Chapter 46
Chapter Forty-Six
Leon
Katya’s checkup goes better than either of us could have expected.
Her blood test confirmed that she’s pregnant, and the ultrasound they did shortly after confirmed her gestational age.
Five or six weeks approximately, which meant only seven weeks remaining until it’s recommended to announce the pregnancy in case of early trimester complications.
Five weeks also meant that we likely conceived the first or second time we had sex.
A fact I’m sure my father would find endlessly amusing.
At this early on, we weren’t able to hear the baby’s heartbeat, but we could see a tiny little blob on the screen.
The OB-GYN is the same doctor who took care of Maria and Gino’s pregnancies, as well as a few other of my men’s wives in the past. She’s a trusted woman who doesn’t have mafia ties herself, but has shown herself to be someone who can be relied on when it matters.
My wife isn’t sure if she’ll want to carry on the whole process with her yet, but she has no complaints thus far.
She easily got a supply of prenatal vitamins, and advice for dealing with her nausea if it becomes worse.
Apparently morning sickness can start as early as four weeks, but typically kicks in around the sixth.
Some women have it worse than others, and Cleo never wanted me to know if she was having a hard time when she was pregnant with Bastian.
I never saw her get sick, but she’d always been good at being discreet.
Only three days after the checkup, Katya has already proven to be more open about her symptoms. She just finished throwing up the contents of her stomach while allowing me to hold her hair out of her face and rub her back.
Her eyes watered badly, smearing her mascara, which seemed to upset her more than losing her lunch did.
“Hey, hey, baby, it’s okay,” I soothe, seeing her lips wobble as she looks at herself in her bathroom mirror. “It’s just a little makeup. Here, let me clean it up for you, hmm?”
She nods, lips still shaky as I pull her organic makeup wipes out of her top drawer.
She can only use these ones around her eyes because they’re sensitive, while she favors a full-on cleanser for the rest of her face.
I’ve watched her get ready for bed enough times to know how she prefers to prepare herself.
She looks up while I rub gently beneath her eyes, wiping away the inky stains easily.
She’s already swished mouthwash around her teeth and tongue twice, insisting that she needed to get the taste of throw up out of her mouth before it made her get sick again.
Honestly, cleaning up after my drunk brothers more than once and having two kids that have both had stomach bugs before made this an easy interaction for me.
I’ve never been queasy, and sticking by her side while our baby makes her toss her cookies is the least I can do.
“There, that’s all better, hmm?” I press a kiss to the top of her cheek and she takes a settling breath.
“Why don’t you take a nap, yeah? The boys are about to go down for theirs and you could get some sleep in at the same time?
I’ll get you some ginger tea when you wake up and your stomach should be nice and settled. ”
“Yeah, okay,” she sniffs. “I’m tired, I think.”
Oh, she’s definitely tired.
She woke up tired today, but insisted that she would wake up more as she got her day going. Getting sick took all of that progress out of her though, and I can understand why. It was a violent affair, honestly. I wouldn’t be surprised if her stomach muscles were sore and achy.
“Let’s get you into bed, then.” Taking her hand, I lead her into her bedroom and pull back her blankets, giving her room to climb right under. She’s already in comfy enough clothes to sleep, having put on a loose T-shirt and some comfortable cotton pants this morning.
Her body melts into her bed, like a weight has been lifted now that she doesn’t need to keep herself standing.
A creak draws my eye to her bedroom door and I find two worried sets of eyes.
“Mommy okay?” Leo asks, rubbing his hands together nervously.
They saw her rush out of the kitchen to come up here and get sick in private, but they also saw me run up after her and it seems like they couldn’t help but follow behind us. Something I should have expected.
“Mommy’s okay,” I confirm, hoping they believe me. “Her tummy is upset, that’s all. She’s going to take a nap to feel better.”
“Mommy’s sick?” Bastian croaks, almost crying the question out. “But she promised!”
My heart cracks inside my chest at the anguish in his voice, watching as tears flood his eyes and his chest rises and falls harder.
“Bastian, she’s okay,” I try to soothe him, walking closer.
