Yours Truly, Austin Post - Post Malone

29

Ava goes over some worksheets the teacher she is shadowing had given her. She has sold her house and found a little apartment close to the school she has started working at. No one tells you how much work teachers have to do outside of school hours so that's how she finds herself at home on a Friday evening with takeouts and a pile of work to get through. By midnight she is done and thankful for it. She can spend the rest of the weekend just being lazy. She had ordered a slice of chocolate cake with her meal and now that her work is done she turns on the tv and settles into her couch excited at the prospect of shoving the whole slice into her mouth but she freezes when she sees Austin on the tv. She had not checked what show she turned on. She turns up the volume and listens. It's a normal interview talking about his career. But then the interviewer congratulates him on the birth of his baby.

"Thank you. Well, the baby is not born yet. We are going in for a c-section on June 21st. But, I am very excited!" he says happily. Ava frowns, she's sure it's the 23rd today. She checks the date and sees she is correct. This show must be pre-recording. "Well by the time this show airs you will have had a baby already," the interviewer says. How could she have missed the date? She had wanted to phone him and wish him luck on his baby's due date. She feels terrible. But, also excited. Austin's a dad and he has had Gracies baby! It's wonderful. She watches the rest of the interview but must have fallen asleep because she wakes up to the sun filtering through the window in her lounge.

She should just phone but she feels bad that she missed the due date so without thinking she pops into town and gets a gift then drives out to Austin's house. The guard at the gate recognizes her and lets her in without any questions. It's been almost two years since she has been back here and it feels a little weird as she stands at the front door. She should have just phoned, to be honest, she could have sent this gift in the mail but selfishly there is a piece of her that is desperate to meet Gracie's child. She rings the doorbell and then listens to it chime deep into the house - de java. She waits a while then suddenly the door swings open.

Ava has to suck her lips in to stop herself from laughing at the man in front of her. He looks like he has been hit by a bus. Two busses. His hair which is usually up in a top knot is loose and an insane frizzy mess around his shoulders, he has no shirt on, just joggers, and she is a little afraid to ask what is splattered on them. He also has a tiny newborn baby with flaming red hair attached to his chest like a little tree frog that almost disappears every time his large hand pats its back gently while it niggles.

"Ava?"

"Hi."

"Take this baby. He does not sleep and he shits a lot. He shits so much - I don't know how. He shits more than he weighs," Austin says passing the baby carefully to Ava. "I just fed him, he's gassy so he is going to shit again," he says. "Are you ok?" Ava asks now rocking the baby as she pats his back to help wind him.

"Honestly, no. I have no fucking clue what I am doing. I read every baby book while I was waiting for him. I even highlighted parts that I thought would keep me on my fucking game - but I have forgotten everything and I have no fucking game. He shits, eats, sleeps, and niggles. He throws up on me all the time and I smell like sour milk."

"Have you slept?"

"That little fucker will not let me sleep. I also have not showered in days...days."

Ava steps into the house and closes the door behind her. "Go sleep, shower and I will look after your son. Just for a few hours," she says putting the gift she had brought down and stifling her laugh.

"I can't ask you to do that. I-"

"You didn't ask, I offered."

Austin looks at her skeptically, he's not sure. She bets, like with Gracie, he wants to do everything. That's why he has found himself in this pickle. But, this is different, with Gracie he didn't know if he was going to get a next time. That's not the case here.

"Austin, go sleep. Let me help...there will be a next time," Ava says softly. Austin lets a sad smile creep across his face. "She would have been so good at this, she would have been a natural," he says reaching out and running his fingers lightly over his son's red hair.

"She would have, but she would also have you and she would not be trying to do this alone. Part of parenting is giving yourself a dam break," Ava says. Austin nods and bits back his tears - the man is so fucking tired. "Ok...ok. He just fed so like I said he is due for a blowout and his shit goes everywhere, he will need to be cleaned. He also will need-"

"We will work it out...you can trust me," Ava says. Austin smiles at Ava, really smiles - like he used to do when Gracie was around, it makes her heart skip a beat. His son has breathed that back into him. As always, Gracie had been right. "I do trust you, Ava. He sleeps in my bed so when he is ready please bring him through. I know the parenting books say he should have his crib, but I like-"

"You don't have to justify to me how you are choosing to parent your son, Austin."

"My son..." Austin says softly and blinks back tears again. The man is at his wit's end, poor guy. He leans down and kisses the top of his son's head then stands and looks at Ava. "Thank you, Ava," he says then walks off to the bedrooms, Ava can tell just from his walk that the man is exhausted. Ava feels a little rumble and then a loud burp. "Oh, goodness. That was a good one," she says softly moving the baby so he is now cradled in her arms. She can see his face and her emotions get the better of her, her chin wobbles slightly. "Oh, you are a precious little thing," she says running her finger over his cute little button nose. "Your parents sure do make beautiful babies," she says breathing in that newborn baby smell.

She walks into the kitchen and then comes to a grinding halt. It's a disaster area. It looks like a bomb has exploded. Baby clothes and man clothes are thrown over the back of chairs; bottles, baby blankets, toys, books, and any other thing you can think of line the kitchen counters. Kitchen doors hang open and half-eaten meals lay stacked up near the sink. "You are giving your father hell, huh? But, I have a sneaky suspicion he is doing it to himself," Ava says to the baby in her arms whom she is already fallen in love with.