31. ATTENTION
The holiday season came and went and a new year had just begun. In that short span of time, Edythe's wardrobe – things that she could still wear – started shrinking pretty quickly. She was combing through her closet again, Archie by her side this time as I sat awkwardly like a weirdo on her black chaise, my hands folded tightly in my lap as I watched them deliberate fashion which, by the way, I know absolutely nothing about.
"You know, I saw this coming – literally and metaphorically." Archie laughed, carefully folding a dress my wife couldn't wear anymore and putting it away in a clear plastic box. I heard Edythe let out a sigh. She held a floral lavender dress up to her body and stood in front of her full-length mirror.
"The cut's a bit looser, I'm trying it on." Edythe said more to herself than to anyone else. Quickly, she unzipped the lavender dress and stepped into it, pulling it over her stretchy gray shorts and white camisole. She put her arms through the flowy sleeves and started tugging up at the zip. Right when it hit the middle of her back though, it stopped moving.
"Let me help you with that, sis." Arch said gently as he came up behind her. He ran his tongue over his top lip in concentration as he pulled both sides of the back of the dress closer together. I saw Edythe wince once, but Arch managed to make the zip go all the way up. Still, you could tell it was a little too tight on her. Of course, I wasn't going to be the one to tell her that just so you know, because I actually valued my life.
"Sorry, Edy. This one's going in the box too." Arch matched her expression to a T, looking genuinely sad for her.
"How very disagreeable." She let out a small, disappointed huff and sat down on her heels now, rummaging through the bottom shelves of her open closet where she put her pants, skirts and shorts. I guess it didn't look too promising though, and she sighed.
"Maybe we can pick something up for you at the store. I need to get some groceries anyways." I offered up, trying my best to be helpful.
"Then I'm coming with you both." Archie smiled easily looking from me to Edythe and back again before starting to his feet. He held his hand out for her to take and helped her up. That was when Carine popped in, a pale-yellow dress draped over her arm for Edythe to see.
"I couldn't help but overhear - try this one, honey. It's mine."
"Thanks, Carine." Edythe showed her mom an almost tired smile and took the dress from her, holding it up and Arch helped her into it. The high-cut skirt breezed easily over her curves. It looked really pretty on her and I noticed that somehow it made her seem older; more mature. More like a woman than a girl. She pulled her hair over one side of her shoulder and started towards the stairs. I followed along right behind her, but I noticed Arch was still at the top of the stairs by the time Edythe and I were already down them. I turned around and saw that he was looking at her, a smile tugging up at the corners of his lips and it looked like he was about to say something but Edythe swiveled around real quick, just glaring at him.
"I will end you, Archie. Don't even think about it." Her lips were pursed in an angry little pout and her voice was cutting; her eyes piercing. I knew I'd definitely not want to be on the receiving end of those eyes, but apparently Arch was immune. Or maybe just crazy.
"What? It's funny." He protested out loud.
"Seriously? 'Wide load coming through?' What are you, five?" she rolled her eyes all the way up to the ceiling but her face looked like it would be blushing right about now if that were actually possible.
"I meant it in the best way, honest." He assured her, flashing a cheery smile. "It just means that they're growing big and strong, right?"
Edythe sighed loudly and blew up a breath into her eyes. "Some days you really are annoying." She huffed and walked away faster with me, seizing my hand and dragging me along behind her.
We went out the front door and Edythe beat us both to the driver's seat of the silver Volvo. We all climbed in, me beside Edythe and Archie behind us both. It wasn't raining at first, but by the time we got to the Thriftway parking lot, the road was slicked black with rainwater, the car totally soaked and the windshield wipers never stopped moving. Edythe dove into a spot nearby one of those steel cart-corrals in the middle of the lot and we all got out, our faces getting pelted with freezing rain. I pulled my jacket tighter around me and shivered. Arch went around back to the trunk of the car and took from it a small, portable umbrella. Opening it up, he gathered me, him, and Edythe under it and held it over us as we made our way across the lot. When we finally got under the awning near the front entrance, he shook the umbrella off and closed it before sliding it inside his large coat pocket and ushered us into the warmth of the store, taking a dry cart from the metal rack by the automatic doors.
