When Twilight Velvet went into labor with her son Shining Armor, it was two and a half months too soon. Her husband began to pick up ten hour shifts at work to try and pay the hospital bills. After being in the NICU for a long time, Shining was at last declared well enough to go home, but still needed tubes to help him eat and breathe. Twilight Velvet stays with him day and night, never leaving home.
But she knows that someday, they'll both be on the other side of the window.
Written as a submission for Secret Moon’s Self-Isolation Writing Contest
***3RD PLACE WINNER OF SECRET MOON’S SELF-ISOLATION WRITING CONTEST***
Rated T for mentions of breastfeeding.
Chapters (1)
Very nice! Glad Shining came out fine, I know that feelioing being bornm too early as well. Resulted in my left hand being crippled
That was fast! Thank you so much for participating! I am really happy that my little contest has given motivation for others to write again.
The contest does not limit the number of submissions, so until the deadline please feel free to submit more stories if you like.
I wasn't expecting a follow-up to Tubes, but it's great to have one. Absolutely wonderful.
Whoa... There is quite a lot going on within this short story. It's certainly one that would do well if made into an animation. It wouldn't need anything more than a proper melody to go with along with a link to the story to melt the hearts of anyone who takes part in the tale.
There are a lot of references people can pull from this. The solitude and fear relating to the current pandemic but also keeping well within how a foal born too early requires a lot of care.
You also have the difficult choice of making bits, or being with your spouse and newborn. Night Light certainly must ache for time with his wife and son. Unfortunately the long shifts he toils over to pay off debt wear him down to where he, likely, would rather rest as, most certainly, he feels a mass amount of depression by not being there with his wife and son during such a crucial time.
Seeing how Princess Celestia would visit the NICU was wonderful. I can definitely see her doing that as she truly does care for those ponies she is responsible for. This moment also shows how even a single unexpected act of kindness can make the differences.
The 'window' is a great way to show the small, yet difficult, journey of making it beyond a present day struggle to when all that struggle becomes just a memory.
I, like yourself, have had many real life times where that 'window' was hard to even look at for how it only served to make you feel worse seeing all you are missing out of along with how the world goes on despite your hardship. So many people taking for granted their good health, employment, and companionship when, as in this situation, it can all be lost in a blink of an eye.
During my struggle to regain sight in 2012 into 2013, I remember having an MLP tin where I'd pick it up and look at the picture to see how much of it I could make out. It was painfully slow but those moments when more-and-more of the box became visible were priceless.
Now that I have zero physical eyesight at all, I have a different 'window' where I know what is out there but can only use my imagination to see beyond it. It's a window painted over with a collection of grayscale colors that I have to mentally go outside of it to not lose my sanity.
The last time I could genuinely see my son was when he was 4 years old. Then the rest of my sight just kept going-and-going until it was gone. He's currently 13. I wish I could have seen him grow up but, in the least, he knows I am here and value how he was not born with the same condition that put me through so much grief until it finally did cause me to lose all my sight.
However, back on the story, I hope you win as, at least for me, I took so much from so few words. You truly have a talent in writing that is at a level beyond other authors.
I enjoyed this story very much. I also understand that perspective as well. My son was born about a month premature. It wasn't due to anything wrong with him (thank Celestia) but my wife preeclampsia.
I know it was weird those first few weeks because we had a baby but got to sleep a full 8 hours. We had all of the same worries that Twilight had.