Every single chance I got with Buster, I treasured. Even though I tried to keep from thinking about it, I knew that he would die before I would. But I knew if I kept denying it, it would hurt even more when it happened. When we'd hug, I couldn't keep the sad expression off my face. Maybe if I wished hard enough that he'd survive for a long time, it would happen. My wish thing was still in full swing, wasn't it? I had no idea anymore.
"I love you so much, Buster.." I muttered quietly one day as we embraced before he had to head for work.
"I love you, too, Sean." he said, and it sounded like he knew exactly why I sounded the way I did. He kissed my cheek, pulled back and smiled at me. "Don't worry so much. I feel fine."
I smiled softly back at him and nodded. "I try not to.."
Then he had to get to work.
"Mommy?" I heard Dee say as I fed Lyric her breakfast one morning.
I glanced over at my eldest daughter, and smiled at her in curiosity. "Yes, sweetheart?"
"I really like baby Lyric. Having a baby sister makes me happy. Can we get another one?"
My eyes widened at that question, at first thinking 'no way'. But, then I thought. I still wanted my little boy Rhett. One more would make our family complete. I then laughed lightly, and nodded my yes. "Yes.. we can get another baby. But not for a little while yet, Mommy still needs to recover from little Lyric here."
"Yaaaay! How about a baby brother this time?"
"That's what I'm hoping for."
Shortly after my short conversation with Dee, I could hear Naomi getting sick in the bathroom, and hurried over to the door, nearly having a heart attack. Was my baby okay?! I knocked lightly on the door. "Naomi, honey? Are you okay?"
"Uuugh.." was the only reaction I got, and I nearly burst in to comfort my little girl, but then she opened the door and smiled weakly up at me. "I'm okay, Mommy. I think the leftovers were bad.."
"Oh, of course they were bad!" I sighed. "I've been meaning to clean them out for weeks now. I'm sorry, honey." I bent down and gave her a hug of apology.
Naps really had become my new best friend. Even though Lyric was only one baby, she wanted attention all the time, and even though Deirdre and Naomi were more self-sufficient, they, of course, still needed me for things. So I had to catch some sleep where I could. I almost wanted Buster to retire, so he could stay home and help me out with all of our girls.
When Buster was home though, I was grateful for his help. Unlike before we were married, he actually helped out with Lyric when she cried. Even when he was asleep after working all day, and I was already up! Doesn't he make such a cute Daddy?
Lyric was almost a toddler.. when I started getting morning sickness again. Already?! How could I tell anyone that I was already pregnant, when we could all barely get any sleep as it was because Lyric had the most powerful baby lungs I had ever encountered? Another baby already.. I wanted one already, but not until Lyric was a toddler!
One thing that helped me feel better about the entire situation, was that the girls were nearly teenagers and could help out with the babies. At the same time that didn't make me feel better, because they were almost teenagers. Already? My life had suddenly gone from uneventful and slow to eventful and much too fast..
Sleep? What's that? We all seemed to have forgotten how to sleep properly, because of having to share a room with a baby who cries every.. five minutes. And I am not over-exaggerating. It was just as bad, or worse, than when I had to raise Dee and Naomi by myself. Because then it was mostly just me passing out all over the place, then occasionally the girls when they were toddlers. But now it's Buster, the older girls, and me, and soon we were bound to fall on each other when we passed out. Finally, I was fed up. I adore my baby girl Lyric, but I called up Aria to see if she would be willing to take care of her for a little while. She said yes, then I announced to.. well, just Dee, since Buster and Naomi had passed out, "That's it. We need a vacation. Pack your things, wake your sister and tell her to pack, too." I hated traveling while pregnant, but I wasn't even positive I was yet, so it was okay.
"YES! We get to sleep!!"
And off we were, to..
Egypt!
"Dee?"
"Yeah, Nay?"
"What do you think of Egypt so far?"
"It's neat, but I like home better."
"Pffff, you don't deserve that map on your dress! I love this so far! It's so exciting, I.. I think I know what I wanna do when I grow up!"
"What's that?"
"Travel EVERYWHERE! Get as high a visa level everywhere as possible! Wouldn't that be cool!?"
"I guess.."
"You can go and be a doctor, but I'm definitely gonna travel lots. Maybe marry a handsome foreigner who'll whisk me off my feet.."
"Dreamer."
"Am not!"
