BSL - italics. English&BSL - normal. This is just before the birth of the twins x.
With one gentle shift on the super comfortable couch, Harry breathes out with a smile and focuses on his phone.
Right now, he's texting Blake and updating her on their afternoon with Fairy, her little one. Blake and Zayn are currently on a road trip, so they keep exchanging pictures and videos.
Harry has been consistent with sharing pictures of Fairy harassing Blue, Mango and even him. The little ball of energy is fun to have around and yes, their communication is a struggle but they somehow make it work.
This is the first child that hasn't gotten bored of him just yet. Another message from Blake comes up and he quickly adjusts his phone to take a picture of Fairy who is busy colouring a few feet from him.
It's enough distance but the picture is clear enough. Blake replies and instantly video calls in, shocking Harry at how fast she is.
They worked out closed captions for their video calls and Blake's BSL lessons are coming in handy because she's nearly fluent in just 4 months of meeting him and starting her classes.
Harry groans because he doesn't want to stand up from his comfortable position and his tired back is grateful for this comfort.
Blake has her wide smile and Zayn is busy in the background, driving.
"Where is she?" She pipes up, speaking and signing.
"Wait," Harry replies.
He sighs and turns to see Fairy in the distance.
Standing up is stressful and he doesn't know if a child enjoys being snapped at.
Normally, he snaps his fingers at Blue to get her attention when she's distracted and it works.
Harry calmly holds up his phone and waves at her, trying to get her to notice him. Blake notices this and laughs, catching up on him.
"Harry's too lazy to stand up," she tells Zayn.
"And he's not looking this way, so he can't tell we're gossiping about him," Zayn replies, unseen on the video.
"Wait, does this make us bad people?" Blake panics.
"He gossips about us every single hour, go on, my love," he chuckles.
Fairy is deeply concentrated on her drawing and Harry clears his throat.
The sound of her mother's voice from the phone is the first thing that grabs her attention and she snaps her head up. This makes Harry smile and he quickly waves the phone at her.
Without waiting, the child stands up and hurries over to him.
"Mama," he mouths and points at the screen.
"That's my mummy!" Fairy screams, joining him on the couch with a little jump and getting comfortable on his belly.
Harry groans as he adjusts and their faces share the screen. Blake celebrates on seeing her daughter and she blows excited kisses to her.
"Baby, I'm just checking in, okay? Are you being a good girl?" She speaks and signs.
Harry nods along, picking up whatever he can understand as Fairy smooshes her face against his.
"Yes, but Aunty Blue keeps sleeping all day," Fairy pouts.
"You know she's tired. Are you having fun with Uncle Harry?" Blake asks with a smile and points at Harry.
Fairy rests her head against Harry's chest and brings her hand to touch his hair in a nearly arrogant manner.
Harry raises an eyebrow, wondering what she's doing and she smiles at her mother.
"He's so nice, mummy," she says, softly.
"Yes, he is. Okay, the network is trash here, I'll call you soon, okay?" the line goes off as Blake gives them an "I Love you" sign.
With the call abruptly ending, Fairy sighs and curls up against Harry. He puts the phone down and holds her closer, noticing that she's either tired or just moody.
The child yawns and knuckles at her eyes, it's been an eventful afternoon with food, snacks, TV and colouring.
"Sleepy," she looks up at him and signs the new word she recently learned.
"That's okay, you can sleep," he replies with a smile.
"I want to sleep here," she shakes her head with a small frown, not understanding him.
Harry doesn't catch that because she's moving but something makes him adjust on the couch, not ready to move.
Fairy looks around and notices that Mango is awake after her own nap, and she wants to go after the cat.
Seeing this, Harry quickly holds her with a confused frown because this little lady just said she wants to sleep.
"S-Sleep?" he manages to say.
"Okay, let's sleep," she remembers with a giggle.
It's amazing how wild children can be and he's still adjusting to regularly babysitting his friend's child.
Zayn introduces himself as her adopted dad and he thinks that's the kindest gesture he has seen his friend do. Blake is also a new friend. It feels strange having a new hearing friend.
Some of Blue's work friends are okay but none of them have gone out of their way to learn a whole new language like Blake. Thankfully his work as an editor is permanently remote, so he's not too bothered about making work friends just yet
The effort she makes lets him know that she's truly the best person for Zayn because that's also how he is. They're made for each other and he's happy to be there for Fairy.
Especially now that he's about to be a father. It's scary, exciting and a bit exhausting. Blue is always ill and tired.
He has spent all afternoon alone with Fairy because Blue needed to catch up on sleep and he knows he needs to check on her for her evening medication.
Once Harry notices the silence, he looks down to see Fairy is fast asleep on his chest. He can feel soft vibrations that count as a child snoring and he smiles at how precious this is.
