why don't we - imagines & preferences

lullaby | zach

You groaned, rolling over out of Zach's arms and grabbing the baby monitor off the nightstand. You squinted at the small screen to see that your baby girl, Natalia, was definitely awake. You could see and hear her crying, wide awake in her crib despite it being almost four in the morning. You sighed and sat up, heading across the hall into her nursery. You walked through the dark room, reaching down and picking your daughter up out of the crib. You laid her against your chest, bouncing up and down gently to try and soothe her. "My poor baby, what's the matter?" you cooed, gently rubbing her back. Her cries softened but persisted, nothing that you tried seemed to be working. You changed her, tried to feed her, rocked her in the chair—she still cried. Patience was key with a newborn but you were exhausted. This was the third time Natalia had woken up tonight and Zach slept through it every single time. As you leaned back in the padded rocking chair, your baby laying on your chest you shut your eyes for a moment. Just a moment, until you felt soft lips touch your forehead. You opened your eyes to see a sleepy Zach standing over you, smiling softly. "Hi Mama." he whispered, his voice raspy and laced with sleep. "Hi, this little girl doesn't wanna go to sleep." you whispered back, fighting to keep your eyes open in the dark room. He reached down and gently scooped her out of your arms, resting her against his bare chest. Zach shifted his weight back and forth, squishing his cheek against her small head. "Go back to sleep, I got her." he assured, smiling at you. You stood up and stretched, leaning your head on his shoulder and holding Natalia's tiny hand with your fingers. "Are you sure? She's being really fussy." you yawned and he kissed your temple, chuckling a bit. "Yes, you've gotten her every time tonight. Get some rest, I'll be back in when I get her down." You sighed and headed for the door, whispering an 'I love you' on your way out.

"Alright babygirl, what are you doin' up?" Zach said, settling himself in the chair as you were. He rocked back and forth, holding her in one arm and keeping the pacifier in her mouth with his fingertips. Zach adored Natalia from the second you guys found out you were pregnant. It was scary, being so young and having a baby, but neither of you would have it any other way. As her cries slowed down, Zach's next mission was to get her calm and asleep. He stroked her soft cheeks with his pointer finger, tracing around her face and staring in adoration. She was still little but he couldn't wait to watch her grow up and into a person of her own. To see which facial features she ended up inheriting, what her personality would be like, when she'd get her first boyfriend or girlfriend. All these thoughts swirled through his head every time he saw his beautiful little girl. He loved to sing to her and it usually helped her relax so he thought maybe a lullaby would help the situation. Very quietly he started humming random tunes, being unnecessarily picky about what to sing to her as if she'd have an opinion. After a few minutes of humming and rocking, he started to softly sing 'Can't Help Falling in Love' to her. The longer he sang, the drowsier Natalia became. The sound of his voice and the light vibration in his chest calmed her down. He couldn't help but smile while he sang, watching her fall back asleep to his heartbeat and the song. Once she finally fell asleep, Zach sat still for a few moments to ensure she was sound asleep before moving. He carefully stood up and walked over to her crib, placing her onto the pink blanket covering her mattress. He stood over the crib and admired her, leaning down to place a feather-light kiss to her head. He left the nursery and went back to your shared room, crawling back into bed next to your sleeping body. Or at least, he thought you were sleeping. You turned over and cuddled into his chest, feeling his warm arms wrap around you like a security blanket. "I love that song." you mumbled and he smiled to himself, moving his head to look at you. "You heard me? I thought it was pretty quiet." he whispered and you lifted your arm, gesturing to the baby monitor. He had a small 'aha' moment and nodded, pulling you closer into his chest. "Sing me to sleep." you said, half-asleep. "Anything for you, my love." Zach replied and kissed your cheek, beginning to sing the same song that he just sang for your daughter until the both of you drifted off to sleep for the rest of the night.

a/n:
short but sweet for my boy zachary
<3