My little girls are so cute, I had to watch them whenever they interacted like this. I'm glad they didn't scold me for eavesdropping..
After we'd settled in and claimed tents, we all headed off to the market. When we got to the market, we each did our own thing. The girls each picked a book from the bookstore, and started reading it. Buster went to the general store and bought some supplies for him and me, for adventuring, while I went straight for the snake charming basket. Why? I had no idea to be honest. It'd never appealed to me, but I just went straight for it, wanting to be a little more daring than usual.. guess my wish thing was still on, then! I never was able to charm the snake, and I reached into the basket to feel if there was even a snake in it. It bit me for my troubles, and I was immediately glad that it was not a poisonous snake.
After we had our supplies, we got our group together, and started off. Well, except Dee. We told her we were going to visit a bunch of the sights, but she told me she would rather stay around the marketplace and make friends. It was really nice that she wanted to socialize, because I'd heard that at school, the only person she socialized with was her sister. She wasn't a loner, was she? I hadn't thought so..
The first stop was the Pyramid of the Burning Sands. I kind of wanted to go inside and explore, but Buster.. well, he's a chicken. "Let's.. let's go on to the next site, okay? We've seen this one.. there might be mummies.."
I sighed. He was right, there might be mummies, and I didn't want the mummies to get to Naomi, though she seemed to be excited by the prospect. Was I surprised? She was such an excitable young lady, everything made her squeal with delight.
"Okay, we'll go to the next one."
The trip to the Temple of Hatshepsut was pretty uneventful, except Buster didn't want to go in the limo. I didn't really either, but my limo driver had insisted on coming with us and driving us, so I felt obligated to used my limo. Naomi got excited about getting to use a limo, so she went with me.
When we got to the temple, Buster and Naomi just started chatting in front, and I went upstairs to look at some of the statues. They amazed me, and almost made me want to learn the sculpting skill just so I could learn to make something so.. pretty.
We stayed at the temple for hours. Nearly the rest of the day! Buster and Naomi had a great time getting closer, and I played guitar. At the time I had no idea what Dee was doing, but later I found out.
She had read for almost the entire day at the marketplace, then went back to the base camp when she got hungry. Then she got hounded by a paparazzo, because while she was at the marketplace, somehow her celebrity star level had raised to three. (Naomi, only at two stars herself, was jealous when she learned that.)
Finally, we decided that we should leave the temple, and went to the marketplace for dinner. After we ate, we went home, and all went to bed. It was.. simply amazing to sleep. All night. Even if it was on the ground.
The second day of our vacation was.. uneventful. Dee and I played tag for a while.
I played bass, and everyone watched me do so, for a while.
The paparazzo from the day before bothered us all day, and squealed over me once. Kind of disturbing on a grown man..
After the rest of us went to bed, Dee went out to go fishing like she'd been wanting to at home. She'd been pretty interested in fishing since she and Naomi had gone to Smuggler's Cove together, and fishing in a foreign country would mean foreign fish. Right?
In the middle of the night, Buster got a call from someone, asking him to.. well, I'm not sure. But she wanted him to retrieve something for her. I sat up, starting to get ready with him, but he shook his head and gently pushed me back down. "No, no, Sean. Go back to sleep. It won't take me long."
"But Buster.."
"No. Sleep." And with that, he kissed me and tucked me in as well as one can with a sleeping bag, then left the tent. I'm not entirely sure what happened while he was gone - I didn't stalk him, though I debated it, 'cause I fell asleep before I could.. - but the next I saw him, he looked exhausted and had a bunch of ancient coins and things we could sell for a lot of money.
After I woke up, I got a phone call myself. Someone - probably a tour guide, I'm guessing - wanted me to visit all of the most popular sites in Egypt. I agreed happily, then, not wanting to leave the girls alone, told Naomi to get her sister, because they were going to come with me as I visit all of the sites. She gasped in excitement, then went to Dee.
"DEIRDRE! Guess what?!"
"What?"
"We're gonna go with Mom to see ALL of the best sites in Egypt!! Isn't that cool!?"
"Uh.. yeah."
"You're so boring, you don't react at all!"
"Just 'cause I don't get excited at everything doesn't mean I don't react at all!"
I sighed, and decided to butt in before they got into one of their arguments. They may have been nearly identical, but they certainly didn't have the same personality. "Girls, let's go."
And we explored for the rest of the day, until it was time for our flight home.