"Follow me." Arch led us straight to the apparel department and his eyes were shiny with excitement. He sped around all the racks of clothes just throwing things into the cart left and right. When we got to the fitting rooms, the first thing he held up for Edythe to see was this short gray dress with long sleeves. Taking either side of the garment still on the hanger, he held it taut, pulling at the stretchy fabric. "The best part about this is that it can be used now," he held out a hand and motioned to her from head to foot, "and later." He smiled brightly. "More bang for your buck. That's the trick, you see – you don't really need to get maternity clothes. I mean, you'd only be using them for so long, right? Plus, it might be easier to find pieces that better suit your style here." He pointed out. "Here, try it." He took the dress off the hanger, folded it, and stacked a pair of black leggings and a black scarf on top of it, handing the bundle off to Edythe. After scrutinizing the stack for a few seconds, she gave her brother an approving nod before disappearing into the fitting room and Arch and I sat down on some chairs outside to wait for her. I didn't really know what to do with my hands as I waited and my knee bounced up and down restlessly as I crossed my arms over my chest. I've never been one for clothes shopping – my mom would always buy me the stuff I needed and I'd just wear whatever she picked out for me, so it was funny to see Arch and Edythe go into it like it was some kind of active process instead. A few minutes later, I heard the door handle rattling and Edythe waltzed out of the dressing room with one hand on her hip and spun around twice for us to see.
"Wow." I said below my breath. The gray dress clung perfectly to the curves of her body and my eyes widened – she looked good. Like, really good. And my face felt really hot just then. I covered my chin with my hand and looked down, trying to hide my splotchy red face. Considering my only job today was to literally stop and stare at my freaking beautiful goddess wife, I was doing very badly at it. I heard Arch snicker and Edythe let out a musical laugh, leaning down so the scarf trailed over the tops of my thighs. She blew a breath into my face and her sweet, compelling scent wrapped around my head, clouding my judgement and I just blinked up at her, totally stunned. Gee, we were already married, she didn't need to do that to me.
"I'll take it." After pulling my hand away from my face, she tilted my chin up with the tip of her slender finger and let out a bright little laugh that kicked my heart into high gear.
This went on for another half hour or so, and it was like they were tag-teaming me or something. I mean, Edythe was right – Arch really did have the best taste. Maybe I'm biased, but I couldn't think of anyone better than Edythe to showcase his insane talent for fashion given the way it made me feel to see her in all his picks because let's just say, it wasn't good for my heart.
The final outfit he picked out for her was this cute white sweater dress over a pair of nice black tights and my heart did its weird double-thump thing again when I saw her emerge from behind the door. Maybe I really was coming down with some kind of aortic issue.
"What do you think?" she asked with a wide grin.
"I'm pretty sure you know my answer already." I answered, nodding my head very slowly. She laughed at that.
"It really doesn't take much to impress you, does it?"
"No. Not when it comes to you, at least." I readily answered her, shaking my head. Her mouth pulled over to one side of her face before softening into another smile.
"You really are good to me, you know that?" her small hand brushed a piece of hair from my forehead, her cool touch sending a tiny shiver up my spine. But when her little finger grazed the now-healed scar on my forehead, the smile she wore earlier had fallen away and she flinched, drawing her hand back. She was blinking rapidly like she had something in her eyes and then she looked away, silent again.
"I better go change." Her voice was quiet and she retreated back into the fitting room before I could even say anything. I bit my lip and looked down into my lap, fidgeting with my hands and letting out a shaky breath through my teeth. I hated to see her like that; like she hated herself. Like she felt she deserved to be hated by me.
A hand touched my shoulder. It was Arch.
"Don't be too hard on yourself, Beau. It wasn't any more your fault than it was hers." His voice was soft. I tried to show him a smile to tell him I appreciated it, but I was still too distracted to look at him straight. The fitting room door swung open again.
"Come on." Edythe, now back in Carine's yellow dress, started up shortly and walked to the cart in two long strides, tossing in the clothes she just got out of. I wondered how much she heard, but she wasn't saying anything about it and I wasn't going to push her. I got up first and stood beside her. Arch got up after me and motioned a thumb further into the apparel department. "I'll catch up with you both later. In the meantime, I might go pick something out for Jess too." Arch flashed us a kind smile before leaving us both behind and I wondered what that was about. Maybe he just wanted to give us some alone time. I was still quiet.
"You said you needed to buy some groceries, did you not?" Edythe asked, looking straight out in front of her at the vast expanse of the store.
