Leander Reed
"It's a girl; you have been blessed with a baby girl!"
The doctor's voice was masked behind the cries of the little baby that my wife gave birth to. I swivelled my head in her direction, and she looked up at me, smiled and sighed in relief as she laid her head back, her sweat clad hair sticking to the sides of her head and neck. I tightened my grip on her fingers and she squeezed back, reciprocating my excitement.
They briefly showed the face of the child to Lily and then to me, shaking my world apart. That little angel was my lucky charm, the proof of the love I shared with my wife. I wiped the sweat beads that had formed on my forehead with the back of my rolled up sleeve, my legs giving away.
The nurses helped us settle in and I called for Laila to keep Lily some company. She stepped in followed by the young babysitter who was carrying an asleep Kaidon in her arms. The little boy had thrown tantrums wanting to see his mother, forcing the babysitter to bring him to the hospital.
The nurse brought our baby in after cleaning her up and handed her over to her mother. I peeked at her with curiosity, hoping to see some resemblance, but perhaps I was a little too dumb to notice it. I had always seen people instantly recognise likeness in features to the parents, but all I saw was a little, fragile figure with two tiny closed eyes, a small button for a nose and two slits which formed the lips. I scratched the back of my head, embarrassed to be acting so foolish.
"Lead... Hold her."
I can...?
What if I...?
What if she...?
She glared at me, and I fumbled around and pushed my hands forward. I already had an inkling what a terrible father I was going to become. I adjusted her in my arms, treating her as the most fragile being in the world. She started crying, and I flustered, making Lily chuckle as she saw me walk around nervously to calm my baby.
"Have you guys decided upon a name?" Laila interrupted.
The last eight months had been a nightmare. I had never given a serious thought to raising a family. But when Lily told me about our baby, I suddenly grew aware of my circumstances. I was a fugitive on the run with the princess of one of the most influential families in The Order. What implications would that bring for my child? I wanted my baby to live away from the darkness of this world. I wanted a different life for her, even if it meant sacrificing myself for the sake of her future. I wanted her to be kind, just, gentle, innocent and even ignorant, if that meant she would live the life of a fairytale.
But if ever came a time when she would be on her own, when I wouldn't be there to protect her anymore, I wanted her to be smart and brave to handle it on her own. I wanted her to carve her own path of choice and fearlessly withstand all the obstacles.
"Alice..."
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"What are you doing, Lead?! Don't you dare ruin the cake I made! It took me hours to decorate it!" Lily threatened me from the living room as I balanced myself in the middle of the kitchen. I had almost slipped on the wet floor and barely managed to save Alice's first birthday cake.
"Pa... pa!" Alice clapped her hands together and pointed at me, and laughed from her seat on the top of the breakfast island. My eyes sparkled in delight, and I stumbled, dropping the cake on my head, which earned me an earful from my wife. But nothing compared to the happiness I felt at that moment. I heard my child address me as 'father' for the first time. That was the moment when the feeling of becoming a parent sank in for real. I was her father, the person she would always look up to when taking a step forward in her life.
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Raydon pointed the tip of his gun to my head.
"How long did you think you could evade me, Red Phoenix?"
My eyes darted left and right, my mind weaving up n number of escape routes from the building. I really shouldn't have decided to take up overtime today.
"My brain can process the same number of escape routes that you can, and also ways to block them all. It's pointless. Surrender!" He barked at me.
The sound of a child's giggle reverberated through the silence of the dark cabin. I glanced at my phone that was lying on the table, and the screen lit up with my daughter's and wife's faces. They were calling me, and Alice's laughter was set as my custom ringtone for them.
The sound gave me the moment of distraction I needed to dive in his direction and yank the gun off his hand to point it at his head instead.
My child had saved me yet again. She truly was God's blessing to my tainted self.
"You can't flee; we have the place surrounded."
It was time to redeem myself, to right some wrongs. Perhaps my child was like a second chance provided to me by the almighty.
"Aren't you curious about Laila?"
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"Da-Dad, please don't go..." she managed to speak past the flurry of tears on her face. My lips curled up in a nervous smile as I tried to console her. It was her first day of school, and I had insisted to Lily that I wanted to be the one to drop her. I stood there, embarrassed among all the other moms, wondering what to do. If Lily was there, she would have simply scolded her, and Alice would have shut up. But I didn't have the heart to even raise my voice at her. If ever I did in the past, she would always cry a bucket full of tears, getting me an earful from her mother.
"Da-Da..."
"Alice... It's going to be alright." I tried to loosen her grip on my hand, but she held on to me like a drowning person holding on to a plank in the middle of the sea.
"N-No don't go, please! I want you to stay here with me!" she cried, tightening her hold on my arm, making me flinch. To be gifted with such strength, she surely was the daughter of the Red Phoenix.
"Alice, look, I am going to be standing right over there..." Yeah, there goes one of my casual leaves... "You can look at me whenever you wish to."
"You'll leave as soon as I let go, I know!"
It was a mixed feeling. I did want my kid to grow up to be strong, but at the same time, it made me feel flattered that I was her safest place in this world, that she trusted me unconditionally, depended on me. I didn't know how to explain it, but it was like a flicker of warmth in a cold desert.
"I am not going anywhere, I promise."
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"What are you talking about, Daddy?"
"Alice Reed, you are going to listen to your father right now!" I growled, and she shuddered away from me. This was the first time ever I frowned at her. I never meant to. But she was my priority. The Order got to my Lily, I couldn't let them take away my Alice too.
"Dad-Daddy... but... let me just...at least.."
My heart ached. She was barely thirteen. I couldn't expect her to act mature at that age. But for some reason, she understood me. She did continue to sob but at the same time packed her and her brother's stuff as quickly as she could and prepared to move out. I didn't know whether to feel proud of her or feel guilty. Lily and I had managed to raise a strong child, and now I was certain that if ever came a time when I wouldn't be around, she had enough strength to look after both herself and her brother. She was prepared for the world, and my heart filled up.
She managed to look after us for all these years. People said I was both a father and mother figure in the family, but the truth was she had taken over Lily's role in the family. No matter how much Alex may deny it, I always noticed the strength he drew at a glimpse of her, and as for me, if it weren't for her, I couldn't have survived Lily's departure. She was my pride. I need not worry anymore. However, at the same time, my heart sank at the thought that my kid didn't need me anymore. She was self-sufficient, independent, a reliable person that everyone around her trusted. Even I did.
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"Dad, please don't go. I still need you." I heard her faint voice. I was aware of my surroundings, the hospital room, the voices, the people who visited, but I couldn't respond. But her voice... Her voice was all the medicine I needed to recover and wake up again. I felt her tightly hold on to my arm just like her first day of school, and at that moment, I knew I could even defeat Death itself to come back to her. I was glad she was safe. I was happy that I was still the person who protected her.
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I signed my name at the bottom of the sheet, folded it and inserted it into an envelope.
"Who are you even writing to at this point?" Seydon asked me, his hands crossed and his back resting against the wall of the speed-post office. This kid really didn't know how to be thankful to the person who saved him.
"You guys still have the tradition to write letters to your loved ones in case of death, right?"
That piqued his interest as he raised an eyebrow and glanced at me. "You just posted two envelopes. Who are you writing for?"
I smiled and raised my right hand's index finger up to my lips and mumbled, "A secret."
In loving memory of my dear father, who departed on 19th Oct 2021. May his soul rest in peace.
On a hiatus until further notice.
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Edit: I am back to continuing the story, fellas! More energised than before! Thank you everyone for the support this far!