Levi stepped hesitantly into the apartment, taking care to shut the door gently behind him. He didn't want to disturb his mom. It had been almost two months now. He wished she would get better. It was hard being alone all the time.

Oh, she was there, but she didn't speak. She hardly ate. It couldn't be good for the baby growing inside her. Levi was so excited to have a little brother. They could play together, and maybe Mommy would forget about everything and be happy for a little bit.

She shushed him whenever he talked about it though, told him that he shouldn't speak so loudly. Levi knew why, but he didn't understand. Mommy said that it could get them in trouble, but Daddy had said that some laws are bad, and surely a law that keeps people from having little brothers would be bad.

Whenever Levi told his mother this, she would sigh and her eyebrows would get all crinkly. She would tell him that even though a law might be bad, it was still a law. There were still consequences. He didn't like asking her, because it made her upset.

Mommy always got upset when she talked about Daddy.

He set down his pack and bounced over to his mother's door. He knocked twice, quietly.

Everything was quiet with Daddy gone.

The door stayed shut.

Levi knocked again, louder.

No reply.

Worried, he pulled on the door knob. "Mommy, let me in!" he called, tugging on the knob.

He heard a pained groan. Was Mommy okay? He kicked at the door. It was keeping him from helping her. Stupid door.

A series of suppressed gasps tore at his heart, and he started to cry. "Mommy, are okay?" he asked, wishing with all his heart the door would open so he could see her.

Sinking to his knees outside the door, he tried to suppress his tears. They would do his mother no good.

A soft wail broke through his sobs, and he listened intently. He had never heard that voice before.

Could it be?

Levi sat for a second, unsure of what to do. Then he leaped to his feet, tears forgotten as he pounded on the door. He had never been more excited. But now that the moment was here, he felt nervous too. What if his little brother didn't like him?

The door opened slowly, but Levi could see only darkness. For the second time that day, Levi stepped hesitantly into a room.

As his eyes adjusted, he could make out his mother's exhausted form slumped on the floor. clutched in her arms was a small bundle. She was rocking it slightly and shushing its tiny cries.

Levi stood awkwardly, feeling like an intruder in this sacred moment.

His mother glanced up at him, her eyes wet. "Come here," she whispered. Levi crept forward, crouching. He caught a glimpse of the infant's minuscule face, puckered and red.

As he stared at the little bundle in his mother's arms, an inexplicable feeling washed over him. He felt more love than he had ever felt, more joy, more pain, more empathy.

His heart hurt with the strength of it all, and he sank weakly to his knees.

He hadn't known it was possible to feel this way.

The baby's cry barged into his epiphany, and Levi glanced at his mother. "What's his name?" he asked, voice cracking.

His mother smiled. "She, Levi. I haven't named her yet. I thought I would ask you if you had any ideas."

He blinked. Not a boy? He would have a sister? But... But what?

He stared at his mom, unable to speak for a moment. It was impossible to explain what he was feeling. Finally he regained control of his tongue. "I'll protect her forever," he choked. "Forever and ever and I won't ever let anything happen to her, I promise."

((Haha, well guess what, Levi? nOPe))