Author's Note: I've been getting a lot of feedback on this story since that last chapter and have decided to update a little earlier than usual. So, this should a pretty exciting chapter for you eager readers, but I'm not going to tell you why. Unless you've been to my profile and have read the preview, you'll just have to read and find out.

*S. Snowflake

Through Julie's Eyes

Chapter Fourteen: You Are My Sunshine

It was midday at Mushnik and Son's, near lunch hour. The sun was shining through the shop's pretty glass windows. Seymour was overseeing his shop, along with his two employees, Mary T. and Thomas, a new shophand who had quickly taken to the oportunity for an open position in the shop. Since Valentine's Day, things seemed to be looking up with the store's sales and the energy of his employees. Plus, Mary hadn't pulled any tricks with him. If anything, she seemed sort of ashamed of her previous actions. He smiled faintly, thinking about how things were finally going according to plan in his life. His shop was open and successful, his daughter was doing well at school and her friendships, and he was beyond his wife's suspicion again.

"Ma'am, look, I'm telling you, that's the best we can offer," said Thomas to an older woman, who kept debating with him at the counter about flower prices.

The elderly woman sniffled through her nose and looked the Thomas in the eye. "Young man, are you absolutely sure that's the best you can offer on the geraniums? It's for my granddaughter's birthday, you know."

Thomas sighed and tried to talk the lady into other more affordable offers, but she was stubborn about it. She was an experienced haggler, Seymour could tell. It made him glad that lunch break would be soon.

Then the phone rang in the back of the shop and Seymour decided to answer it. "Mushnik and Son's Greenville Florists, how may I help you?" he asked into the phone.

"Seymour, honey?" squeaked Audrey, in a very high pitched voice.

Seymour jumped. "Oh, honey! What's going on?"

"Seymour, you really need to-" She paused and took a deep breath, "-Come home… now!"

Seymour paused and stuttered. "A-Audrey?"

She took another breath on the other end. "Seymour, it's time!"

Seymour's heart leaped and he nearly dropped the phone. "O-okay. K-keep breathing, Audrey. I'll be there as soon as possible! J-just s-stay calm, and…"

"Just go!" Audrey squealed into the phone before hanging up.

Seymour clambered to hang up the phone and stumbled out of the back. He grabbed his bag, his keys, and his hat and looked around. Thomas was still haggling with the elderly woman and Mary was sitting in the back, snipping ribbons for the bows. They both heard some of the commotion in the back though.

"Is this your manager?" asked the old woman. "Sir, I'd like to know how I can get this geranium arrangement for just a bit less. Twenty dollars is not cheap, you know."

Seymour smiled quickly. "Ma'am, for you, this arrangement is free. Please, take it as a courtesy for being our…um, three hundredth customer!"

"Sir?" asked Mary.

The old woman smiled. "Oh, well, how very kind of…"

"Much as we appreciate this, it's after hours and I'm afraid I must go, Ma'am," Seymour said quickly, gently walking the old woman out the door. She was grateful though, and put a ten dollar tip in Seymour's hand. He shut the door and locked it, then turned back to the floral refrigerator.

"I need a baby arrangement…baby…baby…" he muttered.

"Sir?" repeated both Mary and Thomas.

"Didn't you hear me? Day off, go home!" Seymour exclaimed.

"-But why, sir?" asked Thomas.

Seymour found the arrangement he was looking for and beamed back at them. "My wife's having the baby today." He ran to the door and left after switching the sign closed. "Goodbye!"

The two employees looked to each other, smiling about the news. They blushed, looking into each other's eyes, and their gazes shifted to the ground. They decided that had just been a reaction to their boss' news.

* * *

Seymour drove home as fast as possible. After getting Audrey in the car, he then began the drive to the hospital. Audrey pinched her eyes closed trying to breath, but found that no matter how hard she tried, the pain stayed intense. She squeezed the life out of Seymour's free hand. A few times, she howled at the pain and held back tears. She wouldn't let out a scream though. She was trying to make it to the hospital at least without making those high-pitched squeaks of pain. Seymour was just trying to remain calm. He had only been through this once in his life before.

Once at the hospital, they rushed Audrey to the delivery room. She was by then past the early pains and ready to have the baby. Both Seymour and Audrey were shocked by how quickly this was happening.

Seymour stayed next to his wife through it all, holding back fear and anxiety as she crushed his hand.

"I-need-distraction…" Audrey yelped, knowing that she was close by how intense the pain was this time.

"Okay…like what?" Seymour asked.

Audrey winced, pinching her eyes as she tried to concentrate. "-Sing?"

"What?"

"Sing, Seymour. Sing!" Audrey squealed.

