Chaos

Down the Rabbit Hole

Meri

Meriwa sighed and shifted in the chair of the waiting room. "How much longer? I feel like I'm gonna die of boredom?"

From the chair beside her, Shiloh laughed as she turned a page of the magazine she was reading. "Read another magazine. It will help."

Meri huffed and rifled through the pile of magazines sitting on the coffee table in front of her before sighing and giving up, then resting her hands on her visibly larger stomach. "They're not helping, and half of them are, like, ten months old. I'm so bored. What's with this doctor?"

Shiloh snorted before placing her own magazine down. "I guess there are other pregnant ladies for her to see."

Meri shrugged before pulling out her phone and fiddling with it. "Thanks for keeping me company. I know everyone was busy today and that this doctor's visit isn't a big deal. But, I don't enjoy going alone, so I'm happy you're here, even if you're my bodyguard."

Out of the corner of her eye, she watched the woman shrug before listening to the chatter in her earpiece, then offering Meri a brief smile. "No problem. I totally don't mind keeping you company."

Meri smiled, scrolling through Instagram until she found a meme that she had to send to Daryl. "Even though it's a bit lonely, I think a break from the guys is good for me."

Shiloh nodded as she searched for a new magazine to read. "I honestly don't know how you stand it. Mr. Alesky is bad enough, but with Ryke and Daryl... like... they're so protective."

Mer grinned as she hit the icon to share the meme with D. "They're not that bad. Sure they get protective and growly, but then I remind them I'm a goddess and even though I can't use my powers cause of the babies, that doesn't mean I'm an invalid or that I can't take care of myself. Plus, it helps that I love them, so I'm willing to put up with their bullshit."

Shiloh grinned. "You're such a saint, Meri."

Meri smiled and returned her phone to her pocket, then placed her hand on her belly when she felt the twins kicking. "Ugh, I'm pretty sure they're fighting in there."

"If they're anything like Ryker, you know they're totally being brats." Meri didn't miss the affectionate tone in the woman's voice as she glanced at Meri's stomach, and Mer grinned wider. It wasn't only her boys who were excited about the arrival of the babies.

The little Knight Corp family that Carbry had built was ready to welcome the two little lives into the world, and that knowledge helped ease some of Meri's nerves about the impending birth. She had like a billion people to support her in this.

Mer stiffened, though, when Shiloh put her hand to her earpiece. "What? No. Don't try to handle it yourselves. He what?!"

With a sigh, the woman turned to Meri and offered her an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry, Meri. They're calling me down to the lobby. New guy fucked something up and they can't fix it because none of them knows what they're doing yet."

Mer laughed before leaning her head back and resting it against the wall. "No worries. Go show them how it's done. I'm so fat that I won't get far on my own. Don't worry about me."

Shiloh nodded and stood, then stretched. "We swept this floor countless times, but just in case, stay here, okay? And call if you need me."

"Roger."

The woman smirked before heading off toward the elevators. Now that she was alone in the waiting room, Meri huffed before rifling through the magazines again. When her phone vibrated, she grinned to herself and pulled it out, expecting to see a reply from Daryl. Instead, what she saw made her frown. It was a message from Ryke.