I lay on my back, my shirt lifted up to expose my four month along belly. Apachai had his ear pressed to it, listening to the baby's heart.
"You is going to be so cute," he was saying. "Apachai cannot wait to play with you. He thinks you will be very cute and cuddly." He scowled for a moment, then looked up at me.
"Baby doesn't move much," he commented.
"The baby's asleep," I told him. He gently poked my stomach.
"Wake up, baby!" he demanded. I smiled and patted his hand.
"She just fell asleep," I said. "Let her rest."
"You know it's a girl?" Apachai asked. "I thought you not know till next week."
"I think it's a girl," I said. "I just feel like it is, we won't know for sure until next week."
"How you know?" he questioned.
"I just do," I said.
"Akisame will be happy," Apachai said. "He want little girl first."
I smiled and looked over at where Akisame was training Kenichi. He turned his head and met my eyes, returning my smile. I knew he must have heard our conversation.
I yawned and sat up, letting Apachai pull down my shirt and fuss over me a little.
I had no worries about Apachai with the baby. I had seen him with Honoko many times and despite how rough he could be with training Kenichi, I knew when it came to children he was a gentle giant.
Shugure dropped down from the roof and knelt next to me. Despite how close I was with everyone at the Dojo, Shugure and I did not have much of a relationship. She mainly kept her distance from me. I had asked Akisame about this and he had told me that Shugure would warm up to me eventually. I watched as she sat next to me, her eyes gazing out at the yard. She was quiet for a moment.
"Can I…listen…to the baby?" she asked. I looked at her, surprised.
"Sure," I said, lifting my shirt back up. I reclined back on the porch, watching as she bent down and pressed her ear against my stomach. We were quiet for a moment, and then she looked at me, her violet eyes meeting mine.
"Her heart beats very…fast," she commented.
"It does," I commented. "A baby's heart beats fastest in the womb."
"Does it…hurt?" she asked.
"Does what hurt?" I questioned.
"Being…pregnant," she clarified.
"Sometimes," I told her. I felt the baby move, a soft flutter of movement. Shugure's eyes widened and she quickly pulled away, looking at my stomach as though it was some foreign thing.
"What was…that?" she inquired.
"She moved," I said. Shugure leaned forward and laid her hand softly on my stomach. The baby moved again and I saw the corners of Shugure's lips lift in a smile.
"When she's born…can I…hold her?" she asked.
"Of course," I said. Shugure nodded and stood, quickly jumping back to the roof.