The trip was great.. but I was relieved to get home. I love my baby Lyric, and had felt guilty for wanting to get away from her the entire time we were gone. I didn't leave her alone after we picked her up from Aria's, until she fell asleep and I was close to sleep myself. "Goodnight, my sweet little music baby." I whispered, kissing her forehead then putting her back in her crib.
Then came a day I would never.. ever forget.
It started off pretty icky, because I woke up nauseous, and since someone was in the bathroom, I rushed downstairs, outside to puke my guts out on the sidewalk. Then I noticed, as I held my hurting tummy, that I was beginning to get a baby bump, so changed into my maternity clothes when I got upstairs. When I told Buster, he said that he wanted a girl, and I still wanted my little boy, so I kind of hoped for multi-gender twins to please us both, even though I'd always wanted four children.
I had some errands to run, so kissed Buster, cuddled Lyric, and headed off. Dee and Naomi had gotten fed up with not being able to sleep, so they took our tents and went to take a nap in the park. Maybe I'd stop by there and pick them up on my way home.
Little did I know that they were already on their way home (Naomi completely forgot her tent at the park, I sometimes wondered if she was a little absent-minded)..
As they were on their way home, everything happened all at once. First, Dee had her birthday, and then Naomi had her's. I had completely forgotten their birthdays because of everything that had been happening lately.. I felt like such an awful mother!
At the same time as the girls' birthday, the thing I'd been dreading happened. I had no clue at the time, but I did suddenly feel like I needed to get home. Buster was being taken from us, right in front of Lyric. I was just glad that she was too young to realize what was going on.
As she went into the apartment to change her clothes, Naomi witnessed our beloved Buster's death. "NOOOO! DADDY!" she shrieked, and I, who had just gotten home, heard it all the way in the lobby.
"NO! BUSTER, DON'T GO WITHOUT SAYING GOODBYE!" I shrieked upstairs, and then went to the elevator, pushing the up button repeatedly. Why wouldn't the freaking elevator open?! "Openopenopenopen!"
Upstairs, Naomi ran up to the Grim Reaper when he appeared, and grabbed his arm, clinging to it tightly. "No Mr. Grim Reaper man, don't take my Daddy, I haven't even gotten to have him walk me down the aisle yet! Just.. just wait until I get married, please!" He tried to shake her off his arm, but she just clung tight, sobbing as he showed no mercy. Naomi said that Buster gracefully accepted his fate, didn't even beg. Just said that he was tired, and told Naomi that everything was okay, to help me take good care of Lyric and the new baby.
"I.. I will, Daddy... don't go.."
Finally, the elevator came, and I got upstairs. I burst in the door, just in time to see Naomi sobbed over a rectangular tin can. Buster was no where in sight, and I guessed.. he was in the can. "Noooooo!" I screamed, and clutched at my chest, leaning against the still-open door for what little support it could give. The love of my life was gone. After so long of trying to get him to marry me, we only got a few good years and now he was gone. "I TOLD you not to go by yourself into that.. that dungeon, you strained yourself, Buster.." I sobbed, then moved weakly over to the can, picking it up and putting it on my dresser, in as much of a place of honor as I could find in this dingy apartment. I barely even noticed that Naomi had grown up. I didn't even barely notice that Dee had when she got home and asked about her Dad. I didn't answer. I couldn't speak. Naomi told her, and they clung to each other for comfort. I don't know how long our mourning lasted, before they decided to redesign their 'looks'.
I hadn't noticed when she was little, but it seemed that Dee had gotten my weight problem, but it fit her so well. She was a beautiful girl, inside and out, even if she had a temper problem. Every time I looked at her, I thought of Buster - now, more than ever, she and Naomi were female versions of him.
Naomi, being more active than her sister, was also thinner. They'd decided that they were tired of dressing the same, so went with their own styles, though kept their hair very similar. I sobbed when they'd finished remaking their looks, and they both hugged me comfortingly. "It'll be okay, Momma," Naomi told me sympathetically, and petted my hair slightly. "Daddy didn't want us to be too sad. C'mon, it's almost Lyric's birthday, let's celebrate it. That'll distract us, right?"
"Right.."
So, we celebrated little Lyric's birthday. When she aged up, she aged up with.. dark brown hair? I don't know where she got that, but most of her other features.. she was practically a little clone of me. Such an adorable little sweetheart, I cuddled her for a long time, before we all finally went to bed.
