Between Bruises and Blooms

For months,
I prepared myself
To leave the hospital
With only hope.

I knew the risks.

Identical twins.

One placenta.

Early delivery.

I whispered
“Maybe.”

Maybe one
Would need the NICU.

Maybe I’d have to choose
Which bedside
To sit beside first.

Maybe home
Would have to wait.

Instead,

Three days later,

There you were.

Two impossibly tiny girls.

Two car seats
Buckled into the backseat.

Two newborn yawns.

Two futures.

As we pulled away,
I looked back again.

Not because
I thought someone
Had forgotten something.

But because
I couldn’t believe
The hospital
Was letting me leave
With both of you.

Sometimes,
The happiest tears
Are the ones
You never planned to cry.