"Oh, yeah. Almost forgot." I took out my grocery list. We didn't need too many things, just some milk, eggs, and bread, so it wouldn't take very long at all. We started moving toward the grocery section of the store. It wasn't too crowded today, but some of the aisles were pretty narrow and I tried not cause too much collateral damage as I navigated the cart through them, praying I wouldn't wham into or bite the heel of another shopper with it. Edythe had to help me with that of course, and she held on to the front of the basket, guiding me. Just as we passed through the space between the first checkout counter and the beginning of the dry goods aisles, something caught our attention at the exact same time – a small section of baby goods. It was yet another reminder of things to come; how our lives will be changed forever in a few short months, as crazy as that seemed. On the bottom shelf, there were boxes of ready-to-assemble cribs and I took the second box of the four, moving her clothes and laying it down in the cart basket. It was pretty heavy and Edythe made to grab it from me, but I assured her that I was just fine. When I lifted my eyes, I saw Edythe's arm stretching over my head as she took down some baby toys from the top shelf.
"Oh, this really is quite precious." Her eyes were soft and in the palms of her hands she was holding out to me a tiny stuffed lamb. I chuckled and went to browse through the rest of the shelf.
"Look what I found." I laughed, bringing the snout of a little lion plush up to nuzzle her nose.
"Perfect." Gently, she took it from me and held both animals in her hands, giving them a squeeze.
"And so, the lion fell in love with the lamb." Her voice was quiet. "And the two shall never be parted again." She said even more softly and gently put them down in the cart. She looked up at me and brought her hand to my cheek. But then I saw her back stiffen a little bit and she pulled away, looking down the rest of the aisle and angling her head this way and that with narrowed eyes. I tried to see what she was seeing, but all I really got was the back of some lady's head walking away from us.
"Um… you know her?"
"No, I don't actually." Edythe shook her head, hard. "And that is exactly why she has absolutely no right to make that sort of judgement call."
I was confused. All she did was pass us by, I don't think I heard her say anything weird to us.
Unless she was thinking it.
"What did she…?" I whispered, not finishing the sentence but gesturing towards the lady.
"It simply doesn't matter. Come on." She said it like she was telling herself that instead of answering me and took the front of the basket again. When we got to the eggs and dairy section near the back of the store, I parked the cart and went to the big industrial fridge case, taking down from it a gallon of milk. I saw Edythe holding out her hands, ready to steady me in case my legs gave out on me or something, which she was apparently expecting to happen.
"I'm pretty sure I'm capable of doing this much at least, Edythe." I laughed. She sighed and lowered her hands a little but still kept her eyes locked on me. I put the milk in the cart and we pushed on towards the eggs. After inspecting the dozen in the first carton I picked out, I laid it gently in the baby seat of the cart. I imagined how one of these days, there'd be an actual baby in it and the thought made me feel kind of weird, but kind of - excited, I guess? - at the exact same time. My eyes flicked quickly to the list again and I saw that all we needed now was some bread. We cut through an aisle full of snack foods and I tossed in a couple of bags of potato chips for myself before we finally got to the bread and baked goods part of the store. While I was looking through the loaves trying to find the freshest ones stamped with the latest date, I couldn't help but notice how quiet Edythe had gotten. I turned to look at her and saw that her eyebrows were arched up towards the center of her forehead and her eyes were sharp; uncomfortable. I don't think I've ever seen her act like that before and I was a little worried, but just as I was about to say something, she closed her mouth shut with an audible clench.
"I'm old enough to be their mother; their grandmother. A little respect would really be nice." I heard Edythe seethe under her breath as a middle-aged lady whose hair was just graying walked by us at a distance just far enough away where she couldn't hear us talking. I mean, even I could feel her stare. It was probably worse for Edythe, though. She wrapped her coat tighter around herself.
"What's wrong?" I whispered, leaning closer to my wife. I think I kind of already knew it, though. She sighed again and pulled away from me, twirling the small silver wedding band that coordinated with mine around her left ring finger, almost like she was trying to draw attention to it.
"It's been a while since I cared what anyone thought of me," she started in a quiet, angry voice, "but their thoughts are just so terribly loud right now, looking at us; looking at me. It is immensely irritating. Completely insufferable." Edythe let out a huff and her eyebrows knit together, troubled. I continued to stare after the lady and wondered if anyone else thought the same thing she was thinking about us, too, because no matter how old Edythe technically was, all they could see was a girl too young to be a mom and a guy who majorly screwed up - me and her, two stupid kids who made a huge mistake. Like our child was some kind of mistake; a wrong that needed to be made right. I could feel that hotness bubbling up in my chest again and my jaw clenched up a little, anger my initial reaction to their blatant disapproval. But then I took a breath and closed my eyes, trying to cool down a little bit. We shouldn't care what they thought about us anyways - I mean, it was none of their business, right? Still, I could understand Edythe entirely, and my top priority now became to just try and make her feel better.
