Can’t Look Away

Carefully shifting her weight, Sasha tilted her head slightly, peeking down at Arlo who was settled against her chest, his soft snores filling the otherwise quiet room. Sasha knew that she had to move. Cassie’s name had appeared on the screen of her phone a couple of times since she had sat down with the baby, and she knew it wouldn’t be long before she, or Lionel, appeared at the bedroom door, informing her that it was time to go, but still she was reluctant to move. She knew once she did, she would quickly find herself in the front seat of Cassie’s car, and before she knew it, she would wake up the next morning in her childhood bedroom, preparing to walk down aisle. She wasn’t scared of it. She was a little nervous, and very excited, but she didn’t want things to move to quickly. She wanted to savour the butterflies for as long as she could.

“You’ll see him tomorrow”

Sasha, who’d been gently brushing her fingers through Arlo’s dark hair, smiled gently as she looked up at Lionel. “I know” she mused “I just didn’t want to move him too quickly. I want him to be asleep when I go” she added.

Lionel smiled, nodding his head slightly. “Cassie is downstairs” he announced after a moment.

“I figured she would be” Sasha replied “I’m surprised she didn’t come up here to get me herself” she added.

Lionel shrugged as he sat down next to her. “I think she wanted to give us a few moments” he noted “I mean, once you leave tonight, the next time I am going to see you is when you’re walking up the aisle” he added.

Sasha let out a laugh, more out of nervousness than anything else, before she shook her head, checking that she hadn’t disturbed Arlo. “It sounds so weird when you say it out loud like that” she murmured.

“It feels weird to think it” Lionel agreed.

Sasha lifted her stare away from Arlo to look at Lionel, something which made him smile at her before he leant over, touching his forehead to hers. Sasha’s eyes fluttered closed at the contact, causing the soft smile Lionel wore to widen a fraction before he shifted, allowing him to place a soft kiss against her skin. “I love you” he murmured “So much, and I can’t wait to see you tomorrow. I am so excited, Sasha” he insisted, peppering her face with soft kisses.

Sasha lifted a hand, tracing the line of his jaw with her fingertips, before she leant forwards, kissing him softly. “I can’t wait, either” she cooed.

Lionel leant in again, but the sound of Cassie clearing her throat caused him to pull back, a rueful grin on his face. “I thought you were giving us a few moments” he quipped.

Cassie shrugged nonchalantly. “I did give you a few moments” she mused “And now, I am going to take your bride-to-be to her mother’s house so that Carina can stop texting me and asking when we’re going to get there. You’ll see her again tomorrow” she added.

Lionel huffed out a playful sigh before he leant towards Sasha, carefully lifting Arlo out of her arms. The baby grumbled, his eyes opening briefly, but he quickly settled back to sleep again, something which caused Sasha to sigh in relief before she stepped across the room, slipping her feet into the pair of trainers she’d left in front of the wardrobe.

“Is everything already at your parents’ house?” Lionel asked.

“It is” Sasha confirmed “You know where you left your suit?” she countered.

“I do” Lionel replied with a soft smile.

Sasha laughed quietly before she looked back over at him, her expression warm and tender. “I guess I will see you tomorrow” she quipped.

“I love you” Lionel mused.

Sasha opened her mouth to say it back, but was cut off when Cassie let out a playful groan, nudging her towards the door. Laughing, she offered Lionel a slightly goofy wave before she walked away with Cassie trailing after her. Lionel smiled after the two of them had gone before he shook his head, already wishing away the hours.

~#~
“Aren’t you supposed to be asleep?”

Sasha shook her head, glancing up from the book she had been reading to look at Cassie who’d been quietly retreating back into the room. She had tried to sleep. After her parents had gone to bed, and her siblings, including Leila, had disappeared home for the night, she had made a beeline for her childhood bedroom, expecting that sleep would come easily, but it hadn’t. She had spent a while imagining the best case scenario, and then a while longer imagining the worst, and before she had knew it, it was past midnight and she hadn’t got more than maybe thirty minutes of sleep.

“You’re the one creeping around in the dark” Sasha replied “What are you doing up?” she asked.

“I asked first” Cassie quipped “You were asleep when I ducked out” she added.

Sasha shrugged as she leant out of bed slightly, placing her book on the end table. “I keep waking myself up” she mused “Sometimes because I am so excited, sometimes because I am so nervous. I’m worried that the makeup artist is really going to have her work cut out in the morning” she added.

Cassie smirked. “You and me both” she teased.

Sasha rolled her eyes, something which caused Cassie to huff out a playful sigh before she sat down on the side of the bed. “Let’s get a couple of things clear” she mused “Firstly, you’re going to look amazing, and even if you did look slightly rough, Lionel wouldn’t bat an eyelid. He’s smitten with you” she added.

Sasha’s cheeks flushed pink, but she didn’t interrupt.

“Secondly, you don’t need to be nervous” Cassie continued “One, because he’s smitten and you’re smitten, and two, because we’ve double, and triple checked everything. It’s wonderful, and it’s Leila-proof too. We made sure of that” she insisted.

“But what if...”

“It won’t” Cassie interrupted.

Sasha rolled her eyes, but couldn’t stifle her smile, something which caused Cassie to grin back at her before she got up, padding back towards the sofa bed that Carina and Eddie had set up for her. “Get some sleep, Sasha” she called over her shoulder.

“You didn’t tell me why you were awake” Sasha retorted as she settled her head against her pillow, watching as Cassie pulled her duvet over herself. She knew it was probably nothing, but she wanted to distract herself for a moment, hoping that if she got her mind off of what waited for her the next day, she’d find sleep easier to come by.

Cassie turned onto her side, offering her a beaming smile. “I had to pee” she mused.

Sasha wrinkled her nose. “I’m sorry I asked” she muttered.

“Hold that thought” Cassie quipped “I had to pee for a specific reason” she added.

“Cass, I really don’t want to know” Sasha replied.

“So you don’t want to know that I am going to have a baby?” Cassie chirped.

Sasha’s face went slack, something which made Cassie giggle before she snuggled closer to her pillow. “Night, Sasha” she teased.

Sasha shoved herself out of bed, crouching down beside Cassie. “Are you being serious?” she pressed “You’re...You and Aiden...Cassie, I swear if this is a prank, I will kill you. I don’t care if it means promoting my sister to maid of honour” she added.

Cassie barked out a loud laugh before she sat up again, pointing at her overnight bag. “Give me that, would you?” she quipped.

Sasha dragged the bag towards them, allowing Cassie to rummage around in it for a few seconds before she pulled something out, placing it in Sasha’s already shaking hands. Sasha’s fingers curled around it before she looked down, a soft sound of awe falling out of her mouth. “Cass” she whispered.

Cassie’s teasing smile softened. “I was going to wait until after tomorrow was out of the way” she mused “I just...I couldn’t. I’m going to have a baby, Sasha” she gushed.

Sasha had a million questions, both as a midwife, and as Cassie’s overly cautious best friend, but she couldn’t force any single one out. Instead, she just tossed her arms around Cassie who was more than happy to accept the hug, crying softly into Sasha’s hair.