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Monday May 18th
When Shane's parents offered to stay with them for the first week of Hana being at home, both Shane and Ilya refused at first. The jump from going to a family of four to a family of five didn't seem too drastic of a change in their minds. It wasn't like when they had the twins and it was going from just him and Ilya to two very new, loud newborns. Back then the help had been necessary. He thought this time it wouldn't be. Now, after being home for a few hours, he was realizing that, yes, it was in fact very necessary.
They had gotten home from the hospital after what felt like three endless days of staying there. Shane and Hana had been cleared to go home, much to the excitement of the twins. Their dad and their new baby sister got to come home. Shane was feeling incredibly tired, but he wanted to stay up and spend time with his babies. Even though he had been doing exactly that while he was at the hospital, it wasn't the same.
“Hi Hana,” Dimitri said to his little sister, in Shane's arms. Currently they were upstairs in their bedroom, both twins and Ilya laying in bed while Shane held Hana. His parents insisted on them going upstairs to try and relax while they prepare dinner, but the twins had snuck up here and were currently keeping them from any kind of relaxing.
Hana cooed looking up at her big brother. Dimitri reached out and poked at her hand, her fingers wrapping around his finger instinctively. He grinned big as he looked up at Shane. “Daddy look!”
“I see that bud,” Shane said softly.
Ilya was lying on his side, watching with warmth in his eyes. Ava was tucked against Shane's other side, leaning in close to get a look at her baby sister. All four people he cherished and adored the most were in bed with him right now and he couldn't feel happier.
“Daddy can Hana play?” Ava asked as Dimitri very gently moved her arm up and down.
“One day when she is bigger but right now she is very little Ava.” Ilya answered instead.
Ava pouted at Ilya for that answer. “How big?”
“A few months,” Ilya answered earnestly.
Ava's eyes went wide as she looked at Ilya then up at Shane for confirmation. Shane nodded, confirming that the newborn in his arms would need a few months of gaining skills and living before she could play with her big sister. “She's not even a full week old yet, princess.”
“But that's gonna be in forever,” Ava huffed at the confirmation.
Ilya laughed at that and Shane couldn't help but smile. “It'll go by fast and then you both can play with her.” Shane tried to ease his daughter's annoyance “You and Dima can still show her stuff. Teach her things so she'll grow up really smart.”
“Like dinosaurs?” Dimitri asked without looking away from Hana.
“Da, like dinosaurs.” Ilya agreed, a grin still on his face.
“Can Hana know about Rapunzel?” Ava asked.
“Of course printsessa.”
Ava smiled big at that, leaning in to give her baby sister a kiss on her forehead. The sudden kiss made Hana's face scrunch with discomfort, little grunts of protest escaping her tiny mouth. Hana fussed for a second before she full on started crying, making both twins flinch from the loud noise. Dimitri covered his ears, looking concerned at the now crying baby.
Ava looked at Shane apologetically. “I didn't mean to!”
Shane was already trying to soothe her, but acknowledged Ava's words. “I know you didn't, princess. She's a baby, it's normal for her to cry over anything and everything.”
The sound of the crying baby brought up his mom who was now in the doorway. “There you two are! You both are supposed to be letting your parents rest.” She said to the twins. “They've had an exhausting past few days and need some time for themselves and the baby.” Dimitri didn't need to be told twice as he raced out the bed, hands covering his ears as he stood by his grandma's legs. Ava on the other hand was hesitating to leave. Shane got up from bed, walking around the room trying to soothe Hana's cries. Ava looked at Ilya, worry etched into her face that she had caused her baby sister to cry.
Ilya got up from bed, picking Ava up to take her away from her baby sister. Ava's eyes stayed on Shane and Hana until they were no longer in view and Ilya was taking her back downstairs. “Does Hana hate me?”
“No never printsessa.” Ilya assured her. “Is like daddy said, babies cry. Is what they do.”
“But I gave her a kiss and she cried.” A look of genuine hurt had settled on Ava's face.
They were downstairs now, Hana's cries still echoing throughout the house. Yuna had guided Dimitri to the kitchen, having promised him that he could help her and grandpa with cooking. Ilya had decided to take Ava to the living room, setting her down beside him on the couch.
She looked upset, fighting back her own tears as Ilya rubbed her back. “I’m a bad big sister?”
