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Teal shifts on the bed, still in a little discomfort after giving birth, and she hands our son to me.
He feels so light, but the weight of his appearance in my life is substantial, and it has changed it forever.
“Hello,” I whisper. “I am your father. I am going to protect and love you for the rest of your life. Your mother and I are always going to be here for you. I do not even truly know who you are yet, but I know I love you and will always love you.”
I lift him up, light as a feather, and kiss his warm forehead. HIs skin is wrinkle and blemish free, and his nose is as cute as a button. When I cradle him in my arms again, he yawns in his sleep, and I fall in love even more. Everything he is, everything he does, is so tiny.
I knew I would love this child more than anything in the world, but I did not know how much more that was until this exact moment. There is nothing I would not do for this small child in my arms. He has unlocked something in me that can never be locked away again—a capacity to love more than I ever thought possible and a new way of looking at the world.
He yawns again in my arms and then opens his eyes briefly. His eyes are a browny-green mix, and I am mesmerized by them. I stare into them for the brief moment they are open, and I see all of the possibilities ahead of him. He can be anything he wants to be, and I will be there with him every step of the way.
A tiny hand breaks through the cotton and reaches out, searching for something. I bring down a finger, and as soon as I touch it to one of his, he reaches out and wraps his tiny hand around it. A tingle passes through my body from his hand, reaching all the way to my heart. I feel something inside of me melting away.
This child is going to change me in so many ways, but I am ready for it all.
“It looks like the two of you are already bonding,” Teal notes.
“It is… I cannot even explain how this feels.”
“You don’t have to. I had the exact same feeling the first time I held him. It’s not something you can explain.”
Teal holds out her hand, and I take it again, holding onto the two most important people in my life.
“You did this,” I say.
“No,wedid this.”
“Butyoucreated this life inside of you. There is something magical about that. I had fun making this happen, but you are the one who grew the life once the fun was over.”
“I hope the fun is not over for good.” Teal smiles.
“I think it is only just beginning,” I confirm. “We are going to have a lot of fun together, and I know how good it is going to be. We are going to have a different type of fun as a family. I have been thinking about that a lot too. When you told me you were pregnant, I did not know how to react, and it took me a while to get my head around it. Once I did get my head around it, I knew I was meant to have a family. We did not ever talk about how big a family we should have.”
“No.” Teal smiles. “With your reaction and the uncertainty around us, I never gave it much thought, but I have been thinking about it too.”
“I want more children with you, Teal.”
“Good,” Teal says, letting out a sigh of relief. “I was hoping you would want that because that’s exactly what I want too. I never thought we would be a family when I found out I was pregnant, but it feels so right now. How much more right is it going to feel when we have more children? Besides, we can’t stop now. It would be awful to be outnumbered by you and our son, two to one.”
“Hey, that’s not on me,” I remind. I give Teal’s hand a squeeze. “We can have as many children as you like, or we can keep going until we even the numbers of guys to girls.”
“I like the sound of that,” Teal confirms. “Now, please don’t hog the child. I barely got to cuddle him after the nurses brought him back.”
I smile, both at my fiancée and my newborn son. I do not want to give him up just yet, but I have a lifetime to be with him. I hand the baby back to Teal and slump into the chair. I have no reason to complain, but I am spent and would like to sleep for a week.
I was a part of an online billionaire group once, and we talked through any day-to-day struggles we had that we could not talk about with other people. Not that they did not experience the same things, but people with money are always looked at differently.
The topic of fatherhood came up a few times, and a couple of the guys in the group were parents. They talked about where to hire the best nannies or au pairs and what toys and stuff to buy to keep the child entertained. I know we will invest in some of those things, but I never want to try to replace what I have.
I long for the sleepless nights and getting my hands covered in poop. I want to be the one to get up in the middle of the night to calm our son. I want to be there for the major milestone in his life and watch him grow. I do not want to hand him off to someone else and have them do all the work.
I want all of that, but we will see if I still feel the same way in a few weeks. I turn to talk to Teal more about all of this and see she is fast asleep. She holds our baby tightly to her breast once more, and he looks so peaceful. He can sense the love coming from his mother, and she will show that love every day for the rest of her life.
There is still so much to do. We have not talked once about a name for our son. We didn’t even know we were having a son until he made his appearance in the world. I have a grandfather who I really respect, but I do not know if that is the right name. I know a little about Teal’s family, and perhaps she has someone she wants to name our child after.
That will come later. We worked together on the IP rights and have turned it into a successful TV show, with more spin-off series to come. If we can do all that with the trials and tribulations we faced, we can name our child.
I lean forward again and kiss Teal on the head and then kiss our son. This is my whole life contained in one small room. Not even the room, but the bed. My future wife and my son… If there were a choice right now between all of my money or the two of them, it would be a no-brainer. Nothing can replace them. Or if I had to give up the IP rights for Charlie Morton’s book for them, I would do it in a heartbeat. They are my everything.