"Don't worry about them." I said, taking her shoulders and blocking her view of everyone else behind me so she wouldn't have to see their probing stares. "They don't even know us, okay? You did nothing wrong."
"But maybe I did," her voice got all quiet, dropping off into nothing. "For falling in love with you."
That took me aback. It felt like my body was getting stabbed by a thousand cold, sharp needles all at once.
"What do you mean?"
She shook her head. "It's not just what they think of me, Beau - if I were an ordinary human girl, I could have still taken all that no matter how...unpleasant... their commentary might've been, trust me. People talking - that would've been the worst we'd really have to deal with if I were still human, right? But no matter how much I want it to be true, I'm not human, I'm not normal, and yet, I shamelessly pursued you. even when I knew it was utterly selfish of me to have wanted you like that." She said it like it was a one-sided thing when it was literally anything but. I tried telling her so, but she stopped me, taking a step back with our hands in between us. "Just think about it, Beau - if I were still human, then you wouldn't have a target on your back because of me; my family wouldn't have a target on their backs because of me. And for that I know I'm selfish, too, for wanting this child." her voice grew thick and she let go of my hands to touch her stomach, cradling it. "I know I should feel ashamed and yet, I cannot bring myself to regret any of it at all - you, him, us - because you have given me everything and more, Beau, things I didn't even think I could have asked for. And that truly makes me happy, Beau. Am I selfish for that? Am I?" her eyes widened, fear and pain creeping up in them.
"Oh, Edythe." I shook my head and my throat felt a choking lump rising up in it. "Of course you're not. Just don't worry about any of that sort of stuff, okay? We're going to be fine." I stroked the sides of her face. "I love you, Edythe. That's never, ever going to change. And I'll never be sorry that I do. Never."
"I love you, too." She let out a shaky sigh and rested her hand on my cheek, looking up at me. "Thank you, Beau." she whispered in a voice as quiet as a breath. I kissed her on the forehead and pulled her into my chest.
...
"Are you feeling a little better now, Edythe?" I asked, weaving my fingers through hers. She showed me a small nod and brought our hands up to her lips, brushing a kiss on my wrist. "Let's go."
We started toward the checkout counters with this calm quiet between us, leaning close to each other. We cut through the produce section where I grabbed some apples and bananas that were on sale and dove into the line of the first register we saw and I squeezed Edythe's hand as we watched all the colorful items going by on the mechanical conveyor belt. When it was our turn, Edythe pulled out her wallet, getting ready to pay. She glanced up to look at the poor fellow working the register and he dropped the bananas on the ground and bruised them when his eyes found hers. "Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry!" He was just a kid, maybe a little younger than me- definitely still in high school, the poor sap. His hair was a mop of tangled brown and his eyes were a glassy, delicate green, as if they'd break if you pushed him too hard. His cheeks burned a deep red, and I couldn't help but feel for him. "It's quite alright." She assured, flashing her signature dimples. He dropped the price scanner and it bounced on the floor. I went to pick it up for him, but he beat me to it.
"Sorry!" He started again, quickly replacing it in its holder and wholly unable to meet her eyes. I saw Edythe chuckle. Did she think he was cute or something?
"He reminds me a little of you." She whispered with a smile. I wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing to hear as her husband and I didn't really know how to respond.
"What's your number?" The boy suddenly asked but then shuddered, squeezing his eyes shut. "Ah, that is - I meant - what's your name? Then possibly your number? Maybe?" Wow. You know how they always say "shoot your shot"? Well, Mr. Cashier guy over here was really taking that to heart. This kid, I tell you.
"It's Swan. Mrs. Swan." Edythe touched my chest with her left hand- you know, the one with the wedding ring on it - and then cradled her stomach with the other. The kid flushed three shades of red and it almost looked as if his life all but flashed before his eyes. "Oh my gosh, I didn't know- it's just that you looked so young and... and... I'm so sorry, ma'am!" It was only then he stopped to look at me, for the first time ever, and he made a pained face as if he were about to cry. "And... and sir." He bowed his head, ashamed. I mean, hitting on a married pregnant lady with her husband right there? Yeah, yikes. That's really gotta blow for the kid.
"Yeah, sorry dude. Usually that means she's taken." I added, motioning towards the ring and then her belly and the baby stuff on the conveyor belt before touching the back of my neck.
"Y-yes, of course. I'm really, really sorry."
