Joye

"Auntie!" cried Owen, hopping out of the chair and starting jumping around while the nurses brought the bed in the middle of the room.

The girl narrowed her eyes to the shrill sound and then smiled tiredly when Joye, still in the arms of a distraught Matthew, burst into tears.

Anne returned to the room, followed by dr. Johnson, but Matthew could not take his eyes off his wife.

He had already got up and started cradling the baby so as to calm her as he approached the bed.

"Hey." Matthew whispered, bending over and trying not to hurt the baby. Lucie smiled with bright eyes, "Hey," she raised her hand to her husband's face. When Matthew leaned down to give her a kiss, she burst into tears and seconds later he, too, was sobbing as he passed the baby to her.

The second Joye was on her mother's chest, she stopped crying as the tears continued to roll down her cheeks undisturbed. Matthew arranged the blanket covering the baby so that it was positioned correctly.

Lucie sensed the presence of the doctors and nurses, she felt Owen rejoicing that he had another cousin and friend and was bragging about little Joye's beauty, but the new mother was too focused on her daughter's face as she looked at her with those giant clear eyes and made a few sounds from time to time.

Matthew was stroking her hair and had his lips just above her ear, he was whispering sweet nothings to her and the anxiety and pain she had felt so far vanished in a second.

She had done it.

She had delivered Joye.

Joye was fine, she was healthy and in her arms.

Dr. Johnson explained to them how the next few hours would be and how many days she'd be in the hospital. What checkups she and the baby would have to go through, and visiting hours. She watched everything carefully as Joye began to scream in her arms again, but Matthew was the one who picked up every bit of information. He was also asking questions and they seemed quite important, but Lucie couldn't listen, she was too tired. She just wanted to sleep.

She reached out her hand to her husband's and he moved to join them, preventing her from making any further efforts. The look full of adoration and worry that he gave her almost made her burst into tears again.

"What is it?" he asked her and squeezed her hand.

She shook her head, closing her eyes, "I just want to feed her and then rest a little." She whispered, trying to move slightly so that she was in a sitting position. A twinge of pain passed through her abdomen as the stitches on the incisions pulled the skin.

The doctor nodded, making a grimace of compassion, "Yes, my darling, as we have already explained, you must be very careful when you move and especially when you hold the baby in your arms. Sometimes they can have spasms and it happened to tear the stitches, but don't worry, you're under close observation and whatever happens, you can always call a nurse and I'll be with you as soon as possible".

The Johnson stretched herself slightly on the bed and squeezed her ankle lovingly and then only the three of them and a nurse remained in the room, ready to explain to her how to breastfeed and help her.

Lucie closed her eyes and put her head on the pillow and sighed, realizing one very important thing, "Where is Owen?"

Matthew looked at her with a lopsided smile on his face, "The nanny took him back to Jamie and Cordelia. Don't worry." He kissed her again, but this time he lingered.

The nurse coughed, "If you want me to come back later, it's no problem."

Lucie waited for Matthew to answer, with her eyes still closed, but when she was met with silence, she opened one eye, finding herself an amused Math a few inches from her face. He would not answer because it all depended on if Lucie felt too tired. Her heart clenched in her chest.

She loved him so much that sometimes she forgot that love was reciprocated.

She couldn't get over the fact that Matthew had waited so long to meet their daughter and finally share that moment with her, and instead every three seconds they were interrupted. She could see, from the way his knee was bouncing, that he couldn't wait to be alone with his two girls, but he understood that the doctors had to help her and that there was nothing he could do as of now.

"Nono, show me what to do so I can get her to eat and then I can rest."

While the nurse helped her undress and position the baby so that she wouldn't choke, Matthew held his hand around her shoulders and kissed her head continuously.

As soon as they were sure that Joye was eating and Lucie was in a comfortable position, the nurse left them alone and the silence in that room, filled only by the sucking of Joye's little mouth, overwhelmed her and, taking a trembling breath, she caressed her daughter's rosy cheek.

"I'm so proud of you," Matthew whispered. Lucie did not take her eyes off Joye. "So proud, Luce."

There was a brief pause and then, "I’m sorry."