“Ava, sweetheart, no. You already are amazing big sister.” Ilya placed a kiss on the top of Ava's head, trying to comfort her. “When you were that tiny you cried over everything too.”
Ava looked at him, confused. “I did?”
Ilya nodded. “Oh yeah. We would be nervous to hold you sometimes because we thought you would cry.” He thought back to those days, thinking about how he would be trying to comfort a screaming newborn Ava, worried that his soothing was only making it worse. At that point fatherhood had been so new, uncharted territory for both him and Shane. When nothing was seeming to work to stop her crying, it was hard not to feel like he was failing already at being a dad.
That seemed to make Ava feel better. She leaned against him, looking more at peace from her papa's confession. Ilya felt a buzz from his phone and pulled it out of his pocket. He responded to congratulations texts he had received because of the news they brought Hana home. While he was typing a slight tug on his shirt caught his attention.
Ilya looked away from his phone and at Ava. “What's wrong, moya printsessa?”
“Can I say sorry to Hana?” Ava asked sincerely.
Ilya smiled softly at her, feeling his heart melt. “Later. Do you want to draw her a picture so you can show her?”
That idea excited her, and she gave him an eager nod. Ava got off the couch and went to the coffee table where there was seemingly a permanent residence of markers,crayons, and paper splayed out on the surface. She got to work and Ilya watched as she drew her baby sister her first ever picture.
◇◇◇
“I wanna show Hana papa.” Ava said as Ilya put on her pajamas. She finished her picture and wouldn't let him forget what he had promised earlier. During dinner, during bath time, and now as he got her ready for bed, she kept asking to see her baby sister.
“You can show her when I'm done here, Ava.” Ilya said.
His words excited her all over again as she began to rock back and forth on her feet, making it harder for him to put on her pj pants. Dimitri watched, already dressed and confused at his sister's excitement.
“Show what?”
“I made Hana a picture.” Ava said proudly.
Dimitris' face saddened as he turned to Ilya. “I wanna do that too.”
“Tomorrow Dima. Right now is bedtime for everyone.” Before eight pm would never have been his bedtime. He was always more of a night owl than Shane was, especially because of his terrible dreams that would inevitably wake him up. But right now he was so tired, only functioning on borrowed energy from a Redbull he had hours ago. The energy crash was coming and he could feel it.
Dimitri looked annoyed but accepted that answer. Once Ilya was done putting on Ava's pj's, he opened the bathroom door and she bolted out towards her room. Ilya would've told her not to run but he was too tired. He picked up Dimitri and carried him over to his parents room.
Shane was there, having just finished feeding Hana, cleaning up the spit up from the corners of her mouth. He looked up at the two and gave a tired smile. “Hana, your big brother is going to say goodnight.” Hana let out soft noises as Dimitri was put next to Shane on the bed. Ilya sat down, feeling his whole body want to fall asleep right then and there.
“G'night Hana.” Dimitri said to his baby sister. His small hand reached out to her tiny covered fist, waving it carefully and slowly.
Ava came bounding into the room, not at all matching the sleepy energy. Before anyone could comment she was already climbing into the bed, cuddling close against Shane's side. A sheet of paper with colors all over it, in her hands. “Hi Hana.” Ava said excitedly. “I made this for you.”
Miraculously Hana did have her eyes open at that moment, her blue unfocused eyes blinking up at what her big sister tried to show her. She showed Hana first then everyone else. “Daddy look, that's you, and papa.” She pointed to two bigger looking stick figures on the right side of the drawing. “Then that's me, Dima and Hana. Oh! And Anya.” Her finger was pointing towards the center where three stick figures were arranged into a triangle. A small circle with a tail next to Ava, that her parents could only assume was Anya.
“That's a really pretty drawing, baby.” Shane said, looking at it closely. “Why are me and papa off to the side?”
“‘Cos you're not playing with us.” Ava said it as if the answer was obvious. Hana let out a coo which made Ava smile wide. “She likes it.”
“Ah, so you are fluent in baby now?” Ilya joked, despite his want to sleep right now, he was loving every second of this.
“Yeah. She said it was super pretty.” Ava beamed. She put the drawing to the side and followed in her brother's example, reaching out to gently wave her sister's hand. “Night Hana.” She said as she continued to wave the baby girl's hand.
