That Was Unexpected! (Unexpected, #1)

Epilogue

EPILOGUE

For the second time in the night, Tahlia woke, screaming for food.

"Tay," I whined, nudging his shoulder, "can you get this one?" Honestly, I was too tired to even think about getting up.

Over the month after Tahlia's birth, I'd gotten hardly any sleep whatsoever. She usually woke only once through the night, but like tonight, she woke multiple times. I was generally okay with waking up to tend with her, but tonight, I seriously couldn't be bothered.

Taylor heaved himself out of bed and I mumbled, "Thanks," before trying to get back to sleep. I knew that wouldn't be possible though.

"I can't feed her, Nas. You're the one with the milk supply," he stated as he tried to quieten Tahlia in his arms with a dummy. It wasn't working.

I groaned loudly before heaving myself out of bed. As soon as I was standing upright, I felt a vaguely familiar sensation in my pelvic region. I quickly waddled to the bathroom, hoping I would make it without making a mess of my pyjamas.

I grabbed the first sanitary item I touched before racing to the toilet. I felt that this was going to be a heavy one. I placed the sanitary pad in place before washing up and heading back to Taylor and Tahlia, doing somewhat a happy-dance on the way.

"What was all that about?" he asked, still trying to sooth a screaming Tahlia, but to no prevail.

I took a hungry Tahlia out of Taylor's arms and lifted my top up to feed her. She was quiet immediately. "I got my period!" I was unable to hold back my joy.

He wrinkled his nose and made a disgusted face, just like the entire Australian male population would have done. I laughed at him.

"It's only that now, I can truly appreciate it. Before I got pregnant, it was just a nuisance, and I absolutely hated getting it. But, now that I know that it works to make miracles happen," I directed to Tahlia, "I can truly appreciate the gift that I have."

Taylor's face was still crinkled, but he shook it off. "Gross. Enough period talk for... forever." He seemed to think something through his head before joking, "Well, now I'm going to have to put up with you when your mood gets all shifty from the PMS. Great..."

"Ha! Lucky you," I joked back. "At least you're not the one going through it."

"True," he breathed.

Taylor grabbed a cloth and began wiping Tahlia's face as she continued to drink. I watched in shock as he brought the cloth to his nose and smelt my breast milk. I was even more shocked as he wrung some into his palm and licked it. I was dumbfounded enough that I couldn't form words.

As soon as it touched his tongue, his face became disgusted. "Eww!" he exclaimed, hanging his tongue out as though there were fire on it. I was silent still as he raced to the bathroom and washed out his mouth.

I watched as he walked back in, faking that he was going to vomit. "That stuff is disgusting," he muttered, watching as Tahlia drank still.

"Well, no one told you to taste it," I laughed at his act of stupidity.

"I was curious as to what it tasted like," he defended.

"Hasn't anyone told you that curiosity killed the cat?" I objected.

He began to joke it off, "What? Are you saying this is going to kill me?"

"Oh, yeah. For sure," I said sarcastically.

He smiled, and wrapped his arms around me from behind, leaning his chin on my shoulder as he watched Tahlia.

"She's growing up so fast," he said, almost absentmindedly as he caressed her forehead.

"Tay, she's only what, five weeks old?" I said, shocked.

"I know that. Jeez, what kind of father do you take me for?" he joked. "But what I mean is, that over those five weeks, she's changed so much already. Her face has become more defined and shaped and she smiles more now. She's so beautiful, just like her mummy," as he said the last part, his lips began to move along my neck and jaw line.

Before I could respond, he was talking again, whether serious or not, I was not sure. "Which is why Daddy's not going to let her near any boys until she's... a hundred-and-five."

"Oh, yeah, she'll love you for that," I rolled my eyes at his hyperbole.

"No, I'm serious, no boy is good enough for my Tahlia," he confirmed.

"Whatever," I whispered, brushing it aside. Tahlia was finishing now, and so I pulled her away, wiping up the excess. I lifted her up to my shoulder and began patting her back, waiting for her to burp.

Taylor stood behind me and pulled funny faces as he always did, trying to get her to smile. After she'd burped, Taylor rejoiced, "That-That was a bloody good burp."

I smiled at his reaction and gently placed Tahlia into her cot, under the wooden mobile that was hanging above it, with the princess figuring hanging in the centre. "Yeah, she gets all manly when it comes to feeding and burping and packing her nappy." I said as I stood upright again.

Taylor cringed at the last one, seeing as the nappy he'd changed last time was a really full and stinky one. I'd laughed as he gagged in response to it.

Tahlia was already falling asleep so I grabbed Taylor and pulled him back into the bed. I felt his arms coil around me as I drifted into unconsciousness.

Before I was completely out of it though, he whispered into my ear, "We have a wedding to plan."

Continue reading: Now that you've finished That Was Unexpected!, check out its sequel The Unexpected Has Arrived!