"Daddy?" a soft mumble of his official 标题 broke its way through the barrier of exhaustion that was holding him down in the 床, 床上 sheets.
With everything that had been going on recently Robert Philip hadn't had a full night's rest in months, and it seemed tonight, 或者 rather this morning, was not going to be any different. He had retired early (well earlier than normal), fallen asleep whilst snuggled up to a beautiful woman and hadn't been prodded 或者 kicked awake….until now.
But he knew he had to rise, he recognised the muted tones of that voice and assuring their maker was 安全 and well was far 更多 important than his own comfort.
So Robert groaned and struggled to open one eye as he felt the mattress dip slightly beneath him.
He didn't know the exact hour, but from the lack of burning pain and the darkness hanging in the air he guessed it was still early…very early.
He blinked in an attempt to remove some of the sticky residue from the corner of his eyes, but as soon as his eyelids touched together he found he was unable to open them again, instead he allowed the comforting blackness to envelop him once more; his breathing slowed.
Then something soft hit him in the shoulder.
Groaning again, he batted the offending object away with a wave of his arm. Something cottony brushed against his fingertips as he withdrew his hand back to its original position, and it gave another little whimper,
"Daddy?"
His brow creased.
He knew he had to get up, he knew he had to attend to the voice…yet it seemed sleep did not want to release him from its embrace.
But the voice was insistent, getting louder and louder.
Another hit came, and another, and another. These were harder, and 由 the eighth…or maybe the tenth one, his arm was aching. The dull pain was able to cut through the threads of exhaustion that had cocooned him, and combined with the growing desperation in The Voice he managed to break sleep's hold, his mind prising its tight, warm fingers from his body.
He groaned, forcing both of his eyes open and turning only his head towards the 来源 of the attack,
"OK," he croaked out, amazed he was able to raise any comprehensible sound from his parched throat at such an ungodly hour, "OK Morgan, I'm up, I'm up. Oh God, what time is it?"
He moved his gaze from his daughter's familiar face to the glaringly bright display of the alarm clock, sighing when he finally managed to string the numbers together into the correct time.
5:42! She had to be kidding! Why on Earth was she up so…then suddenly it hit him, along with the blurry figure of numbers was the equally blurry date…12/25….Christmas day!
Panic suddenly hit him like a speeding car.
Presents! Had he laid out presents?
Searching back through his mind he discovered only vague memories of setting out numerous, brightly wrapped boxes under the tree, 更多 like a half-remembered story than a recollection of actual events. Was he thinking of actions undertaken yesterday? 或者 last year?
No, he assured himself, he had gotten them out. He was 100% sure….well 95%...80%...maybe 65%?
Slowly he withdrew his hands from the warmth of his wife's waist, briefly passing his hands over her swollen stomach with a tender smile before giving his full attention to his daughter.
He was no longer angry for her unexpected wake-up call, it was 圣诞节 after all and who could be angry on Christmas?
"Daddy…."she crooned sweetly, his hand wandering up to 缪斯 her hair while he placed a finger of his other hand on his lips, hushing her.
"Quiet sweetheart," he whispered, leaning his face towards her with one finger still over his mouth, he looked over to Giselle who was luckily still sound asleep, "we don't want to wake mummy now, do we?"
摩根 shook her head vigorously and Robert had to contain a 圣女魔咒 chuckle; obviously his daughter knew just as well as he did that Giselle had not been sleeping well lately, and that any time she spent resting was a blessing.
They both fell silent as they cast a fond look at the woman who had entered their lives in a flurry of confusion and madness, back then he would have done anything to get rid of her and have his life return to peaceful normality. Now everyday he thanked whatever greater power was out there for her continuing presence and love. Her pretty head rested soundly on her pillow, a satisfied little smile played out on her lips and Robert was instantly thrown back to the first night when she had…quite literally…fallen into their laps. The best night of my life, he thought to himself, making no effort to hide the beaming smile that spread across his face. All of a sudden the room didn't seem so dark.
He was rewarded from his moment of quiet contentment 由 a gentle 拍击, smack, 味道 from his daughter, a giggle followed. He rubbed his shoulder, pouting a little and making sure there was plenty of mock hurt in his voice when he spoke,
"Ow! What was that for?"
"You were 白日梦 daddy," the eight 年 old chuckled, her smile 展示 she didn't really mind.
"Actually," Robert countered, leaning in to flash a mischievous smile, "I was thinking."
"About what?" 摩根 asked, resting her head upon his shoulder.
"Hmmmm," Robert sighed, "About 你 and your mother, and how happy 你 both make me."
