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The story takes place after Day of the Moon and before A good man goes to war for the Doctor and the Ponds. Not sure when River is exactly...
x.
It was dark, so dark she couldn’t even see her hands when she put them right in front of her eyes. Usually it didn’t really matter, she wasn’t afraid by the darkness, not anymore. She had been, when she had been young, when her days and nights had been filled by the Silence and the terror they were inspired her. But she was older now, much older than then and the years had taught her that there were things that were far worse than darkness.
Not seeing anything was annoying though, because she didn’t know where she was going, what was in front of her and so she kept stumbling over rocks, falling on the ground, and even if she knew the path she had come in, she couldn’t be sure where she was now. She had been on the right path, hours ago, until her torch had passed out and left her alone in the dark.
None of this should have happened the way it had. Everything had been alright, she had joined an archeological team a few days ago, and they had planned to explore the temple very carefully. It was miles underground, which meant they would be in there for days, had to take everything necessary, and wouldn’t be able to get help if they needed. They had studied the geological reports and the few documents they had to decide which direction they had to walk in to reach the temple; they had taken all the things they need to survive, food, water and medical supplies; and of course they had equipment for the archaeological side of the expedition.
They hadn’t prepared any weapons. Nobody had thought about it, because the people of the planet had always been peaceful, and there was nothing indicating there was any kind of traps in the temple, nor anything dangerous at all. The entry had been sealed for years and it was improbable that anybody had found it before them.
As a consequence, they had been completely taken by surprise when they were attacked, by something she couldn’t really define that was between a man and a beast. They were five of those “beings”, and despite the fact that her team had outnumbered them, they hadn’t been prepared to fight those kind of things. She had been the only one who’d known how to defend herself, and no matter how hard she had tried, she couldn’t have done more than protect herself. No one else had survived. Most of her colleagues had been killed and half eaten before she could actually shoot the first of those things. Everybody had panicked and run away, and it had been even more difficult for her to reach her targets. By the time she’d had all of them, it had been too late. All her team was dead - except the geologist - but she had been so badly hurt she had only survived a couple of hours.
And now River was alone. Most of the material they’d had had been destroyed during the battle; she had taken everything she could but there hadn’t been many things to be saved. Of course there had been people who’d known where they were and what they were doing, but she was so deep under the surface there wasn’t any chance to contact them, and they wouldn’t look for them before a week - which was the time they had agreed to reach for the temple, explore come back. She didn’t know if she could wait so long.
She had been walking for hours before her torch had let her down, and it would have been fine, she would have made her way up in the dark, she would have been able to, if she hadn’t been in labour. Thatwas something she hadn’t allowed for at all.
She was three weeks from her due date, she should have known it could have happened at any time, and she shouldn’t have gone into this expedition so late into her pregnancy, but the baby wasn’t supposed to come in advance... She knew it happened; babies could come before the date they were expected and by that time there wasn’t any danger for its health, but it had been something she didn’t want to think about. Her baby should have come on time, not after, not before, just when it would have been right and okay and when she would have been ready for it. That was how it had been planned. Giving birth in the dark a few miles underground with nothing around was not the plan at all.
When contractions had begun, she had just thought it was a bodily reaction to the stress and the shock, and that they wouldn’t last long. Except that they had never stopped. She had kept walking anyway, because she knew she had to get out; she couldn’t do that alone down here. But the closer the contractions were the slower she was walking and now she could barely stand up anymore and she was nothing but creeping, all on fours on the ground. Her whole body hurt and she could feel the life inside of her longing to get out, and she tried to talk to it, she tried to stop it, without success.
A few more meters and she finally stopped, sitting on the ground and panting heavily, the pain worse than ever and her body sweating in the effort. She couldn’t do anything more, she knew she wouldn’t reach the surface in time and the best thing to do was to stop and focus on her and her baby. It would be there soon and she must get prepared.
She closed her eyes during a moment of peace and breathed in deeply. She would give anything to be somewhere else. Her child would be born in a dark corridor underneath the ground that smelled like death and fear, it was really not a good beginning in life. And what would happen if something went wrong? There was nobody to help her, nobody to comfort her, nobody to take care of her; she was tired, and afraid. Afraid to be alone, afraid to die here, afraid that her child wouldn’t be okay. Afraid.
