Generation 2, Chapter 16: Nine months passes a lot quicker than you'd think

"Babe, can you come here? I don't think I can watch this horror movie on my own... I mean, Jemma's a great help and all, but I need you here. Just to hold your hand, okay? Pretty please?" Aaron whimpered softly as his eyes were pinned on the TV screen.

For some reason, he always wanted to watch a horror movie, but he'd always freak out and scream at the top of his lungs at the end of the film. He never learned his lesson - horror movies just weren't his thing.

"Can this wait till another time, or another movie? I'm exhausted, Aaron... I swear, this baby is sucking the life out of me," I complained under my breath, holding my head upright. My eyes were on the brim of closing, but I wouldn't let them.

"Just five minutes? I need someone around for the scary part, and I have a feeling it's gonna up anytime."

"Fine," I sighed, dragging my feet across the floor towards the couch, sinking into it.

For five minutes I sat there, waiting for the supposed terror to come on the screen. It never did, or perhaps Aaron just had a different definition for "terror" than I did.

"Honestly, this has got to be the most boring movie I have ever seen... And FAKE! That blood that's spilling out of him and onto the walls? How the hell can that be realistic?"

"It'll still frightening to think of it happening in real life," Aaron squeaked, peeking over a pillow at the screen.

"I mean... L-like that! OH GOD, IT'S THE CURSED CLOWN! Kaylin, he's gonna come through that screen and kill us, I tell you! TURN IT OFF! Oh, my eyes, my poor eyes... I've been scarred..."

"You, my dear husband, are such a cry baby," I shook my head, turning the TV off. "Won't you ever know that horror movies just isn't your style?"

"How will I ever know it's not my style if I don't watch it?" he challenged me.

"Babe, I think it's safe to say that you've watched enough of those to say that they're not for you," I chuckled lightly as I saw his lips curling into a pout. Giving up on convincing him, I stood up to go to bed.

"Hey, could you put off the lights in the kitchen before you head to bed? I don't want to walk in the dark tonight... At all."

"Sure," I shrugged, waddling to the kitchen with the weight of a four month old baby in my belly. Aaron was treating me the same as he always had, which at times was desirable, and at times not at all.

I forgot about the lights as soon as I saw her. She, with her dorky magician outfit and colorful hair, and worst of all, a massive grin on her face as she was levitating off of the ground. My sister was such a pain in the ass.

"Bridget, darling sister," I greet her sarcastically, crossing my arms tightly in front of my chest. "What can I help you on this pleasant evening? And can I ask why you're wearing that ridiculous outfit, and even more... How come your hair is longer?"

"I got extensions, obviously," she rolled her eyes at me. "If you must know, I was practicing for a show and I thought I should get into the atmosphere, which included wearing the outfit... Since when did you turn into such a massive bitch? I thought we were back on good terms? It must be the pregnancy hormones that's doing this to you, huh?"

She was right. I was acting a lot more angrier towards everyone, even to poor Jemma. Aaron seemed to take everything in stride, but Bridget wasn't used to me being like this. But it wasn't just the hormones, it was the fact that Bridget turned up whenever she wanted, and always wanted something without giving anything in return.

"So maybe I'm a little more hormonal than usual...," I relented, averting my gaze to the ground. "Can you at least explain to me why you decided to grace us with your presence tonight? My feet are killing me and I'm exhausted, so you better make the explanation quick."

"Well...," she cleared her throat. Was that nervousness I was hearing in her voice? "I got kicked out of my apartment. Apparently there's a 'no pet' rule that I didn't know about, and no one took the time to fill me in on it either."

"Weird," I frowned. "I never knew of that policy. That's pretty ridiculous. Still doesn't explain why you're here in my backyard."

"Oh, right. I wanted to know if Aura and I could crash in your outhouse for the time being, until we can find a better place to stay of course."


