Baby Deyes: A Zalfie Fanfiction

Week Nineteen: Flooding and Feet

Okay, so this might be a long intro.
Hi.
My name is [ Da- ]
Wait.
So.
A few weeks ago I had an Art Mock exam, which I did fairly well in, thank you very much, and next I will have three Ancient History exams on Cleopatra, Alexander the Great and Hannibal (not Lecter). I'm going to be really busy until mid January, and then I have my actual exams in Art and Ancient History. So uploads will be a little less regular. But don't worry, I haven't run out of ideas!
Also I'm going to write in present tense from now on.
I woke up on a Tuesday morning in March to Alfie shaking me violently.
"Alfie?"
"Zoe, quick! It's the kitchen - it's flooded!"
Immediately I spring up in bed. "Flooded?"
"The tap's been running all night. I got a drink at about 11 and was editing, so I completely forgot to turn it off. The plug was in, I don't know why. There's about a centimetre of water, but it's only spread about two meters-"
I'm already downstairs. Nala is yapping away in her dog bed, which we'd moved next to the oven after it had been on to keep her warm.
"Oh, Nala bear!" I scoop her up and cuddle her gently. Her paws are cold and wet and she shivers in my arms. I quickly feel the warm radiator in the lounge and put her next to it on a soft blanket.
"Right."
I stand with my toes centimetres away from the pool and begin to laugh. I take a soaking wet sock from the water and lie on the floor next to the table, helpless, the dripping hosiery in hand.
"I haven't heard that laugh in a while." Alfie notes. For some reason he lies down next to me and we stare at the ceiling.
"Shall I get a mop?" I suggest quietly.
"I'll get some tea towels or something." Alfie agrees.
It takes the whole day to get the kitchen back to rights. During that time there are three minor disagreements (1: Is Alfie scrubbing water with tea towels a useful time-consuming activity; answer no, as won by me. 2: Is this mop doing anything more useful than Alfie's tea towel fiasco; answer no, as won by Alfie. 3: Is repetitive motion such as mopping a good idea while pregnant; answer no, as won by Alfie), two minutes of Nala sneezing and me worrying she had the flu and one small tidal wave when Alfie fell over.
"Well that wasn't stressful at all," Alfie says sarcastically. We're both dripping wet and cold.
"You go and have a bath first. Don't want you catching pneumonia and missing your 20 week scan next week." Alfie pushes me towards the bathroom.
"It's a boy." I maintain, climbing the stairs.
"It's a girl." Alfie calls after me.
"You chose his name!"
"Did not!"
This carries on until I am in the bath, the warm bubbles cascading over my small stomach.
"When are you going to kick, Harry?"
Suddenly there is a small flurry of activity that feels a bit like wind, and come to think of it I felt it a few flutters earlier on in the day.
"That's you, isn't it?"
There is another small flutter as if Harry is clapping in agreement. In a moment I'm out of the bath, my hair in its slightly damp bun and with a towel wrapped around me. Can't be too careful with fans these days.
"Alfie!" I run downstairs. As I reach the bottom Alfie catches me as I nearly tumble.
"It's Harry!" I point excitedly. "I can feel him!"
Alfie put a his hand on my towel. "That's a foot!" He laughs as the baby kicks him repeatedly, as if to make up for lost time.
I finish my bath, singing loudly and splashing Alfie when he comes in. Then I get my thick towels and a fluffy robe and then sit on the sofa with Alfie cuddled up next to me, both of our hands of my bump.