Seth's POV

"You're going to be okay." I said, carressing her cheek and pressing my forehead against her.

"I just want our baby safe." She said. Our. That word felt so good to hear. It made me feel like I was a part of their family now. It was no longer my baby. It was our baby now.

"You'll both be safe, all right?" I said, slightly pinching her cheek. "The baby will be out in no time. He'll be healthy and strong."

"He will." She forced a smile.

"And he'll be a handsome little man. I'm so excited to meet him."

"I'm excited too." She said in a low and slow voice. The general anesthesia they injected on her was starting to take effect. I kissed on the forehead and she shut her eyes.

"I love you." I said.

"Love you too..." She said in a whisper, almost inaudible.

And at that brief second, she lost conciousness. The doctor's asked me to leave the operating room. I waited in the hall outside the operating room. I couldn't sit still. There I was, pacing back and forth and back and forth. The whole time I felt like my heart was sinking to the pit of my stomach. My chest was racing and I was shaking like a fucking leaf. I silently prayed and hoped that Marian and the baby would get out of the operating room safe.

I called everyone I could call. From my friends to my parents. I needed someone to talk to, I needed some moral support. I talked to them and asked for their advice. They were all telling me to stay calm. My mother was shocked as she never knew Marian had been pregnant.

Two hours had past, which to me felt like eternity, when the doctor finally came out of the operating room.

"How's Marian?" I asked as soon as she stepped out of the operating room.

"The patient is still uncouncious, we'll have to wait 'til the general anesthesia wears off." She said. I was slightly relieved, like a weight had been lifted from my shoulder.

"Eh ang bata? Kamusta na?"

"It's a baby boy. He was born at exactly 11:26 in the evening, weighing 5lbs and 3 ounces. And he's a pretty big boy, malaki siya para sa isang premature baby."

I exhaled, feeling all the weight rise off me. I swear I got kind of teary eyed. I was just so glad they were both safe.

"Pwede ko ba silang makita?" I asked.

"Marian's in the recovery room, pwede mo siyang puntahan. Ang bata naman ay dinala sa NICU. He still needs to be incubated so we could regulate his temperature."

"But he'll be okay right?"

"They're running a few tests on him right now. You have nothing to worry about, it's just our protocol form premature babies." The doctor smiled before turning and leaving.

I went into the recovery room where I found Marian lying on the bed in her hospital gown. She was still unconcious just as the doctor said. I took her hand and brought it to my lips.

"Our baby's okay. The doctor said he's a big boy. Sabi ko naman sa'yo, magiging okay kayo ng baby. I won't let anything bad happen to the both of you." I interwind our fingers together and leaned in to kiss her on the lips.

I stayed there for more than half an hour, just watching her sleep and waiting for her to wake up. While I was sitting by her bed, a nurse came up to me and told me their were people waiting for me outside. Agad akong tumayo at lumabas muna sa recovery room.

I saw my mother and my father standing there. Mother wore a deep frown on her face and Dad's face was unreadable. I kind of regret calling them earlier.

"Why did you hide this from us?" Mom said in a serious tone. "Bakit ngayon lang namin ito nalaman?"

"You got someone pregnant and you never told us until now!" I could detect the anger in dad's controlled voice. "Ni hindi mo kami binalaan na magkakaapo na kami."

"It happened all too fast." I said. They didn't need to know he wasn't my biological son. Nobody needs to know. Ako na ang ama ng bata ngayon.

"You had alot of time, Seth! Ilang buwan mong itinago sa amin ito!" Mom shrilled.

"I only asked one thing, Seth! I told you that can fool around all you want but I don't want any bastard in our family. Didn't I tell you to always use protection? Goddammit!"

"Ikaw kasi kung anu-anong itinuturo mo sa anak mo." Mom said, hitting dad with her bag, thankfully turning her attention to dad.

"He's old enough to make his own decisions, Liza. Hindi mo mapipigilan 'yan, lalaki 'yan." Dad said.

I sighed. God, I shouldn't have called them. I was already stressed out and drained from everything that had happened this night.

"Kumusta na nga pala si Marian?" Mom asked, her face softening.

"She's inside, still unconcious but the doctor said she'll be fine." I answered.

"And the baby, is it a boy or a girl?" Dad asked.

"It's a boy. Premature lang ng isang buwan pero malusog naman daw."

"Oh dear." Mom said, putting her hand over her chest. "I hope he's okay. Can we see him?"

"He's in the NICU. I still haven't seen him myself but I'll ask the doctor."

We were given permission to go to the NICU where Pio was. The nurse took us there. My heart was thumping really loud with every step. I was finally going to see the baby. I had been dying to see him, I'd patiently waited for months for this day to come.

From the window of the NICU we could see a baby in an incubator wearing nothing but a diaper. He looked healthy, his skin was creamy and pinkish. My heart almost jumped from my chest the moment I saw him, even from a far. There was this strange feeling I couldn't explain. The emotions I was feeling were so powerful and overwhelming that it almost made me cry.

There was a tube attached to his nose and some wires taped on his chest to monitor his heartbeat and respiration. That little guy was a fighter and I couldn't be more proud of him.

Napasinghap ako. I tried to hold my tears back in as we were looking through the window. My dad gave me a pat on the back.

"I can't believe this. You're a father now." He said.

"God, he looks just like you when you were little!" Mom exclaimed. "Para akong nakatingin sa picture mo noong baby ka pa."

He looked just like me? That felt so good to hear. But then, don't all babies look the same?

The nurse from inside opened the door and let us in. Mom excitedly went in, almost running to the incubator.

"Seth, look at him. He's like a mini version of you." She said, losing her composed state and squealing like a little girl.

Lumapit ako sa incubator. Every step I took added to the loud pounding of my heart.

"He does look like you." My dad added as he stood next to my mother. His eyes were glowing in awe as he looked at the tiny baby. "He's a handsome little lad."

I stopped on the side of the incubator. He really was a handsome little boy. I'd always knew he'd be handsome. I watched the steady rising and falling of the baby's chest for a moment. My heart felt like it wanted to burst out of my chest. But my mind still couldn't quite absorb it.

"Can I touch him?" I asked the nurse.

Ngumiti ito at tumango.

I put my hands in the hole at side of the incubator. It felt warm in there. I touched his tiny fragile hand, the baby flinched in response. He grabbed one of my finger and wrapped his hand around it. I sucked in a breath. I couldn't believe he was here, all flesh and bones.

"Hi little guy." My voice was shaking as tears welled up my eyes. "I can't believe I'm holding you right now. I've been waiting for this day to come. You scared me, did you know that? Don't ever do that again. I promise, I'll do my best to be a good father to you. My very best."

He made little movements, as if he was stretching his arms and legs. I touched his little cheek. He slightly opened his eyes., and then he opened it a little wider for a brief instance before quickly closing it under the bright light. Nanlamig ang buong katawan ko sa nakita ko. It was as if someone had thrown a bucket full of ice on me. I was staring at pair of olive eyes, exactly the same ones as mine.