No... how quickly we forget. Er, maybe more like... how slowly I write. Armando is adopted - this is Breanna's first pregnancy.
A few months after his first visit, Parker came to see Melissa again. They sat together in the kitchen, talking and catching up. Soon the flirting began, and Melissa could see this visit headed in the same direction as the last. "Parker, wait," she said. "What's wrong?" he asked. "Listen," she sighed. "The last time you came, it broke my heart. We fooled around, and we... you know... and it reminded me how very much in love with you I still am. And then you went back to Earth, and left me here all alone, and I didn't see or hear from you for months. I can't keep doing this with you. I want a real relationship, with someone who's actually going to be around." "I know," he said. "Last time wasn't fair. I'm sorry. That's why I was thinking... maybe I'd stay this time. That is, if you'll have me." Her jaw dropped. "You mean it?" He nodded. Melissa squealed and threw her arms around Parker. "Yes, yes, yes! You can stay! Please... stay!" "I will," he said, running his fingers through her hair. "I'll stay." They held each other for what seemed like an eternity.
Parker had to go back to Earth to gather his things, but he moved in one week later. He immediately got a job working with the rats at the biological research lab in town. Everything was perfect... at first. But the police department had Melissa working late hours, and their clashing schedules began to take their toll. By the time Melissa was awake in the morning, Parker was already gone to work at the lab. By the time he was home, she was gone on her patrol. And by the time she returned, Parker was already in bed, asleep. The only time they spent together was an hour or so in the early morning when they were both in bed together. They might as well have not lived together at all. One night several months later, Parker woke up when he felt Melissa crawl into bed. He glanced at the clock. It was only midnight. Melissa usually didn't come to bed until four in the morning. He turned and put his arm around her. "Why are you coming to bed so early? Are you all right?" Melissa grinned wider than he had ever seen. "I got promoted," she said. "A desk job... a day desk job. You're going to be seeing a lot more of me now."
Armando loved playing video games with his mother. When they played he often forgot she was his mom and thought of her more like one of his school pals. She would taunt and trash-talk him, and she was even pretty good. They spent many Sundays on the couch in a marathon SSX3 session. This particular afternoon, they were playing their last race of the day, before Breanna had to start dinner. She had been dominating most of the day, and Armando was determined to win this final race. Coming into the final stretch of the track, things weren't looking good, until Breanna's snowboarder suddenly took a tumble. Armando sped past her, crossing the finish line before she could even get back on her board. "Yeah!" he squealed, and tossed his controller down. He jumped up off the couch, arms high in the air, and began to dance a victory dance around Breanna. Breanna laughed as she set her own controller down and snagged Armando in a tickling-hugging-kissing attack. He giggled and squirmed, but eventually settled into a contented snuggle on Breanna's lap. "Okay," Breanna said, "put the controllers away. Mama's gotta start dinner now." Armando obeyed, then turned to her. "Mom?" "What, sweetie?" He suddenly looked concerned. "How come that doctor-lady keeps coming over to see you, and your belly's getting so big? Are you sick?" "Oh, sweetie, no..." she smiled and cupped his face in her hands. "I'm not sick, honey. Quite the opposite, really - something wonderful is about to happen." "What?" he asked. "Well, sweetie, Mommy has a baby growing inside her. Pretty soon you're going to have a baby brother or sister." Armando looked confused. "There's a baby... in there?" He pointed to her bulging belly. She smiled. "Yes, honey, that's where babies come from. They grow in their mommies until they're strong enough to eat and breathe and survive out in the world, and then they're born. And Dr. Brynne, she just comes to check up and make sure everything's okay, that the baby is doing okay." "Did I come from your belly too?" "Well, no... You came from another mommy, and she wasn't able to take care of you. But she loved you very much, and she wanted you to have a mom and a dad who would love you and take care of you the way she wasn't able to. So she trusted Social Services to find you the perfect home... and they brought you to us." "Oh," he said, "okay." He put his hands on her belly. "Hi there, little brother or sister. I hope you come out soon and play with me."
One morning a couple of weeks later, Armando woke up for school and came out to the kitchen to find Dr. Brynne standing there with his mother, who was holding a tiny baby, with dark skin like his dad's. "Good morning, sweetheart," Breana said with the biggest smile Armando had ever seen. "Come meet your baby brother Elliot."
