You sat on the warm sand, toes wriggling like a restless kid.

“Babe… I’m craving something.”

Arthur, laying out the towel, gave you a wary glance. “What now, Pumpkin?”

You smiled sheepishly. “Chocolate ice cream… and shrimp.”

He blinked. “Together?”

You nodded. He sighed and disappeared.

Fifteen minutes later, he returned—hair wild, breath short, clutching a cup like sacred treasure.

“Here.”

You squinted. “Where did you—”

“Don’t ask. Just eat.”

In the distance, a fisherman shouted, “YOU STOLE MY SHRIMP!” The ice cream vendor wailed “Bro, YOU stole MY ice cream!”

Arthur calmly sat beside you. “Eat. Before they catch me.”

...

You laid on the towel he laid before, hat over your face, pretending to nap. Beside you, Arthur gently rested a hand on your belly, his voice low and sweet.

“You're lucky, shrimp,” he murmured. “You get to be with her all the time. Hear her laugh from the inside. Feel her smile. I had to wait twenty-five years just to marry her.”

Kick.

He raised a brow. “Oh? Feeling proud, huh?”

Kick. Kick.

Arthur chuckled softly. “Every time I kiss her, you kick. I hold her hand—you kick. I tell her I love her, and BAM. You act like I’m stealing your girl.”

Kick.

He leaned closer, whispering like it was a top-secret deal. “Look, little bean. I get it—you’ve got prime real estate. Front-row seat to her heartbeat. But I’m the husband. I sleep with her every night. I win"

Silence.

He grinned. “HA! That’s right. I win this round.”

Then, softer—gentler—he brushed his thumb over your bump. “But hey... maybe we can team up. You and me, bodyguards for this amazing woman. She cuts fruits and gives me the prettiest slice, then eats the ugly one. She tucks blankets under my feet, even when she's freezing.”

He sighed lovingly. “So let's give her the best of everything, okay? Protect her. Spoil her. Love her so much she never forgets it.”

He kissed your belly tenderly.

“She’s mine.”

Kick.

Arthur smiled.

“Yeah, yeah… ours.”