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“Happy birthday, El.”
It’s been six months since Anne had moved into the flat. It’s been a hard adjustment, especially with her daughter growing leaps and bounds everyday. She manages to befriend her next door neighbor, Jane, a few months back, and she invites her over for the afternoon to celebrate Elizabeth’s first year of life.
Jane puts down a small cake on the coffee table, and Anne sits down on the floor as she holds her daughter up by her waist. The two adults in the room sing the customary tune before helping her blow the candle, and Anne claps her daughter’s hands together when the flame disappears.
Jane slices her a piece, and Anne takes a morsel from her plate and brings it up for Elizabeth to taste. The second it touches her tongue, her doe eyes widen, immediately opening her mouth for another piece.
Anne laughs, taking a slightly larger piece between her thumb and index finger and feeds it to her. Elizabeth grabs her wrist as she wraps her lips around her thumb, trying to get as much frosting as she can.
“Your cake passes the baby test,” Anne tells Jane, and she laughs as well. Elizabeth lets out a whine when Anne takes her hand away, smacking her lips for more.
“Can you say cake, baby? Cake. Caaake.” Anne enunciates slowly, but the just-turned-one-year-old furrows her eyebrows, fussing a bit before taking matters into her own hands by digging them into the slice and helping herself.
“Ah!” Elizabeth exclaims, giggling as she presses a fistful of cake into her mouth.
Anne shakes her head as she laughs, letting her be.
“Has she said any words yet?” Jane asks, and the smile on Anne’s face turns down slightly at the question.
“Not a peep. I’ve asked her doctor and said she’s doing fine, hits all her marks. She’s just a late bloomer with speaking, that’s all,” Anne tries to let the medical reassurance be enough to calm her fears. “But you know we’re working on it, though. Could be anytime soon.”
“I can’t wait to hear her speak. With you as her mother, I’m sure she’ll be talking your ear off in no time.”
“What are you trying to say, Seymour?”
Jane only shrugs, her smile teasing. They talk a bit more as Anne pulls her child away from further demolishing the cake, and Jane helps clean her up before leaving the two of them alone in the flat. Anne picks Elizabeth up from the floor and settles her in her arms, kissing her temple.
“Just you and me, El.”
Anne recalls the memory as she holds her daughter flush against her body. She’s gotten a bit taller over the past few months, but she’s grateful that she hasn’t grown out of thinking that she’s too big to be held.
“I’ll bring something up to eat,” Cathy offers, and Anne shakes her head.
“Not hungry,” Anne husks out, but she taps the back of Elizabeth’s head with her finger. “What about you, El? Go have lunch with Cathy. I’ll be okay.”
She hears Elizabeth whine against her chest.
“Hey, baby girl. There’s still some cake leftover from Mama’s birthday yesterday. We can have some after lunch if you’d like.” Cathy tries to encourage, her hand rubbing small circles on Elizabeth’s back to coax her out of the koala hold.
Anne hears a sniffle and a muffled ’no’, feeling little fingers grip at her skin.
“We’ll go back after lunch, El.” Cathy pushes further.
“I’m just here. Go, El—,”
“No!” Elizabeth finally explodes, surprising the both of them with how loud her voice had gone. “No, no, no—,”
“Elizabeth, we don’t shout.” Anne tries her best to sound stern but her voice wavers, she’s never lashed out before, and loudly at that. Elizabeth wails at the sound of her full name, balling her hands into fists as her little body trembles in Anne’s hold.
“I stay, I’nna stay,” Elizabeth pleads in choked whispers, and when Anne tries her best to sit up, Cathy immediately lunges forward to assist her to rest against the headboard. “I’nna stay, you’re hurt, Mama. I’nna stay.”
“Calm down, El,” Anne whispers near the shell of her ear, her face buried just above her breast. The pain around her neck flares as she bends her head down, trying her best to ignore the throbbing. “Shh, please, baby. Mama’s not making you go anywhere. You’re here, Mama’s okay. Shh, shh, c’mon, baby.”
