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Simmers' Paradise / Sims Stories / The Van Helsing Legacy
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on: August 24, 2007, 12:30:43 pm
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Chapter One - I'm a what?!
~ANNA'S STORY~
My name is Anna Van Helsing, I'm 16 years old, and before you ask the answer is yes. I am a direct descendant of the famous vampire hunter Van Helsing. Before I tell you my story let me give you some backround information on my family. Van Helsing was not our family name. It was changed after Van Helsing's family was murdered by Dracula. He also gave himself no first name, I guess Van Helsing just sounded scarier. While most of the what you know about vampires is true there are some secrets and half truths mixed in. A stake through the heart, fire, and beheading kills them. Sunlight doesn't kill them its just uncomfortable to them. And they don't always need an invitation to enter a home. Another secret vampires don't like to share is that if you can manage to defang a vampire they will become your slave, whether you're human, vampire, or something else. They will regrow their fangs eventually. They also can see their reflections, sometimes. When a vampire looks in a mirror they may see nothing at all, they may see their vampire self, or they may see the person they once were. Okay with all that out of the way I can tell my story. My life was simple enough, my dad Michael and I traveled around Europe and Asia hunting down vampires. He's been training me to take his place for the past 11 years since I'm the last Van Helsing heir. What a way to end a family line huh? Dad taught me how to fight, how to use weapons, and he taught me at least 6 different languages. I guess you're wondering what happened to my mom. Well my mom Selene, a beautiful vampire hunter, managed to capture Dad's heart. They became an unstoppable team until Mom got pregnant with me. They decided to give up hunting for awhile. They couldn't risk injuring the next generation Van Helsing. Dad never said it but I bet he was pretty disappointed when I turned out to be a girl. On my first birthday after Mom and Dad put me to bed Dracula(he goes by a different name now) murdered my mom. Dad managed to grab me from my crib and we escaped into the night. I've never had anything close to what you'd call a normal life. The closest I got to going to school was when Dad dropped me off the Harmony Hills Monestary. I was there on and off for three years, but Dad never told me why.
After 15 years of living our life on the run Dad sat me down in our dingy motel room and said we had to have a long talk. That could mean nothing good. We've never had a long talk. Long practice fights? Sure. Long arguements? Of course. Dad had a look on his face that I'd never seen before and I'd seen alot.
Dad took a deep breath and plastered a smile on his face. "We're moving to the States, Anna."
I opened my mouth to object but Dad held up his hand.
"Let me finish. We have a beautiful family home in a Preston, it's a fairly small New England town. I realized that what I've been doing isn't fair to you. I want to try and give you the life I should have given you. School, friends, a home."
"Why now? Sending me to school with a bunch of kids I don't know. How is that fair? Don't you think they're going to want to know why I've never been to school before? What am I supposed to say? That I was running around Europe and Asia hunting vampires with my Dad. Where's my mom? Oh Dracula killed her. It's a little too late for a normal life."
"Anna, you're overreacting. Things won't be that bad," Dad tried to reassure me.
"Our last name is Van Helsing. People are bound to ask questions that neither of us are going to want to answer," I told him. I was desperately trying to change his mind.
"I can get some fake documents with fake names that we can use until you graduate. No one has to know anything about our past that we don't want to tell them. And we'll tell everyone in town the same thing we told the police about your mom. A burgaler killed her. Now get some sleep. We're leaving in the morning," Dad informed me as he walked into his room and shut the door.
That was it. Dad made it sound so simple. My life as I know it is being turned upside down. I have to change everything about me just because Dad's feeling guilty about not giving me a "normal" life. Normal is subjective. And I can imagine all the great friendships I'll have when everything they know about me is a lie. I thought about pounding on his door and arguing my point until he finally saw things my way. But I knew it would be useless since I get my stubborness from Dad. I felt the hot tears streaming down my cheeks before I could stop them. I let them drip off my chin and onto the floor. I was so upset I just didn't care anymore. By this time tomorrow I'll be on my way to a "normal" life.