The next few days (weeks, months..) went by in a blur. I barely knew which way was up, and the girls had to take care of Lyric over half of the time (even though I knew they were hurting, too, especially Naomi who'd been the closest to Buster and had to witness him go). I could barely function. Especially because now.. I felt like I was betraying Buster, because I already wanted to get married again. To who? I didn't know, but Lyric and our unborn little bundle were going to need a father figure. Naomi and Deirdre needed one for their teenage years, and to walk them down the aisle, too. "I'm so sorry I want to get remarried, Buster.. I'm awful..." I sobbed to the sink one day. Yes, I should have been talking to his remains, but I hated looking at them. It reminded me even more that he wasn't here, with me, helping me with our children.
Only one thing truly comforted me, and that was the last little gift Buster had left me, the life growing inside me. I'd gone to the hospital to get an ultrasound the night that Buster died, to find out how many and the gender(s) of our baby(ies), to surprise him. It was one little boy, and I already had a name for him. Rhett. I'd known that for years, and when I learned his gender, I remembered my dream. Four children, three girls and one boy. I guess it'd been a little bit predictive.
Jett was a big comfort during that time, too. When he finally heard what happened, he visited me and immediately gave me a comforting hug. We weren't the best of friends, but we were pretty close. Close enough to care when the other one gets heartbroken. He spent a lot of time with me when the girls were at school or their part-time jobs, keeping me from falling apart. No matter how much I cared about Lyric or Rhett, they couldn't keep my mind from that little box on top of the dresser for very long. Neither could Jett, but he'd scold me when I'd start to wallow in self pity.
I felt awful when I would catch scenes like this. I was becoming an awful mother again - was all I cared about truly my own feelings? Deirdre and Naomi were hurting as much as I was. Buster was their Daddy. And Lyric.. oh, poor Lyric, she didn't even know what was going on, why everyone kept crying. She'd cry right along with us, simply because we were crying. I needed to snap out of this.. but I just couldn't.
One day very near my due date, I decided to try and teach Lyric how to talk, but.. I was just far too distracted. "Say pond.." I prompted, and she just kind of stared at me, blinking her large, cute teal eyes. After a moment I just sighed and stood up. "I'm so sorry, Lyr, honey, I just.. your Daddy..." I sobbed, clenching my chest. It was another wave of sorrow. It hurt so bad.. then something interrupted me and told me that it hurt even more than sorrow. "AAH!"
"Maa!" Lyric cried, staring up at me in her adorable little toddler worry. She was such a sweetheart, I wished I could go back to the beginning of her toddlerhood and give her more of the attention she deserved.
But right then, I needed to concentrate on Rhett. I didn't want to leave Lyric home alone while I hurried to the hospital, so I decided to have Rhett there at home.
After quite a while, there he was. My beautiful little boy, Rhett Buster Parodi. My heart lifted a little, and I smiled down at my boy, cuddling him. "I promise, little one, I will get better. I will raise you and Lyric better from now on. And I will find you a Daddy-figure."
(A/N: Sorry about the length, but I had to include all of it. It sure was eventful, huh? So, first off, I'll start with before the trip. Sean had an opportunity to go to Egypt, and seriously, Lyric would never stop crying, so I got fed up with them all passing out all over, and decided to send them to Egypt despite Sean's pregnancy. As soon as they got there, Naomi rolled the LTW Seasoned Traveler, and I was so excited, 'cause if she's picked as the heir that will definitely make interesting chapters! The trip was pretty uneventful. Almost as soon as they got back, Sean nearly killed them all while she was making pancakes because she was about to 'learn' she was pregnant and it did that freeze-for-several-Sim-hours thing. And then, that same day, suddenly it hops over to Dee, 'it's Deirdre's birthday!' Before she finished aging up, it hopped over to Naomi, same thing. I jokingly wrote in my notes-to-self about how I was glad that it wasn't Sean's due date because she'd have the baby then Buster'd die. Then, before Naomi finished aging up, it hopped upstairs to Buster. It was by far my most dramatic day in my wishacy at that point [I think it still is, actually]. Oh, and immediately as soon as Buster was dead? Sean wished to get married again. It's like, seriously? You must have loved him a lot, there, Sean. Oh! And the traits of the kids. Dee got the photographer's eye trait, Naomi got the workaholic trait, and I didn't get to choose any of Rhett's since the events before his birth really weren't so good, so he was born with loner and good.)
