These Awkward Moments

Chapter 49 Introductions

Delilah's POV
The next morning we introduced Mercy to her new baby brother. She wasn't quite old enough to grasp the significance the presence of a new baby would play in her life. I sat on the sofa and snuggled her while Daryl brought the baby in. Her eyes sparkled as she peeked at him in his blanket. "Baby!"

Daryl and I smiled at each other. "Yes, this is Bowyn. He's your baby brother."

She frowned and looked at Max. "Mats!"

I chuckled. "Yes, Max is your big brother. Now you have a baby brother too." She gave him kisses on his forehead and stroked his hand softly. Then she quickly lost interest and turned to me to tug on my shirt "Nums pease."

This was her signal that she wanted to nurse. "You want nums?" She nodded and I pulled up my shirt to latch her on. I thought it was best to go ahead and dive in to the potential for sibling rivalry over breast territory as soon as possible. "Ok. Bowyn needs nums too. Can mama feed Bowyn nums?"

She nodded, but continued to nurse. Daryl handed me the baby and I tucked him under my arm in a football hold. He latched on as vigorously as he had from the beginning. Mercy glanced over and reached out with her hand to softly pat his head. I looked up at Daryl to see him watching us with the most open look of love on his face I had ever seen.

We had Max go to the homes of our closest friends to tell them what had happened. He told Rick and Michonne, Carol and Tobin, and Aaron and Eric. Throughout the morning they all made appearances to visit and welcome our newest family member. I asked that they keep the news as quiet as possible so that we weren't flooded by everyone in town coming through the door. We would introduce the baby at dinner that night.

When I had Mercy, getting her accustomed to the sling and keeping her as quiet as possible by nursing her frequently had been essential for our survival. I knew it wasn't so important this time, but still felt that it would be a smart practice in case of emergency. Daryl agreed. I also knew that keeping the baby skin to skin at this point would help him gain weight faster. He would use our body heat to regulate his temperature instead of burning his own calories. The sling helped with that also.

I started by carrying him around in the house in the sling with a robe wrapped over the top of us both. This let me read his feeding cues so I could latch him to the breast before he got agitated and cried. Daryl was fascinated by this whole process. "So this is why Mercy was such a quiet and happy baby when y'all first came here, huh?"

I nodded. "Yeah. If they learn from the start that their mama will respond to early cues, they don't have to rely on crying as a form of communication."

He smiled at me. "I always knew you were smart Doc, but you really got this parenting stuff down!"

I chuckled. "I think I do pretty good with infants and toddlers, but I can't guarantee how great I'm gonna be once they're old enough ta start gettin' sassy... or when they're teenagers tryin' ta sneak outta the house ta go off on some adventure."

Max had just quietly walked past us without saying a word, on his way to the front door. He turned around and smiled. "I wasn't sneakin' out. I just didn't wanna interrupt y'all. I just wanted ta get outta the house for a while and hang out with Carl. We won't get into any trouble. Is it ok mama?"

I chuckled. "Yes son. I was just messin' with ya. You deserve some down time hangin' out with your friends. Have fun."

He nodded and smiled. "Ok... But if ya need anything, I'll just be at Carl's house. Just send for me if ya need me, ok? I won't be gone long."