Lucie's head snapped to the left, looking for Matthew's gaze, but the boy, or rather the man, was focused on the baby girl. He was avoiding looking at Lucie.

"Why would you apologize?"

Matthew sighed and leaned over his daughter, kissing her head and sitting by the bed. He ran a hand through his hair and leaned against the mattress, taking one of her hands between his own and kissing each finger. "I know it's not my fault that Joye was breech, and I know it wasn't me who decided not to go into the operating room, but I'm sorry you had to go through all of it alone." he gave her a sad smile, but there was no trace of that sadness in his eyes. They shone as bright as the day she announced her pregnancy. Lucie shook his hand, smiling in turn. He definitely felt sorry for her, but he was also way too happy to let that sadness fog his mind.

"I'm glad everything went well," she answered. She had been petrified by fear in the operating room and had asked so many times about Matthew that at some point the assistant who had to calm her down had asked her to describe him. Lucie panicked and described all the Matthews she had known in her life. The child Matthew, her brother's best friend. The teenage Matthew, the one she had a colossal crush on that she knew would never be reciprocated. The young Matthew, who had cried for her when she confessed to him that she had gotten with someone else. And the man Matthew, with whom she had fallen in love and for whom she would kill and cross the Underworld. The Matthew who stood beside her.

"So do I, my love," he chuckled softly, "so do I."

They remained silent, contemplating the beauty of that little creature who already had so much power over their lives.

Out of nowhere, Lucie burst out laughing and Joye broke away from her breasts, drooling milk wherever her head moved. Matthew immediately stood up to fix her head again with an amused expression, "What are you laughing at?"

The mom would not stop laughing, but in the meantime, she had brought a hand to her face and now, amidst the laughter, tears had appeared. Matthew, at the sight of all those mixed emotions, burst out laughing in turn, falling back in his chair and clutching his stomach.

"We have a daughter, Math." Lucie's laughter calmed down and she dried her cheeks with the back of her hand. "Oh my God, we have a daughter."

Matthew sat in his chair and nodded, giggling like a schoolgirl. "We have a daughter."

"You're a dad and I'm a mom."

"I'm a dad and you're a mom."

Lucie looked at him with the most beautiful smile Matthew had ever seen on her and whispered to him, "I love you."

Almost an hour had passed and Lucie was finally getting her well-deserved rest. Matthew was having a conversation with Joye. He was impressed by how many sounds his little girl was making despite the few hours of life.

"I think so too, you know? I mean..." whispered the father as he kept looking at her with a serious expression, "... how come they're raising the price of chips so high? I don't think there's a shortage of potatoes in the world. I just don't get it."

Joye had exactly the same look on her face as she answered with several 'oooh' and 'aaah'.

This went on for a while until the baby closed her eyes and Matthew was supposed to put her in the crib, let her sleep in peace, without rocking her left and right, but he couldn't get away from his daughter.

A movement to his right caught his attention and when he looked up he saw Lucie with her eyes open, looking at them with a dreamy expression.

Lucie stretched her hands forward, towards them, and opened and closed her fists, like a little girl having a tantrum, and Matthew chuckled, trying not to move too much and to wake Joye up.

He approached the bed and passed the girl to Lucie, who held her to her chest and sniffed her little head.

"Right?" Matthew said quietly, knowing exactly what his wife was doing.

Lucie didn't even answer him. "Maybe we should call the others up here. You know, introduce them to the new girl."

Matthew whined, "Do we have to?" Lucie raised one eyebrow, "I mean, after she meets her grandparents and uncles, my role will become obsolete." The other eyebrow shot up too. Matthew kept looking at Joye.

"What are you talking about?"

"I read on the internet," Lucie snorted, Matthew glared, "- I read on the internet that dads can have trouble at first, building a relationship with the baby. For you mothers it's simple, you're food, you're indispensable. I'm just a warm chest to lean on for a nice nap, and that's something everybody knows how to do."

Lucie would have laughed, really, but she understood that Matthew was not joking from the deep frown on his handsome face. Now that she looked at him well, she saw the tiredness in his features, in his eyes. The stress he, too, had been under all morning.

She leaned out slightly, to put her hand on his arm and draw his attention to her. She felt as if from now on it would be impossible to receive any of it. "Matthew, you're her father."

