The indicator light on the incubator was still flashing, one green bar, then one yellow bar, as if counting breaths. Chen Hao's hand was still pressed against the glass, his palm facing the spot where the baby had just rolled over. He didn't move, Karl didn't move, and Nana's screen remained still, with only the data stream slowly scrolling.

Half an hour ago, the nurse said Susan could be transferred to the recovery room, but none of them left. Chen Hao felt that leaving now would be like missing something important. He stared at the child, watching him burrow his head under the blanket like a chick just hatching.

“He moved,” Carl said in a low voice.

"I know." Chen Hao didn't pull his hand back. "I felt it."

"You can feel it even through the glass?"

"I can."

Nana suddenly spoke up: "The temperature monitoring shows that the baby's surface temperature is stable, and the heart rate is 135 per minute, which is within the normal range for newborns. The medical staff will proceed with the transfer soon."

As soon as the words were spoken, the door was pushed open, and two nurses in blue-green uniforms walked in. One of them glanced at the recorder and nodded: "The mother is awake, and the baby shows no abnormalities. We can now proceed with the first skin-to-skin contact."

Chen Hao suddenly looked up: "Really?"

"Really. But it can't be too long, ten minutes, and pay attention to your posture."

The nurse gently pushed the incubator to the bedside, and another bed was already pushed in. Susan lay on it, her face pale, but her eyes were open, staring straight at them.

"Let me see..." Her voice was very soft, as if it were being squeezed out of her throat.

Before Chen Hao could react, Carl had already turned around to get the tablet, and Nana also took a step forward and stood at the foot of the bed.

The nurse untied the blanket, carefully took the baby out, and handed him to Chen Hao: "Support his head and back with both hands, don't let him lean back. Here, take him slowly."

Chen Hao stretched out his hand, his fingers trembling slightly. He used to be so unsteady that he couldn't even hold a kettle steady, let alone carry someone. But now he dared not sway or breathe heavily, his whole body tense like a clothesline.

He froze as soon as the baby was in his arms.

It wasn't because it was heavy, it was because it was too light. As light as a wisp of warm air. But he could feel the small body moving, its chest rising and falling, its nose brushing against his wrist, its breath soft and damp.

"Hey..." He throated, "You're awake?"

The baby didn't cry or fuss; he just tilted his head, as if searching for a sound.

“He can hear you,” the nurse said. “Newborns have fully developed hearing, and they are especially responsive to their parents’ voices.”

Chen Hao leaned closer and said, "I'm your dad. Got it? From now on, I'll control all your snacks, pick out your toys, and do your homework for you—just kidding, your mom will kill me if she finds out."

Susan chuckled beside her, then frowned and pressed her hand to her stomach.

"Don't talk, let him be quiet for a while," the nurse advised.

But the baby suddenly opened his eyes.

It wasn't just squinting; it was truly open. Its eyelids lifted, its dark pupils darted around halfway before finally settling on Chen Hao's face.

Chen Hao held his breath.

“He looked at me,” he whispered. “He recognizes me.”

"The newborn's vision is blurry," Nana announced as usual. "Currently, he can only distinguish the contrast between light and dark within 20 centimeters and cannot recognize facial features."

“But he just kept looking at me,” Chen Hao insisted. “His eyes said, ‘My dad’s here.’”

Carl crouched down and held the tablet up: "22:15 Newborn's first eye opening subject: Father Chen Hao, continuous gaze duration approximately four seconds."

"Do you really have to remember this?" Chen Hao glanced at him.

"I can take it out and display it when he starts dating someone in the future."

Susan held out her hand: "Let me touch him."

The nurse helped adjust the baby's position, bringing the baby's little hand close to Susan's fingertips. As soon as the child touched her, his fingers curled up and grasped his mother's fingers.

“Sigh…” Susan’s eyes reddened. “He even knew to arrest me.”

“This is the grasp reflex,” Nana said. “All healthy newborns have it.”

“But he held on so tightly,” Susan said, her voice trembling. “Like he was afraid I’d run away.”

Chen Hao looked at the two of them and suddenly felt a tightness in his chest. It wasn't pain, but a bloating. It felt like something was rising from his stomach and getting stuck in his throat.

He blinked and looked down, pretending to tidy up the blanket.

“You cried,” Carl said.

"Bullshit." Chen Hao wiped his face. "It's too damp in here."

"The humidity is 45 percent," Nana added. "That's in the dry range."

"Then shut up."

The nurse smiled and said, "Your family is quite interesting."

The baby squirmed in Chen Hao's arms, his little mouth opening as if he was about to yawn. Chen Hao quickly leaned him onto his shoulder, but the movement was too abrupt, and the baby almost hit his head.

"Hey, hey, hey!" he panicked. "I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry!"

"Don't be nervous." The nurse held his arm. "He's not that fragile. It's you who's more likely to start shaking, or the child will think there's an earthquake."

