I am very chaotic, expect everything and nothing

First, the farmer focused on his farm, making sure all his plants were protected and sheltered with a tarp. Working with a seemingly steadily growing belly was not an easy task, and hammering stakes and pulling the tarp taut was enough to make him curse.

“You.” He grumbled to himself as he straightened up to his full height, hands rammed against the small of his back. “...Are gonna wreck me, pumpkin.”

The baby inside aimed a kick at his ribs in response, and he grumbled, palming the spot before shaking his head and heading inside.

The next few days were for prepping the indoor chicken coop, then finally ushering the girls inside before the first cold snap. He timed it close to perfect, the chickens kept him company inside for a couple of nights before the ground finally froze, bringing with it a layer of frost that covered everything and drew patterns on his window.

Lewis saw his breath when he stepped outside the next morning to gather his delivery of firewood, grumbling to himself as he lugged it inside in three separate trips. The doc had warned him about heavy lifting, but sometimes you had to do what you had to do.

For the better part of the next week or so, Lewis let himself be lazy. He burrowed up in his house like a hibernating animal, keeping the fireplace lit and blankets in his lap. He baked a couple loaves of bread, made some very hearty breakfasts, watched the snow come down, and read.

The book about the gods and goddesses, he sat in his window seat with a blanket around his shoulder and read out loud some evenings, unsure of whether he was speaking to himself or to the baby. He read about the gods of the fire and the sun, the goddesses of weaving, of bees, of cattle and cats. And gods with no gender, who ruled over things like family, writing, and art.

Juni just so happened to be there when he reached her section, which tickled her to no end. She had been checking in on her very round farmer as he weathered a particularly heavy snowstorm when she heard what exactly he was reading. It was quiet, but the snow fell in huge flakes, and was gathering in deep drifts around the cottage and up against the sides of all the bare fruit trees.

Her famer sat up in bed, a quilt around his shoulders, and as Juni settled into the rafters of the farmhouse, he turned the page and saw the leaf she’d left there a season ago, still pressed flat in between the pages and marking her pencil illustration.

Lewis blinked and picked up the leaf, then smirked, looking down at the page with a small chuckle. “Here you go, pumpkin. Here’s your fairy godmother. Making everything hard for your papa. Juni, the goddess of the Harvest and Farmers. That’s us.”

Juni smiled warmly and leaned her head in one hand as she listened to him read. She could feel the strength of his heart, and the baby inside him, her little cabbage mistake, was growing rapidly. Their heartbeat was also strong, and so was their energy, Juni could feel. Pursing her lips, she blew a small breath of air, and the candle at Lewis’s bedside flickered.

Snorting, he glanced up and looked out the window, then back down at the book. “Yeah, yeah. It’s a blessing, I know. Just…an unexpected one.” He closed the book and palmed his belly, yawning a little bit. “You gonna come out looking like a cabbage, pumpkin? Mm?”

His eye was soft and there was a smile on his face as he set the book aside and finished getting ready for bed, and Juni smiled to herself. It was hard, but she knew she’d done right by this farmer.

The next day, Lewis finally cracked open the other book, full of diagrams and complicated medical terms. And so…so many pictures of very round and glowing women. As the farmer worked his way through a bowl of warm oatmeal, he flipped to the pages about the last trimester and birth, reading through it with a slightly nervous look on his face.

…How was this even going to work? Cervix, openings, things changing inside to get ready to bring a baby into the world…how was he supposed to get what was inside him OUT if he didn’t come equipped with the proper parts? Blinking, he looked at the diagram, a baby nestled head down inside a mother’s belly, then poked at his belly gently with one finger.

“You better come out nice and easy, just like this book says. Get head down, like this picture, and just slide right out.”

The baby wriggled in response, and he chuckled, rubbing the spot and looking out the window. “...I’ll handle that when it gets here. The goddess blessed me with this, I’m sure she knows what she’s doing.”

Juni, on the other side of the window looking in, turned around and grimaced to herself. She had…no idea what she was doing. How was all of that going to work?

Fiddling with one of her braids, she thought to herself and flew off, leaving her harmer to his reading. Which few of her fellow gods could she talk to about this tender subject? Maybe she’d better consult Mitera…

The next couple of weeks seemed to fly by for both Lewis and his baby. The next project the new dad worked on was clearing out his old storage room to use it as a nursery instead. He’d managed to order some lumber and some baby clothes from the town on the other side of the pass, to be delivered once the roads were tamped down, and he knew he needed a place to put everything.

He tossed out a bunch of old garbage he’d been hanging onto for no reason, cleaned up a busted rocking chair he’d been meaning to oil and fix, and trudged into town with two coats on to pick up some paint and some more food.

The baker, Mrs. Love, gave him a small wink and slipped an extra lemon loaf into his bag, and he nodded back, giving her a sheepish smile. He’d expected she would have guessed, judging by the fact that she sent him extra recipes and made sure he had food, but also because she served as the assistant to the town midwife. He supposed it would be alright, maybe Dr. Jin had filled her in, or knew what to say if she asked about him.

One or two people knowing wouldn’t hurt, he just didn’t want the attention of the entire town.

He painted the room a soft green, and flopped himself on the floor to paint small swirly vines curling up from the baseboards around the whole room. He wasn’t any kind of artist, but when it was finished, he looked at his handiwork with pride. It was a nice, cozy room, and…now just needed a crib in it.

