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Poppy Park had been welcomed into the world.
A nurse gently handed Willow her newborn baby, and this was the first time Willow and Hunter had seen their daughter since her birth. Poppy had Hunter's ash-blonde hair and Willow's chubby body. She was a little, cozy marshmallow. Willow warmly smiled upon seeing her, running her fingers through her hair. "Hello, Poppy… " Willow cooed. "I'm your mama."
Poppy opened her eyes for the first time and had Hunter's deep, dark, beautiful, chocolate-brown eyes. The newborn's eyes widened upon seeing her parents for the first time, causing Willow to smile wider. She had waited so, so long for this moment, and now it was finally here. Willow had always wanted to become a mother one day, and she had been preparing for that day for nine whole months, and now that day had finally arrived. Willow couldn't be happier, and she was determined to be a great mother to her new, precious daughter.
Willow ran her fingers through Poppy's hair again as Hunter watched, but suddenly, she began to cry. Willow tried to rock her, hoping it would calm her down, but to no avail. Willow frowned at this, trying to think of what to do next. Poppy reached out her hands towards Hunter, so Willow decided to hand her to him. Poppy immediately stopped crying the moment she entered Hunter's arms. The adorable newborn looked up at him with her beating brown eyes. Hunter made eye contact with her, stunned at what he was seeing.
There she was…
Poppy Park.
His daughter. His own daughter.
Here she was, right in front of his eyes. She was in his arms. He had been waiting for her arrival for nine whole months. Actually, it was even longer than that, as he and Willow had been talking about having a baby for months before Willow got pregnant. Even though he had all this time to get ready, he had forgotten to prepare for the overwhelming amount of emotion he was currently feeling.
Poppy was… real.
She wasn't someone he imagined about. She wasn’t a picture on an ultrasound. She wasn't just a thing he could feel kicking when he rested his hands on Willow's tummy. She was here. Poppy was here with him and his wife. She had been born, and he would be her father for the rest of his life. Her caretaker. A person that she would be raised by. A person she would look up to for her whole life.
Time was frozen for Hunter. Just ten years ago, he was still the Golden Guard. Just ten years ago, he had never even talked to kids his age. Just ten years ago, he'd thought he'd be the Golden Guard forever. Just ten years ago, he was constantly suffering the abuse under Belos. But now, here he was, in the hospital with his wife, bearing witness to his daughter's birth, holding Poppy in his arms.
He was a father.
Then, he saw something. Something on Poppy's face.
A smile.
His daughter had smiled for the first time in her life. She began tugging on Hunter’s shirt, making happy noises as she did.
"Aww, I think Poppy likes you." Willow beamed, moving closer to Hunter.
Suddenly, everything caved to Hunter. All of these realizations tugged at him all at once, and he burst into an ugly, sobbing mess. He was overwhelmed with joy. Hunter pulled Poppy close to his chest, hugging her and never wanting to let her go, "H-Hello, Poppy, I'm your papa," he croaked. "...And I'm going to make sure I'm the best daddy you could ever ask for. I'm going to give you the childhood I never had. I’m going to love you forever and ever." He then gave her a kiss on her forehead, causing Poppy to giggle.
"I promise you…"