Porcelain

Chapter 66

Estelle blinked her eyes open at last. She glanced around at her surroundings, trying to put together the missing chunk in her memory. She was on a hospital bed, covered in gauze bandages. She didn't want to move, it hurt enough just laying there. There was Dally, right there by her. He seemed to be sound asleep in the chair, he was completely stretched out, letting out little snores every so often. He had something resting on his chest, and she wondered what it was. She couldn't see clearly enough to be able to tell, but it looked like a small parcel. His arms were wrapped securely around it, not too tightly, but snugly enough to keep it held close to his chest.

It then struck her what the little parcel was. It was a baby. Dallas Winston was there beside her, holding a baby. That meant... that meant that her baby was safe. She wanted to scream in relief, in joy. Her baby was safe and alive. She'd protected her child. That was all that mattered.

Her burning face muscles contorted her face into a smile. It was such a bittersweet scene, watching Dally's chest slowly rising and falling with the little person there on it. She desperately wanted him to wake up, to introduce her to her baby right then. But if she couldn't do that, she could at least enjoy the moment while it lasted.

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The next time she woke up, she didn't see Dally, which immediately made her a bit sad. She had hoped he would be there whenever she woke up for good and had enough energy to stay awake. But it was okay, he had things he needed to do too.

A middle aged brunette nurse was in the room, checking her wounds and changing her bandages.

"Ah, you're awake! That's fantastic, I'll tell the doctors. I'll tell your man too, he was in here just a minute ago, I made him leave and get a snack while I checked up on you," she said with a wink.

Estelle liked her immediately, the nurse reminded her a bit of her favorite moments with her mother and aunt.

After the nurse left, the door swung back open just a few seconds later, and Dally rushed into the room.

"Estelle," he said, emotion running raw in his voice.

She had a cut on her face that made it next to impossible for her to smile, but she could crack her mouth open the slightest bit for her to talk.

"Dally," she replied, in a rough whisper.

She wished that she could leap up and plant kisses all over his face. She was just happy to be alive, and for Dally and her baby to be okay. Speaking of,

"Dally, the baby?"

He immediately looked a little unsure, a rare look on his face.

"He was born that night, emergency surgery. He's little, but the doctor says he's pretty healthy."

"He," she breathed. "We have a son. Did you name him?"

Dally nodded.

"Well, are you going to tell me?"

"Johnny. His name is Johnny," he whispered.

Her eyes welled up in tears. It was perfect, the simple name carried so many memories for the both of them, and would now go on to carry so many more.

"Are you mad?" He asked. "I'm sorry if you, don't like it. It felt right at the time, I guess, you can probably change it if you-"

"I love it," she said, cutting him off. "What's his middle name?"

"Curtis."

She smiled. It pulled at the scabs on her face, but the pain was irrelevant. She had been so scared what would happen when the baby was born, if Dally would run away from them, or make impulsive choices or something. But she should have known him better than that. He had grown as a person and as a partner, he wouldn't do that. He had put time and effort into naming their son, he had picked a name that had meaning behind it and showed he cared.

"Do you want to hold him?" Dally asked.

"Can I?" She asked, glancing at her bandaged arms.

"It's okay," he said, gently picking Johnny up. He gently placed him down on her chest, and brushed a piece of her hair behind her ear.

Tears spilled from her eyes. She felt her son's gentle breaths on her chest, and Dally's hand cradling her head.

"I love you, Dallas," she whispered. "I love you so much, you don't even know. And I'm just so happy that we can all be here. That Johnny is here. I love him so much already," she said, intently staring at him, memorizing his little face.

Dallas wiped a tear from her cheek. "I love you too. I love you too, Estelle."

She leaned into his hand. And for a moment, everything was perfect.