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"He's a healthy baby boy," Vanessa said. "He's full term, so maybe you got your initial dates wrong. He really grew a lot in the past month since you were last measured."
"I'm so glad."
The labor and delivery room was mine for the night and Luke stayed there with me, as did Leif.
We spent our first night together, meeting our new son much sooner and much faster than either of us ever imagined, but it all turned out well in the end.
I had just opened my eyes after sleeping for a few hours. I saw Luke holding Leif in his arms and on the wall beside him, the clock read three in the morning.
"How are you?"
"I'm fine. Have you slept at all?"
He shook his head. "Nope. Just getting to know my son." He smiled and glanced down at a sleeping Leif. "Imagine that -- my son."
"How is he doing?" I sat up in bed, very aware of some discomfort in my abdomen and groin.
"He's doing great. Vanessa showed me how to change his diaper before her shift was over. The new nurse is Krissy, and she's really nice, too. They said you were doing well, and if we want, we can go home after lunch tomorrow."
"So soon?"
"It's normal for new mothers to go home within twenty-four hours as long as there are no complications. So far, so good."
I adjusted myself in bed. "Can I hold him?"
"You sure can," Luke said and brought Leif over. He handed Leif to me and I took him in my arms and looked him over once more, amazed that this baby had been inside of me all that time. It was hard to believe.
"Should we go out to Westhampton or stay in town?" Luke asked.
I made a face. "Mom's coming and Candace, too. We spent all that time on the baby room..."
"I know, but we're closer to a hospital if we stay at the apartment. Maybe only for a few days, until you've had a few days to heal?"
I shook my head. "It takes six weeks to heal completely. I'll be fine. Long Island Community Hospital is close to Westhampton."
"Okay, if you're sure."
I nodded. "I'll feel better if we're at home. There's an ambulance that can take me to the hospital if anything happens."
With that settled, I tried to nurse little Leif when he started to fuss again. He searched out my breast, and Krissy said that newborns had a strong sense of smell and responded to breastmilk.
"It's a survival instinct," she said and smiled while she watched him sucking away.
Once we were finished, Luke took Leif back and changed his diaper once more. Then he sat down with Leif and just watched him.
"Are you going to let me hold him for a while or are we going to fight over him?" I asked, smiling at how eager Luke was to hold him.
"You had him for almost nine months. I get him for a while, okay?" He glanced up at me and grinned.
"He's all yours. Maybe I'll try to sleep again."
"You should."
So I did, falling asleep almost immediately, despite the lights and sounds of the hospital around me.
I woke once more a few hours later, and actually felt half decent. Leif was sleeping in his bassinet and Luke was asleep on his recliner. I sat up and saw Luke's cell on the tray table and unlocked it. I wanted to send my mother a message to let her know I was doing fine.
Of course, Luke had been busy messaging everyone we knew, posting pictures of Leif to Facebook and Instagram, so the word was already out that our baby had arrived, and all was well with us both.