“I didn’t kn—,” Cathy starts, but Anne puts a hand up, her eyes silently telling her that it’s not her fault. She brings her hand back down to wipe away her tears as she continues to soothe her daughter. Elizabeth’s cries reduce to whimpers after a short while, and Cathy sees her nod against her chest when Anne whispers something into her ear.
Elizabeth slowly turns in her arms and reaches out for her.
Cathy quickly takes her into her hold, and Elizabeth clings to her just as tightly, her legs wrapping around her middle. Elizabeth stretches her neck a bit to speak quietly into Cathy’s ear.
“We make Mama soup,” Elizabeth says seriously, as if tasked to guard her life. “She wants.”
Cathy manages a small smile at the little girl’s devotion. She looks over to Anne, and she sees her with her eyes closed and breathing deeply. She gingerly cranes her neck around, wincing every so often at the purple skin pulling.
“Any soup will do,” Anne hums, fluttering her eyes open. “Thank you, Cathy. Make sure she eats. I’ll see you both in a bit, I just need to fix a few things.”
“What things?” Elizabeth pipes up, and Anne chuckles, reaching up to squeeze her little foot.
“Mama things. Baby, you have to trust me,” Anne smiles, genuinely smiles, and Elizabeth nods, wrapping her arms around Cathy’s neck.
Cathy leaves the room and Anne lets out a breath she didn’t know she was holding. She takes her phone and responds to Aragon’s texts, informing her that she won’t be returning the day after. She goes through messages from Anna, Kit, and Jane as well, thanking them for their help. She gathers up enough energy to put on some underwear and one of Cathy’s jumpers before going back under the covers and closing her eyes until she gets woken up again.
Cathy comes back an hour and a half later with a bowl of soup, with Elizabeth trailing behind with a small plate of cake. Anne manages a few spoonfuls, and when Elizabeth tells her how she helped to make it, she forces down half the bowl to appease her daughter despite the effort it takes to swallow the warm liquid down her throat.
“Cake?” Elizabeth offers, holding up a forkful. Anne’s eyes darts towards Cathy in slight panic, and she catches on quickly.
“Your Mama has a hard time eating things, El, so it’s just soup for now,” Cathy explains, and Elizabeth nods, looking at the slice forlornly.
“You can have it though, it’s okay,” Anne tells her, and Elizabeth perks up a bit, looking into her eyes.
“I already had some.” Elizabeth tells her honestly, and Anne smiles gently at her admission, reaching out to brush her thumb across her cheek.
“Sweet girl,” Anne croons. “It's okay. You deserve it for being so good for Mama.”
Elizabeth grins widely at her praise before digging into the small slice.
Cathy and Elizabeth pop in and out throughout the day, and when Elizabeth goes down for her afternoon nap, Cathy stays in her study to give Anne some space and a bit of breathing room.
Just after dinner, Cathy tiptoes back into their room, kneeling in front of Anne’s side of the bed.
“Do you want me to sleep here tonight?” Cathy asks gently, and Anne gives her a slightly incredulous look.
“Why wouldn’t I?”
“Y-you might want a bit more space.”
Anne groans when she props herself up on her elbow, leaning forward to kiss her temple.
“Not at all. I want to be spooned.”
Cathy feels lighter at her request, and she nods before standing up and getting ready for bed.
“Do you want me to get you a change of clothes?” Cathy asks before she closes the door of the bathroom, and Anne sits up from her place on the bed.
“No thanks. I’ll wash up a bit, though. Might do me some good,” Anne sways a bit on her feet when she stands up. Cathy notices how she curls into herself as she walks, not at all looking like the woman she’d grown to know. “Can I…may I join you?”
Cathy freezes a bit at her request, and when Anne senses her hesitation, she frowns, curling into herself even further. Cathy clears her thoughts before rushing forward to cup Anne’s face in her hands.
