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When Pieck opened her eyes in the morning, she was blessed with the sunlight that shone through the windows and onto her skin. She could tell the day would be cold, so relished in the slight warmth it gave off as she cuddled further into her duvet. She felt refreshed, a feeling she wasn’t used to waking up to these days.
Since Alice was born, Pieck would usually wake up multiple times throughout the night, and ungodly early in the morning to the sound of her baby’s cries. Whether it was her or Hange who got out of bed, she found it hard to sleep until she knew her daughter was alright. But there was no noise this morning, just the gentle sounds of the breeze outside.
Her heart skipped a beat. Why didn’t Alice’s cries wake her up this morning? Shooting into an upright position, Pieck reached her hand into the bassinet where her child sleeps, to find she wasn’t there. She whipped her head around to realise Hange also wasn’t in the bed. Letting out a sigh of relief, Pieck flopped back down into her pillows, pulling up the duvet to cover her face. Her anxiety had skyrocketed since becoming a mother. Alice was with Hange, she had nothing to worry about. And with that comforting thought in mind, Pieck allowed herself to fall asleep once more, relishing in any extra rest she could get before it was time to get up.
When Hange entered the bedroom, their heart swelled seeing Pieck in such a relaxed state. It had been weeks since she’d been able to have a good rest. With two mugs of tea in their hands, and Alice strapped against their chest in a baby carrier, they gently placed the mugs on the nightstand, before taking Alice out of the carrier and joining their wife in bed.
Alice was still quite sleepy herself, and normally only wanted to be with her mother when she first woke up, so Hange tried their best to keep her entertained until Pieck would wake up naturally. Cradling her against their chest, they tried to keep her entertained by telling her little stories, but Alice had other ideas as she began crying. Even in her sleep, Pieck was able to realise this was a ‘hungry’ cry and found herself waking up seconds after Alice made a noise.
“Oh, good morning my love!” Hange smiled as their wife began to wake up. “Sorry, I wanted you to get some extra sleep, but I think our girl might be a little hungry.”
Hange placed Alice into Pieck’s outreached arms, laughing sheepishly as they did so.
“Good morning, honey. That’s no problem at all,” Pieck responded, before turning her attention to the small bundle in her arms. “And good morning to you, sweetheart!” Her voice went up a few octaves as she spoke to her daughter. She could never get enough of how Alice looked up at her, especially first thing in the morning. She stared up at Pieck like she was the only thing in the world, and Pieck looked back down at her the same way.
Alice stirred a little more, her pacifier falling out her mouth as she tried to express to her mother what she wanted.
“Oh, I know, baby. You’re hungry,” Pieck pulled her top up and held Alice to her breast. Alice latched on and began suckling, little noises filling the air as she fed.
“Good girl. Mama loves you so much.” She stroked her daughter's hair as she ate, smiling at the way her little feet would occasionally rub against her arm. Love burst in her chest, staring down at the small baby cradled in her arms. Alice felt safe being held by Pieck, and Pieck felt comforted in knowing her daughter was with her. Moments like these were everything to Pieck.
Hange watched on fondly, sipping on their mug of tea as the duvet began to warm them.
“I was reading the newspaper earlier, and I saw an article about a pumpkin patch nearby. I thought it might be a nice outing for us later on!” Hange spoke, passing the other mug of freshly brewed tea to their wife.
“That sounds like a great idea! We haven’t taken Alice to one yet,” Pieck sipped on her tea, careful to not let any stray droplets fall on her daughter as she continued to eat. “We should pop to the store while we're out too and get some holiday decorations. The house isn’t nearly as cosy as I want it to be this autumn.”
Hange looked apprehensive, giving their wife a look before they spoke.
“Alright… but we can’t buy too many candles like we did last year. I swear after that trip, I wasn’t sure if we’d have enough money for food.” The couple laughed as they enjoyed each other’s company, discussing their plans for the day.
Once Alice had finished eating, Pieck and Hange began preparing themselves for the day. It took a lot more energy to get everything ready before leaving now they had a baby. Pieck dressed Alice, putting her in a cute pumpkin-themed onesie and made sure she was warm enough for the brisk autumn weather. Hange retrieved all the supplies they would need for the day; diapers, an extra onesie, spare pacifiers, and baby wipes. The list seemed to be endless.
