#amended

[foxymoxynoona]

So...did we ever actually get a drabble with Jungkook getting to hold Kai for the first time after he's born? 🥺 the lil' boy who's made up of him and the woman he's loved for decades 🥺

I got carried away 😅

Story: Amended Characters: Isabella & Jungkook Length: 7,322 CW: Birthing scene with references to cutting cords and placentas and stitches, health complications at birth, stress, fluffy fluff

“There’s evidence of meconium in the amniotic fluid,” were not the first words Jungkook had expected to hear the seconds before his son’s head began to emerge from between the legs of his wife. It was surreal, what he witnessed, it had seemed like an impossible thing –like a cartoon, not something women actually went through. But Isabella was real, really going through this, really clenching her fists against her chest as she curled forward and pushed with everything in her, his tough strong girl who had agreed to go through all of this again so they could do it together. She had known what this was like. He kinda did but, he was learning in the moment, not really. 

Watching Isabella go through this pain and being unable to fix it was a guilt second only to knowing the pain he had caused for her when they were younger. Well, he had sort of caused this too… but she had asked him to! Very sexily! How was he supposed to have resisted sex and getting to have a baby with her! No mortal man could resist that.

“Head is out,” the doctor called and Jungkook realized he was both present and not. They had suggested he watch. He would never be able to unsee what he was seeing now, but it was trippy –not just the baby’s head, covered in gooey gunk and some kind of white… cheese looking stuff??-- but this whole image, this whole experience.

“What does that mean, meconium?” he belatedly asked as the nurses encouraged Isabella to wait, not to push, as they quickly wiped off the baby’s face and sucked snarfy sounding stuff out of the nose and mouth. A head of hair he hadn’t expected stuck out at odd angles as the baby’s mouth opened and closed in protest, eyes firmly shut in what looked more like anger as the injustice of this introduction to the world.

Do they look like me? he wondered, feeling like the room had gone still despite the rapid actions of the doctor and nurses.

Isabella yanked him out of it, demanding, “Do you see the baby? How’s it look? Is everything ok?”

“The meconium,” he repeated, not sure someone had answered.

“Don’t worry about that right now,” one of the nurses said. “It may mean nothing, we just want to get Baby really clean to keep it out of their airway.”

“What if it’s–”

Jungkook was interrupted by the doctor calling, “Ok let’s get this baby clear–” The baby’s cry interrupted him, like it was say yeah get a fucking move on here, I’m a head sticking out of a vagina!

Jungkook grabbed Isabella’s hand, wanting to be helpful and involved somehow but feeling absolutely unnecessarily. For most of labor Isabella had not wanted to be touched. It had all moved so much faster than he’d expected. It wasn’t like he could contribute much of anything as Isabella curled forward, face sweaty and red and everything in her clenched as she expelled a tiny human from her body.

“Fuck you’re so hot,” he rushed –not quite what he’d meant to say, but absolute admiration for her loosened the words.

“The fuck?” she laughed. “Doctor this man is harassing me.” Her breath was panted, her words a cheat as she stole a break

Maybe those were the first words their child heard from their mother, if the baby could hear anything over the crying.

“One more push, one more push, you’re almost done!” the nurses chanted and Jungkook saw with amazement that a baby from the hips up had now emerged. He couldn’t process that it was real, that this was really happening, that Isabella had not just grown a big belly and that there really had been a tiny person in there all along. Their tiny person.

“I love you,” he said to her, to the baby, to both of them. “You’re so cool, Isabella.” He had the sudden need to rush out as many good things as he could, so the baby would be born surrounded by words of love and kindness. He assumed Isabella had showered Ezra and Lily with love at their births but he knew their “fathers” had not, not the way he did now for them, not the way he would for this baby.

He had wanted so badly for everything with this baby to be different and now he had contributed basically nothing to Isabella’s labor. She hadn’t wanted the massages or the kisses, she hadn’t found it amusing that he’d driven her to the hospital in his cop car with the siren on, and it had all moved too quickly for him to walk her up or down the hall with their arms linked and his words of devotion carrying her through her contractions. 

They’d arrived at the hospital approximately eighteen minutes ago and here she was pushing out the baby.

This wasn’t what he’d planned. He wanted to be better than Landon and Stig.

“I love you, baby, you’re amazing,” he said. Isabella grabbed his hand and squeezed it this time with her push –a short one, replaced with a stunned, open face and a gasp. OUt of the corner of his eye, Jungkook saw the baby suddenly slide down, followed by a rush of fluid and the cheers of the medical staff.

“It’s out!” Isabella cried.

“He’s been screaming, didn’t you hear him Mama?” one of the nurses joked. 

“Dad, are you going to cut the cord?”

“A boy,” Jungkook cried over his son’s cries, hands itching to grab him and comfort him. He glanced at Isabella to see if that was ok, that they’d had a boy. She had insisted so many times she didn’t care either way but… but a son, a boy might be like him… would Ezra be ok with a brother…? 

Isabella was reaching forward, eyes glassy as she called, “Give him here.”

“One second mama, we want to make sure we got his mouth cleared–”

“Does it look like he aspirated–”

“I see some in the mouth but–”

“Dad, you cutting this cord?” the doctor called, stretching an intestinal-looking thing as a nurse held out a pair of scissors. Jungkook took them in a stupor. He didn’t really want to do this thing, it felt wrong to cut a body party, a piece of Isabella and their baby, but in the moment he was too overwhelmed to remember he’d meant to say no. He’d never forget the way the cutting felt in his hand and quickly thrust the scissors back, attention turning towards the baby who was now being dried and looked over, a stethoscope pressed to his chest as his little legs kicked and his hands reaching for a parent who was already failing him.

Jungkook didn’t realize he’d put his hand on Isabella’s head until she grabbed his wrist, her other arm hanging in the air as she called, “What’s wrong? What’s going on? Jungkook, I can’t see–”

“They’re looking at him and listening to his chest,” Jungkook said. Isabella’s panic made his rise. Was something really wrong?

“Hey, what’s going on?” he demanded, leaving her side and striding over to the rotisserie-chicken-heating looking thing the baby was on now. He didn’t know the doctor who had suddenly appeared from nowhere in all the chaos.

“Hello, I’m Dr. Gardner,” she said, “I’m the pediatric specialist here.” She held her finger up and listened again to the baby’s chest, though he’d stopped screaming. It was more of a gentle, plaintive cry now, as if he was giving up on life–

Or comforted by Jungkook’s sudden near voice.

Jungkook shifted the active part of his brain away from the doctor and to the baby –his baby– who needed him.

“Hey, hey little guy,” he cooed, leaning down and reaching right out to stroke a little chubby cheek. He got goosebumps, saying that to his son, to a real baby that was his. The baby’s head turned, wobbly, as if trying to press against his finger. “It’s ok. It’s ok you’re just born now, and your mama is waiting to hold you close.”

The pediatric doctor was rattling things off –a weight, a height, an APGAR score.

“I hear a slight crackle,” she told the nurse writing things down. “Breathing is slightly elevated but hard to say whether that’ll linger. Let’s check his vocal cords…”

“Excuse me, Dad. You can hold his hand but I need his head,” a nurse said, nudging him out of the way to first slide on a tiny yellow hat and then hold the infant’s head steady. Jungkook felt a jolt of alarm as the doctor suddenly slid a massive camera light clamp tool thing into the tiny little mouth. The baby didn’t seem more upset by this than he already was, didn’t even flail about it, though a nurse held his legs still anyway.

