Four to five months have passed.
Morning sickness has eased compared to before, and my maternity leave has gradually begun… but my body is still tired.
That was pretty much the situation.
Although my boss and mom have been worrying more, it was just about that much. Besides being pregnant, nothing big was happening.
“Mom, Vega is getting big!”
“It’s going to grow even more from here.”
“Really?!”
“Yep. Later on, it’s going to get super-duper big and be even more fascinating!”
“Wow…”
Even though I started my leave due to pregnancy, that was just for me. Corbin obviously had to go to work.
Because of that, I’ve been spending a lot of time at home with Charlotte lately.
Originally, Corbin and Charlotte would mostly go on the ship together, spending time at the kindergarten onboard, but since I’m pregnant, there wasn’t really a need to send her there.
Charlotte likes being at the kindergarten, but she likes being with me even more, so I just decided to stay at home with her.
Honestly, I enjoyed spending time at home with Charlotte more than just being alone.
Of course, I only spent a few days a week at home and spent the rest on the ship.
No matter what, she’s learning things at the kindergarten and playing with her friends too.
“Mommy!”
“What is it, Charlotte? Are you hungry?”
“No!”
“Then why did you call me?”
“I just wanted to!”
It was nice to spend time with my cute daughter on weekdays after a long time.
Plus, it wasn’t just simply sitting around doing nothing.
During my first pregnancy, staying home alone was a bit boring and lonely, but this time it felt okay.
“Hehe…”
“Ueeehhh…”
Anyway, I was lying on the sofa with Charlotte, watching TV and relaxing.
Charlotte’s hair had grown a lot from before, making it easier to pet her like this.
Actually, I found more fun in messing up Charlotte’s hair than just petting it, but she didn’t like it too much if I did it too much.
“Mommy!”
“Should I stop?”
“Yeah.”
“Hehe, okay. What should we have for lunch?”
“Something yummy!”
Anyway, we were just chilling out like that.
As for the second one… all the baby supplies we need are already at home, and since it’s my second pregnancy, there wasn’t anything that was really difficult.
To be honest, there was also a bit of boredom from just doing nothing and resting all the time.
… Am I just a workaholic?
I thought I liked working a bit too much.
I had always been like that.
“Charlotte.”
“Yeah?”
“Don’t they give out homework at kindergarten?”
“Homework?”
“Yeah. None?”
“What’s that?”
… Hmm.
Well, she was learning letters well, and speaking more, so they probably just didn’t give out homework.
It wasn’t really an elite academy to train children; it was just a normal kindergarten for kids.
As long as the babies and kids are well taken care of, that’s enough.
Honestly, I never intended to make Charlotte study hard in a Korean-style… you know… thing.
“Charlotte, can I have your hand?”
“Yeah?”
“Hehe.”
Taking Charlotte’s hand, I placed her adorable little hand on my belly.
It wasn’t fully out yet, but compared to before, my belly was definitely sticking out.
Charlotte had always found it fun and interesting to watch my belly, and these days, it was the same.
“Do you feel anything?”
“Uhrm… it’s big!”
“… No, I mean, your little sibling is inside mom’s belly. You don’t really know, do you?”
“Not yet…”
Well, the baby inside hasn’t been moving actively yet, but I just wanted to give it a try.
Since Corbin and I often felt Charlotte kicking when we touched my belly before.
Maybe later, when the baby inside grows a little more… we could do that again.
Yeah, that sounds nice.
Just thinking about it made me feel good.
Initially, I was a bit flustered about being pregnant with the second one, but thinking about the future made me feel even happier.
Honestly, it wasn’t just because of Corbin or me; it was more because of Charlotte.
I was really curious about how Charlotte would react when the little sibling is born, and I couldn’t help but look forward to seeing how Charlotte and the second one would get along later.
“Mom, is the sibling really in there?”
“Yep, he’s growing steadily inside mommy’s belly.”
“Really?”
“Of course. My belly hasn’t been like this since the beginning. It’s growing because your sibling is inside.”
“Wow…”
“Maybe in a few months, it’ll be even bigger than this?”
“Wooow…”
Definitely, a pregnant belly is entirely different from just a chubby belly.
That’s why Charlotte couldn’t help but look at it with such wonder.
And I really understood how she felt.
“Mom! Wait a sec!”
“Huh?”
… What’s that?
Suddenly, Charlotte hopped off the sofa and dashed to the bedroom by herself.
Why did she tell me to wait?
I thought about following her to the bedroom, but… since Charlotte told me to stay here, I decided to sit still and wait for her.
