The next day…
Trill-Land, Jungle Estate
Weeks later…
A couple months ago, my wife had my baby and damn near lost her life bringin’ her into this world, and that shit had been sittin’ in the back of my mind ever since.
It ain’t matter how many times the doctor told me Pluto was healed or how many appointments she went to where somebody checked her body and said everything looked good.
I was the one who watched all that blood come out of her.
I was the one who stood in that hospital hallway while they rushed my wife away from me and left me holdin’ the baby she almost died havin’.
Ain’t no doctor in this world know what that shit did to me, and they damn sure couldn’t tell me when I was supposed to stop thinkin’ about it.
For years, Pluto kept tellin’ me she wanted to get on birth control, and I kept tellin’ her no. I ain’t want that shit in her body ‘cause I had heard too much about what it could do to women, and in my head, I was protectin’ her.
I ain’t trust nobody puttin’ hormones inside my wife and waitin’ to see how her body reacted. Pluto would get mad and tell me she was the one havin’ these babies, and I would still stand on what I said ‘cause I ain’t think nothin’ could happen to her as long as I was around.
Then she gave me three babies back to back, and the last one almost took her away from me.
I had to live with the fact that Pluto had tried to tell me what her body needed, and instead of listenin’, I moved the way I wanted ‘cause I thought I knew what was best for her. I ain’t mean to put her in danger, and I would never do shit to hurt my wife on purpose, but that ain’t change what happened.
My dick kept puttin’ babies in her, and her body kept carryin’ them ‘cause she loved me and wanted the family we was buildin’. By the time I understood how much that shit was takin’ from her, I was standin’ in a hospital wonderin’ if she was gon’ make it home.
Pluto was on birth control now, and I ain’t say one word against it.
I went with her when she got it, asked the doctor every question I could think of, and made sure I knew every side effect they said she could have.
I stayed on top of her appointments, watched how she was eatin’, and paid attention to anything she said felt different ‘cause I wasn’t lettin’ nobody overlook nothin’ when it came to her.
The doctor had cleared her to have sex weeks ago, but I had been stayin’ away from that part of our marriage.
It wasn’t ‘cause I ain’t want my wife. Pluto could walk past me in some old shirt and a pair of panties, and my dick would still get hard ‘cause that woman ain’t never had to do much to turn me on.
She was the finest woman I had ever seen, and it wasn’t just ‘cause her face was pretty or ‘cause her body had filled out in places that made it hard for me to keep my hands to myself.
Pluto was beautiful ‘cause of everything she carried inside her, and the way she loved people made her look even better to me.
That woman took care of four children and somehow still found a way to make all of ‘em feel special. Zurie had been ours so long that I ain’t even think about the fact that we adopted her.
That was my daughter, and I loved her from the first day she came into my life without ever makin’ her feel different from the babies that actually came from me.
Then Prestyn and Kaylon came behind her, and now Isley was here needin’ somebody every few hours ‘cause she ain’t care if the rest of the house was tired.
I would watch Pluto move through the crib with Isley on her chest while one of the boys was askin’ for somethin’ and Zurie was tryna tell her about her day. Somehow, Pluto heard all of ‘em.
She would answer Zurie while fixin’ Prestyn a plate, tell Kaylon to stop climbin’ on some shit, and pat Isley’s back until she burped.
Sometimes I would just stand there and look at her ‘cause I ain’t understand how she did it without losin’ her damn mind.
To me, Pluto was a superwoman, but I knew she ain’t feel that way right now.
I could see the difference in her even when she tried to hide it.
Some days she was herself, talkin’ to me, laughin’ with the kids, and movin’ around the house with that soft energy that made everybody want to be near her.
Other days she would get quiet and look tired before the day even started.
She would sit with Isley in her arms and stare off while she slept, and I could tell her mind was somewhere else even when she told me she was fine.
Postpartum was startin’ to kick her ass, and Pluto ain’t know how to ask nobody to help her ‘cause she was used to bein’ the one who helped everybody else.
I started payin’ attention to the small shit ‘cause she wasn’t gon’ come to me and say she was fallin’ apart.
