| Caleb |

I stood outside our bathroom door, waiting on Avery. She just went in, but it felt like she'd been in there for hours.

She came out with a neutral expression. Immediately, my smile fell. "Are we?" I asked.

Her smile grew. "We're pregnant, Caleb. We're having a baby."

My smile grew back, "We're having a baby. I'm a dad." I hugged her and picked her up gently as I did. "I'm a dad. Baby, I'm a dad."

"Yeah, you're a dad, baby." She whispered. I smiled down at her flat stomach, and I couldn't believe that my baby was resting there. My baby.

▬▬▬▬▬▬

My heart sunk as I entered my wife's room. She looked the same. Her skin pale, skinny, a neutral expression sketched into her face, and her dark hair was greasy.

"Daddy, is she awake yet?" Juliet asked.

"No, baby. She was really tired and her body is trying to make mommy better." I sighed, "She'll wake up soon, baby."

I went over to Avery's bedside and sat down in the chair I had grown accustomed too. Juliet came over and sat on my lap. I took Avery's hand in mine, still as cold as ever.

"Momma, can you hear me?" Juliet asked.

"She can hear you baby." I replied.

"Momma, I miss you. When will you come home? I miss playing dolls with you and coloring with you. Daddy misses you too. I've never seen daddy so sad. Are you going to be awake for mother's day? I hope so. I wanna play with you and gramma Darla. She misses you too, momma. Uncle Alan, Aunt Brycie, Uncle Chad, Aunt Fallon, Uncle Joey, Uncle Micah, Uncle Scott, Uncle Kyle and Aunt Charis all miss you too. Even Aunt Claire misses you. I want you to wake up. Everyone's sad, and I don't like it when everyone's sad." Juliet spoke. "I'm gonna color a picture for you when you wake up momma."

Juliet got off my lap and went to the couch behind. She pulled out her crayons and coloring books, doing her thing.

I kissed Avery's hand before resting my head against it. "I miss you baby. This is getting harder everyday, but Liliah tells me that you're improving. That in a few months you can wake up at anytime. That's a gift from God, baby. He's giving us another chance. We could try for another baby, and we could possibly have that boy you wanted. And it's true, everyone misses you. It hasn't been the same without you. The house is really quiet at night instead of being filled with your beautiful laugh. I still miss the feeling of you in our bed, I miss the way you would put your hands on my back when I make dinner. Our movie nights aren't the same, Juliet misses the way we would sing at church. Everyone's praying, baby. I'm praying as hard as I can, baby. You have the nurses praying for you and our family. You're Liliah's favorite patient. She's the sweetest nurse here, and as long as neither of us give up, you're gonna live. Baby, we're gonna fight this. I love you, Avery."

I sighed and sat there. Juliet colored and sang quietly. As a reminder, I played Avery's favorite music throughout the house. She loved this one band, and various country artists.

"Hey, Caleb." Liliah greeted.

"Hey, Liliah." I mumbled.

She sighed, "I have no good news. I'm sorry."

"Is it the same, or worse?" I asked.

She gave a small smile, "It's the same."

I nodded, "Thank you."

"Liliah! Look!" Juliet squealed. I looked back to see her holding up her coloring book, showing Liliah the picture.

She smiled, "That's great, Juliet. Who's it for?"

"Momma." Juliet stated.

"Well, your momma will love it." Liliah grinned.

Juliet nodded, "Thank you."

I smiled as Juliet went back to coloring. Liliah turned to me, "Whatever you're doing with that little girl of yours, keep doing it."

I shrugged, "It's like it was, except without my wife. And Juliet likes to crawl into bed with me at night."

"It's working, Caleb. She seems to be in a decent mood for this situation. That's good." She smiled.

I nodded, "Thank you."

Liliah gave another small smile and left. Juliet sighed, "Daddy, do you love Liliah?"

"What do you mean?" I questioned.

"Do you love Liliah like you love momma?" She asked, not looking up.

"No baby. Liliah is just a friend. I love mommy, and I love you. Okay?" I stated.

She nodded, "Okay."

I looked back to my wife. I sighed as tears filled my eyes. "Baby, this so hard. I wish you were with us, telling me that everything was okay. I miss the way you would play with my hair when I was nervous or upset about something. It's not the same without you. We're all here by your side. We're all right here, baby, and none of us are leaving. None of us. As long as you're fighting, I'm fighting. I love you, Avery."

"Daddy," Juliet spoke, "I'm tired."

"Okay, babygirl. Do you want to say bye to mommy?" I asked.

She nodded came over. I kissed her forehead and sat her on the bed. She laid against her mom and kissed her cheek.

I bit my lip and stood up. I began collecting Juliet's things and putting them in her bag. When I looked back at my daughter, she was whimpering and crying. "Please don't leave us, momma. Daddy really misses you. I don't like seeing him cry. It makes me sad."

I sighed and laid the bag against the floor. I stood there, and let Juliet fall asleep next to her mother. I quickly wiped the few tears that had falleb onto my cheeks.

Last time I was this emotional was when Avery and I had found out that she was pregnant with Juliet. It was one of the best days of my life. The day when I became a dad.

Once Juliet was asleep, I went back over. I leaned over the bed, kissing my wife for what had felt like I hadn't kissed her in forever. "I love you, Avery." I whispered, kissing her forehead.

I carefully picked up Juliet, but she whimpered again. "Daddy, can we spend the night with momma?" She asked.

"Sure, baby. I let you lay with mommy." I sighed. I laid her down in her original position against her mother. "Goodnight, babygirl. Daddy loves you," I whispered.

I sat back down in the chair. My wife unconscious, and my six-year-old daughter sleeping against her mom. It was the least I could do for Juliet at this point.

A/N

Guys, I'm not gonna lie. I almost cried writing this. But just wait for the next chapter. *sigh*

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-xxBabyxxGirlxx😘✌🏼️