Is she bringing a toy or something?
“Mom!”
“Yes, Charlotte. What is it?”
“This!”
“A blanket?”
“Yeah!”
What Charlotte brought from the bedroom was a suitable blanket.
It was one of those blankets you throw over when it’s a bit chilly while napping.
I had no idea why she suddenly brought that blanket over.
Was there really a need to bring it to the sofa?
Or was it that the living room was a bit cold…?
I thought about it, but it didn’t feel that cold or chilly at all.
After all, it’s a place where the weather is usually hot.
“Oh, hey…”
“……..”
Having come back with the blanket, Charlotte draped it over my belly.
She did it right after climbing up there.
“Will this keep you warm?”
“Hmm… I think so. Your little sibling inside might really like it too?”
“Really?!”
“Yeah, truly.”
What a moment to feel how pure a child can be again.
I didn’t even need to cover my belly with a blanket; it was fine without it. I just hadn’t expected Charlotte to do that.
It seems like every time I spend time with Charlotte, it really is better to be covered with a blanket.
Since I can remember that the blanket is on the baby inside, even though it may not matter… it’s nice to keep that innocence, right?
Plus, covering my belly with a blanket is a good thing for the baby inside anyway.
“Charlotte, do you want your little sibling to be a boy or a girl?”
“I like both!”
“Really?”
“Yup! I just like them!”
That’s so like Charlotte to say.
When the doctor first mentioned to us at the hospital that the first one might not be too fond of having a sibling, they gave us that warning.
But seeing Charlotte now, you wouldn’t even know they said that.
She genuinely seems to be so excited about it.
Since the first time Corbin and I mentioned the second one to Charlotte, she had been really into it.
So there’s hardly any need to worry.
When the second one is born, I thought Charlotte might actually be more excited than either Corbin or me.
Of course, that’s still a long way off, though?
“Hehe…”
“Like it?”
“Yup.”
It was a bit sudden, but in the end, Charlotte was liking it, so that’s great.
Isn’t this just enough?
Rather than overthinking and worrying about various things, I feel like it would be much better to just be like this.
It’s probably better to think positively, just like Charlotte does.
“Charlotte, when Dad gets home today, do you want him to bring anything?”
“Hmmm… strawberry milk?”
“Shall we ask him for that?”
“Yeah.”
Unlike the first time I was pregnant with Charlotte, this maternity leave… I really liked that I didn’t have to spend it lonely at home.
In fact, contrary to now, I spent time in a personal room on the ship when I was pregnant with Charlotte, but now?
*
“Rindera, is your belly okay?”
“Why do you keep asking that every time you come home from work?”
“Because I’m worried, of course.”
“It’s not that serious…”
“Then that’s a relief…”
“You’re worrying a lot more than the first time you were pregnant, aren’t you?”
These days, Corbin had been worrying more and more.
He had worried a lot back when I was first pregnant too, but this time, it felt especially intense.
Honestly, I feel like this is a bit excessive.
Of course, I couldn’t react coldly to Corbin’s sincere concern.
It’s just that he’s worried… right?
“If someone saw us, they’d think it’s your first pregnancy.”
“Sorry.”
“I’m not saying that to make you apologize, you know that.”
“But if Rindera says something like that, I feel like I should apologize.”
“…….”
Anyway, Corbin had been worrying a lot these days.
He walked straight in and started this conversation as soon as he got home from work today.
“Well, there’s no need to worry about that, so let’s quickly think of a name for the baby.”
“Ah.”
“… This time, we’re definitely deciding it before the baby is born.”
“… I’ll try my best.”
Well, at least he seemed to be aware of it, so that’s good.
We hadn’t settled on a temporary name yet, but we hardly ever called it anyway.
I just wanted us to decide on the real name already.
“Dad! Strawberry milk!”
“Ah, I bought it. Let’s eat dinner first and then drink.”
“Yay!!!”
“… Corbin, can you please just come inside? Why are we standing at the front door like this?”
“Good question.”
Anyway, Corbin, who worries so much, came home from work.
Even though I took leave again, causing a bit of chaos in the office, I was already used to it by now.
Moreover, I had recently set up a lower organization in the office.
Because the office work concerning the ship has decreased a lot compared to before, my burdens have lessened too.
I didn’t think they’d really stumble like they used to, just because I was absent.
It was definitely more comfortable than my first pregnancy.
My body was accustomed to it already, and there wasn’t much to it, and the company was doing fine without me, so I could just relax…
“Puhuhut.”
Nice.
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