When his shipment finally came through, he let them leave it on his porch, feigning a cough, then drug it in himself, piece by piece. The last bit of his third semester, braced against more snows and days almost as dark as the long nights, was spent painstakingly carving and putting together a crib. He talked to his baby as he did it, explaining to them what piece he was working on and which part fitted into what.

Finally, when the roads had begun to turn from snow to mud, and when the sun was beginning to show her face more often, there was a finished nursery in the house, complete with the new crib, a trunk stuffed with clothes (the tiny size of which had surprisingly made Lewis cry- these damn emotions), and a whittled mobile hung with wooden animals above the crib. Lewis had made a butterfly (or was it a moth? He couldn’t tell without color), a bear, a cat, and a chicken.

Lewis sat in the nursery every night until he was ready to go to bed, rocking in the rocker chair and looking out the window at the melting, dripping world. Soon he’d be able to get back working on the land, stretch his legs, and hopefully have this baby in his arms instead of his belly before too long. They were getting damn heavy.

This winter had been a busy one, but a productive one, he thought, looking down at his rounded belly and patting the side.

Everyone was ready for spring.

–

Things were…muddy. The snow was almost all melted, only gathering in shadows and shade, and the dirt wasn’t thirsty anymore. The plants had started stretching their first tendrils of green out of the earth, and Lewis had finally been able to get back to work.

Slowly.

Despite the very heavy belly, the weight in his pelvis, and the ache in his back, he felt like he needed to work. If he wasn’t able to get his fingers in the dirt, he didn’t feel quite right. So every day, as soon as the sun had begun shining and as soon as he felt there would be no more freezes, he’d started the work of waking his garden back up.

First, the tarp came up, then the chickens moved back outside, much to their chagrin. They squawked and fussed, but he shooed them along with his boot, leaning on the wall and the doorframe as he waddled with all three of them back to their outdoor home.

After, Lewis began to turn the soil, making sure that there were no rocks, bugs, or rot where he needed to plant. This was the part that normally took him a couple of days, but now, with his extra weight, he knew it would take him at least a week. Thinking ahead, he’d ordered extra seeds and gathered those he’d saved, planning on planting as he worked instead of after the fact.

He was almost finished with this particular task, only a few rows left to plant, when a certain pumpkin decided to come see the garden.

This particular day, the sun was warm, the birds were singing, but the breeze was cold. Lewis woke up a bit late, cleaned his face, and pulled himself into his softest cloth top. He pulled his overalls up over his belly, wriggling to grab the straps and cursing gently to himself under his breath as they evaded his grasp.

As he finally managed to click the first strap, something deep inside him shifted, and a light, almost itchy-feeling cramp spread across his pelvis and the base of his belly. He paused, palming the base of the bump, and blew out his breath, looking down at himself. It was over before he could really think about it.

His brow furrowed, and he carefully grabbed and clicked the other overall strap. Maybe he’d twisted too hard. It was definitely time to retire these overalls, at least until this little pumpkin made their appearance.

Running his fingers across his hair, he looked out the window and smiled, seeing the sun already warming the ground. Despite being tired, something in him itched to go work. He wanted to be…up, on his feet, and moving.

He pulled on his boots, then grabbed up his gloves and stepped outside, inhaling the crisp air. He took care of the chickens first, gathering their eggs and fussing at how messy they’d made their coop. He couldn’t manage cleaning it like he used to.

After setting aside some for himself, he waddled down to the front gate and laid the basket on the concrete step, knowing that the baker and the grocer both would like them.

As he stood back up, another light cramp bloomed through his lower back this time, gripping the lower curve of his pelvis and his hips in rough hands. Lewis grimaced and rested his palms on his lower back, pressing in with the heels of his hands. He looked down at his belly as he waited for the cramp to subside, huffing a small breath through his nose. He was…huge, and hadn’t seen his feet in months. He wouldn’t miss hauling this thing around while he was trying to work, that was for sure.

Lewis’s brow slowly furrowed as he took in a deep breath through his nose. For him to have this baby, he had to…have this baby. He’d read through the chapter in the book a couple times, but the last week or so, he’d put it out of his mind in favor of waking his garden up instead.

Could this be…it?

When the cramp subsided, he shook his head to clear it and blew out his air in a big whoosh, closing the gate and waddling back into his garden space. He still had time. And even if he was in labor, he still had the rest of the garden to plant.

As his chickens wandered through the turned soil, scratching at the bugs and worms that had emerged due to the intrusion of Lewis’s rake, the farmer joined them, grabbing one of the fence posts to help lower himself to his knees. Taking a deep breath in and then out, he began working, wanting to finish out the last few rows and get the seeds in the ground before something dramatic happened.

Using the rake to pull at the soil and turn it, he’d look it through to make sure there was no rot, toss away any rocks, then work the soil into two rows. After dropping the seeds in (this row was cucumbers and squash, and a few herbs like basil), he’d move some of the fresh dirt over top of them, then scoot forward on his knees to the next patch.

It was rough work, and his back began to ache after only a few pulls of the rake, but he ignored it. It was either stubbornness or anxiety that made him pull his focus to his work instead of his body’s signals, and he didn’t pause long enough to try to tell which it was.

When, inevitably, another cramp would wash through him, he’d simply roughly blow out his air and continue working, putting a free hand on the small of his back if he had one.

During one such cramp, Betty wandered over closer and pulled at his shirtsleeve, pecking at it like it was a bug. Lewis took the opportunity to sit back on his heels and gently pap at her with one hand, stroking her soft feathers. “Whoof. This what it’s like for you ladies to lay an egg? Mm. Why didn’t you warn me?”