“No!” he yells, stepping back. “She needs medicine! You have to fix her. She can’t be sick, she promised!”
“Bastian, I—” Katya sits up, trying to reassure him herself but our son bolts out of the room and down the hall. I make a move to go after him but Leo stands in my way.
“What’s wrong with Mommy?” he asks, his tiny blue eyes blown wide open.
“Mommy has a tummy ache, just like you did a little while ago, remember?” I try to reason, squatting down to look him in the eyes. “She’s going to get all better soon with some rest like how we helped you feel better, remember?”
Leo looks reluctant, worried from the scene his brother made.
“Bastian is just scared, buddy,” I tell him softly. “Everything is going to be okay, I swear. Why don’t you go sit next to Mommy while I go find him, okay? You’ll see. She’s just tired and not feeling so good, but she’s going to be just fine.”
“Okay, Daddy,” Leo agrees, shoulders straightening with determination. Like he’s going to march right over to Katya and heal her himself. “You tummy hurts, Mommy?” he asks, wandering over to the side of her bed. “I make you feel better. I kiss it for you.”
Leo climbs up into bed right alongside her, unworried about catching whatever sickness she has. Thankfully, this one isn’t contagious.
I’m about to go searching for Bastian when he comes bolting back into the room, carrying a large ziplock bag filled to the brim with yellow bottles. He’s breathing hard, looking around wildly in fear and desperation.
“You have to make her better,” he demands, shoving the bag into my hands. Cleo’s old medicine, I understand right away, seeing her name on a few noticeable labels. The sound of rattling pills makes my stomach drop while I process what the hell just happened.
“Bastian, mio figlio, where did you get these?”
“Does she need different ones?” My son sucks in a frightened breath.
“Sweetheart, she doesn’t need any medicine.
” He looks like he’s about to burst with an objection when I put my hands on his shoulders, letting the bag fall to the ground.
“Bastian, look at me. She’s not sick, okay?
Not in the way you’re worried about. She’s going to feel better soon.
But you have to tell me where you got this.
” Lifting up the bag, I put it between us to indicate what I mean.
I had Cleo’s medicine cabinet cleaned out as soon as she passed, not wanting to risk having controlled substances or powerful medications just around the house at risk of being picked up by either of my kids. But apparently, there’s been a whole fucking bag of them around here somewhere.
“Mama’s hiding place,” Bastian says with a small crack in his voice. “Under the floor, from when she didn’t want you to see.”
Fucking hell, Cleo.
My stomach churns, and I realize that our son saw far more of her hiding her illness than either of us ever knew.
“Bastian,” I start, swallowing hard. “Are there any more of these?”
Shaking his head, he frowns. “She forgot this one. When you took care of her, she found the rest but not this one.”
She probably forgot it existed, or lost track of how many things she kept hidden as her cognitive decline worsened.
“All right, buddy,” I squeeze his shoulders, sighing slowly. “Thank you for bringing these to me. I’ll take care of them, okay? But Katya doesn’t need them, and she never will. I wouldn’t lie to you about that.”
“I think we should tell them,” my wife whispers, holding Leo who’s cuddled up to her in bed, looking reassured of her health and content to be in her arms. “It’s early, but I’d never want them to worry when we can alleviate their fears.”
A nod from me is all she needs.
“Bastian, my sweet boy, come here.” She holds an arm out, beckoning him over and he immediately rushes toward it, climbing up into her bed and sitting on her other side. “Your daddy is right, you know? I’m not really sick, at least not in any sort of scary way.”
“You’re not?” he echoes, voice small.
Sitting at the end of the bed, I watch with a bated breath as Katya comforts our boys.
“I’m not,” she confirms, reaching for his small hand to hold it. “I told you I wouldn’t be getting sick on you, didn’t I? I promised I’d be here for you and I meant it.”
“Yeah,” Bastian whispers, looking relieved to hear that she remembers the promise she made.
“I know it’s scary to hear Mommy throwing up and being worried something is wrong, but in this case, Mommy is actually very happy. Do you want to know why?”
“Yes,” Leo chirps, his answer bordering on happy.
