Unexpected (A Chris Hemsworth Fanfiction)

Chapter 26: Nesting Time

Six months later...

At nine months pregnant, I wanted the baby out of me and would need to be restrained during labor. In the meantime, my nesting phase went into full swing. While we had gotten things together since we moved in and accumulated gifts from friends and family, it was all coming together from the exoskeleton of a space with a crib and pile of goods. At first, Chris wanted to surprise me with the nursery, but after careful thought and realizing this pregnancy was surprising enough, I wanted to take part in crafting and setting up the nursery -- especially when I was in the physical state to do so.

Despite my fervent belief that we were having a boy and in the spirit of breaking traditional norms, Chris and I opted for a gender-neutral nursery theme: Australian geography and nature. Before Chris left to star in his latest film, we did a DIY wall art project where the left side of the room adjacent to a closet and large window, depicted the Outback with a dry landscape, sparse eucalyptus trees, the rock formation Uluru, and other features that alluded to being out in the Bush; the center wall on the side of the entry and facing window was Byron Bay and its beaches where we had people surfing on the waves and below them a magical word where all sorts of sea creatures swam about among brightly colored coral reefs; and finally, a eucalyptus forest on the third wall. For this portion, Elouise and Jadyn even came by to assist with smaller details and particular animals like koalas, kookaburra, kangaroos, and more examples of animals unique to Australia. It was wonderful to have company and have some fun preparing for the baby's arrival. It even gave me time to practice being a mother with Steven, Jadyn's eldest who would soon be two, Scarlett, who was six months old, and most recently, Johanna, Elouise's first who by then had only been outside the womb two months. Until they had more children, I would be the last of them to give birth.

Once the designs were complete and dried, Chris positioned the crib horizontally against the eucalyptus forest backdrop, set up the changing table against the Outback side of the room, and a medium-sized box designed to look like a treasure chest faced the window from Byron Bay. I was more the eyes of the operation given I couldn't lift anything too heavy and Chris appreciated the ability to do a work-out without lifting or hard cardio. We even laid down a multi-colored carpet with forest greens, blues, whites, and browns to tie-in the color scheme. Since Chris left, I got a rocking chair that I found myself falling asleep in if I wasn't puttering about, a box for books and stuffed animals to be placed behind the chair and put minute details into place. These details included outfitting the interior of the crib with a few soft blankets that would hang off the edge and placing some of the toys people had already purchased. At the time, I chose to display a dachshund-sized wombat, koala, a large platypus, quokka, dingo, and as a surprise, Thor. As I knew I couldn't always go be with Chris and as a screenwriter and I didn't always have to be on-set, naturally giving me the brunt, I wanted our child to know that even if Daddy wasn't around, he would always be with him.

I also left places to be filled by items received from our baby shower like sheets for the cot, towels, and necessary items. I was putting the finishing touches on remaining items until our baby shower the following week. I said I didn't want one, but Chris and I warmed to the idea when Erika said it would be more like "Chris & Erins' final shindig before becoming boring" instead of having my female friends sitting around me as I opened gifts and pretend that the miracle life came without any difficulties. A shower by its very nature seemed cheesy, but a party was a completely different affair altogether.

The day before Chris was due to come home, I was folding onesies to be tucked away amongst others in the closet. Then there was a vibrating sound in my pocket. I took the phone up to my ear and answered, "Hello, Erin speaking."

Elouise's voice chimed in, "Good afternoon to the sweetest mama-to-be around. Jojo and I are the gate."

"I'll buzz you in," I waddled out of the room downstairs by the garage door. In the past few months and considering what happened before we bought the house, Chris and I decided further security would be important. The system surveyed that property with cameras and with the press of a button I could lock the gate and certain doors automatically. It also worked vice versa with visitors. I punched in the code on the touch screen and pressed the "Open Gate" option. "The front door is unlocked."