Betty cooed at him and pecked at his shirtsleeve again, and he tisked his tongue. “You loosen this button like you did the ones on my good black shirt and I’ll pluck you, girl.”

The chicken tilted her head, then scratched at the dirt below her a bit before crossing in front of Lewis and standing by his other side, her soft wing feathers pressing against his elbow.

Lewis chuckled, then rested his hands on his knees and bowed his head forward, blowing out his exhale. This one seemed to be lasting a bit longer. As he pulled in another slow breath, he shifted his hips subtly side to side, then grimaced, his brow pulling together. “Mm. Damn. This…” he sighed. “...is gonna take me forever.”

He continued down the row of plants to the end, only having to stop a couple more times, then leaned on the fence post to turn and come back the other way. However, a cramp overtook him before he could begin, and he quickly tossed down the rake and drove the heels of his hands into his knees, bowing his head and curling up around his belly. “Mmh-” he grunted softly, then blew out his breath, nose wrinkled.

It was this sight that greeted Juni as she descended and lit in his apple tree, the worried goddess peeking into the garden. “Oh…my poor farmer.” she whispered, but there was a small smile on her face. It was finally time, she’d been alerted, and had rushed here as quickly as she could. She wasn’t gonna miss the arrival of this little cabbage for anything in any world.

What was he doing out here working, though? Shouldn’t he be in bed, preparing for the baby’s arrival? Resting?

Juni blinked, then giggled, wiggling her fingers so a soft flowery breeze would come through and stroke Lewis’s cheek. She had to remember who she was talking about. He hadn’t stopped working one day since he’d had the cabbage stew, what made her think he would stop while he was in labor?

Lewis lifted his head as he felt the breeze on his face, and he sighed deeply, lifting one arm to wipe the sweat from his forehead. “Hoooo.” Opening his eyes, he looked around him at the garden, almost fully planted for the season, at the fruit trees just starting to flower, at his chickens scratching around and turning up the dirt with him.

“Can’t waste this day…” he finally mumbled to himself, picking up his rake again. Even if he was in labor (which he might not be, he thought to himself), he felt better when he was out here working.

Juni smiled proudly as she watched him, her hand coming to rest over her heart. Her farmers were so strong…and she couldn’t wait to see what a cute kid this one would make.

–

It was only when Lewis realized he was having to stop every couple of turns with the rake that the reality of what was happening settled over him. He was actually having this baby. And soon, if the tightness of his pelvis was any indication.

Still, though, he finished up the last couple rows of planting, his brow furrowed and his movements slow and careful. When he reached the end, he tossed the rake aside and leaned on the fence to pull himself to his feet. His belly swayed, and he grunted, grabbing at it with one hand. It was so…low, and the pressure in his pelvis had changed.

With one hand rubbing his swollen side, Lewis fully straightened up, letting his head fall back and his eyes close. He smelled flowers when he inhaled again, the cold spring breeze washing over his face.

When he opened his eyes again he felt a bit more settled, and he took off his gloves, tossing them over toward the front door of the house. Alright. What did he need to do? There had to be more things he needed to take care of.

His eyes found his fence, and he nodded, crossing to his front door and grabbing a box of matches from the table just inside before heading down his flagstone path toward the gate.

When Dr. Jin had come a couple of long weeks ago, the two of them had come up with a signal. If Lewis lit the old lantern at the end of his walkway, the one next to the gate, then that meant the baby was either coming or here. The good doctor had promised to check it every night as soon as it got dark enough, and if it was lit, he’d bring the baker to come check on the farmer.

Lewis had felt it was a good enough compromise, he still kept his privacy, which he treasured, but had a signal for help if he needed it.

Another contraction rolled through his pelvis as he attempted to get the lantern lit, and he grunted, bending forward and grabbing onto the gate for stability. “Cripes almighty…” he mumbled to himself, then pulled in another deep breath. His weight shifted, and he rocked his hips back and forward almost out of instinct, fighting against the pain almost squeezing them together.

As he rocked and swayed, the matches fell from his grip and onto the ground, and he let out a small string of curses as he heard them rattle onto the flagstones. There was no way he was getting down there to pick those up. He’d just have to light the lantern once the baby was here and he could bend over again, that’s all.

With another soft grunt as the contraction stopped, Lewis pulled himself back upright, then left the gate unlatched and headed back down the path toward his house. One hand slammed firmly against the back curve of his hip, he blew out his breath, wanting now to be inside before the next surge overtook him. He nudged the chickens aside as he passed, then paused at the door, looking back at them.

“...You ladies don’t eat any of those seeds I just planted or I’ll whoop you. Go inside when it’s nighttime, or I’m not gonna be sorry if a fox gets you, it’ll be your own damn fault. You got the garden for the day, have at it.”

Susie and Betty both blinked wide eyes up at him, while Loretta didn’t even seem to hear him, her blue-tinted feathers ruffled up proud as she strolled through the grass.

Chuckling despite himself, Lewis waved a hand at them as if to shoo them away, then drew into his cabin, shutting the door behind him.

Juni followed him into the house, settling herself in the rafters and playing with one of her braids as she watched him. He leaned against the doorframe, seeming to gather himself, then flopped into one of his chairs, working on kicking his boots off. She hated that he was doing this all by himself, he deserved to have somebody to share his pain and help him handle his anxieties…but then again, she knew who she was talking about. Perhaps it was what he needed, to work through this by himself.

Besides, the goddess thought to herself with a small smile. If anything happened, she’d certainly have no issue interceding. Other gods be damned, she wasn’t going to let anything happen to her dear farmer. He’d worked too hard and suffered too long to not see this through.

