Lunch was silent, but the tension was tangible. Secret gazes were shared under eyes and giggles erupted from one particular person - Sapphire.
Kaylyn, suddenly curious as to what was going on, placed her sandwich on the plate and eased back in her chair.
"OK, what's going on?" She demanded with mirth tainting her voice.
Sapphire looked from her to Matthew and they both shrugged. "Nothing!" They both exclaimed in unison, but Kaylyn wasn't convinced.
"I've seen you both sharing secret glances. I know something is up," Kaylyn retorted.
Sapphire did not say anything; she continued to play with her bread, whilst folding her lips to prevent a smile. Kaylyn glanced at Matthew and cocked a brow in curiosity, wanting to get some answers from him at least.
Matthew held up his hands in mock surrender. "I don't know what's going on." The look on his face was evidence to his words but Kaylyn couldn't help but notice the twinkling mischief in his eyes.
Sighing in defeat, she shoved her plate away from her. "Well, anyway... Faith and I are going shopping in a while," she informed, seeing the shock on Sapphire's face. "Do you want to come Sapph?"
Sapphire instantly looked from Kaylyn to Matthew then to Kaylyn again. "I thought you were only going to hang out with Faith," she said a bit hysterically.
"No, we're going baby shopping also," she smiled and Sapphire's eyes widened.
She looked to Matthew for permission. "Daddy?"
Matthew cleared his throat. "Pumpkin, you promised grandma and grandpa that you would visit them today," Matthew reminded cocking his brow.
Sapphire looked genuinely confused for a moment, but quickly she muttered, "Yes, how could I forget," she said as she managed a smile.
Kaylyn tried not to show her disappointment. "Oh. Wel-" the ringing of the doorbell cut her off in mid-sentence. "That must be Faith. I'll get it!" She exclaimed excitedly as she moved from around the table and towards the door.
Sapphire turned to Matthew. "But daddy, I wanted to go shop with," she pouted.
Matthew sighed, knowing the protest was coming. "Sapph, you promised me you would help me out with this. We can all go shopping some other day," Matthew whispered. "Just think about how happy Kaylyn will be at the end of the day," he winked with a reassuring smile.
"OK daddy," she grinned now after being convinced.
Matthew pinched her cheek. "That's my girl. Shhh-" he immediately cut in when he heard footsteps nearing in on them.
Faith and Kaylyn entered the room with a smile.
"I'll go get my purse," Kaylyn informed Faith as she quickly strode from the room.
Faith was left prey to the two pair of predator eyes that watched her from around the table.
"Good morning," she greeted with a tight smile.
Sapphire threw her a hard gaze and muttered a barely audible Good morning, under her breath.
Faith cleared her throat, feeling the tension and silently praying for Kaylyn to join her ASAP.
"So," Sapphire began firmly. "Kaylyn must not stay out late because she needs her rest and if you take her out to eat, don't get her fish because it makes her feel sick," she informed sternly, her gaze settled on Faith.
Faith couldn't help laughing. "Aren't you the one who's supposed to be telling me this?" She directly asked Matthew.
He was about to reply when Kaylyn came back into the room. "I'm all set," she said almost breathlessly.
Matthew rose from his chair. "May I have a quick word with you before you leave?" He asked Kaylyn, who nodded and followed behind Matthew who was already leading the way.
"What's up?" Kaylyn asked as soon as they were alone.
Matthew did not answer immediately; he instead reached into his pocket for his wallet.
"Matt, that's not necessary. I already have what I need," she declined.
Matthew shook his head disapprovingly. "I want to do this, so please let me," he said as he handed the credit card in her direction.
Kaylyn sighed and hesitated for a while, contemplating on whether or not she should accept it. It wasn't that she wasn't appreciative of his offer, but she felt somewhat strange to be taking favours from a man. She always considered herself a prideful woman. However, she knew that with Matthew being the father of her child, it was going to be a frequent thing so she might as well get accustomed to it.