“I think I got everything. Are you ready to go, Pieck?” Hange yelled from downstairs, packing everything into the changing bag.
Pieck came down the stairs shortly after, Alice cuddled up in her arms. Feeling a smile split their face, Hange made their way over to their girls, squishing Alice’s little cheeks together.
‘Oh my goodness, look at you! You’re the cutest pumpkin in the patch!”
Alice couldn’t laugh yet, but the noise she made was close enough to make both her parents smile.
“We’re all set, aren’t we, baby?” Pieck kissed the top of Alice’s head, holding her close to her chest.
“Alright then. Let’s rock and roll!”
The pumpkin patch was at a farm only 15 minutes away from the Zoe house, but the couple decided to take the car anyway. It would be easier to get home in case the weather took a turn for the worse. Luckily for them, the day seemed to be quite clear, with only a few clouds in the sky and a gentle breeze.
Orange leaves scattered the ground where the farm was, really giving Pieck that ‘fall aesthetic’ feeling she had been hoping for. Exiting the car, Hange helped her wrap Alice against her chest in a baby wrap, hoping to keep her comforted and content throughout their outing. She looked adorable, her little head resting against her Mama and her orange onesie legs poking out the side.
Hange held onto Pieck’s hand as they made their way from the parking area towards the farm, giving it a gentle squeeze. They hadn’t been out too much since Alice was born, so this was quite the occasion for them. There was some nervous excitement between the two, knowing that they were out together as a complete family.
Rows and rows of pumpkins littered the fields of the farm, causing Pieck to gasp. Neither of them had ever seen so many pumpkins in their life. The whole farm had been done up for the pumpkin-picking events. They had some calves in pens for the children to pet, along with little games and a fun playground to entertain themselves with. Pumpkin-themed drinks and food were being served at a nearby stall, along with little ornaments designed for the season. It was beautiful, Hange simply had to snap a picture immediately.
“Honey, stand there. I want to get a picture of you two and the background,” Hange pulled out their phone excitedly, causing Pieck to giggle at their eagerness. She rested her hands on Alice as she smiled at the camera, waiting for Hange to get the perfect shot.
Once they had taken enough, they bounced back towards her to show off the pictures they had taken. To Hange, every picture they took of Pieck and Alice was the best photo ever. Pieck’s brown skirt and mustard sweater looked ethereal with the fall foliage background. They could barely stop staring at it before Pieck tugged on their sweater, waiting for them to discover more.
They walked around the farm, checking out the various stalls and events they had going on. Hange was nearly in tears when they were told they could pet the baby cow, befriending the animal within seconds of their introduction.
“We need to get one for the house,” Hange said, feeding the cow some food from the palm of their hand.
“Hange, we don’t have the room for a cow. Where would we put it?” Pieck queried, amused by the situation and at how serious Hange was.
“We can keep her outside! You know, cow faeces are a great fertiliser. It would help your garden!” They looked up at her, eyes sparkling. She always found it hard to say no to Hange…
No, this was ridiculous. It’s an entire cow.
“Come on, let’s go look at something else. I’m sure the cow will be here next year,” Hange pouted as they stood up, petting the cow one last time before taking Pieck’s hand again.
Truth be told, Pieck wasn’t sure if the cow would be here next year. It could be their next meal at the local steakhouse, but she wasn’t going to be the one to tell Hange that.
“Oh, we should have taken a picture of Alice with the cow. Is she awake?” Hange gently pulled the baby wrap down to uncover Alice’s face, to find she was fast asleep. Her little hands curled up into fists and her pacifier was slightly out of her mouth.
“Ah, never mind. Let’s pick some pumpkins now!” Hange concluded, gently placing the pacifier back into their baby’s mouth.
Picking pumpkins was surprisingly hard for the two. They both had visions of what they wanted to carve, but neither could find the right one. Pieck also wanted to get some pumpkins to make some soup, so Hange made sure to get a trolley to get all the ones deemed fit. By the time they decided which ones they would use to carve, it had been an hour since they originally began searching.
