The fluorescent lights of the Dallas hospital room hummed loudly in the heavy silence. Outside, the midday sun burned bright, but inside, the air felt freezing. Four-year-old Lily stood on her tiptoes, her tiny fingers clutching the cold acrylic edge of the clear bassinet crib. Her blonde pigtails, tied neatly with white silk bows, swayed as she leaned forward in her navy blue sailor dress. She stared intensely at the tiny bundle wrapped tight in a white flannel blanket.

Lily: HELLO BABY! WHAT'S YOUR NAME?

Her voice echoed off the sterile walls, bright and completely innocent. On the opposite side of the room, Mark didn't smile. He sat stiffly in the vinyl armchair, his hands clutched tightly around a leather briefcase containing his divorce lawyer's business card. He hadn't touched the baby once since my delivery three hours ago. His eyes were cold, fixed on me with accusation and disgust.

Mark: Stop encouraging her, Clara. You know as well as I do that child isn't mine. I'm not playing happy family for your little show.

Clara: Mark, please. Look at him. He has your eyes, your chin... How can you sit there and accuse me of cheating when I've been nothing but faithful to you for six years?

Mark: Don't play the victim. My mother showed me the bank statements. She saw the wire transfers to that private estate attorney in downtown Dallas. You've been draining our joint trust fund behind my back!

Lily: INTERESTING ANSWER! DO YOU LIKE ME?

Lily didn't notice her father's harsh tone. She leaned even closer over the clear plastic wall, her innocent face full of pure curiosity. The newborn shuffled inside his tight swaddle, making a quiet, tiny cooing noise as his miniature arm broke free from the blanket. His tiny hand reached up into the air, blindly opening and closing his soft fingers until they brushed against Lily's hand.

Lily: HE SAID YES!

She gasped in pure delight, holding his microscopic fingers with both of her hands while looking up at us with a beaming smile. But Mark stood up suddenly, shoving his chair back with a loud screech against the linoleum floor, completely unaware that his own mother's grand lie was about to be destroyed by a sealed envelope sitting in his briefcase.