"Mommy you gave birth and didn't tell me?"
She looks back from the hospital bed with a smile, "I didn't wanna disturb your weekend"
"You wouldn't have disturbed me", I go over to the bed immediately after sanitising my hands, watching as mom holds the baby in her arms.
"It's a girl", I say softly
"And boy", Dad says from behind me
Indiah, Xavier and I turn around as he walks over with my baby brother in his arms. "Awwww", My best friend says
"Damn", Xavier's surprised because he really thought my parents would carry on the girl gene
"Omg did you decide on names already?", I ask
Mom laughs, "Yes"
She nozzles my sisters nose, "This is Gia. Short for Giana"
I gently take her, "Hi baby" I whisper
Gia had her fist balled up against her mouth and her eyes were closed, she's so tiny and cute and I just wanna hold her forever.
"This is Braylon", Dad introduces whilst giving him to Indiah
"Hi Bray", She coos whilst giving him a kiss
Xavier peers over my shoulder, "You guys have the same nose"
I tilt my head with a smile as Gia's eyes open slightly, "Yeah we do"
No one understands how much I love babies
"Now ya'll are looking like the parents", Mom snorts
"We know I'm gonna end up raising her anyway", I say whilst keeping my eyes on my sister
Or should I say my baby
"Alright you've had your turn, move now"
"Hey", Indiah frowns as Xavier takes Braylon from her
I sit on the side of the bed as I stroke my sisters face, "She's so beautiful"
Mom smiles, "Isn't she"
"Did everything go ok?"
"Mhm. Nice relief"
"Did daddy look away?", I ask amused
"Nah never. This time he actually pulled Braylon out"
"When did you go into labour?"
"At like ten o'clock last night. GG's at home with the kids right now" She replies
I give my sister multiple cheek kisses whilst appreciating her smell, new born's always smell so perfect.
"How was the party?"
"It was good....had a little mishap but apart from that fine"
Mom frowns, "Mishap?"
"Yeah some girl Zay used to fuck with was there. Had my first jealous moment, I felt threatened which now that I think about is stupid of me. Then I took my anger out on him, it was long but it's sorted now"
"Aw no, you had an attitude didn't you"
"Unfortunately"
"You can tell he's so obsessed with you. But I get it we're all human, it's good you guys are having these problems now rather than later anyway"
I shrug "Yeah, I guess"
"It seems to me that he definitely reassured you though" She gestures to my neck as she says this and I pause before pulling my hair forward
I forgot about that hickey....
"You didn't see that"
"I very much did. You teenagers I swear...."
When mom called me I literally got up right away and headed straight to the bathroom to get ready, Xavier was confused as hell as to why I was rushing. I called out to him whilst I was in the shower and told him my mom had the babies, then he understood.
"Are we staying?"
"Nah we're being discharged in about an hour"
I'm just relieved that everything worked out in the end.
"Aunt Kota these two are the last ones right?"
She rolls her eyes playfully , "Yes Indiah"
"That's what they said last time", I reply
Dad chuckles, "Trust me. For real this time"
After the doctor did some checks on the babies we left, Dee and Xavier drove home and so did my family and I.
"They're so adorable", Trinity peers over dad's shoulder
He was holding Gia and Neveah was holding Braylon, mom was upstairs getting some sleep since the twins will most likely keep her up throughout the night.
"Wait till they start crying all night", GG says as she enters the room with Aidan
"Baby", My little brother points excitedly
"You wanna say hi to your sister?", Dad asks him
He nods whilst sinking his teeth into his bottom lip and GG puts him down, my brother leans over and gives Gia a kiss on the head. "Hi sissy"
"Awww"
"Ok it's my turn to hold Braylon now", Trinity says to her twin
"Yeah yeah"
"Be careful", GG tells them
"Hi Bray", She smiles whilst stroking his nose and he lifts up his fist before pressing it against his cheek.
"GG are you staying?", I ask
"Not tonight but when you guys go back to school I'll be here often"
Dad mentioned that he'll be staying home for a few days or so, then when school starts again GG's gonna help mom out with Aidan and the babies. I mean I'm pretty fine when it comes to helping with Aidan, I do his bath times a lot of nights and then we watch what he wants to watch before his bedtime.
"Ok but you still have to take me skating tomorrow", Neveah reminds her
"She doesn't have to do anything", Dad corrects
GG laughs, "Don't worry T, and yes we're going to the rink I haven't forgotten"
"Madam still needs to work on her p's and q's"
Neveah frowns at him, "I'm polite"
"Eesh, when you wanna be" I comment
"You talk too much"
"And you got hard ears"
"You're not mom, stop tryna teach me things"
"Oh lord", GG mutters
"Clearly the things she teaches you doesn't stay in your head, that's why you are what you are-
"And what's that?"
"A prestige kid"
Listen I don't care if you're six or eleven years old, you wanna argue? Let's argue.