He calmed down much faster than his brother, taking Katya at her word since his trust has never been broken before.
Something tells me that Bastian feels like he has been lied to before, by Cleo.
Or at least like he can’t trust illness of any kind to be around his mother now that he’s been hurt.
“Well, I’m happy because there’s a very very tiny baby growing in my tummy. That’s why I got a funny feeling and needed to throw up to make it better. Sometimes when mommies grow new babies, the babies roll around inside and make things a little bit messy. Do you understand?”
Leo’s eyes go comically wide, and Bastian looks down at Katya’s flat stomach in disbelief.
“There a baby in there?” Leo shrieks, pulling her blanket back some more so he can see more of her shirt-covered stomach. “But I just kiss it! Did he feel it?”
Katya giggles at his childish innocence and tickles his chin. “He or she might have felt it, but they’re very very little right now. They have months to grow and get bigger so they can come out and meet their brothers.”
Gasping, Leo presses a soft hand to her stomach. “We brothers?”
“Of course,” Katya says confidently. “You and Bastian will be the best big brothers ever, won’t you?”
“We will!” Leo declares, hands on his hips. “Right, Bastian?”
My oldest son blinks, looking at Katya and then to me. “Is it safe?”
“Growing babies can be complicated,” I tell him, refusing to lie straight to his face.
“There may be days where Mommy’s tummy is more upset than others, or times where she’s very tired or sore.
Her stomach is going to grow as the baby gets bigger, but the doctor says Mommy is very healthy so she’ll be safe as can be, buddy. ”
“Like Aunt Jaja and my Rain-uhh,” Leo realizes, eyes lighting up. “Big like their tummies?”
Katya giggles and widens her eyes at Leo calling his aunts big.
“Just like that,” I tell him, hoping the comparison is helpful. “Aunt Rayna was pregnant with baby Vaughn, and Aunt Jade was pregnant with Viktor, remember?”
“Yes.” Bastian seems to finally deflate. “I remember now.”
Now that he’s calmed down from his doomsday panic, at least.
Therapy has always been something I considered for both boys, despite their ages.
Perhaps talking to someone might help them address any of their old feelings or fears since losing Cleo, but I don’t know that Bastian would like it very much.
He’s bad with strangers, and opening up to one probably wouldn’t be in the cards for him.
For now, I’m just going to have to make it clear that he can talk to me and my wife about anything and everything.
Maybe one day, he’ll finally take us up on the offer.
“I’m so sorry you were scared,” Katya tells Bastian, leaning to his side to kiss the top of his head.
“I love you so much, buddy, and I promise to always tell you if something is wrong. There may be times in the future where Mommy has a small cold or a tummy ache like Leo had recently, but I’m perfectly healthy otherwise, my boy.
You have nothing to worry about, you know?
This baby is going to love you just as much as we all do.
And you get to show Leo what being a big brother is all about, hmm? I bet you’ll be so good at that.”
“Yes, yes, so good,” Leo chimes in happily. Tipping over to kiss Katya’s stomach again, he adds, “I love the tiny baby.”
“Sweet boy,” Katya coos at him, ruffling his hair. “Why don’t we all nap together today, hmm? We can cuddle and maybe even convince Daddy to join us?” She raises an eyebrow at me as she makes the suggestion, leaving absolutely no room for me to do anything but agree with her.
I’m expecting Leo to burst out with an enthusiastic shout, but it’s Bastian who jumps at the opportunity to accept first. “Yes, please.”
Without even waiting for my answer, he crawls under the blankets and wraps an arm around Katya’s middle. She’s officially sandwiched between our kids and makes no complaint about it as they snuggle up close.
Chuckling to myself, I get up to flick off her bedroom light and flip her curtains to dark mode before rounding the bed and getting in where the most space remains, next to Leo. My son grins at me through the dim room before he closes his eyes and sighs happily.
We may have just had an alarming and stressful moment together as a family, but I’d say it ended up working out in the best possible way. Nap time together isn’t something we’ve done before, but somehow I think Leo will make it his mission to recreate this moment as often as he can.
And I won’t be complaining.