Songbird [H.S]

☆ Happy Mumma's Day! ☆

Josie - 5  years old

River - 3 years old

Harry was never one to be good at getting up quietly in the morning, no matter how hard he tried.

He always ended up tripping over something in the darkness of the bedroom and forgetting his heavy footsteps echoed in the quiet house when he stumbled his way downstairs into the kitchen. Most days, when Marley would be woken up by his clumsy noise, she would sigh to herself and get up too - accepting it would be impossible to go back to sleep when her kids would likely be woken by his noise too.

But this morning wasn't like any other morning and she knew Harry would be disappointed if he knew he'd woken her up - especially when he had something special planned for her (with the help of their little babies, of course). So instead of getting up at the crack of dawn, Marley allowed herself to sink into the soft pillows, pulling the duvet over her head and spending the morning with her littlest baby.

Running her hands over her swollen belly, Marley smiled to herself as she felt the movement of the baby responding to her warm touch. The feeling of a tiny kick against her palm never lost its magic and Marley was more than content whispering softly to her bump while she waited for her two other kids to join her for some cuddles. Soft giggles and muffled conversation drifted up the stairs from the kitchen as her husband and kids continued planning their little surprise to make her morning special. Since her first Mother's Day, Marley had always told Harry she didn't want any fuss, just getting to spend the day cuddling her family was enough for her. But as usual, Harry couldn't help himself but spoil her.

"Sunny, don't! You'll make a mess." Harry's slightly panicked voice filled the house, making Marley snicker to herself as she imagined what kind of trouble her daughter was getting herself into. She knew the kitchen was going to look like a tornado had hit it but considering it was her special day, Harry was the one who had to worry about cleaning up. That was a Mother's Day gift in itself.

"What did I just say, Josie?" She heard him sigh.

"But Daddy-"

"Put the flour down, please." He demanded and judging by the way their voices got quieter again, Marley assumed Josie had chosen to listen to Harry's instructions.

"Poor Daddy sounds like he's about to rip his hair out." Marley chuckled to her bump, feeling a strong kick against her palm in agreement. "Won't be long until you're creating mischief too, little lovie. Daddy's gonna love it."

As much as Harry pretended to be exhausted running around after two kids all day, Marley knew it was all an act. He absolutely loved his babies to the moon and back, playing with them for hours, taking them on trips to the park and showering them with toys and clothes. He took every chance to be the father he never had and it made Marley's heart melt seeing their little smiles of joy whenever Harry was around.

When Marley told him she was pregnant with their third little love, Harry almost fainted from excitement. He'd showered her with kisses and doted over her for the past eight months, taking every free moment he got to lay his head on her growing belly and whisper little stories to their baby just like he did when she was pregnant with Josie and River. Harry had so much love to give and Marley felt like the luckiest woman in the world to get to be the one to give him the family he'd always dreamed of.

Suddenly, the clambering of feet on the stairs snapped Marley out of her warm daydream, making her snuggle back down into a position where she pretended to be asleep. It was a struggle to bite back her smile as she heard the whispers of her babies outside the door, Harry shushing them gently in an attempt to make sure they didn't wake her up before they could reveal the surprise.