The girl snuggled her face into his t-shirt, the grey fabric muffling her words but Robert could make out every syllable, each one warming his 心 and widening his smile,
"I 爱情 你 Daddy."
He reached his arms around her body in a tight 熊 hug. My, she was getting tall!
"Love 你 too sweetie," he murmured against her head, then pulled back to look into her face," Why don't we go and make mummy a nice drink, so it will be ready for her when she wakes up?"
The little one nodded furiously, then slipped from her father's arms, giving a little shiver when her naked toes came into contact with frosty floor. Robert followed her cautiously, making certain he did not make any loud noises 或者 disturb the bedding in such a way as to wake his slumbering wife, and together the two made their way through the gloom towards the kitchen.
Robert headed straight for the newly named 'Tea cupboard'-they had discovered two and a half months into Giselle's pregnancy that along with some rather odd cravings, she had taken a severe dislike to coffee, which included acute vomiting if she so much as caught a whiff of the stuff. Needless to say, Robert being a typical New Yorker, had had a few hellish mornings of caffeine sobriety, and had even had to give up the beverage at work after he had come 首页 with the scent clinging to his shirt, sending her sprinting to the bathroom. And so, every 豆 of coffee had been rapidly disposed of, and replaced with a drink that did not give his beloved stomach cramps: good, old tea.
"Which one should we give her?" Robert said, lifting his daughter into his arms so she could get a good view of the many coloured boxes they had at their disposal. 摩根 instantly pointed at a well-worn white and 粉, 粉色 box she knew contained one of her mother's favourites.
"This one?" her father asked, putting her down and then reaching up to pluck the box from its position. She was too big to support with just one arm anymore, and Robert's mind drifted off, wondering where the years had gone, as he began the memorised process of making the tea.
When finished Robert lovingly carried the cup back into the bedroom, laying it down on the bedside 表 beside Giselle's head, 摩根 followed him loyally all the way, not making a sound.
Robert glanced over to the clock, not surprised to see that only fifteen 分钟 have passed since he had left the warmth of her side, and while 摩根 was being the perfect daughter he could tell from the look in her eyes that all she really wanted to do was attack the pile of presents that waited for her beneath the decorated tree.
Turning back towards the little girl Robert took her small hand in his, leading her back out of the room.
"Aren't we going to wake mummy now?" she asked.
"It's still a little early, sweetie," Robert answered, selecting a book as they passed the bookshelf before sitting down on the couch, 摩根 tucked comfortably beneath his arm, "Why don't we read a story, and then we can wake her up."
摩根 sighed, but did not argue, and she even managed to squeeze out a smile when he opened the worn cover and began to read the story he knew to be her favourite.
Robert loved 阅读 to his daughter; he had missed out on the opportunity so much when she was younger and now made every effort to catch up on those regretted hours…though he had to admit it wasn't quite the same without Giselle there, holding his hand across the 床, 床上 and making her brilliant, silly voices for the characters. But he did his best.
Giselle woke up with a start, jarred awake 由 the abrupt fluttering in her stomach that she had grown accustomed to over the past months. Soothingly she rubbed circles on her stomach, humming to her baby gently, and slowly it stilled. The 秒 thing she noticed was the 床, 床上 was cold…..she rolled herself over with great difficultly and stared at the empty 太空 beside her: Robert's space.
The invigorating scent of her favourite 茶 was permeating the gloomy winter air of the apartment, she stretched out her hand to stroke the mug, it was icy beneath her fingers…just like the mattress.
She hummed to herself again as she felt their unborn child stir, clearly it liked waking up alone in 床, 床上 as much as she did…..and Robert was always able to calm the child much quicker than she could.
"Now where has your daddy gone?" she chorused in a sing-song voice, stretching her limbs out with a yawn before levering herself into a sitting position, horrified when she looked to the alarm clock and realised just how late it was, and on 圣诞节 日 too, "Shall we go and find daddy and your big sister?"
Trundling down the hall in the greyed light of a December morning, Giselle rested with a yawn, leaning against the doorway into the living room, a smile tugging at her lips as she spied her beloved husband and daughter dozing on the couch. Morgan's volume of fairy tales sat open on his knees, and the little girl herself was tucked neatly beneath his arm while his head lolled to one side quite adorably. A little giggle escaped her lips, but she stopped any further laughter, slapping her hand across her mouth as she contemplated just how lucky she was to have found her happily ever after.
Her ballooned belly twitched again,
"I think we can leave them for a little bit longer," she whispered gently, her hand running over her stomach again, "Now how about another cup of tea?"
