The usually quiet and empty private hospital wing within the Hyuuga compounds was filled with screams and people rushing to and from rooms.
On a narrow bench outside the maternity ward, Hyuuga Hizashi sat waiting.
From behind the thin paper wall, he could hear screams of agony and doctor's encouragement. Then, a shrill cry of a newborn baby.
Hizashi jumped to his feet and stood in front of the door. After a few moments, a nurse opened it and gestured for him to come in. Laying down on a cot on the opposite of the door was a young lady, covered in sweat and heaving. The doctors were all gathered around another corner.
Hizashi tentatively walked toward the lady.
"Reiko," he called to her softly. The lady looked up and glared at him with her milky white eyes.
"She's over there," she answered curtly jerking her head towards the doctors.
"I just wanted to thank you," he continued "I know you didn't want to go through with this..."
She ignored him and turned over on to her side. Seeing that he wasn't going to get anything else from her, Hizashi walked over to the doctors.
One of the doctors noticed him approaching and beamed at him.
"It's a girl, my Lord," she said holding out a bundle of blankets towards him. Without even asking if he was ready, she plopped the baby onto his arms.
For the first time, Hizashi looked down toward his sleeping child. As if sensing his presence, the little baby frowned before relaxing and snuggling deeper into Hizashi's arms towards the comforting warmth.
"Reiko-san, would you like to hold your daughter?" a doctor asked from beside Hizashi.
Shooting the doctor a nasty glare, Reiko replied, "I don't want to have anything to do with that bastard ever again."
"Reiko-san!" the doctor gasped in shook, what kind of mother would talk about their newborn like that?
"What, consider it a blessing that I even decided to carry her at all," the lady said shooting up into a sitting position. Without the permission of the doctors, she stood up and started to get ready. She shuffled towards a chair holding all her valuables then shuffled towards the door.
"Oh, by the way, Hizashi," she looked back before leaving "I hope that you fix all the loose ends here. I would hate to be responsible for another one of you decisions years down the line"
And before Hizashi could even process what she meant, Reiko had left.
The nurses and doctors who had all witnessed the scene stood around awkwardly. While they all wanted to comment on what had just happened, they also knew that the man they were supposed to help was the son of the clan head. Slowly, one by one, they all bowed to Hizashi and left the room.
Dumbfounded, Hizashi sat down on the bed the Reiko ran away from.
The sounds of gargling drew his attention downwards. His daughter had finally woken up and was looked up at him. As she made eye contact with him, Hizashi's daughter scrunched her nose. Hizashi stared back at the baby, hoping that she wouldn't start crying. However, instead of crying the baby saw her father's startled expression and smiled.
Unconsciously, a smile took place ok Hizashi's own face.
"What are we going to do Kyoko?" he whispers lovingly, stroking her face.