~ELLA'S STORY~
I'm Ella Van Helsing and I'm 16 years old. Not that you could tell by the way my mom treats me. It's always been Mom, Selene, and me for as long as I could remember. I don't remember my Dad but Mom told me his name was Michael and he was an incredible vampire hunter that was cut down in his prime by Dracula(I think he goes by Drake Vladimir now) on my first birthday. It was pure luck that she got to me before Dracula and we escaped to America. I guess you've figured out that I'm related to the famous vampire hunter Van Helsing. I know our real name wasn't always Van Helsing.Van Helsing's family were Dracula's first victims so Van Helsing changed his name and began hunting vampires. He died but his legacy and Dracula live on. Mom and I have been hunting vampires all over North and South America for as long as I could remember. Vampires are very secretive creatures because too much information could mean extinction for them. Some of the myths are true like a stake to the heart, fire, and beheading kills them. The thing about sunlight is a lie, it just makes them really uncomfortable. The mirror thing is kind of true. They don't always see themselves, sometimes they see nothing at all or sometimes they see the people they once were. And a little known fact is that if you defang them they become your slaves. I learned that when I was 11 and Mom defanged an extremely cruel vampire named, William. He was around for about two years, forced to help Mom kill his kind. But Mom decided to kill him when he got a little too "friendly" with me. I guess Mom decided she had to keep the last Van Helsing heir safe. Not long after that Mom brought me to Our Lady of Rome convent and no it's not for the reason you think. It was more like Catholic school without the other students. The first year I was there I didn't see Mom at all. She sent me letters, postcards, and I even got the occassional phone call. She wouldn't say what she was doing just that it was too dangerous for me. I hated it but I had no choice but to accept it. About a year later Mom came back carrying a newborn baby boy. She sat me down and told me his family had been killed by vampires. She told the police and the people at the hospital the baby was her's so if anyone asked I was supposed to tell them that he was my little brother, Gabriel. Over the next two years I stayed at the convent taking care of Gabe while Mom was out hunting. She did take care of him when she was actually around.
Mom's been cranky and impatient with everyone for the past two weeks so that means she has something important to tell me and it can't be good. She went out on a hunt so that left me to take care of Gabe, again. I fed him, played with him, gave him a bath, and put him to bed. Mom picked that moment to storm in. She slammed the door and pointed to her bedroom.
"We need to talk now, Ella," she told me sharply.
I rolled my eyes and followed her into her room. She was so dramatic sometimes.
"Look just be quiet until I finish what I need to say. We're leaving the convent. Tomorrow. I've decided that Gabe needs a more stable home life. I found a nice house in Preston," she informed me sharply.
My jaw dropped and I just stared at her.
"Preston? I've never heard of it. And what exactly am I going to be doing there?"
Mom sighed and paced around the room. "Preston is a small town in New England. That's all you need to know. Besides I thought you'd be thrilled that we're leaving the convent."
"Maybe I would be if I knew why exactly we were moving."
"I told you I want Gabe to have a more stable home life. I'll get a job and you can go to school," Mom told me cheerily.
"Oh goody. And how do I explain my past and my last name? Hi, I'm Ella Van Helsing and I come from a long line of vampire hunters. And how come you weren't concerned with giving me a stable home life? Because I'm a girl?"
Mom narrowed her eyes angrily. "That has nothing to do with it. Look we're going to Preston. End of story. Make sure you pack everything because we're leaving tomorrow afternoon."
"Mom this isn't..."
"ENOUGH, ELLA," Mom yelled, "Not every decision I make is going to revovle around you!"
I jumped up and ran into the room I shared with Gabe. I started pacing as angry thoughts ran through my head. Then I decided to write about it in my journal. Maybe it would make me feel better. It couldn't make me feel any worse.