"I love you so much, Buster.." I muttered quietly one day as we embraced before he had to head for work.
"I love you, too, Sean." he said, and it sounded like he knew exactly why I sounded the way I did. He kissed my cheek, pulled back and smiled at me. "Don't worry so much. I feel fine."
I smiled softly back at him and nodded. "I try not to.."
Then he had to get to work.
"Mommy?" I heard Dee say as I fed Lyric her breakfast one morning.
I glanced over at my eldest daughter, and smiled at her in curiosity. "Yes, sweetheart?"
"I really like baby Lyric. Having a baby sister makes me happy. Can we get another one?"
My eyes widened at that question, at first thinking 'no way'. But, then I thought. I still wanted my little boy Rhett. One more would make our family complete. I then laughed lightly, and nodded my yes. "Yes.. we can get another baby. But not for a little while yet, Mommy still needs to recover from little Lyric here."
"Yaaaay! How about a baby brother this time?"
"That's what I'm hoping for."
Shortly after my short conversation with Dee, I could hear Naomi getting sick in the bathroom, and hurried over to the door, nearly having a heart attack. Was my baby okay?! I knocked lightly on the door. "Naomi, honey? Are you okay?"
"Uuugh.." was the only reaction I got, and I nearly burst in to comfort my little girl, but then she opened the door and smiled weakly up at me. "I'm okay, Mommy. I think the leftovers were bad.."
"Oh, of course they were bad!" I sighed. "I've been meaning to clean them out for weeks now. I'm sorry, honey." I bent down and gave her a hug of apology.
Naps really had become my new best friend. Even though Lyric was only one baby, she wanted attention all the time, and even though Deirdre and Naomi were more self-sufficient, they, of course, still needed me for things. So I had to catch some sleep where I could. I almost wanted Buster to retire, so he could stay home and help me out with all of our girls.
When Buster was home though, I was grateful for his help. Unlike before we were married, he actually helped out with Lyric when she cried. Even when he was asleep after working all day, and I was already up! Doesn't he make such a cute Daddy?
Lyric was almost a toddler.. when I started getting morning sickness again. Already?! How could I tell anyone that I was already pregnant, when we could all barely get any sleep as it was because Lyric had the most powerful baby lungs I had ever encountered? Another baby already.. I wanted one already, but not until Lyric was a toddler!
One thing that helped me feel better about the entire situation, was that the girls were nearly teenagers and could help out with the babies. At the same time that didn't make me feel better, because they were almost teenagers. Already? My life had suddenly gone from uneventful and slow to eventful and much too fast..
Sleep? What's that? We all seemed to have forgotten how to sleep properly, because of having to share a room with a baby who cries every.. five minutes. And I am not over-exaggerating. It was just as bad, or worse, than when I had to raise Dee and Naomi by myself. Because then it was mostly just me passing out all over the place, then occasionally the girls when they were toddlers. But now it's Buster, the older girls, and me, and soon we were bound to fall on each other when we passed out. Finally, I was fed up. I adore my baby girl Lyric, but I called up Aria to see if she would be willing to take care of her for a little while. She said yes, then I announced to.. well, just Dee, since Buster and Naomi had passed out, "That's it. We need a vacation. Pack your things, wake your sister and tell her to pack, too." I hated traveling while pregnant, but I wasn't even positive I was yet, so it was okay.
"YES! We get to sleep!!"
And off we were, to..
Egypt!
"Dee?"
"Yeah, Nay?"
"What do you think of Egypt so far?"
"It's neat, but I like home better."
"Pffff, you don't deserve that map on your dress! I love this so far! It's so exciting, I.. I think I know what I wanna do when I grow up!"
"What's that?"
"Travel EVERYWHERE! Get as high a visa level everywhere as possible! Wouldn't that be cool!?"
"I guess.."
"You can go and be a doctor, but I'm definitely gonna travel lots. Maybe marry a handsome foreigner who'll whisk me off my feet.."
"Dreamer."
"Am not!"
My little girls are so cute, I had to watch them whenever they interacted like this. I'm glad they didn't scold me for eavesdropping..
