[Jaeyi] TJ. (Vignette)
I meant to post this on Saturday and forgot. :P Post coming about me and RL shortly.
Jaeyi loved to look at him, to touch the perfect little waves of black that would grow into a thick crop of curls soon enough, she guessed. She loved the soft smell of him, at first almost empty of fragrance but now-- two days after his birth-- slightly milky. She loved the way his fingers curled into tiny fists, and the way he turned his mouth into the shape of an O when he yawned, and the way his dark eyes looked up at her wide-eyed and then slowly, gradually, closed, and he would breathe a soft sigh and fall into a deep and immediate sleep.
Every tiniest noise he made started her still. He slept in a bassinet next to their bed, waking every hour or two to nurse. Jaeyi was awake when he was awake and slept when he slept. She had managed to take a bath and comb her hair, but it would be a full week before she really began to get the hang of the rhythm of motherhood. It turned out, foolishness and vanity and silliness aside, that Jaeyi the Baker had a maternal instinct a mile wide. Though she hadn't gotten accustomed to it just yet, mothering came naturally to her, without complaint, with limitless patience even through her own weariness.
She was still living in something of a haze, two days after what had been an "easy" birth. If there was such a thing. She had been feeling cold and trapped and fretful all day long, pacing in the weyr, thinking she wanted to walk but feeling like it was just too damn bitter out to do so. Her back had been hurting her since yesterday, and she had slept badly, tossing and turning, dreaming and waking up, sometimes trying to curl close to T'rev, other times shoving his arms away irritably. Now, she could be grateful for his patience; three days ago, she wanted to choke him for what seemed like unflappable serenity. Why was he so calm when she was so agitated? Wasn't he scared or worried or nervous?
It was near midday when, finally getting herself bundled up, she had gone to have tea with Trish and complain. The older woman, having been through this many times before, listened to the Baker's woes, how her back was hurting and how uncomfortable she was, and said simply, "That's labor for you, hon. It's gonna get worse before it gets better."
And, oh, was it ever!
She had decided she would have the baby in T'rev's weyr, where there was a bath ready and she could be put to bed afterward, and she must have walked every inch of that weyr a thousand times between noon and midnight. At one point, having paced and paced and finally fretted that she needed to sit down only to complain that it was too agonizing when she sat down and she needed to walk more, Jaeyi felt like throwing things. At another point, she could remember crying for her mother. But that was all behind her, forgotten when her son-- still covered in some pretty gunky stuff-- was handed up to her. He screamed and screamed the moment he met the world, shaking his little hands uselessly, and she laughed through her tears while shushing him, reluctantly passing him off to be cleaned while she was tended to.
Everything had gone well, and she was helped into a robe and settled into bed, propped on pillows, looking wrecked. They brought him back to her within minutes, all cleaned up and swaddled, and she had been wearily blissful ever since. Sitting with her back on the pillows, with T'rev scooting next to her, she got to know her son in little whispers, touching small features with her fingertips, getting help from the midwife with nursing him until she had the knack of it. They had no idea what to call him, just "Baby" or "The Baby" for now, though T'rev had joked that-- since there were no good ways to make a name out of Trevan and Jaeyi-- they'd just call him TJ and people could figure out whose he was from that.
Which, ultimately, is why-- two days after he was born-- Jaeyi said simply, "I think you're right. I think we should call him TJ." Which would ultimately be spelled Tejay.
Jaeyi loved to look at him, to touch the perfect little waves of black that would grow into a thick crop of curls soon enough, she guessed. She loved the soft smell of him, at first almost empty of fragrance but now-- two days after his birth-- slightly milky. She loved the way his fingers curled into tiny fists, and the way he turned his mouth into the shape of an O when he yawned, and the way his dark eyes looked up at her wide-eyed and then slowly, gradually, closed, and he would breathe a soft sigh and fall into a deep and immediate sleep.
Every tiniest noise he made started her still. He slept in a bassinet next to their bed, waking every hour or two to nurse. Jaeyi was awake when he was awake and slept when he slept. She had managed to take a bath and comb her hair, but it would be a full week before she really began to get the hang of the rhythm of motherhood. It turned out, foolishness and vanity and silliness aside, that Jaeyi the Baker had a maternal instinct a mile wide. Though she hadn't gotten accustomed to it just yet, mothering came naturally to her, without complaint, with limitless patience even through her own weariness.
She was still living in something of a haze, two days after what had been an "easy" birth. If there was such a thing. She had been feeling cold and trapped and fretful all day long, pacing in the weyr, thinking she wanted to walk but feeling like it was just too damn bitter out to do so. Her back had been hurting her since yesterday, and she had slept badly, tossing and turning, dreaming and waking up, sometimes trying to curl close to T'rev, other times shoving his arms away irritably. Now, she could be grateful for his patience; three days ago, she wanted to choke him for what seemed like unflappable serenity. Why was he so calm when she was so agitated? Wasn't he scared or worried or nervous?
It was near midday when, finally getting herself bundled up, she had gone to have tea with Trish and complain. The older woman, having been through this many times before, listened to the Baker's woes, how her back was hurting and how uncomfortable she was, and said simply, "That's labor for you, hon. It's gonna get worse before it gets better."
And, oh, was it ever!
She had decided she would have the baby in T'rev's weyr, where there was a bath ready and she could be put to bed afterward, and she must have walked every inch of that weyr a thousand times between noon and midnight. At one point, having paced and paced and finally fretted that she needed to sit down only to complain that it was too agonizing when she sat down and she needed to walk more, Jaeyi felt like throwing things. At another point, she could remember crying for her mother. But that was all behind her, forgotten when her son-- still covered in some pretty gunky stuff-- was handed up to her. He screamed and screamed the moment he met the world, shaking his little hands uselessly, and she laughed through her tears while shushing him, reluctantly passing him off to be cleaned while she was tended to.
Everything had gone well, and she was helped into a robe and settled into bed, propped on pillows, looking wrecked. They brought him back to her within minutes, all cleaned up and swaddled, and she had been wearily blissful ever since. Sitting with her back on the pillows, with T'rev scooting next to her, she got to know her son in little whispers, touching small features with her fingertips, getting help from the midwife with nursing him until she had the knack of it. They had no idea what to call him, just "Baby" or "The Baby" for now, though T'rev had joked that-- since there were no good ways to make a name out of Trevan and Jaeyi-- they'd just call him TJ and people could figure out whose he was from that.
Which, ultimately, is why-- two days after he was born-- Jaeyi said simply, "I think you're right. I think we should call him TJ." Which would ultimately be spelled Tejay.