Lewis leaned back in the chair and cursed at his boot, one hand gripping the edge of the table. His mind was whirring. What came next? What had the book said? What was he supposed to be doing right now?

He felt a ball of nervous energy in his gut, one seperate from the pain and force of the contractions. It felt like he wanted to pace, to move around and actively do something to help this baby out, but he didn’t know what. He felt like a fox caught in a trap, or a fish stuck in a bowl too small.

He dragged in a deep inhale, then blew it out with puffed cheeks as he finally kicked his boots off. He nudged them closer to their proper spot with his toe, then ran a hand over his hair and tried to gather his thoughts. His other hand palmed his side, feeling how taut and low his belly was underneath his clothes.

“Alright. What we gotta have…let’s see. Lemme, uhm. Get some water boiling. Make sure it’s…nice and clean.”

One hand on the tabletop helped him heave himself to his feet, and he crossed to the stove, grabbing down his favorite copper soup pot and pouring water into it until it was over halfway full. He dragged it over to the stove, then bent to retrieve his flint and steel to light the flame.

A contraction gripped him as he straightened back up. He slammed his hands down onto the counter and bowed his head forward, his nose scrunching up and a couple of choice words slipping out under his breath. Bracing his feet hard on the floor, he leaned on the counter and forced his hips back, then forward again, floorboards creaking under his feet.

It felt like his hips might just crack. There was something in his pelvis, deep, and each time he bent his knees it felt like it got lower. A thought flashed through his head, and despite the cresting contraction, Lewis laughed, closing his eyes and leaning his head back. He felt like a chicken trying to lay an egg too big for her.

“Hoooo. Alright Lewis. You’re not egg-bound yet. C’mon.” He mumbled to himself, then dragged in and let go a few more breaths, waiting for the contraction to pull back. As soon as it did and he was released from the grip, he leaned down and struck his tinder, watching carefully as the stove lit.

He babysat the pot, hands resting low on his belly, until another contraction overtook him and he grabbed the counter again, a soft groan rumbling in his chest. He scrunched his eye tight and hissed through his teeth at how strong it was getting, forcing himself to breathe.

Juni, her brow furrowed, wiggled her fingers at him and whispered a few words in the ancient language. If translated, it would likely be something about flowers opening, about buds blossoming, about mouths of rivers opening up to the sea, openness.

Lewis smelled flowers along with the smell of the fire as he pulled his eye open, and he nodded to himself, wiping his forehead with the back of his wrist. “Mm. Mm-mm. I got this. I got it.” Blowing out his air with pursed lips, he straightened back up and looked down at himself, cradling his belly with both hands and pressing in a bit with both palms.

“I got it.” he repeated, shifting his weight from foot to foot. “We got this. Huh pumpkin.”

It wasn’t long before the water boiled, and Lewis quickly pulled the pot off of the flame and extinguished the fire, tossing his potholders away onto the counter.

“Alright pumpkin. Got you some nice clean water. Help keep your papa clean too. What’s next, what’s next…” His eyes flicked around the room, and landed on the open nursery door. He approached it and flicked on the light, then nodded to himself. “Blankets. Need those to help keep ya warm.”

His next contraction came over him as he turned for his blanket box, and he groaned, his steps going wobbly. He forced himself to lean back against the wall, arching and pressing his lower back against it. It felt good to have something solid against him, he noted, only half thinking of it. The rest of him was groaning, panting, and trying to keep himself steady. How quick were these pains coming on?

Finally, and between a few more contractions, he managed to gather the blankets he’d gotten especially for today, one for swaddling and others for cleaning up and lining the crib. He laid them all out on top of the little dresser, then nodded and almost collapsed into the rocking chair.

He spent the next few contractions here, in the nursery he’d made for his baby, alternating between rocking in the chair and leaning forward with his hands on his knees and his feet firmly on the floor.

It wasn’t like anybody was there to hear him do it, but he almost felt silly when he’d begun yelling during each surge. He didn’t know what else to do, though, and it seemed like the only way to release all the energy that was piling up in his core. It wasn’t even a yell of pain (and he would know the difference, as he had yelled plenty after his accident, especially when he had to change the dressings on his face).

It was more of a coping mechanism, instead of digging his nails into his palms or holding his breath, he just…shouted. On each exhale, he let himself make noises, sometimes leaned back in the chair with his arm slung over his face, sometimes leaned forward, belly between his thighs and hands gripping his knees.

He could feel his belly bounce everytime he yelled, which was an odd feeling but surprisingly a kind of welcome one? It felt like he was doing some work instead of sitting back and watching himself go through each contraction.

That was the core of it, he thought to himself while sitting back and trying to catch his breath, the last contraction fading away. It was like he was simply having to let all this happen to him, instead of having any kind of choice in the matter. He was used to doing the work, guiding plants where they needed to go, pruning away the ugly bits, pulling the weeds. This was like throwing a fistful of seeds into the garden and hoping for the best.

“Mmh.” He grunted, shifting his hips around in the chair and wrinkling his nose underneath his elbow. “C’mon, pumpkin. Can’t you make this easy on your papa? I’m damn tired.”

There was no response this time, not even a wriggle, and he sighed deeply, palming his belly and letting his hand slide to cradle the underside of the heavy curve. “...I can’t wait to see you, pumpkin pie. But hot damn, could you hurry it up?” He chuckled a bit, taking in another deep breath and letting it out. “Those damn chickens are gonna eat up all the berries out there before I’m done with this…damn.”