I held my palms out toward him. "No hard feelings. Don't worry about it, man. It happens." Of course, this happened a lot more often with me and Edythe than for anyone else I knew. The boy still couldn't look at us straight. After he rung everything up and mumbled the total, Edythe, feeling bad for him I guess, showed him a small smile, thanked him and wished him a great day. Although his cheeks were still red, he definitely brightened up some when she did that.
By the time we found ourselves in the parking lot, it had stopped raining. Arch was already standing by the car, waving at us. I don't think it was a coincidence, he probably already knew beforehand what time we were going to get done at. I waved back, then turned to look at Edythe again and saw that she was smiling. "I can't believe it. I actually got a ma'am." She threw her bronze curls back, laughing.
"And I got a sir." I chuckled and we kissed right there in the parking lot. We hurried over to Arch and he helped us load all the stuff up in the Volvo. I saw him eye the crib and then the stuffed lion and lamb before smiling and nodding, but whatever he was smiling about, he was keeping it a secret from us. Even Edythe looked a little thrown by it, but not in a bad way if you know what I mean, just kind of curious. After we all piled into the car again, Edythe drove us back home. When we were standing in the driveway, I secured the crib box underneath one arm and carried two bags of groceries in the other hand, Edythe and Archie taking care of the rest before I could even protest. I looked after the blurs of light they turned into and once inside, I dropped off the two bags with food on the kitchen counter where they had left the others and I sprinted up the stairs to the room Edythe and I shared, dropping the crib off there before dashing back down the steps to help them put it all away. They were already done by the time I stepped foot in the kitchen again though.
"Wow, you guys are really fast." They exchanged a knowing smile with each other before turning to look at me again and Edythe held out one last bag to me. In it were the little stuffed animals we picked out together and something else I didn't remember getting – a photo album. I slid it out of the paper bag and held it, turning it over and sideways and ran my finger down its colorful spine, cracking it open to look inside. That was when I realized it wasn't just any ordinary photo album; it was one of those "Baby's First Year" scrapbooks and my eyes widened. Edythe came up to me and traced the small silver teddy bear medallion inset on the front cover with the tip of her finger before showing me a happy smile.
"You love it, I know." It was Archie. I couldn't help but grin up at him.
"Thanks Arch." I said quietly.
"Yeah, yeah. I saw their first birthday you know, in another vision. It was through your eyes." He smiled softly. "That's what gave me the idea in the first place. Figured you'd want to keep track of how they got there; how much they've grown."
I slid the album back in the paper bag and showed Arch another smile. "That really is thoughtful of you Arch. Thanks again." His vision made me happy for another reason too though – that the odds of us having a shot at a future together was getting more and more real; more and more possible. The bag swung at my side as Edythe and I dashed upstairs and put it down nicely with the crib and the box of baby things Dad gave us in the brightest corner of the room she and I shared. I was feeling all giddy inside looking at all the stuff and a flash of determination streaked across my face as a sudden thought came to mind and I reached for the crib. Maybe it was the adrenaline or whatever, but suddenly I felt like I could take on the world – or, at least, take a jab at this whole parenting thing and start fixing up the baby's crib. Peeling the tape away with my fingernail, I opened the flap of the box and slid all the contents out – the base, headboard, footboard, rails, and a little pack of silver screws among other things – and laid them all out. It was more parts than I was expecting at first and I was wondering if I was missing anything and wanted to look inside the instruction manual for comparison. Realizing I couldn't find it though, I kind of panicked there for a second but when I turned over the box and shook it, the booklet came fluttering out easily. With one finger on the page, I looked from the stuff I had laid out in front of me to the illustrations and back again, checking things off mentally. After making sure they were all there, I nodded my head once in approval and started downstairs to get the toolbox, but Edythe beat me to it and was gone and back again at my side before I could even blink.
"Here you go." She held the red box out to me and smiled before bringing it back down to her side and pushing me into the room again. She lowered herself onto her knees and motioned for me to do the same. "So, we're doing this, huh?" she asked, her eyes burning bright with excitement. She put the toolbox down on the floor and flipped open the lid, already digging through it.
"I can't make you do that. Let me, I've got this." I insisted, taking the box from her.
"It would go much faster if only you'd let me help." Her voice got all light and she pulled the box right back to her.
"But you're pregnant!"
She narrowed her eyes silently at me. "And your point is…?" she shrugged after a long minute and her slender fingers danced in the air, punctuating my stupidity. I shook my head – I mean, even when mocking me she was so utterly beautiful. Without even realizing it, my face just started gravitating in towards hers like a magnet and I closed my eyes, anticipating the sweetness of her cool lips on mine.