He stared at her and the worry in his eyes didn't go away.

"You're right, now she sees me as indispensable because I represent food, but you are her father. You're the person who's talked to her every night for the last nine months. You're the voice that calmed me every time something went wrong and I'm sure she recognizes you." she reached out her arm, laid her hand on his face and with her thumb she swiped away a tear.

"Grandparents, uncles, even cousins, it's true, will be another chest to sleep on, but you will be the chest." Matthew chuckled, sniffing. "And if you ever try to start a sentence with 'I read on the Internet’ again, I'll get a divorce."

He took her hand and stood up, kissing her. This time he really kissed her, teeth and tongue. A kiss that conveyed all their love and the living proof of that love, that would grow every day, was sleeping on her breast.

A choked sound interrupted their kiss and when Lucie turned towards the door she only had time to realize her father was there, before she was squeezed in a bone-crushing hug. Joye, still between her and Will, moved slightly, without waking up.

Will broke away from Lucie with tears in his eyes and slightly reddened cheeks. He placed his hand on her cheek, caressing her cheekbone, "I'm so proud, Lulu. Very, very proud."

Her lips began to tremble when her mother also approached the bed and lowered herself to her height, kissing her forehead and remaining in this position for a few seconds.

"We love you, my Lucie." Tessa sat next to her daughter, looking at her niece with shiny eyes. Will, meanwhile, had sat by the bed and was extending his hand over the pink dumpling sleeping peacefully in her arms.

"God," breathed the grandpa, "she's so small."

Tessa giggled, "You always make the same comment, love."

Will gave her an amused look. Tessa, in turn, did not take her eyes off little Joye and even when Charlotte and Henry entered the room, none of Herondale moved. Only Matthew approached his father, bending over so Henry could hug his son.

Charlotte approached Will, placed her hand on his shoulder and leaned forward, trying to see her long-awaited granddaughter. Tessa stepped aside, allowing the new grandmother to see her first real granddaughter. Will did not move an inch.

"Lucie, darling, how are you?" the woman asked, and without waiting for an answer, she whispered, "She's so beautiful, she has your eyes."

Lucie giggled, looking at her husband, who grunted something from the bottom of the bed, where he looked at the ecstatic family picture and pushed Henry's wheelchair to the free side of the bed where he was before.

Lucie reached out her hand to the man, who grabbed it and held it tight, smiling at her with his shiny eyes in turn. Lucie's eyes filled up once more and she snorted loudly, attracting everyone's attention.

"What is it, my love?" Will asked with an alarmed look, passing his hand on her arm, squeezing lightly.

Lucie sniffed, "We're all so emotional, it's ridiculous. One expects the emotion to diminish after all these children, but it's stronger every time." Tessa giggled, running her hand over her cheeks.

Charlotte opened her mouth to answer, but stopped when a slight knock on the door caught everyone's attention. Matthew stiffened beside her and Lucie tried to stretch her neck in every possible way, spying on who had arrived and when Charlotte turned around and extended her arm towards the person, she saw the mass of red hair.

Charles had come.

Lucie turned around and her head snapped towards Matthew, who was clutching his hands around the handles of the wheelchair, but had a bright smile on his face. She visibly relaxed when Charles stepped into the room.

Lucie spoke hesitantly, "Hello, Charles." She gave him a shy smile, raising the baby slightly in her arms so that she could be seen by her new uncle, "Have you come to meet our new joy?"

Charles took a trembling breath and looked at both his parents, with a sad smile on his lips for the pun she had just made. Before he could move any further, Matthew had closed the distance between the two of them and was holding him in his arms. Charles seemed to stiffen in his embrace, but after mere seconds he relaxed and held his little brother in his arms.

Tessa and Will excused themselves, saying that they would go and warn the others that they could come in and before they left they both kissed their daughter and caressed the newcomer.

Lucie looked at Charlotte, who had stretched one hand over her, until she reached her husband's and noticed that her cheeks were wet. Henry just seemed very happy that something so beautiful had brought them together after all that time.

It had been months, years, Matthew and Charles hadn't hugged each other.

"Thank you for coming." Lucie heard Matthew whisper these words and then the two brothers separated.

