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“I know you have the reputation for being late, but man this might be pushing it,” Dig said as soon as Oliver slipped on the passenger seat.
“I was supposed to be on time,” Oliver groaned, rubbing his forehead in frustration. “Do you have any news?”
“Nope. Don’t worry. Lyla and Donna are with her, everything is going fine. Weren’t you on the phone with her?”
“Yes but then she… there was a lot of expletives and the sound of something being thrown… some screams from the doctor and… hum… she said…”
“She said?”
“Something that sounded like ‘Oliver Jonas Queen if you don’t get your ass here in the next ten minutes I’m chopping off your balls and feeding them to the dog’.”
“You don’t have a dog.”
“That’s what I said. Which I shouldn’t have apparently because she then threw the phone against a wall,” Oliver mumbled sheepishly, glancing at his friend. “That was seventeen minutes ago. I’m screwed, right?”
“Oh yes… you are.”
Traffic was smooth and as soon as they made it to the hospital, Oliver jumped out of the car, running inside. Thea was waiting for him, nervously biting her nails at the entrance of the maternity ward.”Ollie!” she exclaimed as soon as she saw him.
“I know, Speedy, where is Felicity? Is she OK? Am I too late?” he rushed to say, following her to a room.
“Here. Yes. And hell yes!” Thea groaned, shoving him through the door.
His shoulders slumped when he saw Felicity lying underneath blankets in her bed, absolutely and completely focused on the small bundle of joy she was cradling in her arms.
He had missed it. He had missed his child’s birth. That one moment in a lifetime… and he had missed it because of some bad signal in a stupid factory he was visiting. He had always thought that if something like that was to happen it would be because of the Arrow business… certainly not his day job. And yet here he was, staring at Felicity, his wife and now the mother of his child. And he hadn’t been there for her. Exhaling, his throat tight, he whispered, “Honey, I’m so sorry.”
Felicity sniffled, glancing at him, her finger stroking a pink, chubby cheek. “She is perfect, Oliver.”
“She? It’s a girl?” he grinned, his steps automatically taking him to where the two most important girls of his life were.
“Yes. We have a daughter. Healthy, strong and perfect,” Felicity assured him while Lyla and Donna were leaving the room to give them some privacy.
Blinking, Oliver delicately sat down next to his wife, his eyes glued to the tiny human being she was holding. A small nose that screamed Felicity. Lips that looked just like his.
This… this was them. A little bit of each of them for a whole lot of perfection.
“Can I…?” he asked, his arms desperate to hold his daughter. His heart full of love, all he could think about was holding her in his arms, and protect her and keep her safe for the rest of her life. They had waited for her for so long, he needed to know she was real, there, with them.
“Yes,” Felicity smiled as she carefully handed him their child.
His hands were shaking but he knew, deep down in his heart, that he’d never let anything happen to her. As long as he was breathing, his baby girl would be safe. He was surprised by how light she felt in his arms, her tiny body fitting so perfectly in his embrace. Her little face instinctively turned to nuzzle his chest, her tiny fist peeking from underneath the blanket. His index finger found her hand and she gripped it tightly with a little wail. Grinning, he glanced at Felicity who smiled softly, her hand now resting protectively over their daughter’s head. His heart was full of so many emotions that he honestly didn’t know how he felt anymore. Love. There was so much love, it was literally bursting out of him. Tenderness, fear, gratefulness, hope.
He felt his wife snuggling against him as they both gazed at what they had created out of love.
A miracle. Seeing how far they had come, their daughter was a miracle.
He let himself savor those moments, those precious minutes that he knew he’d remember for the rest of his life. They were a family now. A real family.
His family.
Pressing a soft kiss on her forehead, he whispered those three little words he had often thought he’d never get to say.
“My beautiful girl.”
The End.