salute [h.s]

the one with the baby

"You go."

"It's your turn."

"He's your son."

"What kind of argument is that?" Harry murmured back at her, giving her shoulder a rough nudge that was insisting she be the one to get up and go see why their son was crying. "He's your son too."

"But you're a boy and he's a boy. You have a bond of kinship stronger than ours because you're both manly men. You go."

"You're a mum. That sort of trumps all manly men ties."

"Are you calling our son a mummy's boy?"

"He takes after his dad like that." Piper cracked her eyes open to sneak a peek at Harry and saw that he was grinning stupidly in her direction. She narrowed her eyes at him and Harry, who seemed much more awake than she was, finally pushed himself onto his side and slid his legs out of bed. "Just remember, petal, that I love you very much and that's the reason that you get away with this every single time."

Piper grinned proudly as she watched Harry cross the bottom of the bed, headed for the door. "I know."

She managed to drift off again once she heard the baby stop crying and Harry's low voice echoing enthusiastically down the hall to the bedroom as he greeted his son in the nursery. She could hear him chattering on about mindless things as he changed the baby (he had a habit of talking ceaselessly to the little guy even though he was usually so quiet normally) and she let Harry's soothing baritone lull her back to sleep.

She only woke once more when she felt the mattress dip on Harry's side. With a groan, she cracked her eyes open and was greeted with her absolute favourite sight in the world. Their little boy looked like Harry's double. Both of them were only wearing bottoms (Harry in his boxers, the baby in his diaper) and both of them had a mass of messy curls around their heads. The both of them also had those glorious dimples poking into their cheeks.

"Hey champ," Harry said softly to the baby, speaking the words into their son's cheek so that the baby giggled at the ticklish sensation, "you going to say good morning to your mummy?"

The baby cooed and smiled broadly, reaching his little fists out toward Piper. She shifted and opened her arms and Harry deposited their son into her embrace. He landed with a thump on her chest and dug his little palms into her sternum as he tried to readjust himself. Piper swept him up, delighting in his little baby laugh, full of glee, and sat him on her stomach. She made a show of eating one of his feet as he dissolved into giggles.

"Morning, my little man. What're you doing up so early?" Her only reply was a gurgle and a wide smile. "You like your daddy? Going to torture me with early mornings for the rest of your life? You Styles men don't know how to sleep in."

"If I slept in," Harry interrupted, "then who would make breakfast?" Piper looked hopefully at her husband and he laughed. "Yeah, yeah, I'm going. Any requests?"

"Do you need to ask?"

"Eggy bread it is." Harry pushed himself up and off the bed, leaning over to give Piper a kiss on the forehead and then do the same for their son. "You watch your mummy, champ. Make sure she stays out of trouble."

The baby gave Harry a bewildered look, scrunching his face up in the same way Harry did when he was confused about something. It warmed Piper's heart and she rewarded her son by tickling his tummy.

As she watched Harry go (her eyes lingering on his perfect bum as he sauntered out of the room) she marvelled at how lucky she was. With her two Styles men, she had everything she needed.