Tino made a "Hmm," sound as he babbled a little. Drool dripped from his mouth and Zadia's face scrunched up. "Now that's nasty." She told him and he giggled for the first time. "You're gonna love him. This is my favorite part... listen to what he's saying. Excuse the cursing, I promise it's only a one-time thing."
'Needin' me, wantin' me, givin' me a chance to feel special
To somebody in a world where they not lovin' me
Handcuffs keep huggin' the wrists of my niggas
And I wish stuff was different here
But if I had a magic wand to make the evil disappear
That means that there would be no Santa Claus no more
To bring you Christmas cheer.'
Tino laid his head back down on her chest. "Look at you, vibing," Zadia said, grinning. The baby's eyes closed and Zadia nodded. "Told you you'd love him."
'I've fallen in love for the first time
I wanna cry, and I ain't even tryna fight it
Don't wanna die, 'cause now you're here
And I just wanna be right by your side
On any night that you be cryin', baby
I dry your eyes, I dry your eyes.'
Their breathing slowed, both of them relaxing. Zadia ran a hand through Tino's natural light brown hair. She never knew babies could have so much hair... she'd been born with none. It wasn't till the second grade her hair grew. And because of the bullying, she went through the year prior because of the lack of hair growth she decided to loc her hair up. The hair locing only made the bully worse, but eventually, as they progressed, the kids left her alone.
"The world is a cruel place." She muttered, touching the child's feet. She often wondered why babies' feet were so soft, she was both weirded out by it and intrigued.
By the time the next song was finished, she figured Tino was asleep. She went to move him, but he started fusing again which resulted in her laying him back down on her chest. "Skin to skin it is." Turning over to her side, she used her arm to keep him balanced and pulled her blanket up, covering them both.
As time passed by, she zeroed out, not having any clue when her eyes fell shut and she drifted off to sleep.
_________
Zadia awoke feeling someone nip at her arm. Her eyes quickly snapped open, landing right on hazel ones. She looked at the baby and sighed heavily. She felt when he had woken up minutes ago and kept a secure grip around his body. She ignored his movements to flee and eventually he stopped trying and just laid there looking up at the ceiling.
She was curious to know what he was thinking about... or if he thought at all.
"Zadia," Abel announced from behind her. Zadia yelped, her heart slamming in her chest.
She turned around, glaring daggers at the teenage boy. "Abel, I told you to stop with the sneaking up on me." She whined, sitting up on her bed. She picked up Tino and sat him in between her thighs. "What time is it?"
Abel walked forward, giving Tino a wide smile. "It's three in the afternoon, Zadia." He held his hand out for the baby to take and when he did, Abel bounced with him. "You know, babies aren't supposed to sleep without a shirt. They'll catch a cold since their bodies are fragile." He looked back at Zadia, his eyes knitting together. "Ugh... where's your shirt?"
Zadia's eyes widened. "Oh shoot!" She said, before getting up and rummaging through her dresser for a shirt.
"You don't need to put one on or anything. I've seen women with bras on before. Lots and lots of women." He mumbled the last part. "And sleeping with Santino at this age is dangerous. You can crush him or he can fall off the bed."
While Abel looked down at the baby, Zadia slipped on an old marvel comics hoodie. "I'm sure you have Abel." She said, before jumping back on her bed. "And seriously? How do you know so much about babies?"
ChApTeR - 4
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