Thomas was sleeping in the crib with his new body, calm as saliva dripped from his mouth. The woman who had given birth to this body sat nearby, staring at her son with a gentle gaze.
Her husband looked at them before breaking into a small smile. "Our child is so adorable, isn't he?"
"Knock on wood," she said, giving him a fierce look.
He chuckled. "Aren't you the one who has been looking at him ever since he was born?"
"Nooo, I took a bathroom break." She stayed silent for a few seconds before adding, "And I am his mom. It's fine. I can't jinx my child."
"Stop calling him 'my child, my child.' He is our child," Baron said, changing his clothes.
"Alright." Irritated, she stood up, grabbed her husband's hand, and made him sit near their child. "You can look at him too, but only after me. I come first," she declared.
"Alright, alright," Baron said, placing his hand on his wife's shoulder. They leaned their heads against each other, holding hands as they watched their son make small, random movements in his sleep.
"Name him," she murmured.
Baron looked at her in disbelief. "Me?" He pointed at himself. "Are you sure? I mean, you said you come first. Are you really letting me name our son instead of you?"
"It's fine. I'll let you have this one," she said, resting her head on his shoulder.
He stared at his son for a few seconds before speaking. "Rhygar Thornvail."
"Ray."
"Alright, we'll call him Ray for short."
…
Half an hour later.
Cedric, eyelids closing in their own, and he forces them to open every time, 'How long is she planning to sit like this?,' he thought, squinting his eyes, 'I can't even ask her. I'll just sleep on her shoulder for now,' then he closed his eyes, and got into deep sleep.
After staring at their son for as long as she wanted, she put Ray and Cedric on the bed and slept beside them, making sure her hand rested on Ray so she would wake up if anything happened.
…
Thomas's eyes flew open as he took a deep breath. 'Phew, that was a scary dream. Let's wake u—' unable to move his limbs, he stared at the air, 'That wasn't a dream.' he thought, then closed his eyes.
Opening his eyes again, he felt something pressing on his stomach. He couldn't see it, but when he took a deep breath, his stomach expanded, and stopped, as it hit a soft wall. He looked from one side to the other, glancing at his mother, then his father. He somehow managed to roll his eyes down to see their hands resting on him.
His eyes widened, 'were they trying to kill me? And before I even became strong?'
'Wait…,' then it came back to normal, 'Why don't I feel any weight on my stomach?' he thought for a while, and came to the conclusion, 'fantasy stuff.'
After waiting silently for a while, almost deciding to go back to sleep, a thought popped into his mind. 'Right, I am special. I can do it.' He said, looking at a fly with narrowed eyes… Well, he needed something to focus on, and there was a house fly hovering two feet above him.
Ray closed his eyes. "Aaaaaa..." He tried using all his strength—the strength that would make him the strongest, that would help him defeat the demon queen, that would make him stand above everyone. The immense power that he… didn't have.
Although his strength couldn't lift their hands, his struggle and cute little screams were enough to lift his mother's eyelids. She looked at her son staring at her and gave a gentle smile before leaning in closer.
'She definitely wants to kill me.' Ray thought with a straight face.
…
A few more minutes passed before he woke up again. This time, the same mosquito was hovering a foot above his face. It flew down and landed on his father's shoulder.
'Is it going to drink his blood? …Vampire?' Ray stared at the mosquito as it prepared to bite. Just as it was about to pierce the skin, a hand swatted it, killing it instantly.
Ray realized that one of the hands pinning him down had gone. He turned his head toward the mosquito's final resting place—only a bit of blood remained.
'You have sacrificed yourself for my freedom. Your death won't go to waste, my fantasy-vampire-mosquito friend. Your name shall be remembered throughout history…..'
Then his eyes widened. 'Wait, I didn't ask for their name.'
Then he shifted his gaze to the front, Determined, and ready to attempt another escape. He tried using his immense strength once more—the strength that he still didn't have.
Another mosquito appeared, this time attempting to feast on his mother's blood, but it was swatted away even faster. Now, Ray was finally free from all restraints.
Thomas looked in front, then closed his eyes, 'The vampire mosquito species… I will remember this sacrifice. I owe you a big one. I will help you with anything you need… In the future, may you two go to heaven, and may God forgive all your sins.'
…
Then he snapped open his eyes, with renewed determination, he focused on a housefly.
He tried to sit up, but after using all his strength, he failed.
Miserably.
He couldn't even move a centimeter.
'Well, I guess I just have to build my biceps, forearms, and calves for now. See you later, core.'
Ray started moving his hands, but they barely responded. 'A few inches at a time, a few inches at a time,' he chanted in his mind as he moved them randomly.
It was boring, but he kept going. Because hard work pays off. 'That's what my first girlfriend said.' He continued pushing himself. 'Bitch cheated on me… And that was even with the opposing team's coach's son, I wouldn't have hated her, but... he was a minor… What a pedophile she was,' Ray thought with disgust and disdain. But he continued to push himself.
For further motivation, he changed his slogan. 'She belongs to the streets, she belongs to the streets…'
…
After a long training session, he was completely exhausted. He had worked hard. Now, he could rest in peace.
Just as sleepiness started dragging him down, his ears caught a weird sound.
It wasn't loud. It wasn't long. But it was enough to wake his mom up.
His dad's eyes snapped open, though not because of the sound. "What is this shitty smell?" Baron grumbled, covering his nose.
"Cedric," Baroness said in a sharp, low voice.
He had farted, And shitted his diaper.