Choosing Life

Chapter Nineteen

"What was that?" Mal asked, happy to steer the subject to lighter matters. It wasn't that she didn't want to talk about her lost sister-in-law but whenever Ben thought about Abby, he got overly protective of Mal and of the pups.

"Well Adam got everything set up for the nursery only to find out that he forgot to paint the walls," Chip chuckled as he shook his head at the memory. "Guess who got roped in to paint the lower areas while he got the higher portions?"

"Oh yeah, I've seen the pictures of your handiwork," Lucas said, deftly taking the paintbrush out of Chip's hands. "Leave the painting to the artists, okay Teacup?"

"I'm only agreeing because I know Ben's going to ask me to make sure Mal doesn't do any painting to avoid breathing in the paint fumes."

Mal shook her head. "I could wear a mask you know!"

"Why risk it?" Ben asked as he grabbed one of the paintbrushes.

"Ben Florian, you are probably the most protective person I've ever met!"

"Really? So you've never met your parents? Or brother? Or cousin? Or grandmother for that matter?"

"I said person. Not God or Godling."

Ben chuckled. "Tell you what, I'll save a section for you to spray paint after the fireflies are born okay?"

"You know the genders, you know the names you'll be using and you're still referring to the twins by your pet name for them?" Chip asked as he gently steered Mal toward a rocker which was stationed at the far end of the room. Or at least tried to steer but Mal was nothing if not stubborn.

Yes he knew he'd likely have to get her to leave once the paint lids were opened but until then he saw no reason for her to leave.

"Honestly this is ridiculous," Mal shook her head. "I'm sure in the years since Auradon was founded, you all have found a way to make a paint that pregnant women can use! You know what, I'm going to...and I just remembered I can't go on GraceBook to ask."

"Why not?" Lucas asked.

"We haven't informed the kingdom yet," Ben told him. "It's been on our to-do list but we wanted to wait until we knew the genders of the kids. And Mal, why not just go on Bibbity or Aurabing to see for your self?"

Mal paused and flushed slightly as she had forgotten that was an option. Somehow, her brain had remembered about Gracebook but had forgotten about the mother of all knowledge, the top two search engines that ruled Auradon.

Pulling out her phone, she typed a quick search into Bibbity's search bar; chuckling slightly at the colorful image that the letters made up for that day before shaking her head and willing herself to focus.

"Ah ha!"

"You found something?"

"You bet your book collection I did! Listen to this oh overly protective one! 'It's highly unlikely that painting or being around paint fumes while you're pregnant will harm your unborn baby as the risk from most modern household paints is very low. The risk of harm to your baby may be slightly greater from solvent-based paints and old paintwork, which may contain traces of lead.' And I'm sure this room has been painted in the twenty of so years that your parents were living in here!"

Ben shook his head. "You know most pregnant women would probably be lounging during their final months of pregnancy and wanting their husbands to wait on them hand and foot."

"Yes but most pregnant women probably don't have an overly protective husband who thinks if their pregnant wife does paperwork, she'll be over exerting herself," Mal teased with a small smile to show Ben she was only joking. "Come on Ben, the babies will be fine. But I will be willing to compromise and agree to not set up the mobile Hadie gave us."