Growing (Ted Lasso x Fem!Reader)
pairing: ted lasso x fem!reader
warnings: so much fluff, michelle & ted’s mom mention, ted worrying as per usual, talks of having a child
summary: just some domestic fluff and then a deep convo caused by something henry said
a/n: promise i’m alive! posting this from the basement of nursing school. but only 7 more months left then i will go crazy on here. anyways here’s dad!ted fluff to make your heart swoon. i miss ted so much, he deserved so much more 😭
find my masterlist here.
requests are always open!
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the morning sun felt warm against your skin as you stretched in bed. you’d slept throughout the night for the first time in months. usually, you’d wake up with your baby girl a few times a night. sometimes you and ted would swap off.
apparently he took it upon himself to be on baby duty all night, and you definitely appreciated the extra sleep.
if you listened close enough you could hear ted talking to henry. henry’s laughter echoed through the hallways and it made you smile softly.
henry was the best big brother to charlotte. he loved helping pick out her outfits and teach her new things. at first he was worried you’d pull away because after all, he isn’t technically your kid. luckily, after lots of pinky promises and hugs he got comfortable with the idea of a new addition to your tight knit family.
from the minute he first held her they’ve been best friends.
as you lay reminiscing, you could hear her high-pitched giggles and babbles mixed in with the rest of the chatter.
your joints popped as you stretched once more before pulling yourself out of bed to slip on one of ted’s old sweatshirts and your pajama shorts. the floor was cold on your feet, so you slipped on a pair of fuzzy socks and followed the sound of the laughter.
henry was in the living room, and had swapped out entertaining ted and charlotte for his video game. ted had your baby strapped to his chest in the baby carrier while he moved around the kitchen making breakfast. he had her facing forward, and her chubby little hands reached out to grab at anything he dared to pick up. her dark wispy hair and button nose were a replica of ted’s and it was even more obvious when their faces were close enough to compare.
when he wasn’t using two hands, he had one planted firmly on the front of the baby carrier over her stomach. even though she was secure, they both found a bit of extra comfort knowing the other was right there. by the way her fingers gripped his larger ones, she clearly didn’t mind.
ted made conversation with her like she was able to communicate with real words.
“the batter look good enough to you, baby?”
she cooed at him. he dipped the tip of his index finger into the batter and brought it up to her mouth to taste.
“try some, charlotte.. here you go”, his voice was soft as she mouthed the pancake batter off his finger. she was silent for a moment before she began smacking her lips.
“you like it, sweet pea?”
she cooed and squealed more excitedly this time while kicking her legs out. her actions made ted giggle while he wiped his hand on a dish towel.
after a few minutes she started reaching for bowl of batter. ted brought another fingertip up to her mouth for her to taste. this time, it drew a sharp “ow!” out of him.
“shoot, sweetheart.. feels like you’ve got a tooth comin’ in there, huh?”
she looked up and backwards as best she could at him. one of ted’s hands came up to brush her hair out of her forehead while he rubbed his finger around her gums. she grunted at him and brought her tiny hands up to hold his. ted moved to the freezer to get a gel teething ring out for her to chew on.
charlotte babbled when he handed it to her and quickly realized it gave her more relief when it was in her mouth.
“that feel better? hmm.. there you go, baby.”
he murmured to her as he went back to breakfast. when he turned around, the sight of you made him break out into a smile, while charlotte broke out into a fit of babbles. her chubby legs were kicking in the air, occasionally hitting ted’s stomach.
“well good mornin’, sweetheart.”
“hi, teddy.”
you smiled at the pair and let ted pull you in for a sweet kiss. it didn’t last very long with the way charlotte was growing restless at the sight of you. she was a daddy’s girl all day long, but she still loved some time with her mom.
ted held a strong hand against her while he unfastened her harness, which wasn’t the easiest job with how wiggly she was. you chuckled lovingly at him and stepped closer to help him out.
“mama! mamamama! mamaaa!”, charlotte’s squeals and babbles made henry want to join in on the fun.
his feet raced across the floor until he came in the kitchen and immediately hugged you. he knew to not hug you in a way that would make you drop baby girl, but still found a way to give you a routine good morning hug.
“..there you go, sweetheart. go show mama those chompers.”
with one hand around henry and another holding charlotte on your hip, you shot ted a look.