Charles stayed with them only five minutes, meeting the child and holding her in his arms, a little hesitant, with the help of Matthew and their mother. He managed to escape a few minutes before everyone else arrived. Before Alastair arrived.

When her parents came back, they took the rest of their herd with them. Grace held Isidore in her arms, who seemed to have just woken up and behind them Christopher looked ecstatic. He was jumping left and right trying to see the baby before everyone else. Cordelia, however, was the one who made room among all and reached Lucie first, not weighed down by any child, but followed by an enthusiastic Owen. Bea was complaining in James' arms, but she seemed calmer than the twins who were both crying in Thomas' arms. Thomas, who seemed more worried than anything, was watching Alastair, standing in the hallway.

Lucie frowned, not understanding her cousin's expression. Cordelia bent over her, her eyes wide open with emotion as he watched her niece, but whispered so that she could only hear her, while the others hugged Matthew wishing him congratulations, "There's Charles outside, I think they're talking." Lucie opened her eyes wide, clenching her jaw. These were the interesting things she would have liked to hear during the long bored days of pregnancy. But now, she had other things to think about.

They were asking her millions of questions and she answered them distractedly, while Joye, who had finally deigned to wake up, went from uncle to aunt to grandfather to grandmother and was lowered to cousin height so that all the people could meet her.

Elise and Amélie, at four years of age, had immediately stretched out their hands towards her cousin and began to caress her face, both much calmer than before. Thomas seemed to have disappeared, but Grace was keeping an eye on them while Christopher was talking to Matthew.

Cordelia and Lucie were talking about the surgery, when Alastair entered the room, taking his daughter Amélie in his arms and approaching the bed to wish her well. The little girl fussed in her father's arms, saying that she wanted to look at Joye again and he apologized with an absent gaze. Cordelia made sure to tell him that they would talk later, but that he shouldn't get too wrapped up in this unexpected encounter.

Anna and Ariadne arrived shortly afterwards, taking Aaron with them, who despite being seven years old, was crying because Owen had seen Joye before him. Anna immediately came to hug her, but right after making sure she was okay and asking her the usual three questions, she turned around and went to admire little Joye.

James approached after them all, with Bea resting in his arms, and laughing he sat down on the bed next to her. She looked at him amusedly and then squealed, "I'm a mama."

James nodded, "You're a mama."

Matthew stood next to her brother and patted him on the shoulder, "She's a mama."

James nodded, reducing his lips to a thin line to avoid bursting out laughing again. He shook his head as he looked down, "You will never sleep again."

Matthew chuckled as Lucie snorted amusedly and let herself sink into the pillow.

Will, who had meanwhile settled behind the two boys, gave his son a soft blow to the back of the head, "Stop terrorizing them, or do I have to remind you of the first week you brought Owen home?"

James blushed up to the tip of his ears and muttered something between the lines I was desperate, I'm just trying to prepare them. Tessa laughed, caressing her daughter's head and Lucie basked in that touch.

She was happy that everyone was here.

That they were here for her baby and for her.

That they were all as excited as she was.

She turned her gaze to the little pile of children in the room, and her little girl, who was now in Thomas's arms in the midst of everyone, looked at the world around her with wide open eyes.

"God she’s so beautiful."

Assent murmurs around her gave her confirmation. Joye was beautiful.

Bea turned to James, "Daddy, I wanna see." she pointed to the middle of the room and James let her down from his legs, kissing her forehead and muttering, "Remember, don't touch her head or her little hands, all right?" Bea jumped on the spot and then ran to the others.

Matthew leaned over her and gave her a kiss on the lips, looked her straight in the eye and with a new tone, which Lucie had never heard him use, said, "I love you.

The new daddy went to fetch Joye, when she started complaining about too much attention and brought her to Lucie, placing her carefully on her mother's chest. Matthew looked at both of them and his eyes filled up again.

After a couple of hours spent chatting with her family, Lucie was ready to sleep for the rest of her life and when Matthew started kicking everyone out of the room so that her every dream could come true her heart swelled in her chest. Lucie was ready to meet the new Matthew, the dad Matthew, and she told herself mentally that she had never been so ready to face something as she was in that moment.