I took out my pen and started writing: Does she love Gabe better than me? She never cared how screwed up my life was. Every decision she ever made invovled hunting. This is so unfair. I don't want to pretend I'm someone I'm not. I like being Ella Van Helsing, vampire hunter. She's hiding something from me. I just wish I she would tell me what the hell is going on. I HATE HER!
I put my pen down and closed my journal. I was surprised when I felt tears burning a trail down my cheeks.
~ANNA'S POV~
We finally arrived in Preston and Dad decided instead of going to the house first we were going to the town park. Oh boy what fun. The taxi ride seemed to go on forever. I just wanted to get this over with so I could go see our family home. Dad seemed jumpy and he kept staring out the window.
"Looking for something," I asked.
Dad jumped and looked at me, almost through me. "Uh no. Just looking at the sights."
'What sights? This place is nothing but trees, fields, and a long, windy river.'
We finally arrived at the park and Dad jumped from the taxi. He was in such a rush he forgot to pay the taxi driver so I had to. I watched him hurry across the park. I had no idea why he was in such a hurry but I wasn't about to run so I walked after him. He stopped a couple times to look around then he continued on.
'Geez, how big is this park?'
Dad stopped and looked at his watch. Then he suddenly realized I wasn't with him. He whirled around and stared at me as I walked towards him. He took a couple steps towards me.
"Anna," he asked nervously.
'Great. He's lost his mind.'
"Uh yeah Dad. Who else would it be?"
"Sorry. Did you pay the taxi driver," he asked suddenly.
"Yes Dad. That's why we're not being chased by an angry cabbie and the cops."
'What is wrong with him? He's freaking out.'
Dad turned around and started power walking away. He only got a couple feet away when he stopped short at a bridge. He climbed the stairs and slowly started across it. I caught up to him and I finally saw what Dad had been looking for. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. I felt like I was in the twilight zone. I looked at Dad waiting for him to explain but he was just staring at them. Who were they?
~ELLA'S POV~
The drive to Preston was long and full of tension. Mom and I were not on speaking terms anymore. Everytime we talked it turned into a heated arguement. I knew Mom was hiding something from me. Giving Gabe a stable home life wasn't the only reason we were going to Preston. If it was Mom wouldn't still be so uptight. After we pulled over for the tenth time because Gabe was screaming I got into the backseat with him.
"Real mature, Ella. You can't even sit in the frontseat with me," Mom said angrily.
"I'm sitting back here to keep Gabe quiet and happy. I just want to get this trip over with," I told her.
"Oh now you're excited to go? Last night you practically threw a tantrum because you didn't want to go."
I rolled my eyes. Again with the dramatics. She was the one acting like a child.
"I still don't wanna go. I just want to get this roadtrip over with."
We sniped at each other all the way to the cheap motel we were sleeping at and then we started all over again in the morning. Gabe was the only one of us who was happy. I rode in the backseat again to keep him entertained and Mom was still pissed about it. We arrived in Preston and I watched the scenery go by. A whole bunch of trees, a lot of wide open fields, and a big river.
'This place is going to be so exciting,' I thought sarcastically.
We drove to what looked like a park and pulled over. We cannot be living in the park. Mom unbuckled her seatbelt and got out of the car. She looked over her shoulder at me and Gabe.
"Get your brother and follow me,' Mom said shortly.
"Where's our house," I asked as I took Gabe from his carseat.
Mom didn't answer she simply walked off through the park. I growled and put Gabe on my hip. He started laughing and I smiled a little. Mom was almost out of sight so I hurried after her. I was really getting annoyed with all this secrecy. What was she hiding? I didn't have long to wait for the answer. I saw Mom up ahead staring at two figures walking towards us. There was a bridge in between us and Mom had already started across it. I started running and I had just caught up with Mom when I saw the figures more clearly as they crossed the bridge. The man was tall and blonde. And my Dad? The girl that came from behind him was....me?