—
Tuesday May 19th
Ilya watched with amusement as Dimitri and Ava played in front of Hana. He was laying on the couch, the distant sounds of Yuna and David cleaning up the kitchen after dinner were drowned out by his toddler's dramatic story. Ilya wanted to help clean up but they had insisted he go spend time with the kids and that they would get everything cleaned up and sorted. He had laid down on the couch, not at all expecting a show after dinner.
Hana was in her baby swing, pacifier in her mouth. Her blue eyes focused only on her older siblings.
The twins were putting on a sort of puppet show for Hana, having Dimitris toy dinosaurs and Ava's dolls hovering in front of the newborn's swing. They kept changing and adding things to the story they were both trying to tell, going along with whatever silly idea each other had. The sight was impossibly cute to Ilya.
“Papa, which princess?” Ava turned to him, holding up Rapunzel and Moana dolls. Ilya made a show of picking, making Ava let out wild giggles, before he inevitably picked her favorite, Rapunzel.
“She is favorite,yes?” Ilya asked. He knew the answer, but also with toddlers their favorites changed on a daily, sometimes hourly basis.
Ava nodded eagerly before returning back to her story. Ilya heard Shane come downstairs, stopping to talk to his parents momentarily before coming into the living room.
“Whats going on in here?” Shane asked as he made his way next to Ilya on the couch.
“Daddy! She needs to marry one of the dinosaur princes so – um,” Ava's brow furrowed trying to remember the plot her and her brother had come up with. She turned to Dimitri. “Dima why?”
“To stop the evil dinosaurs.” Dimitri said casually, waving the T-Rex toy in his hand.
“Yeah!” Ava said excitedly.
“Wow, sounds like quite the story.” Shane was cuddled up against Ilya. His head resting on Ilya's chest as his husband wrapped an arm around his shoulder. Ilya breathed in the scent of the seaweed scented bodywash that Shane loved to use. Ilya never would grow tired of that smell.
They watched as Ava and Dimitri played, laughing whenever one of them did something silly in their story. Sometimes stopping for a few minutes to admire how cute Hana was before getting back into it. Occasionally either Shane or Ilya would interject, offering a different plot point or suggesting which dinosaur or doll to use.
“Do you want to use the Pterodactyl then?” Shane asked Dimitri, holding two dinosaur dolls.
Dimitri looked between the dinosaurs in his hands. “No ‘cause I like her.”
“Okay then use the Triceratops to be evil too.”
Dimitri did and the show went on. His parents joined into the living room after the kitchen was cleaned. Amused that their grandbabies were trying to entertain their newborn sister. Hana let out little chirps and coos, her pacifier falling out whenever she did so. Either twin would quickly put the pacifier back into their little sister's mouth and continue.
Hana did eventually fall asleep, lasting longer than anyone thought she would have. Once she was out, Ava let out a big yawn and that's when everyone knew that the toddler's energy was winding down for the night. Dimitri followed, yawning and running his eyes as he sat down on the floor, his eyes fighting to stay awake.
Shane got up before anyone else, going over to the sleepy toddlers. He picked up Dimitri, kissing his cheek. “I think it's bedtime Dima.”
“Nooo,” Dimitri let out a little protest. His body slumped against Shane's chest, ready to go to sleep. “Wanna play.”
Ilya was up now, holding Ava who was also fighting her sleep. Little groans of protest and annoyance coming out of her mouth at first, but then stopping once she got comfortable in her papa's arms. Ilya heard Yuna let out a knowing chuckle as he and Shane took the twins upstairs.
Bedtime tonight was thankfully very easy. Ilya read the twins a story for a few minutes, even though they were on the verge of passing out. He knew that if he skipped over that step of bedtime either one or both twins would be up within the hour to ask for one. Ilya never minded though, always being happy to tell his kids stories.
Shane carried Ava over to her bed and gave her a kiss goodnight. Ilya did the same for Dimitri, brushing his curls away from his forehead.
“Goodnight, Dima.” Ilya said softly.
“Papa,” Dimitri mumbled. “Gotta say night ‘t Hana.”
Ilya half smiled. “I'll tell her you and Ava said goodnight okay?”
“‘Kay.” Dimitri muttered before fully falling asleep.
Ilya went over to Ava, already drooling on her pillow. He leaned down and gave her forehead a kiss, Ava's face twitching at the touch.
