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Epilouge

Epilogue: By the Piano Together
Roni-Ann

*three months later*

There's a tiny person laying down on top of my legs.

My tiny person.

I was performing reiki on Xavier, doing some plucking and hand flutters close to his face.

"I'm removing your bad energy, young man."

Xavier laughs and wriggles around on my legs, his gums showing as I smile.

"Mommy's not laughing." I hum, continuing the action. "I want to go to sleep, Xavier."

"You shouldn't be hungry, right?" I mumble, placing my hands under him in order to pick him up. "Okay."

It's the same routine every few hours: reiki, laughing, singing, sleep.

Standing up from the bed, I bounce while walking to the dresser. I hold my free arm up and bring my music box closer, pressing it so that a song plays.

It's 4:20 in the afternoon, perfect.

"Take a break and get away. Run away with us for the summer, let's go upstate." I sing gently, walking around the room with Xavier. "We'll all go stay with my father."

"If you take your time, you will make your mark. Close your eyes and dream."

Xavier laughs again before yawning, his hands balling into fists as he falls asleep.

"When the night gets dark... finally."

I go back on the bed and sit by the top, resting the baby down before laying beside him. I place my hand below his foot and yawn, dozing off in no time.

At least two hours of sleeping. Please.

✄┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈«

Ugh.

I groan as I feel my conscience come back, rubbing the empty space next to me.

"What the hell? Where's Xavier?!" I scream, sitting up quickly. "Xavier?!?!"

Throwing my legs off the bed and standing up, I stumble out the room and down the hall.

"What even is the time?" Mumbling to myself, I stop in the nursery and look at the clock, running my hands through my hair from stress.

8:30 P.M.

"The baby was suppose to have tummy time at eight, have a bath at 8:20, then eat in two minutes."

"He's probably starving. If I could just find the baby- how did I lose my child? Where-"

"Roni-Ann? Are you alright down there?" I hear Adrian above me and walk out of the hall, looking up the staircase.

"I'm fine, bubba. Where's Xavier?" I laugh, playing with my fingers.

"We're in the library."

Really.

Climbing up the two flights of stairs, I push the library door open before going inside.

Adrian was sitting at the piano without a shirt, Xavier cradled in his arm as he played a song on the piano.

I could hear Adrian humming above the sound of the piano, sitting on the bench with them.

"Why didn't you tell me you were home, Adrian? I thought I lost Xavier."

"You were asleep and this one woke up right when I got home." Adrian explains, looking at the baby fondly. "We've been in the library all evening while you slept."

"Did Xavier eat? You should have woken me up so that I could-" I start scolding Adrian but he looks up at me, furrowing his eyebrows.

"I know how to melt breast milk, my queen. He ate two hours ago."

"Oh."

"Exactly." Adrian chuckles as I reach over to touch the baby, fixing his bib. "Oh. Jasmin offered to keep him tomorrow so that you could have a break."

"No, it's fine." I hum, taking the baby from Adrian. "Xavier is no trouble. Isn't that right, Xavi? Yes, it is."

My son laughs as I play with him, the two of us smiling widely.

"You haven't smiled at me all evening, Ron." I hear a pout in Adrian's voice and look up from our baby, giving him a dirty look.

"You're irrelevant right now, Dian."

Looking away once more, I tickle Xavier to make him laugh. "Daddy's irrelevant, isn't he? That irrelevant man, yes! You're the most important to me, Xavier."

"You hurt me on the daily, Roni." Adrian chuckles.

"I'm just kidding, bubba. I love you!" I giggle before giving him my attention, placing kisses all over his face. "Happy now?"

"Very."

Adrian hums in delight as I turn away from him, grinning at my baby. I twirl his curly hair around my finger while Adrian begins to play a random melody on the piano.

"Xavier, you know my parents used to sing me to sleep at night?" I giggle randomly, swaying with the baby.

"They'd sing something random to me, the same way I make up songs every night for you, mi amor. Something like: there's a moon by the sea. And when you look, there is me. Together with you, in our little family."

I make up a song as my husband plays the piano, receiving a gummy smile from Xavier.

This continues as Xavier fights his sleep, wrapping his hand around my finger and squeezing it.

"See, Adrian? He's no trouble at all." I coo, going quiet once he finally falls asleep.

"Of course he isn't a bother, Mrs. Hayes. He's a product of his mother."

Xavier will never be a bother to us. He'll never have to worry about being anything of the sort.

There's only love in our family. Adrian, Xavier, and myself.

As we sit in the library, just the three of us. Later in life, there will be more of us.

For now though, it's just us three. I love everything about 'us': Going on walks with Rain, eating lunch in the park, working late hours at either businesses of ours.

My baby will have every opportunity we never had with our biological parents. The past isn't important yet it's shaped our lives today.

Every single aspect of it, I've been given the chance to provide and love it.

Most importantly, I love when we sit by the piano together.