Chapter Text
Hunter sat there in shock. Tears flowed down his face, as Willow giggled lovingly at the tiny little witch in her arms.
“ She looks so much like you… She has your nose- your ears- your hair..! I think she might have your little hair strand too! And look at those pretty blue eyes! “
She was crying, too. Yet, her tears didn’t have the same reasoning as her husband’s.
“ I’m… I’m going to go to the bathroom. “
He muttered, getting up and leaving. He went for a few laps around the hospital, trying to breathe. Fuck… Fuck. Everywhere he looks, all he can see is them. This should be one of the happiest days of his life. He and Willow just had their first child! But all he could see when he looked at her- and now in these halls- was Caleb and Philip.
He shut his eyes tight, as he slid against a wall until he sat. He breathed, the gap between his teeth whistling. He counted on his fingers, taking way more breaths than he usually had to.
He has to go back. He can’t leave his family- he won’t. He has to be a good father. As much as it hurts him, he can’t go. He’s done running away. He’s done being a coward.
He breathed some more, before slowly getting up. He got two waters; one for him and one for Willow. And he tried to ignore Caleb stalking the halls, alongside multiple versions of Philip taunting him.
Once he got to Willow’s room, he shut the door and his kin went away. He smiled strainingly, sitting down next to his wife. He kissed her and wiped away her tears, handing her one of the waters. In return, he took his baby. He cradled her close and slow, smiling a little more genuinely. She didn’t have his eyes. But otherwise? She looked a lot like him. Maybe this would be fine. Maybe he was overreacting.
“ I love you, Ren. “