Jily Oneshots (pt2)

Happy Birthday, Baby

by Amelia Bedelia
sequel to The Other Woman

"Watch your step, Lily."
"James," Lily growled, digging her nails into his arm, "I've lived in this house for nearly a year and a half; I should know where the steps are by now."

"Yes," James agreed automatically, not looking forward to another fight. "I just figured that in your condition, it might - "

"My condition?" Lily slammed the front door closed, nearly clipping off several of James' fingers. She pointed to her large stomach accusingly. "You call this a condition? I'm pregnant, James! Not a walking disease!"

James waited until his wife had looked away before he smiled. For the past nine months – I could beg to differ…

Their small dog, Sadelle, began barking loudly at their feet the second they had walked through the door. Frustrated, Lily kicked a ball across the floor, sending Sadelle after it.

"You're right, honey," James said, resting a hand gently in the middle of her back.

"Don't touch me," Lily snapped, waddling rather un-ladylike into the bathroom.

"Yes, ma'am…" James dragged himself to the couch and flopped down and closed his eyes, emotionally drained from the events of the day.

After exiting the restroom, Lily picked up a large, wicker basket from the center of the kitchen counter, proceeding to circle the room. With a slight hint of an attitude, she threw a bag of chips, several slices of pineapple from the refrigerator, and leftovers from a meal the night before into her basket with a lot of crunching and thunking. Opening his eyes partly, James brought a hand up to the five o'clock shadow forming on his face and hid his grin.

Lily ripped out her hair tie as she entered the living room, destroying the perfect bun she had forced to hold up her thick, red hair earlier and plopped onto the couch, kicking her feet up onto the coffee table.

James tentatively leaned closer to his wife, snuggling close to her. "Lily?" he whispered, pulling a strand of hair behind her ear lovingly.

Lily ripped open the bag of chips and popped several into her mouth at once, chewing as noisily and deliberately as possible. She did not answer.

"You understand what's going to happen to us very soon, don't you?"

Lily dropped her hands to her side, crushing her bag of chips. She rolled her head back onto the couch, closing her eyes. "I don't want it to just be soon," she answered. "I want it now!"

James nodded patiently. "The Healer said it will be any day now, Lily."

"But he originally said that I would have a baby in my arms by yesterday!" Lily held her hands out in front of her, imagining a small child lying in them. She sniffed and felt her bottom lip jut out. With any warning, Lily brought her hands dramatically up to her face and began to sob. "He said…"

"I know what he said," James soothed, wrapping his arms around his wife. "But with children, there will never be predictable answers. Everyone's different in their own little way."

After Lily had wiped off her tears onto James' sleeve, she nodded. James dropped his hand to Lily's stomach, his vision slowly beginning to blur.

"Just a few more days," he said softly to Lily's stomach. "We're going to be parents."

Lily cracked a smile for the first time in several hours.

James moved in closer to Lily's stomach and said quietly, "Hey little guy."

Immediately, Lily lost her sensitive mood. "Who says it's going to be a boy? It could be a girl, you know."

James kissed his wife on the cheek and stood up. "Of course, honey. We would be just as happy with either."