Max & Me

Ch. 45-Brown Curls

Ch. 45-Brown Curls



*Danielle's POV

"W-What?" Asked Liam, "What do you mean?"

"It means that when I thought I'd given birth to Max, I'd given birth to a baby girl named Madison." Liam's eyes widened. "G-Girl?" He asked. I nodded slowly. "When did you find out?" Asked Liam. I watched his breathing quicken. "Just today." I replied honestly.

"How does a hospital mix up two genders?" Asked Liam. I watched his hands grab the recliners arms, and squeeze. "Li," I whispered, leaning forward, "The chair, Liam, the chair." He looked down and saw his nails digging into the leather. "Sorry." Liam whispered, peeling his hands away.

He put his hands over his eyes, and took a deep breath. "So... The birth parents want Max back, right? They want to give us 'Madison' and take Max away from us." Liam made air-quotes around Madison, while his eyes watered over. "No... That's not what's going to happen..."

"I know Max's birth parents are going to want to be a part of Max's life. He's such an amazing kid. I thought his personality and charm were from you and I, but I guess they were from his birthparents..." Liam interrupted.

I nodded in agreement about how amazing Max is, "I know how you feel. I'm upset because I thought Max's high IQ was from me. But his birthfather, William was a CEO of a large company, and his birthmother, Michelle, was a Physics teacher at a University."

"Whoa." Liam whispered, shaking his head. "But what do you mean... Michelle was a teacher, and William was a CEO. What happened to them?" I slowly exhaled. "They died in a house fire." Liam's eyes widened, "Oh my goodness... Is their daughter- our daughter okay?" Liam corrected himself.

"That's the thing..." I whispered. "She-She's dead?" Asked Liam, a single tear running down his cheek. "Because Danielle, I'd love to get to know our daughter if she's alive. Please tell me she didn't pass away in that fire. Please."

"No Liam, she's not dead. The hospital contacted me and told me to come in with Max. Violet, Max and I went in, and we saw a young girl sitting on the hospital bed. She had bandages on her arms. She has your caramel eyes, and my darkish brown curly hair. I sat down, and the doctor explained what had happened. Then, he asked me something really serious."

"What?" Asked Liam in anticipation. "He asked if I'd adopt Madison... Li, she has nowhere to go now. Her parents are dead, and she had no other family. But Liam she has us. But we're her real parents."

Liam let his neck fall back. He closed his eyes for a moment as he took everything in. "Did you say you'd adopt her?" Asked Liam, finally turning back to me. My eyes met his, and my heart clenched. "Yes," I whispered, "I said I'd adopt our daughter."

Liam fell backwards into the recliner. He pulled his legs onto the chair, and hugged his legs to his chest. He dug his face into his knees, and began to cry. My heart absolutely shattered seeing Liam like that. I've never seen a grown man so upset and vulnerable. His body shook with emotion, soft cries echoing off him.

I'm not sure if I should try and comfort him, or just give him a moment. After five minutes, Liam looked back up. "Danielle," He whispered, his tear soaked face making me feel horrible. "What?" I asked. "Can we go to the hospital to see our daughter? Please?"

"Liam," I whispered, "Max is already in bed... We can't leave him here alone." Liam stood up, and began shaking his arms around. "I'll go wake him," Said Liam, "We can all go for a drive." I stood up also, as Liam headed towards the staircase. "Tomorrow?" I asked Liam, "We can all go tomorrow."

"Dani, please." Liam begged, putting his hands on the staircase railing. He started giving me puppy dog eyes, and sticking out his bottom lip. "She's my daughter, and I want to see her." Said Liam. "Fine, get Max. Try not to wake him though." Liam gave a small smile, "Thank-you."