"She's perfect," he says. "Nora, she's—"
"Perfect," I agree.
He touches her tiny hand. She grips his finger immediately. Holds on tight.
And Marcus, my husband, the underground fighter, the man who came back from war broken and convinced he'd never have this, Marcus starts crying.
"I love you," he says. To me or to our daughter, I'm not sure. Maybe both. "I love you so much."
"We love you too," I tell him.
The nurses are doing things—cleaning me up, checking vitals, all the post-delivery procedures. But I barely notice. Can't focus on anything except the weight of my daughter on my chest and Marcus's hand covering both of us.
"What are we naming her?" I ask. We'd narrowed it down to two options but couldn't decide.
Marcus looks at our daughter. Really looks. Studies her little face like he's memorizing every detail.
"Harper," he says finally. "Harper Cole."
Harper.
I test it out. Let it roll around in my mind.
"Harper Cole," I repeat. "I love it."
"Yeah?" He sounds uncertain. Like he's afraid I'll disagree.
"It's perfect." I kiss our daughter's forehead. "Welcome to the world, Harper."
There's a knock on the door. It opens slowly.
Ruin pokes his head in. His girlfriend right behind him.
"Is it safe?" he asks. "Can we meet her?"
Marcus looks at me. I nod.
They come in. Ruin approaches the bed slowly, like he's afraid he'll break something. When he sees Harper, his entire face transforms.
"Oh," he breathes. "Oh, she's… Marcus, she's beautiful."
"Yeah." My husband sounds dazed. "She is."
Ruin's girlfriend peers over his shoulder. Smiles. "Congratulations, you two. She's absolutely precious."
"You want to hold her?" I ask Ruin.
He looks terrified. "I don't… I've never—"
"You'll be fine." Marcus takes Harper from me gently. Shows his brother how to support her head. "Just like this."
Ruin takes his niece with the kind of reverence usually reserved for religious artifacts. Stares down at her like she's the most important thing in the world.
"Hi, Harper," he whispers. "I'm your Uncle Ruin. I'm going to teach you how to build things. And probably how to break things too. But don't tell your parents that part."
I laugh. Exhausted and overwhelmed and so incredibly happy I can barely stand it.
This is my life now.