She fought not to cry, because she knew if she started she would never stop, and began to pray, anything, anyone, that someone would come and rescue her. She didn’t like to ask for help, but right now she needed it. She knew it was really improbable, she even doubted the beloved blue box and her impossible husband would be able to find her, but she prayed anyway, because it was the only thing she could do.
And then, like there was something looking after her, like there was somebody who had heard her call, she could hear the familiar sound of a well-known spaceship landing next to her. She couldn't believe it, but it was true, she could see the lamp at the top of the Tardis flashing in and out while she was materializing, until she finally stopped and there she was, real, concrete. River sighed deeply and tried to stand up, a hand clenched around her stomach to support it and try to hold the pain that was tearing her again. There was only a few feet to walk and she would be safe, the Doctor would take care of her and her child and everything would be all right. The nightmare was over.
x.
The door of the Tardis opened and Amy stepped outside, before immediately turning back.
“Doctor, isn’t it supposed to be the planet of the three suns?”
“Yes, Amy, exactly, three suns shining one by one so the planet doesn’t have any night. It should be impossible, I know that, that’s why it’s so interesting to...”
“Either the suns have died years ago, or you landed at the wrong place,” she cut him off, “because it’s so dark here I can’t see anything.”
“It can’t be.” The Doctor appeared next to Amy at the doorstep and looked outside, frowning in confusion. “I’m sure I entered the right coordinates, I checked them twice, it...”
He was interrupted by moans, and someone calling his name, almost sobbing. He froze, and Amy tensed next to him.
“Doctor,” she whispered “it sounds like...”
“River?”
Another moan echoed, followed by short gasps of pain. “I’m... I’m here.”
“She doesn’t sound very well.” Amy had turned pale, and concern was showing up on her face.
“Don’t worry, we’re coming,” shouted the Doctor, ignoring Amy’s statement and stepping out, trying to find where River’s voice had been coming from. He almost fell over, not seeing where he was going and what was in front of him. He grumbled and turned back to the Tardis. “We can’t see anything, can we have a bit of light? Please?”
As soon as he asked a brilliant light came from the top of the Tardis, finally revealing the place. He blinked a few times, his eyes accommodating to the new light, and looked around. He discovered that they were standing in what looked like a tunnel made of brick walls, and it must be very ancient according to the amount of rocks that had dropped on the ground.
“Oh my god,” Amy swore next to him before running as she was the first one to spot River. She was standing with difficulty, her legs shaking, a hand on the wall for support and the other one around her protruding stomach that couldn’t hide anything of her actual state. Amy wrapped an arm around her shoulder to help her, and at the same moment she began to moan again, her face distorted in a wince of pain. Amy did her best to hold her, and she looked up at the Doctor, more concerned now that she was aware of the situation.
“Hello River,” he said awkwardly as he stepped forward, his hands crossing and uncrossing quickly; clearly, he felt uncomfortable and didn’t know what to do. “Are you...” he began and trailed off, incapable of taking his eyes off of River’s belly, confused. She looked up at him and he could see the sweat covering her face.
“Yes, I am,” she answered hoarsely, irritated, “I think it’s obvious! But don’t worry, it won’t last long.”
The Doctor stared at her open-mouthed as she walked slowly, Amy supporting her. Thoughts were rushing into his mind, questions and facts, clues and assumptions, fantasies and words that had been said, all coming together to draw a pattern, still in a blur but more precise than before. He gulped and scratched his cheek nervously.
“River, I... do you... am I...? Does that... baby... have... you know... a...”
“A father? Yes, of course you are, who else?”
“Oh. How?” He looked more embarrassed than before and flushed.
“How do you think?”
“No... I mean it’s just that I don’t remember... I’m sure we haven’t... I would remember, for sure, if we... We kissed once, and that, I remember very well.”
An oppressive silence followed. River stopped walking and stared at him blankly, and he thought that if Amy could shoot with her eyes, he would have already been dead.
“Here they are, finally, I’ve found the suncream and you should put those sunhats, we would roast with those three suns, we’d better be careful with that.”
Rory stepped outside the Tardis, cream and hats actually in his hands, and it took him a few seconds to realize he was not where he thought he was. His gaze stayed on the Doctor, then slid to Amy, and finally he spotted River, and he let everything drop on the floor. In a second he was by her side, helping Amy to hold her as another wave of pain made her gasp and she almost fell on her knees.
“Since when have you...”
