But June stopped me. She squeezed my hand, her face pale.
I knew that look. She meant it.
So I kissed her forehead, nodded, and let them take her.
I waited outside, pacing while our families sat nearby. I couldn’t bring myself to sit. I kept checking my phone even though no one had messaged me. Each time a nurse passed, my hands shook. I hated the uncertainty, hated not being with her.
Behind the double doors came muted sounds—beeping monitors, hurried voices, the quiet tension of something sacred and fragile unfolding.
Then a cry.
A single, sharp wail.
Our baby’s first cry.
I froze. My knees nearly gave out as I leaned against the wall, breath catching like I’d just come up for air.
“The baby is here,” I whispered. “Our baby is really here.”
For the first time that night, I believed everything might be okay.
Then June screamed.
“That’s not my baby! That’s not my baby!”
“Did she just say—?”
I didn’t wait. I pushed through the doors before anyone could stop me.
Inside, the air felt too still, almost heavy. June lay trembling, pale and drenched in sweat, eyes wide as if she had just witnessed something she couldn’t comprehend.
A nurse beside her held the newborn, the umbilical cord still attached. Another whispered nearby, both of them clearly shaken.
“Ma’am,” one said softly. “This is your baby… She’s still attached to you.”
June shook her head as tears streamed down her face.
“No,” she cried. “You don’t understand! Tony! That’s not— that’s not mine!”
Everything went silent.
I rushed to her side. Her hand was icy and trembling.
“June,” I said, crouching beside her. “I’m here. Talk to me, my love. What’s going on?”
But she didn’t look at me—she stared at the baby, terrified, like she saw a stranger instead of the child she’d carried.
I turned slowly, afraid of what I might see.
The baby was crying softly now, her skin flushed red, face scrunched, tiny limbs twitching beneath a pale pink blanket. She was so small, fists clenched, chest rising and falling in quick breaths.
She was beautiful.
“She’s perfect,” I whispered. Then I looked toward Dr. Lowe, calm at the foot of the bed.
“Is she… is she healthy?” I asked.
He offered a gentle smile.
“She’s perfectly healthy. Strong lungs, steady heartbeat. No complications. Congratulations, Dad.”
Relief washed over me. But when I looked back at June, her expression stunned me.
She wasn’t relieved. She was trembling, gripping the sheets, her eyes filled with something between grief and guilt.
“I thought it would be a boy,” she whispered.
“What?”
“I thought… I thought it was a boy. I believed it. I felt it. I know we agreed to let it be a surprise… but we should have just had the sex revealed, Anthony.”
“You never said anything,” I said gently.
She looked away, ashamed.
“I didn’t want to get ahead of myself. But I bought little blue onesies. Toy cars. Tony, I even picked out a name.”
“Why, June? Why were you so sure?” I asked, still holding her hand.
She turned back to me, and this time I saw it clearly—the real reason. It wasn’t disappointment.
It was fear.
“Because it’s easier for boys,” she said, voice cracking. “Because I don’t want her to go through what I did. I don’t want her to be scared, Anthony. I don’t want her to feel powerless. And I sure as hell don’t want her to grow up thinking her body is a weapon, or a target.”
In that moment, I understood. She wasn’t seeing our daughter. She was seeing herself.
I held her hand tighter.
“She’s not you, June,” I told her softly. “And you’re not who you used to be. We’ll raise her to be strong. We’ll teach her she has power. We’ll make sure she knows it. And if anyone ever tries to hurt her… they’ll have to go through me first.”
But inside, a whisper of doubt lingered—What if I fail? What if I can’t protect her?
June let out a breath that sounded like half a sob, half a laugh. Her eyes searched mine with a vulnerability I’d never seen.
“Do you promise?” she whispered. “Do you promise you’ll love her just as much as if she were a boy?”
“I already do,” I said. “I’ve adored her since the moment you told me you were pregnant.”
She leaned into me, pressing her forehead against my collarbone, gripping my shirt like she needed to borrow my strength.
When she finally steadied, I looked toward the nurse.
“Can we… can we hold our baby now?”
The nurse smiled and placed the baby in my arms. She was impossibly light, warm, and so very real. I memorized every detail—every crease, every flutter, every sound.
I turned to June.
“Here,” I murmured. “Meet our daughter.”
June hesitated, then slowly reached for her. Her arms trembled, but she didn’t pull back. When the baby settled into her embrace, June looked at her like she was something holy.
“Hi, sweetheart,” she whispered. “I’m your mom.”
Her voice broke. Tears fell. But she smiled through them.
We named her Victoria—Tori.
“Because she’s going to win,” June said. “No matter what.”
Tori is six months old now. She laughs whenever she hears June’s voice and screams theatrically if a car ride goes longer than ten minutes. She grips everything—her toys, our fingers, especially June’s. Sometimes it feels like she already knows exactly who her anchor is.
She’s fearless, loud, curious, and beautiful—June’s fire wrapped in softness.
One night, I passed the nursery and noticed the cracked door. Inside, June stood by the crib, swaying gently with her hand on the railing. Tori slept with her arms stretched overhead, as though claiming the entire bed. The nightlight cast a warm golden glow over them.
I paused, not wanting to interrupt.
“I’m sorry about that day,” June whispered. “You did nothing wrong, sweetheart. You were perfect. You are perfect.”
Tori stirred but didn’t wake.
“I was just scared, my darling,” June continued softly. “Not of you. But of me. And all the things I was still carrying.”
She traced her fingertip along Tori’s cheek.
“My father always told me he’d have been prouder if I’d been a boy. I heard it more times than I can count. He said it when I cried. When I got the best grades. When I asked for help—and when I didn’t. It made me believe being a girl meant being not quite enough…”
She sighed.
“I remember scraping my knee once, and he told me to stop crying like a girl. As if that was the worst thing I could be.”
The breath left my chest. She had never told me that.
“I didn’t want to do that to you,” she whispered. “I didn’t want to pass that shame down to my baby girl. So when they said you were a girl, I panicked. I thought I’d ruin you.”
She leaned down and kissed Tori’s forehead.
“But I won’t,” she said. “I’ll walk beside you through every hallway. I’ll be there when men make you feel small or confused or like you need to shrink to stay safe. You’ll never wonder if you’re enough. You’ll know.”
She straightened, voice quivering.
“Your dad will protect us both, Victoria. I know he will. He always has.”
I stepped away from the door, heart full and aching.
Because she was right.
I will. Always.
Source: amomama.com
Note: This story is a work of fiction inspired by real events. Names, characters, and details have been altered. Any resemblance is coincidental. The author and publisher disclaim accuracy, liability, and responsibility for interpretations or reliance. All images are for illustration purposes only.