I leaned in and ended up kissing her finger instead.
She tutted me. "We do it together. Final offer."
"Deal." I caved.
She grinned triumphantly and moved her finger away before covering my lips with hers - my reward - and afterwards, she twisted her body a little to look at the crib parts with a contented smile on her face.
"So, where should we start?" she flipped through the instruction manual super quick – how anyone can read that fast vampire or not was beyond me – and cast it aside. Leaning forward over her knees she took up the headboard, laying it flat out on the floor in front of her. From another small plastic bag, she took out a long golden nail. "Beau?" she raised her eyebrows, looking at me. "I need you to stand this up." She pointed to the headboard. I nodded my head and did exactly what I was told and she attached the golden nail onto what I assume was the inside of the headboard easily. After doing that, she attached one of the rails – the taller one - to the headboard and screwed that in before aligning it with the shorter railing and attaching the mattress support to the base of the crib with me pretty much just handing her the things she needed and occasionally holding stuff up and in place. I mean, for her saying that we were doing this thing together, I seemed to be doing very little and she, too much. Just as she grabbed the footboard – the final piece - I leapt up and stopped her. "I got this." I said confidently and cracked my knuckles, thrusting my palms out. I tried screwing it into the railings and I thought I did a pretty good job at it but realized when, with Edythe's help, I stood it up and saw that the legs were uneven. She threw her head back and laughed out loud at the sight.
"Shall we try that again?" she smirked, resting her fingers on the corner of her lip.
I quickly took up the screwdriver and loosened all the screws before starting over again from the top. One of them got stuck when I tried to screw it in again and the next thing I know I was practically whamming it into the crib with the handle of the screwdriver like a hammer into a nail just fuming, and I heard my wife mocking me again.
"Patience, Beau. What did that poor crib ever do to you?"
"I'll get this thing to fit if it's the last thing I do!" I said through my teeth and ignored her words, hoping it'd motivate me if I just hyped myself up a little more. I mean, if this was pretty much all I could do, then you bet I was going to do a thorough job. Miraculously or perhaps through sheer willpower, it actually seemed to work. The nail unstuck itself and I was finally able to start on the other side. After tightening both screws, I stood the crib up again and let out a sigh of relief when I saw that it was level to the ground for once. Even Edythe looked kind of impressed. I deliberately let go of the screwdriver and it clattered loudly to the floor in a total mic drop moment. I stood back and made a motion like I was wiping my hands off and tossed her a smug grin over my shoulder.
"Pretty cool, don't you think?"
"Totally." She nodded her head, but the way her eyes narrowed at me kind of confirmed the opposite. I frowned, almost hurt.
"Aw, come on. You have to admit that was pretty neat."
Her wide crimson eyes looked amused, and the corners of her lips were right on the point of breaking into another smile. She tilted her head in my direction and let out a sigh. "Fine. I'll give you that." She patted my chest twice with her hands and laughed again before turning to look at where the crib stood. "Now, we just have to figure out where exactly to put it," Her mouth pulled over to one side of her face and she crossed one arm over her torso and rested her head in her other hand, thinking as her eyes swept over the room from left to right.
"What about that corner?" I offered up, motioning to the right of the window if you were looking at it from here.
"Mm. I like it." Edythe nodded her head thoughtfully. I started walking towards it but then felt this cool, sudden rush of air whizz past me and realized it was only her. Before I could even fathom what she was going to do, she had the crib high up in the air with one hand.
"Edythe! What do you think you're doing?" I flew to her at top human speed and took the other side from her. She gave me a confused look. "I'm relocating the crib to the place which you yourself suggested, of course. What does it look like to you?"
"You'll hurt yourself doing that!"
"Did it seem too heavy for me?" she asked, blinking. I motioned to her entire frame from head to foot and back again with my free hand, pushing up a sound of disbelief from the back of my throat. Wasn't it obvious?
"Oh, Beau. You worry too much." She waved me off. "I'm perfectly fine and so is he. Trust me." She started off with the crib again but I tightened my grip on it.
"Sorry, no can do."
"Oh, come on, Beau. I'm pregnant, not helpless. Is that concept very hard for you humans to understand?" She rolled her eyes but I could tell she was biting back a smile. "Plus, we both already know I'm much stronger than you." She smirked.
I… couldn't argue with that. But still, to let her do something like this herself felt wrong as the husband; as the dad, you know what I mean? It was the least I could do. I shook my head.