“Wait, what’s going on? Is this really necessary?” Jungkook demanded, worried he was already failing his son. He needed to understand what they were doing before they just did things! 

“Koo?” Isabella called. “Someone tell me what’s happening!”

“Hands and feet are still bluish but may be pinking up,” the nurse holding the legs said.

The doctor nodded and removed the tool –which Jungkook saw now was just a light, not even as big as his panic had made him think. The baby screamed louder and he felt a surge of anger that no one was answering their questions.

“Excuse me,” he said, not as politely as he intended, and promptly scooped his baby up right from beneath the doctors. There was so little weight to the body as Jungkook’s hands lifted, his skin warm and oddly dry-feeling but with a softness to it he couldn’t describe. Jungkook didn’t know what he had expected, but not for the this newborn to feel like such a baby. He was only minutes old, how did he feel so real?

Unphased, the doctor touched Jungkook’s arm and cooed at the baby, “Good good. I’m sorry, little sunshine, we just have to make sure you’re ok.”

The baby continued to cry. He was so small! And yet, not quite as small as Jungkook had expected. Sorah had been miniscule, and Amelia just about. This baby felt bigger than Sian and Parker and Sam had been, but maybe he just didn’t remember? Jungkook tucked the baby down into the crook of his arm, nestled against his chest, and took it all back; suddenly the baby felt tiny! Impossibly small! He felt like his arms were too big and awkward despite ample experience holding even very fresh babies. Many times! Not quite as fresh as this one. 

He was moving on fumes now as he bounced and hummed and tried to believe this was real.

“It’s ok, you’re ok, shhhh, I’ve got you.”

“Jungkook? What’s going on?”

“We can go to mom,” the doctor said, touching Jungkook’s arm. She had a smile on her face which soothed Jungkook because it had to mean nothing was badly wrong, though he couldn’t quite fight off the resentment that this doctor had already upset his baby and delayed his comfort and not even answered his questions.

He turned away from the chicken-roaster and saw Isabella watching with absolute terror that seemed totally disconnected from the doctor and nurses still working between her legs. She looked completely ignorant of that, her whole attention trained on Jungkook and the baby. Everything right now was so weird.

The baby gave a full body shudder and a nurse suggested, “I’ll get a diaper.”

“Who cares about a diaper,” Jungkook snapped, offended she’d think he was afraid of whatever the baby might produce. He was just born! Jungkook was his dad, he didn’t care, let babies be naked! “A blanket? Please.” It was tacked on. Politeness wasn’t at the front of his mind right now; his baby needed things and what, they were worried about some pee or poop? If that would make him feel better, he could poop all he wanted!

Jungkook’s throat felt thick as he tucked the baby higher, pressing his jaw gently to the hatted top of head as he carried him over to his anxious eomma. It was crazy. It was unbelievable. He was holding the baby and he couldn’t even make sense of that yet because it actually didn’t feel that weird at all, of course he was holding his son, hadn’t he always been holding his son since the dawn of time? Wasn’t this all just a really nice dream?

A nurse held out a blanket but first Jungkook lowered the baby into Isabella’s waiting arms, then took the blanket himself and tucked it around the baby. Isabella’s gasped and immediately pushed the hat off and stoked the hair and chubby little face and papery-thin ears as tears spilled over. 

“Oh my god, our baby. Look at him.”

Only then did Jungkook more fully appreciate that he had held his son for the first time. His real living breathing in-the-world son. The baby’s cries quieted to a single final chirp of complaint and then nothing, just peace on his mom’s chest. Jungkook decided the baby had been real a moment ago, there was this haze of unreal around everything until Isabella and the baby were together. Now it was real. Impossible, but real.

“Oh my god,” Isabella said again. “He’s got so much hair!” Jungkook laughed and reached out to stroke the baby’s face again too, leaning close on the bed beside Isabella, ignorant to the bustle around the room. That was just background noise now. All that mattered was that suddenly they had a baby and Isabella was holding their baby.

He felt complete in a way he had not known was missing. Him, Isabella, Ezra, Lily, Gidget, and now this baby to tie them all together, he felt whole. He suddenly desperately wanted everyone here so he could hold everyone at once. His heart would burst. 

“Was that you?!” Isabella gasped, looking up at him. The whining noise had come from him, not the baby at all, though it sounded like a baby noise. He tried to explain himself but only a cracked non-word came out and he blinked rapidly against the tears. “Oh my god you’re going to cry,” Isabella giggled. Her face glowed with sweat and effort and joy and Jungkook wasn’t surprised at all the way their son stared adoringly up at it. What a beautiful first view.

“I’m trying not to,” Jungkook admitted and laughed as his eyes threatened to run over. He pressed his face to Isabella’s shoulder and drew a deep shaky breath. The blanket moved against his chin, a little foot cycling. “Hey, are you trying to kick me already?!” The baby was a solid warm lump under the blanket, so warm Jungkook couldn’t believe it as he patted the little butt he’d been shown so many times on the ultrasounds. 

“Ok, I’m sorry to interrupt again, we want to draw some blood,” the pediatric doctor said.

“You have to take him?” Isabella asked, shifting as though trying to sit up. The doctor down south told her not to move, so Jungkook slid his arm across her, trying not to notice that there were stitches happening in a place stitches shouldn’t be. How was Isabella not pay any attention at all to that?!

“In a moment, but you keep holding him now. Often that helps a baby improve and wake up, which is what we want to see, he’s still a little sleepy. Right now we’re just going to stick his foot. I will explain while the nurse does that. We noticed meconium in the amniotic fluid right before he was born. Meconium is the baby’s first stool, it’s this blank inky stuff–”

“We have two other children, I remember it,” Isabella interrupted. The joy was gone from her face, she looked so serious at the doctor. Jungkook could read her mind. Spit it out already.

“The concern is whether the baby aspirates the meconium into his lungs. If so, it can make it difficult for him to get the oxygen he needs. The good news is, he looks really good, his color is good, he is responsive and strong. There were no signs of fetal distress during labor and you delivered quickly, but a quick delivery can be hard on a baby too. I do hear a slight crackle in his lungs,” the doctor continued. Jungkook watched the nurse grab their baby’s tiny foot with a needle and resisted the urge to push her away. The baby didn’t seem to notice or care anyway. He was just… existing against Isabella, breathing quickly like he couldn’t quite trust the air of this new world.

“That’s bad,” Isabella said. “Is that why he’s kind of breathing fast? Does he need oxygen or something?”

“It’s not good but we don’t know if it’s bad yet. We’ll run a blood gas to look for low blood acidity, low oxygen or increased carbon dioxide. The most accurate way we can look to see if he’s aspirated is with a laryngoscope, which we’re setting up now.”

“Right now?” Isabella asked with alarm. “He was just born!”

“The last thing we want is your baby not getting the oxygen he needs to do well,” the doctor explained. “If he needs to go on oxygen therapy, better we do that quickly.”

“But…” Isabella trailed off, face distressed, but she was already shifting to hand it over. “You can check quickly?”

“I don’t understand, he’s in danger?” Jungkook tried to catch up.

“We hope not but we want to make sure so we can react quickly. Your baby’s APGAR score was a 5, which means–”

“He needs help,” Isabella said. “Take him, do what he needs! But tell me what’s going on!”

Jungkook felt like he’d done the wrong thing bringing the baby over now. He didn’t know what to do. This wasn’t what he’d planned. He and Isabella were just supposed to snuggle their new baby now; he wasn’t supposed to trail after the doctor carrying his son back to the chicken oven where medical staff had set up several tools next to an incubation bed. Just the sight of that was terrifying and known. It meant something was really wrong.

