Chapter 56

The rain was falling heavily outside the window and she automatically pulled her knees closer to her chest. How typical for it to be raining on a day like this. Oddly enough, she had been looking forward to this day, wanting to meet the miniature Liz so badly, but right now she was wishing that Liz had never gotten pregnant. She practically jumped when someone's hand touched the top of her head.
"God," she sighed when she realized who it was. "Stop sneaking up on people, Michael!"
"I brought you coffee," Michael answered, sidestepping around her remark. There were many sentences he could retort with, but considering Maria's current emotional state he decided to try and be civil. It was a challenge, but he was confident that he could do it.
"I don't feel like coffee," Maria murmured.
Michael shrugged. If she didn't want his coffee, fine with him. Putting the paper cups on the floor next to the window he plopped down opposite her on the windowsill.
"So, when are we going home?"
Maria glared at him, which made him narrow his eyes. "What?"

Sighing exasperatedly, she turned to look out the window again, completely ignoring him.
"Look, visiting hours ended like one hour ago, there's no need to stick around. You won't be able to see her until tomorrow anyway."
He was tired, worn-down by recent events, having gone through the shock of his life while trying, to his best knowledge, to take care of Liz, and he just wanted to go home and get a nice night's sleep.
"So leave," Maria said.
Staring at her profile, Michael struggled to keep his temper in check. But the hours had been too long; the dramas had stretched him too thin. "Fine."
Standing up, he ripped his jacket off the back of a nearby plastic chair and stormed off.
With his departure, her tears started to fall, her crying face soon matching the wet surface of the windowpane.

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Three hours earlier

He could feel the penetrating gaze of Mr. Parker when he stepped into the room. For some reason, the gaze made him feel like seventeen again, when he had been caught trying to sneak into the house during the early morning hours. But Liz's parents were quickly forgotten when he caught sight of her. More now than before, he was struck by how small she looked in that hospital bed. Vulnerable and tired. Her eyes were closed and he walked up to the bed, slowly, as if afraid of disturbing the sleep the circles under her eyes told that she was in dire need of. He soundlessly pulled up one of the wooden chairs to the bed, and carefully took her hand in his. At that moment, it was only him and her. No nurses. No doctors. No parents. No child. Just Max and Liz. Warm tears floated down the surface of the back of her hand when he tenderly kissed it, mistrusting the hope inside of him, making him tremble slightly.
"Max…"
He smiled at her as she whispered his name and then slowly blinked her eyes open.
"Hey beautiful."
She returned a weak reflection of his smile.
"How are you feeling?"
"Tired," she answered, her smile lingering while her eyes were already drifting closed again.
"You get some sleep then," Max said.
She gave a miniscule nod in agreement and her head rolled slightly to the side as the medication and lack of energy from the ordeal pulled her back to a state of unconsciousness.

Max looked up at Jeff and Nancy, feeling as if they were blaming him for putting their daughter in that hospital bed. In a way, he couldn't blame them. He was partly to be held responsible. If he hadn't gotten Liz pregnant, they wouldn't have been here today.
"How's the baby?"
Max only partly managed to hide his surprise at Nancy's soft question. He had recognized their list of priorities from when they had rushed into the hospital, with only their daughter on their mind. He had recognized that list because his list had looked similar. His initial need to watch over Liz had smothered the urgency to visit his newborn baby girl.
He offered them a trying smile. "She's beautiful. Looks just like Liz."
Tears started to flow down Nancy's cheeks and she smiled through the wet curtain. "Is everything okay with her?"
Max nodded. "She's slightly small for her age, but her organs seem well developed."
"I'm sorry."
The teary, desperate apology made all three adults turn their heads towards Liz, who was now looking at them with wide-open eyes. But her flickering gaze eventually landed on Max, repeating her plea for absolution. "I'm sorry, Max."

Max hushed her, squeezing her hand tighter while his other hand brushed the hair away from her forehead. "What are you talking about, Liz? You have nothing to be sorry about."
"I failed her. I was meant to take care of her and protect her and I failed her." Max was shaking his head in disagreement, but Liz continued. "If I hadn't been so stubborn about helping to unpack. If I had only listened to you, she wouldn't have been born this early."
"Liz," Max said sharply. Her words trailed off and her red-brimmed eyes looked up at him. "We were aware of the risks when we decided to keep the baby. We did everything we could to help the pregnancy. There was nothing more we could do. According to the doctors, it's more common in your situation that babies are born much earlier. You did everything right, Lizzie."
"I let you down," Liz whispered.
"No, no," he kissed her forehead, fighting his own tears. "You could never let me down. You amaze me every day, Liz Parker. After everything you've been through, you still have the energy to do this. I was so scared that you…that you would die." Tears now flowing freely down his cheeks, Max cradled her cheek in his hand. "Don't scare me like that again."
She smiled weakly, kissing the skin of his palm.
"Is she… is she…"
Max smiled reassuringly at her. "She's beautiful, Liz. She's a miracle."
Liz nodded, her smile making her tears shine brightly in her eyes. "Looks just like me, huh?"
"Yep, just like you."