Carl nodded: "The magnitude is estimated at 5.8, and the epicenter is at your elbow."

Chen Hao grinned, finally feeling a little relieved.

The baby nestled on his shoulder, head pressed against his neck, breathing softly and rhythmically, the warmth brushing against his skin. Chen Hao had never been this quiet before. He wasn't even this quiet when he lost a video game.

"Is he asleep?" he asked.

“No.” Nana looked at the data. “The EEG shows that the person is in a state of shallow arousal, and the activity of the auditory cortex is increased.”

"So...he's listening to us?"

"yes."

Chen Hao cleared his throat: "Shall I sing you a song? I sang it every day during my prenatal education. Your mom said it sounded awful, but I think you were woken up by my singing."

“I advise against it,” Carl said. “Medical equipment might be misdiagnosed as noise pollution.”

"Shut up."

Chen Hao started humming again, completely off-key: "Twinkle, little star, twinkle, shining brightly in the sky..."

The baby is not responding.

"Look, he's ignoring me."

“He probably thought the song was too old,” Carl said.

"Old? This song was born older than him."

Susan said softly, "Try singing one more line."

Chen Hao hummed again, this time in an even lower voice. Suddenly, the baby's hand moved, scratching the back of his neck.

"He scratched me!" Chen Hao exclaimed excitedly. "He responded to me!"

“It might have been an unconscious action,” Nana said.

"Impossible! He only scratched me because he likes me!"

“Brother’s verification is valid,” Carl added, then pressed the record button.

Susan reached out and touched the back of the baby's head: "He has so much hair."

“Like me,” Chen Hao said proudly. “Naturally thick, a genetic advantage.”

“He might go bald tomorrow,” Carl said.

"roll."

The nurse glanced at the time: "It's almost time. It's time to send her back to rest."

"Just one more minute," Chen Hao said reluctantly. "Just one minute."

“Five minutes,” Susan said. “Let me look at him a little longer.”

The nurse hesitated for a moment, then nodded: "Okay, but not for too long."

The baby moved on Chen Hao's shoulder, then suddenly turned its head and touched his chin with its little mouth.

"He kissed me!" Chen Hao's voice changed. "He kissed me!"

“It was a rub,” Nana calmly analyzed. “The facial muscles weren’t coordinated enough to complete the action of actively kissing.”

"He kissed me! My first kiss as a father!"

Carl silently noted: "22:18 Suspected kissing behavior of newborn: father; location: right lower jaw; duration: 0.7 seconds."

"Can you stop writing everything down?" Chen Hao glared at him.

"When he grows up, that will be the proof."

Nana suddenly said, "Can I touch his hand?"

Everyone was stunned.

The nurse glanced at her: "A robot?"

"Yes. My contact surface has been sterilized at high temperature, and the temperature has been adjusted to 36 degrees Celsius, so it will not cause irritation."

The nurse thought for a moment and said, "Touch her gently, don't frighten the child."

Nana stretched out her fingers and slowly approached the baby's exposed little hand. Just as her fingertips touched the palm, the child suddenly tightened his grip on her mechanical fingers.

The entire room fell silent.

Nana's voice module paused for a moment: "The intensity of the haptic feedback exceeded expectations. I suggest naming this interaction 'First Handshake'."

Carl immediately held up the tablet: "22:19 Newborn and family member Nana completed their first active grasp, lasting 1.5 seconds. The system automatically marked it as an 'AI kinship authentication event'."

"Your ability to improvise lyrics is getting better and better," Chen Hao laughed.

Susan looked at them, tears welling up in her eyes again: "You...you're all here."

"Of course we're here." Chen Hao looked down at the child in his arms. "The whole family is here."

The baby burped, exhaling a mouthful of milky air.

Carl solemnly announced: "At 22:20, the newborn's first independent flatus indicates that the digestive system is functioning normally."

"Do you really have to remember this?" Chen Hao asked helplessly.

"This is a milestone in our growth."

The nurse finally spoke: "It's time for him to rest."

Chen Hao slowly placed the baby back into the incubator, his movements as slow as if he were placing an egg. As he covered the baby with a blanket, he also smoothed out the edges, making sure everything was neat and tidy.

The baby didn't wake up, but just smacked his lips, as if savoring something.

Chen Hao stood to the side, his hand still hanging in mid-air.

“You can touch him,” the nurse said.

He gently placed his hand on the blanket, pressing down on the baby's little feet.

Susan raised her hand and placed it on his.

Carl stepped to the other side and put his hand on Susan's shoulder.

Nana stood at the foot of the bed. The screen dimmed briefly, then lit up again, the blue light flashing slowly at a frequency close to the baby's heartbeat.

No one spoke in the room.

The baby suddenly moved, nudging the blanket with his toes.

Chen Hao laughed: "He kicked me."