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Puddle anxiously tapped at the window, watching the trees on the side of the road pass by in a flash.
“Kings… are you sure it’ll be fine?”
The florist glanced at them from the corner of his eye, a little confused by the question. He sighed and put his free hand on their thigh as he took another wide turn, serving a small comfort.
“Of course it will, Petal. They’re family, they’ll love you!”
“I guess…” they muttered, holding Kingsly’s hand, “Your mother was lovely and all, but I don’t think I’ve ever met your siblings.”
“Heh, that’s my bad. I should have introduced you to them sooner.”
They hummed, squeezing his hand.
As the car pulled into the driveway, Puddle was a nervous wreck. They were usually such a people person, easily mingled with strangers. But this was different, meeting their partner’s relatives was so much more intense. Kingsly seemed excited though. After all, they lived too far away to visit regularly.
They put on a brave face as they left the safety of the car. It was only gonna be a night, then they’d have a long drive back home to recover. Plus, it could be exciting, meeting their mother in law before they got engaged was a lovely experience, so they could trust Kingsly’s brother to be much the same.
Kingsly put a hand on their shoulder as he rang the doorbell, swaying where he stood.
“It’s been an awful long time since I last saw him. I was still in highschool when he moved outta home.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, I wonder if he’s finally outgrown me!”
The sound of a lock clicking open took Puddle’s attention, looking to the door as it creaked open, a kind face meeting them on the other side. Despite being a couple inches shorter than Kingsly, they nearly looked identical, save for his hair which was thinner and swept to the side. He grinned ear to ear as he saw the two.
“Kingsly! Oh my stars, it’s been ages!”
“It has, man am I glad to see you!”
They hugged, and suddenly the attention was on Puddle.
“I take it you’re Puddle? I’ve heard a lot about you!”
“A-ah, yes… you have?”
He held out his hand, “My name’s Peke! Stars, y’all must be melting out here, come in where it’s nice and shady!”
The two were led inside, where the house was warmed by sunlight peeking through open windows. In fact, everything about it felt warm, homey even, though a little unfamiliar. Painted walls were chipped and scuffed, plates were stacked by the sink, the couch cushions were faded and aged. The place was well lived in, a neat chaos.
They sat in comfy chairs in the backyard as Peke lit the barbeque, chatting up Kingsly to make up for all the lost time. The misadventures abroad, the flower shop, the wedding… Puddle was proud that they’d made it through everything, smiling broadly as the florist rambled about the near past.
As the conversation continued, they felt themself fading into the background. It was certainly an odd feeling, but they figured they could get used to it. Kingsly absently flexed his fingers as he rested his hand on their hip. The two droned on for a while until Puddle’s ears twitched, picking up on the sound of shuffling inside the house. How odd, Peke never mentioned having a housemate.
The shuffling got louder, and they saw a flash of movement through a window before another person joined the group outside, about a foot shorter than even Puddle. Her frizzy blue hair was messily tied into a bun, tan skin covered in freckles. She bounced a baby on her hip, the little guy clung to her loose-fitting tank top.
“Pek, honey, can you watch the baby? I need to freshen up before work.”
“Kinda got my hands full right now, he hasn’t been put down for a nap yet has he?”
“Nope, won’t let me.. A-are you sure you can’t take him?”
She huffed and looked around, having to do a double take when she noticed the others sitting there.
“Oh- OH– I didn’t know we had visitors. It’s great to see you again, Kingsly! And you are..?”
The stylist tensed up as she turned to them. “My name’s Puddle, it’s nice to meet you!”
“You can call me Bee. Sorry, I’m in a bit of a rush right now–”
“Oh it’s no bother, really!” They smiled, “If it helps, I can watch the baby while Peke is busy.”
“You will? Stars, thank you, j-just make sure you watch your earrings, he’s very grabby.”
Before they had the chance to ask anything else, they were holding him. Bee left in a hurry to shower and suit up. The only sound now was the sizzling of meat, and the adorable gurgling of the little baby in their arms. They looked up at Kingsly, starstruck. He chuckled at their expression and kissed their cheek, before addressing his brother again.
“...So what’s his name?”
“Teddy. The little tyke’s been cuddly since the day he was born! He seems to really like you.”
Puddle giggled, reaching up to scratch under Kingsly’s chin, “Not the only teddy in the family then, huh?”
“A-ah, yes, I s’pose,” he stammered, avoiding the smirk Peke gave him.
Little Teddy mouthed at the collar of Puddle’s blouse, squinting as he looked into their eyes. Oh dear, oh this child was going to be the death of them. They wound one of his curls around their finger and sighed.
Their fawning was unfortunately cut short when Teddy let out the loudest cry they had ever heard. They startled at the sound, trying to rock him as best they could with his tight grip on their shirt. Stars, they weren’t expecting such a sound. The sun glared up above, which only seemed to make him scream louder.
“Um, P-Peke?”
“Shoulda warned ya, huh? His eyes are really sensitive, not a big fan of the sun. Come to think of it, Kingsly was just like him when he was that little.”
“I-I was not!” he protested.
Puddle sighed and stroked Teddy’s cheek, the dribbling tears wetting their fingers.
“I’ll take him inside for a while. Let me know when dinner’s ready!”
