But everything is new again.
When I finally stand, the air feels different.
I walk through the cabin. Outside, I hear him before I see him. The rhythmic clang of tools.
When I step onto the porch, sunlight spills across the boards. Takhiss is up on the ladder, shirtless, patching a roof panel.
“Ella?” he says, voice soft, questioning. He drops the wrench. It clatters against the boards.
I can’t speak. I step forward, take his hand, and press it flat against my stomach.
He stares at me like the world just fell open under him.
“Again?” he whispers.
I nod. My voice won’t come, so I just smile through the blur of tears.
He drops to his knees on the porch boards, both hands covering mine.
He presses his forehead to my belly, breath trembling. “You’re sure?”
“Pink and blue,” I say. “I’m sure.”
He lets out a long, shaky breath, then grins up at me, eyes bright and wet. “You’re incredible.”
He stands, still holding me. “I can’t believe?—”
I cut him off with a kiss. It’s messy and salty and perfect.
Vex barrels out of the house at that exact moment, barefoot, holding a jar. “Mom! Dad! Look! Frogs!”
He trips halfway down the steps, mud streaked to his knees, and lands in a heap.
Takhiss and I both burst out laughing.
Vex pops back up, grinning proudly. “They’re green!”
“Everything’s green today,” Takhiss says, still smiling like a man reborn.
Takhiss scoops him up, spinning him once before setting him on his shoulders.
And for a moment—just one brief, breathtaking heartbeat—it feels like the entire universe holds still around us.
We are wanted fugitives. Outlaws.
But none of that matters.
We have this porch. This roof. This soil beneath our feet and this love that refuses to die.
We have a son who laughs like sunlight.
And now—we have another heartbeat, too small yet to hear, already rewriting everything.
That night, after Vex is asleep, Takhiss and I sit out under the stars.
He sits behind me, arms around my waist, chin on my shoulder. His hands rest over my belly, gentle, reverent.
“Do you think we're finally safe?” I ask quietly.
