Rafael walked through the hospital’s quiet night corridors with a numbness in his chest. The antiseptic smell was sharp, fluorescent lights humming overhead like too many eyes. He pushed past the automatic doors of the maternity wing, clutching his phone, his heart full of hope.His hand shook slightly. The new life waiting inside, the baby’s first cries–he’d imagined it all. He had practiced the words he would say to the new born. He reached for the room number on his phone’s screen. His boots made soft thuds on the tiles, each step echoing. Nurses with soft voices passed by, pushing carts, closing curtains around beds and speaking in hushed tones.The lullaby of monitors and ventilators in the distance, the occasional call over a PA system–“Stat to Room 16, Stat to Room 16,” “Need a nurse in pediatrics”–all signs he was close. He opened the door, expecting the smell of new skin, clean blankets, soft cries, the glow of a mother’s tired joy. Instead, he froze.There in a bed marked by
Last Updated : 2025-10-17 Read more