Godfather

1

Daisy Jane Charles was a happy child.

She was happy in the sense where her life was perfect. Endless cuddles from her loving and caring parents, playtime with her best friend and next door neighbor whenever she wanted, a seemingly infinite amount of snacks in her house, dancing, singing, and her favorite, the occasional visit from her uncle Luke. But that was all gone now.

Her life was no longer perfect. She was now sat in a hospital bed with the song of confusion on repeat in her pretty little bandaged head. She was not surrounded by her loving and caring parents, and her best friend wasn't just a holler away. The hospital snacks were not as good as the ones at home, there was no dancing, and the only singing there was was the sound of the heart monitor she was hooked up to. She was in pain. She was scared. She wanted her mommy and daddy more than anything but the nice lady told her that they were gone and they weren't going to be coming back. She was an orphan now, and there was absolutely nothing perfect about that.

And yet, there was a light at the end of her dark, dark tunnel. There was something that remained the same in all of this. Her favorite uncle Luke was by her side, holding her in his arms and telling her that everything would be okay. And for a minute, she believed it. She believed that she would be okay. She believed that nothing could hurt her so long as she was in her uncle Luke's big, strong arms.

But for Luke, nothing was okay. His best friend and his best friend's wife were dead. Their daughter was concussed and heartbroken and confused and an orphan. Her once flawless skin was cut and bruised. Her chubby cheeks that'd always held a smile now held a river of tears. She felt so fragile in his arms that he feared that he might break her as he whispered soothing little nothings to her. And most of all, he realized that he was all she had left. That he was her godfather.

And that meant that he now had sole custody over little Daisy Jane Charles.

Suddenly his words were reassuring himself, too.

"We'll be okay," He whispered. "We're gonna be okay."

"L-Luke?" Daisy asked, sniffling and looking up at her loved one.

Snapping out of his little crisis, he disregarded it and focused on Daisy.

"Yeah, baby?"

"W-What happened?" She asked, lip trembling. "N-No one w-will tell me, and I'm s-scared."

And as her tears were suddenly fresh, Luke's heart broke for the billionth time within the span of that stupid call.

"What do you remember, baby?" He asked, somehow remaining calm in hopes that she would too.

"I-I-" Sob. "I-I d-don't!"

Luke had never seen her like this. Yes, he'd seen the occasional tantrum or her crying when she'd gotten a scrape on her knee, but never like this. He'd never seen anyone like this. He didn't know what to do. And when Luke Hemmings didn't know what to do, he followed his instincts.

He placed her on his lap and cradled her a lot like he did the day she was born. Her head laid on his chest as his arms encircled her three year old frame, securing her and protecting her from all the bad things in the world.

"L-Luke?"

"Yeah, baby?"

"Where... Where d-did m-mommy and d-daddy go? Why can't I-I s-see them again?"

They hadn't told her that her parents died. Great. This was the last thing that any person wanted to tell a heartbroken little three year old, but Luke wasn't going to withhold information like this from her. So, he sighed and pressed a long kiss on her temple, ignoring the tear that managed to slip from his eye.