"Azura?" I whispered as her eyes
began to close slowly; the doctors
yelled in the background to keep
concentrating, to keep hanging
onto the tiny thread of hope and
strength.
Her eyes grew with surprisement
and her head turned towards me.
"C-Charlie?" she stuttered as I
gave her a weak smile.
"Azura, I love you."
"I love you too, Charlie. Always.
Promise you'll be there for
Adelina and Theo?"
"T-That's wh-hat we're n-naming
them?"
"Do you like it?" She smiled
underneath my eyes.
"I love it. A-azura. I w-wish I could
have s-spoken earlier. I w-want
to tell you that y-you are beautiful.
I love every single thing about you.
You are my everything. You are my
stars, my m-moon, my sky, my universe."
She began to cry as I wiped away
her tears.
"You are i-important, Azura. You
are not worthless. You are the
best person I-I have ever met.
without you, m-my world will
fall apart. Please, Azura, I-I
don't know what to do w-without
you." I felt my voice crack as I
sobbed into her blanket. "Azura,
you are the shades of blue. Every day,
you were a new shade. You brought
meaning to m-my life. You colored
in the black and white, with shades
of blue. Light blue. Dark blue. Celadon
blue. Iris blue. Dawn blue, sky blue.
Azure blue. God, I love you so much,
A-Azura."
I saw the doctors slowly bring the
two angels into the world of flaws;
innocence and beauty consumed
those flaws. Azura looked up at
them and tears rolled down her face.
"They are so beautiful," she whispered
to me. I nodded furiously, knowing I couldn't
say anything without letting everything
out. Their tiny cries echoed in the room
as Azura asked to hold onto them.
She kissed the two angels on their
foreheads, as they quieted down
in her arms. "Adelina and Theo, always
know that mommy loves you.
no matter what. I love you so much."
She whispered before handing them
back to the doctor.
Mother was sobbing behind the
doors, her body limp as she
fell down the wall and cried into
her arms.
"Azura," I whispered as she smiled
at me. Her breathing was coming to
an end as the heart rate machine
began to lose its rhythm.
"Charlie?"
"Yes?"
"Each day, you made my shades
a little lighter."