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Kim awoke with a startle, having only fallen asleep a couple of hours ago. The sound of baby wailing came strongly from the baby monitor on her nightstand. She just laid still for a few seconds, her body so exhausted that moving seemed like the most tumultuous task ever. Just as she was about to lift her body from the comfort of the bed, she felt a hand gently pushing her back down and looked up to see Adam hovering over her.
“I got it. You just went to bed, get some sleep,” he reassured her.
“But you had a late shift, you barely got to sleep,” she mumbled.
“Kim, I–,” he started, but she cut him off again.
“No, it’s fine, Adam. I got it, I swear, I’m getting up right now,” she said, barely able to even move her head to talk to him. He shook his head, grumbling ‘I swear to god, this woman’ underneath his breath.
“Hey, I heard that,” she said, a pout on her face. She was barely keeping her eyes open.
“Sweetheart, you’re like a walking zombie. I don’t think it’s medically safe for you to not sleep right now. I’ve got him, you get some sleep,” he said, getting out of bed while keeping an eye on her. She must’ve been absolutely exhausted because she fell asleep without arguing before he even finished talking. Pulling on a t-shirt, Adam walked out of their room to the nursery with the baby monitor in hand, finding his little guy standing up in his crib, his little face scrunched up in despair.
“Hey, little man. How you doing?” When all he got in response was a wail, Adam chuckled lightly.
“Not so good huh? You hungry?” The word must’ve set off a Pavlovian response in his kid, because he started jumping up and down while nibbling on his tiny knuckle. As Adam neared him, he raised his little arms in the air. Adam scooped him up, his arms immediately going around his neck. Adam would never tire of the feeling.
“Come on, little monkey. Let’s feed you,” he murmured, holding him closer, breathing in his baby smell. He went to the kitchen, putting him down on his high-chair. He grabbed one of his bottles from the freezer, getting everything ready to warm his milk. He kept up a steady chatter as he did this, not wanting him to start crying again. Once his bottle was ready, Adam put on it his little table, watching him grab it and immediately stick it in his mouth, gulping fast.
“Slow down, buddy,” he murmured, sitting down across from him, watching him drink his milk like it was the most entertaining hockey game. It was better, in his opinion. Watching James and Mak grow up was the ultimate goal for him. He couldn’t think of a single thing in his love that brought him as much joy. His job was, of course, something that made him who he was, a meaning in life. But becoming a dad has changed his world, given him something to live for.
Hearing his little gurgles slow down, he noticed the bottle was almost empty.
“Wow, you sure were hungry, huh?” he said, getting up to grab the bottle back, walking over to the sink to rinse it out and put it on the drying rack. He went back to the little guy, who now that he was fed and his tummy full, was in good spirits again, like he usually was.
“What should we do now?” Adam asked him. He looked back up at Adam, his big brown eyes, exactly like Kim’s, staring at him. He let out a squawk and raised his tiny arms above his head, almost as if to say ‘I don’t know, buddy. You better figure it out’. Adam let out a laugh and picked the little guy up, walking over to the living room. He situated him on his shoulder and started to burp him, singing a random song that had been stuck in his head all day.
He heard shuffling and turned to find the other tiny person in his life walking to them, rubbing her eyes.
“Hey, bumblebee. What are you doing up?” he asked. Mak came up to them and rubbed her little brother’s back, just like Adam was doing.
“I was asleep, but I woke up when I heard some noises, and then I realized it was you and James and I wanted to come say hi,” she said. James let out a happy babble of words, clapping his hands, happy to see his big sister. They had a really close relationship because of the years between them. James adored Mak, and Mak indulged him in any way possible. It was perfect, and Adam’s heart swelled ten times in size every time he saw them play together.
“Yeah, your baby brother was super hungry, so we came downstairs to let Mom get some sleep,” he told her, ruffling her head. “Sorry for waking you,” he said.
“Oh, I’m glad you woke me up! We didn’t get enough playtime after bath time today,” she said with a pout not that different from her mom’s. Adam shook his head with a smile.
“You guys got exactly the same playtime you get everyday, you’re just a little con artist who’s always looking to get more,” he said.
“Hm. I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said with a huff, and turned her attention to the baby. She started cooing at him, and he giggled in return. Adam let them play until soon James’s eyes started drooping.
“Alright, kiddos. Bedtime for real,” he declared, letting Mak give her brother a kiss before he scooped him up.
“Goodnight, bumblebee. Go to bed, okay? I’ll come and check on you once I get this little man down,” he said. But James started fussing as soon as Mak moved to go, and every time he tried to distract him, he’d notice Mak leaving and have a meltdown again. Knowing that Kim could wake up anytime and wanting her to get a few more hours of sleep, Adam decided to just rest on the couch with both the kids for a while until James was out before heading up. Mak was already half asleep, so he settled her on one end, and she laid her head on his lap as he sat down, settling James on his chest, not wanting to move him in case he started fussing again. He always got extra cuddly when he was tired, so Adam tucked him close and rubbed his little back in soothing circles, hoping he’d go down soon.
“Ba ba ba Ma,” he babbled, pointing his chubby fist at Mak.
“Yeah, buddy. Mak is sleeping. You gotta sleep too, okay?” Adam murmured.
“Bah,” he responded, and Adam chuckled, looking down at his tiny face, and pressing a kiss to his forehead. He leaned back and got comfortable, and felt his eyes shutting. He felt James squirm a little before settling down, his head coming down on his shoulder, and the last thing Adam heard before he fell into a deep sleep was his baby’s little murmurs.
~~~
Kim walked downstairs, feeling more refreshed than she had in weeks. She owed Adam whatever he wanted for letting her sleep last night. When she’d woken up a while ago, and found his side of the bed empty and the sheets cold, she’d figured he’d be downstairs. After checking James’ empty crib, that theory was confirmed. So she’d gotten dressed for the day before coming down so she could take over for him. What she didn’t expect to see was all three of them all cuddled up together, fast asleep on the couch. Her heart melted, and a smile spread on her face. She couldn’t resist, and took out her phone so she could take a picture of them. She didn’t think her heart could ever get over seeing Adam with Mak everyday, but she’d been wrong; her heart had grown ten sizes after James had come into this world, and their family had grown bigger. Seeing Adam take to being the dad of two made her heart sigh with contentedness, and seeing Mak be an older sister made her want to week some days. She was growing up too fast, but she’d always be their little miracle.
Adam felt her stare and groused awake, immediately finding Kim’s gaze on them. He smiled a sleepy smile at her.
“Hey, darlin’,” he said in a sleepy voice.
“Hey, babe. Sleep well?” she asked teasingly, gesturing to their two sleeping kids sprawled all over him.
“Hmmm. You make fun now, but believe it or not, I slept like the dead. James is like a small heating pad. Kept me warm all night,” he replied.
“I’m glad our baby was able to be your heated blanket,” she said, laughing softly. James must’ve heard his mama’s laugh even in his sleep, because he woke up immediately, and reached for her.
“Ma ma ma ma,” he chanted. He’d started saying it a few days ago. It wasn’t exactly mama, but it was as close as they’d get for now, so she accepted it with a smile and made grabby hands for him until she took him from his dad.
“Hi, baby,” she cooed, pressing kisses all over his face. “Did you shleep on Daddy last night? Did you shleep well? Yesh, you did?” she asked, cuddling him close. Soon Mak woke up because of all the noise, and soon there was pandemonium in the Burgess-Ruzek household as James started crying because he was hungry, and Mak and Adam debated between waffles and pancakes for breakfast. Kim shook her head with a smile, thinking of how a close family is all she’d ever wanted, and that’s what she’d gotten.