She hadn't picked a better time to make her entrance. I was exhausted, that much she knew, and I wouldn't put up a fight in this state. After a tightening of my fists and a unladylike snort, I relented. "Fine. Just know that you're not gonna be living here for ever. Now, if you don't mind, I'm going to bed to sleep for a good twelve hours or so."

Aaron was silent as I got dressed to go to bed and applied some layers of moisturizing cream to my face. I could feel his eyes on my back the entire time, but I dared not look at him. It would just result in an awkward amount of staring and clearing of throats.

"You know that clichéd stuff people say about how women glow when they're pregnant? Well, it's true," Aaron smirked to himself. I wasn't sure if he was speaking to himself or not, but I decided to answer.

"You sure it's not the cream that's doing that? I mean, its got exfoliants and that's supposedly good for the skin."

"No, it's definitely you," he assured me. "You seem happy, even though I know you're exhausted... So come on, hop on the bed and take a well deserved nap."

"Thanks. I'll take you up on that offer," I yawned, stretching my arms far to get the kinks out of it. It had been a long day, not helped by the fact that Aaron forced me to stay up even longer than usual. Though under his shell and appearance, he noticed how hard I had to work carrying around the extra weight, and in his own way he helped.

"Aw, crap... That can't be good," my husband muttered, at the same moment I was about to fall into unconsciousness. It was only then I noticed the spot next to me was open.

"What's wrong...?" I managed through the grogginess filling my mind.

"Nothing, just your sister. She's making a lot of noise, calling for someone... Tell you what. Forget about it. I'll deal with her for now. You get your sleep and then we'll talk in the morning."

"O...kay...," I yawned again, closing my eyes tightly, letting sleep embrace me.

I never did get to have those twelve hours of peaceful slumbering.

The cries coming from downstairs grew louder as minutes went by. Cries that could only come from Bridget. I recognized her high pitched sobs.

"What in God's name would she be crying about at this hour?" grumbling, I pushed my feet into a pair of slippers and trudged downstairs, preparing my "go away" speech to Bridget. As soon as my one foot reached the bottom floor, Bridget started spewing out her troubles.

"Oh, Kay, it's horrible, it's all so horrible... I saw her last night... And then she disappeared... I didn't think she'd run away! I mean, I take good care of her... Why does she punish me like this?!" Bridget sobbed uncontrollably, almost falling into my arms as I came closer.

"Woah, there, sis. As much as I'd love to comfort you now... I need to know why. What's wrong? Who ran away?"

"AURA!" she screeched into the room. "Aura ran away! She didn't seem to be liking the new place... Gosh, Kay, I don't know what to do without her. I don't know how to get her back, too, or where to look. You know the area; would you be able to help?"

"I...I don't know, Bridget," I bit my lip, weighing out my options. My sister wasn't lying - she was completely lost without her cat by her side. If I didn't help her, she would become desolate, maybe even suicidal. And if I helped her, she'd be happy again. So the answer was clear, no matter how hard I tried to deny it. I sighed. "I'll help, but not for long. The ol' baby is making mommy tired. 'Scuse me for a moment, I have to go change. Go call Janelle and ask her over. She'd be prepared to help, seeing as she adores Aura."

The three of us set out into the morning's darkness, with dawn approaching fast. I was dressed in exactly the same clothing as yesterday, being too lazy to find any other outfits. Something about Janelle was different lately, something about her style. It was formal, more so than usual.

"Janelle, not to seem weird, but why are you dressing up so...so fancy lately? Sometimes it looks as if you just stepped out of a business meeting," I scrounged up the courage ask her, finally laying out my thoughts on the table.

"Well, someone has to look like they have brains!" Janelle huffed. "Not you two, of course. I meant Charlie. He's got himself accepted into a football team, and everyone has the prejudice that jocks are dumb. I guess I'm just showing the world that their girlfriends aren't necessarily in the same boat, IQ wise."


"More power to you, I guess," Bridget shrugged, making an effort to try and blend in with our conversation. It wasn't working.

