It was later that night now, a Friday night, and me and Cappie were already acting like parents.
Brushing our teeth in the bathroom together at 11pm, me ready to completely pass out I'm so tired. Being pregnant made me tired period, but even more so because I only got like 5 hours of sleep last night.
After we brush our teeth I wash my face and take a makeup wipe to wipe off where I'd put concealer on my neck to hide the hickey Cappie had given me last night.
When I'm finished with it, I throw it in the garbage and then turn around to see Cappie looking at me, amused.
He leans in to kiss the spot where he's given me the hickey.
"Yeah thanks for that by the way", I scoff at him.
"Hey c'mon!", He grins smugly. "It's some of my finest work".
I give him a playful glare and then look in the mirror to fix my ponytail. Then I grab my bump oil. It's something I'd been using lately on my bump and my boobs because it supposedly prevented stretch marks. I'd read about it online, that a lot of pregnant women used it, and I would try anything that would keep me looking the same as I had before.
I lift my baby pink nightgown up to get access to my bump. Right now I didn't have any stretch marks at all, but the way the skin was stretched across my belly tightly scared me. I wasn't completely vain but… I was a 22 year old former sorority girl. I didn't want having this baby to completely change my body forever.
Seeing Cappie in the reflection of the mirror breaks me out of my worried thoughts and I turn to look back at him pinching his arm in an overdramatic fashion.
"What the hell are you doing?", I laugh.
"Just confirming with myself that I'm awake and not in a dream", He jokes with me. "Since you oiling yourself up in front of me is number four on my top ten best sex dreams I've ever had list".
He grins at me smugly and I laugh, continuing to spread the oil across my bump.
"What's number one?", I give him a look.
"Number one shouldn't be said in front of the baby", he gives me a seductive gaze, eyes full of mischief.
I scoff at him and look back in the mirror.
"Well you're really gonna like what I'm gonna do next then", I give him a playful look, pulling my nightgown over my head and hanging it on the hook in the bathroom, now just in my panties.
I look at Cappie, who appears bug eyed, eyes focused on gazing down my body.
I giggle, him making me feel confident and giddy, like I was the most beautiful thing to him, no question about it. And I kind of needed that right now.
I start to rub the oil in on my boobs then, the act sending Cappie's eyes resting on my chest.
"Are you doing this just to mess with me?", he scoffs, grinning at me. "Trying to get me back for earlier today?"
"No", I shake my head, looking at him like he's crazy for thinking that, but if I was being honest, seeing him react to this was pretty fun. "Although… now that you mention it, it is an added bonus".
I look at him matter of fact.
"It genuinely is something that people use to prevent their stretch marks when pregnant Cap. Not everything is about sex", I give him a look, now fully teasing him.
"When you're naked 2 feet away from me it is", He smiles and I feel his hands wrap around me from behind, helping to spread the oil in across my bump.
I giggle at his words, happily accepting his touch right now.
"You know, I'm really gonna miss your belly", He smiles, chin resting against the top of my head. "You're so cute when you're pregnant".
I smile at him in the mirror.
"Well I'm gonna miss it too, right now I can protect her in here and feel her all the time. I love that she's always with me", I sigh with a smile. "But I'm also ready to be skinny again".
"I just like seeing your stomach and touching you, knowing she's in there", Cappie smiles softly, rubbing his hands across my bump. "Especially when I'm kissing you".
He speaks quietly and then kisses down my neck, making me smirk giddily. His breath sending shivers down my spine.
"You know…", I start my sentence, deciding to share something vulnerable with him tonight. Maybe it was just a random urge I got, maybe it's because he's being so sweet, or maybe it's because I'm feeling especially close to him today, but I decide to open up about the first trimester of my pregnancy that he'd missed. "When I first started getting a really small bump in July I was so scared. Like absolutely terrified, because I couldn't stop it, and I wasn't ready for it at all".
He stops kissing my neck to look up at me, pulling my body back to his, bringing me in close.
"Because it started feeling real?", He asks.
"Yeah, because I realized this wasn't just a dream or some cruel prank, I was actually growing a literal baby inside me. And I knew my favorite clothes wouldn't fit soon, and I had literally no plan, and no one who understood. And I knew that I hadn't told you yet…", I sigh. "I'm just really happy that you and me can do this now. That we can share this together".
He smiles down at me then, spinning me around and into his chest to hug me.
"I'm happy we can share this together too Case", He speaks against my ear. "It's been… the most special thing to me, ever".
I pull back from him then so I can see his face, smiling at him.