“Too long,” she hissed between her teeth, tears appearing at the corner of her eyes.
“How close are the contractions?”
“Close,” Amy answered, “she had one just a minute before you arrived.”
Rory nodded. Most of the people would have felt lost if they were supposed to land on the planet of the three suns and instead found themselves in a strange corridor with one of his friends about to give birth. But he didn’t say anything, didn’t ask why she was here and how did she had come here, he didn’t ask why she was about to have a baby whereas she had never talked about it and never seemed to be pregnant before. It was the nurse in him that reacted, just seeing that River needed help and he was the one who could provide it to her.
“River, your child is coming, and everything’s gonna be okay, I’m here and I’m... we’re all gonna help you, I just need you to calm down, and breathe, right?” She nodded and breathed deeply. “We need to get inside, do you think you can manage that?” Another nod. ”Amy, please, help me carrying her, like that, and Doctor, we need...”
He stopped, looking around, but the Doctor was already running into the Tardis and couldn’t hear what Rory was telling him.
x.
The Tardis must have been having a good day, because when they stepped inside, the medical bay was already open and only a few steps from the front door - sometimes she moved the rooms and it was not always that easy to find what you needed. River whispered a grateful “Thank you”. After all the distance she had walked inside those dark tunnels, she wasn’t sure she would have been able to cross half of the ship. But she was home now, and just the feel of the Tardis humming gently around her make her feel better. She sighed in relief.
Amy and Rory dragged her inside, and she couldn’t help to wonder what they knew about her exactly. They had no time checking diaries, and did they even have one yet? The Doctor had seemed to be young, and if he had only kissed her once then her parents should not know they were her parents. She carefully looked at them as they helped her, looked at their young but concerned faces, and she thought about the fact that she was about to give birth and her parents would not even know they would be facing their grandchild. She wasn’t sure she could do that.
She was carried to the examination table, and she had to stop before she could sit on it, another wave of pain radiating from her belly and her back, taking her breath away. She gripped the table and tried to breathe, her body bent and rocking in a hopeless attempt to ease the pain. The Ponds waited for her, Rory whispering reassuring words to her and Amy stroking her back gently. She closed her eyes, waiting for the crisis to go away, trying to remind herself it would soon be over - at least she hoped so. She couldn’t go through another hour of that. If the baby didn’t come very soon, she would be able to kill someone.
Eventually the pain eased a bit and she could sit on the table. Amy looked at her and smiled, and while she clearly didn’t know what to do to help her at least she was trying to comfort her. River smiled back to her, even if it should looked like a wince more than a real smile, but Amy got the message and she squeezed her hand in comfort. A wave of emotion rose up in River because it didn’t matter whenever Amy was and whatever she knew, she still acted with River as a friend and a mother, showing her she was there for her and supporting her, whatever happened, and right now she really needed her. She fought the tears that prickled in her eyes and focused on what Rory was telling her.
“Your contractions are very close, your baby won't be long. I should check some things if you don't mind and...” he looked around him and frowned, “if someone could explain the use of those devices...”
Everything was silent for a moment. Usually it was the moment when the Doctor was shouting at them and demonstrating how more advanced and clever and alien he was compared to them, but there was nothing.
“Where's the Doctor?” Amy whispered.
“I don't know,” Rory admitted, “He was just before us, I thought he opened the door and was waiting for us.”
River squirmed next to them, not only because of the physical pain but because she felt uneasy. The Ponds not knowing her was one thing, the Doctor not even being there was another. She would not be able to go through this without him.
Rory looked at her, and she realized she was moaning again. He seemed to understand she was starting to panic and took her hand, reassuringly
“Amy,” he said quietly, “could you look after him, please? We’re gonna need him.”
Amy looked at River, hesitant about leaving her. She nodded, allowing her to go, and so Amy left, looking for the Doctor that had mysteriously disappeared.
x.
When she walked out of the medical bay, Amy wondered how she would be able to find the Doctor. The Tardis was a huge ship, and if he wanted to hide, she could look for him for days before finding him - but they didn’t have that long.
