Nobody Puts Baby in the Corner

“They look like you.”, I whispered, peering through the glass of the incubators.

Johnny laughed. “I think it’s a little too early to tell who they look like, babe.”

“Nu-uh.” I shook my head. “Isaiah definitely looks like you.”

“If you say so.”, Johnny agreed. Then he stretched out his arms. “Now come here.” I walked over to Johnny and he pulled me into his lap. He ran his hands over my now flat stomach. “I can’t believe Madelyn and Isaiah came out of you.”

“I can’t either.”, I whispered. “It still seems so unreal. Unless I look at them, then I realize that I’m a mom now.”

Johnny gently brushed his thumb across my cheeks, and I realized I was crying. “What are you crying about now, Hayliee?”, he asked. “Just calm down. You’ll be a great mom.”

I smiled at him though my tears. “How is it you always know how to make me feel better?”

“I don’t know.”, Johnny responded, rubbing my thigh. “Maybe I just know the right things to say.” The tone of his voice led me to believe that he wasn’t just talking about our current situation.

“Shh.”, I giggled. “You can’t talk like that! There are children present.”

“Well, if I can’t talk likethat, then I guess I can’t kiss like this.” Before I could filter what he’d said, Johnny’s lips were on mine, kissing me lustfully.

I pulled away, flags of color riding high on my cheeks. “Nah.”, I mumbled. “Y-You can kiss l-like that all y-you want.”

Johnny laughed. “I thought you’d say that.”

“Acting a bit cocky, aren’t we?”, I asked playfully.

“Babe, it’s not cocky if you’re good.”

I kissed him again, this time lightly. “You know, I’m really going to miss this.”

“What?”, Johnny asked curiously.

“This.”, I said. “Being playful and flirty. Shit like that.”

“No, that’s not what I meant.” Johnny shook his head. “I mean...why are you going to miss this? What’s going to happen to make it change?”

I looked over at Madelyn and Isaiah. “Them.”, I stated simply.

Johnny pulled me close to him, gently rubbing my hair. “Baby, Isaiah and Madelyn aren’t going to change anything. At least not for the worst. After all, they didn’t stop us from having sex, did they?”

I smiled, remembering what he was talking about. “No, I guess not. But the babies were at the hospital, where they couldn’t bother us or interrupt us. But when we bring them home...who knows how often we’ll be able to sleep together without having to stop and take care of the babies?”

“We’ll find a way.”, Johnny whispered. “We’ll have the quickie perfected to an art.”

I rested my forehead against his. “Good, because I don’t think I could go very long without our, uh, ‘mommy and daddy’ time.”

“Shit, Hayliee, stop that.”, Johnny breathed, looking away.

I traced my fingers along his jawline and forced him to look at me. “Why? Am I getting you excited?” Johnny didn’t say anything, but I felt something pressing against my thigh, and I had my answer. “Really, Johnny. If you want to fuck that badly, I think there’s a closet down the hall.”

“Shut up.”, he grumbled, the way he always did when he knew I had the upper hand.

Our conversation was put on hold as Rita walked into the room. “Hey, guys. Back again?”

I climbed off of Johnny’s lap. “Yea. Aren’t we always?”

“Well, I have a surprise for you two.”, Rita said. “How would you like to hold your babies?”

My jaw dropped open. “W-What? We can hold them?”

“Yep.” Rita opened the incubators. “Why don’t you have a seat, and I’ll place them in your arms.”

I sat down next to Johnny, shaking with excitement. After nearly two and a half months, we finally got to hold our babies. The weight of Madelyn in my arms shocked me a little. After so long of seeing her so tiny, I hadn’t expected her to be this heavy.

Next to me, Johnny held Isaiah, cradling him in his arms. “This is amazing.”, he whispered.

“All our new parents say that when they hold their child for the first time.”, Rita explained. “By the way, Merry Christmas.”

“I’m Jewish.”, I said.

“Happy Hanukkah, then.”, she added. “Just press the call button when you’re done holding the babies.” And then she walked out of the room, leaving us alone with our children.

