Xavier was literally going to have a heart attack.
Aurora looked around the kitchen, biting her lip as she noted the mess they had created. Xander sat on the counter, swinging his legs as he clapped his hands, watching in awe as the white powdered flour made a small cloud in the air.
There were streaks of white across his flushed face and his thick dark brown hair was matted and curled with sweat, evident of his involvement in the baking process. Her husband would understand, right?
Either way, she already had her signature puppy dog eyes and pout ready for use in case he didn't.
"Can we eat cookie, mama?" Asked Xander, looking up at her with pleading puppy dog eyes.
Yep, he was most definitely her son. It was actually fairly effective in this household, especially when used against Xavier.
"After dinner, baby," promised Aurora. "But only if you eat everything on your plate."
Xander nodded enthusiastically, wanting dinnertime to come soon so he could have a bite of his precious dessert. His mama always made the best desserts and he loved being her little taste tester. Maybe she would even add a scoop of ice cream on top of it like she did last time.
Being 35 weeks pregnant left Aurora not much to do. She was already on maternity leave and this time around, Xavier's overprotectiveness seemed to have doubled. But she understood why. With the twins, her pregnancy had been tough, and with the additions of possible complications, Xavier made sure to keep his eye on his wife at all times.
Despite his need to text and call her every hour to check up on her and the baby fluttering around in her stomach, she didn't find him overbearing. He cared and that was what mattered.
It had been a month since she had gone on maternity leave and she wasn't going to lie, she loved spending time with Xander, Jared, and Jayden at home. Sure, they could be a handful— she often wondered where they got their cheekiness from and she swore it wasn't from her, but she often had help. With her mother and Isabella over quite often to help look after their darling grandsons, it made everything a lot easier on her end.
So, that just left her with one problem.
She was fucking bored out of her mind.
With Xavier's overprotectiveness and the doctor's suggestion for her to take it easy this pregnancy, she was barely left alone without someone by her side. If she wanted to go out, Xavier made sure either he, his parents, or just anyone available that he trusted was with her in case something happened. She cursed her clumsiness that didn't seem to ease up while she was pregnant.
And so, she decided to take on baking. She wasn't a bad baker, per se, but add a 4-year-old to the mix and chaos would surely ensue. Every time they baked, it was as if a tornado had gone through the kitchen and turned everything upside down.
Today, with a bit of free time on her hand, using Isabella's famous white chocolate macadamia cookie recipe, she decided it would be a good idea to bake with Xander, her trusty helper.
One would think, it was only cookies. How hard could it be?
Well, it certainly made it difficult when she had a very enthusiastic 4-year-old by her side "helping" her. Pans were flipped around and the baking paper was thrown off to the side. But most importantly, flour seemed to be everywhere. Xander always managed to miss the bowl when adding the ingredients into the mixing bowl even with his mother's help.
She couldn't even get mad at him when he looked so happy to be helping his mama whenever he could. She thought back to the conversation she had overheard when Xavier was tucking Xander into bed one night— the memory making her heart warm as a beautiful smile adorned her face.
"You ready to be a big brother again, bud?" Asked Xavier, sitting on the edge of the bed while watching Xander with a gentle look. It was only a few hours after they had told the kids Aurora was going to be having another baby.
"Again?" Xander asked, his bright brown eyes full of curiosity and wonder. "Litto bwother?"
"Or sister," smiled Xavier, brushing Xander's hair back.
"Xander want litto sister," he clutched his favorite blanket in his hands, holding onto his favorite corner.
"Me too, buddy," Xavier held up a knuckle so that Xander could pound it, which his son enthusiastically did. "But let me tell you something. Papa won't be home all the time because I have to go to work. Will Xander promise papa that you'll protect and help your mama when you can?"
"But why, papa?"
"Because inside your mama's tummy is where your little brother or sister is going to be growing," answered Xavier.
Xander's voice was full of curiosity. "Like Jawed and Jayden?"
"Like Jared and Jayden," smiled Xavier. "You remember that?"
"Yea, papa," Xander nodded his head enthusiastically. "Mama tummy grow big like Xander and one day mama and papa came home with 2 babies."
