Fernando’s POVThe days seemed to be passing as quickly as summer rain, the kind that comes and goes in a flash. With preparations for formalizing the hospital's new board of directors, launching the integrated care center project, and reformulating various protocols, the days flew by at the hospital. And at home, the routine with the little troop could not even be called a routine; it was complete chaos, general mayhem that Melissa tried to control with each of their schedules and by starting to anticipate things like bottles or bath time before we had six sirens going off at full blast.But finally, the day of the cocktail party had arrived to announce the inauguration and raise funds and supporters for our center, whose annex building construction was already in full swing and would be completed soon."I am a little nervous," I told Melissa before we entered the hospital hall where the event was taking place."Nervous about what? You are already shining in this directorship. Your fa
Fernando’s POVAs soon as the clock struck six, I grabbed all my things and left my office at the hospital like lightning. I hurriedly said goodnight to Hannah; – she had been just as eager as me to get home lately, and she didn't even have adorable babies waiting for her. When I reached the elevator, Vincent was getting out and I pushed him back inside."If you want to talk to me, it's here and make it quick. I want to get back to my family," I warned him and he laughed."Look who's in a hurry!" Vincent smiled. "I just stopped by to see if you managed to look at that proposal I made.""The integrated care center for support to people with dementia and degenerative diseases and their families. Yes, I saw it and thought it was extraordinary. I got excited about it, passed it on to my uncle to take a look - I hope you don't mind, because I want to do something a bit bigger.""How much bigger?" He looked at me as if assessing my reaction."Instead of a wing, an annex building, with all ty
Melissa’s POVAfter the baptism, my parents went back to Bellwood. As much as I loved having them around, it was time to establish a routine with my family. Yes, I had a wonderful nanny who sometimes even put me to sleep, and I called her "Mary Poppins" because I was sure she had magical abilities. But she didn't sleep over and didn't work weekends unless I needed her to, because Fernando and I wanted to take care of our children at night. But not tonight!I had other plans. And it was also time to give the godparents their responsibilities. With the help of my "Mary Poppins", I dressed my babies up all cute, each one in a different color to make it easier. We put them all in the minivan my dad had given me, which was really a great idea, and went to see the godparents.My first stop was right there in the condo complex. My partner was off duty and would be the first to be attacked. He was sitting on the living room carpet playing with his kids, who were letting out those delicious lit
Melissa’s POVIt took a little longer for Alvaro to authorize the baptism, after all, Leona needed to get strong, and she did! My little one was a bit smaller than her siblings, but she was growing healthy, and I was impressed every day by her strength. Finally, the day had arrived, and we all gathered at Patrick's country house. The baptism would be there, under the same tree in front of the stream where he married Lexie.That place was beautiful and meaningful. And it had a tree! The best things in my life had happened under a tree. And a tree had perfect meaning for that moment; it meant life, growth, renewal, connection with the divine, everything we would celebrate there.We had planned a simple ceremony, and the priest agreed to perform the baptism there. But then again, that priest agreed with everything. He said that wherever the faithful wanted God's presence, God would be there, and he, as a servant of the Lord, went wherever the Lord sent him.Everything was decorated in whi
Patrick Guzman’s POVI looked around the room and felt privileged to have this big family we had built with so much love and such genuine friendship. Having little Leona finally home gave us the feeling that we were complete, even though there was always room to welcome someone else, like Enzo and Luna who were a constant presence among us and had already become a fundamental part of the group.For a long time, it was just Alexander, Henry, and me, sitting in some nightclub or bar, flirting with women who meant nothing more to us than one night. It was like that until Melissa and Catherine arrived and like two small hurricanes changed the entire order that existed before. Everything started to change with them. And it changed for the much better! They really pulled us out of the complacency we were in and gave us more than we could have imagined.Even my friendship with Flavian, which had grown distant, was rekindled because of them, and thanks to that, I had found again the woman who
Melissa’s POVLeona was finally going home, leaving the hospital after fighting the entire battle. She still needed extra care and would have closer monitoring, as Alvaro had explained to us, but she would grow up healthy and strong. My joy was complete. But there was a problem: when we got to the parking lot, we realized we didn't have a car seat since we hadn't expected Leona to be discharged. Fernando and I looked at each other, and neither of us felt confident enough to hold her on our laps during the ride home. The fear that something might happen if we didn't do everything perfectly still lingered."Excuse me!" Enzo appeared with a brand-new car seat, a huge red ribbon tied to it. "If you want, I can take her in my car, but since it's her first time going home, I imagine you'd want the honor.""You bought a car seat too?!" Fernando laughed. "Great, now we have an extra one.""You didn't have any in the car," Enzo shrugged. "Open up, let me install it. I read the entire manual."F