Knowing Blake, he quickly takes a picture of Fairy fast asleep and sends it to her. Also knowing Blake again, he takes another picture with himself in it and he gives her his best smile.
Once he's done, he slowly moves from the couch and calmly places Fairy on it. She kicks for a few seconds and settles down.
Harry smoothes her hair and tenderly kisses her head with a smile. He stands up and heads to the kitchen to get something refreshing for his partner.
The routine is already stuck in his brain because he knows she'll wake up thirsty and a little grumpy if she can't decide on what to drink. He smiles as he sets the glasses and calmly heads to the room with Mango escorting him.
They enter the room together and he meets Blue already frowning on the bed. The woman now sleeps with four to five pillows because she needs one between her legs and one around her lower back to keep her propped up.
The bump is heavy and starting to weigh her down. They have two months to go and it feels like forever.
Blue bites down her lip as she slowly adjusts on the bed and inhales the t-shirt on her. It's one of his old oversized t-shirts and she feels like she might have to frame it for saving her when this is all over.
Harry calmly settles down next to her and tenderly leans in for a kiss.
"My breath smells of ginger," she pouts at him as she signs.
"Do I look like I care?" he scoffs, moving up to kiss her forehead.
"You should," she smiles a little.
"Nope, how are we doing?" he breathes out, bringing a gentle palm to her bump.
"Heavy, tired and annoyed," Blue replies.
"That's a lot," Harry chuckles.
"I accidentally slept on my bump and now everything hurts," she pouts again, stretching out a needy hand to him.
Seeing her like this makes Harry extra concerned and he takes her hand in his. He kisses her knuckle and moves up on the bed, curling up right next to her.
She softly pushes his curls away from his face and admires the beautiful creature she's starting a family with.
There's really nobody else she sees herself experiencing life with. When her palm comes to his mouth, he kisses it with a smile.
"Ready to eat something?" he asks, looking at her.
"I warmed my noodles before Fairy...shit, is she here now?" Blue widens her eyes in realisation.
"She's napping. We spoke to Blake too," he replies, amused.
"If she's napping, it means you two had so much fun and I missed out," she complains.
"Hey, it's fine. When she's awake, the fun will continue," Harry assures her.
"Promise?" Blue frowns.
"Whatever you need, I promise," he tries not to laugh at how adorable she is.
"I also want to colour something or I don't know, play hide and seek," she winces, placing a hand on her bump as she sits up.
"Do you even have the energy for anything?" He raises an eyebrow.
"Hey, you helped me shower today doesn't mean I'm useless, okay?" she sticks out her tongue.
"If you insist, sure," he smiles.
Blue sees the glasses of water placed on the bedside table and she reaches for her phone with a smile. It's a lot of messages and notifications that she has missed.
It doesn't bother her because she's supposed to be resting. She scrolls through her phone and turns to see Harry doing the same thing.
He's replying to some messages and she lightly nudges him to get his attention.
"Should I order something for us? Fairy enjoyed the dumplings from last time," she shows him on the screen.
"It was so good," he agrees with a nod.
"What else do you want us to do for the day?" she asks, determined to be active.
"You need to rest," Harry reminds her.
"I just slept for over three hours, it's enough," she rolls her eyes.
"How are you feeling physically though?" he asks, concerned.
"Better than this morning, and that means a lot," she says, slowly moving her legs around the bed with gentle breathing.
Harry notices the movement and sits up, ready to assist. He reaches out his hands to her and she softly swats them away.
This makes him giggle at how grumpy she has become and she sits up, placing her feet on the floor. When she sees Mango calmly staring at her, she smiles and cranes her neck.
Harry taps her to hold her attention and he wonders where on earth she's already going.
"Where are you off to?" he asks.
"Do you want to guess?" she smiles at him.
"I'm horrible with guessing, I just need you to stay put," he slowly stands up.
"I'm tired of staying put, I hate it," she groans, frustrated.
"Do you want to repeat that? I didn't catch it," he taps her, gesturing at her mouth.
"I hate staying put," she enunciates better and he laughs.
"Fine, what do you want to do?" Harry stares at her as she looks around the room.
Blue stretches out her hands to him and he slowly pulls her up. Once she's standing, she exhales in relief and slowly moves her waist.
Everything feels sore but it's much better than this morning as she admitted. He stares at her as she enjoys her seconds of relief and she starts waddling out of the room like a curious child.
Harry quickly goes after her and Mango jumps on the bed, she's been waiting for them to leave.
With a hand placed on her bump, Blue looks around the flat and wonders how she can spend the rest of her evening.
One thing she hates is feeling like time has passed and that she has wasted a whole day.
"Is it evil to wake Fairy up to watch Bluey together?" Blue turns to him, curious.
"Don't fucking do that, she will burn the house down," Harry panics.
"Calm down," she chuckles.
"You know she hates when her nap is disturbed," he continues, knowing Blue can do this.
