A Place to Land

Jimi

"All I know is that I'm giving everything I can"

It's been about three weeks since Karen had Aubree. Aubree is the sweetest little baby. She is starting to look more and more like Karen every day. I still stop by Karen's place every day because I know she needs the help. Mark hasn't been home since the day Aubree was born, or he has, and he just doesn't tell Karen. As much as Karen thinks she doesn't need the help, she does and that is why I am there every day. Plus, I love her and that little baby.

This morning was like every other, I woke up around 8:00 and showered and got dressed. I stopped and got myself a coffee and Karen a cup of tea with no caffeine since she is breastfeeding. I made it to her apartment around 9:30. When I got to the door, I could hear Aubree screaming her head off. Usually when she screams like that, she's hungry, but isn't latching on to Karen. I opened the door and Karen jumped a little.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you" I said. She looked at me, but then back at Aubree. Karen looks exhausted and frustrated. Aubree must have been up a lot last night.

"Aubree, baby, I know you're hungry. The bottle is heating up" she said and was gently bouncing her while waiting for the bottle to warm up.

"Rough morning?" I asked.

"She's been up since 3:30 this morning and hasn't gone back to sleep. Nothing I'm doing is working and she just needs to eat" Karen said frustrated, with tears in her eyes.

The bottle finally heated up and I handed it to Karen. Aubree instantly took to the bottle and was scarfing it down.

"Finally" Karen whispered.

Karen looked a little calmer now that Aubree was eating and done screaming her head off. Once Aubree finished the bottle, Karen burped her.

"I'm going to change her and put her down for a nap" she said.

"Let me do it" I insisted.

"I'll do it Jimi, its fine" she said annoyed.

"You're exhausted and you need a break. Let me change her and put her down" I said and walked up to her. Karen reluctantly passed Aubree to me and I walked her back to the nursery. I changed her and rocked her until she fell asleep. When she was fully asleep, I gently laid her in her crib. I grabbed the baby monitor and closed the door on my way out.

"She went down without a fuss. She was definitely tired" I said and set the monitor on the counter.

"Why do you help me all the time?" she asked in a slightly irritated tone.

"Because I care about you and Aubree" I said.

"Why? Why do you care so much? There is nothing forcing you to be here. We aren't married. Aubree isn't your daughter. Why are you here? I have never once asked you to be here and yet, here you are, standing in my kitchen after you just put my daughter down for a nap. Why do you always help me?" Karen said slightly yelling. I was silent for a minute figuring out how exactly I was going to phrase what I wanted to say.

"Because I love you....I love you and I love that little baby." I said. She looked at me with a surprised look. "I am so in love with you that I would jump in front of a bus for you. I would swim the entire ocean for you. I would do anything for you." I said in a soft, sincere voice. I moved closer to her and gently put my hands on the sides of her arms near her shoulders. "I love you, Karen. I love making you happy. I want to spend the rest of my life making you happy. Making you and Aubree happy....I want to spend the rest of my life with you" I added. She started getting tears in her eyes. I took a step closer to her and raised my hands to her cheeks and softly wiped the tears away with my thumbs. "I love you so much" I whispered trying to control my emotions.