The next contraction squeezed at his hips like an angry bear, and he grunted, dropping his hands to the arms of the rocker and planting his heels into the floor. Something tensed, deep inside, and his hips jerked, his face twisting into a grimace. At the same time, he felt a pop, centered between his legs just under the bottom swell of his belly, and the legs of his overalls became warm and wet.

Yanking his eyes open, he twisted and peered down at himself, his breath ragged in his chest and his belly and hips still taut with the contraction. Sure enough, his lower body was soaked, and a bit of water dripped from his pant legs onto the floor.

“Damn.” He cursed softly, making a face. That was anything but pleasant, and now his denim overalls felt heavy and gross, clinging to his thighs and backside. “...Nasty. Hahh. Okay. Alright. Mmh. Book said this was normal, we ain’t got…nothing to worry about. Just gotta clean up now. Alrighty.”

With a big sigh, he leaned hard on the armrests of the chair and got himself to his feet. He would probably feel better with a shower. At least a quick one. Luckily there should be enough water in his pump tank for a fast rinse, leaving enough for cleanup later. His nose wrinkled, the farmer quickly shuffled into his bedroom and grabbed up some comfortable clothes and his towel, moving as quickly as he dared into the bathroom to peel these clothes off and rinse himself clean.

Maybe that was a sign he was almost there.

–

Another contraction rocked him while he was standing under the running water, and even to his exhausted body it felt different. Grunting, he leaned hard against the cold tile and covered his eyes with one hand, the other gripping his belly tightly as he let the water hit his lower back.

The flowing water had been helping him relax until this had happened, which he probably should have expected but he’d been too distracted. Letting out a soft grunt through gritted teeth, he hissed a bit and bowed his head forward. There was so much pressure, pulsing and pressing down on his hips and pelvis, and it felt like the weight within him was moving further down. That had to be the baby, he supposed, but they felt so heavy. How was he supposed to get that out of him?

As soon as the contraction released him, Lewis quickly finished rinsing himself off, splashing water on his face and then his thighs and up between his legs, then turned off the water and groped for his towel.

Once he was mostly dried, he tugged on a loose cotton undershirt and some soft pants, leaving them untied. He wasn’t sure why, but he felt more secure being held and covered by his clothes.

Leaving his towel on the floor, he waddled out and into his bedroom, focusing on his breathing as he began prepping his space. He quickly lit a few candles with the silver lighter he’d gotten as a gift last year, wanting their golden warmth and smell to comfort him. He then spread out one of the clean blankets across the foot of his bed and crawled in, leaning back into his pillows and sighing deeply as he stretched out his legs.

“Ohhhh. Ohh, you’re just gonna kill me, ain’t you?” He mumbled, rubbing one hand across the bottom of his taut belly. “That’s been your plan all along, ain’t it been, pumpkin? Hoooo.”

Taking a couple big, deep breaths, he closed his eye and let his head lean back, trying to almost will his body to relax. This was really and truly happening, there was no backing out now, and he had told himself back all those months ago that he had to at least try. And here he was…trying his hardest.

A deep inhale, and the smell of warmth and flowers filled the room. He pursed his lips and blew out the air, sinking back into his soft pillows. He was trying. That was all anybody could ask of him, even somebody like a god or goddess. And despite being anxious and overwhelmed…he finally felt like he was somewhere close to ready for this.

Juni, of course, had followed him into his bedroom, resting up in the rafters. She smiled as she watched her farmer, wiggling her fingers and subtly making sure the room was warm enough and the candles gave off a flowery fragrance. He needed all the help she could offer at the moment, because he was close. He’d only been in labor since the morning, and the sun was only just now beginning to slide down toward the horizon. This little cabbage was more than ready to come see the world.

Inhaling the scent of flowers, Lewis reached out a hand and pressed it against the wall as his belly lurched and contracted. Feeling the solid wood under his palm helped him remain centered as the surge rolled through him. Brow furrowed, he let his eye remain closed as he worked his way through it, trying to find a semi-comfortable position as his hips squeezed and his belly tightened.

Bracing his heels on the bed, he pulled his knees up and lifted his hips off the bed just enough to shift them side to side, then grunted and let them flop back down. That was too tiring. Flopping his knees out to either side, he huffed out a breath, turning his head to the side. “Ooh. C’mon, pumpkin. C’mon.”

He was leaking. From somewhere. He wasn’t sure where, he hadn’t done any…exploring, not even when he was in the shower. But there was definitely a wetness between his legs, one that made him crinkle his nose up in discomfort. “Ugh. Damn.”

Sucking in another deep breath, he splayed his fingers out on the wall and blew out the air as slowly as he could, lips pursed. They felt like they were lasting a lot longer than they had been before… his water broke, he supposed. That was what the book had called it, anyway. Now the pressure was much deeper, and the surges of energy lasting a lot longer.

He hated that he couldn’t do anything. He was so used to doing everything himself, and now here he was, stuck on his back in bed like a turtle in the middle of the road. Letting out a soft, unamused laugh as the contraction ended, Lewis let his head relax, coming back to the center of his pillow.

He removed his hand from the wall and wiped off his forehead, then opened his eye and looked up at the ceiling. He tried to catch his breath, his chest rising and falling quickly, and both hands cradling his swollen belly.

“Goddess…if you’re anywhere close by, listening to your simple little farmer try and…and have this miracle? Can ya hurry this up?”

