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“Nice. Isn’t that a mediocre word? Shouldn’t you be saying this is magnificent?”
I laugh, a full-on belly laugh. “I wouldn’t want you getting a big head.”
“I always have a big head when you’re around.” He pushes me to my back and kisses me lightly. “Get a shower. I’ll go cook us breakfast.”
“Okay.” I pout like a child.
“Take your time.”
He places the softest of kisses on my lips and gets out of bed. I watch him pull on his t-shirt and leave the bedroom.
I got the meaning of him having a big head around me, but I’m not sure how I feel about him keeping our relationship completely PG friendly. I love his kisses and tender touches. I even love his flirting with me. But that’s as far as it always goes.
I shake my immature thoughts away and sit up. Today is Christmas. It’s a day I used to love. A day I cherished with my loved ones. A day I want to enjoy. A day that I can look back on and remember with fondness.
I rub my hand over my tummy and say, “Merry Christmas, baby.”
***
Fresh snow is lying on the ground. The cold temperatures always feel magnificent here in the winter. Some might say that I sound crazy, but I love a Chicago winter. It’s snowy. It’s cold. It’s a time to wrap up warm and feel comforted by the many layers we wear.
“You good?” asks Caleb the moment I appear on his porch.
“I am. Let’s go.”
He takes my hand with one hand and wraps his arm around my shoulders. His warmth makes me feel snug.
“It’s so beautiful out here.”
“Come on. We’ll take a walk out the back through the trees that you seem to love watching from the patio.”
I’m excited that I’m getting to do this. I know that makes me sound pathetic, but it’s the little things in life that I missed. I’ve sat at Caleb’s patio doors and looked out at this forest area, imagining myself running free, listening to the birds chirping, feeling the air on my skin.
“I bet this is gorgeous in the spring.”
“You only have to wait another three or four months to find out.”
“We need to have a picnic out here.”
“Sounds perfect. I’ll remember you said that.”
I break away from Caleb and make a snowball in my hands. I’m glad I have thick leather gloves on, because I hate getting cold, wet hands.
“You wouldn’t dare, missy.”
I giggle and throw the snowball directly at Caleb’s head. He laughs and bends over, picking up his own snow and forming a small ball.
“You wouldn’t dare hit a pregnant woman?”
He throws the snowball, deliberately missing me. This might sound silly, but I feel euphoric, acting like a child in the snow. I pick up a larger amount of snow and aim it at Caleb, and it hits his chest. I’m taking great pleasure in hitting him, knowing fine well that he won’t be too rough with me. Years ago, he would have thrown me down in the snow and covered me with it relentlessly. Maybe this time next year when I’m not pregnant he’ll do the same.
“Aria, girl, we need to teach you how to aim,” says Chris as he jogs towards me, throwing a snowball right at Caleb’s head.
I laugh. “He shoots, he scores!”
It’s good to see this side of Chris as well, because he’s usually the serious one.
Caleb straightens himself out and rubs his hands together. “You’re going to pay for that, bro.”