"Yeah, still a no. We'll do it together. Final offer." I answered her easily with a small shrug, throwing her words from earlier right back at her.
"Stubborn." She muttered under her breath but I could tell there was the hint of a smile in her voice and she finally let me assist her. It looked nice by the window and I was pretty proud of myself for suggesting it in the first place.
"Would you look at that. It really is quite lovely." Edythe breathed, clasping her hands together. All we needed now was the mattress and bedding. After taking some measurements and writing them down in my phone, I stood back again and Edythe stayed looking at the crib, her eyes shiny with excitement. I heard her listing off a bunch of colors in a quiet voice like she was talking to herself, and her face had a reaction to every last one of them. I couldn't help but laugh.
"What's so funny?"
"Nothing." I shrugged evasively and hid my smile.
"I do hope for your sake that you aren't satirizing me." She pulled me in by the collar of my shirt, her bottom lip caught between the gleam of her white teeth as she looked up at me with crimson doe eyes. Her voice got lower; more velvety and I felt like I was melting.
"And what if I was…?" I challenged, waggling my eyebrows.
"Then you must pay the consequences for your actions, of course." The next thing I know, she pushed me down hard onto the bed with a single invisibly fast motion and suddenly I wasn't on my feet anymore. I fell backwards onto the sheets hearing the mattress creak below my weight and she eased herself on top of me. Her face drew nearer and nearer to mine and I felt her cool breath on the tip of my nose, and I grew red and hot all over. Her lips traced themselves from the middle of my forehead down my cheek and then my throat and it made me feel cold and then hot again, but in the best kind of way. We tumbled sideways together on the bed and my fingers tangled themselves in her hair, my lips meeting hers again and again.
"Well, if this is my punishment, then how am I ever going to learn? You should really try another tactic, you know." I said in a smiling tone of voice between breaths as I tightened my hands around her shoulders, running them up and down her satin arms. She pinned me down and brought my hands to her chest.
"Lucky for you, I've got plenty." She brushed her lips against both my knuckles and let go of my hands, quickly tugging off my shirt and throwing it onto the floor. Her lips started moving again, but this time they trailed along down the center of my bare chest, down my stomach, down… Oh, that one is new. Alrighty then.
She pulled me up again and sat herself in my lap and I dove for her neck, wrapping my arms over her shoulders. My hand found the zip in the back of her dress and I pulled the sleeves down over her arms so they hooked around the bends of her elbows and hung off her glorious body but in my very humble opinion, she was still entirely overdressed. Just as I tugged down on the skirt part of the dress though, I felt this weird sort of - thrashing? – against the palm of my hand. I heard Edythe let out another hiss and she tightened her grip on my fingers.
"What's wrong?" I asked, panic creeping up in my voice again. She pressed her lips together and closed her eyes before letting a breath out through her nose. She held up a finger before swallowing once and answered me.
"He's at it again." She sighed and, pulling the zip of the dress up with one hand, leaned over the edge of the bed reaching for the little glass vial of venom that Carine gave her. She pulled the dress skirt over her waist and I saw those black, pulsing lines again and winced involuntarily. They were bigger now, but when she dabbed more of the venom on them, they disappeared a lot quicker than they ever had before, like her skin was adapting – evolving – along with the baby. After putting the little vial away, she turned to look at me with bemused eyes, shaking her head.
"He was so confused!" she suddenly started with a bright laugh.
"Confused?" I narrowed my eyes and tilted my head. She rested a finger on her chin and looked up to the roof, shifting her jaw.
"Mm, how should I put it? It's new - the feeling, that is – or at least, his ability to 'vocalize' it and communicate it to me, if you know what I mean. It's the first time I've heard something like it." I thought about that for a long minute but wished I hadn't, my cheeks getting all red and splotchy. I didn't want to scar my future child for life or anything like that, so reluctantly I tossed my shirt on again real quick and sat back on the bed, leaning up against a pillow. Wow, he wasn't even born yet, and he was already interrupting us! At this rate, he was going to be an only child for life. I guess seeing the slight hint of disappointment on my face, Edythe threw her head back, laughing.
"Oh, Beau. Don't be that way."
"What way?"
"That way." She repeated, her tone adding the "duh". I tried to think of what my face looked like to her now. Did I really seem that desperate?
"Oh."
