A Glimpse of Tomorrow
He can't keep still. His leg bounces up and down, fingers tracing the same path on the table for what feels like the thousandth time. His eyes keep sliding to the door, nervous energy thrumming through his body.
They said it would be alright, yet he can't keep the anxious thoughts at bay, treacherous what-ifs tumbling through his mind.
Finally, after what feels like an eternity, Falco stumbles through the door, face bright and glowing. "It's a healthy baby girl," he says, breathless. And Levi can't help the rush of air that leaves his lungs.
000
The sight before him is something precious, something raw. Gabi is sweaty and exhausted, her hair splayed in disarray across the pillow, but she's glowing. Falco huddles close to her on the bed, radiating the same pride. A smile tugs at the corners of Levi's mouth as he takes the bedside chair.
In the Underground, a child was nothing more than a burden, yet his mother kept him and fought for him until her last breath. And here, in this little sunlit room, smelling of soap and fresh linen, it's a blessing.
"Do you want to hold her?"
His hands tremble slightly as he takes the small bundle from Gabi. She's so warm and delicate - too delicate for someone like him. Someone so scarred and pieced together by jagged fragments.
"Hana." The name rolls off his tongue, filling the gentle quiet between them. Round, dark eyes flutter open, curiously staring into his. Tiny fingers close around his thumb. His vision blurs.
He - fuck.
"She's beautiful, isn't she," Falco whispers, and Gabi nods, intertwining their fingers as they press closer together.
Levi swallows, but words won't come. Something thick and aching lodges in his throat, trying its best to choke him. He doesn't know where to begin to find the right words, anyway. He can't look away from the small bundle cradled in his arms, his heartbeat echoing all the way to his fingertips. He takes a breath, and it shudders out of him. His next exhale lets the stinging tears overflow.
Levi remembers holding a baby bird once, so tiny, fragile, and warm. He recalls the horrors etched into the backs of his eyelids, mapped across his body. The world has been so cruel, and yet, here is this tiny being pressed against his chest - new life despite all the destruction and ruin the world has endured.
Hope, he thinks - it's hope for a better future.
It has been there for a while now, brightly and warmly nestled against his heart, as he watches the kids grow up, clinging to the young leaves of the newly planted trees, green and brittle. Oyankopon's smile, as they share a beer in the warm sunlight of his tiny backyard, reflects that hope, that warmth.
Salt coats his tongue, and his nose is stuffy. It's embarrassing, but he can't stop it now that it started. A warm palm rests on his back. Comforting and gentle. Levi shivers. "It's okay," Falco says, his voice low and a bit choked. "It's alright."
Levi sniffs, ugly and wet. So far removed from his usual control. It's unrefined and pathetic, yet somehow priceless all the same.
It takes a while, but he finally dares to look away - and knows Hana will still be there in his arms, and won't disappear. Two pairs of bright eyes meet his.
"Congratulations, you two," Levi says, after taking a moment to gather the words, ignoring the way his voice cracks in half as he speaks. "You'll make great parents."
Gabi smiles a soft, tired smile. "Thank you," Falco says, and then: "Bet you'll be the coolest 'uncle' she'll ever have." He grins.
Levi glances down at Hana and says nothing, but feels a quiet contentment nestled between his ribs, a smile tugging at his lips. "Just remember, I'm expecting some serious cleaning duty when she's older. You two could use a reminder now and then."
His comment is met with cheeky grins and an eye roll from Gabi.
Levi hadn't expected otherwise - these brats.