“Yes, of course, I’m just worried that—it’s just, it’s too soon and,” Cathy stammers over her words, and Anne shakes her head.
“It’s okay. I’m okay.”
They get into the shower together, and Anne soaps herself down while Cathy works the lather into her hair, massaging her scalp with the pads of her fingers. Anne hums at the sensation, and Cathy smiles at how she relaxes at her ministrations.
After finishing their night routines, Anne snuggles low on the bed, resting her head on Cathy’s stomach. Anne shifts a bit to face the ceiling, wincing a bit at the movement.
“Your bruises—,”
“I’m fine.”
Cathy tentatively cards her fingers through her hair, similar to how she did in the shower, and the tension in Anne’s body rolls off in waves.
“El said she wants to sleep here tonight.”
“Hmm,” Anne nods. “She said a lot of things. She talked so much, even yelled. I didn’t know if I should be mad or happy. It’s the most I’ve ever heard.”
“She was so worried for you,” Cathy reminds her.
“Poor thing. I must’ve scared her today.”
“Not just her,” Cathy mutters under her breath. Anne fiddles with the hem of her shirt, pulling a loose thread out. “But if I had been there last night, I could’ve—,”
“He could’ve hurt you, too.”
“Anne…” Cathy starts, but she sees her girlfriend shake her head, wincing slightly.
“It’s fine. It’s done. And I’ll move on from it, just not…just not tonight. Please don’t make a big deal out of this. I’m counting on you to keep things normal. I need you to still act normal because it distracts me from thinking about it.” Anne explains, and Cathy reaches out her hand to intertwine it with hers.
“It’s not fine, but I understand what you mean,” Cathy says earnestly. “I’ll do what you need me to do if that helps you heal. I’ll be here until you do, and even after that.”
Anne smiles, turning her body to face her and lifting her head up slightly to press a soft kiss on her stomach.
“I love you,” Anne whispers against her abdomen. “I love you, Cathy.”
“I love you, too,” Cathy exhales. She chuckles a bit, her stomach tensing. “That still feels so weird.”
“Tummy kisses aren’t your thing?”
“It’s not on the top five, that’s for sure.”
“Where do you like my mouth on you, then?”
Cathy blushes. She enjoys how they flow back into their regular banter, and she resists herself from holding back. Anne asked her to act normal.
She opens her mouth to reply but she hears the doorknob open, Elizabeth shuffling inside the room.
“Are you okay now, Mama?” Elizabeth asks tentatively, walking over to stand by the foot of the bed. Anne tries not to show the strain on her face as she turns over to look at her before opening her arms wide for her daughter to crawl into.
“I’m better now that you’re here,” Anne tells her, kissing her forehead. Elizabeth rests her head on Cathy’s stomach and they feel her shift from underneath them.
“I don’t mind being used as a human pillow, but I could only take so much.”
Anne chuckles before settling herself next to Cathy with Elizabeth wedged in between them. She tilts her head up, her eyes wandering over the purples and blues that decorate her mother’s neck, and gingerly presses her lips against it.
“All better,” Elizabeth whispers, and Cathy brings her hand up to caress the back of her head. Anne feels her heart constrict and shuts her eyes tight, willing her tears not to fall.
Elizabeth sees Anne’s expression, mistaking it for pain, and she immediately falters.
“Sorry, sorry, Mama. It still hurt? I can’t kiss better?”
“Oh, no, no,” Anne’s voice cracks with emotion. “Your kisses are magic, baby. They don’t hurt as much anymore. Thank you.”
Elizabeth preens, relaxing in her mother’s hold when she hears her hum a familiar tune. When Anne feels that she’s already asleep, she looks up at Cathy and smirks at the hand that hasn’t stopped lightly scratching her daughter's back.
“I was wondering how she went down so fast,” Anne murmurs, and Cathy smiles. “Thank you, love. For staying by me. I don’t think I say it enough, but I really am grateful.”
Cathy leans forward and presses her lips against her forehead.
“I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.”