Juni smiled, her eyes softening. She wiggled her fingers, and the candles flickered. Lewis looked over at the one on his dresser, sitting at the foot of the bed, and he laughed again, sighing deeply and closing his eyes. “...Thought not. Thanks anyway.”

The next few contractions were the same as the ones before, long and pressing, and Lewis did his best to control his breathing and ground himself as they rolled through his body. He was thankful his bed was against the wall, not just because it was grounding when he pressed his hand to it, but it was cool, and he could roll and press his forehead to it when he felt like he was overheating.

This was harder work than turning a fallow field, some foggy part of his brain thought as he panted through a contraction. Or pulling up stumps. Or rocks. At least then you had some marker of how close you were to the task being done. Here, he had no idea. He just knew he was exhausted, sore, leaking, and hot.

Then, things shifted.

Much like they’d done shortly before his water broke, the contractions changed. They became longer, that he’d noticed, but they were also lower down, and he could feel the pressure changing. Deeper inside his pelvis, but…lower. Much, much lower.

His sounds followed suit, Lewis unconsciously groaning and almost lowing like a cow when the pressure got too much for him to handle. The sounds seemed to help, like they had with his sharp yells a few hours before. A release and focus of energy. He’d recall later that something in the back of his mind told him he sounded silly, but he reminded himself there was nobody there to hear him anyway, and he let himself moan.

Then came the urge. A slow, blooming one, like digging your nails into the dirt and pulling at the deep roots of a weed. He wanted- no, he needed to…do something. To push. To bear down.

Nose wrinkled, Lewis half sat up and huffed his way through the last of the contraction, sweat drenching the bed beneath him. As soon as he was released from the grip of the surge, he was up on his feet, leaning hard on the bedframe and wobbling over to grab up another clean sheet and the blanket he’d saved.

With shaking hands, he spread the sheet across the bottom of the bed, on top of the one he’d laid out before, then rested the blanket across the footboard. Taking a moment, he leaned his hands on the mattress and rocked back and forth, eye closed and belly swinging in between his thighs.

Juni watched with a furrowed brow, her moths fluttering at her temples. Was something wrong? Why was he on his feet?

She quickly realized why, though, as he grasped his waistband and slowly tugged down his cloth pants, stepping out of them with careful, ginger movements. There was a wet spot spreading in the middle seam, and as he moved more, shifting and rocking his hips, bits of fluid leaked down his thighs. He cursed under his breath, but climbed back into the bed, settling himself up against his pillows again and using the corner of the sheet to wipe down the inside of his legs.

When he lifted his knees and spread his knees apart, Juni gasped, lighting up. Between his legs was now an opening, and there, plain as a green sprout in the gray dirt, was a teardrop, the first glimpse of his baby’s head. She could see it. Her magic had worked after all. Now all he had to do was push the baby out.

The candles flickered again as Lewis adjusted his positioning, sitting up straighter. He smirked tiredly, shaking his head. “Yeah, yeah, I’m working on it. Hooo. Ahh-” He moaned softly as he slowly slid a hand between his legs, feeling around for the first time. When his fingertips found the opening there, with the solid mound of his baby’s head bulging underneath it, his eye popped open wide, and he gaped, jaw dropping onto his chest. “H-Holy cats. Hey. Hi there. Oh my gods.”

A contraction was pressing at his lower back, and he had to push, he couldn’t hold it back any longer. Wrinkling his nose, he took a deep breath in and held it, bearing down as best he could and pressing at his opening with his fingertips. His eye started distantly up at the ceiling as he pushed, almost looking through it.

He released the push with a loud grunt only a couple seconds later, quickly sucking in another breath and curling forward as he held the breath in his throat.

It didn’t feel right, but it was a start. Letting out his breath with a soft effort sound, he shifted his hips and grabbed his knee with the other hand, trying to wriggle himself into a better position. “Hahh. Okay. Stubborn little weed. C’mon.” Another inhale, another push, this time feeling himself make a little progress. The bulge between his legs was significant, and he could feel it growing against his palm with every push and every lurch of his belly.

When the contraction ebbed and slowed, he let out the push with a big whoosh of air, flopping back against the pillows. “Okay. Okay pumpkin, now we’re talkin’. Hoo.” He blew out his air and used the sleeve of his shirt to wipe the sweat off of his forehead. “Like tuggin’ on a big ol stump that doesn’t wanna leave the ground, huh?”

Juni smiled to herself, hearing him talk to the baby. That warmed her heart, and she was sure her farmer would be okay. Not taking her eyes off of him, she waved her hand and made sure the fire stayed warm but low, the candles burning strongly.

After resting for a moment, Lewis shifted and pulled his knee toward him with his free hand, gripping behind his thigh and curling around his belly to push. As he bore down, though, it just felt wrong, and he released his effort with a grow of frustration, his leg falling back down to the bed and his freed hand grabbing the lower swell of his belly.

Inhaling, he instead let his head fall back against the pillow and scrunched up his face, puffing his cheeks as he held his breath to push. His hips twitched, and he groaned unhappily as he felt some fluid escaping, but it didn’t feel like he’d found the right placement for his effort.

Letting go to pant through the rest of the contraction, he planted his heels on the bed and rocked his hips side to side instead, his hand tucked between his legs and not moving. He traced the outline of the baby’s head, prodded a bit at the opening, and breathed, trying to center himself.

His next rest came, and the farmer grabbed the edge of the bed and hauled himself upright, slowly wiggling himself up onto his knees. Shifting side to side, he tried to straighten out the sheet underneath him, but quickly gave it up, simply sitting back on his heels and tucking his hand back between his legs.

