
Fred couldn't wait for all the adventures they would have together. "Jessica Eloise, you are the most beautiful girl I have ever seen."
A/N - Say hello to Miss Jessica Eloise. She's going to be a fun character. ;) One more chapter left, and then I can start posting Dead Debts! It'll be nice to get back to a main story and plot. Please, leave a review and thanks for reading!