They found that the couch, despite its age, was quite comfortable, they practically sunk right into it! Teddy seemed to have calmed significantly since they entered the dim light of the living room, loud sobs soon tapered off into quiet sniffles. Despite all the movement, he never let go of Puddle. By now their shirt was sporting a wet patch of tears and snot, thank the stars they lived next to a dry cleaner.
They adjusted their hold on Teddy, setting him between their crossed legs. He looked up with bleary eyes, and their heart melted.
“Poor little sweetheart… it’s much too bright out there, isn’t it?” they cooed.
Teddy hummed, almost sounding frustrated as he reached for them. Puddle chuckled and took his hands into their own, their thumbs alone were about as big as his palms. He grabbed on tight, like he had with the fabric of their shirt, eyeing up the appendages as if he wanted to slobber all over them.
Before he was able to make a further mess of their hands, he yawned, grip loosening. Oh, he just got cuter and cuter. They smiled, leaning down to kiss his forehead, hearing a high pitched giggle in response.
“Such a sleepy boy, aren’t you, Tiny Teddy? Skipped a nap just to keep your poor mama up.”
They watched as his head bobbed, eyes falling shut, he really was exhausted. One last time they adjusted their grip and hugged him to their chest, a gentle hand supporting his neck.
Puddle shifted where they sat, slowly rocking back and forth as they rubbed Teddy’s back. They could feel his little heart beating against them, the way his chest rose and fell with shallow breaths. Closing their own tired eyes, they rocked and rocked. Minutes blended together, and for just a moment, all they felt was the bliss of the repetitive movement.
Dinner was plated and Peke dusted off his hands, taking a seat beside his brother as he prepared to tuck in. Kingsly on the other hand, wondered why Puddle hadn’t responded to his call. So he stepped inside to check in on them, maybe they had gotten tired and had a nap on the couch.
He wasn’t exactly sure what he’d find, so it came as quite a shock when he saw them rocking on the couch, holding the baby close. Before he took a closer look, he would have thought they seemed content, like they were getting just as much out of the motion as Teddy was. However, that second look changed his tune. Their eyes were open, almost glazed over, tear streaks staining their cheeks. The sight had him worried. Puddle hadn’t acted like this before, hell, he wasn’t even sure how long they’d been in such a state. Worried, he rushed to their side.
“P-Puddle? Are you alright, dear?”
They blinked once, twice, then turned their head to look at Kingsly. After a moment of quiet shock, a wide smile crept across their face. Their rocking slowed as they came to.
“He’s asleep. So cute…”
“Honey, you were crying.”
“Was I? Oh… Eheh, guess I got a little emotional.”
Kingsly sighed and cupped their face in his hands, planting a soft kiss on their lips. When he pulled away, their smile faltered, looking almost dopey, the sight made him laugh.
“Alright, alright. Dinner’s ready, hun.”
“Eh? But it’s only been a few minutes…”
“It’s been half an hour. Now come on, I bet you’re starving.”
“O-okay!”
The two were laying together on the couch. There was more than enough space for them to sleep separately but Puddle preferred the warmth of Kingsly’s cuddles, and he was too clingy to deny them such comfort. Teddy had long since been put to bed, the couches covered in fluffy blankets and pillows, and Peke retired to his own bedroom, wishing them a good night.
Puddle snuggled up to Kingsly’s chest, fingers drawing shapes along his collarbone. They hummed as they felt his own fingers carding through their soft hair, feeling the day’s events starting to catch up to them. They were exhausted. It was hard to ignore the numbness in their abdomen, but the comfort of their partner was certainly helping, that and the fatigue.
“Kings..?”
“Yes, hun?”
“...Love you.”
He chuckled, leaning down to kiss their forehead, “I love you too, Petal.”
Puddle stirred as the light of the morning came through the window, rudely shining in their eyes. They yawned, groggily lifting their head to see Kingsly still fast asleep. Adorable. They kissed his chin, frustrated at the lack of skin they could reach without sitting up, so sit up they did.
What started as a small tingly feeling in their stomach became a sharp pain the moment they stretched their back. The shock of it made them yelp, hunching over to hug their middle. Oh stars, it ached. They groaned as the agony only dragged on, feeling like they tore something in their abdomen. The noise unfortunately woke Kingsly. He looked up at them, confusion bubbling behind his squinted eyes.
“Mmf… Petal?”
“Sorry love, did I wake you?”
Kingsly rested his hands on their hips, his thumbs gently pressing into the plush of their belly. They knew he didn’t mean to, but the pressure only made it hurt worse. Hell, any pressure made it hurt worse. The pained noise they made in response almost served as a splash of freezing water, as he quickly sat up, holding Puddle steady in his lap.
“A-are you hurt? What happened?”
“Uh, about that… not sure. I-I don’t think I did anything for this to happen.”
He hummed, rubbing comforting circles on the small of their back.
“I did see you rocking Teddy on the couch a whole bunch, and if you were doing that the whole half hour you were inside…”
Puddle paused for a moment, thinking it all through before they snorted, trying in vain to hold back their laughter.
“Oh, oh my stars– I really—”
They broke down in a fit of giggles, resting their head on Kingsly’s shoulder. Confused, he patted their back.
“You..?”
He looked down and met their watery eyes, a small smile of his own forming. Their laughter died down, and they draped their arms over his shoulders, burying their face in the crook of his neck as if it could stop the ache in their gut.
“I really need to work out my core if we wanna have kids then, huh?”