It was comforting to feel the baby there as he worked. He knew he just had to find the right angle, and figure out the right muscles to use, and he’d be able to help the little one along. Even as it was, pushing felt way better than just being swept along by contractions he could do nothing about.

When the surge crashed around him, he closed his eye, took in a deep breath, and curled around his belly, sinking low with his knees apart. In this position, he could sense better where he was supposed to be pushing, and his heart leaped as he felt his baby’s head bulging against his palm, the teardrop opening getting bigger. It had to be the size of a silver piece.

Releasing his push with a deep, growling effort sound, Lewis stroked the spot with his fingertips, panting as he tried to get his breath back. “Hahh…ahh, there you are. Okay now, time to come out, you stubborn little stump.”

Licking his lips, he pushed again before the contraction had time to recede, but when it finally faded and he let go of his push, he groaned softly in the back of his throat, hips twitching, as he felt the baby slowly receding back in a bit. “No, nonono. C’mon. Work with me here, pumpkin. C’mon.”

It felt like the contractions were mostly on top of each other now, with only a few moments of rest in between. Cursing to himself, Lewis wished he’d brought water in to drink, he was as thirsty as a fox in a drought.

The next contraction came crashing through him, and he grunted, leaning his shoulder against the wall by his bed and lifting one knee up a little bit as he pushed. Fluid dripped from between his fingers, and he surprised himself with just how loud his noises became. They helped, though. Helped keep him centered and grounded, and let go of the energy he didn’t need for pushing.

Juni was also quietly impressed with her farmer. She could tell he was exhausted, but he didn’t seem to be flagging at all, even as the contractions continued to crash over him with almost no breaks. He just kept pushing, one knee held up, then sitting back on his heels, then a few leaned forward with one hand on the bed. Always, he kept one hand tucked between his legs, feeling his baby coming forward. There was already love building and swirling in the room as her farmer worked to birth his miracle baby, she could feel it.

Lewis took in a few big, gasping breaths as he rested, knowing the next contraction was already on its way. He rubbed his forehead on his shirtsleeve, then bowed his head forward, rocking into the hand on the bed and then back into his hips and his heels. The pressure in his pelvis was incredible, but it was a good kind of incredible. With every one of his pushes he could feel his baby working down, settling into his hips, ready to make their way into the world.

Another big inhale, and he was pushing again, back arched and belly taut under his loose shirt. He grunted, teeth bared, then gasped, his jaw dropping open. The hand once pressing on his mattress raised up so only fingertips touched the sheet, fingers trembling.

Something was changing.

“Oh. Oh-oh-oh-” Lewis gasped out, voice strained, and rocked his hips forward, slowly straightening his back. A burn, firey and intense, spread between his thighs, and his fingers parted around the emerging head.

Juni craned her neck, grabbing onto the rafter to lean out as far as she could, but she couldn’t see. Something was happening, though. His sounds hadn’t changed much since he’d started pushing, not until now. Was this it?

Forcing himself to inhale through his nose and blow it out again, Lewis carefully shifted back onto his heels, then leaned his shoulder against the wall and grabbed at the bed as he moved his legs from under him, all but falling back onto his butt. Legs spread, fingers cradling either side of the head, Juni could finally see. He was crowning.

Lewis panted hard as he leaned back against the pillows, stretching his legs out and then fitfully pulling them back up toward him again. “Oh burn. Oh burn burn burn…” He let his jaw fall to his chest, panting deeply and trying not to panic.

The candles flickered, he smelled flowers on his inhale, and he remembered. The book had said something about this, it had talked about ‘the ring of fire’, the burning sensation of stretch around the new baby’s head.

Slowly, Lewis calmed, stroking around the baby’s head with shaking fingertips and trying to let himself rest. He pulled deep inhales through his nose and blew them out through pursed lips, letting his eye fall closed.

As the contraction petered out, he let himself give a small pulse of a push, grunting softly and massaging around the baby’s head. This time, it stayed there, not receding back inside. A small smile flickered on his face, and he resettled his hips a bit, pushing his shirt up and off of his belly with his free hand.

“Hahh…you stay right there, pumpkin…we’re gonna have you out in no time…” He whispered, licking his lips and trying to rest.

The next contraction came with little warning, crashing into his hips and lower back. With a grunt, Lewis pulled one knee to his chest and filled his lungs, bearing down and growling roughly. The head was coming, just slowly. But it was coming.

A shudder ran up and down his spine as he took a gasping breath and bore down again, feeling the baby’s head beginning to emerge, as slow as a snail, under his fingers. Juni blinked back tears as she leaned as far out of the rafters as she dared, watching the head ease further and further out into her farmer’s waiting hand.

The contraction crested, and Lewis’s hips twitched as he gave a loud, fierce grunt. Like a cork from a bottle, the baby’s head suddenly slid free, all the way up to the jawline. Lewis gasped, hips raised up off of the bed, and his eye popped open, his neck craning to try to see over the mound of his belly. He stroked the baby’s forehead, felt their eyebrows and chubby cheeks, their tiny ears, all damp and dripping, and a smile broke out across his face.

“Mmh.” With a soft, relaxed grunt, Lewis gave one more small pulse of a push as he lowered his hips down, and the baby’s head finally slid all the way free, up to their neck. There they rested between his thighs, cheeks squished and forehead furrowed.

“Hey. Hey there, pumpkin…” the exhausted father murmured, peeking at the baby and stroking their features with his fingertips. He could barely see, but they felt fine, just…damp and warm and squishy. There was so much fluid, too, he was glad he’d put down the blankets and sheets.

