The Eye of a Hurricane

Lin

A/N: Thanks for votes and comments! Please keep me going. 😃

Pippa had always had a flat belly and a slender figure.  It wasn't terribly long before her pregnancy started to show.  Just a little bulge in her belly, but I couldn't keep my hands off it.  Our child was growing inside. 

I adored Isabel and Luna, but having my own child would be different.  It would be my own flesh and blood; something I'd created.  I couldn't wait to meet him or her.

We realized our current apartment wouldn't cut it once the baby arrived.  The girls were already sharing a room.  They'd been really good about it so far, but Isabel was about to become a teenager and could really do with her own space.  Pippa and I started quietly looking for four bedrooms in Washington Heights.

We finally found the perfect place.  There were big windows, letting in lots of sunlight, and hardwood floors throughout.  We put in an offer and it was accepted.  On that Friday after school, we decided to take the girls by to see their new place.  They had no idea we were even looking.

I put the key in the lock and opened the door to the empty apartment.  Luna immediately started running around in the big, open space.  Isabel walked around more curiously, taking in everything.

"What do you think of the place?" I asked them after a few minutes.

"It's biiiig!!" Luna declared, her arms outstretched.

"It's nice," Isabel said.  "Why did you bring us here?"

"Because..." I paused dramatically, wrapping my arm around Pippa's hip.  "It's ours!  We're moving!"

Both girls' faces lit up with excitement.  Isabel realized that meant she'd get a new bedroom, so she ran down the hallway to look.  I laughed as Luna trailed behind her. I'd already pictured her in the far bedroom, the biggest one with the biggest window.  Luna would be next door, and the baby at the end.  The girls seemed to read my mind, claiming those exact bedrooms for themselves.

"So, I get my own room?" Luna asked me, her dark brown eyes looking up with excitement.

"That's right," I told her.  "We'll have to go shopping to get you both more furniture.  And a crib for the baby and everything."

"Wow!!" she said, jumping around, full of excitement.

Isabel whipped out the phone she now had and started taking pictures of her space.  She pulled up the Pottery Barn website to start looking for furniture, planning things out.  I kissed Pippa as the girls continued to explore the house.

We went to lunch to celebrate, and we were all in high spirits.  We'd have to start packing quickly.  Luckily, we had several buyers interested in my property.

Moving day soon came and while Pippa was still in the early stages of her pregnancy, I insisted she do very little.  She started unpacking clothes for Luna in her bedroom.  She got the old furniture from the bedroom she and Isabel had shared.  The bunk beds came apart easily, so now they both had their own twin beds on floor level.

Luna delighted in the new little vanity table we'd gotten her, complete with a mirror.  Every time I walked by, she was sitting on the little chair making faces at herself in the mirror.  I chuckled as I worked with the movers to get everything in place.

We had pizza that night and the girls both conked out early.  Pippa and I didn't make it much longer.

The girls had always slept in the same room, so I shouldn't have been surprised when I woke up the next morning to find Luna curled up in bed with Isabel.  I smirked as I watched them sleeping, laying side by side.  They had a very close bond, and I hoped they always would.