With everything that had been going on recently Robert Philip hadn't had a full night's rest in months, and it seemed tonight, 或者 rather this morning, was not going to be any different. He had retired early (well earlier than normal), fallen asleep whilst snuggled up to a beautiful woman and hadn't been prodded 或者 kicked awake….until now.
But he knew he had to rise, he recognised the muted tones of that voice and assuring their maker was 安全 and well was far 更多 important than his own comfort.
So Robert groaned and struggled to open one eye as he felt the mattress dip slightly beneath him.
He didn't know the exact hour, but from the lack of burning pain and the darkness hanging in the air he guessed it was still early…very early.
He blinked in an attempt to remove some of the sticky residue from the corner of his eyes, but as soon as his eyelids touched together he found he was unable to open them again, instead he allowed the comforting blackness to envelop him once more; his breathing slowed.
Then something soft hit him in the shoulder.
Groaning again, he batted the offending object away with a wave of his arm. Something cottony brushed against his fingertips as he withdrew his hand back to its original position, and it gave another little whimper,
"Daddy?"
His brow creased.
He knew he had to get up, he knew he had to attend to the voice…yet it seemed sleep did not want to release him from its embrace.
But the voice was insistent, getting louder and louder.
Another hit came, and another, and another. These were harder, and 由 the eighth…or maybe the tenth one, his arm was aching. The dull pain was able to cut through the threads of exhaustion that had cocooned him, and combined with the growing desperation in The Voice he managed to break sleep's hold, his mind prising its tight, warm fingers from his body.
He groaned, forcing both of his eyes open and turning only his head towards the 来源 of the attack,
"OK," he croaked out, amazed he was able to raise any comprehensible sound from his parched throat at such an ungodly hour, "OK Morgan, I'm up, I'm up. Oh God, what time is it?"
He moved his gaze from his daughter's familiar face to the glaringly bright display of the alarm clock, sighing when he finally managed to string the numbers together into the correct time.
5:42! She had to be kidding! Why on Earth was she up so…then suddenly it hit him, along with the blurry figure of numbers was the equally blurry date…12/25….Christmas day!
Panic suddenly hit him like a speeding car.
Presents! Had he laid out presents?
Searching back through his mind he discovered only vague memories of setting out numerous, brightly wrapped boxes under the tree, 更多 like a half-remembered story than a recollection of actual events. Was he thinking of actions undertaken yesterday? 或者 last year?
No, he assured himself, he had gotten them out. He was 100% sure….well 95%...80%...maybe 65%?
Slowly he withdrew his hands from the warmth of his wife's waist, briefly passing his hands over her swollen stomach with a tender smile before giving his full attention to his daughter.
He was no longer angry for her unexpected wake-up call, it was 圣诞节 after all and who could be angry on Christmas?
"Daddy…."she crooned sweetly, his hand wandering up to 缪斯 her hair while he placed a finger of his other hand on his lips, hushing her.
"Quiet sweetheart," he whispered, leaning his face towards her with one finger still over his mouth, he looked over to Giselle who was luckily still sound asleep, "we don't want to wake mummy now, do we?"
摩根 shook her head vigorously and Robert had to contain a 圣女魔咒 chuckle; obviously his daughter knew just as well as he did that Giselle had not been sleeping well lately, and that any time she spent resting was a blessing.
They both fell silent as they cast a fond look at the woman who had entered their lives in a flurry of confusion and madness, back then he would have done anything to get rid of her and have his life return to peaceful normality. Now everyday he thanked whatever greater power was out there for her continuing presence and love. Her pretty head rested soundly on her pillow, a satisfied little smile played out on her lips and Robert was instantly thrown back to the first night when she had…quite literally…fallen into their laps. The best night of my life, he thought to himself, making no effort to hide the beaming smile that spread across his face. All of a sudden the room didn't seem so dark.
He was rewarded from his moment of quiet contentment 由 a gentle 拍击, smack, 味道 from his daughter, a giggle followed. He rubbed his shoulder, pouting a little and making sure there was plenty of mock hurt in his voice when he spoke,
"Ow! What was that for?"
"You were 白日梦 daddy," the eight 年 old chuckled, her smile 展示 she didn't really mind.
"Actually," Robert countered, leaning in to flash a mischievous smile, "I was thinking."
"About what?" 摩根 asked, resting her head upon his shoulder.
"Hmmmm," Robert sighed, "About 你 and your mother, and how happy 你 both make me."