"I'm confident, there's a difference-
"No you're prestige, and you need to humbled-
"K so I'm prestige then, at least I can spell-
"Least I got an excuse for not being able to spell certain things, you're bad at Math and English girl pick a struggle. What's your excuse for being stupid? Oh that's right you ain't got no brain, and that's why Trinity's doing better than you in class-
"Alright stop now" Dad hushes us
"Collect your daughter"
Neveah pretends to think, "Which one of us is the bastard again?-
"And I'm still the favourite lol-
"I dare ya'll to say something else"
We know not to challenge GG when she uses that tone, so instead we stay quiet.
"The way you guys talk to each other is absolutely disgusting", She says with disapproval
We don't reply
"You don't need to call your sister prestige, just correct her and move on" She lectures me before turning to Neveah
"Don't call her a bastard either, you need to respect your elders. You've got a mouth on you for someone who's eleven years old-
"But she-
"I don't care, we're talking about you now. You may not see it but Aidan catches onto the things you say, he observes and copies so watch what's coming out your mouth. And if I catch you making fun of learning disabilities again there's gon be issues, you hear me?"
"Yes", She mutters
"Go get ready for bed", Dad says to us
Trinity gives Braylon a kiss before giving him to GG and getting up, Neveah then heads upstairs and I get up shortly.
"Amariah"
I turn back, "Yes?"
"Be nice to your sister"
"I am", I defend
On most days
*
The next couple of nights were a literal nightmare
Even though mom and dad have their own floor I could still hear Giana and Braylon's cries from my room as well as the sighs from my parents when they were getting up constantly to tend to their needs.
I was not getting any sleep at all, but not only that mom was in the worst mood for the rest of the week. I made sure the house was clean, took care of Aidan and made sure the twins were ok.
"You want some more apple juice bubs?"
"Yes please", My brother responds
I pour some more into his cup before sitting opposite my sisters with my plate of food, I was gonna order us takeout but we've had that a lot this week so I just made us something quick. Most days my siblings can get on my nerves but I do love being their big sister.
"You have a good session today?"
"It was ok", Neveah shrugs as I wipe Aidan's mouth with a napkin
"Guys I don't know if I like having the babies in the house", Trinity says whilst twirling her fork around her pasta
"Lack of sleep?"
"No I sleep perfectly fine, I just miss mom and dad's focus being on us"
Ok what? How am I the only one struggling to sleep through their cries.
"Trust me I get it. It's gonna be like this for a while but you know they're always gonna be here for us, and pretty soon Gia and Bray are gonna grow. When that happens things will calm down a bit"
Its been a bit hectic but it's just the newborn phase
"Yeah I guess"
"You guys wanna go out for food after we see Malik tomorrow?", I ask
We've been seeing him every couple of weeks, I'm thankful that he's not having any troubles in prison. He's in a different one to Treyvon and hasn't caused any trouble.
"Yes please"
I smile at our brother, "Would you like that Aidy? I can get you some ice cream tomorrow"
He nods with the fork in his mouth
"Alright then that's a plan"
We hear footsteps make their way down the stairs, it was mom carrying Braylon. He's lying against her shoulder just looking around and she's dressed in her robe and bonnet. She looks exhausted.
Aidan sits up eagerly whereas the rest of us watch her go to the kitchen and take out a bottle of water from the fridge.
"Hi", Trinity smiles
She sighs as she comes over, "Hey"
"Everything ok?", I ask
She rubs her eye "Yeah, I mean there's been a lot of crying and shit but it's the usual you know?"
"Mhm"
I pull out a chair for her
"Wait I gotta-
"Mama you need a break. And I know you haven't eaten"
"Its only been twelve hours"
"If dad heard you say that he'd go mental"
She raises her eyebrows impressed as I set a plate down for her, "That looks really good"
"It is", Neveah confirms
Our mother chews her bottom lip as she looks between the food, the baby and the water, not knowing what to do first. I gently take Braylon from her, "Go on. I've got him"
Her face awes, "Your angels. All of you"
I give Bray a small kiss as his legs scrunch up, he was in this cute blue onesie that aunt Zuri bought for him. Thankfully he was cooperating with me and not crying.
Aidan slides off of his seat at the first chance he gets before scurrying over to mom and sitting on her lap and she gives him a cuddle, "You miss me?"
He nods and she kisses his head, "Mommy's right here ok?"
Her mood improved as she ate and the girls were happy that they got to tell her about their day, me included, she paid attention to every detail that they gave her and smiled as she responded.
Neveah was in the middle of explaining her day out with her friends, I think it was one of their birthdays.
"Then when Michelle's mom took us swimming Gwen she almost drowned cause she went too deep into the pool" She explains
"Oh lord, seriously?"
"Yeah it was so crazy, the lifeguard had to go and get her. But mama I'm telling you the lifeguard was was so beautiful"
"You're always missing the point", Trinity says with a scrunched nose
"You thought he was too", She defends
Mom laughs
As I'm cooing at my little brother my phone buzzes against the table, I'm assuming it's a message from Xavier because we've been texting.