Jungkook barely held himself together as the baby was braced again and the doctor slid an actual camera this time down the tiny throat. Jungkook wanted to push them all away but was frozen with the terror of it. What did it mean if the baby didn’t have enough oxygen? He didn’t understand in a real way, only that it was bad. What was happening to their baby?

“Faint staining,” the doctor said, looking at a grainy image on the small monitor that meant nothing to Jungkook. He wanted to scream at the awful image of his newborn child with a camera in its mouth. This was wrong, this was a nightmare.

“Very faint though,” she said as she withdrew the tools and set them on a tray for a nurse to carry off. “Let’s recheck APGAR.” Jungkook could only stand there as they ran through a series of questions again –about baby’s skin tone, response to thwacking on the heels, a pulse check, temperature. Jungkook felt like he’d shit himself, he was so anxious, but mindlessly called things over to Isabella before realizing she’d just delivered the placenta. Did he want to see it? No, he told the nurse; how could he care about that when they were listening to his baby’s lungs again? Also, kinda gross…

Suddenly the baby jolted and cried out.

“Ah! Sorry, little one, was that cold?” the doctor grinned and shared a smile with the nurses. She concentrated on listening and nodded, then glanced over her notes as the baby began squirming. 

“What’s happening?” Isabella called again. “Someone tell me!”

“Your baby’s APGAR score is improving,” the doctor called back. “That’s good. That’s very good.” She slid her finger along his arm and palm and smiled when little fingers curled around it. “That’s better. That’s better, little one, you’re waking up.”  

“Oxygen?” the nurse asked.

“Set up for the chest x ray, let’s do that since I saw the staining but… but these signs are good… come, let’s get baby back to mom for now.” 

Jungkook wasn’t thrilled the doctor picked the baby up this time, after the nurses had added a diaper. Something about the diaper seemed wrong, like they were already trying to clean the baby up when he and Isabella just wanted to be with the baby, no diaper needed, just them. He trailed along as the doctor whose name he’d already forgotten returned the baby to Isabella’s chest, offering her a reassuring smile. Isabella looked terrified and Jungkook didn’t know what to do about it. He wasn’t sure his touch would be comforting since it hadn’t been for labor, so he just hovered beside her and watched.

“Good news, mom and dad, baby’s looking a little better. I do see signs of meconium staining on his cords but it’s very, very faint which hopefully means he aspirated very little. The crackle is still in his lungs. This is all very slight but something we want to monitor closely. His heart rate is picking up and his breathing is slowing down, all very good signs. We’ll redo the blood gas in a few hours as well but there’s a balance to strike between making sure he’s supported and not being too aggressive with anything that will tax his little lungs.”

“So what does that mean?” Isabella asked, bless her, because Jungkook didn’t understand a fucking thing.

“It means he is looking better by the minute despite aspirating the meconium so right now I want you to take the time you want to do skin to skin like you are, try to nurse him, just love on him. But we will want to watch him closely for the next few hours and if anything changes, put him on oxygen, so you’re going to see a lot of us until we’re sure he’s all right.”

“Should we do that right now?” Isabella asked. “I don’t want to hold off just for my sake–”

“No no, I promise I would not risk anything. Right now the best thing is for him to be surrounded by you and watched. When you sleep though, we will want to take him to the nursery for close watch, ok?”

“I’m here,” Jungkook reminded. “I can watch him while she sleeps.”

The doctor smiled and agreed, “Yes, absolutely. I will explain the things to watch. But both of you should rely on medical staff while you are here to get the rest you need to take care of him at home. We may have him stay here a couple extra days.”

“In the NICU?” Isabella asked.

“I don’t think he needs NICU as of now, we’ll just keep watching. He is seeming stronger by the minute, we just want to make sure we’re quick to react if that changes. See, he’s rooting, that’s a good sign too.”

Jungkook couldn’t help but feel like she’d tossed a bucket of stress over them. He watched the baby with more anxiety than fascination as Isabella went through the motions of stroking his face and pressing her nipple into his mouth –something that seemed old hand to her after two kids but Jungkook thought was pretty fascinating. The pediatric doctor remained to watch too, a whole party of nurses as well, but Isabella didn’t seem to mind the audience.

“Is it bad?” he asked her quietly, hoping she would know more and could give him an answer.

“I don’t know… he looks so perfect… I think if it was really bad they’d have him on oxygen so they’re just watching…” She looked nervous. Conflicted. He resented that the doctor had interfered with their joy. He felt like worry was making him miss everything. 

“Ready to move her to a room?” a nurse at the door called. 

Jungkook trailed after them, not sure how he was supposed to fix any of this and angry that they hadn’t had more than a minute to bask in each others presence after birth and terrified that a big hand was going to suddenly reach down and steal his son away before he even got to know him.

**

The baby had been born shortly after seven o’clock in the morning. It was weird to get messages from family members about delivering the kids to school, about work, wanting to know when they could visit and asking for pictures. Jungkook hadn’t even taken pictures during labor or immediately after the baby was born. Another failure. He tried to make up for it in the room, snapping photos of Isabella exhausted but mooning over the baby, the baby snuggled against her chest, the baby trying to nurse because Isabella said that was fine to photograph. 

Eomma and Appa came by right away and couldn’t believe a whole baby had been born in such a short period of time. Soona came too, and Gina. They all fluttered around Isabella and the baby and Jungkook was glad to have something to do, taking pictures, fetching Isabella water and food, reciting the things the doctors had said even though they didn’t make sense to him. He wished he could believe everyone’s assurances that the baby would be fine, but they didn’t know.

Soona went with him for the baby’s x-ray because he insisted, needing to feel like he was doing something for his baby. His sister was a doctor, no one would refuse to answer her questions, and Soona would tell him what they were really saying. It was all so scary. It didn’t matter that the doctors were saying things were improving, there was still that crackle in his lungs, and they decided to start him on antibiotics because he was running a fever, and Jungkook worried worried worried. A newborn baby shouldn’t run even a small fever! He was glad to have his big sister there to ask the right questions.

It was several hours before family left to let Isabella rest before more family would come by later. Jungkook nodded seriously when Eomma told him to be firm if they wanted fewer visitors –that was another thing he could do. But he knew Isabella would want the kids to come by and meet their brother as soon as they were out of school. He hoped the baby would be healthy and strong enough; it wasn’t risky, right? And–

“Jungkook.” He went at her call in an instant, leaning down on the side of the bed. “You’re worried,” she so wisely detected.

“Yeah.”

“But he’s doing ok,” she said.

“Shouldn’t they put him on oxygen just to be sure?” Jungkook asked. He’d made the mistake of looking up on his phone what it meant to aspirate meconium in a quiet moment. Low oxygen at birth could cause all sorts of brain trauma. They might not even see it for months or years. He might seem fine now but then get worse later.   

“Koo.”

“Hm?”

“Snuggle down with me.” She shuffled over as best she could in the bed, and he kicked his shoes off before balancing on it with her, not trusting it would hold them both until it did. The baby had fallen asleep on her chest, sound asleep, mouth open, perfectly at peace.

“What if he’s got brain damage?” Jungkook whispered, afraid the baby would hear.

“Then we do whatever he needs,” she said. “But it wasn’t much meconium. It’s light staining. His blood gas wasn’t bad.”

“But–”

“I know,” she murmured. “Everything is so scary. Everything can go wrong and they’re so little and you feel so helpless to do anything. I feel that terror too. But look at him. He’s here, and he’s strong, I can tell.”

