"And then what happened, Cherie? Take your time remember.... you are under oath","
The lawyer probes further with a smug smile set on her face.
I clear my throat with a nervous cough and lean into the microphone that is now connected to the police...
After a very long breakfast, the two of us decide to visit the hospital. It's hard to think that our newest child will not be able to join us for the party today. She's been growing at a pace that makes the doctors smile, so I hope that we can bring her home, soon.
Cherie slides her hand over mine as we make our way to the hospital. Peaking over at her after pulling into the parking spot, her hair is a light caramel color as the sun beams in through the window. She's rummaging through her purse only to pull out a stick of gum, offering me some.
"Want some?," She asks, before fixing her bag closed and looking up at me.
"I want some- but I don't mean gum.....,"
She smirks with suspicious eyes, popping her gum, "What?,"
With a guilty smile, I lean in to kiss her, swiping her gum out of her mouth and into mine in the process. "Oops..," I blow a quick bubble before turning to jet out of the car.
"You said you didn't want gum!," She says as she gets out of the car giggling, before popping another piece into her mouth.
When we finish washing our hands and grabbing a couple of hospital masks just to be on the safe side, we walk into the NICU to find Lily in a new type of plastic basin. The nurse by her side, explains to us that our little girl has been having normal levels of her red blood cell count and has also passed through the stages of therapy. No longer does she have that sheen of yellow to her skin as she lays, fussing in her open bed.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
It's amazing, really. The love that swells up my heart, just from looking at her sleeping face. My flower petal- so delicate, so precious and fragile and tiny- and still she's held me up. She was my only listening ear, though obviously she wouldn't understand or remember any of our little talks.
"Smile!," Cherie's dazzling grin shines beneath the camera lense. She move the lens and focuses it on me still standing with Lily cradled in my arms.
I hold our flower up against the side of my face, surprisingly comfortable and confident enough to lift her this way. I remember when she was first born- the first time I held her I was terrified of maybe pressing her too roughly. She was so tiny, I thought I might hurt her. She's still a little, precious baby- but I know she'll keep growing big and strong.
