Chapter Nineteen
Allen
The world was spinning fast. It felt like the days just rolled by as our bond grew. Our love for each other strengthened every day.
I’d been back to the cabin at Dad’s house twice now to pack things up and consolidate what I would and would not bring to my new life in San Diego. It was both exciting and sad. I loved that little cabin in the snow. It had given me a lot of solace.
But I had a new baby on the way. I was going to be a dad myself now. Our new family needed to be together permanently.
“Don’t be sad,” Dad said. “This cabin is yours. You can come back anytime with your family and stay out here or in the main house. Wherever you want, whenever you want.”
“Thank you, Dad.”
When I got the cabin organized and all my things stored away, I said my goodbyes to my childhood abode.
At the airport, I hugged Dad real hard. Even though I knew I would see him a lot, and probably sooner rather than later, I still had to wipe away tears as I walked through the terminal to board my flight.
When I got back to San Diego, it was official move-in day. Matthew’s house was becoming our new home.
It was only a two bedroom. Flora would have the spare room. But we planned to add on as soon as possible. Dad had given us a bonding present that included a substantial cash fund for us to use for things like that. We already had designs for a baby room and an office.
Flora ran around the house shouting. “This is my home now? I get to live here? Like for always?”
River knelt and took her into his arms. “For always. You’re ours, and this is our home now. Our family. Want to see your room?”
Her eyes grew big. It had been a surprise. We didn’t tell her she would have her own room or that we’d fixed it up perfectly for child of five. Including brand-new toys. She was going to go ballistic.
River took her hand and led her to her room. Matthew and I closely followed, not wanting to miss a moment.
When Flora saw all the new things along with her beautiful bed and flowered coverlet and a fluffy white rug on the floor, she squealed and jumped up and down. Squishmallows of all different fruits decorated the head of her bed along with brand new fluffy pillows. We’d stocked a brand-new bookcase with games, books and a doll or two.
When she stopped squealing, she stood frozen, as if she didn’t know where to go first.
“Take your time exploring, honey,” River said. “It’s all yours now.”
“I can’t believe it. It’s my own room.” Her little hands pressed against her cheeks. She turned around and around.
Official moving-in day came complete with beer for the adults, pizza, hot wings, and cheesy bread. We had a new giant TV to break in and ended up watching Disney movies until Flora’s bedtime.
It wasn’t hard to get Flora to go to bed. She couldn’t wait to sleep in her brand-new bed that was all hers.
Matthew, River and I stayed up late making plans. We were all so excited about how we could make this place into everything we’d always dreamed of. We didn’t need a big house. At least not yet. A baby was on the way, but he or she would have their own room by the time they got here.
“If we have more kids we can add more rooms,” I suggested.
“I love kids,” Matthew said. “But two seems like enough for now. I can’t think further than that, or I’ll become overwhelmed.”
“Two is a great number.” I patted him on the thigh.
“I’m in complete agreement,” River said.
“We’ll let the future be for now. Whatever happens happens, and we’ll deal with it then,” I said.
We talked more about our plans to expand the primary bedroom. While the king-sized bed was nice, we had added a single to one side for extra space. It turned out our omega house cat enjoyed sleeping with his arms stretched straight out from his body. As the smallest among us, he took up the most space. River and I weren’t complaining, though.
It all felt great. No more running around and sometimes sleeping apart. We were all together now. No matter what.
We all three checked on Flora before we went to bed. She was sound asleep with her strawberry squishy hugged to her chest.
Quietly, we closed the door and tiptoed down the hall to our room. Once there, we locked the door and began to get ready for bed.
Our pregnant omega was barely showing yet, but he had a slight bump, and River and I lay on either side of him, running our hands up and down his stomach to show him how precious he was. And how precious our baby on the way was.
Slowly, the three of us made love. The way we sank into each other, the way we moved like a dance that had been rehearsed and choreographed for weeks, was magical.
I’d never imagined how being deeply in tune with someone else could make me feel so strong and powerful and rich in love. To describe it would be like trying to describe how a star feels when it’s born. Or a comet shooting off into space forever and never burning out. It was both spiritual and material, dreamlike yet real.
Afterward, we fell into a naked pile, uttering rapid terms of endearment, laughing through our own ecstasies.
Soon, we fell asleep dreaming each other’s dreams.
The next day, Matthew went off to his job and River to his at Animals in the early afternoon. Because I could work from home on the couch, that meant I was the one who received Flora home from kindergarten and helped her with whatever she needed for dinner and for school the next day.
She was a little ball of energy, always flying at me with a big hug, chattering away about her day. I loved it. I loved finally being a dad.
River got home late, after Flora was already asleep in her bed.
River complained that he’d missed her all day. When he lived at Animals with her, he could take breaks and have meals with her, but with traffic and the distance from Matthew’s house to Animals, that was no longer convenient.
We discussed strategies and decided that River would try to take earlier shifts at Animals in a different capacity, such as security. He could also possibly join the cleaning crew, but when it was suggested, he made a face and turned away.
We all laughed because we knew he hated doing household chores like mopping and dishes and laundry. That was okay; we loved him anyway.
It was going to take some time to settle in, but I thought we were doing quite well for everything having happened so quickly for all of us.
And with the baby on the way, there were going to be a lot more adjustments. That’s what life was about, and I was ready to face it head on.