I Know I Was for a While

Pulling her hair up into a loose ponytail, Camila stifled a yawn into her hand, her eyes settled on the array of things which sat on the duvet ahead of her. it was early, after another disturbed night of sleep, Camila had woken up a little before six in the morning, and despite her best efforts, she hadn’t been able to fall back to sleep, no matter how hard she tried to make herself comfortable. She just couldn’t seem to find a position which enabled her to drift off for a little longer. She had tried for a while, after she’d originally woken up a couple of hours previous, she had spent nearly half an hour trying to get comfortable enough to get some more sleep, but after a couple of waves of pain and discomfort had washed over her, she had given up, opting to try and distract herself instead.

She had been expecting it, with her due date only a couple of weeks away, she had been expecting that she would start to feel more and more uncomfortable as time went by, and she knew that it was something she simply had to deal with, even if she did find herself frustrated on occasion. She knew that she only had a couple more weeks to get through before the baby put in his or her first appearance.

Brushing a couple of wayward hairs out of her eyes, she tried to wake herself up a little more before she leant forwards, collecting the tiny vest which sat on the duvet before she neatly folded it, settling in the holdall which sat at her side. It wasn’t the first time that she’d packed the bag, with her having entered the final month of her pregnancy, she and Lionel had been quick to get a hospital bag ready for when the baby decided to put in their first appearance, but for the last couple of days, she had taken to unpacking and repacking it, wanting to be 100% certain that she had everything that she needed.

She knew that it wasn’t necessary, when they’d packed the bag, they’d had a checklist and had ensured that everything was crossed off before they’d left it beside the door of her bedroom, but still she liked going through it, even if she knew that they’d thought of everything. Just seeing the packed bag was a reminder of how close she was to the arrival of her son or daughter.

Leaning forwards, she moved to collect the little hat that sat on the duvet before the sound of a laugh reached her ears, causing her to smile a little to herself before she turned her head, sparing a sheepish look towards Lionel who’d stepped into her doorway. “What are you doing?” he asked, unable to keep the amusement out of his voice.

Camila, who’d turned back towards the bag, shrugged. “I’m just checking it” she mused “I mean, I know we went through it twice before we packed it, but I just...” she trailed off, offering him another sheepish smile.

Lionel looked at her for a second, admiring the sheepish grin which had spread over her features, before he grinned to himself, moving to take a seat on the side of the bed next to her. “You’re excited” he quipped knowingly. She liked to fuss, for as long as he had known her, he’d known that she’d liked to make a fuss of things when she was excited about them, and he was glad to see that she was excited. The impending arrival of her son or daughter was something that she should have been excited about.

Camila, who’d watched him sit down, shook her head. “You’ve noticed that, have you?” she teased with a small playful roll of her eyes.

“I might have caught on” Lionel played along.

Camila smiled at him gently, allowing a couple of beats of quiet to pass between them, before she gently leaning forwards, picking up a tiny pair of socks from their place on the duvet. “I am excited” she murmured “I mean, a lot of me is nervous about what things are going to be like once baby is here, but mostly, I am just looking forwards to seeing them for the first time. It’s been a long eight months, Leo, and I really can’t wait to meet them” she added, gently turning over the little socks in her hand.

Lionel watched her toy with the socks for a moment before he quirked a soft smile, his fingertips lightly brushing against the back of her hand. “I’m sure he or she is worth the wait” he mused “I mean, their mama is a very beautiful woman” he added.

Camila’s cheeks flushed a little before she shook her head, letting out a soft giggle, something which made Lionel laugh along with her. “That was bad, wasn’t it?” he quipped, wrinkling his nose a little.

Camila nodded, a grin on her face. “It wasn’t your best” she replied “But, you’re lucky. I find your awkwardness cute” she added.

Lionel quirked an eyebrow. “Really?” he asked, a shy smile on his face.

Camila didn’t hesitate in nodding, something which caused Lionel to breathe out a slightly shy laugh, his hand gently rubbing the back of his neck.

