exhausted dad!zayne x f!reader
summary : you think having a newborn is easy? well, you're absolutely wrong. After a few weeks of officially being a father to a baby girl, Zayne finds himself twisted in a series of events as a first time dad.
tags : fluff, slight angst, comfort, dad!zayne. mom!reader, pregnancy.
tw : symptoms of postpartum depression
word count : 981
Linkon, 2 AM.
The sounds of a baby's cry can be heard miles away from the Li residence, and it has been like this for the past few weeks. Being first time parents was a tough challenge for you and zayne. with the baby constantly wailing, the couple did everything in their power to calm their baby girl. naturally, nothing worked.
"shh.. it's okay, daddy's here." zayne swayed the baby gently in his arms, softly singing a quiet lullaby to help her sleep, but this little one was stubborn like her mother.
the hazel eyed man did everything he could. singing, swaying, toys, bottle, and pacifier. nothing just seemed to work for him tonight. he sighed in defeat, looking at the wall clock. the short hand still stuck at 2. you fell asleep only 3 hours ago.
zayne felt helpless with the current situation that he's in. Usually, he was able to lull the baby to sleep. he thinks to himself for a moment, and remembered that weeks old babies need to be breastfed every 2-3 hours.
as much as zayne didn't want to wake his wife, he had to do it now. especially after attempting to bottle feed their baby.
"zayne.."
zayne followed the voice that called him to find you rubbing your eyes, implying that your just woke up from a short nap. "I've got it.. It's feeding time."
you walked up to Zayne with a small smile on your face, holding your arms open. zayne gently placed the baby on his wife's arms, holding her whole body in one arm and a hand on the back of the baby's soft head. "I'm sorry, little one just wouldn't calm down no matter what I did."
"it's okay, it was time for me to take over anyway." you sat down on the white rocking chair next to the baby's cot. "go catch some sleep, i promise to wake you when i need help."
zayne nodded and left the room. however, instead of listening to his wife, he decides to brew some coffee for the two of them and heat up a bottle for the baby.
he is reminded of the days when it was just the two of them having late night conversations over coffee and a beautiful balcony view. on the other hand, he wouldn't trade these all-nighters with their precious baby for anything else in the world.
it took zayne around 10 minutes to come back to the baby's room. "i brought us some coffee and a warm bottle."
you looked up at zayne, baby still wide awake. "you didn't have to.."
"i wanted to." he placed the wooden tray on the coffee table.
for a while, the both of you were silent. taking in the calmness of the room despite the obvious energy flowing from your baby. you leaned back on the rocking chair, sighing. "i'm tired, zayne.."
you felt zayne's larger hands on yours, "i know. i know you're tired."
it has only been a few weeks since you gave birth. you didn't feel like yourself, as if you were looking at a stranger in the mirror. this wasn't you.
this was your dream. a life with zayne. married with a baby, a happy home, friends and family that adore you, and a job that you love. but it just felt like you were cheated into thinking that this is what you were truly made for.
you felt your eyes water up, and guilt boiling inside you. "i'm sorry. i know this is what we planned. this is our dream." you held onto your baby, that was slowly drifting to sleep. your throat began hurting, as if its trying to keep you from voicing your inner thoughts because of the fear of hurting the man next to you. "I just-"
zayne got up before you could continue. he gently placed the sleeping baby on his arms and then moved her to her cot. making sure she was comfortable and warm before standing in front of you. he went down on one knee, taking your hand again into his and placing kisses on it, worshipping you.
"my love.. don't feel guilty for telling me this." he looks up with the intention of helping you understand. "you had just given birth, bringing a life into this world- a life so precious, we get to call ours."
"i know, but I.. I just wish I didn't feel this way. I love our baby, and I feel like such a bad mother for even having second-thoughts on a baby that's alive and healthy. I should be ashamed of myself." like always, you held your tears back. not allowing it to show the world that you were weak. that you wavered at the thought of regretting your little one.
zayne got up and bent down to your level, placing kisses on your eye that instinctively shut. "i don't blame you. you're allowed to feel this way. the only solution i can offer you is to stay by your side and walking this journey together." he held my cheek in his palm, wiping my tears away.
"this life that we have now.. it may be hard, exhausting, and sometimes you just want to cry and throw in the towel but i promise to you. i promise to share the burden with you."
you pulled him closer, melting in his comforting embrace. "you swear?"
he lets out a small chuckle, caressing your hair. "i swear on Astra himself."
"you're too good to me." you fix your hair, and wipe your tears away. "I'm sorry for not being brave sometimes."
zayne leans in, his lips close to yours. "I will never let the girl I love be brave on her own." he whispered before closing the distance between you as you shared a sweet kiss that proved his devotion to this life.
the life that was promised.
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a/n : longest one yet! i'm really proud of this one, hope you liked it
requests are open and appreciated (˶˃ ᵕ ˂˶) .ᐟ.ᐟ