After we'd settled in and claimed tents, we all headed off to the market. When we got to the market, we each did our own thing. The girls each picked a book from the bookstore, and started reading it. Buster went to the general store and bought some supplies for him and me, for adventuring, while I went straight for the snake charming basket. Why? I had no idea to be honest. It'd never appealed to me, but I just went straight for it, wanting to be a little more daring than usual.. guess my wish thing was still on, then! I never was able to charm the snake, and I reached into the basket to feel if there was even a snake in it. It bit me for my troubles, and I was immediately glad that it was not a poisonous snake.
After we had our supplies, we got our group together, and started off. Well, except Dee. We told her we were going to visit a bunch of the sights, but she told me she would rather stay around the marketplace and make friends. It was really nice that she wanted to socialize, because I'd heard that at school, the only person she socialized with was her sister. She wasn't a loner, was she? I hadn't thought so..
The first stop was the Pyramid of the Burning Sands. I kind of wanted to go inside and explore, but Buster.. well, he's a chicken. "Let's.. let's go on to the next site, okay? We've seen this one.. there might be mummies.."
I sighed. He was right, there might be mummies, and I didn't want the mummies to get to Naomi, though she seemed to be excited by the prospect. Was I surprised? She was such an excitable young lady, everything made her squeal with delight.
"Okay, we'll go to the next one."
The trip to the Temple of Hatshepsut was pretty uneventful, except Buster didn't want to go in the limo. I didn't really either, but my limo driver had insisted on coming with us and driving us, so I felt obligated to used my limo. Naomi got excited about getting to use a limo, so she went with me.
When we got to the temple, Buster and Naomi just started chatting in front, and I went upstairs to look at some of the statues. They amazed me, and almost made me want to learn the sculpting skill just so I could learn to make something so.. pretty.
We stayed at the temple for hours. Nearly the rest of the day! Buster and Naomi had a great time getting closer, and I played guitar. At the time I had no idea what Dee was doing, but later I found out.
She had read for almost the entire day at the marketplace, then went back to the base camp when she got hungry. Then she got hounded by a paparazzo, because while she was at the marketplace, somehow her celebrity star level had raised to three. (Naomi, only at two stars herself, was jealous when she learned that.)
Finally, we decided that we should leave the temple, and went to the marketplace for dinner. After we ate, we went home, and all went to bed. It was.. simply amazing to sleep. All night. Even if it was on the ground.
The second day of our vacation was.. uneventful. Dee and I played tag for a while.
I played bass, and everyone watched me do so, for a while.
The paparazzo from the day before bothered us all day, and squealed over me once. Kind of disturbing on a grown man..
After the rest of us went to bed, Dee went out to go fishing like she'd been wanting to at home. She'd been pretty interested in fishing since she and Naomi had gone to Smuggler's Cove together, and fishing in a foreign country would mean foreign fish. Right?
In the middle of the night, Buster got a call from someone, asking him to.. well, I'm not sure. But she wanted him to retrieve something for her. I sat up, starting to get ready with him, but he shook his head and gently pushed me back down. "No, no, Sean. Go back to sleep. It won't take me long."
"But Buster.."
"No. Sleep." And with that, he kissed me and tucked me in as well as one can with a sleeping bag, then left the tent. I'm not entirely sure what happened while he was gone - I didn't stalk him, though I debated it, 'cause I fell asleep before I could.. - but the next I saw him, he looked exhausted and had a bunch of ancient coins and things we could sell for a lot of money.
After I woke up, I got a phone call myself. Someone - probably a tour guide, I'm guessing - wanted me to visit all of the most popular sites in Egypt. I agreed happily, then, not wanting to leave the girls alone, told Naomi to get her sister, because they were going to come with me as I visit all of the sites. She gasped in excitement, then went to Dee.
"DEIRDRE! Guess what?!"
"What?"
"We're gonna go with Mom to see ALL of the best sites in Egypt!! Isn't that cool!?"
"Uh.. yeah."
"You're so boring, you don't react at all!"
"Just 'cause I don't get excited at everything doesn't mean I don't react at all!"
I sighed, and decided to butt in before they got into one of their arguments. They may have been nearly identical, but they certainly didn't have the same personality. "Girls, let's go."
And we explored for the rest of the day, until it was time for our flight home.
The trip was great.. but I was relieved to get home. I love my baby Lyric, and had felt guilty for wanting to get away from her the entire time we were gone. I didn't leave her alone after we picked her up from Aria's, until she fell asleep and I was close to sleep myself. "Goodnight, my sweet little music baby." I whispered, kissing her forehead then putting her back in her crib.
