23
Elijah
Grace was patient. She allowed us our allotted three days before welcoming herself to the world.
The birth went smoothly. Felix brought her into the world in under a few hours, and after all the sweat and tears and swearing, it was finally over.
“Would you like to see your new daughter?” the nurse asked.
Her slip of the tongue didn’t even bother me. Right now,nothingcould bother me. The only thing in the world that mattered was my baby girl. When the nurse placed her into my arms, the wave of emotion nearly swept me off my feet. I placed my trembling lips to her forehead, taking in her sweet scent and the softness of her skin. She was unbelievably small.
“She looks a lot like you,” Felix said.
My heart clenched. I sat next to him, holding Grace between us. Felix’s breathing remained short and choppy from all the straining, and he smelled like sweat, but the happiness in his voice was impossible to miss. I knew he would go through the moments of agony a hundred times over just to hold Grace.
“Well, she’s soft like you,” I replied.
I traced her face with a shaking finger. She had the same cloud-like cheeks that Felix did. I touched her hand and found it balled up into a triumphant fist, like she was proud of herself for finally entering the world.
River lay at my feet, but raised his head to sniff the air. Though dogs weren’t allowed in the delivery room, the doctors allowed a highly trained guide dog to be present. During the delivery, he performed an obedient down-stay in the corner of the room while I sat next to Felix. Once the doctor deemed Grace healthy and fit, River was allowed to return to my side.
“I think River wants to say hi,” Felix said with a soft laugh. “He’s sniffing non-stop.”
“Here,” I said, handing Grace to Felix. “River, no licking, all right? Otherwise I’m sure the nurse is gonna kick you out.”
River did not lick the baby. Instead, I heard the soft slow sound of him smelling her through the blanket. He let out a gentle whimper and his tail wagged across the floor, hitting my shoe.
“He likes her,” Felix told me happily. “And I think she likes him, too. She’s not pouting anymore. It’s funny, Elijah, she reallydoeslook like you when she’s frowning.”
I laughed. “Of course she does. She’s my baby girl, after all.”
* * *
“Dog!”
Jake sighed. “Of course. We don’t even have a dog, and yet his first word manages to bedog.”
Finn giggled as he crawled towards River. Our friends’ son had apparently begun to raise hell ever since he turned mobile. Not only that, but he’d just spoken his first word in the middle of our living room floor.
“I’m surprised it wasn’tcat,” Griffin said, amused. “Considering, you know, we actually have a cat.”
“Maybe dog is just easier to say?” Felix suggested.
“Dog is as easy to say asdad,” Jake grumbled. “But I don’t hear him saying that. Do you, munchkin?”
Finn wasn’t listening. Judging by the sound of it, he was too busy laughing to himself and getting River to roll over and expose his belly while the little boy gently slapped it.
“Easy, Finn,” Griffin called. “He’s a dog, not bongo drums.”
Finn cackled. “Dums.”
Jake let out an exasperated groan. “Dog and dums. Great. I’m never bringing him over here again, Felix. All he does at your house is learn new words that aren’tdadandpapa.”
Felix chuckled. “Sorry.”
“At least you won’t have to worry about that for a while. Isn’t that right, little Grace?” Jake asked, his voice softening.
Our daughter was asleep, bundled up in my arms. She was a surprisingly easy baby so far, at least compared to Jake and Griffin’s stories when their son was two months old, but I wasn’t letting my guard down yet. I knew as soon as she was old enough, she would turn into a little hellion just like Finn. Right now, I was content to enjoy her good behavior.
