i am not a replacement

chap26(baby-babe)

-Ten months later-

From other people's eyes and perspective, things would have seemed pretty hectic...but behind closed doors...It truly is.

 It was hard to keep up with two crazy men that keep fighting over who will sit by my side on the table every single meal, and in whose room I will be sleeping, every single night. But it was somewhat lovely to feel wanted, needed, and appreciated by your family...

it doesn't end here, along with these two came my two brothers to join forces and start a ritual of boys' night,  which is mom's and dad's date night and my alone time. As for the next day, it's family day, where we spend it together at my parents'. These were some extreme changes in our lives... I mean compared to the years where we lived apart and never once saw each other...Now we are quite involved in each other lives in a very healthy and family-like way.

The changes don't stop here, as Henry and I became very close in ways we never dreamt of being, even though we always talked about taking things slow, it didn't work that way...Pete became a big part of our lives for about eight months after our marriage, as he was the one to help us with our personal conflicts so that it doesn't affect our relationship in a major way...

As a result of those eight months, Henry was able to become close friends with Pete... As for his relationship with Edwin, the two still haven't overcome the awkwardness that fell upon them every time they met _which weren't that many _ while the rest of us enjoyed their weird interactions.

 Not only that but the pictures that Henry was considerate enough to put down before I came back home, the ones that we promised we will only put them back when we felt comfortable with Ivy's memory since no one can deny that her past presence in our lives _or should I say heads_ was quite tormenting for us both for quite some time now. However, we put one in Louis's room and didn't display any of ours all along that period of time. And finally, after those eight long months, we were finally able to hang some pictures around the house; of us three, of them with Ivy, and of me and her...

But it doesn't end here... there is something else....someone...someone else that was coming into the picture...

"Baby, you good? " Henry asked me before I felt him drop his cold left hand on mine 

I turned from the tv screen we were watching to look at the worried but pained expression he sent my way "yeah" I answered before I glanced back to the tv trying to see what was it that made him uncomfortable, was there a scene that passed and I didn't notice?

"sure?" he asked again like he insisted that something was wrong, something I was unaware of.

"Yeah! why are you asking?! what's going on?!" I studied his face before I turn to search the screen displayed in front of us for any sort of scene or action that required this sort of reaction from him

"'cause it hurts" He answered all of my questions when he glanced at his arm to which my nails were digging its flesh, cutting it and bruising it... the moment my brain processed what my eyes have captured, I pulled my hands away freeing him from my grip as I jumped away from him with my hands up like a gun was pointed at my head.

"wh-...OH MY GOD!..since when?..how?..why? i-"

"it's okay, babe" he smiled and reached my left hand with his right one before he pulled back towards him

"no, it's not!" I glanced at the tiny but numerous cuts my nails were able to create on his skin before I added "look at it!"

A slight glimpse from his part before he trained a couple of playful eyes on me "not worst than the bite marks I got last month"

"I said I was sorry!! "

"and I am saying it's okay... I know that the cramps will get a bit too intense in your third trimester and I notice the way you bite your lip and fist your hands when they kick-off, so if biting and digging your nails will relieve some of the pain then be it"

I know that our relationship has changed along with our way of treating each other...He became so understanding and considerate but also gentle and sweet even though a part of me is quite sure that is his true nature not what he has become..but anyways...two weeks after marriage and he started using endearments to call me, the third month after marriage was the time where we learnt that we were having a baby, at that time he became sweeter than ever, and that kept going for seven months straight.

BUT! 

Something that I've learned in these ten months of marriage is that if he was extra sweet, as in extra corny and cheesy, then that meant something... 

so I glowered at him suspiciously "why the extra sweetness today?"

"w-what?"

"Henry.. baby.. what did you do?"

"nothing"

"I swear that I will bite you if-"

"I'M PLANNING FOR OUR HONEYMOON!"

what?!

"what?"

He fidgeted,  looking constipated before he realized that I was waiting for some sort of explanation "babe" he started holding my vacant hand in his "I-I really want to travel somewhere with you, and with the baby on the way, we won't get an opportunity like this for at least four-five years. You didn't want a honeymoon since things weren't really too promising between us at the beginning adding to that; we had things to work on here at this house before we can get to leave and enjoy whatever we had outside... I agreed to it because I fully understood your reasoning, that didn't mean that I wasn't hoping that with time we can get a honeymoon like everyone else, but God had some other plans and you got pregnant..so i...*sigh* I don't know" 

I could almost see the frustration coming out of his body as he pulled my hands towards him made my palms face him and used them to cover his face fully prior to his release of a hideously loud grunt of defeat

"baby" I shook my hands slightly causing his head to shake and his long strands of hair to brush and tickle the back of my hands "baby.. babe!"

"hmamofomfoham"

"what was THAT?!" I cracked up at his response 

All he did then, was slip his hands to hold my wrists and tug slightly to move each one to the sides of his face, to lay on his cheeks, so I can get a full view of his bored warning glare "stop laughing... this is serious" he mumbled with his squeezed cheeks making it irresistible not to admire him in this state but also irresistible not to laugh...so I did both...

"BABE!" he groaned throwing both of my hands aside and getting a hold of my face with his hands...