She couldn’t help but ask herself if he had run away because he was afraid. Surely, discovering that River was carrying his child and about to give birth must have been a great shock. It would have been for anyone. Amy had not been so surprised; it had been obvious since the first time she met her that River had been mad about the Doctor, and the way she was acting with him, flirting with him, looking at him, speaking to him, she certainly was intimate with him - had been, would be, in her past, in his future. But Amy had thought, now that they had met River a couple of times and running into adventures together, that the Doctor may had been intimate with her too by now. She was a very attractive woman, almost as clever and as crazy as him, and Amy knew that he liked her, she couldn’t understand how he only had kissed her, and only once. If she had been him, she knew she would have had plenty of reasons not the be surprised by River being pregnant. But, she was not him, she was thinking a human way, and surely he had his reasons, weird and aliens reasons she couldn’t understand.
She walked into the console room and looked under the glass floor. Sometimes, when the Doctor needed to think, or when he was trying to avoid to think, he took refuge down here, working on devices of the Tardis that needed to be fixed. Most of the time he did nothing but moving wires and causing sparks, and generally he could spend hours doing that without really fixing anything, but she thought he just liked it. Today, he wasn’t here.
Amy looked up and was wondering which way she would begin her research, when one of the corridors lighted up. She frowned in confusion, before smiling as she understood it was the Tardis helping her - or helping River, she couldn’t be sure... She followed the path the ship was showing her, down corridors, up some stairs, through a couple of rooms she couldn’t tell what they were used to, up and up again. She wondered how many levels the Tardis could have, but she supposed there was no answer to that question.
Finally, after a few minutes, she was lead to a last room. She had no idea where she was, and she doubted she had ever walked into that part of the ship. She was sure she had never entered the room she stepped in before; she would have remember. It looked like... It was difficult to say what it looked like exactly. It must have been the equivalent of an attic for spaceships like the Tardis and her Time Lord resident. There were things everywhere, furniture and clothes, chests full of hats and scarves and shoes. There were paintings and scores, sculptures and books. And there were so many things she didn’t know, all piled up without any kind of order, recovered with dust - and she wondered if there were also spiders in there, as there were in human attics, or maybe alien bugs that would look like even more frightful than spiders. She shivered and pushed the thought away.
Finding the Doctor in that mess was not as difficult as one would have thought. Amy just had to follow the footprints he had let in the dust. Then she could hear his voice and when she finally spotted him, he was rummaging into one of the cupboards of the room. He was putting some objects out or it, examining them, mumbling about the fact they were not was he was looking for, and throwing them over his head. Amy had to duck as she approached, something looking like a stuffed animal flying a few inches from her. That was worse that she had imagined.
“Doctor?” she finally called him as he didn’t seem to notice she was there.
He grumbled something she couldn’t hear but didn’t even turn back and kept… doing whatever he was doing.
“Doctor?” she said louder, and this time he heard her, raising his hand to her but still facing the cupboard.
“Not now Amy, I’m busy.”
“Busy?” she repeated, incredulous.
“Yes, you see, this is important, there’s....”
“Important?” she couldn’t believe what he was saying, “Doctor, there’s River down here who’s about to give birth to your child, that is important. We need you, she needs you, I don’t think she’ll be able to do that without you, so stop running away and hiding here pretending you’re looking for something important.”
The Doctor finally turned and looked at her in confusion. His hair was in the same mess as the room , dust everywhere on his clothes and a dark mark on his forehead.
“I... This is not what you think,” he tried to explain, “I was looking for that doll...” Amy frowned and he went on before she could say something again. “My father gave it to me the day I was born, and it was something his own parents gave him, that came from their parents, and... I thought I should give it to that baby now.”
“Oh”. She sighed in relief. Of course it was important, that way... Amy realized she had been completely wrong. He had not been running away, he had been trying to find a nice way to welcome his child as a member of his family. It was... clumsy, because really that wasn’t the right time to do that, but it was sweet. “So you’re not panicking and trying to escape?”
“What? No! Of course not. Well, I don’t remember making that baby but technically it’s still mine, isn’t it?” He frowned and scratched his cheek, still a bit confused.
“Yes. I think so.” She smiled and he smiled back at her. “But I think that’s not the right time to look for old things there. The baby could be coming anytime soon, and we need you. You wouldn’t want to miss the birth, would you?”
“No. No of course,” he whispered. “It’s just...” At that moment something caught his eyes and he cried out, falling to his knees next to Amy. He threw what looked like an old apron away, and underneath it was a rag doll. He shook it to pull all the dust away, and when he was satisfied he pressed it against his chest. “Come along Pond!” he said then, and before Amy answered he was running out of the running. She rolled her eyes: really sometimes she couldn't understand him.
x.
