Deja Vu
The first night at home with a new baby was simultaneously the best and scariest thing either Eddie or Venom could think of. This particular amazing and terrifying event had only ever happened to them twice- once with Carnage and once with Sleeper- and the only thing they learned for sure is that the more things change the more they stay the same.
“They’re so tiny. I can’t believe how tiny they are.” Eddie said in utter awe.
The two of them were sitting on the floor and peeking into the crib from the other side of the bars, they were as close to the crib as they could physically be without being inside of it. Their brand new, two hour old child was trying to rest but they couldn’t bring themselves to move.
“So tiny.” Eddie whispered again.
“Eddie, let’s let them sleep.” Venom nudged him.
But he didn't want to sleep, after three hours of labor he was getting his second wind.
“They are sleeping.”
As if to just make him look silly, the impossibly tiny Carnage opened their wide opal eyes and scrunched up their face. Eddie held his breath as if that would stop what was about to happen but it didn’t and they began to cry anyways. Venom was sure they’d never seen Eddie move as fast as he did to scoop up the wailing newborn, as if fatherhood had granted him newfound superpowers. Carnage squirmed as Eddie rubbed their back and they flailed their limbs in uncoordinated slow motion. Then Eddie started bouncing the poor little thing and the crying stopped but only because Carnage looked like they were going to be sick.
“Eddie, my beloved, there will be many, many more days to hold and cuddle and play with Carnage but right now I think they just want to sleep.”
Venom felt the need to speak on their poor child’s behalf.
“Aren’t they cute, V?”
He wasn’t listening at all.
Eddie was humming and talking to Carnage while bouncing them and rubbing his thumb on their cheek and to say they looked overwhelmed would be a bit of an understatement. Venom twined a few ink tendrils around their husband’s hand in an attempt to hold it still that masqueraded as affection.
“Eddie.”
“You look just like your daddy.” Eddie was still talking to Carnage who looked like they wanted to cry again.
“Eddie.”
“You’re gonna be big and strong like them too.” Eddie cuddled the child who tensed up.
“Eddie.”
“What?” Eddie sounded annoyed that his one-sided conversation was so rudely interrupted.
“I think the baby wants to rest, we should let them.”
“Well, I think I can tell what my own baby wants.” Eddie shot back defensively.
Carnage let out a whine before hiccuping several times, tears welling up and threatening to spill over again.
“Eddie, put the child down.”
Eddie sighed heavily and rolled his eyes like a petulant teenager before Venom nudged them further until he was leaning over the crib and he had no choice but to put Carnage down. Once back in their cozy bed, Carnage calmed down again and immediately nodded off.
“See? They are exhausted, love.”
“...Fine. I guess they are kind of tired.” Eddie pouted back.
But Eddie still couldn’t let it go, he was laying curled up on the bed facing the crib which he’d pulled right up to the side of the bed so he was still just as close to the bars as he was before.
“Eddie, darling close your eyes.”
“I don’t want to.”
“They will be right there in the morning, I promise.”
“You’ve gotten to watch them for months and I’ve gotten to look at them for two hours. Let me have this.”
“Well, I would but they don’t like to be watched while they sleep. It keeps waking them up. They had a big day, Eddie. You need to let them rest."
“What if they get stuck in the bars? Or they stop breathing? Or get too cold?”
“Darling they will be fine. I will watch them all night.”
“But I want to watch them!” His suddenly raised voice made Carnage stir and whine a little but they didn’t wake up.
“It’s just...If I go to sleep and something happens then I’ll already be off to a terrible start as a father...you know?”
“I feel that thought is rather irrational.”
“How are you not worried about any of this?” He sulked.
“I am.”
“What?”
“I am worried about all of it. The temperature, the breathing, the crib bars. All of it and then some.”
“Y-You are?” Eddie found himself tearing up. Damn hormones.
“Of course I am.” Venom admitted. “And I do not sleep as much as you so I have had much more time to think about it.” They added playfully.
“Anything could happen to them, V. Anything.”
“There are lots of things that could happen but that is what we are here for, Eddie.” They formed their head next to him and bumped his temple while simultaneously forming their arms to embrace him tightly from behind.
“Exactly. So I can’t sleep. I’ll never sleep again.”
Venom just sent him a wave of frustration. Eddie always got cranky without sleep and they could feel that he was getting tired. They really didn’t want to spend tomorrow dealing with a cranky baby who wasn’t allowed to sleep on top of a cranky husband who refused to sleep.
“This was so much easier when they were inside of me.” Eddie groaned scrubbing his face with his hands.
Eventually Eddie did fall asleep and when he woke up the next morning everything was perfectly fine just like his other had promised.
Sleeper’s first night at home was a battle on new fronts. The baby was asleep when they brought him home but that was two hours ago and he was wide awake now. Eddie and Venom on the other hand were incomprehensibly exhausted.
“He won't sleep and every time we put him down he cries.” Eddie said it like he was losing his will to live.
“He is very small, he has to fall asleep again soon.”
Venom, to their credit, was trying to be optimistic but after six hours of labor Eddie just didn’t have it in him. In fact he was barely able to stay awake at all, the only thing he wanted in the world right now was to rest but their new son simply was not having it. Sleeper was only two hours old but he was already ruling their lives like a tiny dictator.
Sleeper squirmed as Eddie rubbed his back and he flailed his limbs in uncoordinated slow motion.
“Eddie, you need to go to sleep. You can barely stand.”
“Everything in my body is sore and I can’t really see straight anymore but I am not going to sleep while Sleeper is awake.”
Eddie cuddled the tiny infant closer to him in an act of defiance.
“Aren’t they cute, V?”
He wasn’t listening at all.
“You won’t be any good to him if you are too tired to function, darling. Neither of us will be.” They formed their head next to him and bumped his temple while simultaneously forming their arms to embrace him tightly from behind.
Eddie sighed in spite of himself, he knew that him resting meant Venom would benefit immensely from his restored energy just like he was benefiting from Venom’s energy now. He also knew that they were tired too and were depending on him sleeping soon. Just then Sleeper reached his hand up towards Eddie’s face and he was easily convincing his dad to stay awake forever.
“Eddie, no.” Venom stopped that train of thought in its tracks.
“I’m just so tired.” He practically sobbed.
“I know.”
“Everything hurts.”
“I know.”
“But I love our baby.”
“I know.”
“I don’t know what to do.” Eddie found himself tearing up. Damn hormones.
Venom just sent him a wave of frustration. Eddie always got cranky without sleep and they could feel that he was exhausted. They really didn’t want to spend tomorrow dealing with a cranky baby who refused to sleep on top of a cranky husband who wasn't allowed to sleep.
“Eddie, he knows you love him. Go to sleep. I will take care of everything.”
In his arms Sleeper still far from tired and was cooing and making generally happy baby noises in what appeared to be an ongoing conversation with himself. Or them. They couldn’t really tell.
“Darling he will be fine. I will watch him all night.”
“This was so much easier when he was inside of me.” Eddie groaned scrubbing his face with his hand.
Eventually Eddie did fall asleep and when he woke up the next morning everything was perfectly fine just like his other had promised.