Then came a day I would never.. ever forget.
It started off pretty icky, because I woke up nauseous, and since someone was in the bathroom, I rushed downstairs, outside to puke my guts out on the sidewalk. Then I noticed, as I held my hurting tummy, that I was beginning to get a baby bump, so changed into my maternity clothes when I got upstairs. When I told Buster, he said that he wanted a girl, and I still wanted my little boy, so I kind of hoped for multi-gender twins to please us both, even though I'd always wanted four children.
I had some errands to run, so kissed Buster, cuddled Lyric, and headed off. Dee and Naomi had gotten fed up with not being able to sleep, so they took our tents and went to take a nap in the park. Maybe I'd stop by there and pick them up on my way home.
Little did I know that they were already on their way home (Naomi completely forgot her tent at the park, I sometimes wondered if she was a little absent-minded)..
As they were on their way home, everything happened all at once. First, Dee had her birthday, and then Naomi had her's. I had completely forgotten their birthdays because of everything that had been happening lately.. I felt like such an awful mother!
At the same time as the girls' birthday, the thing I'd been dreading happened. I had no clue at the time, but I did suddenly feel like I needed to get home. Buster was being taken from us, right in front of Lyric. I was just glad that she was too young to realize what was going on.
As she went into the apartment to change her clothes, Naomi witnessed our beloved Buster's death. "NOOOO! DADDY!" she shrieked, and I, who had just gotten home, heard it all the way in the lobby.
"NO! BUSTER, DON'T GO WITHOUT SAYING GOODBYE!" I shrieked upstairs, and then went to the elevator, pushing the up button repeatedly. Why wouldn't the freaking elevator open?! "Openopenopenopen!"
Upstairs, Naomi ran up to the Grim Reaper when he appeared, and grabbed his arm, clinging to it tightly. "No Mr. Grim Reaper man, don't take my Daddy, I haven't even gotten to have him walk me down the aisle yet! Just.. just wait until I get married, please!" He tried to shake her off his arm, but she just clung tight, sobbing as he showed no mercy. Naomi said that Buster gracefully accepted his fate, didn't even beg. Just said that he was tired, and told Naomi that everything was okay, to help me take good care of Lyric and the new baby.
"I.. I will, Daddy... don't go.."
Finally, the elevator came, and I got upstairs. I burst in the door, just in time to see Naomi sobbed over a rectangular tin can. Buster was no where in sight, and I guessed.. he was in the can. "Noooooo!" I screamed, and clutched at my chest, leaning against the still-open door for what little support it could give. The love of my life was gone. After so long of trying to get him to marry me, we only got a few good years and now he was gone. "I TOLD you not to go by yourself into that.. that dungeon, you strained yourself, Buster.." I sobbed, then moved weakly over to the can, picking it up and putting it on my dresser, in as much of a place of honor as I could find in this dingy apartment. I barely even noticed that Naomi had grown up. I didn't even barely notice that Dee had when she got home and asked about her Dad. I didn't answer. I couldn't speak. Naomi told her, and they clung to each other for comfort. I don't know how long our mourning lasted, before they decided to redesign their 'looks'.
I hadn't noticed when she was little, but it seemed that Dee had gotten my weight problem, but it fit her so well. She was a beautiful girl, inside and out, even if she had a temper problem. Every time I looked at her, I thought of Buster - now, more than ever, she and Naomi were female versions of him.
Naomi, being more active than her sister, was also thinner. They'd decided that they were tired of dressing the same, so went with their own styles, though kept their hair very similar. I sobbed when they'd finished remaking their looks, and they both hugged me comfortingly. "It'll be okay, Momma," Naomi told me sympathetically, and petted my hair slightly. "Daddy didn't want us to be too sad. C'mon, it's almost Lyric's birthday, let's celebrate it. That'll distract us, right?"
"Right.."
So, we celebrated little Lyric's birthday. When she aged up, she aged up with.. dark brown hair? I don't know where she got that, but most of her other features.. she was practically a little clone of me. Such an adorable little sweetheart, I cuddled her for a long time, before we all finally went to bed.
