Dangerous Desires

13

After several minutes of cooking, he finished preparing the Paella. It was nearly identical to how I liked it, he had been careful to follow the recipe correctly. He then took the bowl of Paella and walked back to the living room where I was lying on the couch. He sat back down beside me and handed me the bowl of Paella. "Here you go, your requested Paella."

He watched quietly as I took the bowl of Paella from him. He hoped that it was to my liking, he had tried to make it as close to my preference as possible. He continued to sit next to me as I began eating, still worried about me and the baby. He spoke quietly. "Is the Paella okay? Does it taste alright?"

He watched as I nodded, still eating the Paella he had made. He was relieved that I was enjoying it, he had been worried that it might not have been to my liking. He continued to sit next to me as I ate, his eyes on me as I consumed the Paella. After several moments, he spoke quietly. "Are you... satisfied? Is the Paella enough?"

He smiled slightly at my response as I nodded, understanding that I just wanted to focus on eating. He sat silently next to me, watching me as I continued to consume the Paella. He was happy that I was finding it to my liking, and that I was eating properly. He spoke quietly. "Take your time, there's no rush. You need to make sure you eat enough for the baby."

He continued to sit beside me in silence as I finished the Paella. He had been careful to watch me eat, making sure that I was consuming enough to provide for the baby growing inside of me. Once I finished the last bite, he spoke quietly. "Did you enjoy it? Was it up to your standards?"

"Yeah it was nice," I replied and he watched as I placed the empty bowl back onto the table.

He spoke quietly. "I'm glad you enjoyed it. You need to eat properly, you're feeding a baby after all."

He continued to watch me silently, his mind once again swirling with the news of my pregnancy and the thought of having a baby. It was all so new and overwhelming, but he was doing his best to come to terms with it. He then spoke quietly. "How are you feeling? Are you still tired?"

"I'm okay, you need to take a breather," I said softly.

He spoke quietly. "You're right, I do need a break. I've been a bit overwhelmed by everything." He leaned back against the couch and took a deep breath, trying to unwind and relax. He spoke again after a few moments. "It's just... a lot to take in, you know? Finding out that you're pregnant, it's a lot to process."

"Yes, I know but you just need to calm down. It's a normal natural thing," I replied.

He spoke quietly. "I know, I just... I want to make sure everything goes well. I'm worried about you, about the baby. I want to do everything I can to support you and make sure you're both okay."

"I understand that as well but if you're overwhelmed you will make me overwhelmed," I responded calmly.

He spoke quietly. "You're right, I don't want to make things harder for you. I need to take a breath and calm down, for your sake and the baby."

He took another deep breath and tried to relax further, trying to push the worry and stress out of his mind. He spoke gently. "I just can't help but worry. There's so much that could go wrong, and I just want to do everything I can to make sure you and the baby are safe and healthy."

He continued to relax and take deep breaths, trying to clear his mind and focus on the present. He spoke again, his voice softer than before. "I'll do my best to keep my worry under control. I don't want to make things more stressful for you, you're going through enough already."

He leaned back against the couch, his gaze going to my stomach for a moment before looking back at me. He spoke again quietly. "Can I ask you a question?" I nodded.

He spoke quietly, his eyes looking into mine. "How... how are you feeling? I mean, about the baby. Are you... happy?" 

"I am happy," I replied.

He spoke quietly. "Good, I'm glad you're happy. I want you to be happy, and I want this baby to bring us nothing but joy."

"But what does that mean for us?" I looked at him.

He looked at me and met my gaze, his mind going to my question. He knew that the pregnancy would bring changes to both of our lives. He spoke quietly. "Well, it means a lot of things. It means that we're going to be parents. It means that our lives are going to change in many ways. But most importantly, it means that we're going to have a child to love, to care for, and to raise together."

"Not that, I mean us. What are we? We slept together yes, but what does that mean? Are we in a relationship?" I leaned forward and looked at him again.

 He understood what I was getting at. He spoke gently, his voice serious but soft. "Well... to be honest, I've been thinking about the same thing. I... I care about you, more than you know. And I want to be there for you and the baby. But... I hadn't yet thought about whether we're in a relationship or not."

He paused for a moment, his mind racing as he thought about the meaning of my question. He continued after a few moments of silence. "If it were up to me... I would say yes, we are in a relationship. Because I don't want to just be the father of your baby, I want to be your partner too."

"Then can we be in a relationship?" I asked gently.