She would just keep pushin’ until she couldn’t, and I wasn’t lettin’ her do that no more.
When her feet hurt, I sat at the end of the bed and rubbed ‘em until she fell asleep. I ain’t care if I had to be up before the sun to bust moves and handle shit outside the house.
If Isley started cryin’ in the middle of the night, I got up before Pluto could move.
I changed diapers, warmed bottles, and walked around the room with my daughter against my chest while Pluto got whatever rest her body allowed her to get.
Some mornin’s, I would be standin’ in the kitchen with Isley in one arm and my phone in the other, givin’ orders to grown men while I waited on a bottle to warm.
Ain’t nobody on the other end know about all the stress my household was under ‘cause it wasn’t they business.
They just needed to do what the fuck I told ‘em to do while I took care of my kids.
I ain’t look at none of what Pluto did as just her job.
These was my kids too, and she had already done more than enough by carryin’ three of them inside her body.
I could lose sleep. I could change diapers.
I could walk around with a cryin’ baby at three in the mornin’ and still get up to handle whatever needed to be handled ‘cause that was light work compared to what Pluto had been through.
Still, there was parts of my wife I missed, and I felt guilty every time I admitted that to myself.
I missed the way she used to crawl across the bed and climb on top of me ‘cause she wanted attention. I missed hearin’ her laugh more than I heard her sigh.
I missed how she would follow me around the house talkin’ about whatever was on her mind, even when I was barely listenin’ ‘cause I just liked hearin’ her voice.
I missed the softness in her eyes and the way she used to melt into me without lookin’ tired or distracted.
I knew she was still in there, but right now she was buried under bottles, diapers, feedings, and all the shit her body was still tryna recover from.
I loved every version of Pluto, and I wasn’t gon’ make her feel bad for not bein’ the same woman she was before Isley came.
I just wanted my wife to feel good again, and I ain’t know how to make that happen without makin’ her think I was tryna fix her.
It was late, and every child in the house was finally asleep.
Isley had gone down after fightin’ it for damn near an hour, and I had already checked the monitor twice even though she was right down the hall.
I was laid across the bed in nothin’ but some briefs while the television played low, but I wasn’t payin’ attention to whatever was on.
The bathroom door opened, and Pluto walked out naked with a towel in her hand while steam followed her into the room.
Her skin still had water on it, and her hair was damp around her face.
She had gained weight since havin’ Isley, and every bit of it had landed somewhere that made my dick jump before my mind had time to stop it.
Her breasts sat fuller, her stomach was soft, and her hips had spread enough to make her waist look smaller. Her thighs rubbed together when she walked, and that ass had gotten thicker in a way that made me want to grab it and keep my hands there.
Pluto had always been beautiful to me, but motherhood had put somethin’ else on her. Her body looked soft, grown, and made for me, and I could feel my dick gettin’ hard under my briefs while she moved toward the bed.
A few months ago, I would’ve reached for her before she even made it across the room. I would’ve pulled her on the bed, spread her open, and fucked her until she forgot how tired she was.
I knew every sound Pluto made and every spot that had her grip on me like she was scared I might stop. I knew how to make my wife fall apart, and I wanted to do exactly that while I watched her climb on the mattress.
Then the picture of all that blood flashed through my mind, and everything inside me changed.
Pluto came right over and climbed on top of me without sayin’ anything.
She settled her body against mine, laid her head on my shoulder, and buried her face in my neck while her naked skin pressed against me.
Her lips moved over my neck, leavin’ soft kisses that made me close my eyes and slide one hand up her back.
I rubbed her slowly, feelin’ every curve beneath my palm while she kept kissin’ me.
My hand moved down her spine until it reached her ass, and I caressed it before squeezin’ one cheek in my hand.
A light moan left her mouth, and that sound went straight through me ‘cause I had missed hearin’ her react to my touch.
Pluto lifted her head and looked down at me before pressin’ soft kisses all over my lips.
She took her time with it, kissin’ the corners of my mouth and then comin’ back to the center while I held her against me.
My dick was still hard under her, and every time she shifted her hips, I felt the warmth between her legs brush against me.