Songbird [H.S]

THIRTY-SEVEN

For months, Harry had dreamed of a moment like this.

The teenage boy had settled himself on Marley's cosy windowsill, peering out into the star lit sky as his newborn daughter was snuggled against his bare chest. He cradled her gently, making sure her knitted patchwork blanket was keeping her warm as he kissed the top of her head very softly. The feeling of Josie's tiny fingers holding onto him as tiny little snuffles and grunts filled the air between them made his heart flutter and happy tears prick his eyes. Everything about her was so perfect from her button nose, tiny eyelashes and soft hair on her head and Harry was completely overwhelmed by the amount of love he had for his daughter from the moment he laid eyes on her.

Marley had fallen asleep a few moments ago after Johannah had checked her over and explained everything she needed to. The older woman stuck around to help Harry put on Josie's nappy and get her dressed to keep her warm, also helping Marley with Josie's first feed. The teenager was insistent on breastfeeding, wanting to develop a very close bond with her daughter that would bring them both comfort. However, it seemed she had underestimated how difficult it might be. It took a while for Josie to latch on, much to Marley's disappointment, but eventually the newborn managed to feed for a little bit. Marley had practically fallen asleep while Josie was still feeding so Harry had taken the little girl in his arms when she was done to let the teenager sleep.

Now the room was completely silent except for the little breaths and noises that escaped Josie's lips, Harry was able to spend some alone time with his daughter.

A small smile graced his lips when he realised that Josie was peering up at him, her beautiful blue eyes watching him sweetly as he hugged her closer to him. He just couldn't take his eyes off her.

"Hey, Sunny." He whispered very softly, not wanting to disturb Marley who was only across the room. "I'm so happy to finally meet you. Me and your Mummy have been waiting a long time to finally cuddle you."

The boy felt his daughter squirm in his arms a little, scrunching her legs up and snuffling a little as she tried to get settled. Harry helped support her in a more comfortable position, one arm perched under her bum while his other hand supported her head - allowing the baby to relax against his bare skin. He expected the girl to start falling asleep in this position but she continued to stare up at him innocently as he cuddled her.

"It's getting late, pretty girl. Everything's so new and exciting, huh? Don't wanna sleep incase you miss anything, do you?" He cooed softly, keeping his voice light. "How about we have one of our late night chats. Bet you thought they'd stop now you're not in Mummy's tummy anymore."

The teenage boy shifted himself slightly on the windowsill so that he could show his daughter the view of the night sky for the first time. From the moment he held her for the first time, Harry wanted to start showing her the world, introducing her to everything and everyone he loved. He couldn't wait to teach her how to crawl, how to walk, how to talk. He just wanted to spend every minute of every day with her.

"Have you seen the stars tonight? They're very pretty." He began, "Somebody very close to me once said that the stars are all special angels that are no longer with us watching down on everyone to keep them safe. Guess what, Sunny? The person who told me that was my Nana Josephine and now she's one of those special angels."

The room was completely silent as Harry spoke about his grandmother, not even Josie making a sound as she listened to her Dad's voice. The boy admired the hundreds of twinkling stars with tears in his eyes, knowing that if Josephine could see him now she would be beaming with happiness and begging Harry to hold her great-granddaughter all night.

"She would've loved to meet you. She was such a caring, funny woman, you would've adored her just as much as I did. But don't worry, she'll always be watching over you and keeping you safe just like all the other stars in the sky. You even have her name, pretty girl - she'll always be right with you." Josie suddenly started to squirm again, this time screwing her face up as she started whining, It was clear that she was about to start crying if Harry didn't calm her down soon which made him panic a little, not wanting Marley to wake up.