"Max, meet your daughter."
Max looked through the plastic walls of the incubator, his breath caught in apprehension. Miranda was tiny, the small diaper they had put on her seemed almost ridiculously small. She had her eyes closed, her arms aligned along her bare body. Plastic tubes were attached to her nostrils and running across her pink cheeks to supply her with extra oxygen. Electrodes were attached to her chest to monitor her heart rate and blood pressure, and tubes were coming out of her miniscule arms to facilitate blood sampling. But Max saw past all medical equipment and took a close look at his daughter. And he smiled. For the first time since Michael had called him to tell him that Liz was in labor and that he better hurry back, he felt somewhat relieved. Their daughter, the child they had been certain would most probably not survive, was right in front of him; breathing and alive.
"Would you like to touch her?"
Max tore his eyes away from Miranda and looked at the nurse, nodding with dumbfounded excitement. Nurse Anna smiled at him and pointed towards a sink. "You need to wash your hands thoroughly first so that you don't bring any bacteria or viruses into the incubator. Her immune system is not that strong yet."

It was with trembling hands and tears blurring his vision that, two minutes later, he pushed his hands through the round holes. Seeing his hesitation and the way his hands were trembling, Anna smiled softly, a smile completely lost on Max as his complete attention was on the little girl.
"It's okay. You can touch her."
The interior of the incubator was warm, helping Miranda to sustain a normal body temperature. Tentatively, Max brushed his fingers against the calf of Miranda's right leg. The mixed sensations of her very soft skin and the realization that her calf was about the same size as his index finger caused his accumulating tears to overflow and venture down his cheeks.
"Hey honey, it's daddy."
Anna's smile broadened as she watched the young man lean over the incubator and talk to his baby girl.
"You sure made a dramatic entrance."

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She woke up from something brushing against her arm and she instantaneously became aware of the numbed state of her legs.
"God," she murmured and stretched her legs, letting the blood flood back into her limbs, causing her to wince in pain at the prickling sensation.
"Hey," a soft voice said above her head and she looked up at the person who was responsible for disrupting her weak slumber. He was the most disheveled she'd ever seen him. His hair was pointing in various directions, his clothes were wrinkled, several of the buttons at the top of his shirt unbuttoned, and his face held a ghostly pallor.
"Hey yourself," Maria mumbled, straightening her legs some more, trying to rouse herself from the heavy weight of sleep.
"Coffee?"
She looked at the paper cup he was offering, the tendrils of warm coffee smell teasing her nose. What's up with hospitals and coffee? she wondered silently.
Accepting the cup, she gave him a weak smile. "Thanks."
He sat down on the edge of the armchair opposite hers, rubbing his eyes tiredly. His actions drew Maria's attention to the dark purple circles under his eyes.
"You should get some sleep."
Max shrugged. "I'm not tired."
Maria nodded, her eyebrows raised. "Ah." Carefully, she tasted the hot liquid. Scrunching her nose in mild distaste, she put the cup to the side on the small wooden table.
"Did you come from Liz's room?"
What a stupid question, she realized as soon as she had uttered the words. It was very likely that he came from Liz's room.

His answer surprised her. "No, Miranda."
"Oh." Licking her dry lips, she pulled her legs under her body, causing her to sit up straighter. "How is she?"
"Do you want to meet her?"
She stared at him with something akin to fear. "No…no… I couldn't."
"It's okay. As long as I give my approval, and you wash your hands and such, you're allowed in."
Maria smiled at him, the shock ebbing off. "Max, really. That's really sweet. But… I can't. It would just be weird, you know. I don't want to see Liz's baby before she has even seen her."
Max nodded. "Okay."
"But let me know when Liz has seen her, okay? I'm dying to meet Miranda."
Max offered a weak smile.
"How's Liz?"
The question had been burning on her tongue ever since Max woke her up. For some reason, she was afraid to ask, afraid to get bad news, but she couldn't hold herself back any longer.
"She's tired. Plus the medication they are giving her has a sedative in it."
"Okay…" Her heart was beating hard. She wanted so badly to visit Liz. Normally, by now she would have been in there, along with Liz's parents. That's how it had always been whenever Liz had been in the hospital during their whole friendship. But now was different. Max was here. She hadn't let her feelings of being pushed out of the way take a hold of her though, because she knew how important it was that Max was by Liz's side right now. Even though it slightly hurt, Liz had asked for Max when she had woken up, not Maria. That didn't stop her from desperately wanting to see Liz.

As if reading her mind, Max said, "She just fell asleep, but you can go in there if you want to. She wants to see you."
She didn't realize how much she actually cared about Liz needing her until Max uttered those words. Feeling her heart clench, she whispered. "Really?"
Max smiled at her, seeing the fearful hope in her eyes. "She loves you, Maria, and she misses you. She needs you as well. It doesn't matter how hard I try, some things she just won't discuss with me."
Maria laughed softly. "You just wouldn't understand anyway. No offense, Max, but you are after all just a man."
Max almost rolled his eyes at this, but decided against it. "Whatever."

TBC...