I savored the feel of his slight weight even though he was stiff against me. I inhaled deep, emotion threatening to take over, and smelled the shampoo from his hair. Same as his mom’s. Happiness was now in the mix of feelings.
My heart opened up and accept the boy into it without reserve.
I was a father to what I already knew was Noah the most lovable child in the universe. I internally promised to spend the rest of my life taking care of him and making sure he had everything he needed, most of all my love.
He would never doubt how much I loved him.
“He seems to be coming down with a stomach bug. I’m sure with a little medication and rest, he will be right as rain soon,” Veronica said. “I have placed the medicine Ms. Clarke keeps here for emergencies like this in the bag for you. I already gave him a dosage about thirty minutes ago. All you have to do is stick to the instructions on the bottle and everything will be fine. Don’t worry if he is drowsy. It is a normal side effect of the medicine. Plus he is likely tired from his body fighting the sickness.”
I nodded, eyes only for my child.
She handed me a bag decorated with cartoon characters and I shouldered it.
I buckled Noah into the backseat of my car a few minutes later. He was watching me with wide, unsure eyes. I didn’t even have a car seat. Did he need one? I had no idea.
“Where’s my mommy?” he asked.
I pushed his hair away from his forehead, the gesture unthinking. He stiffened initially but relaxed into my touch when I kept it gentle.
“I don’t know, bud. I would very much like to know that too. I’m going to take care of you until your mommy can come pick you up, though. We can watch movies and have a snack until she gets there. Would you like that?”
He nodded and told me, “I like Spiderman. He’s super cool.”
I put an expression of delighted shock on my face. “Yeah? So do I. We seem to have all the right things in common then. We’re going to have a great time together.”
He nodded as if I spoke a proven fact.
I couldn’t stop a genuine smile. The little guy was adorable.
He kept his eyes on me then surprisingly said, “I have seen a picture of you in my mommy’s room. She told me I would meet you one day. You look like me.”
My heart beat in an erratic pattern, racing one second then slowing down the next.
“Yeah?” I said.
“Yes,” he said matter-of-factly. “We should be friends.”
I didn’t know when was the last time I cried but I felt the telltale prick of tears in the corner of my eyes.
“I would like that every much,” I said, voice choked.
Once I got to my apartment, I settled Noah on the couch.
He was impressed by the size of my television and we located a channel playing cartoons.
I asked if he was hungry, having spotted a few snacks into his bag. He declined respectfully.
I offered him a glass of water after and he accepted. When I returned from the kitchen with the glass though, he had already curled up on the couch and fallen as
leep.
I pulled his shoes off and settled him into a more comfortable position before settling across from him.
I couldn’t take my eyes off him. They moved over, my brain trying to catalogue everything about him.
I called Hailey’s phone a few more times, pissed as hell I had a kid and had no clue about it.
Hailey had a lot to answer for when we saw each other.