Sean left late in the night, when he had insisted Sally get some sleep. He was right — she needed the rest, even if she didn’t want it. Sean promised he’d be back first thing the next morning, and he was true to his word.
‘What do you think he’s going to be like?’ he said, picking at the bowl of grapes by Sally’s bed.
‘Who?’ Sally said.
‘The baby. Who else?’
‘Who said it’s going to be a he?’
Sean shrugged, and popped another grape into his mouth. ‘I dunno. It just seems… right.’
Sally didn’t argue, because she agreed with him. She couldn’t quite remember, but she was sure Mikhail had referred to the baby as he, too. ‘I don’t know,’ she said. ‘As long as he’s healthy, I guess I’m happy.’
‘But you must wonder what all this means? What he’s going to be capable of? What he’s going to do?’
‘I suppose. But there’s no point guessing for now. I’ll just take it as it comes, with an open mind. Best to wait and see rather than fill my head so full of thoughts I miss it when it happens.’
Sean gave her a look that made her blush, something like admiration. ‘You’re a wise women, Sally Fisher,’ he said.
Two days later, and the doctor deemed Sally well enough to leave. The thought of entering the wide world again filled her with trepidation, but not because she was scared of it, not quite — she was scared of normality, of sinking back into the routine that had left her cold and alone for so much of her life. The hospital had been something of a sanctuary, a purgatory that blurred the line between life up there and life down here. She stroked her abdomen, which made her smile. She had nothing to be afraid of, not anymore.
‘Are you okay?’ Sean asked, holding the door open for her.
‘Yes, I am,’ she said. ‘I’m more than okay. I’m the best I’ve ever been in my entire life.’
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