The next few days (weeks, months..) went by in a blur. I barely knew which way was up, and the girls had to take care of Lyric over half of the time (even though I knew they were hurting, too, especially Naomi who'd been the closest to Buster and had to witness him go). I could barely function. Especially because now.. I felt like I was betraying Buster, because I already wanted to get married again. To who? I didn't know, but Lyric and our unborn little bundle were going to need a father figure. Naomi and Deirdre needed one for their teenage years, and to walk them down the aisle, too. "I'm so sorry I want to get remarried, Buster.. I'm awful..." I sobbed to the sink one day. Yes, I should have been talking to his remains, but I hated looking at them. It reminded me even more that he wasn't here, with me, helping me with our children.
Only one thing truly comforted me, and that was the last little gift Buster had left me, the life growing inside me. I'd gone to the hospital to get an ultrasound the night that Buster died, to find out how many and the gender(s) of our baby(ies), to surprise him. It was one little boy, and I already had a name for him. Rhett. I'd known that for years, and when I learned his gender, I remembered my dream. Four children, three girls and one boy. I guess it'd been a little bit predictive.
Jett was a big comfort during that time, too. When he finally heard what happened, he visited me and immediately gave me a comforting hug. We weren't the best of friends, but we were pretty close. Close enough to care when the other one gets heartbroken. He spent a lot of time with me when the girls were at school or their part-time jobs, keeping me from falling apart. No matter how much I cared about Lyric or Rhett, they couldn't keep my mind from that little box on top of the dresser for very long. Neither could Jett, but he'd scold me when I'd start to wallow in self pity.
I felt awful when I would catch scenes like this. I was becoming an awful mother again - was all I cared about truly my own feelings? Deirdre and Naomi were hurting as much as I was. Buster was their Daddy. And Lyric.. oh, poor Lyric, she didn't even know what was going on, why everyone kept crying. She'd cry right along with us, simply because we were crying. I needed to snap out of this.. but I just couldn't.
One day very near my due date, I decided to try and teach Lyric how to talk, but.. I was just far too distracted. "Say pond.." I prompted, and she just kind of stared at me, blinking her large, cute teal eyes. After a moment I just sighed and stood up. "I'm so sorry, Lyr, honey, I just.. your Daddy..." I sobbed, clenching my chest. It was another wave of sorrow. It hurt so bad.. then something interrupted me and told me that it hurt even more than sorrow. "AAH!"
"Maa!" Lyric cried, staring up at me in her adorable little toddler worry. She was such a sweetheart, I wished I could go back to the beginning of her toddlerhood and give her more of the attention she deserved.
But right then, I needed to concentrate on Rhett. I didn't want to leave Lyric home alone while I hurried to the hospital, so I decided to have Rhett there at home.
After quite a while, there he was. My beautiful little boy, Rhett Buster Parodi. My heart lifted a little, and I smiled down at my boy, cuddling him. "I promise, little one, I will get better. I will raise you and Lyric better from now on. And I will find you a Daddy-figure."
(A/N: Sorry about the length, but I had to include all of it. It sure was eventful, huh? So, first off, I'll start with before the trip. Sean had an opportunity to go to Egypt, and seriously, Lyric would never stop crying, so I got fed up with them all passing out all over, and decided to send them to Egypt despite Sean's pregnancy. As soon as they got there, Naomi rolled the LTW Seasoned Traveler, and I was so excited, 'cause if she's picked as the heir that will definitely make interesting chapters! The trip was pretty uneventful. Almost as soon as they got back, Sean nearly killed them all while she was making pancakes because she was about to 'learn' she was pregnant and it did that freeze-for-several-Sim-hours thing. And then, that same day, suddenly it hops over to Dee, 'it's Deirdre's birthday!' Before she finished aging up, it hopped over to Naomi, same thing. I jokingly wrote in my notes-to-self about how I was glad that it wasn't Sean's due date because she'd have the baby then Buster'd die. Then, before Naomi finished aging up, it hopped upstairs to Buster. It was by far my most dramatic day in my wishacy at that point [I think it still is, actually]. Oh, and immediately as soon as Buster was dead? Sean wished to get married again. It's like, seriously? You must have loved him a lot, there, Sean. Oh! And the traits of the kids. Dee got the photographer's eye trait, Naomi got the workaholic trait, and I didn't get to choose any of Rhett's since the events before his birth really weren't so good, so he was born with loner and good.)
1 comments:
Wow, what a crazy-busy chapter! The girls are gorgeous! I love their look, they are so beautiful and unique! How interesting that Sean rolled the wish to get married! Things are definitely going to get more interesting that's for sure!
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