Never Quit Loving You

O N E

Betty was woken by a screaming little boy. Her mind still half-asleep, she kept her eyes shut and enjoyed the gentle breeze of summer air that sent a few strands of her hair into her face and chilled up her over-heated bare feet. She yawned, her mouth going wide open while doing so, and smiled when she felt two little hands on her cheeks.

"Morning, Mommy!"

With a quiet groan, Betty helped the boy climb under the sheets and wrapped him up in her arms. "Good morning, little Nugget."

The little boy giggled as she kissed his forehead and patted her cheek thrice. "Mommy, wake up. I'm hungry."

Betty nuzzled her nose into her son's black hair and sighed. "Let's cuddle a little longer, huh?"

"Nuh-uh. I'm hungry."

The woman slowly let her eyes flutter open and leaned a bit away to look into the boy's identical emerald eyes. "Is grandpa at home, still?"

"Kitchen," he said, adding a few more words that Betty couldn't quite make out in her sleepy state.

"Isn't he making breakfast?"

"Coffee," Wesley said with his nose all wrinkled up. "Smells yucky."

Betty smiled a bit and kissed his chubby cheek. "Okay. Do you need to go potty?"

"Grandpa helped."

"Good boy," she whispered and kissed him once again before sitting up with another yawn. "Alright, let's go and get your tummy all filled up again."

The little boy giggled, showing off his cute little dimples, and slid off the bed, careful not to fall like he had a few days back.

Betty watched him run out of the room while she pulled on a pair of pajama shorts that she hated sleeping in and was faced with her two-year-old son on the door a moment later, frowning at her. A smile took over her face, watching his annoyed expression, and she giggled quietly when the boy grabbed her hand and started running, tugging her faster with him.

"Calm down, Wes," she said when he tried to hurry down the stairs and was about to fall on the first step.

The little boy frowned in concentration—something he had gotten from her—and took a step by step while Betty slowly walked with him, holding his hand since he was too excited to let go of it.

Once on the bottom floor, he tried to make her hurry up again, and they entered the kitchen together, the little boy pulling Betty with him as well as he could. "Morning, honey," Fred chuckled at her tired expression.

"Morning," Betty yawned. "Heading to work?"

"Yep, Peter's picking me up. What are you two planning on doing today?"

"Mommy promised read a book," Wesley told the older man that he had gotten to know as grandpa during his almost three years of life.

"I did?" Betty asked in another yawn, feeling extra tired because of all the schoolwork she had done lately.

"Yes," the little boy whined. "When you readed bedtime."

"Read," Betty said, and the boy repeated the word after her. "And yes, I suppose I promised another book today."

"Uh-huh. New one!"

Betty smiled at her son's excitement and nodded. "I think we'll go to the park today if he behaves," she told Fred while taking out some eggs and bacon.

"Park!" Wesley immediately squealed and started jumping up and down as he had learned to do faster and more continuously lately.

"Sounds like you're gonna have a productive day out," Fred chuckled. "My shift ends at six today. I can get some groceries later."