Jungkook had to admit the baby did look healthy and peaceful. He looked less blue and more like a little plump puffy baby. He didn’t even seem to be having a hard time breathing right now; his whole chest didn’t convulse like it had off and on all morning.

“Is he breathing?” Jungkook suddenly gasped.

“He’s breathing. I can feel it. He’s just content right now,” Isabella said. “He’s good.”

“He’s good,” Jungkook repeated.

“We have a baby.”

“We have a baby,” Jungkook repeated, then added, “And I only cried a little. There wasn’t time to cry.”

“I know. That was scary but… but it’s quiet now.”

It was. It was so quiet and peaceful. Isabella was a beast and seemed to have come through labor as if it was nothing, which he did not understand.

“How are you feeling?” he asked her, realizing he hadn’t in a few minutes.

“I’m still fine, Koo,” she laughed. “Puffy and sore. They’re going to come tell me to try and pee soon and I’ll probably cry about that. I don’t want to get out of bed.”

“You should rest. You… did a lot.”

“You think?” she giggled.

He stroked her face to get her to look up so he could kiss her and finally his touch seemed welcome. He hadn’t had time to entertain the fear it would be permanent, that space she wanted, but it was gone now anyway, just a figment of labor. He could feel she was sleepy by the low energy of her kiss, warm and soft and lazy. 

“It’s so different,” she murmured. 

“What is?” he asked. He kissed her forehead, his hand dropping down to rest against the lump of the baby because he needed to be part of this joyful love too. Whatever happened, the baby was loved and wanted and Isabella was right, they would figure out whatever he needed if something did go wrong later on.

“This part,” she answered. “It’s so weird. When Ezra was born, I almost felt bad for Landon because I just had this instant connection with the baby, he was mine and… and I think Landon felt very left out. He didn’t know what to do.”

“I don’t know what to do.”

“You’re amazing, Koo. When he was first born and the doctor had him over there and I didn’t know what was happening but you were there.”

“Doing nothing.”

“Being there. When Lily was born, you know it was just the two of us, me and her, and that felt right too. I would have liked to have a partner there but not Stig. He didn’t belong in that moment with me, meeting my daughter. She was never his. And this time… honestly, I was kind of afraid I would resent you being here.”

“Resent me like… being present at all?”

“I’ve never been someone’s wife. I’ve never had a partner the way you are. Just… people who interfere, Landon, Stig…  failures as parents… I was a little afraid the baby would be born and I would just want him in my arms and everyone to go away, even you.”

Jungkook swallowed. It wasn’t like he hadn’t had similar fears but it was terrifying to hear Isabella admit them. She’d fought so hard to protect and raise her children, and he’d never done this before, he fully expected his bumbling might make her defensive.

“But seeing you hold him, it feels the same as if I’m holding him,” she said. “There’s nowhere in the world our kids are safer than with you.”

Relief flooded Jungkook’s body.

“I’m so glad you’re here, Koo. Labor sucks and I couldn’t have done this again without you.”

“You seemed to do just fine,” he mumbled, abashed by her affection.

“I know I didn’t want much touching but… but you were here. And you listened when I said something and you nearly shoved that elderly couple out of the elevator so I could get in–”

“I thought you were going to have the baby in the hall,” he chuckled. “They thought so too, everyone was jumping out of the way.”

“I almost did!”

“It went faster than I thought it would.”

“Me too. My perineum isn’t happy about it.”

“Ah, the tearing…”

“Let’s not talk about it.”

“I’ll still eat there all the same but–”

“Jungkook!”

“We’ll wait until you’re all healed up and then I’ll take care of things,” he assured her, overjoyed by her scandalized glare. 

“You just watched a child emerge from my vagina. I would think that’d cool your engines for a while–”

“No way. You’re so cool, Bella.”

“Here, take him.”

“Oh do you need–”

“No, just you hold him now. I bet he won’t even wake up, he’s so out. Maybe he’s going to be a heavy sleeper like you.”

“Is that bad?” he asked.

“Having a baby who sleeps well would be the greatest blessing.” He was barely listening to her because she’d started to drag the baby towards him, the whole little burrito. At the last second Jungkook recalled all the conversation about skin to skin and yanked his shirt over his head and tossed it away.

“What are you doing?”

“Uh… they said that uh, skin to skin with dad is–”

“You’re so cute,” she grinned, and dumped the baby burrito onto his chest. He was so warm Jungkook thought he must still have a fever though the nurse’s said the fever was gone. His hands and feet were now a healthy pink that Jungkook hadn’t even known to hope for. 

He adjusted the little one against his chest –who, as Isabella suspected, barely stirred. His face rubbed against Jungkook’s pec and for a second he thought the baby was rooting and would wake up, but he just relaxed and slumbered on. 

“What a lucky baby to have two parents with big tits,” Isabella mused.

“I’ll scream if he goes for my nipple.”

“Count on it.”

Jungkook’s laugh trailed off. He was too mesmerized. Dark hair peeked out from beneath the cap, feathery soft over little skin rolls at the back of his neck. He wasn’t swaddled, just draped with a blanket, his little body curled up like he’d probably been inside Isabella. He was so, so new, so fresh. Jungkook knew within weeks, months, years this baby was going to turn into a little person but it was hard to believe right now. Jungkook slid his thumb into the little fist, long papery fingernails barely a scratch against his skin. He had that feeling again he’d had earlier: I am complete, my family is complete. I’ve been waiting for you and now everything is good.

“Maybe we should have let Ezra and Lily skip school so they could come sooner,” Jungkook said. “It feels wrong they haven’t met him yet.”

“They’ll meet him soon and have every day with him. Enjoy the quiet now.”

“That’s true… I just miss them…”

“What are we going to introduce him by?”

“What do you mean?”

“What should we name him, Jungkook,” she snickered, and kissed his shoulder. He kissed the side of her head, briefly again distracted by how amazing she was to have delivered a fucking baby and now just be hanging out talking to him like it was no big deal. She hadn’t even cried. He’d cried from constipated shits before and now she was asking him what they should name this baby she had made?

“We had that list of names.”

“You choose.”

“What?!”

“You pick his name,” she said again. “As long as it’s not something I hate. No Wolf.”

“But you gave birth…”

“And you’re his dad. I got to name our first two.”

Jungkook studied the little face pressed to his chest. He tried to fit a name to this person, but how? Nothing fit. He was a brand new baby, a blank slate. There was no personality yet to tag a name onto, only a little potato with a head of dark hair and a history of scaring the shit out of his parents from the first minute.

But there actually was a name on the list that had seemed familiar to him from the moment he’d written it down. Isabella had not seemed to react any particular way to it, but she hadn’t struck it out, and he’d been almost afraid to point it again in case she didn’t like it. He wasn’t sure where he’d even heard it, it had just lodged in his brain.

“Kai,” he said.

“Kai?” she repeated. “Kai Jeon?”

“It sounds cool, right?” he asked hopefully. 

“It sounds like a manga character,” she said, then grinned. “The protagonist. I like it.”

“Really?”

“Ezra, Lily, and Kai. It sounds good together.”

“Yeah, I thought so too!”

“So you’ve thought about this.”

“I just liked the name… OK, and what about Ronin for the middle name? The ronin were samurais who no longer served a master or family, only themselves… kind of like wandering knights… That’s cool, right? Ah, too geeky?”

“Kai Ronin Jeon sounds cool.”