"It makes me feel really close to you", I say softly, quietly, because it feels treacherous to admit.
He seems surprised by me admitting that, but happy too, and he leans down to gently take my cheeks in his hands to kiss me softly.
"I feel that way too", he speaks in the same hushed tone as mine, giving me a serious gaze when he pulls away from kissing me.
I smile hearing him say that, then look down nervously, feeling vulnerable and giddy and exhilarated all at the same time.
"So…", I look at him playfully now. "I was thinking, since I already lost the bet… would it really do that much harm if you slept in my bed again tonight? You know… only if you want to".
He gives me an equally playful smile, his grin filling his whole face, satisfied that his evil plan worked.
"You don't have to ask me twice", he smiles.
"Okay, just let me put my nightgown back on and I'll be in", I giggle, pulling my nightgown off the hook on the door.
"Okay", He nods, smiling and giving me one last smug grin before leaving the bathroom.
When I walk into my room he's under my covers already, pillows and my stuffed bear on the floor.
"Oh Cap! I just remembered, I have to do my photo for this week", I say, going to get my camera from on top my dresser.
I turn it on and pass it to him, standing back against the wall in my room to pose, putting my hand under my belly to show how big I've gotten.
"Wow…", Cappie looks back at me in amazement. "Only 10 weeks left, that's insane".
He snaps a picture and I go to my side of the bed to get in beside him.
"I know right", I agree. "It's scary but… I'm also kind of sick of being pregnant".
Me scoffs at me with a nod and then shows me the camera.
"I love this one", He smiles, gesturing to the photo which I would get printed later for the scrapbook.
"Me too", I nod and then lay back in bed, getting comfy on my pillow. I really did like the picture. I actually thought I looked pretty. The pink nightgown was flattering and with me holding my bump in my one hand and the other hand resting on my waist, the shape of my belly looked cute.
"I honestly should enjoy being pregnant while it lasts", I sigh. "Since I can at least get some sleep now, even if it's hard to get comfortable with my belly, it's better than a screaming infant".
Cappie laughs at me then.
"Yeah you're probably right", He nods. "We can take shifts for the crying thing".
"Yeah except she'll probably be crying because she wants to breastfeed", I say.
Cappie grins.
"Well hey, you don't even have to wake up, I could just pull down your top, put your boob in her mouth, you stay fully asleep. Job done", Cappie smirks and I giggle at him.
"Okay Cap", I say sarcastically and then lean over to turn my lamp off with a laugh.
"Goodnight Case", He says as I cozy up, him spooning me slightly.
"Goodnight", I smile and back up into him, getting closer.
This was only the second night of him sleeping in my bed with me and it was significantly better than being all alone in here with my thoughts. I didn't know how long this string of sleeping together would last but I was pretty sure Cappie wasn't gonna say anything about it.
And right now neither was I.
"Soooo", Ash probes, taking a sip of her coffee. "Tomorrow is the last day of your bet, are you getting your rocking chair?"
It's the next afternoon now and me and Ash met up at a cafe in downtown Cyprus. It was Saturday so Ash had the day off work. Cappie was working at Doblers all day so we thought we would hang out.
Ash smirks at me as she waits for my answer.
"Well…", I give her a sheepish look, pursing my lips. "I did get the rocking chair, which is so perfect by the way".
"Yay, so you held out, I knew you could do it Case".
"Um….", I look at her awkwardly. "I actually didn't. I ended up… sleeping with him again the other night. So…"
Ash puts her cup back down on the table and crosses her arms, giving me a knowing look.
"Slept with him, as in actually slept, or slept with him as in…", Ash looks uncomfortable. "You know…?"
"Both", I say, grimacing, eyes closed for a moment, not wanting to see the judgement on her face.
All Ashleigh does is laugh at me.
"I know, I know", I groan. "I'm the worst and am just making my life more messy".
"No, I'm just laughing at the fact that you somehow still ended up still getting the rocking chair you wanted", She smirks.
"Yeah Cappie got it anyways", I shrug and then take a bite of my cinnamon roll, savouring it, and even thinking about getting a second one. "So… you don't think I'm being really stupid then?"
I wanted Ash's opinion. Because I didn't know what the right thing for me to do was in this situation. Pushing away Cappie seemed like a stupid thing to do since I was having a baby with him and did love him. But getting too serious when we had all these responsibilities hanging over us and the potential to breakup again, was scarier than ever.
