by Len Webster
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Your donation and generosity will help them all tremendously.
To the people of Massachusetts, our daughter will grow up loving this amazing state just like her parents.
Thank you.
Evan Gilmore & Alexandra Parker.
To: Ester
From: Alex
Subject: My daughter
Dear Ester,
How are you? I am so sorry I am replying to your email so late and that my last one was so brief. Thank you so much for all your tips in the leadup to the birth of my daughter, Miller Clara Louise Gilmore.
She was born September 2nd at 1:02 a.m., and she is the most perfect little girl I have ever seen.
I named her after the most influential academic in my career who inspired me and encouraged my love for science, my high school physics teacher.
Evan is also doing great. He says hi, too.
I’ve been in hospital for four days due to some minor complications, but I’m fine. Today, we’re finally taking Miller home.
I’ve attached some photos of her for you to see.
Please let me know when you’re in Boston next. I’d love to have you come over for dinner.
Take care of yourself.
Love,
Alex.
To: Alex
From: Vincent
Subject: Congratulations, Alexandra.
Alexandra,
Congratulations on the birth of your beautiful daughter.
From everyone here at the Rodahawe Institute, we’d like to wish you the very best.
I know you will make a great mother, Alexandra. You and Evan will make amazing parents.
Please bring Miller with you to Zürich when she’s old enough to fly.
I would love to meet her.
Also, I have attached a copy of my upcoming results and have credited you as a contributor to the research. If it had not been for you and your formula, I would have not progressed with my research. It has been submitted to several journals and academics for peer review. I believe your report will impress more than enough to be published in journals.
I wish you the very best.
Your friend,
Vincent Rodahawe.
Landon: Congratulations, Massachusetts. You are going to be an amazing mother. Your daughter is beautiful. Please extend my congratulations to her father. I am so proud of you, Alex.
103Lr
lawrencium
ALEX
Now
“Okay, Miller,” Alex said as she unbuckled her daughter from the car seat. “Are you ready to see your home for the very first time?”
Her daughter moved her arms, eyes wide open. Alex’s heart melted at the sight of the mittens on her daughter’s hands. Mittens Alex’s grandmother had made for Miller. It had been four days since Alex had given birth, and she was finally allowed to take her daughter home. Her high blood pressure during and after childbirth meant Alex was in the hospital for much longer than planned. The doctors had also wanted to make sure her daughter was healthy after having been born two weeks early.
The hospital wasn’t so bad. Her family had visited every single day. Alex’s best friend, Savannah, had visited her the day of Miller’s birth but had to drive back to Vermont hours later. Savannah had cried when she met Miller for the first time and cried even harder when she had to leave to get home for her half day of work. But Savannah would be back in Boston to spend the weekend with her, Evan, and Miller. The only person who had yet to meet her daughter was her cousin Will who was currently away on business. Though he did see Miller in a video call Evan had with him the day after Miller was born.
Alex picked up her daughter and held her in her arms. “Don’t worry, Daddy isn’t too far away. You look very pretty in the outfit Grandma Clara picked out for you.”
“All right,” Evan said once he returned to her side. “The door’s unlocked, and the bags are inside. Have you got her?”
“I do,” Alex said as she carefully turned. “Do you want to walk her into the house?”
Evan flinched. “You want me to?”
“Well, yeah. You’re her father, and that is the home she’s going to grow up in. My mother said that when I was a baby, my dad was the first to walk me through my childhood home’s doors. She said it was a way of him promising me that in his house, I would always be loved and safe. I want her to feel that.” Alex stepped forward and handed him their daughter. “I want you to promise her the world like you did with me a long time ago.”
“I will,” Evan said as he stepped away from his car, and Alex closed the door. They walked toward the path that led to the steps.
Alex pulled out her phone from her jacket pocket and turned on the video. Pointing it on Evan, she recorded her boyfriend climbing the steps and pausing outside the front door. Alex heard him whisper before he used his free hand to push the door open. Then Evan entered the house, paused again, and then turned around. A smile wide on his face as he realized she was recording this moment.
Alex continued to record as she slowly climbed the steps, feeling the pressure and soreness in the lower half of her body. She was still recovering from giving birth, and Dr. Livingston said it would take some time before she felt like herself again. Her movements were slow and concentrated, but she finally made it up the steps unassisted. She stepped into the house and closed the door behind her before she stopped in front of her boyfriend. Alex lowered the phone to capture video of their daughter before she held the camera up at Evan.
“Welcome home, Miller,” Evan said, warming Alex’s heart.
Then Alex turned off the camera and shoved her phone into her pocket. “I can’t believe she’s finally home,” she said in awe as she took in her sleeping daughter.
“Should we put her in her crib?”
“Yeah. I fed her before we left the hospital so she should be okay for a little bit,” Alex said as she followed Evan up the stairs, down the hall, and to their daughter’s nursery.