Alice woke up around this time, mercifully deciding not to cause a scene on her awakening. She began making soft noises, almost as if she were trying to talk to her parents.
Giving the crown of her head a few kisses, Pieck adjusted Alice so she was even more snug against her, holding her little hand so she knew her mother was with her. This seemed to keep her calm as she took in her surroundings, not caring where she was but somewhat happy to be a part of the journey.
Hange took this opportunity to get as many photos of Alice as possible, barely going a minute without having their phone in her face. She wasn’t too happy to be taken out of her carrier, but she managed to give a few smiles for the camera as Hange made funny noises behind the phone. There were photos of her in a wagon, with pumpkins, next to the cow, Hange went into overdrive making sure everything was documented. They just loved their daughter so much, they wanted to remember this day for the rest of their life.
Their favourite picture though was the one of all three of them, standing with the fall foliage in the background. Hange’s arms wrapped around Pieck, their head resting against hers. Pieck held Alice to her chest, staring down at her little girl, her smile soft as she consumed the love around her. The picture was perfect, leaving Pieck near tears when she first saw it.
Once they bought their pumpkins and some fall decorations Pieck fell in love with, they decided to have a drink at the small makeshift cafe that was set up. The majority of the products were pumpkin-themed, much to the enjoyment of the couple. They loved when a place had a gimmick. Pieck settled on some pumpkin spice hot chocolate, while Hange had the classic pumpkin spice latte. With their arm around their wife, Hange enjoyed the comfortable silence between them, periodically checking on their daughter to make sure she was alright. Pieck had her head resting on Hange’s shoulder, eyes closed as she took a few minutes to relax.
Looking around the era, Hange’s eyes lit up as if they had an idea.
“Pieck, love,” Hange gently tapped their wife, watching as she opened her eyes and gazed up at them. “I want to take Alice down that slide over there.”
The slide Hange was referring to was in a little play era built for the kids to enjoy. Luckily for them, there weren’t many people in that area at the moment, so Hange thought it would be the best time to give Alice a new experience.
“I don’t know, Hange. What if something happens?” Pieck was apprehensive, anxious at the thought of something bad happening to her. But before she could think too hard, Hange crushed any worries she could have.
“Don’t even worry about it, I’ll hold onto her tight, okay? It’ll be fun!” Hange stood up and began to gently take Alice out of her baby wrap. She didn’t fight it, happily ready to go with her Hannie on an adventure. Pieck closely followed, watching them both like a hawk as Hange made their way towards the slide.
“I’ll need you to hold onto her for a second. Let me just…” Hange passed Alice back to Pieck before making their way onto the slide. Pieck couldn’t help but laugh as she watched Hange climb their way to the top of the slide, clearly too big for the height range the apparatus was built for.
Once they were settled, they held their arms out for Pieck to pass Alice up to them. They had her sit on their lap, her little feet facing forward as she looked around to see what was going on. Hange held her close to their torso, making sure that her head was supported and she was comfortable.
“Alright, are you ready, Alice? First time going down a slide!” Hange kissed the top of her head before slowly beginning their descent.
“Hold onto her tightly, Hange! Make sure her head is supported!” Pieck was an anxious mess watching, despite the slide being built for children. She knew Hange wouldn’t let anything happen to Alice, but she couldn’t help but panic anyways. Before the panic could completely grasp her, they were already at the bottom.
“Yippee! Wasn’t that fun, cupcake?” Hange held Alice up, laughing at the way she excitedly kicked her legs around. It was clear she enjoyed the slide, smiling at her parent as she sucked on her pacifier.
Pieck loved watching her daughter happy like that, her previous worries washed away at the sight of her smiles. She held her arms out to take her from Hange, her heart swelling at her daughter reaching back up for her.
“What a clever girl, going down a slide! Did you enjoy that, baby?” Pieck cooed, giving her daughter kisses as she put her back into her carrier. Hange stood up to help their wife, giving her a gentle kiss on the lips once they finished.
