She's My Sleeping Pill

“What would you do if it happened to you?” Kyle asked which caught Stefan’s attention as well. He told Cayenne something related to this matter before and he wasn’t sure if she remembered.

As the object of their interest right now, Cayenne just chewed her food slowly while thinking about it. “I’d leave.” She said after swallowing that mouthful of food. “I’ll leave if that happens to me. Stefan and I talked about this already and I am pretty sure he wouldn’t do such a thing.” She looked at her husband and held his hand tightly wanting to make him feel how serious she was this time. “Whatever challenges come our way; we’ll deal with them together. I don’t deserve a beating so; you shouldn’t do that to me. I have a value as a person and I know you’d respect me just as how much I respect you.”

“I’m not a scumbag.” Stefan retorted and pinched her cheek. “I’d rather die than hurt you again – not in a million years to come.”

[Why did I even ask such a question?] Kyle thought as he ate his food and listened to them confess how much they care for each other. [I’d never do this again.]

After dinner, Stefan and Cayenne took a walk under the starlit sky and the moonlight. They went to the stables and watched the horses for a short while before leaving to check on the other animals; though she was only allowed to watch them from a one-meter distance.

They have been together for more than three years from the first night that they slept together and even so, simple things like walking together, eating meals together, and other things, as long as they do it together, Cayenne would be so happy about it. For her, the time they spent together was priceless. If they could, she would love to spend all her time with him which was impossible because he has to work and she has to study as well as organize things in the foundation.

“How’s the foundation going?” Stefan asked because he had never meddled with this project of hers. He would only check on things if she asks him for his help.

“Kyle has been managing it for me together with Kath and my staff. So far, nothing bad has happened and Tristan has been checking on the list of people that Noah has gathered through social media and phone contacts. I should get the result soon.”

.....

“No wonder Tristan was so busy. It was a good thing that I also have Elena who could help with other things. How about we get you, someone, to work as a secretary as well?”

“Me? My work isn’t that big. I don’t think I need one.”

“Well, I’m not bothered that you’d ask Tristan for help about some things but look on the bright side, if you have your own assistant, you won’t need to share Tristan with me and you don’t have to wait when he’ll have a free time to consult him on some matters.”

“Oh, my! Have I been snatching his time to go on dates with Elena?”

Stefan chuckled at her thought process because he did not expect he would react this way. “Yeah. You are giving so much work that he has to go on overtime with her.”

“Then, you find someone to work for me.”

“Got it, my Queen. I’ll find someone next week. Let’s depend on Kyle and Kath for now.”

After their evening walk, they went back to the house, to sanitize themselves since they have been close to the animals on the farm; even though they never really touched them, Stefan still insisted that they’d get themselves sprayed with the machine. Using the elevator, they directly went upstairs to change their clothes.

Normally, due to her pregnancy, Cayenne refused to share a bath with her husband. She never said anything about why and due to hormonal changes, Stefan understood what might have caused this and decided to let her do things on her own. He has no idea that Cayenne just refused to bathe with him because she was insecure about how her body looked. She gained weight and her baby bump was getting bigger.

“You should go and wash first. You’ll catch a cold if you shower later.” Stefan said while getting a towel to wrap himself and put some warm water in the bathtub. “I’ll get inside after you.” He poured some liquid into it and bubbles started to appear which Cayenne loves so much. “You can’t stay too long even if you like your bubble bath.”

Cayenne quickly grabbed a part of his shirt to stop him from leaving and when Stefan looked at her, she had her eyes on the tiled floor like it was a very interesting at this moment. “Let’s get in together,” she said which stunned Stefan a little. It’s been more than two months since they last bathed together. He blinked his eyes several times and Cayenne finally let go of his shirt. “You don’t want to?”

“Who said that?”

“You will?” She wiped her eyes immediately and it was until then that he realized she cried. “I thought you wouldn’t because you got used to bathing alone.”

“I could never get used to it.” Stefan pulled her close and she thought she would get a hug, but Stefan kissed her and with his amazing hands, she didn’t notice how quick he was to undress her. She didn’t even get the chance to feel insecure because Stefan’s warm hands were touching her in many ways that gives her pleasure. It was so nice to be touched by him.

“Will you shower with me again tomorrow?” She asked after pulling away to get a breather.

“Of course. It was you who started not getting in the shower room with me.”

“Because I gained weight and my stomach looks bloated and I get cranky and just...just so many things keep getting into my head and I didn’t want to bathe with you anymore.”

“That’s hormones, sweetheart,” Stefan whispered and kissed the tip of her nose. “Who cares if you’ve gained weight? Isn’t that the best proof that I am a good cook? And you looking bloated because of your baby bump doesn’t matter to me. It means our baby is growing healthily inside you.”

All that she needed was reassurance and reaffirmation from Stefan to heal the gaping wounds of insecurities in her heart. Most pregnant women need this because of how their body changes along with the baby in their stomachs. They tend to think of how ugly they look with a bloated stomach and how fat they have become. In truth, they are very brave to choose to keep the baby inside them for nine months more or less. They are brave for embarking on the journey of motherhood.

Stefan understood that many things would change in Cayenne’s physical look and her mental stability. He read so many books about women during their pregnancy stage and after giving birth. He wanted to make sure that he was doing the right thing, to make sure that her pregnancy wouldn’t give her a hard time.

Finally, after more than two months, Stefan was able to share a bath with his wife. He kept telling her how wonderful it would be to see the baby grow and he wanted to record every moment of it. He wasn’t looking for a boy or a girl, as long as it was made of Cayenne’s flesh and blood with his, that was all that mattered.

Two days later, the two of them were sitting on their bed, looking at each other while he was helping her calm her nerves. “Just breathe with me. Look at me and think of nothing else but me. Don’t think too much. Everything is going great according to Thomas. No matter how low the survival rate is, that is still a chance of survival.”

“Will they blame me?”

“No,” Stefan answered resolutely. “Thomas and Monet’s parents have been wanting to see you, to thank you for letting them know where she was. They would never put the blame on you.” [They wouldn’t do so unless they wanted their business gone.] Stefan thought without changing his expression in front of his wife. No one matters more to him than his wife.

Stefan was only kind to Cayenne and the people he considered friends and family. However, if those friends or family members harm his wife, he wouldn’t spare them either. You can mess with him but not his wife. That is his bottom line and it would never change.