As I was contemplating to myself over and over again, I forgot how much time had passed. I read the clock and it was only 12:30 in the morning. I wish I could go to sleep, but it was hard knowing that my life was over with that... creature choosing me. I felt regret and wished that the egg would just disappear.

"Wow. This is all amazing." Rachel smiled as she came out with Donnie and the egg.

"What's amazing?" Leo said as he came out with 2 slices of pizza and sat down next to me.

"You and Donnie finally ki-" Mikey interrupted until Donnie elbowed him. "Hey!"

"That's not important now. But what Rachel says that we found out so much about the egg that you found." Donnie said.

"What did you find out about it?" Leo asked as he took a bite of his pizza.

"Well from my studies and in my books, sis here is pretty lucky." Rachel said.

"She is?" Leo looked at me.

"I am?" Mikey and I said at the same time and we both looked at Rach.

"Yes. And I was right, it is a Manaphy egg. These things don't like to stay in one place. And when they first get touched by different hands, they're bonded. Every time the same hands touches the egg, it glows brighter. And it helps it grow stronger."

"Meaning..?" Mikey asked.

"Basically whenever Aqua touches the Manaphy egg, the bond between them grows stronger." Donnie said in his non-geeky terms.

"Huh. That's pretty cool. That makes you its chosen one and lifesaver babe." he smiled and kissed my cheek.

"But sis. I don't want to bond with the egg." I looked away.

"Why not?" she asked me.

"Well... umm... What if it's a dangerous creature? What if it tries to attack us? Maybe we should take the egg back to the ocean."

"Maybe she's right. We don't wanna get in trouble again like that time Leo was possessed by that wasp and almost turned us into wasp food." Mikey added.

"No need to say that!" Leo facepalmed in embarrassment.

"But it won't attack you or anyone here sis. I can reassure you that Manaphy is a seafaring water creature. They're common to be friendly with its beholder. Which is you. So you don't have to be afraid of it."

"It said so in her books Aqua. You'll be just fine with the egg." Donnie reassured me.

"Wow. And I kept thinking that I shouldn't have saved that egg."

"Why would you say that? You saved the egg and the egg has thanked you in its own way." Leo smiled.

"Think about it, once that egg hatches and it sees you, it'll think you're its hero." Mikey smiled and grabbed Leo's other slice of pizza.

After some reflection on what everybody was telling me, I decided that I could do this job. "Hmm, I think I like the sound of that." I smiled a bit.

"Speaking of seeing, sis." Rachel called me.

"Yeah?"

"Once the egg hatches and Manaphy sees you, he-"

"Or she." Mikey smiled.

"Thank you. Will know that you're its mother."

"Me? A mom?" I blushed badly.

"Yes. Since the egg has bonded with you, you should be able to be with it until it hatches."

"How long do I have to hold it?"

"For about 2 months. But until then, you'll have to keep it warm and let it listen to your heart beat."

"I think I can do that easy peasy."

"Hehe, she could be in the season of 'Teen Mom,' she'd be a great mommy." Mikey slurped his soda.

"This isn't a show Mikey. This is reality." Rachel said.

"So should I wrap it up in a blanket and hold it close to me? I would feel comfortable holding the egg like a baby."

"You could, but Manaphy should get used to your heartbeat. It needs to listen to your heartbeat only."

"Huh okay. So what should I do?"

"You should put it in your shirt." Donnie suggested.

"Okay." I gently took the egg from my sister and the egg greeted me with a familiar red glow. "Hello to you too." I spoke to it as I put the egg at my chest inside my shirt.

"That's another good idea, talking with the egg will help Manaphy understand what you sound like as its mother and beholder." Rach said.

"Have you even seen this Manaphy creature yet?" Donnie asked.

"No I haven't. Manaphy is the last creature I have to take a picture of it to complete my photo collection."

"Awesome." Leo smiled.

"Wow. This is unprecedented, Aqua becoming a mom in an hour? You got it lucky Aqua." Donnie smiled.

"She's very lucky." Mikey smiled and hugged my arm gently.

"Thanks guys. Also sis, is it normal to have warm and fuzzy feelings about an egg that I was cautious about?" I asked.

"Yes. Your mother instincts are kicking in. The egg shares its emotions with you. Like when you're happy, its happy. When you're sad, its sad. So it's important to look up to  positivity vibes." she explained.

"Positivity vibes? So no negativity is allowed?"

"No. It'll be unhealthy for the egg and the beholder itself. If there's positivity, the egg will feel warm. If there's negativity, the egg will feel cold."

"Okay. Donnie jot down some notes."

"Already doing that." Donnie said as he had at least 2 pages full of facts about the egg."

"Wow, my girlfriend being a mom in just a single day." Leo chuckled. "This must mean I'm a dad?"

"Just about." Rachel giggles softly.

As they were talking, I looked down at the egg. Well, my egg as it was beginning to warm up to me. The feeling at my chest was sensational, as if I'd eaten something to keep me warm and fuzzy for a very long time. And Rach was right, my nature was taking its course by my newly discovered mother instincts. Now I have a new purpose in life telling me to be the mother I'm made to be for the creature that's bound to me. So I'm going to do my very best to keep this beautiful egg safe and warm. And as I feel fast asleep, I dreamt about what wonders this little treasure could hold.

⭐️ To be continued...