The evening settled gently over the house, the sky painted in watercolor shades of lilac and amber. The triplets were bathed, fed, and now bundled in soft onesies—Elias in forest green, Lila in a peachy pink, and Amara in the lavender one Aria had insisted matched her eyes.
Leon was crouched beside the shelf in the nursery, scanning a small but growing collection of children's books.
"How about this one?" he called over his shoulder, holding up a well-illustrated picture book with a fox on the cover.
Aria peeked in from the hallway, arms crossed and smiling. "Classic. Good choice."
He nodded sagely and walked over to the nursery's big armchair, already flanked by two soft pillows and a folded blanket. Aria had just finished settling Lila and Amara in the small bassinet crib beside them, while Elias remained in her arms, blinking up sleepily.
Leon cleared his throat dramatically as he opened the book. "Once upon a time, in a forest far, far away—"
Aria snorted softly. "You sound like a game show host."
Leon smirked. "I'm setting the tone."
He continued, voice shifting into a deep, over-the-top growl for the wolf character. "The big bad wolf said, 'Who's been nibbling at my acorns?'"
From the crib, Lila let out a loud squeak, her tiny face scrunching with protest. Leon immediately shifted gears.
"Okay, okay," he said, glancing over. "We'll keep the voices gentle tonight."
Elias let out a sigh in Aria's arms, as if seconding that motion.
Leon tried again—this time calmer, softer, like the words themselves were lullabies.
Aria joined him halfway through, her voice melodic as she read the fox's lines, her finger gently trailing over the pictures. Elias shifted in her arms, slowly blinking, as if trying to follow the story with his eyes.
Leon looked up now and then—not at the book, but at Aria.
The way her lips curved slightly with each word.
The softness in her eyes.
The quiet joy in her voice as she read to their children.
He thought about everything they'd been through—the uncertainty, the hospital nights, the ache of fear that still sometimes curled in the corners of his heart—and how all of it had led here.
To this moment.
To this little shared ritual of love and bedtime stories.
When the book ended, Aria gently kissed Elias's forehead before settling him down beside his sisters. Leon tucked the blanket over the three of them, heart catching a little at how small they looked beneath it—and how complete.
Later, as the house dimmed and they curled into bed together, Aria nestled against Leon's chest, fingers tracing absent lines on his arm.
"That was nice," she whispered.
"Yeah," he murmured. "Think we've found our rhythm."
She smiled sleepily. "Tomorrow, you're doing the dragon voices."
Leon laughed under his breath. "Deal."
And beneath the hush of the settling house, with three new lives resting quietly nearby, they let sleep take them—soft, slow, and full of dreams.