BAE BOY

3-18

"They're Braxton-Hicks contractions," I told Joie.

Kendall leaned in toward my cell to add, "And they don't hurt. I told you that."

We were hugged up on the massive great room sectional as usual, a few weeks after the Battle of Big Building. That couch had become our own private island at the mountain house. The whole family came to lay down with us on it sometimes.

Cause Kendall was "nesting," according to Espy. So when she wasn't trying to learn how to make baby food in a blender or fussing around the nursery moving things one way and then moving them back where they'd been before, she wanted to be snuggled up against someone. Me, most of all.

And I happily made myself comfy there with her. I was the happiest kid in the world in general, not gonna lie. Holding my wife and baby. Surrounded by all that love.

"Well, I could see it, though," Joie told me. "I mean, her whole stomach moved."

"And you're talking and driving now, because of that?" I asked. "If it was me doing that, you'd be yelling at me to pull over."

"Well, it stopped her in her tracks, Papi. Coming out of the doctor's office. And she had another one while we were driving home. That's two in, like, what? Twenty minutes?"

Kendall just took the phone then, and said, "I'm fine. We'll see you later, okay?"

"I don't know about that now. These bitches can come to you, Mami."

"Oh, come on, I miss the club."

I leaned in and said, "We'll be there at four as planned, crazy lady. Unless you hit somebody."

"Oh, Daddy thinks he's grown now, huh? But I will still spank that ass."

"Any excuse."

"Well, I mean, wifey can't have all the fun."

"Get off the phone, bitch," Mike yelled on her way past us from...wherever she'd been this time.

A few minutes before that, she'd come in with a big bowl of chocolate covered strawberries for Kendall. White and regular chocolate. Huge, juicy berries, too.

They were spoiling us like crazy. Kendall swore they were starting to hand her things she was only thinking about asking for.

After Joie hung up, Espy came and gave me a pat on the shoulder with one of her chubby little hands and said, "Those doctors are real mad at you."

And Aisha, who always went to Kendall's appointments, said, "Ooooo, you got that right!"

"What'd I do now?" I asked them. "I've only missed maybe two exams the whole time. Today and...I can't even remember the other one."

"You brought this witch over here," Aisha said, winking at Espy.

"They called her that?"

"They don't know what to call her. But they scared of 'er, though. Them men doctors especially."

"The ones from the cancer study," Kendall said.

"What the hell are they doin' here?"

"This is history for them, remember. I think there's going to be some kind of journal article, actually."