The morning light brought different colored rays into the bedroom thanks to the stained-glass windows. They hadn’t needed a feature wall. Instead, the gray walls were the perfect background for the atomic numbered stained-glass panels. They would need a new one made with the one hundred and second element to mark the time their daughter was born.
Evan walked over to the crib, Alex standing right next to him, and he gently laid Miller on the mattress. They didn’t leave. Instead, they watched her sleep. Watched in awe at the life they created together. The life they’d love forever.
“Are you tired?” Evan asked in a soft voice as he held her hand in his.
She shook her head. “No. I think I want to watch her a little longer.”
A low laugh escaped him, and Evan kissed her temple. “We can watch her a little longer. I want to make sure the baby monitor is working properly, too.”
Alex released his hand, reached up, and turned on the planets mobile that dangled above her daughter. The planets orbited around the sun as a soothing melody played. Then she turned and wrapped her arms around Evan’s neck, loving the softness of his eyes and the love she saw in them.
“We need a new panel to mark her birth,” AJ said as she glanced down at their sleeping daughter.
“One hundred and two. Nobelium,” Evan noted.
She craned her neck and smiled at him, not at all surprised that he knew that Nobelium was the one hundred and second element. “That’s right. Nobelium. It’s perfect for her.”
Evan reached up and brushed her hair from her face. “It is?”
“It is,” she said as she unwrapped her arms around him, then turned and pressed her palms on the crib. “Nobelium was named after Alfred Nobel. He invented dynamite and was the founder of the Nobel Prizes. He was a b
enefactor to science and, in turn, supported many scientists, their dreams, and the future. And well, she’s my Nobel Prize. My purpose.” Then she turned and circled her arms back around Evan’s neck. “And so are you. I’d do it all again.”
He tilted his head at her. “You would?”
She nodded. “For her, I’d do it all again. And for you, I would. Because right now, in this spot, I’ve never been happier. I’d have waited forever for you, Evan Gilmore. And I mean that,” she stated, tears running down her face. “When you kissed me on New Year’s, I wanted you forever. And that hasn’t changed. It won’t ever change. Because each morning I wake up to you, I think back to when I didn’t have you, and I hurt all over again. Those memories hurt, but I’d rather the memory of them than the reality of having lost you. I don’t want it ever again.”
“Alexandra,” he breathed. “I’m never going anywhere without you ever again. There’s no one else I belong to than to you and Miller. You and my daughter are the loves of my life, of my entire being. And I can honestly say I have never been anything or worth much if I wasn’t yours. You made me mean something when I didn’t deserve to. I’m in love with you. I’ll continue to keep falling in love you. Every day. Every morning and every night. Each time I wake and each time I fall asleep, it’s your name, your touch, and your love my heart wants for all of time.”
“My heart wants only you for all of time. Past, present and forever,” she said before she pressed her lips to his in a kiss that meant every word she had just said.
Promises her heart had breathed.
That Evan Gilmore was her forever.
And their daughter was their forever and a day.
104Rf
rutherfordium
ALEX
Three months later
“I can’t believe how cute she’s gotten,” her best friend, Savannah Peters, said over video chat. “God, I hate that I live in Vermont while my niece gets more adorable every day.”
Alex laughed as she glanced down to find Miller staring at her plush toy of Albert Einstein. Her uncle Julian had brought it with him when he first met Alex’s daughter when she was just a week old. Uncle Julian found immense pride in knowing that the little Einstein was Miller’s favorite toy. All of her parents’ friends and their children had eventually made it to Massachusetts to meet Miller within the first two weeks of her birth. Alex, Evan, and Miller had spent more time at Alex’s parents’ house than their own.
But Alex didn’t mind.
They were family.
One of the visitors she hadn’t expected to see at her childhood home was Hunter Jamison. She appreciated his visit, of course, but she got the feeling that it wasn’t just her baby who Hunter wanted to see. But with a house full of people, she couldn’t pinpoint who. And in the end, she was too tired to think straight.
“Don’t forget that you have to be here in a week for her baptism,” Alex reminded.
Savannah sighed and pushed her blond hair from her face. “I won’t forget. Alex, you’re a woman of science. How do you believe in religion?”
Alex’s brows furrowed. She had never had her faith questioned before. “I like to believe there’s a higher power. We don’t practice it, but we both believe there’s more. And Evan is Catholic. But yes, even though I believe in science, I have faith in the universe, too.”
“You would insult my mother,” Savannah noted. Then her smile turned straight and serious. “I wouldn’t miss my goddaughter’s baptism. Has everyone RSVP’d?”
Reaching over with her free hand, she picked up the sheet of guests and glanced at the list, then she set it down. “Mika’s coming down from Utah, and Milos from California. Mr. Miller RSVP’d a couple of days ago. He’s been busy with classes at Harvard. Everyone we invited is coming. A lot of the Red Sox players, too. I took Miller to Fenway to surprise Evan at work last week, and you should have seen them all fall in love with her. Kyle was all like, ‘Back away from my niece! None of you are good enough.’ It was pretty adorable.”
