Harry found Luz sitting by herself on one of their deck chairs, her legs curled up to her chest and a mug of what he assumed was green tea in her hands. He'd come out to find her when he went to check on little Ynez, who was sitting up in her big girl bed, having not gone to sleep when Luz tucked her in for the night. She rarely ever went to bed unless Harry sang her to sleep, and while he told his daughter she was up way past her bedtime, he wasn't really upset with her. He loved playing the guitar and singing quietly until her eyes fluttered shut and her breaths evened out.
After checking on Sofia too, Harry came down the stairs and set out to find his wife. She was sitting outside facing the ocean, the way she always did when something was bothering her, a baby monitor sitting on the armrest. Harry knew he was in for it when she didn't even turn her head when she heard him approaching.
Kneeling down next to her, he pressed a kiss to Luz's cheek. "You're mad."
"I'm not mad," she said immediately.
Harry took her hand in his, lacing their fingers together. "It's okay if you are. You have every right to be."
Luz shook her head. "I told you, Harry. I'm not mad I just-" She paused to wipe a tear from her cheek.
"Hey," Harry said softly, frowning at the sight of his wife crying. "It's okay."
Harry pulled Luz out of the deck chair and into his arms so that they were huddled up on the sand together. "Why are you crying, lovey?"
"It's these stupid hormones," Luz sniffled, her hand gripping the front of Harry's shirt. "I cry at dog commercials on TV, I cried this morning when Ynez tied her shoes without my help..."
"And now?" Harry asked, rubbing his hand across Luz's back.
Luz took a deep breath. "I was scared today, Harry. You know how I feel about these appointments, and- and you weren't there."
Harry sighed and pulled her impossibly closer. He hadn't meant to miss Luz's sonogram appointment, but one problem after another kept getting in the way, and by the time he was finally able to leave the soundstage where he was filming an interview, it was too late.
"I know. I'm sorry. I know you probably don't want to hear it, but there were issues on top of issues today. Every time I tried to leave, someone kept calling me back."
Luz sat up from where she was leaning against Harry's chest. She could see it in his face. The regret, how upset he looked at having let her down, for not being there when she needed him.
While Sofia's birth went off without a hitch, Luz's first pregnancy scared her in a way she wasn't sure she would ever recover from. Every appointment, every kick, every next step terrified her to the point of being convinced that something was going to go horribly wrong, that her body would fail her again. Having Harry with her at these appointments to hold his hand and be the steady voice of reason that quelled her panicked thoughts was something Luz had grown to rely on. Not to mention she felt that Harry should've been there to find out the sex of the twins, which is what she found out at the doctor's today.
"I don't want our kids to come second, Harry," Luz said quietly, like if she said those words too loud, they would come true.
Harry didn't miss how Luz left herself out of the equation, but he tabled that conversation for later and focused on what she told him. "My family will never come second. We made promises to each other when we got married, Luz. I intend to keep them."
He kissed her cheek at the soft smile Luz made when he mentioned their wedding. "And as for today, I truly am sorry for not being there. I was frantic all day just thinking about the appointment."
