aeon

seven

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how long can you go through life living out your dreams before you wake up? i wonder if some people are lucky enough to have their dreams persist in their reality. i settled so deep into my own fantasy, the rude awakening was something that seemed like the most despicable joke. i'm not entirely sure if what i deserve out of life, but no one, and i mean no one, deserves to have their version of hell on earth.

i came home from work to a beautiful sight. jane was sauntering around the house without a trace of clothing on. almost everything she did made her uncomfortable. everything except being stark naked in the middle of the kitchen with a jar of pickles. she had a big smile on her face when she saw me and told be about her day of lounging around and enjoying maternity leave. i was glad that she wasn't working herself until the baby was practically being pushed out because it made me less worried about her.

she was beautiful, the most extravagant sight to witness. the setting sun was shining through the window of the backyard casting an amber glow on her olive skin. she was heavenly, and my mind would never start from that revelation. "can we try that new italian restaurant? i know i've been munching on stuff all day, but i'm starving. i'm even willing to put on clothes for this." it was winter and cold as the thin layer of ice that covered the outside ground, so i would have hoped she would put on clothes. i laughed at her for thinking she had to nearly beg me to take her to get dinner. i told her that we should get dressed then head out before it gets darker.

she had on a thick coat and leggings with a scarf that seemed to wrap around her more than enough times while i was still struggling to untie my shoes. she encouraged me to speed up the process and i was amused at her eagerness. "i want this baby out of me. there's not enough room for either of us to keep growing with all this food i'm eating." she sighed and threw her body back on our bed. i looked down at her then gently kissed her with a small smile.

i decided to tease her a bit and stuffed a pillow underneath my shirt. "i don't know. having a baby bump seems convenient. it's like your own personal tray, and your hands fold perfectly on top of it." she turned her head to look at me then immediately glared. she sat up and found another pillow to throw at me.

i laughed and pulled it out from my shirt and retrieved the thrown one from the floor before returning them to their spot on the bed. "mike, kiddo's kicking a lot. look." she lifted her shirt and opened her coat and we could see the movements happening from within. i placed my hand on her warm skin and grinned with pure gaiety. i gently pressed my lips to her belly and just watched as our baby went crazy.

it dawned on me that there would soon be three of us. jane and i would be parents and we would raise our child and love them with everything we had. i couldn't fathom being the person someone else depended on, but that's exactly what i would be to our child. i knew i would raise them with the utmost affection and acceptance they could experience. i knew i would offer jane anything she wanted. she carried an entire life within her for nine months and would bring the bundle into this world. i would be an idiot to take that for granted and not remind her how grateful i felt for her and her strength. "this is one of the greatest feelings i've ever experienced. i hope it feels the same with our next kid."

she laughed at me and brought my face towards hers. "i love you, but we're not going to talk about you putting another kid in me until this one's out." we finally made it out of the house and i held jane's door open as she waddled to the passenger side. as we drove, our fingers were locked together and she rubbed the back of my hand with her thumb like i would do to her sometimes. "do i want pasta with red or white sauce?" the sun was just bidding us goodbye as the top of it kissed the horizon.