Work Out Settle Down

Our stairs creak. I hear the air conditioner kick in. There's a click from the stove and I think Victor is babbling for more juice. He will get more juice, as soon as I come to the kitchen. But first, I have to cross the living room. Trisha has been a bad girl and has not put away Mr. Fangy, Mrs. Bitey, and Lil Nibbles the bear. Or she got them out again and we are merely taking a break from their next adventure. I don't know. And besides, I am not the disciplinary parent on the best of days.

Trisha is being a good girl and helping mama as best she can. And mama has decided that being helpful means setting the table. One plate at a time, she sets everything up. Then another round for the forks. Then one for the napkins. Then another round so we all have two forks. Victor is already set up in his highchair, amusing himself with waving a soft spoon around like an airplane. Mama herself is still busy at the stove, swaying to the beat of the soft music. I think it's Saoirse's pick, if I had to guess. Mine isn't really fit for early mornings. I wait for a moment to slip through and hug Louise.

"Morning baby," I whisper in her ear. She gets a kiss too. Nowhere near the same as what Trisha got. I do get a similar titter in response.

She's dressed. Thin sweats, a tank top, dreads all tied up behind her. They've gotten so long, almost down to her waist now. And she refuses to cut them. That's wonderful. Trisha has expressed some desires to do something similar with her hair, but also really likes the buns we do with it. Such incredibly difficult decisions for a child. At least Victor won't have that problem. He takes after his mother, already a beautiful sunset red.

"Morning, Rache," she whispers back. We can't quite line up as we should with my beautiful belly in the way. We make do. Then something tugs at my jammies and I have to break.

"Juice or milk?" Trisha asks.

"Juice," I say. She approves. Juice is good. Too bad it's on the top shelf and as big as 5-year-olds can be, she is not top shelf big. I am. She lets me help with a big thank you and a hug. She can at least get the cups if she begs for me to help with that as well. She does. She lets me keep helping her help as Louise finishes breakfast. I probably could do more to help, but I am pregnant. I can let people do a few things for me. Louise sets my plate in front of me with another soft kiss. Trisha's already set on hers and Victor has his delicious mush.

"Saoirse already get hers?" I ask.

"She had some oatmeal," she says, "Said she had to get in the war room. New Vtuber starting today, and she wants to watch and make sure the rig they got her works."

I understood none of those words except maybe oatmeal, but I nod as if I had. She doesn't put on the shows as much as she used to, but she helps others do the same. It works. The fake people put on shows. They have merch. We have some freebies of those merch and they make good yard work shirts.

"Did Troy have anything?"

"No. Said he'd stop and get something. Rob's been hounding him about a new Taskmaster franchise and since yours has been so good, he's convinced that you two have some nuggets of wisdom to share."

"Hire really strong people. Have them get married. That's what works."

Louise rolls her eyes but I think that's the secret, even if she doesn't. And I'm not sure how it could be enforced down the line. Trisha likes her pancakes. Victor likes his mush. Louise likes her coffee and talking to me. The pancakes are also very, very good. I was starving.

"I'm doing some work in the garden today," says Louise, "The boysenberries your dad gave us are doing amazing. The corn's a bit tougher, but it's not quite the season, I think. Maybe. Or our dirt is terrible."

"Can I help?" Trisha asks. The sugar's hit her and now she's even more helpful. And adorable.

"Absolutely. Maybe you can figure out the mystery of the corn."

And now she's thinking and ready to wow us with her dizzying intellect. We will have corn up to the roof and now Victor is a drummer with that spoon. He's not bad. Definitely green, but he has so much time to get better. His mush is gone and that's the cue for everyone to be done. I'm done. Kind of tired and willing to go back to bed. But then I'll have to wake up again, so it's not really worth. Besides, Victor's getting antsy. That means he wants to play, and I think I have some responsibility for the little man. I clean him up and wipe him down. He babbles happily and squirms a bit. He wants blocks. He'll get blocks. He also gets a kiss on his adorably squishy cheek.

I stop for a moment. And I smile. There's a writhe in my stomach and it's one of the most unsettling things I've ever felt. It's almost one of the best.

"Ash's kicking again," I announce to the world. The world listens and Louise responds with a bound and a leap to my arms. Then one of her hands goes to my stomach. Trisha scampers over just like her mom and does the same. The bump reacts and she withdraws. It really is a weird feeling and I get that bit of recoil. But she's also entranced.

"Kid's going to burst out of you like a pinata," Louise sighs. But then she joins me on the couch as I settle. Victor does not have blocks. But he has a fun shirt to gnaw on. That works. He babbles something I glimpse the wisdom of the infinite cosmos.

It's nice, this quiet moment we have. A man in my life, off working at a joint project we built with brick and mortar. One woman on her own, tinkering with devices beyond my comprehension. Another by my side basking in the physical sensation of my body before tilling the land. One child from my blood eagerly bouncing through my life with an infinite well of energy. One child of my chosen loves still forming from the infinite possibilities. And one final being sleeping in my womb, just like me, according to the ultrasounds. I'm not sure what they'll end up being when they are done growing, but they'll have all the love we can give. That will be more than enough.