Made of Glass

Laila and Noah had arrived at a small little town where they had stopped to take a break from the driving. Though Laila had offered to take the wheel to let Noah rest up, Noah refused as he didn't want to strain Laila's body even more than with the pregnancy. Even with Laila protesting and telling him she was perfectly capable of driving for a few hours and that she wasn't made of glass, Noah would not budge. Instead he left the freeway the first chance he got, while Laila was tasked with finding a good place to eat.

While they were sharing a meal in the idyllic, rustic restaurant, a few minutes out from the freeway, Noah explained his reason for treating her so delicately. He explained to her that he had heard a lot of horror stories about pregnancy before her pregnancy. About the risks during pregnancy, about the risk of giving birth and the risk of postpartum depression after the baby was born. This had caused him to be against Laila getting pregnant for fear of any of these things happening to her. So much so, that he had held them becoming parents off for quite some time but that Laila had kept insisting. "After a while things came to blows and you would no longer take 'no' for an answer. With balled fists you told me that you would get pregnant and build a family with me one way or another, so I might as well participate from the start or risk being left out in the end." With a chuckle he added, "I remember your stomping and scowling face very vividly. It was so cute yet so intimidating. That was when I was left with no other option and we started making actual plans."

With a big, gentle smile Laila listen to Noah telling her about the beginning of her pregnancy. Filling in the memories she was missing and giving her the real answer to the question of why she was only pregnant with her first child now. She was happy to know that nothing tragic like her previous life had been the reason for this and happily listened as Noah continued. "I agreed with us starting our own family but only after we had met up with an OBGYN. Every day I would read books about pregnancy and how I could make the pregnancy have as little risk for your health as possible. But you were not willing to wait and would seduce me or jump me any chance you got." This last comment got a chuckle out of both of them as one imagined it and the other recalled the event.

"I could only hold out for so long. Before we knew it, the deed had been done and you were pregnant. You were so happy and you told everyone who was willing to hear it, despite me telling you to wait until you had reached the safe stage. Every day was so stressful and very soon after we found out, you got very severe pregnancy symptoms. My first fears had become a reality. You couldn't keep a single meal inside and you were exhausted all the time. You had to take a leave from work and I did my best to take care of you myself any chance I got. When I couldn't be there for you, Olivia would come to keep you company and check up on you. Now I know she had ulterior motives but back then she was a blessing. I don't know how I would have been able to go to work if she wasn't there by your side."

Laila's smile faded for a bit as Noah brought up a complicated matter for her. But she continued to listen to Noah explain, "Maria lived so far away and you and her weren't on speaking terms. Your parents were on a cruise and my parents were out in the countryside to take care of my grandmother, who had hurt her hip after a fall. At that point it felt like my nightmares had come true with you feeling so sick and us having almost no support system to help us get through the pregnancy. This was also when I started to regret going along with the plan of getting you pregnant. But when we went in for the first ultrasound, everything changed."

Noah smiled as he recalled these moments and he reminisced. "I could see how happy it made you and that you didn't mind all the symptoms at all, as long as you got to meet the end result. Every day you would talk to him, even though his ears hadn't developed yet. You would talk about him, even when there wasn't much yet to tell. You started designing his room, despite his arrival being months and months away. Seeing you so excited and happy, made me feel more happy and calm as well but I still had a sense of worry."

The dreamy look in his eyes disappeared and he looked right at Laila as he said, "Then you 'arrived' and suddenly all the symptoms stopped. You seemed completely fine and I could finally breathe again." With narrowed eyes that showed his judgement of the situation he added, "That is until you started the whole pregnancy brain thing to explain your missing memories. Bringing me right back to feeling worried." Laila chuckled as she apologized. "I didn't mean to make you worried. I didn't know all of that had preceded my pregnancy. It was just the perfect explanation for me not knowing such common things like your nickname and my password. How else was I supposed to explain that?" They both laughed and Noah pinched her cheek as they finished up their meal.