"No, of course not", She gives me a sympathetic look. "I think you're human, and you're also pregnant which probably comes with a it's own set of weird hormones and feelings and stuff".
Ash laughs and I nod because, boy was that true.
"And I think wanting to be close to the father of your baby isn't a bad thing", Ash says. "I was just worried when you first hooked up with him last month because I didn't think it would end well… but you guys seem to be making it work and are living together and everything. And Cappie actually seems to be taking the steps to grow up. So… maybe this whole arrangement is perfect for you guys".
I smile then.
"I don't really want to give up being close to him. I feel like if I don't… I might regret it. At least we can still be together in some way, even if it's not a real relationship", I say. "And he seems to to be fine with doing that".
"Cappie will do whatever you want to do, trust me", Ash says, taking a sip of her drink and then giving me a look.
"What does that look mean?", I laugh.
"It means that he's head over heels for you and always has been. I mean he's never even come close to even liking another girl enough to have a relationship with for longer than like… a month", Ash explains. "Even though he acted like a jerk over the summer, he obviously wants to be with you, so he'll wait for you to figure out what you want".
I think over Ash's words and can't help the giddy smile on my lips at what she's saying.
I drink my water, trying to hide the blush on my face from Ashleigh, not wanting to appear too into Cappie in front of her.
"Case, this might be a really awkward question, but you and I tell each other everything, so…", Ash laughs and then changes her voice to a low tone since we're in a coffee shop with a few other people in it. "Is having like… you know… while pregnant weird?"
I laugh then at Ash's facial expression and her question.
"Um", I think to myself. "Actually no, it's not. Especially since me and Cappie already know each other so well. I mean it's kind of hard to get the positioning right, like some things we can't do because my belly is in the way. But otherwise I feel like it's even better. Everything's just like… hypersensitive, more than before".
"Interesting", Ash nods. "And gross, since I do not want to picture you and Cappie".
She gives me a grossed out look then, sticking her tongue out.
"You asked!", I giggle at her.
"I'm just curious about the pregnancy stuff", Ash laughs. "Since eventually one day hopefully I'll have a little one that can give your kid someone to play with".
"Yeah or my daughter can babysit yours since I'm getting started on the kids thing so early", I laugh.
"True. I have to find a guy first anyways and that whole thing is… not going so well right now", she sighs.
"Really? So… not that I want to necessarily know, but did you and Rusty decide to just stay friends?", I ask.
"Well neither one of us has made a move", Ash shrugs. "And I don't want to hurt him if I'm not one hundred percent in it so… I don't know Case. I still like hanging out with him".
"Well then just keep feeling it out", I say, trying to offer advice. "Rusty will be fine, trust me. You could meet a new guy too, you have so much time to meet someone Ash".
"Yeah you're right", She smiles. "Not all of us can meet our soulmate at 18".
Ash gives me a look, smirking at me, knowing she's half teasing me about Cappie.
I smile then, with a shake of my head.
"I'm going to go get another cinnamon bun, you want anything?"
"You're getting another one?", Ash laughs. "Man if freshman year Casey getting ready for the undie run could see you now".
We both laugh then.
"Well freshman year Casey wasn't growing a human inside her", I give Ash a look with a laugh as I walk up to the counter to get another cinnamon bun to go. I even decide to get Cappie one to surprise him when he gets home from work tonight.
I come back to me and Ash's table and sit down, the icing on my second cinnamon bun making me practically drool.
"So I was talking to Betsy recently", Ash smiles. "She's this years social chair so she's kind of taken the reigns with me for planning your baby shower, and we were thinking about doing it next week".
"Aw that would be so fun!", I beam. "I can't wait to see all the girls".
"I know right, and to be back at ZBZ for the day", Ash smiles. "Dales gonna provide the cooking, he said he would talk to you soon about the possible menu, it seemed pretty important to him. Said something about getting the ambiance right".
Me and Ash snicker then.
"Sounds good", I nod. "Honestly he could probably serve some of KT's gross pepperoni sticks and I'd eat them, that's how hungry I am".
"Ew!", Ash laughs at me. "Anyways, I got your present today".
Ash gives me a smile.
"Aw you don't have to get me anything Ash, you've already helped me enough", I pout. "Seriously. And I don't want the other girls to overspend or get anything extravagant either, they're all just college students and believe me, baby stuff is expensive".
"Okay I'll tell them not to worry about gifts too much", Ash nods. "But you're my best friend so I'm gonna go all out".
"Thanks Ash", I give her an emotional smile.
"And besides, it's for my new best friend too!", Ash laughs. "She's gonna be so cute!"