“See, I told you it would be alright,” They smiled at her, stroking her cheek with their thumb. “Let’s head home, I’m sure this little one is all tuckered out from today.”
By the time they arrived home, Alice had fallen fast asleep once again. Pieck placed her in her bassinet while Hange prepared the dining table for pumpkin carving.
Admittedly, they weren’t very good at carving pumpkins, but they were fantastic at gutting them. Pieck was great at carving, so they made the perfect team.
“So what’s the plan then? Do you have a vision for how these are going to look or are we just winging it?” Hange questioned as they prepared to make the first incisions at the top of the vegetable, ready to clear it from the inside.
“I’ll make a spooky one, you can do a silly one, and then for Alice’s pumpkin, I’ll do something cute on it. How’s that?” Pieck watched as started to gut the pumpkin, making sure to place everything that could be used for ingredients into a separate bowl.
“Sounds perfect! While I do this, how about you start making the house more cosy and autumn-like?”
Pieck liked the sound of that. She loved decorating the house to match whatever season it was. After kissing Hange on the cheek, she made her way up to the spare room where Hange placed the fall decorations. She was grateful they brought it down from the attic. She had only given birth a few weeks ago, so she knew all that movement probably wasn't possible.
Candles, garlands, bunting, little wooden pumpkins. Almost everything someone could need to make their home cosier. Pieck got to work straight away, placing candles throughout the home, hanging up fake orange leaves in the living room, and getting out the extra blankets and pillows. While she did that, Hange gutted all the pumpkins the two planned on carving, placing all the seeds in one tub and the innards in another. All the tools were set out, some hot chocolate was made and festive music was playing. It wasn’t often that they had alone time these days, so Hange was set on making it a fun time for them.
When Pieck had finished decorating their home, the whole place looked like something out of Pinterest. It gave the home an incredibly warm feeling, with different shades of brown and orange littering throughout the rooms. She made her way back to where Hange was, rolling up her sleeves to prepare for her favourite part. The pumpkins.
Pieck outlined her pumpkin first, making sure everything would be correct and perfect before she made that first cut. Hange decided to trust their instincts and begin carving straight away. They knew it wouldn’t end up looking good, but that was the whole fun of it. The couple laughed as they both spent their time together, teasing each other about the look of their pumpkins, throwing leftover pumpkin gloop at each other.
They were both so intensely in love with each other, that Hange couldn’t help but pull their wife in for a kiss, even with bits of pumpkin on her face. She just looked so adorable focused on her carving. Pieck wrapped her arms around their waist and rested her head against their chest, staring at the now-finished carved pumpkins.
“I think we did a good job. Although, yours could do with a little more work”
Pieck wasn’t wrong about Hange’s pumpkin. Pieck’s pumpkin was carved to perfection, each line being smooth as if a professional had worked on it. Spooky, but not enough to scare the kids that will visit their door for trick or treating, Hange’s, however, looked a mess. The eyes weren’t even and were vastly different sizes. They tried to make a smiley face with the tongue sticking out, but Pieck couldn’t even begin to think about what it looked like.
“Hey! I worked hard on it,” Hange joked, earning a playful smack on the arm from Pieck as she laughed. “It’s Picasso! You don’t have to understand what’s in front of you, you just need to feel”
“I feel unease from it”
Now it was Hange’s turn to laugh, squeezing their wife in their arms. She fit perfectly under their chin, they loved giving her hugs.
“You did your best work on Alice’s pumpkin, though, That’s incredible, Pieck!”
Pieck had made Alice’s pumpkin look like a bear, with a cute little bow on the top of its head. Hange occasionally calls Alice their ‘Little Bear’ because of the noises she makes during feeding, so it seemed fitting to carve something related to her.
As if on cue, noises began to come from the baby monitor on the table. Pieck looked into the video feed on the device and could see Alice waking up, moving around in an attempt to find one of her parents.
“I’ll go get her,” Pieck put the monitor down before making her way upstairs, pausing as she reached the bottom of the staircase. “Oh, would you mind putting our pumpkins outside? It would be nice to have some outside decorations.”
“Of course love, I’ll see if I can get those lights working as well.”