“And it’s kind of like Ezra Ryan and Lily Eleanor… and Kai Ronin… it sounds good, like you said.”

“Yeah.”

“Cool. Hi, Kai. You are going to have a way easier time learning to spell your name than I did so you’re welcome,” Jungkook murmured, patting the little cushy diapered butt. “Kai.” He felt a joy course through him. Yes, the name was right, he felt it in his heart. The baby was right. The family was right. The woman was definitely right.

He wanted to say that, to tell her how much this meant to him, to tell her that he recognized the miracle it had taken for them to be together like this and married and having a baby, and that she had done most of the work. He wanted to tell her he would never take this for granted, that she’d been willing to do it all one more time with him even though the last times had been so hard for her.

What came out was, “Hey I look pretty good for a dad of three, huh?”

“If you weren’t holding him, I would push you off the bed.”

“You look banging as a mom of three–”

“Jungkook–”

“Your tits are…” He trailed off, realizing they were definitely getting bigger. He’d know. He studied them carefully.

“Yeah, I think my milk is coming in faster this time, so he better have an appetite. I can’t believe he’s over nine pounds…”

“Yeah, is that good?”

“It’s big.”

“Is it? I don’t know baby sizes. He seems bigger than my nieces and nephews were.”

“It’s big.”

“He’s strong,” Jungkook decided.

“I think it’s mostly his head. He got your head.”

“Wha? I have a normal sized head.”

“Tell that to my fourteen stitches.”

“Is it really fourteen?!”

“I don’t know, I made that up, I wasn’t listening –he’s awake.”

Jungkook’s gaze snapped immediately down to the little face, to the little dark eyes cracking open. His brow and mouth were scrunched, making him look very grumpy to get woken up.

“Oh hey look at that scowl, he’s definitely yours, Bella–”

“I swear to god, Jungkook.”

“Ah, I think he’s doing that breathing thing again,” Jungkook frowned as the baby began to breathe with his whole chest again. “I’ll give him to you to nurse and get a nurse to check him again.”

“You think we should?” Isabella asked and Jungkook was floored by the question, by the way she looked up at him, by the trust he felt from her. She was the one who’d had babies before! But she was relying on him as the father to help make sure their baby was ok. That Kai was ok.

“Yeah. I’d rather check too much and annoy the nurses than wait too long if he needs oxygen, right? I’m sure he’s fine but I’ll get the nurse.” He felt puffed up with the responsibility of it as he gently eased Kai over to Isabella. Kai let out a cry of complaint, just a little single yowl, and Jungkook’s heart skipped a beat.

“You like me already, huh?”

“Your tits are better,” Isabella teased.

“Definitely not true, sugar butt. I’ll be back.” He said it just to get her huff of annoyance at the saccharine pet name. Good. He loved Isabella grumpy with affection. He loved her needing him and trusting him and pulling him close when it would be so easy for her to push him away in her exhaustion and fear over their baby. 

He hadn’t felt like it wasn’t true, but he felt for sure now that they were in this together. Maybe that was partly where the sense of completeness came from, not just from holding Kai and feeling like his family was complete, but this bone-deep proof now that he was Isabella’s –to have, to hold, to rely on– in a way he thought he never could be.

He went off to bother the nurses again, gladly, because there was nothing he wouldn’t do for his wife and kids.

*

Isabella felt it too: that connection, that worry, that relief, that wholeness. 

Kai would be all right, she believed it because she had to, and because he had his daddy to take over when Isabella couldn’t. It didn’t matter if Jungkook didn’t come into this with the parenting history she did. He was Kai’s dad, and he wouldn’t quit until he got it right, until Kai had whatever he needed –just like he had with Ezra, and Lily, and Isabella. 

Kai was perfect, just as both her other children had been. She had the most wonderful children in the world, and any of her fears that blending a family would be hard vanished when she held Kai. He belonged here, and Ezra and Lily would feel it too, just like they had with Jungkook even before she did. 

Jungkook came back, chatting animatedly with the nurse. He’d been up all night with her once the labor pains started, trailing her like a duckling as she paced the house, timing them because she was impatient and couldn’t remember to do it, bringing her ice water, keeping his distance when she said she needed space, jumping to her side when she needed someone to lean on.

“I think Kai needs a new diaper,” she shared as Jungkook and the nurse reached her. She peeked in the back of the diaper to confirm because these early meconium poops were odorless and easy, but she’d sensed it in the way he had just curled and relaxed. She was right. Maybe some of this baby stuff would come back to her, more easily than she had feared. 

Jungkook stretched his arms out, cracking his knuckles, then beamed, “All right, let’s get diaper duty started, huh? We’re going to ease into this, right, Kai? Start me off with some non-threatening stuff, yeah?”

Jungkook’s gasps of horror at the tarry stools a moment later had Isabella suppressing the laughter, her body too sore for this kind of thing. 

God, every time she didn’t think she could possibly love Jungkook anymore than she already did, she found she could. 

----------------------------------------

There are more Amended drabbles on my masterlist or read the main story here

[sentientsky]

just a friendly reminder that, just because slavery was formally "abolished" in the so-called united states* in 1865, enslavement itself is still ongoing in the form of incarceration, which disproportionately affects Black and Indigenous people

(*i say "so-called" because the US is a settler-colonial construction founded on greed, extraction, and white supremacy) recommended readings/resources:

The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander

"How the 13th Amendment Kept Slavery Alive: Perspectives From the Prison Where Slavery Never Ended" by Daniele Selby

"So You're Thinking About Becoming an Abolitionist" by Mariame Kaba

"The Case for Prison Abolition: Ruth Wilson Gilmore on COVID-19, Racial Capitalism & Decarceration" from Democracy Now! [VIDEO]

[yoggybloggy]

[wolfythewitch]

Started malevolent, on episode 2

- we started not with a bang but with a whimper

- Arthur does not sound like a word anymore

- that demon in his brain needs to take a chill pill

- I need him tranquilized his shouting is scaring ME

[whenweallvote]

Many of us are taught that slavery came to an end with the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, but for enslaved people in Texas, freedom didn’t come until June 19, 1865.

Swipe to learn about the history of Juneteenth, and why it’s a celebration of freedom, culture, and progress.

[pinkiepig]

DOODLE DOODLE DOODLE DOODLETUDTU I LOVE THIS BRUSH

[kcinpa]

This is kind of brilliant, and necessary.

A group of adult entertainment actors is about to spend $100,000 in the next 29 days running anti-Project 2025/anti-Trump ads on adult websites targeting their male audiences in seven battleground states: Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, North Carolina, Georgia, Arizona, and Nevada.

Why?

Page 5 of the 920 page Project 2025 manifesto says of pornography:

It has no claim to First Amendment protection. ... Pornography should be outlawed. The people who produce and distribute it should be imprisoned. Educators and public librarians who purvey it should be classed as registered sex offenders. And telecommunications and technology firms that facilitate its spread should be shuttered.

Now whether or not you approve of the porn industry, it's clear that Project 2025 is talking about a much broader thing: whatever these right-wing zealots determine to be "pornographic." Note how teachers and librarians are mentioned specifically. Some bookbanners have called children's books pornographic simply for featuring a lgbtq character.

Closer to tumblr's heart, smutty fanfic and fanfic sites would certainly be swept up if Project 2025 ever came to pass.

So kudos to the adult film stars for stepping up and spreading the word.

[destielmemenews]

10 states had abortion rights on the ballot, and amendments passed in 7 of them; Arizona, Colorado, Maryland, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, and New York.

