July 4, 1980 – Maureen Robinson looked over at the clock on the hospital room wall, slate-gray eyes anxious. Her shoulders sagged and she let out a heavy sigh.
It was now a little over five hours since their son was born and she was still waiting for her husband. Of course, she shouldn’t have been surprised it was taking so long, given he was working overtime, but…it would be nice if he could see their newborn before the day was over.
Another fifteen or so minutes ticked by. It was getting closer for the fireworks display to start, and to her delight, they would actually have a fairly good view of it.
There was a knock at the open door and she looked up to see her husband leaning against the doorframe, brown hair tousled and dark circles under his eyes.
“Hi,” he said with a tired smile as he came over. He gave her a kiss and brushed a loose strand of red hair away from her face before looking down at their son.
Maureen transferred the infant from her arms to her husband’s. “Looks like a Robinson, doesn’t he?” she said.
James nodded. “Yeah…only that red hair definitely comes from your side of the family. Any idea whose eyes he has?”
“Yours, I think.”
A boom sounded outside and they turned to the windows. Fireworks filled the sky with color, continuing the day’s celebrations. James walked over, turned sideways and lifted the infant a bit. “Look, Ethan. Those are for you.”
“Jim…”
He looked back at his wife and shrugged. She shook her head, amused.
“Okay, so maybe they’re not exactly for you,” James said, turning back to the window. “But today is the day you were born, and I don’t think anyone would mind if you shared the fireworks with the country.”
©H.S. Kylian 2018 // All images © Hannah Killian 2013-2018
(Critiques are welcome and appreciated!)
H.S. KYLIAN 