A Storm Is Brewing

Book Deal?

Bringing a baby home from the hospital was everything we had imagined—well, and a whole lot more. No baby book or online video could've prepared us for the lack of sleep. By the time a week had passed, Leah and I were running on empty, and despite the hands-on help offered by our families, it was hard to think of anything other than when does the sleeping start?

Teddy was disadvantaged, so to speak; he didn't just have to contend with a transition into the outside world. He had that transition, then the transition from the incubator, then the transition into his actual safe space. The thing with having a baby was that it was extremely similar to finding your forever person. When I met Leah, I didn't mind the way she changed her outfit twice a day, the tantrums she would throw when the oven didn't preheat as quickly as she would like, or that she insisted on drinking water right before bed and then made three trips to the bathroom during the night, waking me each time.

Similarly, Leah didn't mind that the kitchen table was forever covered in my paperwork, that sometimes I left her with basically no room in the bed, or that I would often run the dishwasher without putting the tablet in and then claim innocence.

Just like now. Neither of us minded that Teddy would wait until we were right in the middle of something before he wanted fed, or that he would wait until we were leaving the house to need a nappy change, or even that the second we had gotten comfortable, he would decide that sleep wasn't for him anymore.

That didn't mean we weren't exhausted, though, and it certainly didn't mean that we were cranky. Still very much in love, but arguing like it was something we were paid to do.

Flashback:

"Keys?"
"They're on the table." Leah said, leaning her head back onto the sofa.
"They're not on the table."
"They should be."
"Well - they aren't? What use is that? They should be. They clearly aren't, or I wouldn't be asking while standing directly in front of the fucking table, would I?"
"I don't know where they are, Soph. Haven't a clue." Leah sighed.
"I'll just look for them myself, sure. I'm not tired, Leah. Don't worry. You get rest! Why don't you go to bed? Put your head down. I'll do everything. Sound good?" I quipped.
"Fuck me! God, I'll help you look for them." Leah scoffed, getting ready to stand up.
"No. I don't want your help." I hissed.

I spent the next ten minutes searching for the keys, Leah biding her time before silently joining me when she knew I wasn't going to tell her I said not to.

"Found them!"
"Where were they?" I screwed my face up in confusion.
"It doesn't matter; I found them. Here." Leah smiled.
"Where were they?" I chuckled.
"In your coat pocket, Soph." Leah chuckled too.
"I'm an idiot. I'm sorry, I'm just so tired."
"Me too. I've got you. Shout at me all you want." Leah said, pulling me into her arms and placing a peck on my forehead.
"Le?"
"Yeah?"
"I love you."
"I love you, Soph. Even when you go all Katie McCabe on me."
"It's an Irish thing." I giggled.

— — — —

It wasn't just me. Leah had her moments of losing her mind too.

Flashback:

Teddy finally went back down just after 2 a.m., with Leah creeping back into bed beside me and doing her very best not to wake me.

"I'm awake." I croaked.
"Sorry." She whispered, wrapping her arms around me.
"Don't be. All good?" I brought her hands to my lips and placed a kiss on both of them.
"All good. Get some sleep, Soph."
"Night, Le." I said, accidentally dropping my phone to the floor with a thud as I moved my pillow.
"Fuck sake! How many times have I told you not to leave - aw brilliant. He's crying now. Well done, Sophie. Well done." Leah spat as she released me from her grip and got out of bed.