Total pages in book: 133
Estimated words: 125866 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 629(@200wpm)___ 503(@250wpm)___ 420(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 125866 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 629(@200wpm)___ 503(@250wpm)___ 420(@300wpm)
Once we were inside, though, he stirred, and a new wave of energy washed over him. He asked me if he could have ice cream, and though I didn’t think sugar at midnight was a great idea, it was a special occasion.
So, he and Kyle made little ice cream sundaes — one for each of them, and a special one for me, which included more sprinkles than I’d had in all my years of life combined.
We ate at the kitchen island and made a mess with chocolate syrup, Sebastian and Kyle talking about the game while I smiled and listened.
I could see how nervous Kyle was, and it was the most adorable thing in the world.
Here was this beast of a man who had just won an NFL game, and he was shaking in his boots at the thought of telling a six-year-old that he was about to be a big brother.
It warmed my heart.
Once the ice cream was done, Kyle grabbed Sebastian’s hand, casting me a weary look over his shoulder. I winked at him with what I hoped was an encouraging smile. With one last breath, Kyle nodded, his resolve set.
“Have you had a good day?” he asked Sebastian.
“The best day.”
“Well, what if I told you we had one last surprise for you?”
Sebastian’s eyes widened, flicking from Kyle to me and back again.
“There’s a present for you on your bed,” Kyle said. “Think you have enough energy to open it?”
“Yeah!” Sebastian took off in a sprint, and Kyle and I chuckled before jogging along behind him.
We poured into his room just in time to see him ripping into the race car wrapping paper, and he tore at the box until he was holding his present in his hand.
A medium-sized, smoothly polished river rock — engraved with the words Big Brother.
Sebastian blinked at it for a long moment, turning it over in his hands with a confused and tentative smile. “It’s a rock.”
“It is,” Kyle said, bending down next to him. “Can you read what it says?”
Sebastian sounded the two words out one letter at a time until he got it.
“Big brother.”
We waited for it to click, but when Sebastian just tilted his head to the side, Kyle glanced up at me before sitting on the bed and pulling Sebastian up next to him.
“Tonight, at the game, did you see how me and the other guys on my team worked together?”
Sebastian nodded.
“We all had to work as a unit to get the win. Some of us had to throw or catch the ball. Others had to block so our players wouldn’t get hit. Some had to kick. Everyone had a role to play.”
“Kind of like a family.”
“Exactly like a family,” Kyle echoed. “Do you remember when I took you to Talon’s birthday party a couple weeks ago? Remember how she was showing off her new baby brother?”
Sebastian giggled. “Yeah. He kept blowing bubbles with his mouth.”
“He did, didn’t he?” Kyle smiled, sucked in a long breath, and let it out slowly. “Well, what would you think if I told you that you are going to have a new baby brother — or sister.”
My son’s eyes grew wide, and my hands floated to my mouth as tears pricked my eyes.
I knew that look.
He was excited.
“Wait, really?!”
Kyle nodded. “Really.”
Sebastian blinked rapidly. “How? When?”
“Well, I think you can see that your mom and I love each other.”
Sebastian smiled at me, and I winked at him. “Yeah,” he said.
“We love each other so much that we made a baby, and that baby is growing inside your mom’s tummy right now — just like you did.”
“In her tummy?” Sebastian looked at me slack-jawed. “Does it hurt?”
“Sometimes,” I said on a laugh, and I went over to join them on the bed. “You know how I’ve been feeling kind of sick lately? Well, that’s because it takes a lot of work to make a baby.”
“You’re making a whole human!”
“Isn’t that so cool?” Kyle asked.
Sebastian nodded emphatically. “And I’m going to be a big brother!”
“You are,” I said, squeezing his knee. “The best one ever.”
“Can I hug the baby? And play with it?”
“Absolutely. And you’ll help me and Mom protect it and care for it. Babies can’t do much for a while, so it’ll be a lot of work, but we’ll make it fun, won’t we?”
“Yeah,” Sebastian said. But his smile faltered a little then, and his eyes met Kyle’s. “Will the new baby call you dad, the way I call my dad?”
“Yes, buddy, they will.”
My son swallowed. “Would it be okay if I call you dad, too?”
Kyle’s eyes fluttered shut, and I watched him compose himself before he reached down and put both hands on Sebastian’s shoulders. “You can call me anything you’d like to. And I want you to know that this doesn’t change a thing between you and me. I…” He swallowed. “I love you. And you’re always going to be my buddy. In fact, I’m going to need you now more than ever. I’ve never been a dad before,” he said the word like it was crazy, and Sebastian giggled. “What the heck am I supposed to do? I need you to walk me through it all.”