Juni was crying. She’d never tell anybody that part. She used the ends of her braids to wipe the tears from her cheeks, beaming down at the beautiful sight. She’d always celebrated births from her followers, but this one was something special. A little mistake that turned into something truly blessed.

The contraction wasn’t seeming to let up, Lewis’s belly remaining taut and clenched. Taking a big inhale, Lewis gave an experimental push, seeing if he could get things moving again. However, all that happened for his effort was a big gush of fluid escaping from around the baby’s neck, and he grimaced. “Ugh…c’mon now.”

Grasping the sheet, he used the end to wipe his inner thighs clean, then tossed it back down onto the bed, sighing deeply. It was normal, but it still made him uncomfortable.

The baby was wriggling now, shifting, and Lewis grumbled, his hips twitching. Leaning up on one elbow a bit, he inhaled and tucked his chin to his chest, his hand still reaching down to cradle the baby’s head and feel his progress.

With the aid of Lewis’s pushing, first one shoulder slipped free into his hand, then the other. Lewis gasped in a deep breath, then grunted, curling as far forward as he dared as he pushed. He watched in a haze of effort and exhaustion as his baby slid out up their chest, then wriggled and popped free, sliding onto the bed between his thighs.

Gasping for breath, Lewis immediately sat up and grabbed his baby, stretching his legs out and flopping back onto the pillows as he tucked the tiny body to his upper stomach, then eased them up onto his chest. As he moved them, the baby began to cry, soft, gurgly wails, and he rubbed their back in disbelief.

As the baby stretched and kicked their legs, stretching out their cramped limbs, Lewis realized. He’d had a little girl.

Blinking his eye in amazement, he looked her over, stroking a hand over the top of her wrinkled little head. She looked…like a shriveled up pumpkin you’d left out in the sun too long, or a grape that was turning into a raisin. She was red, shriveled up, and had his scrunchy little nose.

Lewis blinked, surprised at how…scrunchy she looked, then began to laugh, both at himself for thinking that about his baby and in pure amazement at what had just happened. His heart swelled and seemed to fill his chest, and he let his head fall back against the pillows. He stroked his daughter’s back and held her close to his heart, his other hand grasping at her tiny reaching fingers and letting them wrap around his own.

She was here, and she was his, and he already loved her.

Juni slowly let herself float down to the floor of the little cottage, a huge smile on her face and her hands clasped by her heart. He’d done it. She watched as he pressed a kiss to the top of the little baby’s head, soothing her crying and beginning to talk to her.

Slowly, she took a few steps out of the room, then turned and darted right out the window and down the path to the end gate. With a touch of her fingers, she lit the candle in the lantern at the end of the drive, then whooshed herself off on the summer breeze toward the sleepy little village. She had a baker and doctor to visit, give them some old woman needling that she’d heard a baby crying.

–

The spring continued, the flowers bloomed, the animals awoke, and the fruits grew big and fat and juicy. As the months began to grow much hotter, signaling the arrival of the longest days, Juni prepared herself for a visit to her little farmer.

She hadn’t been to see him since the baby had been born. She’d…gotten into a bit of hot water about the blessing, but once it had been revealed that everything was fine and everyone was healthy, that her magic had worked well, she’d been let off the hook. However, just to stay under the radar, she’d kept away from spying on the farm, as much as she wanted to.

However, she figured now was a good time to go see them again.

She let herself down onto the road heading into the valley village, waving her hand and feeling her back stoop, her moth friends change into hair combs, and watching her braids turn grey. She crafted herself a basket out of the nearby green grasses, then slowly headed down the road toward the village.

She heard the house before she saw it. The sound of a soft voice singing, some chickens clucking, and the mix of a couple babies cooing- a goat and a human.

When she rounded the corner and took in the farmhouse, a huge smile spread across her face before she could catch it.

There was her farmer Lewis, on his knees in the dirt like he usually was- but on his back, tied up in a colorful cloth sling, was his baby girl, chubby and round and healthy. She peeked over his shoulder and waved a chubby hand in the sunny air, then brought it down and patted at her papa’s scarred face.

He laughed softly and turned his head to kiss at her hand, pretending to eat her fingers, and she laughed, giving him a gummy smile. Nearby, all three of Lewis’s chickens scratched and pecked at the grass, and a small white goat walked around the edge of the house on knobbly legs.

As Juni approached and Lewis caught sight of her, he nodded in her direction and gave her a smile, waving one hand in the air. “Hello ma’am! Apples are ready on the trees to your left, take your fill!”

Juni raised a hand in thanks, smiling at them both, and the little baby kicked her feet in her wrap, lifting her head (covered in beautiful hair, Juni noted proudly to herself) and beaming. Lewis chuckled and wiggled, bouncing her in the sling a bit. “Say hello, pumpkin!”

The baby squealed, the sound careening off of the side of the house and lighting up the farm just as much as the sunshine, and Juni laughed, waving her hand and blowing them a couple of kisses. “Thank you!” She called back, turning the corner toward the front of the house.

There, carved on the post by the lantern, where the concrete step still lay for receiving groceries and deliveries, was intricately carved two things- a cabbage and a moth. Juni stopped and looked at them a moment, then chuckled to herself, continuing down the path with a grin on her face.

As she stopped briefly to pick an apple, she thought for a moment, then beamed and took a big bite, heading further down the path to the village.

This truthfully had been her finest harvest.

🥬✨💜