Hours were wasted outside, all for the sake of Aura. The local park turned up empty of pets, and the streets were deserted except for the occasional deer that hopped along. Our last hope was the beach. Even that turned out to be a lost cause. It was there that Bridget collapsed in despair.

"Aura, AURA! Get your booty over here, where ever you are, you silly cat!" Janelle called out desperately into the wind.

"It's no use... She left us. Probably living with someone who can give her better food and a nicer bed," Bridget wept softly, drying her tears with the back of her sleeve. I place a hand reassuringly on her shoulder, trying to show her some sort of comfort. It was all I could do at the time.

"Get your booty on the ground, Janelle. Your just wasting your energy standing," my sister sighed.

"Okay. Don't say I didn't try to help 'cause I did," shrugging, Janelle lowered herself onto the sand, stretching out her legs. She looked like a professional model, used by agencies for those make up advertisements. I was jealous of her beauty, a fact I couldn't ignore.

"Where do we go from here?" I asked softly. "I mean, we can't just ignore the fact that she's missing. Should we put up pamphlets or something?"

"Um... Hi, uh... Sorry to uh, be troubling you girls but I was wondering... Are you three looking for a cat? One that has a really weird rainbow pattern or somethin'...," a male voice enquired behind us, obviously nervous.

"Yeah...," Bridget sighed again. "That sounds like Aura. Sadly, she's gone for ever, and possibly never going to be found."

"Hush, Bridget! There's still hope!" I interjected, trying to keep a flicker of hope alive inside of her. She gave up so quickly on many things.

"Um, so miss Bridget is the owner of the cat? Well, uh, can I please talk to you, about her. There's something you should know..."

Grudgingly, Bridget collected herself and got up from the ground, turning around  slowly to face the stranger. As soon as she was perfectly turned around, Bridget gasped. "AURA! My dearest beauty, where have you been?!"

The mystery man, who was probably the most colorful person I've ever seen, not just by hair color but by skin, carefully handed Aura over to Bridget, making sure not to pinch one of her legs by accident.

"Momma has missed you so much, little girl! You have no idea how worried we've all been. Where on earth have you been hiding?!" With a smile, Bridget turned to the pink skinned man. "Thanks for bringing back my baby, mister...?"

"Windsor," he coughed. "Cameo Windsor. Um, I dunno if you wanna know this, 'cause this will probably make you hate me, but uh, Aura was stuck in my car. I think she must have climbed through the window and fallen asleep. I didn't notice her halfway to work, but she started scratchin' up the car, begging for my attention. As soon as I saw her, I turned back to find her owner. And here we are, it seems."

For a moment Bridget fell silent, and I was sure she was contemplating whether or not to slap the guy for no real reason other than the fact that he's not observant about his surroundings. Something entirely opposite of that happened.

"Oh, that doesn't matter. All that matters is that you brought her back to me. Thank you, thank you, thank you! I'm so happy right now I could kiss you!" Bridget danced on the sand, jumping from one foot to the other. It didn't stop there. Her excitement got the best of her, and she jumped into the not-so-awaiting arms of Cameo, planting a solid kiss on his cheek.

I beckoned Janelle closer as Bridget was still caught in her embrace. "I have a very strong feeling that something is gonna bloom between those two."

"I agree," Janelle giggled, struggling to muffle the sound escaping from her throat. "And I have to say, it's about time Bridget found someone... They're the perfect match, don'tcha think? Look at her hair. Some of the strands are almost the exact shade of his skin!"

We were both right. Within the five months things were starting to develop between Bridget and Cameo. First, a bit of hanging out at the park, then it started hinging on the edge of dates... And finally, he asked her out. Coincidentally, after those five months, I was starting to become afraid. Labor could come at any time. My nine months of preparation were finally up.

