1.15 Day 15

Taras glances at the gaping hole in the wall. 

Ok, it's an archway, and it's for the nursery, but it still shocks him every time he sees it. 

Just another reminder of how fast everything's changing, he thinks with a happy sigh. 

Nozomi is a bit more grumpy about these "fast changes"; She feels like a beached whale. Hell, she looks like one, with this grey and lumpy track suit. She can barely remember the times she could touch her toes. 

Despite her burgeoning belly, she still gets work calls sometimes. 

She's honestly surprised, and a bit touched (damn pregnancy hormones!), that there are people who still like her performances. 

Maybe once this baby is born, she can try out for another gig... 

Nozomi waddles over and plops onto the couch. "What're you reading?"

Taras glances at her. Nozomi pretty much never cares about what he reads. So, he concludes, she probably just wants attention.

He shuts his book and she all but falls into his arms.  

"I'm due any day now," she sighs. Taras nods. 

She looks at him. "This is it, Taras. We're actually going to become parents." 

"Yeah..." his contribution to conversation is monumental. 

"Do you think we're ready?"

Taras decides not to answer with words. 

Nozomi finds a single word to describe how the bathroom smells. 

Ugh. 

"Billy, do you have kids?" Taras looks for last-minute advice. 

Billy-Joel only laughs. 

Their conversation inevitably turns to work. Taras just finishes telling Billy how to read the stars for fun and profit (well, mostly profit) when he hears what is possibly the scariest sentence he's ever heard. 

"I think the baby's coming!" 

He reacts appropriately. 

The couple hops into a taxi together. Nozomi all but crushes Taras's hand. Sleights of hand apparently grant magicians iron grips. 

Many hours later, they return home with a healthy baby boy. 

Neither of them can stop smiling. 

"He's beautiful." 

Welcome to the family, Melor Zorin. 

AN: I only realized hours after naming him that "Melor" is one letter away from "Melon".