Zayâ¤ï¸: when do you need it
He was replying to my message from earlier
Me: no rush
Zayâ¤ï¸: give me a sec let me finish work rq
Zayâ¤ï¸: what was it you wanted, the two piece or the perfume?
Me: both
I asked him ever so kindly to buy me this two piece outfit that I've been wanting for ages as well as this Dior fragrance set. I didn't think he'd actually say yes but then again I don't think hes ever said no to me....
I rarely ask him for things
Zayâ¤ï¸: i'll order it tonight so it should deliver to ur house by Friday
Me: oof, not my house. My dads been complaining abt the amount of deliveries I've had in the past couple days
Zayâ¤ï¸: I'm not surprisedð
Zayâ¤ï¸: come get it from mine on Friday
Me: Thanks, I love youð¥°
Zayâ¤ï¸: mhm, I love you too
"Hear that Bray? I'm getting more perfume", I whisper to him excitedly
He babbles quietly and I smile a little
"Has he been fed?", I ask mom
"Hm? Oh, yeah I fed him about an hour ago"
"No wonder he's so well behaved right now"
She chuckles, "Yeah. Food does that to you"
Once we had all eaten the twins went to the front room whereas I focused on cleaning the kitchen.
As I'm finishing up with the dishwasher mom comes in carrying Bray, "Hey baby girl"
"Hey", I reply as I get back up
"I know I've not had time to stop but I've seen what you've been doing and I'm so proud of you. It's nice to see that everything's in order, the other day when I was so stressed I came down and saw how spotless it was down here, and then I saw how you had made dinner, checked on your sisters and gave Aidan a bath and I just wanted to cry. You're amazing Amariah, thank you for making this easier for me"
I smile, "It's ok"
She gives me a hug with her free arm and I close my eyes, appreciating the recognition. It's not like I do this shit so she can praise me but it doesn't mean that it's not nice to hear.
"Is daddy coming down?", I then ask
She sighs, "No he's sleeping. He needs this break, trust me"
"What about Gia?"
"Yeah she is, this one doesn't wanna grant me mercy and close his eyes" She says whilst stroking his hair
His tongue pokes out of his mouth as he looks around.
"Why don't you go to sleep. I can stay with him", I suggest
"Don't be silly"
There's always been the option of getting a nanny but I'd rather take care of my siblings instead of a stranger. I always disoblige when my parents consider it and so does GG.
"Ma it's just for tonight, you're fighting sleep and I'm literally gonna be on the phone to Xavier anyway so I don't mind"
She feels bad now that she's actually considering it
"Hes already been fed but-
"And I know how to change a diaper, I'm not gonna sleep if he starts crying all night anyway. Go on mom, you've got an appointment in the morning anyway" I take my little brother from her and she refrains from crying
"What did I do to deserve you guys"
I lay Braylon against my shoulder whilst keeping the blanket wrapped around him and mom sighs, "Ok I'm gonna go shower, check on Aidan and then try to sleep"
"Alright" I walk back into the living room before sitting down on the couch, slightly turning down my phone's brightness as I do so
Right, let's get to it
*
I hum softly whilst cradling my little brother and his cries slowly but surely fade out, he only cried twice as I held him. I don't get why babies do that, if you're tired then just go to sleep.
It's hitting one thirty and I'm pretty sure the house is asleep, it's just us downstairs. I stroke Braylon's curls as his eyes flutter before eventually shutting, I stayed still for a moment just to let the sleep actually settle in.
"Finally", I whisper as I give him a soft kiss
My phone buzzes against my thigh and I tuck a hair behind my ear before checking the caller ID, it's a Face time call from Xavier.
"Shhh", I say as I answer
He looks at me confused until I show him Bray
"I just got him to sleep"
"Where's your mom?"
"Sleeping, I offered to stay up"
"You're so sweet"
"I know. And you were meant to call me an hour ago", I remind him as he sets his phone down
He's sat on his bed, shirtless with a pair of joggers on. "My bad I stopped at Zion's on my way back"
"How is he?"
"Yeah he's alright, hes got a cat now"
"A cat?", I screw my face
"He takes care of it with his girlfriend"
"You know what I'm not even surprised"
"I love watching you take care of babies"
"Really?", I say amused
"Yeah it's sexy"
"I think I might as well be a mom at this point", I joke
"You will, eventually"
If there's anything hes made clear it's that he wants kids in the future. I do as well, I kind of wanna be a young mom but at the same time I do want a career. My dad always goes on about how I should wait until my late twenties before I even think about children.
"Two kids", I let my boyfriend know
"Nah. Four"
"No, two is all you're getting from me"
He wants a big family
"We'll see about that", My boyfriend chuckles
"What you tryna say?"
"Nothing. Just that when I have you bent over you'll definitely agree to four"
Unfortunately that may be true. I say yes to everything and anything when we're having sex.
"Pfft, whatever"
He smiles a little