"I know right", I smile thinking of her. "I keep trying to picture her but I don't know what she'll look like or be like yet. Hopefully she has all the best parts of me and Cappie".
"She will", Ash smiles.
When Cappie gets home from working we decide to try to put together her crib.
"Good thing we're doing this tonight", I say to him. "I read about this woman who went into labour super prematurely at 30 weeks. So I could literally go into surprise labour any second, who knows".
Cappie looks back at me from his position sitting on the floor, looking at the pieces of the crib as I sit on the edge of my bed. I'd already showered and was wearing some of his flannel pajama pants and a tank top. My own pajama pants and sweatpants were pretty tight on my stomach, so I'd been getting used to stealing Cappie's lately.
He gives me a look, eyebrow raised and looking at me like I'm crazy.
"It could happen!", I argue.
"I think you worry too much", he scoffs. "But you're right, we do have to get all her stuff ready".
I watch him play around with the pieces of the crib on the floor aimlessly, trying to see how they fit together.
"Cap?", I question him. "Don't you think we should look at the manual?"
I get up and come to sit beside him, taking me a second because it was hard to get down low on the ground with my belly.
"I've never used a manual for anything before", He shrugs.
Of course he hadn't.
I give him a look until he finally looks over at me from what he's doing.
"Okay", he sighs with a smirk, seeing my expression. He puts his hand out. "Let's see it".
I smile as he gives in to me.
He had some tools in front of him on the carpet in my room. A screwdriver and a hammer, he said he'd brought them over from the KT house. Said that they would never use them there, which is probably true.
I lean over his shoulder to look at the manual, holding up some of the pieces
"I've got this Case, don't worry about it. I should be the one to build it", He says, grinning. "I'm pretty sure putting together the crib is like… a dad a rite of passage".
"Okay", I laugh and attempt to get up off the ground, using his arm to prop myself up as I stand. "Man it's hard to get up".
Cappie looks up at me with a laugh.
"Well… only ten more weeks", Cappie offers as some sort of solace".
"Yep. Well, I'm gonna go make dinner", I say. It was already 8 o'clock at night anyways so I had to get started on it. "Let me know if you need help in here. I can call Rusty too, he's not the most handy, but maybe his knowledge of physics could help".
"I should be good but we can get him to come up if I absolutely butcher it", he laughs.
"Okay", I laugh. "Oh as a reward, I got you a cinnamon bun today, it's in the kitchen".
"Sweet, thanks Case", he grins and I leave him to work, going off to the kitchen.
I'd been trying to cook more lately. I wasn't terrible at it, I'd just never really had to because I'd gone to the dining hall for my meals in freshman year and then I'd lived at ZBZ where we luckily had food made for us most of the time.
But if I was gonna be a mom I'd probably need to know how to make some meals decently. More than just omelettes and toaster waffles.
I decide to use some chicken I got at the grocery store today and make a chicken stir fry.
It's pretty quick and easy to make it, once I get the chicken, the vegetables and the rice cooking.
"How's it going?", I call down the hall.
"Actually I've got like more than half of it done", I hear his voice.
"Really?", I'm surprised. I turn the stovetop on simmer and leave it to cook on low heat so I can go in to see what Cappie's done so far.
The white crib stands almost completed now, in the corner of my room beside the rocking chair.
"Wow Cap!", I smile. "Good job. See, look what looking at a manual can do".
"I know right", Cap laughs. "To think all these years I could've fixed millions of things at KT if I'd just gotten these guys out of the tool box in the back of KT's closet".
Cap gestures to the screwdriver and hammer.
"Well thanks for doing this for me", I grin.
"Hey no problem. I'm actually pretty handy", He gives me a Cappie smirk. "See, aren't you totally not regretting me impregnating you right now?"
I roll my eyes and then giggle at him.
"Dinner will be ready in 5 minutes weirdo", I grin at him.
"That's a yes, right?", He continues to joke as I shake my head going back to the kitchen.
Me and Cappie eat dinner on the couch together, watching a random game show on TV.
"This is really good Case", Cappie nods with a smile, gesturing to the food I've made. "Definitely better than anything we ever have at KT".
"Thanks Cap", I smile. "I figured I better start learning how to cook more things. Not that she'll be able to eat anything much for awhile".
"So she can't come to McDonalds with me for about a year then? Or…?", Cappie asks me, joking about the fact that he really didn't have a lot of knowledge on the subject.
I laugh at him then and roll my eyes.