“her teeth are coming in?”, this was news to you.
ted shared his discovery with you as he finally began cooking the pancakes.
“sure are, didn’t even realize ‘til she ‘bout bit my finger off”, he jokingly waved a finger at charlotte and you all laughed as she giggled at him.
“oooh! can i see?!”, even henry was excited about her new milestone.
you sat down at the kitchen table and placed charlotte on top so that she was facing you. henry joined and held a hand to her back while you took her face in your hands. charlotte was chomping away at her freezer ring and it was already covered in drool.
you softly pulled it from her mouth, “let mama see, baby.. oh my goodness! you do have some teeth in there!”, you cooed as you gently opened her mouth to take a look at her baby teeth.
ever the responsive baby, she squealed in response to your words. she let you hold her mouth open long enough for henry to take a peek, but she realized that her mouth was starting to hurt without her teething ring.
she settled down as you put her back in your lap with an arm holding her close to you. you bounced her softly and brushed her curls from her face, “she’s growing up, ted..”
ted shot you a smile from where he was flipping the pancakes, “i know! if we’re not careful, she’ll be as tall as henry next week!”
ted’s words made henry laugh, “no she won’t dad! she’s just a baby!”
more quiet now, charlotte have a drool-covered smile around her teething ring that was slowly growing warm.
“our big girl, huh baby?”, her high-pitched giggle made you all smile.
“alright, henry these are about done. want to help me with the last ones?”
henry eagerly shot up and ran to help ted flip the pancakes. you flipped charlotte around to where she could lie against your chest and gave yourself a moment to just hold her.
she immediately pressed her cheek against the part of your chest not covered by your t-shirt. her eyelashes fluttered against your skin, and even though it tickled you had no intentions of moving her. she began growing fussy against you as her teeth began hurting again.
“shhh,” you shushed her and began gently rocking her, “i know it hurts baby, i’m sorry.”
you didn’t realize it but ted had stepped away and left henry in charge of the pancakes. he quickly returned with some baby teething gel you’d picked up in preparation for this moment.
“oh- thank you, honey.”, he handed it to you before returning back to where henry was standing near the stove.
“look at that sweet girl, daddy’s got us all fixed up.”, you sat her back on the table and she fiddled with her now lukewarm teething ring. she watched you take the cap off the gel and smear a little on your pinky.
“here, baby..” she quickly opened her mouth to gnaw on your pinky and hummed in content as the gel began kicking in.
in seconds your finger was covered with drool but it was worth it to know she was a little bit more comfortable.
“breakfast is ready, darlin’.. you want a plate?”, Ted came up behind you and put a warm hand on your back as he spoke.
“I’m okay right now, tryin’ to help out our girl here. We’re gonna come to the table though, I’ve missed you guys these past few days.”
ted smiled and pressed a quick kiss to your hair. “I’ll go ahead and put a plate in the fridge for you?”
you smiled back, “thanks teddy.”
charlotte had somehow calmed down even more after you moved her to the table and she could see everyone. her eyes grew heavy after she finally got comfortable and you moved her so that she could nap on your chest.
her chubby hands grabbed a hold of your shirt while she drifted off in your arms. mouth slightly open, she was drooling all over your pajama top but you couldn’t bring yourself to care. you were just glad she’d finally got some relief.
as ted and henry filled you in on their upcoming week, you rubbed soft circles on her back and pressed kisses to her wispy curls.
“mom, did you know my friend alex has TWO baby sisters?”, henry’s hopeful tone made you raise your eyebrows.
“does he, now?”
“mhm”, henry hummed as ted shot you a panicked ‘I’m sorry’ look.
you couldn’t quite wrap your head around the look, though. you loved the family you’d made with ted and had no qualms with expanding it.
henry continued filling you in on the details of his weekend plans with ted as he got up to put his plate in the sink. he ran to the living room to turn on the show he’s been watching recently.
charlotte stirred on your chest, and you looked at her with the biggest heart eyes on earth. she looked so much like ted.
while you admired her features, ted stammered out an, “i-i’m so sorry about what he said. i don’t want you to think- i know you just-“
“you don’t want another one, teddy?”
“wha- no! no, i absolutely do! i just.. i had no clue he was gonna say that, i’m sorry.”