He held up three fingers, causing Xavier to chuckle.
"My smart boy," praised Xavier, tucking a finger down, so that it showed a peace sign. "So, will you help papa protect and help mama?"
Xander's eyebrows scrunched as he nodded seriously. "I pwomise, papa. Xander big boy now."
Ever since that conversation, Xander had been trying to help Aurora with everything around the house whenever Xavier wasn't home. When she was walking down the stairs, he was there, immediately by her side, holding her hand in his small ones to help her down step by step. When she was in the kitchen, he was there helping her carry things and putting things away. He even helped with Jayden and Jared, taking on his role of being a great older brother.
He was clumsy with his actions, Aurora did have to admit. But it was the thought that counted and Aurora didn't mind the extra little hands that occasionally caused more trouble than help.
And based on her natural motherly instincts, Aurora knew that if she were to not allow Xander to help her, he would be off somewhere in the house getting into trouble somehow or worse, getting hurt. She'd rather him be by her side, despite the mess they were making. It was her way of keeping an eye on him and she was glad he was enjoying himself.
Aurora was sure Xavier would be used to the mess by now. Living with 3 boys under the age of 5 made him realize that keeping the house clean was a constant hassle. But still, every night before they went to bed, no matter how messy the home was, he continued to patiently clean up the mess his kids had made.
He was patient and understanding, especially when it came to the boys and her. Seemingly short-tempered when it came to his work and business, he would leave it all behind as soon as he entered the house.
"My goodness, look at this mess," Heather tutted, looking at her grandson and daughter with disapproval. She wasn't even surprised anymore.
"I swear it looks a lot worse than it actually is," Aurora looked at her mother sheepishly.
Heather shook her head with disbelief.
"Nai nai!" Greeted Xander, enthusiastically, immediately melting the older woman's heart. Heather had taught her grandson the Chinese word for grandma the moment Xander could speak. Since he had two grandmothers, it became easy to differentiate between the two.
"Look at you, my sweet," gasped Heather, taking in his dirty appearance. Flour was literally everywhere and she already knew her son-in-law was going to get a heart attack when he came home. "Come on, let's go take a bath with nai nai."
Xander looked at his mama with a questioning look, almost as if asking her if she was going to be okay alone. Leaning down, Aurora planted a kiss on his forehead, thankful that God had blessed her with such a sweet and thoughtful boy.
"Your mama is going to be fine, darling," assured Heather, before looking at her daughter with a concerned expression. "You've been on your feet too long, sweetie. Go sit down and take a break. I'll bathe Xander."
"Go with nai nai. I'll be okay, baby," promised Aurora, reaching up to brush his hair back once again. "I'm just going to go help grandma feed your brothers."
Hesitantly, Xander jumped into his grandmother's arms. Heather gave Aurora an encouraging nod towards the dining room, where her twins were currently with Isabella. Even as they made their way to the kitchen exit, Xander continued to look back at his mama with worry. Sensing this, Heather made sure to whisper words of reassurance that his mama was going to be fine.
"Okay, nai nai, " mumbled Xander, wrapping his arms around Heather, effectively coating his grandma in flour.
"Oh gosh, I think I'm going to need a bath too," chuckled Heather, gently patting Xander's back as they walked further away.
"Bye mama, see you later. Xander miss you," called out Xander. Even until the very last minute, her beautiful boy was still so sweet, a trait he probably got from his papa.
"Bye, baby, mama will miss you, too," she smiled, blowing him a kiss.
The smile didn't leave her face as she untied her apron and set it onto the messy counter. She'd do the cleaning later, hopefully before Xavier came home. Right now, her back and feet were starting to ache and she desperately needed to take a seat.
Slowly, she waddled over to the dining room, where Isabella was coaxing the twins to eat. She couldn't help but laugh at the mess that was also in the dining room. Her mother had made a tasty Taiwanese porridge for the boys and like the flour in the kitchen, there was rice everywhere. From their highchairs to their faces, she couldn't help but think how cute they still looked.