Amendments did not pass in Florida, Nebraska, and South Dakota.

Missouri is a particularly notable win because of the state's near total abortion ban, one of the most restrictive in the country.

source 1

source 2

source 3

[digitalcreationsllc]

Richie Hawtin and Erica Synths collab now available to pre-order | Juno Daily

The analogue Bullfrog synth is designed as a learning tool. Erica Synths have confirmed the amended release date for their collaboration with techno legend Richie Hawtin. The Bullfrog is quite unusual in its approach, mainly in the sense that it’s designed to help introduce young people to electronic music while also working as a serious instrument for more mature producers. Buchla-style…

[whatareyoureallyafraidof]

These MAGA fucks won't be happy until we return to a time when only straight, white, male, Christian, land-owners could vote! Women, wake up! They won't stop at taking away your right to make decisions about your own body. They want to take away your right to vote! What will be next?

[foxymoxynoona]

Could you do a drabble for Amended where Jungkook & Bella are out with all of their kids having family time and suddenly run into his evil ex from school and she tries to make Bella feel insecure because she is salty🧂 but Jungkook puts her in her place since he regretted not defending Bella from her back then and this is the perfect opportunity to show her he is happy with his family 🙏🏼🥹 ❤️

I have not deleted any of these drabble requests! bet you thougth I'd forgotten but I have not! I just wait for the right moment and inspiration. I hope you enjoy this.

Story: Amended Length: 4321 words CW: language, some innuendo, fluff Timeline: June, Kai is almost 10 months old

“You didn’t have to come,” Jungkook said, hand on her lower back as the sliding doors opened to greet them. “Me and the kids could have handled it.”

“I want out of the house,” Isabella gritted out. “You didn’t have to come.” Jungkook gave her a look, not even bothering with that. No way was he going to let Isabella make a baby supply run by herself, not when he felt like it was his fault they’d run so low on everything in the first place. Usually he swung by the grocery store or Target on his way home from work to grab the diapers, wipes, baby food pouches, Desitin, replacement pacifiers or teething rings or more socks because Kai seemed to have been born with an anti-sock forcefield that made them evaporate within minutes of being put on, but Eomma and Isabella were determined he was going to wear grippy socks as he began toddling around the house. 

Lily sighed dramatically and dangled from the handle of the cart, “I’m boring.”

“You’re bored,” Ezra corrected, then amended, “Actually you’re pretty boring too.”

“Ezra,” Isabella warned.

“Ok guys, we can divide and conquer and get this over quickly,” Jungkook suggested. Isabella admired his pep, even if it was also grating right now. They were all staticky. In the past four weeks they’d passed head colds around twice, with Kai teething and not sleeping on top of it. How could he sleep when he had just discovered how to get to his feet and how much more trouble he could cause in that position? Isabella felt like she hadn’t let the house for anything except work in three weeks, and not even that in four days since she’d been the last –and hopefully the very last– round of the cold. 

Ezra sniffled and Isabella eyed him suspiciously. There better not be another round. It was June! The weather was finally starting to warm up, shouldn’t they be free of colds now? She was not sure that Jungkook was right that the warmer weather made cold viruses thaw out and be active… but she also hadn’t remembered to google it to disprove it yet…

“Kids,” Jungkook warned as Lily’s and Ezra’s bickering bubbled up. Isabella was better at tuning it out. They were all just so restless, and a trip to Baby Depot definitely wasn’t going to fix it, but maybe if they hurried it up here, they could do something fun. Like what? She had no fucking clue, but she’d think of it in the car. Was the ice cream place open yet? Playground? Kai was probably going to be ready for a nap by then though… 

“List?” Jungkook asked Isabella. “Break it out for us, who’s doing what.”

Isabella decided maybe Jungkook’s tactic was right here. Divide and conquer. So she divvied up the list: Ezra on unscented wipes and diapers, Lily on exactly three new baby books, Jungkook on a baby fence they could set up in the yard and maybe a ride on toy because Kai seemed jealous of Ezra and Lily riding their bikes in the driveway during the nicer weather, and Isabella would fill up on baby snacks and formula. Last time Jungkook and Ezra had made the choices and when she had pointed they seemed to have forgotten the beet-banana cereal puffs Kai liked, the two had responded simultaneously “Yuck.” 

Jungkook took Kai, Ezra took the cart, Lily dragged her feet as if she had the worst job in the world even though Isabella knew she’d probably forget herself reading all the baby books and they’d have to go fetch her. The brief silence of standing alone unnerved Isabella. How strange to be alone. 

She grabbed a basket and set out for the baby food aisle. Feeding Kai had been such a different experience from the very beginning, when she’d struggled and then given up on nursing. That had been hard to accept but ultimately it had removed such a major stressor from his babyhood, and made her realize just how much time she had spent stressed about it with Lily and Ezra, worried if they were getting enough, worried why they didn’t like the solid foods she tried to introduce later, worried if she was nursing them at the wrong times and that’s why they didn’t want to sleep through the night, worry if she was eating or drinking the wrong things for them to get secondhand through her milk. Damn it was nice that Jungkook could and did handle so many of the feedings. Nothing sexier than watching Jungkook bounce a baby in one arm and mix a bottle one-handed –except maybe watching him airplane Kai on his shoulder as they passed the end of Isabella’s aisle in search of their items. 

Bottles weren’t the end of Kai’s difference in food. His first solid food had been a dumpling stolen from Jungkook’s plate in a split second at just over five months. He’d quickly learned that grabbing fistfuls of rice was impossible for his parents to wrestle away. Beyond the Asian foods that were a diet staple so young, Isabella also had the time and money and energy to make finger foods for him alongside their meals. She’d about killed herself trying to get the same healthy diet for Ezra and Lily, but also been very reliant on the pouches she could get through food donation programs. Feeding Kai was more joy than stress, and the whole family got in on seeing how he would react to whatever food they had him try. The weirdo had a particular love for lemons –which had Jungkook demanding to know what happened, since he happened to hate lemons, as if Kai would just inherit his exact food tastes!

Smiling at all of this, Isabella perused the “quick” meals available –the little trays of cut up turkey and mashed potatoes and peas or macaroni and cheese they kept stocked for quick meals when they needed to be out the door for kids’ activities. She actually looked forward to that kind of busy again. Being stuck at home with sick kids, managing without a sick husband, or languishing with her own sickness knowing Jungkook was carrying more of the load solo had been frustrating, to say the least. Now it was back to normal, for a whole two weeks until the kids got out of school for the summer. Time moved so quickly.

Healthy healthy, we’re all healthy now, what’s good for immune support? She mused, chucking her selections into the basket until it grew heavy on her forearm. She still needed to get the formula too. What a great feeling. She had grown used to not having to count coins after years of living in what felt like luxury with Jungkook, but she wondered when the day would come that she stopped noticing that she wasn’t thinking about it. Would she ever truly take it for granted?

She heard the shriek of a baby and glanced over her shoulder as a toddler sprinted past –not hers. The little girl ran to her parent in another aisle, out of Isabella’s view and concern, but the glance trailed her vision across another woman in the aisle, heavily pregnant and staring right back at her.

“Isabella,” she greeted evenly.

“Jasmin,” Isabella returned, mirroring her tone. She looked casually back to the food, feeling prickles of displeasure along her scalp but not wanting to let Jasmin know she felt any which way about seeing her. Pregnant, huh? Isabella would admit only to herself she wasn’t thrilled to learn of any positive developments in Jasmin’s life. She didn’t want to be petty. Much. 

