April 2nd 2025
New York City, New York
"Travis!"
Travis heard his name being called out from down the hallway of their apartment in New York City. Everything that had been his had become hers, and everything of hers had become his. So naturally the apartment in New York City was theirs now. He trudged down the hall, finding Taylor in the room they had set aside to be the baby's nursery. He saw Olivia asleep in what is meant to be the basket for the changing table on top of the dresser and a very stressed Taylor sprawled out across the floor, pieces of crib surrounding her.
"Oh my gosh, Tay!" Travis called out, quickly crossing the room to sit next to her on the floor. The room had been painted, mostly by Travis with Taylor helping out when and where she could. With the baby coming any day now, it had been a very last minute job for them to get everything up and ready. They had chosen cream coloured walls, deciding that straight up white would just be too bright and stark, especially when the light from the window hit it. The oak wooden dresser was against one wall and contained inside it was a small selection of baby clothes that they had already sorted through and organised. The rest were laid out precariously across the floor they had carpeted. They decided that it would be softer and nice to have the room carpeted, being especially handy if someone dropped something on the floor in the middle of the night whilst tending to the baby when she was final old enough to sleep in her nursery at night. She would sleep in with them in their room in her snuzpod that Taylor had been gifted at her baby shower. Travis knew that Taylor's nesting had become quite out of control since they arrived in New York City a couple of weeks before. The impending feeling that their little girl would soon be with them came over her fast and strong, with Taylor frantically and constantly cleaning and tidying practically ever inch of the apartment daily.
However, what Travis hadn't been expecting when he had heard Taylor calling out his name was to come into the nursery and find her knee deep in crib parts and instruction manuals, trying to build the baby's crib by herself.
"Trav can you pass me that little screwdriver? I can't hold these pieces together and grab it at the same time." Taylor called out, pointing to the little clear plastic bag containing the screwdriver that came with the crib. Travis shook his head.
"I can't believe you. I told you that I was going to do that!" Travis moaned as he took the pieces of crib out of her hand, her reluctantly to let go very apparent in the struggle.
"Well I am doing it so there is no need. Anyway if I had left it up to you, the baby wouldn't have a crib till next Christmas." Taylor joked, glaring over at where Travis was organising the parts and assembling them based on the instruction manual in front of him. She was so grateful that out of all of the things she asked him to do, Travis remembered not to throw away the instruction manual. This must have been the only one he had not thrown away. Kylie had told her that Jason was just the same, Donna confirming it about Ed too. It must just be a Kelce boy thing.
Travis came up to where Taylor was now standing, wrapping his arms around her massive thirty nine week pregnant bump, lifting the bottom up slowly in his hands. He felt her relax into him, her tension previously apparent.
"What is on your mind Tay?" Travis asked her softly, lightly swaying back and forth with her in his arms. Very soon it wouldn't just be her in his arms. It would be there little girl too. He could see the name they had already chosen out for her on the sign above where the dresser was. There was also one that would go on the door but Travis hadn't got round to putting that one up just yet. He traced the little moons and stars around the letters of her name. It was the perfect name: a blend of old, family names and new ones, to signify the start of a new branch of their families. They had both decided between them that they would name their daughter something more traditional. Nothing super popular but nothing like other celebrities do. Travis thought back to that conversation they had a few weeks prior...
"Trav, what are we going to do. What are we going to name her. We can't agree on any names.." Taylor sighed, growing tired and impatient of running around and around in circles trying to find the perfect name for their little girl. Her middle name had pretty much been chosen, a family name, but now they were tasked with the harder job of finding a first name that fit perfectly with their chosen middle name and with her last name, which would be Kelce, as well as sounding and being just right.
"Ok well why don't you guys just word vomit. Or name vomit!" Blake suggested. Blake had come round with the gift of food and more clothes for the baby.
"What do you mean by that?" Travis asked, looking curious and listened as Blake explained how the process worked.
"Basically, you each have five vetos each and you have to just say names that you like to each other. This is a judgement free zone and a way for you guys to communicate names that you like in an easier way."
"I guess we could do that?" Taylor nodded, watching as Travis agreed. The game of name ping pong started...
"What about India? I have always loved the name India!" Taylor mused but Travis shook his head.
"Veto!" Travis stated.
"Why, what is wrong with India!"
"Oh come on Tay." Travis said, shaking his head in disbelief and putting on a ridiculously high pitched voice. "Can you just imagine. Hi, my name is India. I live in the forest and gather berries and flowers to eat from my all natural, non GMO garden."
"Ok so no India then. Any ideas?" Taylor said, crossing her arms.
"Umm I like Dakota?" Travis suggested.
"Veto." Taylor replied quickly.
"Why?"
"I don't like place names for kids." Taylor stated casually with Travis shaking his head in disbelief.
"Says the girl who asked to call our daughter India."
"What about Marjorie?" Taylor asked.
"What is your obsession with naming our daughter after your grandmother." Travis argued
"Um because she was my grandmother Travis. She meant a lot to me and I love her."
"Yeah well you are not birthing a seventy nine year old pensioner so Veto!"
It went back and forth like this for what felt like hours, going on till even after Blake had said goodbye and left to get home to her own four girls.
"Mia"
"Veto. My ex-girlfriend from high school had that name and she turned out to be a right bitch. What about James."