The twins had recently begun to learn how to use spoons and forks to eat, but tonight, they had quickly abandoned their utensils and were using their hands to eat.
"Feet aching, dear?" Asked Isabella, holding a spoon up to Jared's mouth who opened up happily.
"Just a little, but the cookies are finally in the oven," Aurora took a seat next to Jayden and brought the spoon up to his mouth. Instead of opening his mouth, he turned his head, avoiding the spoon.
Despite being twins, the two could not be more different. While Jared enjoyed mealtime, Jayden was more of a hassle when it came to eating. Isabella had said it was normal for some kids, and when Xavier had been a baby, he had also given Isabella a hard time when it came to eating.
That explained where Jayden had gotten that from and it gave Aurora a sense of relief, seeing how Xavier had turned out. And if all of their kids grew up healthy and happy, that was all that mattered.
"I'm guessing the kitchen's a mess now," chuckled Isabella, glancing at the streak of flour that was on Aurora's cheek. With her hair tied up in a messy bun, she was dressed in a pair of comfortable athletic shorts and one of Xavier's sweatshirts that she had stolen from his side of the closet.
Even with Xavier's giant sweater on her, her large bump was still visible. She loved it. Knowing she was going to bring another life into the world gave her joy and seeing how attentive Xavier was being with her and the kids made her even happier to be a mother.
"I'm just hoping to get it cleaned up before Xavier gets home," Aurora brought the spoon up to her mouth, blowing to cool down the porridge. "Baby, one more bite for mama."
Jayden frowned and shook his head, letting out a small whine.
"If you don't eat it, mama's going to eat it," she dramatically opened her mouth and pretended to take a bite. "It's so yummy, mama's going to have to eat it all and there will be no more for Jayden."
Isabella gasped as she continued to feed Jared. "Look at mama, Jayden. She's going to eat it all!"
This successfully caught Jayden's attention as he grabbed his mother's hand and brought it near his mouth, taking a bite.
"Good job, baby," Aurora used the spoon to clean up the spilled porridge around his small mouth. "You want to try?"
He grabbed the spoon from her hands and held it in his own small hand. She let out a breathy sigh of relief, glad her son was finally eating now.
"I can practically see his facial expression when comes home to find his precious kitchen a complete mess," Isabella chuckled. She didn't even have to personally see the kitchen to envision the state of the kitchen.
"It's not as bad this time. I managed to get Xander to properly aim the cup of flour into the mixing bowl," Aurora sheepishly said. "But he did hold it too high up, so it ended up splattering all over the place anyway."
"You know he won't say anything to you— he'd just silently clean up the mess like he usually does anyway," Isabella said, smiling when Jared tapped the spoon onto the table. This caused Jayden to mimic his brother as the dining room was now filled with tapping sounds. "He's weak when it comes to you, well, that's how all the men in this family are when it comes to their women."
"He's been extremely patient with me— he always has been. I mean, we still fight occasionally, but over the small things. There's this one unspoken rule that we have and that's to never go to bed angry at each other," Aurora put her hand on her stomach when she felt a small flutter. "You raised him well, Isabella. I just hope our boys grow up to be like their dad, too."
"You're an amazing mother, dear," assured Isabella. "With the love you and Xavier give them, they'll grow up to be amazing young men."
"I hope so," Aurora glanced at her two boys. She chuckled as Jared's eyes began to droop and his head bobbed back and forth sleepily, but he still managed to hold up his spoon to his mouth with a tight grip. His hand wavered around his mouth, completely missing its target, and instead hitting his cheek, causing his eyes to spring open. Next to her, Jayden was already snoozing away with his head tilted back and his mouth wide open.
Both Isabella and Aurora let out a laugh— the twins were just too adorable. Jared finally managed to successfully shove the spoon in his mouth and as he chewed, his eyes slowly began to droop again.
"I should get them cleaned up and put them to bed," chuckled Aurora, standing up as she gently took the spoon from Jayden's soft grip. She swiftly untied the bib around Jayden's neck, careful not to disturb his sleep, which wouldn't be a problem as all three boys seemed to sleep very deeply. She moved as gracefully as she could with her giant baby bump, holding her hand on her back. "Then, I can go clean up the mess in the kitchen."