"Yeah. Oh." She laughed again and pulled her legs up sideways on the mattress, tucking them below her knees and she leaned back still looking at me, fighting a grin. I saw her cradling her stomach and she closed her eyes, concentrating on something. Watching her, I saw her lips soften up into a smile. Without thinking, I scooted in closer to her and touched my own hands to her stomach as if somehow, I could see the very same things she was seeing, too. I wanted it now, more badly than I could have imagined before. It was nothing short of amazing. I felt those fluttery movements again and laughed despite myself – it made me feel kind of funny, but in the best kind of way.
"What's he thinking?" it was my turn to ask that now.
"He loves the sound of my voice," she chuckled.
"Well, duh."
"And yours too. He can recognize them both already." She smiled softly. "And he loves the sound of your heart beating. He can hear it even now." She covered her lips with one hand. "And… he loves us. Very, very much." She looked down again, shaking her head. "What have I ever done to deserve you?" Her voice was barely above a whisper - there was so much love in it, but there was also a sense of anguish which tinged her words and made my heart clench up in my chest. I brought my hands to either side of her face and gently brushed my lips against her forehead.
…
The next day, Edythe and I were in the living room, leaning back up against the couch cushions. I was looking through that page in the newspaper where job listings were posted. I figured since we weren't heading up to college just yet, it wouldn't hurt to get in some work experience before then. Besides, doing this gave me an excuse not to think about Ivan nor the Volturi and everything else that could go wrong – I mean, it was less than two months away, maybe even sooner if anything changes. I just couldn't take that right now. Pushing the thought out to the furthest reaches of my mind, I hovered a finger over a promising opportunity – a private English tutor for a kid in high school posted by his parents. It was my best subject growing up and I turned around to tell Edythe about it but saw that she was distracted. It looked like she was talking to herself again. Though I couldn't make out the words, she was all smiles and I knew what that meant – she was talking to the baby. Just then, her crimson eyes locked on mine and she showed me a grin like the big finish to a fireworks display.
"What is it?" I asked, laughing.
"He wants to talk to you." She beamed.
"Yeah right."
"I told you, he's very smart."
"What would he want to talk to me for though? I'm very boring."
"Beau." She gave me a look from beneath the fringe of her thick eyelashes.
"I don't know-"
"Come on Beau, just say something to him. I'll translate." She almost sounded impatient.
"I feel weird."
"Don't be such a baby. That spot has already been filled, you know." she gave me a tiny shove with the tip of her finger and laughed.
"Fine." I caved. I put a thoughtful finger to my lip and then came up with a very brilliant idea, mainly to get back at her. "Alright. You asked." I shrugged my shoulders and put my hands up before lowering them onto her stomach and cleared my throat.
"Hey kid. It's me, your dad. Mind if I ask you a favor? Whatever you are, just please don't be as cruel to me as your mother. I don't think I could take it." I entreated her growing belly very kindly. I looked up again at my wife, biting back a smile. She narrowed her eyes sharply at me and I think she was silently contemplating very seriously how she could murder me a hundred different ways that instant.
"Of all the things…" she muttered under her breath, looking at me with those beautiful angry eyes of hers and I shrugged, pulling my lips up into a smug grin.
And then I heard my stomach let out a huge growl and I winced a little in embarrassment. I guess that's what I got for igniting my wife's ire.
I got to my feet and started towards the kitchen. "I'm going to get a snack. Do you want something?" I asked, motioning a thumb over my shoulder and waiting for her answer. She smiled a slow, easy grin at me. I guess I was expecting her to be craving some human food because of the baby at first, but that grin made me realize she was wanting something else entirely today, and my face turned white then green then white again, but I was ready to do it; ready to do it for her.
"Mm, I do… but I wouldn't want to subject your – ah, what was it now? – right, your weak vasovagal system to any more abuse." She stood up and joined me, touching her cool fingers to my white cheeks. "So, I'm coming with you."
"Deal." She slid her hand in mine and we swung them between us as we made our way into the kitchen. But just as we passed by the large window in the back of the living room, we heard a loud gasp.
It was Archie.
"Arch? What are you seeing?" Edythe had both her hands on his shoulders now and shook them, hard.
"Why… why didn't I see that coming?" his voice was no louder than a whisper.
"Arch? Arch, what do you mean? Talk to me." I stayed watching his face – his eyes were still closed and my heart seized up in my chest. After an eternal moment, he finally started to speak.
"This is strange. He wasn't supposed to. Not yet, at least."
"Supposed to what?" Edythe's voice was shrill now and then Jules and everyone else in the house came to meet us in the room, surrounding us on all sides.
"To leave." He turned to look at Edythe and took her hand. "Ivan's left home, Edy."