To her surprise, Jasmin followed up with, “How’s it going?”

“Good.” Isabella knocked a few more things into her basket before reciprocating, “How about you?”

Was there hesitation in Jasmin’s voice, or was she only waiting for Isabella to look at her before she rushed out, “Great. Things have been busy.” 

“I imagine so.” 

“I’m due in six weeks,” Jasmin volunteered and Isabella didn’t know whether to hide or convey her feelings of I could not care less and never want to see you again. Jasmin continued regardless, “I feel as big as a house! But Daniel says it didn’t go to my face, probably because of all the prenatal pilates I did.”

“I… didn’t know you did pilates,” Isabella said because of everything suddenly happening, that felt like the most surprising thing, even more so than Jasmin suddenly chatting her up with a tone that didn’t sound totally nice but also not totally bitchy. Obviously she was trying to brag, but Isabella was around a lot of pregnant women and that was pretty normal… oh geez, had she done that too?

“I have for years, since I moved to LA. Daniel wanted me to take a rest but I wasn’t about to let this baby ruin my body.”

Isabella couldn’t resist it, she shrugged and said, “I’ve had three and don’t feel ruined at all, but I can’t imagine the pressure you live under when that’s your thing. I’m glad you’ve found something to help–”

“I wouldn’t say it’s my thing– what do you mean by that?” Jasmin asked, head tilting. “Caring about the way I look?”

“Being fit and attractive and all that,” Isabella offered. She meant it as an insult but suspected it didn’t sound that way in her voice, but that Jasmin was likely looking for the insult anyway.

“Oh,” Jasmin laughed, “I guess my style has changed.” It was clearly Isabella’s cue to notice for real just how fully Jasmin’s style really had shifted. She’d come from money but made such an effort to be cool and anti-everything in high school. Isabella couldn’t recall what she’d worn the last time they ran into each other in the jewelry store. “I guess soon I’ll be dressing like you.”

Isabella heard it as an insult and felt her haunches raise as she resisted the urge to look down at her own outfit, as if Jasmin had any power to make her feel unworthy. So what, black leggings and a heather gray top from a six-month Stitch Fix subscription she’d let Mikayla talk her into might not be the height of fashion, but fuck off maybe?

“Because I am so fucking sick of maternity dresses,” Jasmin continued as if there hadn’t been an uncomfortable pause. “Even the tailored ones. It’s not about showing off my body, I just feel… I can’t believe you did this twice but it was probably easier since you were so young, hm?”

“Um… I’ve done it three times,” Isabella said again. “And…” She didn’t know how to respond to this because, try as she might, she couldn’t find anything mean in it. Jasmin just seemed to be…sharing? Maybe it was a little barbed but… definitely nothing compared to her old hostility.

“Three times?” Jasmin clarified. She glanced at the baby foods in Isabella’s basket, mouth open, before realizing, “Oh, you and… you had another one?”

“Yep.”

“Wow. Three is– I can’t imagine. I’m definitely done after this. Daniel said he’d like two but he can be pregnant next time if he wants it so bad,” Jasmin said, and laughed and gave Isabella this look like you know what I mean? 

Isabella stumbled over her answer, “I think Jungkook would have liked more too but… three is good.”

“Three is great,” the very man said from behind her, shuffling noisily into the aisle with Kai supermanning on his shoulder and the awkward babygate in hand while he kicked a box ahead of him. “Hi,” he said breezily to Jasmin, then to Isabella, “I got the pink and purple little scooter thing for him instead of the red one since his bouncer was blue so he doesn’t get weird ideas about colors for boys or girls.”

“Oh. Great.” Isabella nodded. This was actually something they had agreed on before Kai was born, so she did not understand why he was clarifying that now. 

He set the babygate down and flipped Kai into his arms, their precious son squealing with deep belly giggles about it, exacerbated by Jungkook’s fingers tickling his belly.

“Wow. He’s cute,” Jasmin commented, watching every movement Jungkook and Kai made. Isabella would have loved to read her mind just then. Kai was really fucking cute, and so was Jungkook, and the two of them together were painfully cute to witness. Was Jasmin thinking how that could have been her? Wondering if having such a cute baby was the only reason Jungkook had gotten together with Isabella? Wishing her husband could compare in any way to Jungkook (Isabella was sure he could not)? 

Or was she simply seeing her future, when the baby in her own belly would be out in the world and giggling upside down playing with his dad?

“He is,” Isabella belatedly added. “We lucked out, each kid was just so much better than I imagined. Everything worked out so well.”

Jasmin flipped her hair over her shoulder and agreed, “Daniel always says that, how you know it’s not the end until things have worked out.”

“Daniel is her husband,” Isabella explained to Jungkook.

“Well, fiance,” Jasmin said and flapped her hand with a honking big ring on it, as if she both wanted them to see and not see. “I didn’t want to be pregnant at the wedding and have guests thinking that’s why we got married, so we’ll do it in Bali next year.”

“Oh, that’s a big trip with a baby,” Jungkook mused. “We didn’t take the kids to Korea until they were older, now Kai will have to wait for a bit. I think he’d drive us nuts on the plane, he wants to move all the time.”

“Maybe you can fly private,” Isabella suggested, not sure what else to say. She trained her gaze on Kai, wishing she could just scoop her son up and skip away from this awkward conversation. 

Jasmin laughed, “Ok, Daniel is a C.O.O. but we aren’t that rich. Maybe in a few years. He’s been so successful and now he and my dad are thinking about a joint venture together. It’s… you know, work stuff,” she said with a grin. “I won’t explain venture capital.”

It must be a jab, and yet Jungkook didn’t seem to feel it, just agreed, “Good, I don’t have the brain cells to spare because apparently I have more kiddie books to memorize– Lily, that is way more than three,” he called as Lily shuffled down the aisle, at least eight books stacked precariously in her arms. 

“Yeah I know but I can’t decide if Kai needs to learn colors or numbers or letters or shapes first and those books are cute but kind of boring, so I think we should get him these ones about bugs and sharks too.”

Jungkook clicked his tongue and flipped Kai again and then gave Isabella a playful look, lips pursed until he asked, “What do you think, Mom, it’s a good point.” 

“We already have so many books,” Isabella reminded him.

“Yeah but maybe if I’d read more, I wouldn’t have done so much dumb shit as a teenager,” he pointed out. 

“I don’t think literacy was your problem,” Isabella countered.

Jungkook laughed and in a surprising twist, asked Jasmin, “What do you think?” 

Jasmin could not have looked more flustered. Isabella couldn’t understand what was going through her head at all right now as she looked between the four of them and stammered out, 

“I think… that… reading is good. Maybe I should have read more too.”

Lily shuffled through the books in her arms, then handed over a board book with the suggestion, “Here you go, you should get this for your baby. It’s a good one. I already read it.”

“Oh. I guess… ok…” Jasmin glanced at the cover of the book but mostly at Lily, probably trying to figure out whether Jungkook was actually her biological dad or not. Lily always thought it was funny when people thought he was and didn’t bother to correct them because why bother? She loved mysteries and unknowns.

“Why did you pick that one up, we already have that one,” Jungkook realized. 

“I was too lazy to put it back.”

Kai mirrored Jungkook’s laughter, and Isabella too rolled her eyes and snickered and didn’t stop Lily as she wedged the books into the basket on her arm. All of them

“Where’s Ezra with the cart?” Isabella wondered. Being on edge near Jasmin was wearing her out and she was ready to be gone from this confusing encounter. Was she paranoid or did the way Jasmin kept looking between them mean something? It wasn’t bad, but that made it even more alarming. Jasmin was not behaving like she should.

