Beep. Beep. Beep. Hissss.
Beep. Beep. Beep. Hissss.
Beep. Beep. Beep. Hissss.

The sound filled the room over the soft breathing that the occupants made, both sleeping as the machines did their work, pumping air into the lungs of the pale girl on the bed. Her hair short, eyes closed as she slept, she looked just like any other patient sleeping away on a breathing machine, if it weren't for the plastic box next to her bed with a pink capped bundle in it, no one would assume she was a new mother much less a cancer patient neither.

Outside the hospital windows, it was almost becoming twilight, the sun gently dipping behind the clouds as everything somehow became dimmer yet bathed in golden light. An empty chair that stood in the corner only a few minutes ago, now housed a person, hiding away.

A tall person sat there, watching the sleeping girl on the bed with piercing blue eyes as her lungs went up and down with every breath forced into her by the machines keeping her alive. His shaggy brown hair hung in his face a fair bit, but he didn't seemed to care, focused on the cradle now as the bundle shifted and a whine came out, increasing to a solid cry.

He sits there for a few seconds before getting up, limping over towards the box quietly as not to disturb the sleeper as he passes by her carefully, only to stand in front of the box with his breath taken away in shock and awe.

The bundle before him is a baby, pink capped so obviously a girl and she's rather angry, wailing loudly now she's fought her way out of her blankets with arms failing in the air. She's naked except for a small nappy that barely hugs her waist and although she tiny, red faced, wrinkled and howling, he's never since anything just as beautiful like the sleeper behind him.

He quickly picks her up as he hears the sleeper shift, cradling the more or less too tiny girl in his rather too large arms to quieten her with a shushing noise as the sleeper turns, groaning. He holds her against his chest as her eyes open and once again, his breath leaves his lungs like the sleeper's before him numerous times.

Her eyes are the bluest blue he's ever seen, better than his blue, more richer, darker and more colored than his could ever be and it contrasts with her brown hair, wispy and fluffed up under her hat on some thin stands on her forehead. How he wished he could see her grow...

"Gus?"

The weak utter of his name made him turn slowly, the baby in his arms having fallen asleep again as he stared, he hadn't even noticed.

"Hello Hazel Grace."

Hazel Grace Lancaster smiled at the soft way Augustus Waters said her name and watched him for a moment as he watched her before looking down at the baby in his arms. He smiled at where her gaze landed.

"She's beautiful Hazel Grace, she takes my breath away, I really mean it."

Hazel chuckled at that, sitting up with a wheeze.

"Not being able to breath sucks, it totally sucks."

He chuckled along with her at the line she had said long before at their first meeting. he could see picture it now, him with a cigarette in his mouth and her scowl as she told him off before he could explain. The memories were like ghosts now, haunting them constantly as they went though their lives.

He managed to muster up the strength to sit next to her, pulling his artificial leg and real leg up on the bed to be next to her as she leaned onto him, burying her face into his neck as she sniffled. He did the same, only though her hair, till a whimper made him look up to see the baby had awoken again and was staring bleakly at the two of them almost.

"Hazel Grace, look."

Hazel looked up at Augustus's words and gasped, quietly as not to startle her as Gus handed her over to her and she cradled her against her own chest, kissing her cheeks and head.

"She's looks just like you Gus, exactly like you."

"I know."

"She's beautiful..."

"I know."

Hazel looked up at him sadly. "You won't see her grow, I won't see her grow either."

Gus nodded sadly. "I know. I want so bad to just..."

"I know."

He looked over at Hazel Grace and saw the same sadness he had reflected to her own face.

"We have to leave her Gus, you know we do..."

Gus shook his head. "I don't want to Hazel Grace, I don't want to leave our Anna alone..."

Hazel nodded. "I don't want to leave her either Gus, but Mom and Dad will take care of her and your Mom and dad will too. mom's always wanted a grandchild and your sisters will have a niece to spoil as well. It's not all bad."

"It is, Hazel Grace. It is, it breaks my heart to see her this way and then never see her again till she comes to us. It'll be years till she sees us again, I don't don't know if I can handle it.." Gus sniffled, a tear running down his face.

"We'll handle it...together. Okay?" Hazel asked, turning Augustus face towards hers.

Gus looked down for a moment before nodding sharply. "Okay."

"Okay."

"Okay."

They sat in silence for a while, just bonding with their daughter as she slept. They cuddled her, kissed her, fed her, changed her, everything they could do till she fell asleep again when the last shred of light disappeared.

Then slowly, as darkness crept in the room, Hazel and Augustus disappeared and the room did too till it was empty, except for a empty wooden chair in the corner of the room and a clear plastic with a little baby girl inside of it, unaware of what was going on.