~*~

"Babe, I'm not lying! The water is perfectly warm...ish. It can't hurt the baby. I think the doctor would have said something about that, wouldn't he?" Aaron called out as he was drifting in the pool. It was a wonderful day to be out. The skies were clear, the sun was shining with all its might. I could definitely have gotten a great tan if I wasn't wearing a strong protective lotion. "Just come in for like five minutes. I miss having fun with you like this... Please? For me? Your hubby?" he begged one last time.

"Alrighty," I sighed in defeat, "but just for five minutes, okay?"

The trouble I have to go through to get myself into the water for only five minutes seems almost ridiculous. Having to set myself at just the right angle to avoid scraping my belly to get into the pool... I honestly had been thinking of getting myself body armor, just to be able to move around like a normal human being.

As soon as my body was submerged by the water, Aaron had the audacity to pull a stunt on me: he used the power of his hand to splash a large amount of water right in the middle of my face. 

"How about we have a battle, right here and right now, in the water? Then we'll splash each other until someone almost drowns. That's always fun, isn't it?" Aaron laughed, aiming for another shot at me. He might be childish, but that's one of the reasons I love him.

"You can be lucky that your wife is such a good sport and isn't threatening for a divorce right now!" I grinned, sticking out my tongue to mock Aaron. "Otherwise, you'd have a whole lot of begging to do. Which starts now. I cooled down enough, so I'm gonna head out."

"But you can't! I mean, we just began! And I had a whole strategy planned out where I'd duck under water and... Please, pretty please, stay just a bit longer?"

I could hardly contain the giggles. Aaron's pleas were just too funny to handle. Another reason I had to get out of the water: he might make me have a giggle-fit which could cause me to go into shock, perhaps even labor.

"Oh no, you had your chance and you ruined it!" I held up my hand in a "talk to the hand, 'cause this face is busy" gesture before heaving myself out of the water. Oi. I should probably have asked for assistance to get out, but having inherited my mother;s stubborn nature, there was no way I was gonna do that. Using the railing, I took it one step at a time, carefully trying not to let my knees bump into my uterus.

There was a lot of kicking going on as soon as I was on my two feet again. I was starting to theorize that there had to be more than one baby in there. Why else would everything hurt so bad? And cramps... Wasn't I supposed to feel those when it was time for the baby to come?

"Uh, Houston, we might have a problem...," I gasped for air, trying very hard to think of a rational explanation.

"What's up, babe?"

"Well, you might not believe this, but I think my water just broke..."

~*~

The whole room was eerily quiet, except for the tiny nurses who often scurried by to assist with patients in other rooms. I was all alone, waiting. Waiting for news... Would it be good news or bad news? People always say that complications can arise, and it did with Kaylin. She didn't have the strength to manage a natural birth, so the doctors advised a Caesarean section. I immediately agreed, even though that meant I had to stand outside and wait. Kaylin had to survive with no danger to herself and to the baby. I didn't know what to I would do if she died.

The sound of high heels clicking against the floor was almost enough to make me look up, but as soon as I recognized her voice, I decided to keep my position. "Hey...," Janelle stood by me, not seeming as worried as I was. "How're you holding up?"

"By a thread," I nearly hissed, but managed to contain myself. "I just...I'm terrified that something went wrong. They've been in there for so long."

"Well, uh, I wasn't planning on telling you this, and I wanted to wait until the doctor came to find you but, uh... Kaylin made it through. She's fine. The doctor caught me sneaking in the passage and broke the news to me.

"Thank God," letting out a relieved sigh, I allowed myself to lean against the wall for support for fear that I may collapse.

"And, uh... That wasn't all he said," she cleared her throat noisily. "How do you feel about the idea of, I dunno, having to take care of two little ones?" 

That sentence grabbed my full attention. "What? What do you mean, taking care of two babies?"

"Dude. Do the freaking math."

My head pounded as I tried to think of what she meant. Two... Two babies? Kaylin had only been expecting one, hadn't she? So what exactly did that mean?

"I don't know what she sees in you, Aaron, but it definitely isn't brains. I'll make it easier for you. Kaylin gave birth to twins. That better?"