Betsy Broke stared out the window of the taxi as she rode from the Pleasantview Spaceport to the cemetary. It was the first time she'd been back to Pleasantview since she'd left for another planet almost four years ago, and she had mixed feelings about being here. It made her feel like she must be a terrible person, but she also had mixed feelings about the reason she was back - her mother's death. Maybe "mixed feelings" wasn't the right term for it. She had been estranged from her mother for so long, that she really felt rather indifferent. As the taxi pulled over at the entrance to the cemetary, Betsy saw her brother Timothy waiting for her. She paid the driver and stepped out of the car, then threw her arms around Timothy's neck. "Little brother," she whispered, and held him as tight and as long as she could. "I missed you," said Timothy. Betsy finally let go and looked her brother up and down. "What in Maxis' name are you wearing?" Betsy had taken the time to find an appropriate outfit for the occasion. She wasn't going to be dishonest and dress like she was in complete and total mourning, but she had wanted to at least be respectful. But Timothy wore a white tuxedo with powder blue satin lining. He looked like he had just come from a wedding set in the '80s. Timothy shrugged. "This is the only formal thing I own. I wasn't about to spend money on something sad and morbid just for her. Especially since that's not how I feel... and neither do you." Betsy rolled her eyes. "Real mature, Tim." They entered the graveyard and walked over to their mother's tombstone. Andrea had already been buried by the cemetary workers. Betsy and Tim were only here to formally pay their respects. After all, they may have disliked their mother, but she did bring them into this world. They stood by the grave in an awkward silence for a few minutes before going into the chapel. They sat in one of the pews for a while, first quietly observing the altar, and then talking and reminiscing about their childhood, and catching up on each other's lives. Finally, they left the cemetary to go get something to eat, and spend some time together before Betsy had to catch her flight back home.
Melissa Bendett came home from work one day to find Parker on the kitchen floor playing with a small dog. Setting down her things, she eyed the two of them and finally managed a "What the...?" Parker grinned at her. "His name is Cymoril. I adopted him. Don't be mad..." He took her hand in his and looked up at her. "I passed by the shelter on the way home, and he just looked so pathetic staring out the window at me, and I..." He changed his approach. "I got promoted today!" Melissa started laughing - he was so cute! "You're not going to believe this," she said as she pulled him to his feet and kissed him. "I got promoted too." "No way!" Parker said as he kissed her back. "Well I think this calls for a little celebration, don't you?" Cymoril watched with his head tilted in curiosity as they ran into the bedroom, giggling.
A few weeks later, Melissa awoke one morning nearly starving. She had gone to bed with a full stomach, but now she was ravenous. She couldn't wait for anything to cook, so she had a plate of Jell-O while Parker made her some pancakes. After the Jell-O and two plates of pancakes, she finally felt better. But that didn't last for long. Within less than an hour, she was in the bathroom, throwing it all back up again. Oh my God, she thought, I know what this means. After cleaning herself up, she approached Parker. "We need to talk," she said to him. "I have to tell you something." "What is it?" he asked. "Um," she said, "I think I'm pregnant. Actually I'm sure I am." She looked into his eyes. "We're going to have a baby." She wasn't sure how he was going to react; she wasn't even sure how she felt about it herself. He stood expressionless for a moment, and then a grin spread across his face from one ear to the other. He threw his arms around her, exclaiming, "I'm so happy!" The fact that Parker was happy was good enough for Melissa, and she giggled with glee as they hugged. Then Parker suddenly broke their embrace and got down on one knee, pulling something out of his pocket. Melissa clapped her hand over her mouth. "I was waiting for the right time," he started, "and I think this is it. It's time we make this official and proper." He opened the box he had pulled from his pocket, and opened it to reveal a sparkling diamond ring. "Melissa Bendett, will you be my wife?"
"I have been trying to get you to come to Fresca to visit me for years," Betsy Broke said sternly to her brother. "You're coming for Thanksgiving and that's final." Betsy and Timothy were used to small Thanksgivings. Their father hadn't been close to either of his brothers, their grandmother Brandi had died before Timothy was born, and their mother had no family in Pleasantview. But this was the smallest yet - just the two of them. Timothy only had a short break from classes, so he took a midnight flight Wednesday night from Pleasantview to Fresca, staying at Betsy's for only one night before flying back Friday morning. Thanksgiving Day was a nice, relaxed affair. They hung out, watched TV together, chatted about nothing in particular. Timothy played with Betsy's new pet bird (and ended up letting him loose to fly all over the house) while Betsy burned the turkey. They choked it down anyway, and later they had cheesecake, which came out much better than the turkey. The next morning came too fast, and before they knew it they were saying their goodbyes. Hugging Timothy, Betsy said, "Thanks for not making me spend Thanksgiving alone."
