Page 72 of Spiralling Skywards: Fading
“Why’s that?”
“Awww, she’s just horrible and calls me Carter the Farter.”
I struggled not to laugh.
“Ya know what, mate? I’ll tell you a secret about girls, shall I?”
He nodded.
“Girls are only mean to the boys who they like.”
He swung from side to side even faster as he thought about it.
“Nah, I still wanna brother one. Can I have my purples now?”
I set Carter up at his little play table with his colouring book and crayons, changed the twins’ nappies, and started dinner.
Despite a decidedly traumatic day, it all turned perfect when Liam’s arms slipped around me from behind.
“I’ve been calling you. Where’s your phone, pretty girl? You had me worried.”
I set the pasta I was just rinsing in the sink, turned around, took one look at my husband’s handsome face, and burst into tears.
“Sarah, what the fuck? What’s wrong? Did the doctor say something?”
He took both my hands and led me over to the dining table. Before he could ask me again, Carter came running from the playroom.
“Daddy. I’ve been good and mummy let me have purples and Isabella wants to be my friend really but I still want the new bubby in Mummy’s belly to be a brother not a sister.”
Liam’s features flicked through different emotions as he tried to make sense of what Carter was telling him.
“Hey, bud. Come here and give me a love. Then, I want you to go and play with your purples again for a bit while I talk to Mummy.”
Carter climbed across me to reach Liam as he shouted, “Nosey!” before rubbing his nose against Liam’s.
Climbing down he pressed his face into my belly and shouted, “Bye, brother, when you come out, you can play with my purples, too.” Then he ran back to the playroom.
“What the fuck is he on? What did you feed him today?”
I sucked in my cheeks and tried to hold in my sob, but I just ended up making a squeaking kind of noise.
“Okay, bub, talk to me. What the fuck is going on?”
I wiped my eyes on the sleeves of my hoodie so that I could see him clearly.
“Carter just told you.”
“Carter just came out here and rambled a whole load of things. Which particular thing has made you cry like this?”
Liam held out his fist and uncurled a finger as he went through his list. “Purples, Isawotsit, brother—” He got halfway through a shrug when it clicked.
“No? No fucking way?”
I nodded. He grinned.
“Fuck, my sperm are supersonic. You’re pregnant?”
I nodded again. “That’s why you’re crying?”