Amy followed the Doctor all the way down, running until he suddenly stopped and she almost knocked into him. She groaned and looked around her, trying to understand why he had stopped like that. They were back in the console room and there, a few feets from them was River, kneeling on the floor, her hands grasping the railway so tight her knuckles had turned white. She was clearly in pain, but somehow was trying to get up. She shouldn’t have been there, but still in the medical bay trying to calm down and preparing herself for the birth... and Rory should have been taking care of her.
Before Amy could actually say anything the Doctor turned back and hold the doll to her, almost throwing it in her arms. “Take that, I’ll deal with her.” He looked determined and so she just nodded, watching him as he turned his back to her and walked to River. She saw him approaching and somehow it made her more eager to stand up, and Amy wondered if she was running away. She almost manage to raise up but her legs shook and she kneeled back down. She seemed upset, maybe a bit panicked, and she groaned, tears running down her face.
The Doctor kneeled in front of her and she refused to look at him. When he tried to touch her arms she jerked and pushed him away. For a few seconds he did nothing, just stayed there next to her and watching her, crying and moaning, and he thought it’s the first time he had seen her so weak and so lost.
“River?” he finally said softly, his voice almost a whisper. She didn’t answer, shaking her head like she was trying to prevent herself from hearing him.
“What are you doing?” he asked, gently. She just moaned louder, biting her lips and bending forward.
“Where’s Rory?” he tried again.
“I’m here!” The Doctor lifted his head and he could see Rory, coming in the room, massaging his head. “I’m sorry, she said she wanted to leave and when I tried to stop her she punched me.” Oh, yes, that’s something River could do.
“Why did you do that?” he asked again and finally River looked up at him.
“I need to go,” she breathed out, panting.
He shook his head in disapproval. “You clearly can’t. That would be completely mad and...”
“I have to go,” she shouted this time and the Ponds jerked at the sudden tone of her voice, afraid she would punch the Doctor too but she didn’t, and he stayed there, withstanding her look with resolution. “I can’t do this, not here, not now. You don’t know me and you’re clearly afraid of what’s happening and that’s okay, you’re too young, you don’t know anything and I can’t force you to do that, so just drop me somewhere and go back when you understand, because if you’re afraid and run away I won’t be able to... “ she stopped and gasped, before breaking into tears.
The Doctor held her and this time she didn’t push back, resting her head against his chest and her hands fisting around the lapel of his jacket. He hugged her for a while, stroking her back and whispering things in her ears the Ponds couldn’t hear. They stayed away, they didn’t know what to do and they sensed that, whatever was happening, it was something between River and the Doctor and they couldn’t interfere.
“Don’t leave me alone,” she begged him, her voice cracking.
“I’m here.... And I haven’t planned to go anywhere. We’re going through this together, okay?” he said calmly and she seemed to relax a bit. She sniffed and nodded, before whispering “Okay.” Everybody immediately felt better.
“Great,” the Doctor continued, “now, what if we go back to the medical bay and try to deliver that baby?”
She pulled away and looked up at him. “No,” she said, firmly, and he looked at her in confusion.
“I thought...”
“Too late. It’s coming. Now.”
“You mean, right now? Here? On my glass floor!”
“Yes!” she gasped and fell back, still gripping the Doctor’s jacket and he fell next to her.
“Rory!” He shouted for help when he understood she was serious, wincing and already in the process of pushing. But Rory was already running and he was next to them in a second, settling between River’s legs.
“It’s almost here,” he confirmed, “Come on River, you’re doing very well, keep pushing when I tell you right?”
River nodded, and for a second the Doctor didn’t know what to do. He looked at her, panting and concentrated, and he felt a bit useless. And then her eyes searched for him and he exactly knew what he had to do. He took one of her hand, and she automatically squeezed it, so hard it hurt but he didn’t care. He encouraged her, kept telling her he was here and she could do this. He vaguely saw Amy, on the other side of River, glancing at him and smiling, he vaguely heard Rory guiding and helping her, but it was all in a blur, like he was standing in another world where there were just him, and River, and that hand in his.
Then he could hear something else, something different, a cry he recognized immediately. He shook his head, and blinked, and when he turned back a little form was squirming in Rory’s hands.
