58: Plague

                                    

                                          
"I got it." I called Nell was in the garden with my mum and sisters and I came in to get drinks and the doorbell rang. "Tony!" I gasped he wasn't meant to be here yet. "Nell doesn't know I'm back." I let him in. 
"Princess?" She called. "MK wants ice in hers but Ash doesn't and your mum asked if we have any- Where are you?" Tony and I stood still listening to her looking for me. "There you are, did you hear me?" I nodded and then she looked away from me. "TONY!" She jumped on him and he caught her, her long legs wrapping around him to hold herself up. "Hey, bug." "Miss me?" He teased. They have gotten past everything and are talking more on the phone and I guess she had missed him. "I thought you wasn't in until Christmas Eve." "Well I just couldn't believe you were actually home for Christmas. I had to see it for myself." She shoved him as she climbed down. "Mum and Jr are in the car, can they come in?" "Yeah, of course." "I'll go get them." 
"Rose is awake." She says hearing her moan on the monitor. Colin and Scar went out on a date so we offered to have little Rose allowing them some time alone together. Nell's family come in. "We're out in the garden." I say leading them through. 
"Mum this is Tony," I introduce them. "You remember the girls." "Ashley and Mary-Kate." "MK and Ash." I correct Tony. "Sorry." "We get it all the time." Nell came out with Rose in her arms, she was distracted by the baby too much to care about the open mouth brother looking at her. "When did that happen?" He asked her as she adjusted her hold on Rose. "About four months ago, didn't you get the pictures?" "You had a baby?" "No you idiot." She says sitting down beside Mary-Kate. "She's Scarlett and Colin's baby." "Makes more sense." He says sitting beside her. He whispers something to Rose. "Her names Rose not Antonia you freak." I hear Nell snarl at him. "Thought she was named after me thats all." "Get away from her." She told him, I replaced him and we all sat down. Nell and me doing our usual pass the baby. I forget the drinks so she went and did that and came back out with them remembering everything. 
We all spoke and laughed and it was nice to be together. Nell walked off with Rose to the garden to settle her, Scarlett said she's been getting colic after her bottles and I guess that's what was happening now. She was stood by the garden with her rocking her and I assume talking or maybe singing to her to soothe her some. I watched her. "You imagining her with your babies." MK teased. "No." I say still watching her. "She'll be a good mum." Ashley comments. "Always been good with children." Anna says. "She's a natural." Mum says. Rose's cries calm down but Nell stays away for a little longer. "You want her to have you babies." "Shut up." I say to MK. "When's the wedding." "Someday." I say. "Someday soon?" "Someday one day." I say the same thing Nell said to me. "Really set in stone." "We're not rushing this. it's our pace." "I'm teasing, you've been together a year and engagement right now would be crazy." "Not so crazy." Ashley says. "They're good together and happy and they communicate. It wouldn't be so crazy." That started the group direction of our relationship and I excused myself to go to Nell not wanting to be part of making a timeline of our future. I wanted to do that with Nell. 
"They're planning our lives make them stop." I say standing behind her placing my chin on her shoulder. "What do you mean?" "MK was teasing me about me watching you with Rose and saying I was imagining you with our babies." She nodded listening. "And then she asked when's the wedding and I was like someday one day." She chuckled and nodded. "And then she said it would be crazy if we got engaged now as it's only been a year kind of depending when you count from." She nodded again. "And now they're dissecting our relationship saying it wouldn't be crazy and planning everything." "That's siblings for you." "Your mum looks bewildered by the prospect of you proposing to me." "I'm 23. She married young had kids and thats her life she doesn't want the same for me." "But you'll be 28 in 5 years that's still fairly young but ideal for a family. What if you want to wait until then?" "I don't." "But." "My mum is not me. I want a family I want to marry you someday one day and I'll do it at a time that's right for us. Not right for everyone else. We barley announced our relationship." "I'm not pushing you." "I know." "You're annoyed." "I'm not. I'm okay. It's just weird having everyone here." "You missing her?" "Yeah. A lot right now." "We could sneak out with Rose." "Your family is here, spend time with them." "But you're upset." "I'm okay, I can't be sad holding a baby." "Nell." "It's going to be a hard few days, I'm okay." "Promise." She turned to peck my cheek. "Promise." I stay with her a little longer before we go back to the table. Nell takes Rose on a walk around the area in her stroller to get her to sleep and I stay with my family.