Camila watched him for a couple of seconds, admiring just how shy he looked, before she shook her head, turning her eyes back towards the things which were still spread out across her bed. Leaning forwards, she attempted to collect a couple of things which sat a little further away from her before she felt a small twinge, something which caused her to let out a small groan, her hand gently coming to rest on her bump.

Lionel, who’d been watching her quietly, frowned at the sound. “You OK, Mila?” he asked.

Camila was quiet for a couple of seconds, trying to allow the pain to pass, before she nodded, offering him a small smile. “I’m fine” she mused “I just keep having twinges every now and again” she added, her hand rubbing in a soothing circle over her bump.

Lionel’s eyes widened a fraction. “Twinges?” he pressed “Like...contractions?” he added.

Camila grinned, amused by the panicked expression that had spread over his features, before she shook her head. “If that’s what they are, you don’t need to look so worried” she mused “I’ve only had a couple and they’ve been a long way apart. We’ve probably got a lot of time left before I need to get to the hospital, so you can calm down” she added, her voice warm and teasing. It had crossed her mind, after a couple of twinges of pain, her mind had jumped immediately to the idea that she was in labour, but she knew that if she was, she was still in the early stages, something which meant that there wasn’t a reason to worry yet. It would likely be a while before she needed to even think about heading to the hospital.

Lionel blinked a couple of times, trying to process her words, before he shook his head, a slightly awed expression etched onto his features. “Do you need me to do anything?” he asked “I mean, I know it might be nothing, or maybe very early days, but do you want me to call anyone? Your madre? Tessa?” he pressed, his tone more than a little flustered.

Camila couldn’t stop herself from smiling at his fussing. “It’s Ok” she mused.

“You’re sure?” Lionel pressed.

Camila nodded. “I’m sure” she mused.

“Is there anything else I can do?” Lionel asked “I mean, do you need me to get anything?” he added.

Camila shook her head. “No” she replied “But, if you’re not busy, do you think you could sit here with me for a little while? I mean, it’s alright if you don’t want to...”

“I’d love to” Lionel interrupted, offering her a crooked smile.

Camila’s eyes widened a fraction before she tilted her head. “Really?” she asked.

Lionel nodded. “I’ve got nothing better to be doing” he quipped impishly “I’m sure I could spare a little time to sit here with my...with you” he corrected himself, stopping himself from calling her his girlfriend.

It wasn’t the first time that it’d almost slipped out, since their first date a few weeks previous, the word had been on the tip of his tongue, but he always managed to catch it before it fell out, not wanting to make things awkward between them. He knew that it wasn’t a priority, with Camila’s due date approaching them quickly, he knew that a conversation about what their relationship was, or what it could be, was something which was going to have to wait a while, and he didn’t want to put pressure on her. She had bigger things to be concerned with than a conversation about whether or not they were boyfriend and girlfriend.

Camila, who’d moved across the bed a little to make more room for him, quirked a small smile at the slight stammer in his voice, but didn’t comment on it, instead opting to pat the pillow at her side. “You coming over here or what?” she quipped.

Lionel rolled his eyes lightheartedly before he moved a little closer to her, lifting up one arm so that she could cuddle into his side. Smiling, he watched her curl into his side before he placed his arm around her shoulders, leaning down so that he could press a soft kiss against the top of her head. “It’s going to sound stupid” he mumbled, leaning back a fraction “But you should try and get a little sleep” he added, dropping another kiss against her head.

Camila, who’d been tracing the pattern of his t-shirt with her fingertip, smiled at the feel of his lips against her head, before she nodded against his chest. “You’ll stick around even if I do fall asleep?” she asked through a yawn.

Lionel feigned thought for a second, something which made Camila lightly pinch his side. “Jerk” she mumbled playfully.

Lionel laughed, tightening his arm around her shoulders briefly, before he nodded. “I’ll be here” he mused.

Camila readjusted her head slightly so that she could look up at him before she quirked a small smile, something which caused him to lean forwards, pressing a tender kiss against her head, knowing that if she was in labour, things between them were about to change.