I opened the door to our apartment and it felt like heaven compared to the hospital. It didn't smell like disinfectant and the walls weren't a shade of sickly yellow. I stepped inside and held the door open for Harry who was carrying Patrick in his car seat. He pushed it shut with his foot as I put my bags down near the door.
"Welcome home Pat" Harry whispered to the sleeping baby. He carried the small blue seat over to the coffee table and placed it on the top. "So....what do we do now?" Harry said to me. He carefully pulled the hat off Patrick's head and placed it on the table.
"Well" I said, coming up behind him. "I'm going in the shower before anything else. I feel all hospitally and gross." I shuddered at the thought of it. Harry's hand reached up and squeezed mine which was resting on his shoulder.
"Okay. I'll be here." He leaned back into the sofa and grabbed his phone. I watched as he took a photo of the baby and sent it to his mom. I left the room to have a shower.
"Lilo, Lilo, wake up" I felt a hand nudge my shoulder and slowly opened my eyes. I was lying horizontally across the bed in my pyjamas, my hair still damp from the shower. Harry was looking down at me; Patrick was in his arms and was gurgling softly. "You okay?" He asked.
"Yeah" I couldn't help but yawn as I sat up and flattened my hair down. "I must have fallen asleep." I stood up and stretched my back; it was stiff from how I'd been sleeping. "Sorry."
"Hey, there's no need to apologise, you must be shattered, I'd have let you carry on but mom just rang, they're all on their way" He bounced his arms slightly as he spoke, Patrick's raised hands bobbed around as they waved in the air, reaching up to his dad.
"All?" I asked. "Who's all?" I made my way to do my hair; It was practically dry already so I started to straighten it.
"My parents, Gemma, your parents" He sat down on the bed and watched as I methodically did my hair. "It's going to be pretty hectic."
"Pretty busy? It's going to be like Time Square." I brushed my fingers through my hair and switched my strengtheners off. It never took me long to do it. "I'll take Pat if you want to shower." I offered.
"That would be great." He smiled. I spun around on my chair and raised my arms to take the baby. His warm weight filled my arms as Harry passed him to me and he gurgled softly as I got him comfortable.
I took him into the nursery, next door to our room, as Harry showered. I could hear him singing the new One Direction song that hadn't been released yet. Even as it was sung in the shower to the sound of falling water I knew it was going to be a hit. "That's your daddy" I whispered to Patrick as he gazed up at me. His small hand gripped my little finger and he held onto it. I sat down in the arm chair next to his crib and turned the dial of his mobile so the music played. Harry had stopped singing; he always did when he shampooed his hair. The soft tinkle of the nursery rhyme filled the room.Patrick stopped looking at my finger wrapped in his hand and looked up, trying to find where the music was coming from. His green eyes were exactly like Harry's.
"I think they're here" a voice said from the door way. I turned to see Harry there in a t-shirt and shorts.
"Woah, you were quick." I stood up to make my way to the living room, Patrick was still holding onto my finger.
"I know, I had one before I came to get you this morning so I didn't really need one now, I just did it to freshen up." He stroked a finger over the soft curly brown hair that was fluffed up on Patrick's head. He flattened it down before turning to walk out the door. "But yeah, I think I can hear them all coming up. They're not exactly quiet." He grinned. As he finished speaking there was a knock at the front door. He looked at me, smirked and headed over to open it.
"Hey Harry." I heard my mom say. "Where's my little grandson?"
"Over here" I call, coming into view. She rushed over and stopped dead in front of me, gazing down at the baby in my arms. "Oh Lilo" she whispered. "He's gorgeous." She reached a finger out to smooth the soft hair on his head. My dad came up behind her and smiled at me with pride.
"So this is my grandson then" he looked at the baby in my arms and I nodded.
"Here, hold him." I held my arms out to my mom and slid the baby into her arms. It had been years since she'd held me as a baby, her last child, yet she went straight back into the mothering role with ease. She was a natural. My dad lovingly looked over her shoulder to Patrick in her arms.
"He looks very similar to your brother when he was a baby" he said. "I can see he'll get his brown hair." He came over to me and hugged me tightly, before Anne, Robin and Gemma came over. "This is going to be a busy afternoon" he whispered. "If you want peace, tell everyone, it's your house and your baby" he winked. "I remember what it was like when you and your brother were born. Utter madness."
"Thanks" I smiled.
"He's so cute!" Gemma called, I couldn't see which but I knew it wasn't Anne or my mom. "Can I hold him?"
"Gemma, let Lilo's Dad hold him first, it's his Grandson" Anne said, clearing up who it was. I smiled as I watched my dad take my son in his arms. I grabbed my phone from the pocket in my pyjama bottoms and took a photo of him beaming down at my son, my mom stood behind him, looking down at them both with her hand on my dad's shoulder.
I looked up from the screen of my phone after I'd taken the photo to find Harry looking at me. He winked before turning away and talking to his Dad. I looked back to my parents to find them reluctantly passing Patrick on to Anne. I knew Harry was happy to have his mom and dad each other for this, he hated that they'd separated. I noticed a tear slowly roll down Anne's cheek as she held the baby, who immediately began to cry. "Oh gosh" she gasped. "I don't think he likes me" she laughed nervously.
"It's okay mum, I think he's just tired." Harry said, coming up behind her.
Anne started to rock her arms and the crying slowly quietened and came to a stop as he fell asleep and was passed around the room into the arms of Gemma and then finally, back into mine.