Isabella eyed her stomach warily before meeting her eyes with a concerned look of her own. "Are you sure you don't need help with the kitchen?"
"I'll be fine," Her assurance didn't do anything to stop Isabella's worrying. Truth be told, Aurora looked about ready to pop despite only being 35 weeks pregnant. "Hopefully Xavier won't be home any time soon so it'll give me some time to-"
"Time to do what, love?"
Damn it, she had spoken too soon.
A pair of arms wrapped themselves around her stomach as she was gently pulled back towards his broad chest. She immediately recognized the gentle hold he had on her and the familiar cologne she had gotten him.
"You scared me— I didn't even hear you come in," she put a hand on her racing heart, swiftly ignoring his question.
"You hiding something, baby?" He asked jokingly, nuzzling his face into the crook of her neck, before placing a gentle kiss on her neck. "How are my girls doing?"
"Good, she's being fairly active today," Right on cue, she felt a small kick in her stomach as she placed her hand on top of Xavier's. She knew he had felt the kick and could already tell he was smiling widely.
It was as if their baby girl knew who was caressing her mother's stomach. Not even born yet, their daughter was already daddy's little princess.
"Did you do some baking again?"
"Xander and I made cookies. We just put them in the oven," she murmured as she watched Isabella remove Jared's bib. His grip was tight as Isabella pried his fingers off the spoon as gently as she could. Despite this, he remained completely knocked out.
"You and Xander, huh," He murmured, continuing to trail kisses up her neck and to her jaw. When he was done, he smoothly turned her around so they were now face to face— well, face to chest. Her bump separated the two of them as he placed one hand on her bump, gently rubbing as he continued to take in her disheveled state with flour streaked across her cheek and bits in her hair. He had no doubt that Xander and his kitchen were probably in the same state.
"I swear there's no mess this time," her eyes widened, biting her lip while trying to look innocent. From the corner of her vision, she watched Isabella gather Jared in her arms.
"I'm going to put the little ones to bed," Isabella walked out of the room, not before giving Aurora a wink. Aurora gave her a pleading look in which she cheekily ignored. "I'll be back for Jayden in a bit."
She was looking everywhere but at him until he gently took hold of her chin and tilted it up so that her eyes met his beautiful grey ones.
"So, if I were to walk into the kitchen right now, there wouldn't be a mess?" He asked, his eyes twinkling mischievously. He already knew the answer, but like always, he knew she was going to try to get away with it.
"No?"
That and she was a terrible liar.
Xavier rolled his eyes playfully, leaning down to give her a sweet kiss on the lips. "I almost forgot my 'welcome back' kiss. Now... about the kitchen."
"Oh, well, look at the time," she mumbled, successfully getting out of Xavier's grip. "Time to get this little one to bed."
She gently picked Jayden up from the highchair and shifted so that he was comfortably laying his head on her shoulder.
Xavier gave her a disapproving look along with a concerned one. "You shouldn't be carrying him, love."
"Their room isn't that far," she mumbled, wanting to escape the dining room.
"Walk slow, baby," he warned, as she nodded absentmindedly. "I'm going to get a glass of water from the kitchen."
His emphasis on the word made her walk a bit faster. "Uh-huh, you go do that babe."
She only got so far— she hadn't even made it out of the dining room. With the extra weight in her arms, she was waddling even slower than usual and it took less than a second for his voice to call out.
"What the hell happened to my kitchen?"
❤︎ ❤︎ ❤︎
Surprise, my loves! Another bonus chapter for my lovely readers^^ I know it's been a while, so I really hope this lived up to your expectations! This is also really late, but I also hope you all had an amazing New Years!
If you haven't seen my announcement that I posted on New Years, I want to let you know that 2021 is our year. It's still a tough road ahead, but I hope and wish for only great things for you all. I am extremely grateful that you've chosen to take the time to read my story and I really appreciate all the love and support that you've given me. Thank you so much from the bottom of my heart <3 You're beautiful, smart, and don't you forget that <3