“Likehis dad,” I whisper, and his eyes soften as he shakes his head.
“Like his mum.”
“What’s his name?” one of the nurses asks, and I bite my lip as Ringo and I stare at each other.
He told me he wanted me to name our child. I’ve thrown name ideas at him over the past few months, but he just keeps telling me it’s my decision. So I chose another name that could be used for a boyora girl.
“His name is Lex Cameron Musgrove.”
Ringo’s eyes widen. “Cameron is Bobbi’s middle name.”
“I know. I thought we could start a tradition of having all the middle names the same.”
He throws his head back, laughing, and shakes his head. “The next one has to have your name as the middle name. It’s only fair.”
I giggle. “What if it’s a boy? I don’t think he’ll like having Abbey as his middle name.”
“He won’t know any different.” Ringo chuckles, and we both stare down at our son.
“Lex,” he mutters, like he’s testing the name.
“She means a lot to both of us,” I whimper, my emotions getting the better of me. “She never gave up on me. She sent you to me. I think naming him after Lexi is perfect.”
“Yeah. It is.” Ringo smiles, leaning down to press a kiss to Lex’s forehead, and as the surgeons stitch my tummy back up, Ringo and I get to know our little boy.
By the time we get taken to the hospital room, I’m utterly exhausted, and we spend the next few hours catching up on rest and teaching Lex how to drink from me.
We have so many friends and family who have been eagerly awaiting the news, all of them camping out at our home, in true Southern Sadists style.
The pandemic that swept through the world has settled. There are no more lockdowns. No more requirements to wear face masks, but the world hasn’t been the same since.
Even now, hospitals are stricter on how many visitors can be in a room at once, so everyone will have to wait, except for the three very special visitors waiting out in the hall, eager to meet our son.
I’ve tried to make myself look as human as possible, but I feel pretty sluggish from the caesarean earlier today, but with Ringo’s help, we tamed my hair and dressed me in an oversized tee, and Ringo passed our son to me.
“You ready?” he asks, and I nod eagerly, staring down at Lex, wrapped in a bundle, sleeping soundly in my arms.
“I’m ready. Bring our little tornado in.”
Chuckling, Ringo opens the door, and the tornado I was referring to bursts in.
“Daddy! Where’s the baby?”
Dropping down to Bobbi’s height, Ringo scoops her up and points to the bed.
“Mummy has him.”
“Oh my God! Him! A boy?!” Tahli cries, bursting in after Bobbi, with Lexi on her heels, and suddenly, I’m engulfed.
Tahli bounces on one side of the bed, and Bobbi scrambles out of Ringo’s arms, cramming me in on the other, and they start doting over Lex immediately, while I watch my best friend’s eyes fill with tears.
“I told myself I wasn’t going to cry,” Lexi giggles, and I bob my head towards my son in my arms.
“Come and meet him,” I say. “His name is Lex.”
Her eyes flash up from the bundle to me, her mouth dropping open as she shakes her head.
“It is not.”
