I Introduce The Selfish Machine

I stepped out of the room to make a few phone calls, letting family know that Mia's on the way. First, Piper's parents and Jacob, then my mom, and then the guys. Jaime screamed in my ear, and Mike and Alysha were in the middle of a .... romantic evening. I was just telling Vic when I was ushered back inside the room and dressed in scrubs. Once changed, I walked to Piper's side, who had been drugged up so she couldn't feel them cutting her open. Her head rolled over to look at me. Her skin was pale, along with her usually vibrant eyes. Her lip trembled as she grabbed my hand. I brought her cold hand up to my lips.
"I'm so scared, Tony." She said softly.
"I Know you are." I said. "It'll be over soon." The doctors moved on the other side of the curtain that had put up, splitting Piper's body in half.
"Mr. Perry, we're going to ask you not to look until we give you a cue." Doctor Perry said. I nodded in reply, not wanting to look away from Piper. Her eyes fluttered shut.
"Stay awake with me, Pipes." I said softly, kissing her temple. "Mia will be here soon."
"Sing to me, please." She whispered, her eyes still shut. "I want Mia to hear your voice first."
"What do you want me to sing?"
"Anything." She said, opening her eyes and meeting them with mine.
I exhaled deeply, not wanting to sing in front of all these doctors. My voice isn't that great, I'm a little off pitch, all the time. To my knowledge, I've sang to Mia every night, and that shouldn't change tonight. It'll make Piper happy, and I know I needed to do it.
I opened my mouth, filling the room with my voice.
"I've broken bones for you, and for you only." I sang, thinking about how I almost died to paint Mia's room. "Give me your heart and your hand, and we can run." I looked down at Piper and saw her cry. "You're my hope." I whispered softly to Piper, then kissed her lips softly. Her tears stained my cheeks, and I realized there's no place I'd rather be than next to her. Piper is the strongest women I've ever met, and she's about to give birth to another strong girl.
I'm so proud of my family.
I moved my lips and smiled at Piper, whose eyes looked brighter now.
"Sing more, please." She requested, her hands on my neck.
I smiled, and began to sing more until I saw the cue. Or, at least, I thought I did.
I stood up and walked over to the curtain.
"Perry, what are you doing?" Doctor Cox asked calmly so he didn't upset Piper.
"I thought I saw the cue-"
"I didn't give the cue, did you?" He asked the doctor beside him. She shook her head no. I didn't mean to look, but I did. The majority of Piper's organs were in a bowl beside Doctor Cox, and the next thing I knew, my eyes rolled back and everything was black.

"Let me hold Mia!" Jaime whined.
"No, I'm holding her before Jaime." Seren said.
"Who has been her best friend longer? Oh yeah, Hime Time. Give me that baby."
"Nobody is holding Mia until Tony has had the chance. Now hush or you'll wake him." Piper said calmly.
I opened my eyes slowly, the bright light hurting my already pounding head. I pulled myself up, realizing how hard my head was pounding. I mumbled something vulgar before placing my head in hand, blocking the light out again.
"Well, good morning to you too, sunshine." I heard Mike say.
"It's morning?" I asked, picking my head up to look at him. He was standing at the end of the bed with Alysha wrapped in his arms.
"6:08 AM, to be exact." Seren said, staring at her watch. Seren's eyes met with mine. "How's your head?"
"Pounding." I said.
"We heard it was a pretty bad fall." Alysha said.
"Yeah, apparently the sight of organs makes you a little sick." Mike said with a laugh. Alysha elbowed him, and I was extremely grateful for her at the moment.
"Can I have a moment alone with Piper, please?" I asked as I pulled myself off the couch.
"Of course. Come on, guys." Vic said softly, ushering everyone out of the room.
I walked over to Piper, who was smiling so brightly at me. She had a tiny, pink bundle wrapped up and pressed closely to her chest.
"Do you feel up to holding her?" Piper asked softly as I arrived at her side. I nodded, and Piper leaned over, placing my daughter in my hands.
I looked down at the most beautiful girl in the world. She had a head full of dark black hair, and was so tiny, I was afraid if I held her too tight, she would break in my arms. Her eyes stared at me with so much wonder, and I couldn't believe this beautiful baby had half of my DNA.
"Hi, Mia." I said softly. "You're so beautiful." I kissed the top of her forehead, avoiding her soft spot.
"She was born at 1:35 AM, a little bit after you passed out." Piper said softly as Mia and I stared at each other. "They didn't bring her in until about an hour ago. Doctor Cox said we're lucky that she's so healthy for a preemie. We'll be here for a week, max."
"Good, that's good." I said softly.
Never, ever in my life did I think I could love someone with my whole heart and so much more, but here I am, standing in a room with the two people that mean more to me than anyone ever has. I helped make this small human, and that's the biggest accomplishment ever. I'm so in love with her.
"Hi again, Mia." I said softly. I felt my eyes fill with tears. "I'm not sure if you even understand me right now, but I'm going to talk to you anyway. You're staring at me with so much wonder right now, because the only face you've really see is your mommy's. Well, Mia, I'm your daddy and I cannot believe a beast like me helped create such a beauty." I tried to blink back my tears. "I know I won't be around a lot, because of work, but I promise you I will be the best father I ever can be, because nothing is more important to me than you are. I cannot not tell you how blessed I am to be your father. I just met you, but I know you're going to be the most beautiful girl ever, which means no dating until you're 35." Piper laughed, and I swear I saw Mia roll her eyes. "You're going to do so much good, baby girl, and I promise never to miss a minute of any important parts of your life, even if your daddy and uncles are traveling a lot. Which reminds me, you have the best family, Peanut. Uncle Hime Time will probably annoy the heck out of you, but he means so well, and Uncle Mike will beat up any guys that hurt you because honestly, your dad is a bit of a weenie. Then, there's Uncle Vic. He'll probably be more of an Uncle to you than a friend, but he's still one of the best people on the planet. Don't get me started on your grandparents, Mia. They're the best people alive. And, Mia, if you ever feel lonely, just remember that Aunt Leanna is up in heaven, watching you like a hawk. We're so sorry you didn't get to meet her, but just know that even if she isn't with us, she loves you so much. Without her, mommy and I would have never met, and you probably wouldn't be here right now." I sighed deeply, trying to stop crying. "I love you more than you will ever know, Mia Leanna. I can't promise that your mom and I won't mess up, but I will promise that you'll have so many funny stories to tell about how dysfunctional we are. We might force you to play the guitar, but no pressure." I laughed along with Piper. "I love you, princess. You really are a princess, and don't let anyone else convince you differently." I kissed Mia's forehead softly before handing her back to Piper. Once she was safely in Piper's arms, I leaned down and kissed Piper.
Piper smiled once I pulled away. "Can you believe we have a baby?" She asked me.
"It's the best thing in the world." I said, rubbing my eyes to stop crying. "We're going to be bomb parents."
"Heck yes we are." Piper smiled down at Mia. "It's so crazy that she has so much life ahead of her. She could be anyone or anything she wants."
"She'll play the guitar. Again, no pressure."
Piper laughed. "We'll be proud of whatever you do." She said to Mia, her voice cracking. "Just change the world, princess."
I have no doubt in my mind that Mia will do just that.

Notes