"Okay, fine. Will you watch Cbeebies with me?" she frowns.
"I thought you wanted to catch up on your true crime shows," he points out.
"Thanks for the reminder," she squeals in excitement.
The mild squealing is enough to summon Fairy and she immediately sits up, knuckling at her sleepy eyes.
Harry and Blue freeze. They didn't expect that.
Fairy looks around the flat and as soon as her eyes land on Harry, she starts to make grabby hands with a pout.
"Uncle Harry," she cries out.
Harry sees this and hurries over to her, with a concerned look. He has no idea what she's saying but she looks distressed.
Blue has a small smile as she watches their interaction. He squats near her and presses her fussy hair down.
Their communication is still a struggle; the emotions on their faces are enough to pass across the message.
Harry looks at Blue and gestures at her to help. She's always their translator when things get hard and she hurries to them.
"What is wrong with her? Does she need something?" Harry signs, eyes focused on Fairy.
"Hey lovie, what's wrong?" Blue asks, with a smile.
"Uncle Harry left me alone," Fairy complains.
"Mate, you left her alone," Blue turns to him.
Fairy turns to him and taps him with a soft glare on her face.
She's still annoyed that she woke up alone on the couch and he calms down, knowing that she's technically okay.
"Very rude," she cautions him.
Harry groans as he reads her lips and properly sits on the couch, knowing he can't walk away right now.
"I'm sorry," he signs with a smile.
"Uncle Harry is very sorry, do you want to watch cartoons with us?" Blue slips in her agenda with a smile.
"Yes, but we're reading first," Fairy stands up and hurries to get a book from her bag.
Blue widens her eyes in amusement and notices that Harry seems a little lost. She leans down to kiss his forehead and smiles at him in admiration.
"We're watching cartoons. I'll get some juice and snacks," she happily waddles to the kitchen.
Harry is taking that in when Fairy zooms in with her book and jumps on his legs, opening the book with a smile.
Everybody has read to her except Uncle Harry and she needs that to change today, right now. He stares at the words and looks at her. What is this child planning? He has no idea.
As he scans through the pages, he smiles at the play on words and he sees a chubby finger landing on a sentence.
Harry gulps and turns to see Fairy staring at him. It's a simple sentence.
Well, it appears simple but he has no idea how it's said. It honestly feels like this child has set a trap for him.
"Read it to me, please," she taps the sentence.
"Ohh," he manages to say with a nervous giggle.
"Not oh, read it," she giggles, putting his finger on the sentence.
Blue returns with the juice and snacks, and instantly smiles at the situation on ground. Harry shoots her a look for help and she sees the book with them.
It's only funny because she knows Harry's mind is already in panic mode.
"Can I read to you instead?" Blue speaks up.
"You always read to me, I choose Uncle Harry," Fairy smiles.
"I can't say shit on these pages, why are kids learning such big words?" Harry signs and tries hard not to laugh.
"Little professors you know," Blue laughs a little.
"I can try but it's going to be so trash, should I?" he frowns, a little worried about letting Fairy down.
"You should do what you're comfortable with, babe," Blue gives him a supportive smile.
Harry gently taps Fairy and slowly closes the book. There's no point wasting the little girl's time and shakes his head in a no.
"You can't say it?" she asks, confused.
"H-Hard....to say," he manages to verbally explain with his strained voice.
"That's okay, I still love you," Fairy stands up to return her book.
"What did she say? She's on a roll today," Harry turns to Blue with a confused look.
"She loves you anyway," Blue smiles and lowers herself to kiss his forehead.
"Well, lucky me but I need to let her know that I can read though. Do you think she thinks I'm illiterate?" Harry is worried.
This just makes Blue laugh as she slowly sits down next to him and rests her head on his shoulder before looking at him.
"Trust me, she doesn't think you're illiterate," she assures him.
"Okay because I'm a graduate, I know words and stuff, just don't make me say shit that I've never heard, okay?" he is relieved.
"You're so subtly cocky, I like it." Blue kisses him and he smiles.
"And you're one tired very pregnant woman, I love you." Harry chuckles.
Fairy returns and immediately makes herself comfortable right in the space between them. Harry adjusts and allows her to curl up as Blue turns on the television for some cartoons.
Without asking, he slowly brings Blue's legs to comfortably rest on his and Fairy pats the bump before concentrating on the screen.
It already feels like their own little family and it makes his heart flutter in joy. As they watch their show, his phone vibrates and it's Blake video calling again.
This time around, the three of them appear on the screen and Blake drags Zayn in to say hello.
Fairy collects the phone to talk to her parents and Blue slowly starts to sleep off again as she enjoys the relaxing kids show.
Harry calmly rubs his love's legs to relax her and he moves closer to kiss her forehead, letting her get the rest she truly deserves.
(yes, this chapter was inspired by my daughter thinking her father can't read even when he's verbal lmao).