The girl snuggled her face into his t-shirt, the grey fabric muffling her words but Robert could make out every syllable, each one warming his 心 and widening his smile,
"I 爱情 你 Daddy."
He reached his arms around her body in a tight 熊 hug. My, she was getting tall!
"Love 你 too sweetie," he murmured against her head, then pulled back to look into her face," Why don't we go and make mummy a nice drink, so it will be ready for her when she wakes up?"
The little one nodded furiously, then slipped from her father's arms, giving a little shiver when her naked toes came into contact with frosty floor. Robert followed her cautiously, making certain he did not make any loud noises 或者 disturb the bedding in such a way as to wake his slumbering wife, and together the two made their way through the gloom towards the kitchen.
Robert headed straight for the newly named 'Tea cupboard'-they had discovered two and a half months into Giselle's pregnancy that along with some rather odd cravings, she had taken a severe dislike to coffee, which included acute vomiting if she so much as caught a whiff of the stuff. Needless to say, Robert being a typical New Yorker, had had a few hellish mornings of caffeine sobriety, and had even had to give up the beverage at work after he had come 首页 with the scent clinging to his shirt, sending her sprinting to the bathroom. And so, every 豆 of coffee had been rapidly disposed of, and replaced with a drink that did not give his beloved stomach cramps: good, old tea.
"Which one should we give her?" Robert said, lifting his daughter into his arms so she could get a good view of the many coloured boxes they had at their disposal. 摩根 instantly pointed at a well-worn white and 粉, 粉色 box she knew contained one of her mother's favourites.
"This one?" her father asked, putting her down and then reaching up to pluck the box from its position. She was too big to support with just one arm anymore, and Robert's mind drifted off, wondering where the years had gone, as he began the memorised process of making the tea.
When finished Robert lovingly carried the cup back into the bedroom, laying it down on the bedside 表 beside Giselle's head, 摩根 followed him loyally all the way, not making a sound.
Robert glanced over to the clock, not surprised to see that only fifteen 分钟 have passed since he had left the warmth of her side, and while 摩根 was being the perfect daughter he could tell from the look in her eyes that all she really wanted to do was attack the pile of presents that waited for her beneath the decorated tree.
Turning back towards the little girl Robert took her small hand in his, leading her back out of the room.
"Aren't we going to wake mummy now?" she asked.
"It's still a little early, sweetie," Robert answered, selecting a book as they passed the bookshelf before sitting down on the couch, 摩根 tucked comfortably beneath his arm, "Why don't we read a story, and then we can wake her up."
摩根 sighed, but did not argue, and she even managed to squeeze out a smile when he opened the worn cover and began to read the story he knew to be her favourite.
Robert loved 阅读 to his daughter; he had missed out on the opportunity so much when she was younger and now made every effort to catch up on those regretted hours…though he had to admit it wasn't quite the same without Giselle there, holding his hand across the 床, 床上 and making her brilliant, silly voices for the characters. But he did his best.
Giselle woke up with a start, jarred awake 由 the abrupt fluttering in her stomach that she had grown accustomed to over the past months. Soothingly she rubbed circles on her stomach, humming to her baby gently, and slowly it stilled. The 秒 thing she noticed was the 床, 床上 was cold…..she rolled herself over with great difficultly and stared at the empty 太空 beside her: Robert's space.
The invigorating scent of her favourite 茶 was permeating the gloomy winter air of the apartment, she stretched out her hand to stroke the mug, it was icy beneath her fingers…just like the mattress.
She hummed to herself again as she felt their unborn child stir, clearly it liked waking up alone in 床, 床上 as much as she did…..and Robert was always able to calm the child much quicker than she could.
"Now where has your daddy gone?" she chorused in a sing-song voice, stretching her limbs out with a yawn before levering herself into a sitting position, horrified when she looked to the alarm clock and realised just how late it was, and on 圣诞节 日 too, "Shall we go and find daddy and your big sister?"
Trundling down the hall in the greyed light of a December morning, Giselle rested with a yawn, leaning against the doorway into the living room, a smile tugging at her lips as she spied her beloved husband and daughter dozing on the couch. Morgan's volume of fairy tales sat open on his knees, and the little girl herself was tucked neatly beneath his arm while his head lolled to one side quite adorably. A little giggle escaped her lips, but she stopped any further laughter, slapping her hand across her mouth as she contemplated just how lucky she was to have found her happily ever after.
Her ballooned belly twitched again,
"I think we can leave them for a little bit longer," she whispered gently, her hand running over her stomach again, "Now how about another cup of tea?"