It was a late evening at St. Mary’s Hospital, the maternity ward alive with the anxious energy of expectant parents. In the waiting area, four men sat side by side, each clutching a coffee cup they had been nursing for hours. Their spouses were in delivery rooms just down the hall, and though the men were strangers to one another, they shared the same restless anticipation that often turns strangers into companions.
The first man paced, glancing repeatedly at the clock. The second thumbed through a magazine without really reading it. The third hummed nervously under his breath, and the fourth sat silently, staring into space as his knee bounced with tension. Every squeak of sneakers and ring of a distant phone heightened their nerves.
Finally, the doors to the ward swung open. A smiling nurse approached the first man, clipboard in hand. “Congratulations, sir! Your wife has given birth to twins—two healthy, beautiful babies.”
The man’s jaw dropped. “Twins? That’s incredible! Would you believe I work for the Minnesota Twins?” His laughter echoed through the waiting area, prompting chuckles from the other men.
A few minutes later, the nurse returned to the second man. “Sir, congratulations—your wife has delivered triplets!”
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