CHAPTER 3: Puzzle

  "Philip, where did you get this baby?" Daniela cut the silence between them as she asked her husband. Filled with curiosity that embraced her thought. Philip averted his gaze away from the baby and he looked around to ensure that the mysterious person was not looking at them before he replied.

   

  "I found her near the post. I pity for her as I heard her cry due of the coldness." He briefly replied.

  "Do you see who is the one that left the baby outside?" Daniela asked again.

  Philip shook his head because he had no idea if the person from the outside was responsible for that.

  "Sigh. No matter who they are, they are hard-hearted. They wanted to kill this little angel!" Daniela uttered while shaking her head too, and suddenly looked at the baby.

   

  The rain was still heavy and every strike of lightning made the baby blink her eyes.

  "You are so cute my angel. From now on, I will be your mother okay." Daniela spoke gently while touching the soft face of the baby.

   

  However, Philip suddenly felt wrong about the words of his wife. Because they have no idea about the identity of the baby.

  "Ahmm... Daniela. We need to know her parents first before you claim yourself as her mother." Philip uttered, that made his wife change her mood.

   

  "What's wrong with you Philip? This child is a gift from heaven! God give me this angelic one because he knows that you cannot." Daniela suddenly shouted with traces of anger on her face again.

  Philip shook his head as he heard his wife shouting again. He took a deep breath and replied gently.

  "Daniela, we need to go to the police station tomorrow to find out her parents and identity. If there are people that may claim that this baby is their child, we will bring her back to them. But if there is no family that may claim her, we will stand as their parents. We need to do this for legal counsel. I hope that you will understand what I wanted to say, Daniela." 

   

  Daniela slapped her forehead as she heard what her husband wanted to say.

  "God Philip! The parents of this baby are not suitable for this child. That's why they managed to abandon her. We don't need to do that. All we need to do is make a paper that can tell you that this is our legal adopted child."

   

  Philip sat on the chair and he took a deep breath. He didn't want to have a long argument with his wife, but he wanted to say what was the right thing running on his mind.

  "You have a point, Daniela, but what if this baby is taken away from her legal parents? And are they now looking for her? Are we going to zip our mouths and let them in their hopeless thinking that they are irresponsible?"

   

  When Daniela heard what her husband said, she did not speak but in her eyes, she agreed with what her husband pointed out. She looked again at the baby and she thought about the words of her husband. She saw the innocent smile of the baby and she felt that her doubt and anger had faded away.

   

  "Anyway, I will go back to the post to know if there are things that can be owned by this baby," Philip uttered.

  Daniela looked at him and shook her head and spoke sincerely.

  "No, Philip. The rain is so hard, just wait for the rain to stop." 

  Philip felt the sudden change of emotion of his wife. He knew that it was because of the baby in her arms. He kept on his chair while watching Daniela dancing in a lullaby to make the baby fall asleep.

   

  Philip imagined how happy he would be if he saw his wife in that situation again. Her smile, her beautiful aura and her look as if she had a daughter. He smiled sweetly while Daniela kept on dancing.

  "I hope that the baby is a gift from heaven and I will be the happiest man in the world if I can have a child." He muttered. 

  Philip continued daydreaming as he heard his wife calling him.

  "Philip, the baby is now sleeping. Let's send her to our room." Daniela spoke happily. Philip smiled and he made his way upstairs.

  They leave some things that belong to the baby, even the small pieces of clothes that cover the baby's body. Daniela and Philip went upstairs and they entered their room.

  "Daniela, I hope that we are now okay," Philip uttered with a low tone of voice. Daniela stopped walking and she nodded her head. Then, she continued walking toward the bed to take the baby on it.   

  Philip felt happiness. He knew that the baby was the sign of their strong relationship. But he was afraid that tomorrow and the baby would be gone. 

In their room, the window showed the lightning and the heavy pouring rain. Daniela took the baby on the soft sheet of the bed and coated her with a thick blanket. She wore a smile as she looked at the baby that was sleeping innocently.

"Daniela, I hope that you will always be happy like how I met you before," Philip uttered, which made Daniela gaze at him.

"It depends."She replied coldly and she looked at the baby again. Philip sat on the other side of the king-sized bed and he laid himself on the foamy cotton sheet. He felt the warmth sheet on his body but he still felt the coldness of his wife.

He laid sidewards through the window. The curtains swayed and the cold wind coming from the outside made him close his eyes.

However, Daniela could not think very well because her focus was only on the baby. She looked at Philip and she shook her head as she saw her husband taking his nap.

Daniela felt empty as she felt that her husband was always making a way to cut off their argument. She also didn't want to have a fight, and as a woman, all she wanted was the gentle and sweet suit that everyone wanted to experience from their man. But everything was just a wind to her as she felt her husband didn't want to have a big deal about a repeated argument.

"Sigh." She took a deep breath. She bit her lower lips and she averted her gaze at Philip and she stared at the baby that was lying next to her husband. Suddenly, the cold breeze blew and she moved herself to get the thick blanket and laid herself too beside the baby. They looked like a family at that moment. 

Daniela laid sideward facing the baby and her husband. She touched the soft skin of the baby and tried to close her eyes. However, Philip thought that his wife had no chance to change back to herself. And even at that moment, he kept on making regrets and keeping himself within the distance of argument.

A moment later, he moved himself to face his wife. He slowly moved and he saw Daniela lying closer to the beautiful baby. He also felt how beautiful the night is if they have a family to be called.