At last. It was a soft, soundless atmosphere. We were watching our two babies, a boy and a girl, snoozing in their matching blue and pink baby onesies every hospital gives to any and every newborn. I stared down in awe as the boy wriggled in her blanket wrapped uniform with her face scrunched up while the girl yawned serenely.
"They're ours." Phil whispered. I looked at him to see if he was talking to me but he wasn't; he looking at our babies with a mix of fear and awe that was tearing up his very proud, colorful eyes. I smiled and wrapped a hand around his waist before pulling him close.
"We're Dads." I whispered back, hugging him with the one arm. He rested his head on my shoulder. But then shifted and faced me. I tore my gaze away from our children to see what he wanted.
"I'm Papa" He pointed to his chest with one shaky finger "and you're Daddy," He touched my chest with the same, unsteady finger. "Sir and don't you forget it." He enunciated every with a prod to the chest. I grinned but dared not to laugh (I was still on probation).
"Whatever you say, Papa." I shook my head before I kissed the love of my life. Why I had ever left? Even I would never know. What had I been afraid of? Fatherhood? Spending the rest of my life with the man I loved? Going to football matches, ballet practices and PTA meetings? Why wouldn't I want that?
"Have you two thought of any names?" Nadia asked, placing a hand on my shoulder to announce her presence. I looked to Phil for help. Had he already come up with names while I was gone? Was it too late to add input? Was my son's name going to be Striker? Was my daughter's Susan 3? He smiled to Nadia.
"We're going to decide right now." He stated pulling out his phone and going straight to the notes app.
"I get a say?" I questioned when Nadia left to check on Jennifer.
"Yeah, Dan, just because you left doesn't mean you don't get a say." Phil announced, scrolling until he found the right note. "Okay," He pointed to the boy "Cornelius Winston Howlter." He looked to me for approval.
"Love it." I stated, egged him on to go on. Then he pointed to the girl
"Annabelle Periwinkle."
"Periwinkle?" I gave him my 'are you serious, Phil' look that had use to send fan girls in a titter.
"I thought it was pretty." He shot his hands up into a defensive, 'come on, it's good' gesture that matched my look perfectly.
"Phil, honey, I'm not having my daughter named after a colour. Not even her middle name. Do you have anything else?" He gave me an anger 'I'll fill your bed with bees' look before scrolling again.
"Belle Anne, Sara Belle, Michelle Susan, Susan Anne Michelle…" The list went on and on but it was just a mix of the same four names.
"I'm sensing a theme." I said once he finally finished. "But I feel that Cornelius couldn't have any other name; it just fits." I gesture to our sleeping boy then back to our unnamed girl. "None of those names seem to fit her."
"You're right." Phil agreed and slipped his locked phone into his pocket. We are quiet for a long while before PJ decided to join us.
"How's Jennifer?" was the first thing out of Phil's mouth while the first thing out of mine's was
"We have a problem." PJ looked taken aback then answered both comments gracefully.
"Jennifer's fine, she's just resting now. Now what seems to be the problem, my gents?" No wonder he had a job as a director but business had been slow over the last few months plus with Jennifer, he had needed a break.
"We've named our son." Phil began.
"Meet Cornelius Winston." I butted in. PJ nodded to the little blue wrapped figure in the plastic bed.
"Nice to meet you, Cornelius." PJ greeted before Phil continued.
"And now we can't name our girl!" He seems stressed and frustrated. "I mean, it came so easy to name him. But I'm not good with girl names!"
"You know who might be good with girl names?" PJ asked causing Phil to pause. "A girl."
"Jennifer?" PJ asked softly next to Jennifer's bed before placing a hand to her shoulder. "Jennifer." He prompted again even more softly as she began to stir.
"What?" She snared, upset to be awoken yet again. Apparently, nurses have to wake you up every half an hour or so to check up on you and to make sure you're okay after you give birth.
"Dan and Phil have named their boy Cornelius Winston, but they're having trouble picking out a name for their little girl since they have no idea what good girl names sound like."
"Hey!" I interrupted, offended and slightly hurt.
"Honey, it's true." Phil reminded me.
"Well, you don't have to be so crass about it…" I mumbled.
"Anyways, since you're a girl; do you have any ideas?" PJ humbly requested of Jennifer.
"Well, I do have two sets of names but you're not allowed to use them in the same order I say them because I've had these names picked out for years, damn it." She was beyond tried but she still had that fire that I secretly hoped and feared that our children would be blessed with.
"Fine." Phil said. "What are they?" he asked desperately.
"Lilly Michelle and Veronica Jade." Jennifer stated with the utmost pride and honor I had ever heard from her.
"Wow, you know you're stuff." I thought aloud in awe as she shifted then was asleep again without knowing that she had just given us the tools to our little girl's name.