“s’not anything to worry about, love. would love another one of your babies. maybe not right now, but that doesn’t mean i want that any less.”
ted seemed almost relieved, his shoulders relaxing at your words.
charlotte had begun to stir at the sound of ted’s voice, and it was clear she still felt poorly. as soon as she took in her surroundings and registered the pain in her mouth, she began to cry around her pacifier. little tears rolled down her rosy cheeks.
her tiny feet dug into your legs as she tried standing up with her hands grabbing onto your shoulders.
“hi, baby.. you’re okay sweet girl..” you shushed her.
“dada! dada!” she wailed around her pacifier. she seemed inconsolable. and as soon as ted heard her words, he was on his feet and approaching the two of you with open arms.
her outstretched arms mirrored his, and her wailing turned into whimpering the moment she was settled in his arms. charlotte turned and tucked her face into ted’s neck. she was still whimpering but had definitely settled down some.
you stood in front of them and rubbed at her back while ted cooed at her. she always loved attention from you both at the same time, so she really settled down after that.
“you’re such a good mom, angel.”
your cheeks turned bright red at his compliment.
“you’re a great dad, teddy. we love you so much.”
“the three of you are my world. how could i not want more?”
you and ted went into the living room, where the three of you settled on the couch. henry had fallen asleep in ted’s oversized recliner while watching his show, and you didn’t miss the tiny grin on his face when you draped his favorite blanket over him.
ted changed the channel to watch the day’s football match, and charlotte got comfortable against his broad chest. seeing her tiny form draped over his strong, hairy chest always does things to you. he still hasn’t acknowledged your statement, but you’d learned to give him a bit of time to mull things over in his head over the years.
her eyes grew heavy as she listened to his heartbeat and the hum of the TV. it wasn’t long before you followed, drifting off with your head on the armrest and feet in ted’s lap.
ted rubbed her back while her breathing evened out and spoke up after a few minutes, “you’d really want another?”
a smile spread across your face, “of course, ted. absolutely.”
ted nodded silently and you could tell he was beginning to overthink.
“talk to me, babe.”, you poked your foot into the side of his thigh. when you first met him, he would’ve denied anything was wrong. he would’ve pushed it down and bottled it up.
now, he found comfort in telling you his fears. he let himself be scared and be taken care of by you. he’d come such a long way from the dark place he was in when you first met.
“you don’t think i’m gettin’ too old?”, his voice was small and he kept his eyes fixed on charlotte as he spoke.
“ted you aren’t old! i call you my old man but it’s out of love. you have so much life and brightness in you.. being old isn’t anywhere on your radar yet.”
“but, what about when my mom pulls some more bull again, talkin’ about me movin’ to kansas n’all that? because now it won’t just be her, it’ll be another one she’s gon’ try to use as leverage and-“
“ted, breathe.”, you’d sat up now and rubbed at his arms that were wrapped around your daughter.
“that.. what happened when your mom came here last time isn’t going to happen again. we’re not putting any of us through that regardless of if we have another one or not.. did she call again?”
“yeah. last night while you had the kids in the bath. throwin’ all kinds of stuff out there about this being a ‘phase’ n’all that. told her to call me if there’s an emergency and just hung up.”
you were both silent, and you could tell his blood was boiling just as yours was.
“i’m proud of you ted. i know she’s being.. difficult.”
“m’just scared because.. havin’ another just gives me more chances to screw ‘em up and i don’t- i couldn’t.”, his eyes stayed fixed on the little girl in his arms as his voice grew tight.
“you haven’t screwed anything up. you love these kids, you love me. you were literally meant to be a dad and, shit, a husband too. you have the most gentle, kind, loving heart. there’s not a single bit of me that worries about these kids with you.”
“s’just so easy to imagine sometimes, you know? I worry about somethin’, then I imagine it happenin’ and I start circling the drain..”
“you’re growing and learning too, just like them. it’s okay to worry, hun.. but they’re here, and they’re wonderful.. they’re you.”
“it has been brought up by the boys lately.. especially now that she’s getting older.”
a smile had finally appeared on his face.
“just think about it, ted. doesn’t have to happen tonight. just want you to know that i’m beyond happy to have another baby with you, love.”, your words were exactly what he needed to hear.
“we may need to get to practicin’ then..”
thanks for reading!
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