Seymour quickly thought about what to sing. He could have sang any number of songs; something powerful, loving, emotional, but instead, he picked something simple that he knew by heart. He felt that somehow it was right to sing it anyway:

"You are my sunshine, my only sunshine.

You make me happy when skies are gray.

You'll never know, dear, how much I love you.

Please don't take my sunshine away…"

Audrey smiled and hummed the tune with her husband. The song was pleasing and took her mind off of it for a moment. She was just about to hum another verse when the most intense pain of all came and she knew what she had to do, even without the doctors yelling at her.

"Keep singing, Seymour! Please!" she pleaded, crying.

"-Huh?" Seymour asked. "Oh-oh, right…

"When I woke up, dear, woke up one morning,

I thought I held you in my arms.

When I awoke, dear, I was mistaken,

So I hung my head and cried."

Audrey squeezed his hand tighter as she made a yell from the pain. Seymour continued one last refrain, and closed his eyes,

"You are my sunshine, my only sunshine

You make me happy when skies are gray.

You'll never know, dear, how much I love you,

Please don't take my sunshine away…"

And just as Seymour had finished singing, he and Audrey heard the sound of a baby's cry…

* * *

Julie was listening to Ms. Straegle read Charlotte's Web aloud to the class.

"Chin up, Wilbur," narrated Ms. Straegle for Charlotte. "I've been watching you Wilbur, and I…" She stopped when the door opened. "Mr. Krelborn, what a surprise."

Seymour was standing in the classroom doorway and gave her a shy nod. "Excuse me, but I have to take Julie out of class early today. We need to visit her mom and new sibling at the hospital."

Ms. Straegle smiled brightly and looked to Julie, who had dropped a pencil when she heard the news. "Well, by all means then," she said to Seymour. "Julie, pack your things."

Julie nodded and packed her backpack with the few things she needed. She looked over at Maggie with a hopeful look on her face.

"Tell me all about it," Maggie whispered as Julie left with her father.

Seymour and Julie dashed to the car. Julie noticed how jittery her father was acting and how strangely bruised his hands were. He didn't talk much at all on the drive to the hospital. Finally, she couldn't stand but ask him one question.

"Daddy, do I have a brother or a sister?" she asked.

Seymour looked through the mirror at his daughter and smiled. "You've got a little brother now. I don't want to tell you anything else though. I want you to see him."

Julie stayed quiet after that, not wanting to make a scene. Once they arrived at the hospital, Seymour got the arrangement he had made from the car trunk and led Julie inside. They darted down hallways, past nurses and doctors, until they reached one of the rooms. Seymour opened the door for Julie and she walked in.

Her mother was there, sitting on a white hospital bed, tired as could be. Her face looked partially drained of color from the great effort she had made to deliver not too long ago, but her smile was beaming with life and love as she held a blanket-wrapped bundle in her arms. She was humming a tune, a song Julie remembered as You Are My Sunshine, before she looked up at her daughter.

"Hi, Julie, sweetheart," Audrey said quietly and looked to Seymour. "You brought flowa's?"

Seymour led Julie toward the bed and placed the flower arrangement on the side table. "For both of you," he muttered, beaming with pride. He lifted Julie up onto the bed so that she could see. "There ya go."

Audrey giggled before moving her arms and showing Julie the baby whose face was wrapped inside. "Julie, this is your brotha', Nathaniel."

Julie stared at the baby for a long time. He was so small. She had thought babies were bigger than that. He had a round, pinkish face and sandy blond strands of hair. It looked like her mother's hair, but with a bit of her father's hair mixed in. His eyes were pinched closed so that she couldn't see their color as he slept. She was just glad that he wasn't crying.

"-Nathaniel?" Julie finally asked.

"Nate, for short," said Seymour, still smiling wider than his face could contain while watching his son as well. "-Isn't he something, Julie girl?"

Julie nodded, though she was still a little less than amazed at the tiny, pink baby. She came closer to her mother's side, still watching Nate. Seymour walked over to the other side of the bed and rested his arm against the head of the bed.

Audrey beamed with parental pride. "Hey, sweet baby," she whispered, rocking the baby gently to wake him without upsetting him. "It's your Mama. Why don't you wake up and look at all a' your family?"

Little Nathaniel stirred at last, yawning a small, baby yawn. He whined and opened his grey-blue eyes that were just like his father's. He then looked up at the two people that had been there since the beginning, his mother and father, and then at the new person, not knowing that she was his sister. Those blue, newborn eyes were taking in this world of light and faces, almost wondering how he was here at all.

Audrey kissed little Nate's cheek and whispered, "Welcome to the family."