The Things That You Do

Trying to stifle the yawn which itched to fall out of her mouth, Alexa gently brushed a few loose hairs away off of her face, her blue eyes not shifting away from Thalia who laid in the bassinette beside the bed, her eyes blinking sleepily. It was early, after Thalia had woken up in need of a feed, Alexa hadn’t been able to get back to sleep, but a small part of her was excited to be up again, even if she did still need to catch up on some of the sleep that she had lost when she had given birth to the little girl, she was excited to spend more time with the newborn.

Rubbing her eyes tiredly, she let out another quiet yawn before the sound of a light knock at the door reached her ears, causing her to look towards it, a slight grin pulling at the corner of her mouth as she spotted Lionel in the doorway, Zachary sleepily resting against his shoulder. “I was starting to wonder where you’d gone” she quipped, gently resettling her head against the pillow.

Lionel, who’d padded a little further into the room, quirked a small smile before he stepped towards the bed, placing a paper bag down beside Alexa. “You and Thalia had gone back to sleep” he mused “And I figured that you’d probably be hungry when you woke up, so on the way to collect Zach from your mama, I dropped into that café that you like. I bought your favourite” he quipped, settling into the seat beside the bed.

Alexa watched him sit down before she shook her head, a warm smile on her lips. “You know that you’re fussing, right?” she quipped.

Lionel, who’d been quietly trying to smooth a few wayward hairs on the top of Zachary’s head, looked up at the sound of Alexa’s voice before he nodded, a boyish grin appearing on her lips. “I do” he replied “But, less than twenty four hours ago, you pushed our little girl into the world, and I think that means that I am entitled to fuss a little. You want me to stop?” he added.

Alexa gently shook her head. “I didn’t say that” she replied, her voice warm and playful.

Lionel flashed her another warm smile before Zachary let out a small whimper, his arms outstretched towards Alexa. “I think someone would like to say good morning to his mama” he mused, gently leaning towards the bed, allowing Zachary to gently climb over towards Alexa who gently wrapped him in a soft hug.

“Buenos dias, Zach” Alexa mused, pressing a soft kiss against his forehead.

Zachary stared at her for a few seconds before he let out a soft yawn, something which made Alexa smile fondly before she lifted her head, settling her eyes on Lionel who had his phone in his hand, snapping a couple of pictures. “How was he for my mama?” she posed.

“She said that he was pretty grumpy” Lionel replied “She had a rough time trying to get him to go to sleep last night, but he slept through for most of the night. He was pretty happy to see me though when I got home” he added warmly.

Alexa quirked a grin, as though she had thought of an amusing retort, before she shook her head. “How’d you convince my mother not to come back with you?” she posed “I mean, I half expected her to be here when I woke up” she added, rolling her eyes playfully.

Lionel let out a laugh before he shook his head. “She was pretty keen to come with me” he quipped “But then I suggested that she wait until this afternoon. Chances are you’re going to get out here pretty quickly and I figured we could do with a little time together, just the four of us. The next couple of weeks are going to be pretty hectic, and I thought a morning, just the four us, sounded pretty great” he added softly.

He knew that it couldn’t be avoided, with Thalia having arrived, the next couple of weeks were likely to be busy with their friends and families keen to meet and spend time with the newest addition to their little family, and he was keen to take a little time for just the four of them, even if it had meant risking upsetting his future mother-in-law. He wanted a few hours where it was just him, Alexa and their children.

“You told my madre that you didn’t want her to come with you?” Alexa quipped, her voice slightly incredulous.

Lionel quirked a small smile. “I didn’t use those words” he quipped “I mean, I do want her to speak to me again, but I asked her for a couple of hours alone and she agreed quite happily. I think Jose had wanted to take her to breakfast anyways” he added, shrugging his shoulders nonchalantly.

Alexa watched him for a few seconds before she shook her head, a soft laugh falling out of her mouth, something which caused Lionel to lift an eyebrow, a confused frown passing over his lips. “What’s so funny?” he quipped.

“Nothing” Alexa replied with a soft shake of her head “I’m just...you’ve come a long way, that’s all, and it’s pretty amazing to see. You’re not quite the same nervous guy who almost looked like he was going to puke the first time we went out to dinner with my mother and Marco” she remarked, gently pushing a few loose hairs behind her ear.

Lionel watched her gently push her hair behind her ear before he shuffled forwards in his seat, catching her hand in his before he offered it a soft squeeze. “I’m guessing that that is a good thing?” he posed as he lifted her hand, allowing him to press a sweet kiss against her warm skin.

Alexa’s cheeks warmed a little at the feel of his lips against her hand before she nodded her head, offering him a shy smile. “I like that you’re comfortable” she mused “I mean, we’ve been together for a long time now, and if you weren’t comfortable around me, and around my family, I’d be a little worried, but I am very glad that you are. It means that I am probably not going to get rid of you very easily, and that’s something which makes me pretty happy. I am kind of in love with you” she added, her voice caught between warm and teasing.

Lionel’s face lit up with a warm smile before he pressed another soft kiss against the back of her hand. “For what it is worth, you’ve come a pretty long way too” he mused “I mean, you looked like you were going to faint the first time that I kissed you, but you’ve grown into us and I am so glad that you have. I’m glad that we both stopped being stupid and started to see what I think a lot of people around us saw long before we did. I love you, Alexa” he enthused, kissing her palm softly.

Alexa closed her eyes at the feel of the soft kiss, something which made Lionel’s smile widen before he lifted his head, kissing her forehead, nose and cheeks sweetly before he met her lips. It had taken them a while, between Alexa’s pushing him and his bad reaction to her telling him about his feelings, things between them had hit a few bumps along the way, but he was thrilled with the outcome, even if it had taken them both too long to see what was right underneath their noses. He was happy that they’d started to see what everyone else had seen eventually.