“Ezra!” Jungkook called. Kai’s eyes went wide, then he laughed and let out a loud babble, clearly trying to mimic the yell. 

“Appa!” Ezra called back from a few aisles over.

“You must all be very… busy,” Jasmin said. Kai suddenly decided he wanted Isabella to hold him and tried to leap from Jungkook’s arms, but in doing so saw Lily and decided he wanted his sister to hold him instead.

“Don’t set him down,” Isabella warned, “He’ll take off.”

“He started walking early,” Jungkook explained to Jasmin. “You’ll think they’re terrors once they start crawling because they’re so damn fast, but just wait.”

“Thanks, I’ll remember that…” She trailed off as Ezra appeared with the cart at the far end of the aisle, lanky frame riding the footbar as he pushed it along. 

“They didn’t have the wipes we usually get so I got a different kind,” he announced. “They’re still unscented though. Kai-Kai, do you want to ride in the cart?” Ezra asked, hunching down in front of his little brother wedged in Lily’s arms.

In the moment of watching her kids –and checking the label to make sure the wipes were genuinely unscented so as not to aggravate Kai’s skin or cause Jungkook to whine about the overpowering scent– she started as Jungkook’s hand slid up her back on his way to grab the basket of baby food and books she’d set on the floor

“Is that everything? Can we get out of here? Monkeybars are calling my name,” Jungkook announced as he set the basket in the cart.

“Noooo,” Lily whined.

“Look, I’m sorry that you still can’t beat me in a monkeybar race. Get good,” Jungkook teased.

“Daaaad,” Lily scowled and punched his arm playfully.

“What did I tell you, thumbs out,” he corrected, but her thumbs were out and she used them to give him two thumbs down and stick her tongue out. “Yeah I’m leaving you in the monkeybar dust.”

Through all this Jasmin just watched, until Isabella joked, “Something for you and Daniel to look forward to.”

“I don’t know yet if we’re having a boy or a girl,” she said. “I want it to be a surprise.”

“Either one is good, and they’ll surprise you either way.”

Lily set Kai down, exactly as she had been told not to do. Kai took his little uncertain toddling steps away –not even that fast, but Lily and Ezra playfully pretended like he was zooming full speed, slow-running after him and shouting, “Catch that baby!” Kai clearly thought he was really hauling ass and getting away with something.

Jungkook’s hand slid around Isabella’s waist, a firm but subtle hold as he stared after the kids, a bright smile on his face. Isabella appreciated the touch but also felt embarrassed for Jasmin to see it, ike she might think this was a performance for her. It might be, but it also wasn’t. Jungkook was a handsy guy.

If Jasmin noticed the hand, she didn’t show it, just agreed, “Yes. It’s going to be great.” Isabella found herself hoping that was sincere, that Jasmin felt that way about her life, and Daniel, and this baby she had on the way which may or may not have been planned. She certainly wasn’t going to ask. She of all people knew the planning didn’t dictate the love and joy that came afterwards, and that life had a way of surprising you with the absolute worst but also, sometimes, the absolute best. Maybe Jasmin would wind up being a good mom, the way Jungkook and Isabella had wound up being pretty good parents too. 

Jungkook pulled away to wedge the gate and scooter into the cart, before saying to Jasmin,

“Well, good luck and congratulations. We’ve got to get these kids some ice cream and to a playground.”

“Wait, why the ice cream?” Isabella caught, because that had not been part of the plan.

He dropped his voice lower and leaned in and whined, “Because I want some, it’s finally warm enough outside it won’t give me brain freeze.”

“That’s not how brain freeze works,” she laughed.

“Bellaaaa, buy us ice cream.”

“Yeah yeah, go,” she laughed, “Push the cart, Muscles.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Isabella paused, turning back to Jasmin, belatedly considering that she hadn’t been thinking or feeling anything at all about Jasmin for the last few minutes, really. The thing she’d feared, the jab she had waited for, didn’t come. It was like running into anyone else from high school in the store: a little awkward but inoffensive. 

If Jungkook was making a point right now, he’d done it exactly right, by being playful and casual. This was exactly what Isabella would have wanted Jasmin to see, their family close and loving and happy. It didn’t feel like an act because it wasn’t. Jasmin could see that, she must. Maybe she was jealous or maybe she was just as happy with her C.O.O. fiance and Bali wedding and baby on the way, but Isabella found she just… didn’t really care. Jasmin’s life or feelings had no bearing on her at all. She didn’t even feel the need for any kind of revenge, or confirmation that Jasmin’s life was worse or anything like that. It didn’t matter. Jasmin didn’t need to fail for Isabella to know that her life had taken a major winning turn. She had no envy for anyone. She had exactly what she wanted.

“I hope things go well for you. New babies can be hard but just remember it gets better every week. I’m sure you’ll do great.”

“I know that,” Jasmin said, maybe a little snippy. Isabella snorted. Ok, still a bitch maybe? “Anyway. Have fun with your ice cream.”

“Oh, we do,” Isabella assured her, then strolled off before realizing it might have sounded a little more coy than she really meant it. Uh well, whatever! If Jasmin thought she and Jungkook got freaky with ice cream, so be it. She took the last few steps in the aisle at a faster pace and jumped into Jungkook’s back just before he’d disappeared from view of the aisle. His response was to reach back and smack her on the ass loudly. 

“Hey!”

“Hey yourself, I thought we had a family rule about jumping on people without warning,” he reminded, which they did, and everyone in the family sucked at it. Kids and over-energetic husbands would be themselves, so why couldn’t she get away with it too?

“No that way, that way Kai!” the kids cheered, herding Kai towards the cash registers at the front. Isabella rested her chin on top of Jungkook’s head and squeezed his shoulders before sliding off. Rather than let her go, he threw his arm around her shoulder and pulled her into his side.

“You ok?” he asked.

“I’m very ok.”

“I didn’t know how to handle it,” he admitted. “Never expected to run into her here. I can’t imagine her as a mom.”

“Well… people probably said that about me too,” Isabella pointed out. “Maybe it changes her for the better. She wasn’t as bitchy as she used to be.”

“Was she being… nice?” he asked, incredulous.

“Maybe? I don’t know. And I weirdly… don’t care. I mean, it was fucking high school.”

He kissed her temple and whispered, “Yeah, but I’m still sorry.”

“It’s been one hell of an apology,” she whispered back. 

“Want me to say it again tonight?” he whispered again. “Down… there?” He wiggled his eyebrows.

“No. ‘I’m sorry’ is too short. Maybe…all these books you’ve been memorizing?”

“Fuck, I’ll be down there all night!”

“Hm,” she grinned. “Hm,” she said again, and giggled and dove ahead as he swatted at her ass, off to scoop up Kai before he pulled down a rack of toddler sunglasses because Ezra and Lily were distracted by someone’s small dog they’d brought into the store.

[reality-detective]

Unbelievable 🤔

[violetwolfraven]

The funniest thing in the world to me is when people write mermaids that are bothered by humans eating fish. Like do you think fish don’t eat each other? The ocean is full of little freaks that will eat whatever or whoever the fuck will fit in their mouths. If the mermaids haven’t been eating fish this whole time what do you think they’ve been eating? If the answer is humans, that doesn’t make it any less funny. They’ll eat the species that looks like the top half of them but won’t eat a species that looks like the bottom half? Peak comedy.

[thatsamerica76]

[nikidanger]

Just going to leave this here...