“I bet it was. I’m glad Mika and Milos are coming, too. Hey, isn’t this the first time your high school physics teacher is going to meet her?”
“Yeah, I’m so excited to see his face when he meets her.”
“AJ! I’m home,” Evan yelled out.
“The boyfriend’s home,” Savannah teased.
Evan entered the kitchen, pressed a kiss to Alex’s cheek and then on Miller’s head before he said, “I heard that. Hey, Sav.” Evan set his briefcase on the floor and took Miller from Alex, planting kisses on their daughter’s chubby cheeks. “All right, Miller. Daddy’s home, so it’s daddy and daughter time.”
“Did you pick up Seb’s present I ordered at the toy store?” Alex asked as she glanced up to find Evan smiling at their daughter.
“I did. It’s in the car. They wrapped it. I’m going to change for his party. Are your parents upset that we’re a little late?”
She shook her head. “No. They knew you had that important meeting with the executives. Do you want me to take her?”
“I’ll lay her on the bed as I change. You and Sav finish talking. Does she need anything else to wear for the party?”
“Her headband.”
Evan’s eyes lit up. “Miller, let’s go choose a headband for your uncle’s birthday party.” Then they disappeared down the hall.
Alex shook her head and returned to her laptop screen to see the large grin on her best friend’s face. “What?”
“Y’all have no idea how perfect y’all are with that little girl.”
She playfully rolled her eyes. “Evan’s madly in love with her.”
“And he’s madly in love with you, too, Alex. I can see it.”
She felt her cheeks blush. A few weeks ago and before her postnatal check, they had been intimate. Alex was nervous, scared she would feel different to him since giving birth. Instead, she felt his love with each kiss and touch. He was gentle with her, and it was perfect. Her fears that Evan wouldn’t desire her body had been quickly squashed the minute he whispered how much he loved and wanted her.
“I know. I’d better go get ready for Sebastian’s birthday party, too. So I’ll see you next week?”
Savannah raised her brow. “Seriously, Alex? I’m not missing her baptism for the world. I’ll see y’all next week. Give Miller a kiss for me.”
“I will,” Alex promised before she waved goodbye, ended the call, and then closed her laptop. She got up from the dining room chair and made her way down the hall and up the stairs. Once she reached her bedroom door, she pushed it open to find her shirtless boyfriend with their daughter on his lap, making the Einstein toy dance for their daughter.
“Evan,” she said, faking the annoyance in her voice.
He stopped Einstein’s dance and looked up at her. “What?”
“As cute as this is, you’re getting distracted.” She closed the distance and picked up Miller from Evan’s lap. “Go get dressed so we can go.”
“Fine.” He sighed as he got up from the bed. “But the minute I’m dressed, I’m getting my daughter back from you.”
Alex peeked down at Miller who now wore a pink headband with a bow. Her daughter was staring at the toy still in her father’s hand. “Fine. Just get dressed.”
“I will,” he said. He pressed his lips to hers in a chaste kiss and then walked toward the closet.
God, she loved that man entirely.
Alex’s little brother’s first birthday party was a mix of cake destroying and a lot of food. Her mother had baked Sebastian his own wrecking cake and hired a photographer to take pictures. It was the cutest, messiest thing Alex had ever seen. Her brother had their parents wrapped around his little finger. A lot of the attendees at his party were neighbors, family, friends, and her parents’ co-workers and employees. Kyle and Angie had made an appearance, and when they ha
d, Evan seemed nervous. His mood had changed. His happy smile turned into one filled with anxiety. When she had asked him what was wrong, he shook his head and said nothing, but Alex didn’t believe him entirely.
“Are you sure you don’t need any help, Mum?” Alex asked as her mother picked up several plates.
She shook her head. “It’s okay. It’s getting late. Your father and I have got this.”
“All right. I should get Miller home. She’ll be tired.” She stepped forward and kissed her mother’s cheek. “I’ll see you later.” Alex then walked out of the kitchen to find her boyfriend holding their baby and speaking to her father. Although it was just a first birthday, Evan had dressed in a nice white dress shirt and a pair of tight dark blue dress pants. He was beautiful with their baby in his arms. She approached them and smiled. “We should get going. Miller will be tired.”
Evan nodded, a usual smile on his face. The anxiety from before had left his face, and he was back to his normal self, so her worries faded away. “We have to stop by my office. I have to bring home some work that Schmidt emailed me about. Is that okay?”
“Of course, it’s okay.” She reached over and took Miller from Evan. “We’ll see you later, Dad.”
“Bye, my love,” her father said before he kissed Alex’s cheek. Then he kissed Miller’s head and adjusted her headband. “Bye, my tiny love.”
Evan and Alex had said their goodbyes, and she had kissed her baby brother and wished him a happy birthday. She was “Al” to him, and it warmed her heart when he would reach out for her. Once they stepped out of the house after Evan had picked up their baby bag, she grabbed Evan’s hand, careful not to wake Miller. “Hey, is everything okay? You weren’t yourself during the party.”