Johnny stared down at Isaiah, his face glowing with adoration. “I’m a dad.”, he whispered. “This is my son. Andmy daughter. I can’t believe it.” He looked over at me. “This is perfect, Hayliee. This is everything that I ever wanted. A beautiful wife, beautiful children...I’ve finally got it all.”

“And so do I.”, I whispered. “I finally found a man who will always love me. And having your kids...well, that’s just an added bonus.”

Johnny smiled and kissed me, holding Isaiah off to the side so he wouldn’t be squashed. We parted slowly and Johnny rested his forehead against mine. “I love you, baby.”, he breathed. “And our babies, too.” He looked down at the babies and back up at me, grinning wickedly. “Maybe we could...make another one? Or at least practice.”

I laughed a little. “As much as I’d love to do that...no. I’m tired.”

Johnny caressed my jawline with his fingers and my eyes fluttered closed. “I can fix that.”, he mumbled into my ear. “Very easily.” Before I could utter a response, Isaiah began to squeal and squirm in Johnny’s arms. Johnny stared at him, a panicked look on his face. “W-What do I do?”, he stammered, looking to me for answers.

“Rock him.”, I stated, taking a shot in the dark.

Johnny started moving his arms back and forth awkwardly. Isaiah continued to cry, his little face as red as a tomato, his mouth in the shape of an ‘o’. In an effort to halt his screams, Johnny leaned down and whispered soothingly to our son.

“Hey, little buddy.”, I heard him say. “What’s the matter? Please stop crying, Isaiah. Just tell daddy what’s wrong.”

“He’s probably hungry.”

At the sound of Rita’s voice, Johnny and I both jumped. She walked into the room, smiling.

“He’s hungry.”, Rita repeated. “He just woke up and he wants to eat. If you’ll excuse me, I’ll go get some formula for him. And for your daughter, too. She’ll probably wake up soon and want to eat as well.”

“But aren’t I going to, um, breastfeed?”, I asked awkwardly.

Rita shook her head. “They were born too prematurely for breastfeeding.”, she explained. “So they’ll be eating formula. After they eat, you’ll change their diapers and then they’ll probably go back to sleep.”

Minutes later, Rita returned with two bottles of formula, along with two burping rags. She handed one of each to Johnny and I.

“Feed them until they’ve had their fill.”, she instructed. “Then put them over your shoulder and pat their backs until they burp. Otherwise, they’ll get an upset stomach and they won’t ever go back to sleep.” Then she left the room.

“Okay.”, Johnny said. “Sounds simple enough.”

Contrary to Johnny’s statement, this was not simple. Madelyn and Isaiah squirmed and wiggled and refused to drink from the bottles. After nearly forty minutes, Johnny began to get frustrated. “Dammit!”, he yelled. “Why won’t they fucking eat? I thought they were hungry!”

I stared at him, completely shocked. “Johnny, watch your mouth! Don’t talk like that in front of Madelyn and Isaiah.”

“It’s not like they can understand what I’m saying.”, he grumbled. “They’re babies.”

“Exactly. They’re babies.”, I repeated. “You can’t expect them to do exactly what you want, when you want.”

“They’ve been screaming for almost forty-five minutes.”, he said. “You’d think they’d fucking eat already and go to sleep.”

My eyes flashed with anger. “You’d better shut up, right now. Or you can forget about doing anything tonight.”

“Fine.”, he mumbled. “I just wish he’d eat and go to sleep. I want to go home.”

“Johnny.”, I whispered. “Look.”

Johnny glanced down at his lap. He’d been rambling for so long, he hadn’t noticed Isaiah quietly suckling the bottle in his arms. “Finally!”, he cheered. I pressed my finger to my lips to silence him. “He’s finally eating!”

Twenty minutes later, Isaiah and Madelyn were snoozing peacefully in their incubators and Johnny and I were once again wrapped up in one another. Johnny’s breath was hot on my neck when I pushed him away. “What’s wrong, baby?”, he breathed.

I looked up at his face. “I had to stop myself before I got too caught up in the moment.”, I answered. “I’m saving it for when we get home.”

Johnny stood up and offered me his hand. “Come on.”, he said.

“Where are we going?”, I asked curiously.

He grinned wickedly. “Home.” I took his hand and eagerly followed him out of the hospital.