Close to Me

2. Becky

"Oof. Talk about weight lifting!" Becky heaved herself off the couch and sighed, pressing her hands to the small of her back. "I miss being able to see my toes. I still have toes, right?"

"Right here." Seth reached down and tickled the top of her foot. "We don't have to do the picture right now, Becks. If you're tired, go nap."

Becky shook her head. "Then I'll forget. I know we already missed a few weeks because I forgot or... I didn't want to." She scowled a bit at that. She had always struggled with self-image, but she had resolved to be positive about her body during her pregnancy—especially when they learned they were having a girl. I want her to grow up loving herself from day one, Becky told herself, and she knew that started with loving herself and setting a good example.

Seth came up and hugged her from the side. "We still have a few days left in Week 33," he assured her. "Go nap. We can do pictures tomorrow."

But Becky shook her head and started looking for the white board they included with every status update. Seth usually added a little doodle to personalize it, and she would hold it in front of her ever-expanding belly. "Where's the marker?" she asked.

"I've got it." Seth held it up and pointed over to the waiting white board. "Are you sure?"

Becky nodded. "I am. Picture and then we send it to the families, and then we nap."

"We nap?" Seth echoed. "Which we is this? Is it a Mama and Baby we or am I included in the slumber party?"

"You get to play the very important part of Best Pillow," Becky grinned. "Unless you're busy. I know there's some students who have been coming in for extra help...."

Seth shook his head. "It's Marek's day for that, don't worry. We switch." He grabbed the board and started doodling. "What do you think?" he asked, turning the board so Becky could see it.

He had drawn a ghoulish but cute baby with a heart on her dress. "Perfect. Isn't it, you little monster?" Becky tapped her fingers lightly on her belly. "In the nursery?" she asked. They tried to vary the locations of the countdown pictures, but over the span of eight months, it was easy to run out of creative spots to use. "Curly hair, just like Dada's. And yours, hopefully."

"Don't wish this mess on her," Seth retorted. "I'll never hear the end of it." He handed the white board to Becky and reached for his phone. "You're sure?"

Becky nodded. "The sooner you snap, the sooner I nap." A sharp kick from the baby made her gasp and almost drop the board. "Hey! That was a good rhyme!" she protested, looking down at her belly. "You'll be blessed if you get my sense of humour and scathing wit!"

"And the jawline," Seth reminded her.

"Well, of course. That's a given." Becky waited a moment to see if there was going to be another kick, but their baby seemed to have made her point. "Okay, let's go before she attacks again."

"We're already living in fear of our child," Seth laughed, opening his camera app and aiming his phone. "That's a good sign, right?"

"Add that to the list of things to ask Roman," Becky replied, positioning the sign in front of her belly. Seth's Shield brother had been a godsend when it came to pregnancy and parenting advice. His wife Galina had answered all Becky's questions, ranging from stupid to serious, with the patience of a saint—especially considering she had given birth to another set of twins earlier in the year.

"We should just move in with them at this point. It would save time," Seth laughed. "And she'd have lots of kids to learn from."

Becky laughed. "I think they have enough of a houseful as it is."

"True. Ready?" When Becky nodded, Seth snapped a few photos from slightly different angles and then came over to show her. "Which one do you like the most?" he asked, scrolling through the options.

She chose the first one. She almost always did. Somehow it always seemed to capture the truest essence of the moment, whether it was her exhaustion or elation. Seth sent it to her family members first: mother, father, brother, some close cousins. Then he sent it to his mother and brother before setting his phone down. "There. Nap time now?" She had always liked her sleep—even though years of being on a wrestler's schedule had messed up her sleeping habits—but ever since she entered her third trimester, she craved it almost as much as she wanted caffeine. At least I'm allowed to have one of them, she thought as she watched Seth wipe the board clean and set it aside. She almost wished they had done the notices on paper so they could be kept, but she knew she couldn't hang on to every little bit of her pregnancy experience.

"Absolutely. For you, anyway," Seth allowed. "I'm not too tired yet, but I'm happy to be a pillow. Come on." He took her by the hand and led her to their bedroom. It was one of the few rooms they hadn't baby-proofed yet, and Becky found a strange sense of solace in that. They were both delighted to be parents, but they were still very much their own people too. "You should be sleeping on your left side?" Seth asked, hesitating before stretching out on the bed.

"Yeah. Something about blood flow and nutrients. Apparently sleeping on the right side isn't bad; it's just not as beneficial." Becky waited until Seth got comfortable before she got on the bed. She was used to sleeping on her right side—his left, with her head over his heart. "You don't have to, you know. If you're not tired...."

"I know. But I want to." As Becky settled in, Seth put his left hand on the side of her belly. "She's squirming. She's getting comfortable too."

Becky grinned. He got excited over the smallest things and she loved to see it. He had come so far from the restless young man who wasn't sure what he wanted and was burning through his life in search of it. "I'll make sure she knows Dada is the best pillow," Becky promised. "Even if that means I have to share from time to time."

"Well, I'm going to have to share you," Seth pointed out, "so it's only fair." His phone beeped, but he made no move to reach for it. "Probably just someone replying to the picture. I'll look at it later."

"Okay." Becky rested her head on his chest, though she wished she could snuggle up against his neck. Adjusting to her constantly changing body had been a struggle first until her mother reminded her that she was doing something incredibly complex. Becky had never looked at it that way before—after all, people had babies all the time—but the longer her pregnancy ran, the more she understood what her mother meant. My body is pretty cool, she thought idly, running her fingers along Seth's ribs.

Though he claimed he wasn't tired, Seth was the first to fall asleep as usual. All her extra body heat tended to lull him into slumber within minutes. It took Becky longer because the baby apparently decided she wanted to dance, but just relaxing with her two favourite people was enough. I can't wait to meet you, she thought, patting her belly. We're going to have so much fun.