The Circle

20

"Must you really wear those sunglasses?" I asked Harry, glancing at the white sunglasses that were on top of his head.

He raised an eyebrow and flicked them down so they covered his eyes, smirking at me. "Don't like them?"

"You remind me of Willy Wonka," I laughed, recalling something I had seen online from the last time Harry had worn the same sunglasses.

He frowned, taking the sunglasses off of his face and setting them down. "Rude."

"I was kidding but I'm glad you took them off. Why don't you wear one of the other hundreds of pairs you have that don't happen to be white?" I asked, gesturing to the rows of shades lining a shelf on his walk in closet.

"And, pray tell me why I should be accepting fashion advice from someone who is wearing Velcro shoes?" He snickered to himself and disappeared into the closet, returning with a pair of silver aviators on top of his head.

I glanced down at my feet - at least tried too. I had ordered a pair of white sneakers with Velcro to make getting my shoes on and off that much easier during the last month of my pregnancy. Having sworn Harry to not make fun of me was the first thing I had done when he saw the shoes, but clearly, that was out the window once I had poked fun at his sunglasses. I sniffled slightly, knowing how completely hideous the shoes were, but they were comfortable and I could actually get them on without the help of my husband or children.

"Oh, love, you know I'm kidding," Harry said when he saw the look on my face. He took my hands in his and squeezed gently. "And after you give birth, I know we'll both take pleasure in burning those shoes."

I couldn't decide whether to laugh or cry but the clamouring of the kids up the stairs stopped me from doing either.

"Is it time yet?" Joey asked, rushing into Harry's waiting arms while Jamie lingered behind, hanging out in the doorway.

"Time for what, love?" Harry asked, picking up Joey and planting a smacking kiss on her cheek. She giggled and kissed him back.

"Time to meet our brother or sister?" She asked.

I glanced at Harry who noticed Jamie still hadn't come into the bedroom yet. "Sweetie, come give your mum a hug," I held open my arms for Jamie but he refused to budge.

His big brown eyes began to water and he turned on his heel to disappear into his room, the door shutting behind him echoing in the hallway.

"Joey, did something happen at school with your brother?" I asked, curious to know what was wrong. Both had adjusted fairly well to the idea of a new sibling throughout my pregnancy so I was hoping it wasn't that he was upset about.

Joey shrugged, wriggling out of Harry's arms and he set her back down on the floor. "He seemed fine on the way home from school."

"Alright, darling, well why don't you go get anything ready you'd like to take with you to Nan's? After you give me a hug, please!" I sounded more exasperated than I meant too, sitting down on the bed so Joey could come over and give me a proper greeting. She hugged more of my stomach than me, pressing a lingering kiss to my bump before she poked it, whispering something that sounded a lot like "time to come out!" Before she disappeared off to her bedroom.

"What do you think is wrong with Jamie?" I murmured as Harry helped me up from the bed, his hand remaining in mine as we made our way towards Jamie's bedroom.

I could hear the sound of the television before I pushed open the door to Jamie's room and found him packing a backpack full of what looked like mostly toys.

"Getting ready for Nan's?" Harry asked, sitting down next to Jamie so he could help him stuff the last animal into the backpack.

"No."