She finally took it and managed a smile. "Thank you," she reached up and kissed him briefly on the cheeks which in turn caused Matthew to smile as he watched her walk away.
"Oh!" He exclaimed abruptly, which caused Kaylyn to stop in her tracks. She turned to him with a questioning look on her face.
"My driver is outside. I asked him to drive you guys to your desired destinations. Its um...safer that way," he informed before clearing his throat.
Kaylyn smiled and nodded. "Thank you," she said to him for the second time, then left the room.
Sapphire smiled and waved from the door as she watch them depart from the house. She then closed the door and turned to Matthew.
"Are you ready dad?" She asked, moving closer to her father.
Matthew was already dialling a number. He held up an index finger in Sapphire's direction, as an indication of pause. "You guys can come over now," he spoke on the other end. "And make sure that you have the man power to complete everything by six...OK good. See you." He disconnected the call and winked at Sapphire.
"They'll be by in a few."
Sapphire grinned. "I can't wait to know what Kaylyn thinks. I hope she likes."
Matthew nodded. "I hope so too, pumpkin."
#
"Do you know that you're literally glowing?!" Faith exclaimed when they were both strolling through a baby store in the city.
Kaylyn blushed. "You exaggerate."
"Like seriously. I don't know if its the baby, or love," she said dreamily.
"Hah!" Kaylyn choked. "What gave you that idea?" She asked, pretending to be focusing on some clothes.
"Girl you know you can't hide anything from me," Faith said rolling her eyes. "So when did you know?"
"Know what?" Kaylyn laughed.
"That you're in love," Faith answered dreamily.
Kaylyn snickered. "I'm not!" She exclaimed abruptly, trying to distract herself from Faith's eyes by pretending to look at more clothes.
Faith huffed out an unconvinced breath. "You're such a liar, but anyway since all that mushy stuff is making you all shy, I'll change the topic," she said with a faint smile. "How's your dad?" She asked now.
The smile slightly waned from kaylyn's face as she sighed. "He's still not responding to treatment and...he's just getting frailer by the day." She swallowed the lump that formed in her throat. "I fear I might lose him too soon after finding him again," she croaked and folded her lips.
Faith placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Everything will be fine, you just wait and see," she smiled. "Your dad will live to see your baby and others you will have."
Kaylyn scoffed as she hung her head to hide her trembling lips when a sudden thought occurred to her. "I might not even live to see my baby," she muttered almost inaudibly.
"Come on Kay, I'm sure that a week from now when you visit the docs, everything will be fine. You'll see," she consoled, gently massaging kaylyn's arms. "And plus, you have me. Faith." She smiled which earned one from Kaylyn.
"Thank you."
Faith nodded. "OK let's get some shopping done! You know I think you should've really found out the sex of the baby. It makes shopping a whole lot easier..."
#
Matthew and Sapphire lay exhausted on the sofa after having finished with what they had set out to do.
"I'm tired daddy but I don't want to fall asleep before Kaylyn comes back."
Matthew immediately wondered if he should call Kaylyn to find out where she was. After all, it was minutes past six and she had been gone since noon.
He was about to reach for his phone, when he paused upon hearing laughing outside.
"That must be them," he whispered watching the way Sapphire perked up.
His suspicions were confirmed when the door burst open, welcoming Faith and Kaylyn who bustled through the door with bags in hand.
"Kaylyn, you're back!" Sapphire squealed as she dashed towards Kaylyn with a newfound spirit.
Kaylyn laughed as Sapphire hugged her legs. "Well this is what you call a warm welcome. I missed you too honey."
Sapphire beamed in excitement as her gaze drifted to the bags. "Can I see, Can I see?!"
Matthew cleared his throat. "Pumpkin, I'm sure we're all tired, so how about we let that stay 'till morning."
Sapphire looked a bit confused but it took her only a moment for realization to dawn.
"OK. But I want to help put away the stuff," Sapphire grinned as she grabbed a bag and dashed upstairs.