Shane stood at the doorway with his arms crossed, waiting patiently for Ilya to come over. The sight of the large Russian man, sitting on the princess themed toddler bed as he whispered goodnight to his little girl was a sight that Shane never thought he would see. He wished he could show himself from a few years ago this sight, the image of the family he thought he wouldn't be able to have until his forties.
Ilya got up, making his way over to Shane. He noticed Shane's genuine loving smile, his own lips forming a smile involuntarily.
“What?” Shane asked earnestly as he closed their toddlers door. He could see a light blush on Ilya's cheeks.
“I just like you a lot.” Ilya said not looking at Shane. Shane paused, standing by the door as Ilya went towards the stairs. He felt his own cheeks getting warm from the compliment.
Before he went downstairs, Ilya turned around flashing Shane the same cocky grin that still managed to make Shane get flustered even after all these years. He winked at his husband and Shane felt his cheeks grew hotter as he looked away, hearing Ilya laugh as he went downstairs.
—
Wednesday May 20th
Shane sat down on the couch, closing his eyes as he leaned against the worn in cushion. Hana was secured against his chest, comfortable in the wrap he had on. One hand on her back, the other draped over the back of the couch. He was tired. A deep tiredness that made his brain feel fuzzy and his bones ache slightly. Hana had had a rough night, waking up more often than she had previous nights. Him and Ilya both got up individually at first to let the other person sleep, but eventually it became a joint effort to make their newborn stay asleep. They only succeeded at five am after almost six hours running off minutes of sleep and barely feeling lucid.
He heard the twins playing at the coffee table, making up some exciting adventure for the dolls that seemed to only live downstairs. Shane wanted to cherish the fact that it was only the four of them right now. His parents had stepped out to pick up a pizza for lunch today and Ilya was upstairs taking a shower. He should've been playing with the twins, or trying to bond more with Hana or–
Hana started to fuss against his chest. He opened his eyes and sprung into action, shushing her and gently rocking her back and forth. Her fussing hiccuped momentarily before it turned into loud, unwavering cries. The sound of this cry was different from the cries last night, Shane could tell that this was a hungry cry. Which made sense, it was around time for another feeding.
He got her out of the wrap,setting it aside next to him, and didn't think twice as he lifted up his hoodie, guiding her briefly before she latched on. Once she was settled and he felt her begin to nurse he closed his eyes again, letting his head rest against the couch cushion behind him. The familiar, consistent tugging sensation on his chest was enough to make him fall asleep right there and then.
The couch shifted on both sides next to him and he was suddenly very aware of two sets of eyes watching him. He opened his eyes, looking to see the twins watching, fascinated by their sister eating. There was a blanket he could use to cover himself just out of arms reach that he could grab if he leaned slightly, but even that task seemed impossible to do right now.
“Daddy.” Ava looked up at him with wide eyes. “What's Hana doin'?”
“Eating her lunch, princess.” Shane said as he adjusted Hana slightly in his arms. The baby girl let out a muffled sound of protest before continuing to nurse.
“Can Hana have pizza?” Dimitri asked his dad.
“No, Dima, she can only have milk right now.” Shane yawned. “You two used to do this when you were this small too.”
Both twins now looked up at him in confusion. Dimitri furrowing his brow in a way that Shane knew was identical to his. Ava tilted her head to one side, trying to imagine the idea.
“We did?”
“How come?”
Both twins asked at the same time with a level of energy that Shane knew he couldn't match right now.
“Yeah, you both did when you were super little, like Hana.” That felt so recent to him but now he realized it had been almost two years since he weaned them both. “And the reason why is because she's really little and babies need milk to get big and strong.” Shane could argue that the nine pound newborn was anything but little, but he didn't have that in him right now.
Both toddlers watched with curiosity at the sight of her eating. The thought about covering up drifted back into his mind, putting the blanket over himself so Hana could eat in peace, and he didn't feel so self conscious about this. But the twins were watching in such awe at their baby sister eating, that it felt like a bonding moment for all three of them. If he covered up right now, he worried he would ruin that. There was also a part of his brain, the more realistic part, that was telling him he would probably have to get used to the twins being around for feedings whether he wanted them there or not.
“Can papa do that?” Ava asked Shane after another minute.
Shane shook his head. “No. Just me because she was in my belly.”
Both twins let out a resounding ooohhh at that news. Hana kicked her little legs at the noise and Ava giggled.
“Does she like it?” Dimitri asked.
