Audrey said, “I’ll call your mother and let her know.” However, Alice didn’t call her mother; instead, Audrey felt that when a woman gives birth, she naturally hopes that her maternal family will come to the hospital. Soon after, the Stone and Lafayette families gathered outside the delivery room, anxiously awaiting news of Alice. As Audrey had suspected, after Alice went for an examination, she was taken to the delivery room. Elisa posted an update, and both Serenity and Liberty learned that Alice was giving birth that day. Zachary quickly accompanied Serenity and Grandma May to the hospital, while Liberty arrived first. Noticing the large crowd waiting, Liberty approached Audrey and softly said, “Aunt.”

Audrey replied, “Liberty, what brings you here?”

Liberty explained, “I saw Elisa’s post and knew my cousin was about to give birth, so I came to see how things were going. How long have you been here?”

Audrey responded, “It feels like an eternity inside, but it’s only been less than an hour.” The anxiety was palpable; each passing second felt like an eternity. Clive, unable to sit still, paced anxiously, wishing he could endure the pain in place of his wife. It’s said that women experience ten times the pain during childbirth. “My cousin’s fetal position is correct; she’s doing fine,” Liberty attempted to reassure Audrey.

Audrey remained composed as she observed Clive pacing back and forth. “Look at your cousin; he’s going to wear a path in the floor with all that walking,” she remarked.

Liberty replied, “That’s normal.” She recalled her own experience giving birth to Sonny and remembered Serenity mentioning that Hank had also been quite anxious.

Though he felt anxious, he wasn’t as nervous as Clive, who needed to walk around to relieve his tension. After the baby was born, he was the first to hold the newborn, but she was pushed out later. When she finally emerged, only Serenity was there to greet her, while the entire Brown family came to see the newborn. In childbirth, it is often the maternal family who feels the most concern and sympathy for the mother. Serenity was overwhelmed with emotion upon seeing the baby in the delivery room, and she couldn’t help but cry. As she was wheeled into the postpartum recovery room, she noticed the entire Brown family gathered around Sonny’s crib. When they saw her being pushed back by the nurse, they didn’t come to help her lie down on the bed; it was Serenity who assisted her. At that moment, she should have realized that Hank was not deserving of her lifelong trust. Thankfully, they had separated, and Hank would no longer disrupt her life; even the Brown family would keep their distance. When they wanted to visit Sonny, Hank would first call Liberty for her consent, then go directly to the kindergarten to pick up Sonny, returning him on Sunday night to avoid seeing her.

This arrangement worked well for her. She could finally enjoy some peace of mind without constantly facing her ex-husband’s family. Particularly, her former sister-in-law, Liberty, was the most bothersome and the one she least wanted to see. If Hank had better managed his mother and sister’s remarks earlier, perhaps they wouldn’t be in this predicament today. After all, their relationship had always been superficial, lasting only a few years as husband and wife. Now, they were focused on raising Sonny while leading independent lives.