Autumn woke up slowly, finding her little boy pressed against her chest with papa's hand poised protectively around his side. They had just recently upgraded him from a crib to a regular twin-sized bed, a large jump for a boy so small. But safety was becoming an issue with him climbing over the crib railing and dropping onto the floor before padding his way into his parents' bedroom for a late night snuggle. Of course, it was also becoming increasingly difficult for both of them to say no to that. Between him being so sweet with snuggles and both of his parents being emotional about their sweet baby boy, he got his way every time he tapped Autumn's shoulder to climb in bed with them shortly after being put down for sleep. Every. Single. Night.
Autumn rested comfortably, admiring the beautiful sight of her son before her. Benny's perfectly pink baby lips were puckered, mouth slightly agape as he breathed softly in and out. She watched Winter's hand rise and fall against their son's side with each little breath. His tiny hands were curled up against his chest as he leaned against his mama for warmth and comfort. His little fingers twitched aimlessly in his sleep, something they had done from day one. It was something Autumn would never get tired of watching for. His perfect ginger curls looped down the crown of his head and rested on his forehead, slightly covering his eyelids with their long eyelashes, the color matching the color of the hair atop his head.
Winter and Autumn had both been so surprised when Benny was born with bright red hair. They both assumed his hair would look much more like Winter's dark hair. But little Autumn had also been born with bright, ginger hair and blue eyes, and Winter's mother had red hair as well. They just happened to have the right combination to get their little boy with fiery red hair out of it, and neither of them would change it for the world.
Her world couldn't be any more complete. That was, until she felt the flutters of the little girl housed safely in her womb, protected completely by her own mother's body. She moved a hand down to her belly and held it there for a moment. Now nearly 22 weeks along with her bump getting harder and harder to conceal, Autumn had been feeling their little girl's activities inside of her for a few weeks. And this morning, after days and days of admiring her husband and their little boy resting peacefully in bed with her, there was an even greater bittersweetness to the sight before her when she woke up.
Both parents had booked annual leave for today, but they would still be sending Benny into nursery for a full day with his friends and his teachers. It was the first day he would be in nursery without either of his parents there with him, and though Autumn was worried for her baby, she knew he would be in good hands. In making schedules, she made sure his favorite teachers, Charlotte, Sorscha, and Carly would be in the toddler room with him for the day.
A sudden sharp breath in from her baby pulled Autumn from her thoughts. She looked down at her little boy as he stretched his arms up into her face and snuggled in closer to her.
"Good morning, my sweet boy," Autumn cooed, moving her hand from her belly to his back. She hugged him close to her and drank in the sweet smell of his hair under her nose. It made her emotional. This was her baby boy, and in a few short months, he would no longer be her only baby. He was growing up so fast, right before her eyes, and she couldn't stop it.
Winter woke to the sound of Autumn sniffling, cuddling their baby close.
"My love, what's the matter?" he asked.
Autumn only raised her eyes to him, not moving her face or head from where they were, her lips pressed against Benny's head. She blinked hard, causing the tears that were welling up under her eyes to drip down into her son's hair.
Winter sighed. He understood. As it always had been, Autumn could say so much without saying a single word, and this instance was no different. He moved closer to her, snuggling in close with their son, wrapping one arm under Autumn's head and the other returning to Benny's side as it had been when they were sleeping. He pressed a delicate, ardent kiss to her forehead, letting his lips linger there as he felt her shake with small sobs.
"Mama okay?" Benny squeaked from under Autumn's chin. Their sweet boy, not even two, was already so receptive to the feelings of those around him.
"I'm okay, sweetheart," Autumn nodded, leaning her head back to look at his face. She brushed his curls out of his eyes with her fingers to see his beautiful blue eyes. His face looked just like Winter's. "Mama is just a little bit sad, but that's okay. It's okay to be sad sometimes."
"It okay, Mama," Benny replied. He reached a little hand up and patted his mama's arm, causing her to choke back a sob as she smiled down at him. "I love you."
Tears fell down Autumn's face at his sweet words. He brought his tiny hand up to her face and wiped her tears away, just as she had done for him countless times.
"I love you, Benjamin."
–
Once inside the nursery, Autumn made a quick stop in the office to grab a few things from her desk and to bid Marjorie good morning, reminding her that neither herself nor Winter would be in for the day, but she was sure that Benny would have a great day. She also confirmed that Marjorie and Reece would be collecting Benny at the end of the day and dropping him off at home. It had only been a few days since Marjorie and Reece had announced that they were expecting, and Marjorie already looked so much more comfortable now that she wasn't hiding anything. She happily wore maternity clothes that showed off the small bump that had grown from her abdomen, and she walked around the building more often now with her hand over her belly.
"Morning, Charlotte."
"Oh, good morning, Autumn," Charlotte smiled brightly. "And good morning, Benny. Are you all ready to have a great day today? Why don't you go and see Carly, and we'll get you some breakfast. That's it," she cooed as she watched the fiery-haired little boy skip over to one of his favorite teachers before turning her attention back to Autumn.
Charlotte loved seeing both Autumn and Winter bringing their son into nursery, but there was always something extra special about seeing her manager with such a hard shell be so soft with her little boy. She couldn't help but reminisce on how much Autumn had changed since she first started working in the deputy position.
"He slept very well last night. I suspect he'll sleep his usual two hours after lunch, though," Autumn mused as she peeked at the clock on the wall. "Winter and I won't be in today. Marjorie and my brother will be doing collection."
"Oh, okay," Charlotte nodded as she watched Autumn bow out of the room and make her way down the corridor and out of the building.
"Hang on," Sorscha interrupted, jumping to the front of the classroom. "Did anyone else see what she was wearing?"
Autumn had intentionally chosen to wear a more form-fitted shirt to do drop off for the day. The fit of the shirt very clearly highlighted her baby bump, which had previously been well-hidden behind larger dress shirts and loose-fitting blouses.
"Uh, yeah," Charlotte agreed, turning her attention to Sorscha.
"Hey, guys?" Carly's voice came from the breakfast table. "I think you're gonna want to see this."
Carly called both of the other teachers over to where she was knelt down in front of little Benny. She'd just unzipped his jacket to find a t-shirt underneath that read "In my big brother era".
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