The next morning as newlyweds with Rozzean, I woke him up with gentle kisses. Since he was still very sleepy, I told him I would go downstairs and prepare our food. He agreed and went back to sleep.
In the kitchen, I found Manang, who was already getting breakfast ready, and I helped her.
"I'm Thaliana Tangi Dela Vezca Valleje," I said while looking at my wedding ring.
"Gosh... I feel like a teenager getting all giddy!"
Rozzean is my husband... we are married.
"Tangi... calm down! Relax!"
Once the food was ready, I went up to our room with a tray in hand. I entered and placed what I brought on the side table, then approached my still-sleeping husband.
"Good morning, husband..." I said with a smile and kissed Rozzean all over his face.
"Hmmm..." he's smiling!
"We are going to eat--"
"I will eat you."
"Oh, Rozzean, seriously! I went downstairs to cook for you, don't tease me with your 'I will eat you' if you don't eat what I cooked, I'll be upset!"
He suddenly sat up in bed. His eyes half-closed as he looked at me. When he approached, he hugged me and buried his face in my neck.
"Is this because of your pregnancy? You're grumpy so early..."
"Eh, what do you want again? I did cook..." I said and moved away from him. I went downstairs and brought the table closer to the side of the bed so both of us could eat.
"B-Baby..."
I raised my eyebrows when he hesitated while looking at the tray to see where the food was.
"Uhm... can we finish all of this?"
"This is yours..." I said and handed him a plate with two hotdogs, two bacons, and one egg.
"And this is mine."
I smiled as I faced the tray.
"Baby... that's uhm... eight hotdogs, five bacons a-and 4 eggs. Can you finish all that?"
I raised an eyebrow at him.
"Let me remind you, Rozzean Cyron Valleje. There are three in my womb. Three are your children. So, four of us will be eating now. It even seems like it's not enough."
I saw him gulp and he just nodded.
After our meal, I took a shower, and Rozzean did too. Now, he's drying my hair.
"Where do you want to go?" he asked me.
Suddenly, I remembered their eldest sibling. I looked at Rozzean behind me and held his hand.
"Let's go to your brother's grave... to Aloncious. Let's visit him."
I felt him pause, and after a few seconds, he smiled at me and kissed my neck.
"Thank you, baby... Thank you for thinking about my brother."
I know how much he loves his brother, and I also know that he'll be happy when we visit him now that we're married.
We didn't stay long. We said goodbye to Manang and headed to his car. Rozzean started the engine, and we drove to his brother's grave. It took us an hour to reach the cemetery.
"Baby... are you okay?" he asked me.
I felt hungry because I didn't eat much earlier.
"I'm hungry," I told him.
"We will eat after here, okay? Looks like our kids want to eat."
I smiled, and when we reached Aloncious, Rozzean and I lit candles. I also placed the white roses we bought. I silently prayed and thanked him for all the help he gave Rozzean.
It's just really sad that he's no longer here.
"I hope you are okay there. Thank you for your help, thank you for everything you did for me. I just wanted you to know that I am now a married man."
Rozzean raised my hand.
"This is my beautiful wife, Thaliana. And we are pregnant with triplets. I am so lucky to have her in my life, brother. Also, do you know that Taki loves her so much? He's calling her Mommy..."
"Taki will have parents now like what you asked me, brother..."
My lips trembled when I heard what Rozzean said.
"We will be his parents now. We will love him like our own child, so you don't have to worry about anything, okay? He's okay now. Your son is growing into a good boy. Soon, he will live with us. And... the other thing you were worried about is okay now. Our family is now okay. This was your wish before, right? That Dad and I would be okay. We're more than okay now, bro... more than okay."
I wiped away the tears that fell on my cheeks when I saw Rozzean crying. I nestled in his arms and hugged my hand around his waist.
"Thank you so much for fighting with me and for believing in me when no one does. Thank you because you are one of the reasons why I am still here standing. I love you."
Rozzean looked at me, and I wiped his tears.
"You are so great. I love you," I said and tiptoed to kiss his lips.
He hugged me tightly, and I caressed his back.
"I love you... I love you, Thaliana..."
We left the cemetery and went to a restaurant. When we were about to order, I suddenly changed my mind. I told Rozzean that I felt like eating mango. He said he would buy it, but I insisted on having the mango from his house – the one planted by Manang behind his house.
"Manang..."
"Yes, Sir?"
Rozzean looked at me.
"My wife wanted a mango. Are there still fruits on the mango tree in the backyard?"
I felt my mouth watering as I thought about that mango. I've tasted it before, and it's really delicious. Sweet even when it's not fully ripe.
"Oh, there are still some, sir, but they're a bit salty. However, I have some saved in the kitchen," Manang said. When Rozzean went to the kitchen, I took his hand.
"I don't want that, I prefer the freshly picked ones."
"And when you peel it for me, I want shrimp with big garlic, okay? The shrimp should be sweet, and the garlic should be big."
"Ah... okay, I'll ask Manang to cook it--"
"No, I want you to cook it."
I saw Rozzean grimace, and then he smiled, probably noticing my reaction. I let go of his hand and folded my arms, giving him a look.
"Don't you want to?"
"Baby... I didn't say I don't want to. Fine, I'll do it..." he replied and walked towards the back.
I followed him with a smile. It wasn't easy for Rozzean to pick the mangoes since the fruits were already high up. In the end, his back and arms turned red because of ant bites.
That was the first day I felt pregnancy cravings; I guess my cravings were late. I really thought I wouldn't have any, but it got worse because even in the early hours, my tongue would itch, and I would crave something to eat.