His Virgin Stripper

29

The walk to the NICU felt longer than it should've been.

Every step I took felt heavy, like my body was moving but my mind was still stuck in everything that just happened. My thoughts kept looping and my mother, her words, the truth, the pain.

But despite all of that... there was our baby.

Elijah stayed beside me the entire time, his hand gently wrapped around mine. He didn't rush me, didn't fill the silence with unnecessary words. He just stayed there, like he knew I needed something solid to hold onto.

We turned a corner.

Then another.

Until finally, we reached the NICU doors.

Inside, everything was quiet. Soft beeping machines, nurses moving carefully, a kind of silence that felt careful.

And there he was.

My baby.

Inside the incubator, surrounded by wires and soft lights, he looked so small it almost hurt to breathe. His tiny chest rose and fell slowly, fragile and steady, like he was holding on in his own quiet way.

I stopped walking. 

Elijah noticed immediately but didn't say anything. He just stayed close.

"Hi..." I finally whispered, barely audible.

I moved closer slowly, like I was afraid the world might break if I went too fast.

My hands trembled as I reached the glass. Just looking at him like this already made my chest ache.

"I'm here now..." I said softly, my voice breaking. "Mommy's here."

My fingers hovered near the incubator door, hesitant, until a nurse gently stepped in.

"You can come closer," she said with a small smile. "He's stable. You can touch him."

My heart tightened.

Carefully, I stepped forward as she adjusted the incubator opening.

It felt unreal.

My hand slipped inside slowly, my movements careful, scared I might do something wrong just by existing too loudly.

And then I felt him, his tiny hand.

So small that my fingers almost swallowed it completely.

My breath hitched and a tear slipped down my cheek before I could stop it.

"Hey, baby..." I whispered again, my voice shaking. "You're so strong... you know that?"

His fingers twitched.

I let out a soft sob, smiling through it as I carefully held his tiny hand between my fingers.

"I'm sorry I wasn't here sooner," I whispered. "But I'm here now. I promise."

Behind me, I felt Elijah step closer.

His hand rested gently on my back—warm, steady, real.

"He's got you now," he said quietly.

I nodded without looking away from our baby.

"I'm so sorry... daddy wasn't there for you and mommy when you were still just a sac," he whispered softly, his voice breaking slightly. "I should've been there from the start, son."

I closed my eyes for a moment, holding our baby's tiny hand carefully between my fingers.

I opened my eyes slowly, forcing myself to let go of our baby's tiny hand.