“I think so.” Shane said. So far latching hadn't been an issue and she was eating well without any problems. He was thankful that all three of his babies had good appetites that made his life easier. Hana's small hand flexed against Shane's raised hoodie, grabbing it. The sight made Shane's mouth tug up. “You both used to do that when you were this small.” He said it more for himself than them.
“Wow.” Ava said in genuine awe.
Hana continued to eat, unbothered by her siblings' curious and amazed gazes. Shane wanted to tell them to go continue playing, that this sight was something they would get used to seeing quickly. But it was their first time seeing it ever and that fact seemed too important to ruin the moment.
—
Thursday May 21st
To calm all three babies down right now felt like an impossible task but everyone in the house was trying regardless. Shane had seen what had happened the moment it occurred. Dimitri tripped over his own feet, which then caused Ava to trip and fall as well. The two instantly started bawling their eyes out, which made Hana start to cry as well. He held Dimitri in his arms, trying to comfort the sobbing toddler. He swayed back and forth, rubbing circles into his back as Dimitri sobbed into his shirt, the sound muffled. Ilya had taken Hana upstairs and Shane could hear his baby girl's cries from the living room. Ava was being held by his dad, crying almost as loud as her baby sister was.
“Dima it's okay.” Shane tried to comfort him. “I know it's okay. Do you want me to kiss the ouchie?” Shane tried. Dimitri pulled away, his cheeks so red and tear stained. He looked up at Shane, sniffling as he gave a slight nod. Raising his elbow, he showed Shane the big bruise already starting to form. Shane gave it exaggerated kisses, something he took from Ilya's book, which made Dimitri smile and laugh. “Is it all better?”
“Yeah.” Dimitri wiped his tears roughly with the back of his hand.
“Can I go kiss Ava's ouchie to make her all better too?”
Dimitri nodded, and Shane set him down onto the living room floor. Shane went over to Ava, taking her from his dad and did the same thing. She didn't have a bruise like her brother so Shane just made a show of kissing her cheek instead. That seemed to satisfy her, making her laugh in place of her sobs. After a few minutes she wasn't crying anymore, and Shane wiped at her damp cheeks. He set her down, letting her go play with Dimitri.
“You've gotten good at this.” His dad said, impressed at his son.
Shane blushed slightly, not really sure how to take the compliment. “I don't feel like I have.” Shane said honestly. Oftentimes he felt like he had no idea what he was doing and was just hoping for the best. He had read up on so much on parenting during each pregnancy, but now he felt like barely any of that applied most of the time.
“Well you have,” his dad said, patting his shoulder. They watched the twins play with the plastic dinosaurs that had been scattered around the floor. The sound of Hana's cries softened and eventually stopped which made Shane let out a sigh of relief. “I think you two are doing a good job with all of them.” He rubbed his shoulder.
Shane looked away, biting his lip out of habit and to fight off the overwhelming feeling budding in his chest. His dads kind words hit him hard. He didn't want to linger with those feelings so he went upstairs to go check on Ilya and Hana.
He found Ilya rocking back and forth gently in the rocking chair, Hana letting out calm gurgles and coos as he rubbed her back. He was humming a song Shane hadn't heard him hum before with the twins, he was fairly certain it was a Russian lullaby. Ilya looked up as Shane entered the room, a quick grin forming on his face.
“Is she okay now?” Shane asked hovering next to his husband.
Ilya gave a nod. “She calms down when I speak Russian to her.” Hana let out a little noise of agreement. Her eyes focused from Ilya to Shane as her papa continued to gently rock her. The two watched her, the distant sound of the twins playing downstairs with Shane's dad. It just being the three of them was nice. They had waited so long to meet her that any moment they got to share with her felt so special.
Finally after a few minutes Shane asked. “Do you think we're good at this?”
Ilya snorted out a laugh without meaning to. He didn't have the best father to look up to growing up, so he had no real idea what a good father figure looked like. Even though he had his doubts and worries that he was messing up, or ruining their childhoods, he was fairly certain he was doing a better job compared to how his own father was.
“I'm serious, Ilya.” Shane urged. He bent down, now leaning against the arm of the comfortable rocker. His eyes fixated on Hana as he brushed her chubby cheek with his knuckle. The touch made her eyes close. “Do you think we're doing good at this?”