"She's not going to McDonald's ever", I laugh. "It's super unhealthy".
"Are you gonna be one of those moms that like, feeds her flax seeds and quinoa?", Cappie asks, joking.
"No", I give him a look, marvelling at his ability to always make me laugh. "Just like regular non fried stuff".
"Okay", He nods with a smile and then gets up to grab our plates. "Hey I'll clean up, you cooked".
"Oh are you sure?", I ask him.
"Yeah, just relax, I've got it", He gives me a supportive nod.
"Okay cool, thanks Cap", I grin, going to the washroom to go wash my face and put my bump oil on. The I change into a nightgown, getting ready for bed.
"So… I'm sleeping in your bed again", Cappie smirks, speaking like he's teasing me.
We're laying facing each other in my bed now, about to go to sleep.
"Don't make a big deal of it, okay?", I give him a warning look and he puts his hands up.
"Hey you don't have to worry about me, I'm making the smallest deal out of this. Like minuscule. We don't even have to acknowledge it", Cappie jokes and I narrow my eyes at him with a scoff. "All I'm saying is tonight has felt awful coupley".
"C'mon, we haven't even kissed all night", I scoff, refuting his claim.
He looks over at me deviously and then leans in to kiss me, wanting to change my statement.
I definitely don't resist the kiss, even though I'm the one who keeps acting like he's crazy for thinking that we're acting like a couple. Worse, I lean into his kiss, deepening it and pulling him into me.
If I was saying that I didn't want to be intimate with him like this, my actions certainly weren't backing me up.
I was being honest, it just felt way too good to push him away right now. His hands in my hair now, as he leans over to full on make out with me, his fingers underneath the covers touching my belly.
Finally when he pulls away, moving back to lay on his side, he looks at me with a smirk, looking to me to try and argue with that.
I just bite my lip, trying not to let my smile show.
"Alright, goodnight Cappie", I say, groaning playfully and I turn over to turn off the light.
If I don't go to sleep now, I know exactly what those kisses are gonna end in. And while I want to, and I'm sure Cappie probably wants to, I feel like we still can't get too used to this. Us sleeping in the same bed together for the past 3 nights was already getting serious enough for me. I just liked it too much to stop it.
Cappie leans over to kiss me quickly once more.
"Goodnight", He smiles and then puts his whole hand on my stomach. "And goodnight to you baby".
I scoff at Cappie's gesture and then turn onto my side, away from him so I can smile to myself in peace.
Except I couldn't get comfy, laying on my side my bump felt unsupported, like it weighed a billion pounds. So I move to my back but that doesn't really feel much better. I've never been able to fall asleep on my back and with the way my bump was making the covers go up in what looked like a tent, it really didn't help.
"You okay there?", Cappie laughs, noticing all the moving around I'm doing, making the bed screech.
"Ugh!", I groan in frustration. "I'm just so uncomfortable. The baby's getting too big".
I put my hands on my temples with a huff, accepting that probably no position I get in will be comfortable tonight.
"I'm sorry", Cappie turns to me to look at me genuinely.
"I meant to get a pregnancy pillow when I was out today but I forgot", I sigh.
"Well…", Cappie thinks to himself. "Why don't you use me as a pregnancy pillow?"
I laugh, his idea seeming crazy, unsure if he's joking or not.
"I'm serious. You can sleep on your side, and then rest your belly against me", He shrugs.
I look at him for a moment, then reluctantly agree to try it. Nothing could be worse than what I was already doing.
He pulls me onto him so my belly is resting on his side, my hand is against his chest and my left leg is overtop him too, wrapping myself around him. I had to admit, with the weight of my belly resting on him it was a lot more comfortable. Not to mention felt nice. Felt like old times.
I look up at him while in this position, our faces only inches away from each other. I can feel his breathing go stagnant as I'm against his chest and I know he feels what I feel too. That tension.
"So… is this any more comfortable?", Cappie asks quietly, seriousness in his tone.
"Mmm hmm", I nod. "Thanks Cap".
"Yeah no problem", he smiles slightly, looking down at me. "Goodnight then".
"Goodnight", I nod.
And if I get any sleep tonight it'll be a miracle because even though I'm more comfortable, now I'm just thinking about what would happen if I shifted slightly further down. And what would happen if I pulled off his t shirt, and then maybe got started on his boxers…
Stop it Casey!
Go to sleep. You need sleep. The baby needs sleep.
I quiet the thoughts that I wish didn't take hold of me when I was with him. I'd deal with them in the morning.