Matthew shrugged as he too took Kaylyn's bag and walked upstairs.
"What's up with them?" Faith whispered.
"Don't ask me," she muttered as she followed behind.
"In here." Sapphire peeked out of the room with a grin on her face.
Kaylyn's brows knitted in confusion. "That's not my room," she murmured to herself as she moved towards Sapphire and Matthew who was at the door way.
"Surprise!" They all said in unison - Faith included.
Kaylyn's breath caught in her throat when they moved to the side and allowed her a clearer view of the room. She gasped upon seeing the soft white walls with the floral trimmings. A white crib- the one she had told Sapphire she liked - was seated in the middle with two huge stuffed animals resting on the sides. By the window was a wooden rocking chair with a single white cushion strapped to the back and the seat. Subconsciously, kaylyn's hands went to cover her mouth, when she saw the tiny bookshelf, stacked with children's books. The whole interior was decorated with neutral colours: soft whites and blues but never giving the impression of a boring space.
As her eyes roamed the entire nursery, Kaylyn couldn't help the tears that formed in her eyes. It was simply beautiful.
"Kaylyn doesn't like it," Sapphire murmured sadly, thinking that her tears were the cause of sadness and not joy. "But you can change it Kaylyn, we just wanted to surprise you," she sniffed which was accompanied by tears.
Kaylyn immediately darted her gaze towards Sapphire, who was crying because she thought Kaylyn didn't like the room. "Hey, hey..." She knelt down to address her. "I absolutely love it sweetheart. I'm crying because I'm happy," she reassured softly, using her thumb to brush away the tears.
"Really?" She beamed.
Kaylyn nodded to confirm her suspicions. "I love it so much. Thank you guys," she exclaimed genuinely as she glanced at Matthew and Faith who were smiling.
In the process of standing to properly thank and express her gratefulness, Kaylyn suddenly paused, her mouth slightly opening as her eyes widened. She instantly clutched her stomach, the reaction causing Matthew to immediately rush to her side.
"Kaylyn, what's wrong, are you OK?" He instantly asked, searching her face.
The look of utter shock, suddenly transformed to a gasp. "I-I ...I think...The baby just moved!" She choked out a laugh.
It took Matthew awhile to really register with what Kaylyn had said; he was too busy wondering if she was hurt, but when realization dawned, his eyes widened and so did his mouth.
"Ar- Are you sure?" Matthew blurted, his eyes wildly searching her face then her stomach.
Kaylyn laughed. "I think so!"
Matthew subconsciously placed his hand on Kaylyn's stomach, wanting to feel and witness the joy she had earlier experienced.
Kaylyn smiled approvingly, the tears welling in her eyes as she feasted her eyes on the sight. Matthew waited for some passing seconds, until he felt what seemed like a throb against her stomach.
He darted his gaze to Kaylyn as he gazed at her with incredulity. He laughed a spirited laugh and reached up to Kaylyn where he pulled her in for a hug, revelling in the joy that he felt.
"So you really have a baby inside you?" Sapphire's voice came with amazement.
Kaylyn and Matthew slightly separated as they watched the shock on Sapphire's face. "Mmhmm," Kaylyn nodded.
"Ewe, that's gross!" She exclaimed, using her hands to hide her face.
Everyone laughed.
____________________________________
Hey guys!!! I sorry I took so long to update, but I was having some problems with this chapter. It got deleted twice when I logged out of wattpad and the draft could not be found in my revision history, so I had to rewrite... Twice :/
Well anyway, I hope y'all enjoyed! Be forewarned: Grab your hankies for the next chapterS lol!! Joking - kinda... Well no, I'm not *grin*
THANK YOU ALL FOR ALL THE SUPPORT YOU'VE GIVEN ME! I REALLY APPRECIATE IT!!!
Wow, all that CAPS and underline must've been really hard on the eyes. Sorry...not sorry ;) :p
OK, well until next time...
Laters baby
Xoxo
Juju