Chapter 34

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Chapter 34

       I walked into the cafe, sighing in relief when I saw that the lineup wasn't too long. I just wanted to get in and get out with my cookies. Even though I was no longer pregnant, I still wanted five of those delicious cookies.

       As soon as I got the cookies, I paid and turned around to walk out the door. Right as I was about to walk out, Thalia walked in. She gave me a smile. "Hi, Poppy!" she said. "I'm glad to see you're okay. I heard what happened and I wanted to visit you in the hospital, but Roland got a summer job and was working almost every day, so I couldn't find my way down there."

       "It's fine," I said.

       Her eyes then landed on my stomach before she looked at me again. "Do my eyes deceive me, or do you no longer have your pregnant belly." Her eyes then widened. "You didn't lose him after the whole car thing, did you?!"

       I smiled and shook my head. "No, I didn't lose him. The pressure of me getting hit actually caused me to go into labor, so I had him a bit over a week ago."

       "Really?" she asked with a smile. "And he's okay?"

       I nodded. "Yeah, he's perfectly fine."

       "Do you think I can come over to meet him?" she asked. "I just wanted to grab a coffee before going to my dorm and being bored out of my mind."

       "Yeah, you can come over," I said. "I'll wait here while we get your coffee."

       "Sweet, thanks," she said.

       After getting her coffee, we walked back to my apartment. I unlocked the door, since Grayson demanded on keeping it lock at all times, even if one or both of us were home. I didn't blame him; finding out that Dedrick was released from prison and wanted to get Grayson was frightening.

       I held the door opened for Thalia and after she walked in, I closed the door. I took off my shoes and led her to the living room, where Grayson was sleeping with Ryder sleeping on his chest. It was one of the cutest things I had ever seen. Grayson had one arm gently around Ryder while the other one rested over his eyes.

       "Aww," Thalia said softly. "That's so cute!"

       I smiled because I agreed. I loved seeing my boyfriend and my son together.

       I knelt down beside the couch. "Grayson," I said softly, gently shaking his shoulders. 

       He slowly removed his arm from over his eyes and blinked a few times before looking at me. "Did I fall asleep?" he asked.

       "Yeah," I said.

       Grayson sighed, then yawned. "I was just laying down with him because he was fussy and I guess I crashed as well."

       "Thalia is here, by the way," I said, gesturing to her. "She wanted to meet Ryder."

       "He's sleeping right now, though."

       "So?" I asked. "It doesn't mean she can't meet him."

       Thalia knelt down beside me. "He's so cute," she said. "How is it being parents?"

       "It's hard," I said. "Newborns never sleep through the night and Grayson won't let me get out of bed to take care of him. He does it every single time."

       "That's because you're supposed to rest," Grayson pointed out. "Especially because of you're back. You're supposed to take it easy and getting out of bed every other hour won't help."

       "I can get up at least once," I pointed out.

       "I bring him to you, anyway," Grayson said. "There's no point of you getting up and getting back down when I can bring him to you."

       "That's true," I guess. "How long has he been sleeping for?"

       "I don't know," Grayson said. "I think he fell asleep a minute or two after you left. He was fussy for a bit but as soon as I laid down with him, he was lights out."

       "Is he a quiet baby?" Thalia asked.

       "Uh, somewhat," I said. "He gets fussy a lot when he's not being held. Or when Grayson's not holding him."

       Grayson smiled. "He loves me more."

       ....I wasn't going to doubt that. There were times that I was snuggling Ryder and he wouldn't stop being fussy until Grayson was holding him. Seriously. Ryder loved Grayson more than me.

       Ryder then started fussing a bit, squirming on Grayson's chest before slowly opening his eyes. "Aww!" Thalia gushed. "His eyes are so cute! He looks so much like Grayson!"

       I sighed. Ryder looked a lot like Grayson and loved Grayson more than me. It was like Grayson was the one who gave birth, not him.

       "Hi, buddy," Grayson said softly to Ryder. "Did you have a good sleep?"

       In reply, Ryder yawned. "I can't get over how cute he is," Thalia said. "You two are lucky to have him in your life."

       "Yeah, we are," I said, smiling faintly as I looked at Ryder. Even though I was still in university and just turned nineteen, I wouldn't want to go back in time to fix my and Grayson's mistake of not using protection, because that mistake was what made Ryder.

       And Ryder is definitely not a mistake.

       "I should be going," Thalia said. "I just wanted to meet the little cutie." She stood up. "If you ever want to hang out, just text me." 

       I nodded. "I will."

       Thalia waved goodbye before walking out of the apartment. I looked back at Grayson, who now had Ryder's little hand around one of Grayson's fingers. Ryder looked so peaceful and comfortable in Grayson's hold.

       "Mind sitting up so I can sit down?" I asked.

       "Nah," Grayson said. "You can always lay down with us. There's room."

       I raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, there's no room on the couch."

       "I meant on me."

       I sighed, but Grayson just looked at me with an innocent smile. I climbed on top of Grayson on the side Ryder wasn't on and snuggled into him. "I like this feeling," Grayson said. "My girlfriend and my son and me all laying together."

       I chuckled softly. "Yeah, I like it too. Although, I might like it better if Ryder liked me more than you. I'm his mom. I carried him and gave birth to him. But he would rather be with his dad than me."

       "Don't be jealous, Flower," Grayson said. "He just wants to be like his daddy."

       "I don't doubt that," I said. "Because you are an amazing guy. I would love for our son to be like you when he's older. Caring, sweet, kind."

       "You really think of me that way?" Grayson asked. "What about when we first met? I was a jerk."

       "Not to me," I reminded. "You stood up for me when nobody was there for me. You became my friend when nobody else was willing to. And, the most important thing, is that you stuck by my side through the pregnancy and now, here's Ryder and you taking care of him so well. You're a great boyfriend to me and dad to him."

       Grayson smiled at me and pressed his lips onto my forehead. "Thank you, Flower."

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Grayson is such a cute little dad. cx And I love that Ryder likes him more than Poppy. cx Ryder and Grayson's relationship later on is the cutest thing ever.

So I'm pretty sure this book will be longer than the previous one, which had 45 chapters. Then it will officially be the longest book I wrote. cx

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