"Have you decided a name for your girl then?" Nadia asked, scribbling Cornelius's name on a sheet of official paper that he would need for the rest of his life.
"Yes we do." Phil smiled as he handed her over to me. I was so terrified of breaking her that I was shaking but with his arms let go and all that barely-even-there weight was entirely under my support; I knew she was going to be Daddy Dan's little princess forever. "Her name is…"
"Susan Annabelle." I finished for Phil before I could stop myself. Phil scowled at me as Nadia wrote on her official document, but I ignored Phil and continued to stare at my tiny baby girl.
"Cornelius Winston and Susan Annabelle." Nadia stated when she was done; by now, Phil had picked up Cornelius and we were rocking our babies in sync. "Unusual names, but I'd say they fit this unusual family perfectly." I looked up to smile at Nadia just as PJ rolled Jennifer into the room in a wheelchair.
"I guess you're right." I muttered to myself as we introduced our little family to their mother and accepted uncle.
"And that kids, is the story of how you two came to be." I announced to Cornelius and Susan at their birthday/graduation party, eighteen years later. "Yes, there were many ups and downs." The guests laughed and awed at the baby pictures playing on the screen behind me as I spoke but I was only looking at the small family in front of me.
My husband, Phil, smiling and shaking his head at the memories. Even though eighteen years have flown by, he still looks as beautiful as he had on that day eighteen years ago in the morning light as the sun crept into the hospital room to greet our newborns for the first time.
My beautiful daughter, Susan, is blushing and pushes back a long piece of black, wavy hair while avoiding eye contact with her bright, hazel, brown, blue, yellow, green eyes for if she does look at me, she knows she'll burst into tears and ruin the makeup she worked so hard to craft on her face. I know she will win many awards as a great makeup artist for Broadway musicals and plays.
My handsome son, Cornelius, is trying not to cry as he sniffs loudly with his beak-like nose. He wipes his nose on the sleeve of his so dark of a blue that it's nearly black tux, but the black bow tie proves to onlookers that it is indeed, blue. His straight, black hair gets in his blue eyes but he shakes the strands away, he looks up with those same striking eyes and mouths 'Thanks Dad.' He isn't usually the emotional type. I pray that his football team doesn't see him, or they'll never let him live it down in college. But he'd kick their asses every time they'd bring it up.
The twins' mother, Jennifer, is holding hands with her husband, PJ. She is in a rose dress that suits her while PJ is in a black tux with a matching ascot. Although, he'd look better with an eye matching coloured ascot. But he had refused to not match his wife on such an important day. She rests her head on his shoulder, as she recalls the fatigue she experienced so long ago. PJ, just kissed her hand as he had on the first morning for the twins, and as he had on their wedding day not too long after the twins' first day. Besides them are their thirteen year old, twin girls.
Lilly Michelle, who has half her head shaved while the other half is a curly, brown shoulder length hair that most girls would envy. Her eyes are PJ's shocking sea green that stand out thanks to the mint flowy, dress that Susan has lent to her for the occasion. But she still wears her iconic leather jacket, just to prove she's not too girly. She wants to move in with Susan the first chance she gets. But for now, schooling at an all-girls boarding school is the only thing her parents are allowing her to do.
Veronica Jade's straight as a bone, auburn hair has been braided and decorated with small, white rose buds that match her white, trendy dress. The white makes her brown eyes really pop for unknown, magical purposes. She'd make an excellent director just like her father, or a writer, also like her father.
And the youngest of our nutty family, Jack Kline, age ten, is fumbling with his dark green bow tie which matches his eyes. His brown hair was recently buzzed cut by his sister Lilly once he saw what she was doing, he had wanted in on the action. It's still hard to tell what Jack wants to do or be. But he still has time to figure it all out.
And I, Dan, stand before them, sometimes I was the glue keeping the family together, and sometimes I was the tear keeping everyone apart, but we all got through it one way or another until this day. This day, the last day that the twins are under our united control. Tomorrow, they'd be free to do as they pleased. But they'd most likely roam the house, unsure what to do and end up being on the internet all day long. Like father, like son I suppose. I shake my head as I realize I've been standing for the last five minutes not saying anything until Phil clears his throat, recalling me back to reality.
"What? Oh yes," Then I raised my glass "To Cornelius and Susan, and the bright future that stretches out before you. We all know you will pick the path that fits you best. To the future!" I call out to the crowd that is seated before me.
"To the future." They reply back and we all take a swig of our choice of beverages in our glasses. As I lower my glass, I see Cornelius hasn't drank but has in fact, remained motionless with his glass still aloft and a blank stare that hits the floor but looks farther than that. It is not a look but a feeling. A feeling that I have come to know, recognize, and sometimes, welcome: the extensional crisis. It is his first, judging by the absolute dread in his eyes. I sigh as I sit down next to him. "Here we go."