Daughter
"Tell me again." She whispered, her eyes closed and her golden hair splayed across the white pillow.
Sandy sighed, he didn't want to go over it again but he did.
"She would have golden sun hair just like you." He says his voice also barely a whisper. He strokes her cheek and she smiles.
"Her smile would be yours." She giggles and he can't help but smile.
"She would have the same cute button nose and her eyes would glisten like the sea. Just like yours."
Her smile fades and so does his.
"She would like walks along the beach and would beg us for a dog every single day to walk with her."
He takes her hair in his hands and wraps it around his fingers.
"She would try and bake biscuits but fail on every attempt."
Her smile grows again but it doesn't last long.
"The biscuits would be for charity events she takes part in but instead of making them you would have to buy them for her."
"Every night she would make us read the same stories to her. The ones with heroines who save the day. And then would let us tuck her in with the teddy bear your father gave us. It would be her favourite."
"Her bedroom would be filled with soft toys and cushions, she would sleep on the floor it was so comfortable."
"Seth would take her to see movies, specifically comic book ones and you would take her shopping and I would take her swimming in the sea."
"She would be the most popular girl at school and all the mothers will want their daughter to have the same golden hair as hers."
"She's play soccer and get all muddy and when she's older she'll go to parties and we will ground her for staying out to late."
"She'll either want to be a lawyer, a doctor, a businesswoman, a vet or all. We would end up getting her the dog and after a week will forget all about it, except for taking for walks. She would love taking it for walks."
Sandy can hardly go on for the tears.
He doesn't want to lead his wife into false hope but the way she is finally drifting off and the tears have stopped… he can't stop now.
Sandy picked Kirsten's head up and lay it on his lap. He stroked her lightly as she slid away from him into sleep.
But the peacefulness was broken by a door opening and someone walking in.
Sandy closed his eyes and prayed while he felt Kirsten move in his lap as she heard the footsteps of someone entering.
"What?" Her broken whisper filled the room. "What happened?"
Sandy opened his eyes and he met the glance the doctor gave him and knew.
It was over.
In that second Kirsten burst into tears, her entire body shook and buried her face in his lap.
Sandy couldn't hear above her, he didn't hear the doctor say all the confusing crap doctors say, he didn't hear the actual words.
It was over…she was dead even before she was alive.
The doctor left but Sandy didn't notice.
He didn't know anything apart from her cries until a little boy entered the room. He had dark curly hair and dark warm eyes.
He ran over and hugged his father and for some strange reason he was crying.
"Why are you crying Seth?" He asked.
"Because mummy's crying and because baby Alice is in heaven. I don't think she liked me?"
"She loves you Seth…she just had to go someplace else so she could look after Pippa."
"I thought Pippa went down the toilet."
"No Seth, Pippa is in heaven with Alice, they will look after each other now."
The brown eyes frowned in that five year old way but quickly turned to acceptance, innocence.
Sandy almost began crying again but he stayed silent as he watched his only son hug his only wife.
It would only be the three of them now on.
Only them.