Broadway Dream

Chapter 29: Hope

"You're okay baby, everything is okay" he assures me as he holds onto my hand and runs his fingers through my hair with his other hand. He's trying his best to comfort me and I really appreciate it because in a time like this, I wouldn't know what to do with myself if he wasn't by my side.

We rushed out of the house with a half asleep eight year old in the back and Josh ended up calling Riley as we drove to the hospital. Instantly the brunette agreed to meet us there so she could watch Ellianna and I was grateful to have such an amazing best friend who'd get out of bed at 4 in the morning to stay with my daughter in a hospital.

I got rushed into the emergency section which only made me more terrified because that meant something bad had really happened. A doctor rambled about I have no clue what, he was talking way to fast and he wasn't really explaining everything but Josh somehow understood and tried explaining it to me. I still didn't really understand what he was saying and that's when I realised my brain wasn't focusing on his words. All I got was something about hormonal changes and placenta previa, whatever the fuck that means. Anyways it all lead to me getting a C-section, I had no say in this. Hailee needed to get out and fast so it wasn't an option for me to have a natural birth and in a way it broke my heart. I already caused so much pain on my daughter.

"Mr. Matthews we are going to need you to put these on if you are planning to stay during the birth" a nurse says as she holds out a weird outfit. "Of course" Josh smiles taking it from her before quickly changing into this funny looking jumpsuit. I would've laughed of I wasn't where I am. "I'm going to be right here through it all" he rolls a stool next to my bed and sits down right next to me. He takes my hand and plants a kiss on the back of it, "I love you Maya" he kisses my cheek "I love you too" I choke out before biting my lip.

"Okay Maya here we go".

~🎭~

My heart is beating out of my chest as I hold onto Maya's hand tightly, kissing her cheek various times showing her how much I love her and assuring her that everything is going to be okay. She needs me more than ever. Whilst the doctors get to work I do my best to get Maya relaxed, I talk to her about random things that I know will make her smile and the nurses are also telling her how well she is doing and how everything is going smoothly, that there is no reason to be worried.

"Can you imagine Elli's face when she finally meets her baby sister, she's going to be so happy" Maya smiles and nods "She is" she agrees and I lift my free hand to wipe some of her stray tears. "I can already imagine her not wanting to let go of Hailee once she has her in her arms" Maya chuckles making me smile "That's so going to happen" she agrees.

"Alright here comes your baby" I quickly look up and groan in annoyance when I realise that they put a sheet up to separate the surgery from us. Maya's grip on my hand tightens even more and I realise that she's shaking, "I love you, so much" I whisper kissing her cheek "I always will no matter what" seconds later I hear a faint sound of a baby crying and Maya's breath hitches, "Oh my gosh" she gasps cupping her mouth with her other hand.

"Congratulations on your baby girl!" The doctor says happily, "Is she okay?" Maya asks immediately wanting to know how her newborn daughter is. "She's very tiny but she's a fighter, the nurses are checking her right now but she's going to need to stay in an NICU for a few weeks so we can make sure everything is alright with her" he explains as he keeps working on Maya.

"Mr. Matthews you can go take a quick look at her before they take her" I instantly perk up at his suggestion. "Love you baby" I peck Maya's lip before letting go of her hand and heading where the nurses are. My heart breaks when my eyes land on my precious daughter. She's so little and fragile.

"Oh my gosh, hi baby girl" I coo kneeling down to get a better look at her as one nurse works on getting her clean whilst the other places a breathing tube on her as well as a bunch of other things on her. My heart aches at the sight of her. "She's cute isn't she?" One of the nurses asks with a smile and I nod vigorously "She is" I agree.

I can't really tell whether she looks more like me or Maya because she's so small but she is adorable. "Do you already have a name for her?" The other nurse asks "Yes um- its Hailee" I reply "With 2 e's at the end" I add. "Beautiful" she quips "Alright we're going to have to take her" my heart drops, I don't want them to take her, I want to be with her and be there for her.

"Oh" I give them a sad smile, "I love you Hailee" I smile looking down at her "Daddy and mommy love you so much" I quickly say before they roll her away. I keep my gaze on them until the door closes, I head back to Maya who's eyes instantly lock on mine. "She's perfect" I say before she starts bombarding me with question, "She's really, really small and fragile but Maya she's a perfect angel" she smiles and more tears fall from her eyes.

"I love her and I love you so much" I lean down and kiss her, "I love you too Josh".

~🎭~

Once Maya's surgery finishes all she does is beg the nurses to go see her daughter. They constantly tell her that she needs to rest and get her body to calm down but my girlfriend is stubborn as fuck and she annoys them until they finally agree. So that's where we're going right now, I'm rolling Maya who's on a wheelchair to the room where they told us to go to. I glance down at my girlfriend and finds her fidgeting with her fingers, "She's okay baby" I remind her, I lean down and kiss the top of her head.

As we make it there my heart breaks when I find my daughter hooked up to different things. I move to stand next to Maya and she instantly grabs onto my hand. "I'm sorry baby girl" Maya whispers causing my gaze to shift towards her, her eyes are locked on her daughter who's sleeping. Her orbs filled with sadness and love. Tears are streaming down her face and she uses her other hand to wipe her tears.

"You know she's like me" I mutter, Maya looks up at me confused "I was also born premature" I remind her. Her face softens and she squeezes my hand. "But she's a fighter and I know she'll make it" I smile and kiss Maya's forehead.

"I have hope in her too" Maya smiles looking back at our precious Hailee. "She really is perfect and I wish I could hold her or kiss her" she smiles sadly "Thank you Josh" her eyes land back on me "Thank you for giving me such a sweet and strong daughter" my heart flutters at her words and all I can do is kiss her to show her just how much I love her.

"I should be the one thanking you" she shakes her head to argue but I'm not going to let her. "You gave me hope that I could one day fall in love again and I did, you gave me hope that Elli could have a better life with a mom, you gave me hope for a family that I have always longed for" I caress her cheek looking at her lovingly.

Her brows furrow but suddenly a grin spreads across her lips and she glances back at her newborn daughter.

"Hailee Hope Matthews" she whispers.

"What?" I question not exactly sure if I correctly heard what she said, "What do you think of her name being Hailee Hope Matthews?" I look at my daughter and the widest smile pulls at my lips "I love it" I admit "And I love you" I kiss her temple "I love you too Josh, so much".