"What is the Kelce obsession with giving girls masculine names? Anyway Blake's daughter is called James so that puts that name out of the window."
And then it came to her. A name. A perfect name that sounded just right with their chosen middle name and Travis' last name. Call her old-fashioned but she couldn't imagine the baby not having Kelce as her last name. Taylor was sure one day, in the not too distant future, she would share that last name too
"I think that it's perfect Tay." Travis replied happily, relieved that their name battle would finally be over.
"Tay, why don't you go rest and put your feet up and I will finish building the crib. We can then have a quiet night in together."
"Really?" Taylor replied, turning around to face him, her arms wrapped now around his shoulders, hands snaking up to the nape of his neck where she could feel his fresh buzzcut begin and fade.
"Yep." Travis stated confidently.
"Are you sure we shouldn't just hire a man to come in and build it for us? It's not like we don't have the money to." Taylor suggested.
"Nope. We don't need a man to come and do this. I am more than capable of building my daughter's crib. Now, go find what takeout you want and order something. You know what I like. We can eat some good food and watch a movie together. You deserve a break after all of the hard work you have been putting in over these past few weeks and months." She leant up to plant a light but passionate kiss on his soft plump lips, before waddling off towards their living room, leaving Travis with nothing other than the instruction manual in his hands, and a pile of wooden planks that would supposedly become a bed and sleeping vessel for their baby girl.
Taylor slumped down onto the sofa, open up her uber eats app to order some food. She heard flattering about in the nursery and no later than five minutes later, Travis reappeared into the living room uttering..
"Yeah I think we should call a man in to come and build that. Much simpler!" Travis said nonchalantly, trying not to bruise his masculinity any further that day.
"Was it too hard for you." Taylor said in a mocking but cute tone.
"Shut up." Travis brushed off with a light chuckle but she could tell that he was sulking based on the way his shoulders were slumped over and his heels were dragging along the floor as he grabbed some plates and cutlery for when their food would soon be arriving.
"Ok Mr Grumpy Pants, calm down!" Taylor laughed, slowly getting up from her seat on the sofa to come and help him in the kitchen. "Sorry I laughed at you."
"It doesn't matter. I know that building and construction is not my strongest suit. I don't know why I ever suggested that I would build the crib"
"You just wanted to help." Taylor mused. "But you have lots of other talents that I love."
"I just feel like I haven't been particularly helpful throughout your pregnancy and I am sorry if I haven't." Travis released, slumping against the kitchen countertop as they waited rather impatiently for their food to arrive.
"Hey." She took his face in her hands once more. "You have been helpful. Who was by my side every morning when I was puking my guts up? And who was there for every single doctors appointment and ultrasound scan? And took me to the hospital when I was bleeding out and could have nearly died?"
"Me I guess, but that is the bare minimum Tay. I am sorry if the boys who cam before me didn't do that but I don't deserve a medal for any of that, no matter how much it touched you." Travis brushed her off.
"Well I noticed Trav, and it made me smile. None of the other guys would have cared the way you did."
"And that makes me angry Tay." Travis said, slamming his fist down onto the counter, slightly harder than he had been anticipating. but Taylor din't flinch. She knew that this anger wasn't inflicted at her, and that no matter how angry he ever got, Travis had never and would not ever raise his hands to her. It wasn't in his DNA, unlike some other boys she used to know before. "Yous should not have had to settle for that. And think that it was all that you deserved."
"It isn't hard to do once you re used to it. Remember that you have to look for love anywhere and everywhere you can. Starving people will eat anything Trav. Anything!" Taylor sighed, pressing her head up against Travis', feeling his light teardrops fall and stain her cheeks too. They remained frozen together for what felt like an eternity before she heard her security knocking at the door, alerting them to the arrival of their take out. Taylor had ordered them asian takeout, hoping that something with some spice would hopefully coax the baby out naturally without the need for any medications. Even though she was fastly approaching her due date, their baby girl seemed to be making no plans to exit her uterus anytime soon. The plan of action for that evening was to serve their daughter with an eviction notice in the form of spicy Thai curry.
It didn't work. Taylor found herself reaching for the extra larger max strength Tums that she kept in the drawer of her nightstand. Olivia was perched on top of it, staring down at Taylor as she reached for the bottle. Travis was sound asleep next to her, turning over to face the opposite direction to her when he felt Taylor leave the bed and cross over towards their ensuite. After taking what felt like her millionth pee of the day, she stood up to admire her bump in the floor length mirror they had in their bathroom. She saw the small tributaries of stretch marks, invisibly make their way across her lower abdomen but what used to spark fear and hatred no sparked joy. Sure it had been hard at first, but these were not the signs of failure. they were signs of success. She had managed to hold onto a pregnancy. A healthy, successful pregnancy. The first one she had ever had. It felt like the universe had finally felt she was worthy of the great gift of motherhood.
As she stood their, in front of that mirror, gazing and admiring her bump with loving strokes and feeling their little girl kick her feet in contentment, Taylor couldn't imagine how life could get anymore perfect....
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Eeek I love it when they are happy. I have already given you a pretty big clue for the middle name but I have also put some easter eggs to what the first name could be but I will also put a clue in this authors note here just because the easter eggs and clues in the chapter are quite cryptic and difficult...
Clue No1: The first name is a name inspired from ancient Roman/Greek mythology. Enjoy guessing, I can't wait to see what you guys come up with...