“Congratulations, that’s a girl! Perfect and healthy girl.”
River sighed in relief and she let go of his hand, her head falling back on the floor. The Doctor couldn’t get his eyes off of the baby, and he watched Rory carefully cleaning her and wrapping her around a towel - and when had he got it? When he was sure she was okay he placed her on River’s chest and the Doctor lay against her, his head next to her, so he could watch the little girl from the same angle. For a moment none of they spoke, admiring the baby, their hands automatically wrapping around her in a movement they were not even aware of.
“She’s wonderful,” River whispered, like she had been holding her breath until she said those words.
The baby squirmed and her little eyes opened wide, looking around her with curiosity. Then she saw them and babbled, and they could have sworn she was actually smiling at them.
“Hello you!” the Doctor greeted her happily, and suddenly everything they were afraid of a minute before disappeared, the fears, the tears, the pain, because they understood, it was worth it.
x
A few hours after, the Doctor tiptoed into River’s room. She was still awake, lying on her side on the bed with her - no, their - child against her. In a corner of the room was the cot, his old cot he had given to her, and the doll was perfectly sat up in it like it was the place it had always belonged. River looked up when he entered and smiled at him, before looking back at the little girl. He approached and carefully lay on the bed, on the other side of the baby so he would be able to see both her and River. For a second he stared at the little being between them, before focusing on her mother again.
“You should be sleeping.”
“I know,” she answered, her eyes still down, “but I can’t stop looking at her.” She was still smiling, and she would have been radiant if she hadn’t been so exhausted.
“You know she won’t disappear if you close your eyes?”
“Of course, I just... she’s so amazing.” She looked up at him then, silently asking if he understood, and of course he did. He had suddenly found himself with a child he hadn’t known anything about, and it was something he thought he would never know again, the feeling of being a father, of having someone depending on you for such a simple thing that being born. Amazing, yes, that was the right word.
“That’s nothing,” he joked, “wait until she is three years old, and if you’re right and she’s half a Time Lady, she will already speak ten languages and help you on your archeological expeditions.”
She laughed at that, but couldn’t help a knock forming on her stomach. He really had no idea who she was, and that their child was not only half Time Lord, but almost entirely, and at three she would already speak a hundred languages and lead her own archeological expeditions if she wanted.
“She will be amazing,” she whispered and he nodded. For a moment nobody talked and they just stared at the child, imagining what her life would be like and not wanting to think about the issues she would have to face. Her father was the last of the Time Lords, the Oncoming Storm, revered by half the species of the Universe and hated by the other half; her mother was in prison for murder and her favorite game was to escape and ran into dangerous situations; and it was better not to think about the fact that they both met in the wrong order, and it would be the hell to raise a child together. No, they didn’t want to think about it at all, just admire the perfect girl they had somehow created despite all those issues.
“I’m sorry,” he finally broke the silence after a few minutes.
“For what?”
“I was not the one you expected.” He looked really concerned and sorry, but it wasn’t his fault, was it?
“You’re the father of my child, that’s all I expected”
“You know what I mean... I did not even know she was my child. You should have deserved something else, someone who knew you and who knew her. That would have been easier.”
She stayed silent for a while. “I think I knew it would be like that. The way you... I mean, the future you, looked at me when I talked about her, what you said... I should have understood. But it doesn’t matter, you were here and you didn’t run away, and I supposed this might have been as frightening for you as it was for me, suddenly learning you have a child as she was about to be born.”
He didn’t answer anything. The baby groaned, shifting in her sleep. He laid his hand on her, gently stroking her belly and she calmed down, little bubbles formed at the edge of her mouth as she sighed contently. She was beautiful, and wonderful, and she looked so peaceful, it was one of the most amazing thing he had lived for years.
“I’m gonna take care of you,” he eventually said, softly, “Both of you, I mean.”
“I know,” River smiled, covering his hand with hers. She could feel the little heart of her daughter beating, a concrete proof of the little being living under their crossed fingers, “you already have.”
He stared at their hands, stared at their girl, and when he looked up River was still smiling at him, her eyes surrounded by dark rings but soft, and at that moment it didn’t matter if he didn’t know who she was, she had just offered him a wonderful child, the best gift he could have dreamed about.
He bent down until his lips met hers and he kissed her, gently, softly, tenderly. Underneath them the baby opened her eyes and squirmed happily.
the end