Pieck smiled at their partner before hurrying upstairs, making her way towards the little bassinet in her bedroom. Immediately upon seeing her mother, Alice reached up to be held by her, and Pieck’s heart burst.
“Oh, sweetheart. My baby,” Pieck began bouncing slightly, trying to soothe Alice from whatever woke her up that upset. “It’s alright, Mama’s here now. Let’s take you downstairs,”
With Alice in her arms, Pieck went back downstairs, showing her the little decorations as they walked. She seemed enthralled by the amount of fairy lights that were hanging, her eyes wide as she stared up at them.
“Mama also carved you a pumpkin, sweetie. What do you think?”
Alice’s pumpkin was lit and placed near the fireplace in the living room, adding to the Halloween feel the home was already booming with. Putting her little hands on it, Alice attempted to put her mouth against the skin of the pumpkin, before being pulled back towards Pieck.
“Not that, sweetheart! It has a candle inside, you’ll hurt yourself!” Alice didn’t understand what Pieck was saying to her, but she was content in being cuddled against her mother, moving around slightly to get even cosier against her.
Retreating to the sofa, Pieck wrapped herself and Alice in a warm blanket, the sound of the fire crackling soothed her as she admired all the decoration in the room. She stared down at Alice, who was comfortably snuggled up against her chest, before giving her a few kisses on the crown of her head. Pieck couldn’t believe how much she loved her life, how lucky she was to have both Hange and Alice. Having the child she dreamed about, spent nine months growing, safe in her arms. It was all she ever wanted.
Hange burst into the living room, a great smile on their face and snowflakes littered on their sweater.
“I got the lights working outside, so we are now officially in Halloween mode! The pumpkins look great too! I hope the candles stay lit though…”
They plopped down next to Pieck, cuddling into her and taking in her warmth.
“I also found this spooky decoration we could use. What do you think, sweetheart?”
Hange produced a small fuzzy spider plushie from their pocket, displaying it for both Pieck and Alice. They looked so proud of themselves, their eyes bright and smile wide. Nobody loved Halloween as much as Hange did.
Unfortunately for them, Alice did not share the same sentiment towards the fake spider. After a few seconds of processing what was in front of her, she immediately burst into tears, her little arms flailing upwards as she stared at Pieck for comfort. Standing up, Pieck began to gently rock her daughter, stroking her hair as she did so.
“Oh sweetheart, it’s alright. It’s just a fake spider, look! It won’t hurt you,” Pieck couldn’t help but giggle slightly at the situation. She didn’t expect a little spider plush to scare her. She's only a baby though, it’s not surprising she’s would be a little startled.
Alice looked back at Hange and the spider, only to cry louder than she had beforehand. Pieck held her head towards her chest, shushing her as she slowly moved around the room. Hange felt awful, the smile they had before had all but vanished, and their eyes were near watering. They hated seeing their daughter scared, they couldn’t believe they were the one to scare her.
Pieck gave them a comforting smile, which put them at ease a little. Even without words, Hange knew what she was saying. “Stop being so hard on yourself”. She was right of course, Pieck always was. Hell, Alice cried when Pieck sneezed the other day. It was just a part of growing up and experiencing new things.
Once Alice had settled, and Hange had hidden the spider plush from sight, Pieck joined them back on the sofa.
“I’m sorry, my little bear. I didn’t realise the spider would scare you. Hannie will put it somewhere else, okay?” Hange kissed Alice’s cheek before pulling a blanket over the three of them.
Alice, now calm and seemingly unbothered by the fright she received, gave her parent a small smile, before taking hold of the blanket in her little hands.
“I think that might be enough excitement for today,” Pieck stated, looking at Hange. “Let’s watch a film or something. It’s perfect weather for it.”
“Great idea, honey. Nothing with spiders though, we don’t want this little one getting scared again.”
As Hange began flicking through films on their television, the couple cuddled up on the sofa. Pieck holding Alice in her arms, Hange pressed against her side, their head resting against her shoulder, a warm blanket draped over them. The room was filled with so much warmth and love. In this little bubble they had created, it was just them. Knowing they will love and be loved for the rest of their lives.