Ilya didn't hesitate with his answer. “I think so, yes.” He thought about it for a second, considering how the twins were happy, healthy and knew they were loved. He didn't doubt that Hana would grow up knowing that too, especially with how much love her older siblings had already been showing her. In Ilya's mind, that felt like a pretty good job so far. Much more than he ever felt from his own dad. “Why do you ask?”
Shane gave a half shrug. “My dad told me that when I was downstairs. After calming down the twins.” Shane didn’t look at Ilya as he said that. “I feel out of my element sometimes with them. I'm kind of worried I'll feel the same with Hana.”
Ilya blinked. “You never seem out of your element with them.”
Shane felt his ears and cheeks grow warm at the compliment. He still avoided Ilya's eyes, now instead having Hana wrap her hand around his knuckle.
“Shane.”
His tone made him look at Ilya, a confident look on his face. “You are good at this.” There was so much certainty in his voice, the type of confidence that he usually reserved for pre-game speeches. The type of resounding reassurance that made Shane's doubts leave his mind. Even if only for a little while.
“You're good at this too,” Shane matched his confidence in tone. Ilya flashed a smile before leaning in for a kiss, Shane meeting him half way with no hesitation. It was brief, their attention caught by Hana's whimpers and soft kicks.
“I think she wants you now.” Ilya said.
Shane stood up, Ilya carefully handing off the newborn into Shane's arms. Once he had her, Ilya got up from the plush rocking chair letting Shane take his spot. The sight of Hana immediately calming down in Shane's arms made Ilya feel a warmth blooming in his chest. He silently thanked his teenage self all those years ago for smoking outside in the cold so a boring Canadian teenager could introduce himself to him.
—
Friday May 22nd
Ilya was woken up by the sound of Hana beginning to cry. He sat up in bed, yawning as he looked at Shane, completely knocked out beside him. He got up and went over to the bassinet by Shane's side of the bed. He looked down at Hana, her face scrunched with discomfort as he picked her up. On instinct she tried to latch on to him and Ilya quickly guided her way, causing more fuss.
“I know. I'm sorry but I'm not daddy. I can't give you that.” He soothed her in Russian. He swayed with her for a minute before going downstairs with her, Anya following them out of the room.
The house was still, everyone in it still sound asleep save for the three of them in the kitchen as Ilya prepared her a bottle. Despite the fact it had been some time since he had to do this, his free hand worked on autopilot, remembering how he had prepared the twins bottles when they were small.
Ilya looked at the time on the microwave. Six am exactly. The early peaks of dawn started to creep into the house. Anya sat at his feet looking up expectantly as she watched him warm up the bottle. Once it was warmed up, he went over to the sliding glass door to let Anya out. He hesitated by the door, feeling the cool breeze meet his skin. Hana fussed in his arms and Ilya soothed her.
He went back inside, got a blanket from the couch and wrapped Hana up in it. She calmed slightly and the sudden swaddle, now only letting out grunts of frustration that she didn't have breakfast yet.
Ilya went outside, settling into the outdoor couch that faced the yard. He gave Hana her bottle and she happily ate, looking up at Ilya as she did so.
“You're one week old now, moy malen'kiy angel.” Ilya said to her, kissing the top of her head.
The birds were starting to wake up, chirps from around the trees starting to fill the yard. Anya ran around, sniffing through the grass like she always did. Ilya watched, admiring the sight of the sun beginning to rise.
He remembered back when he would come out here to smoke, alone and miserable, wishing Shane was with him. Never once imagining that he would one day sit on this same couch, holding his second daughter in his arms. Feeding her while the sun rose and Anya ran around. A few years ago the promise of this had felt so impossibly far away, but now it was here, the bundle in his arms and his two toddlers asleep in their room upstairs.
Several minutes passed and Hana finished her bottle. Ilya burped her, which lucky for him, didn't result in him getting spat up on this time. He set the bottle aside and held her close. He pressed a gentle kiss to her rosy cheek, making her let out little noises that Ilya chose to take as a good thing. Hana looked up at him, he still was getting used to her big blue eyes looking back at him.
“I love you so much my little Hana.” Ilya said to his baby girl in Russian. It was only them out here, and he wanted to enjoy every second of this private time. Hana wriggled in his arms slightly, tiny grunts joining the sound of the birds, making Ilya grin slightly.
They sat there together, the world waking up as the sun rose. Hana letting out soft noises in his arms. At this exact moment, for the first time in a while, Ilya felt at peace.