You Stayed With Us

Ready For Them

Lisa's POV

I never thought I'd be the kind of person who gets excited over cloud-shaped drawer knobs, but here I am. Covered in specks of baby blue paint, standing beside Jisoo—who just tried to high-five me with her paint-covered palm—while Jennie, Rosé, and Ella giggle behind us, sorting tiny baby socks into labeled drawers.

"We should've just hired someone to do this," I muttered, stepping back to admire the freshly painted walls. The soft pastel blue was calming, and the hand-painted clouds Jisoo and I had spent hours stenciling actually looked decent. Not Picasso-level, but definitely Pinterest-worthy.

Jisoo squinted at her cloud. "That one looks like a butt."

I gave her a deadpan look. "That's literally the first one you painted."

"And I stand by it. Babies love butts."

Jennie let out a snort from across the room. "Please don't let their first word be 'butt.'"

"No promises," Jisoo said proudly.

We opened the windows to let the last of the paint smell drift out before we started assembling the cribs. The convertible kind. Fancy. Expensive. I swear I saw Jennie flinch a little when I reminded her how much it cost. But the moment we got the first one together, with its smooth white frame and soft beige mattress, it all felt worth it.

Meanwhile, Ella was on the floor near the cabinet, holding up onesies one by one.

"This one says 'Milk Drunk,'" she read aloud, giggling. "Can I wear one like this too?"

Jennie smiled as she folded it neatly. "That one's for your little brothers, love."

Ella tilted her head. "Can I still wear one if I pretend to be small again?"

Rosé looked over, placing a bottle into the drying rack by the corner. "Honestly, same. I'd love to crawl into one of those baby sleeping bags and not be responsible for anything."

The room was slowly transforming. The mobile with little lambs danced above one of the cribs. A soft, cushioned changing table stood by the corner. We even set up a small bookshelf with baby books. I caught Jennie trailing her fingers along the titles—classic fairy tales, lullaby collections, even a copy of Guess How Much I Love You. I saw her smile.

The hardest part was the rocking chair. That beast took almost an hour to assemble. I nearly broke my back with Jisoo trying to understand the instructions.

"Are these upside down?" I asked, holding the legs.

Jisoo turned the paper sideways. "Or maybe we're upside down. You ever think about that?"

"Jisoo," I groaned.

But we did it. And when Jennie finally sat on the finished chair and gently rocked, resting a hand on her massive belly, her entire face softened. I stood still for a second, just watching her. My chaos. My calm. My home.

We all took a step back when everything was finally done. The nursery was warm, inviting, and somehow both dreamy and real at the same time. Light filtered through the white curtains. The twin cribs stood side by side, like silent promises. There was laughter still in the air, the good kind—the tired kind.

I felt Jennie slip her hand into mine.

"They're going to love it," she whispered.

I nodded. "Now we just have to figure out what to name them."

Ella jumped in. "We should name them Cloud and Thunder!"

Rosé wheezed. "Or Butts and Giggles!"

Jennie shook her head. "You're all banned from the naming process."