Chapter 11
Sienna:
The Infirmary was oddly quiet today.
The only sound that I heard throughout the whole day was the rustling of the nurses in the hallway.
The dim glow of the bed side lamp beside me cast the shaft shadow across the room, making this space feel even more isolated. Technically, most likely because it was most likely because I was here alone throughout the whole day.
It wasn’t only the fact that I was here alone, though. It was the fact that I knew that I was not wanted here, it was the fact that I seemed to have turned something that shouldn’t have been shifted the way it was.
I sat on the bed, Isla cradled in my arms. My baby. My little girl. The little Angel that I held on
- to.
I still could not believe that she was here, that she was born, that she was in my arms. However, the more I looked at her, the more I found myself smiling. The more I found myself growing a lot more assured by the fact that I knew that I did this one way or the other. Despite all the hardships, I managed to give birth to her.
She was so tiny, her fingers barely curled into a fist, her dark lashes resting against her delicate cheeks. I ran my fingertip lightly over her soft skin, marveling at how fragile she was. A warmth spread through my chest, different from anything I had ever felt before.
And I knew that she was still growing older. I knew that with every passing moment, with every passing breath, she was growing stronger. She was a premature. She should have been in an incubator. But I also knew this. He was here for her. I was her mother, and if she was going to grow stronger, I was going to need to stand by her side. I was going to need to be the strongest of them all for me to be able to manage her, for me to be able to raise her up the way that she should be.
For the first time, I let myself really look at her. I allowed myself to admire her beauty.
Not as the baby that had turned my life upside down. Not as the mistake that I wanted to get rid of, the mistake that they all wanted me to see.
Not as a burden I was too weak to carry. Not as the pain that I was forced to endure as I was afraid to end up being a bad person towards her.
< Chapter 11
48 Points >
But as my daughter. As the person that I was going to be willing to be to fight for her, I allowed
myself to see her as my child, the one person that I knew that I would fight the world for, just to make sure that she grew happy and healthy, safe and sound.
“I don’t know what I’m doing,” I whispered, shifting her slightly as she stirred against my chest. “I don’t even know how to hold you properly. But I’m doing my best. This is the way that they told me that I would hold you, but sometimes they just fear holding you in the wrong way.”
Isla let out a tiny whimper before settling back into sleep, her lips parting slightly. A small chuckle slipped past my lips as I wiped away a stray tear.
“You probably think I’m a mess, huh?” I murmured, tracing a fingertip along her tiny hand. “You
wouldn’t be wrong. Your mother does not know how to handle a child. This is the first time that I did. I did see them a few times within the park, but I just kept my distance. I never bothered holding any of them, especially at such a young age.”
I exhaled softly, shifting my body to lean against the pillows. The exhaustion was bone–deep, but somehow, looking at her, it didn’t feel so suffocating anymore. I adjusted the blanket wrapped around her, my fingers brushing against her soft curls.
“You’re beautiful,” I whispered. “Did you know that? And I know that you’re strong too, and when you grow older, you’re going to be very smart, very beautiful, and everyone is going to bow in your presence.”
I placed a gentle kiss on her forehead, my lips lingering there for a moment. A strange sense of peace settled over me, and I let my eyes flutter closed, just for a moment, savoring the quiet, the warmth, the weight of my daughter in my arms.
“You and me, kid,” I whispered, barely aware that I was even speaking. “No matter what happens, I promise I’ll be here. I won’t let anyone hurt you.”
A deep exhale sounded from the doorway.
I stiffened instantly, my whole body going rigid. My wolf stirred, alerting me to the presence behind me before I even had to look.
Damon.
I looked up at him, my breath hitching as I met his gaze. He stood in the doorway, his arms crossed over his chest as he leaned against the frame like he has been standing there for a while.
And when his green eyes locked with mine, I felt a shudder running down my spine.
< Chapter 11
+8 Points >
“How long have you been standing there?” I asked, my voice barely above a whisper. “And why didn’t you make a sound for me to actually know?”
“Long enough,” he murmured, his gaze flickering down to Isla. “You didn’t need to hear that I was here, you just needed to take care of your daughter. And I needed to see her.”
“She is your daughter too, you know.” I said, and he looked away from me for a moment. His eyes softened, just for a moment, but he quickly masked it by his cold, usual demeanor.
“You’re holding her like you’ve been doing it forever,” he said, his voice quiet.
I let out a nervous breath, looking down at the baby in my arms. “I don’t know what I’m doing. I’m trying my best, I just don’t know if I’m doing it right.”
“You’re doing fine,” he said, stepping into the room. “Better than fine.”
His presence filled the space, making it feel smaller, the air between us heavier. I watched as
he slowly approached, his gaze never leaving Isla.
He hesitated for a moment before sitting in the chair beside my bed
For a long moment, neither of us spoke.
Then, his voice broke the silence.
“What were you telling her?” he asked. “You keep talking, but what were you saying?”
I frowned slightly, confused. “What?”
“You were talking to her.”
I hesitated, my heart pounding at the realization that he had been listening to everything. I looked down at Isla, running my fingers gently over the tiny curve of her ear.
“I was just…” I swallowed hard. “I was just telling her that I’ll always be here.”
Damon’s jaw clenched slightly, his gaze flickering away.
Something unreadable passed through his eyes before he exhaled slowly, rubbing a hand down his face.
“I need to figure out what to do next,” he muttered, more to himself than to me.
“I don’t expect anything from you, Damon,” I said quietly. “I never have. You know that
you don’t have to do something that you don’t want to do, Damon. It is not like it’s going to affect you anyway.”
“That’s the problem,” he said. “If it didn’t, then trust me when I say I’m not going to be here.
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< Chapter 11
However, you know very well that it would.”
I didn’t understand what he meant, but before I could ask, he pushed himself up from the
chair.
“We’ll talk later,” he said, his tone unreadable. “Try to rest.”
+8 Points >
And just like that, he turned and walked out, leaving me staring after him, my heart pounding in a way I couldn’t explain.
I looked down at Isla, brushing a hand over her tiny body.
“I think your dad is more complicated than I thought,” I whispered to her. “Because it seems to
me that I am the one mistake that he does not want to be dealing with.”
She let out a tiny sigh, her fingers curling into the fabric of my hospital gown, and for the first
time in a long time, I let out a small, tired smile.
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