~ANNA'S POV~
Dad wasn't explaining anything to me and I was getting really annoyed. He said he'd explain everything when we got home. I really didn't want to wait. I wanted to know what was going on now. He turned away from me and walked over to the woman who looked an awful lot like my dead mother. She now had the little boy and the girl who looked exactly like me was leaning on the railing looking into the pond. I sucked in a breath and walked over to her. She looked up at me and gave me a small sad smile.
"Hi. I'm Anna Van Helsing," I said quietly.
I was terrified of where this conversation was going to go.
~ELLA'S POV~
Mom, who now had Gabe on her hip and the guy who might be my dad were standing together, whispering. I fought back the urge to go over and scream at them to tell me the truth. I opted for looking into the pond and watching the fish swim around. This was all so confusing. And no one would say what was going on until we got "home". The other me came over and leaned on the railing next to me.
"Hi. I'm Anna Van Helsing," she said so quietly I almost didn't hear her.
"Hey. I'm Ella. Ella Van Helsing," I told her as I turned to look at her, "Your birthday wouldn't happen to be May 30th, 1991, would it?"
She turned to face me as nodded her head. She put her arm around my shoulder and I patted her hand.
"Anna, I do believe we're twins,' I told her.
"Ella, I do believe you're right." |
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51
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Simmers' Paradise / Sims Stories / Johnnie on the Rocks
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on: August 17, 2007, 12:07:25 pm
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I just wanted to let you guys know I'm taking a little break on this story since I'm having a bit of writers block. I'm planning on continuing at some point but I'm not sure where I want to go next with the story, so I'm going to stop here.
I'm going to start work on another story that I've had stuck in my head for the past week or so. Thanks for all the great reviews, I'm glad you guys like my stories. |
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52
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Simmers' Paradise / Sims Stories / Johnnie on the Rocks
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on: August 15, 2007, 01:31:05 am
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Chapter Five-Forgiveness and Forever
My life is in a downward spiral. Martin is gone and I have no idea where he is, Jason is threatening to try and take Anna from me, and I can't even talk to Sherry about any of this because she's on a cruise with Ricky. It seems all I do lately is cry. I miss Martin so much, I wish I knew where he was. I called all his friends, his cousin Jeremy, and even his mom. No one had heard from him or at least that's what they were telling me. I got so desperate I called my mom. She of course tried to make it out to be all Martin's fault, which it obviously wasn't. So while I was defending him to my mom I got to relive every agonizing moment of my stupidity. Talking to mom only made me feel worse, alot worse. I wasn't the only suffering, Anna was also suffering. I spent so much time wallowing in my own self pity that Anna barely got any attention. I took care of the essentials like feeding her, bathing her, and changing her but I barely gave her any love. Another thing for me to feel guilty over and to think about while I cried myself to sleep. I knew sooner or later I'd have to snap myself out of the funk I was in and get on with my life. I decided to go back to my natural hair color, black. I figured it would be the first step to changing my life.
After I put Anna to bed I was heading downstairs to feed Bella when the doorbell rang. It was 9:30PM, I wondered who would be at the door at this hour. I trudged over to the door and yanked it open ready to give someone a piece of my mind. I nearly screamed, it was Martin. I stood there, stunned with my jaw hanging open.
"Hey Johnnie, are you busy," he asked as he pushed my jaw closed.
"Ah no. No I'm not. Come on in," I told him as I moved aside to let him in.
Martin walked inside and I noticed he had a bag on his shoulder. He walked over towards the piano and set the bag down on the floor. He looked over at me so I shut the door and walked over to him. I had no idea what to say.
"Look I'm sorry I've been avoiding you Johnnie but I had to sort some things out."
I looked at him expectantly. When he didn't say anything else I rubbed the back of my neck nervously. "Okay. So have you got everything sorted," I asked my voice barely above a whisper.
I barely got the sentence out of my mouth when I thought I saw the bag move. I glanced towards Martin but he didn't seem to notice.
Great now I'm crazy, I thought as I shook my head.
"I'm not sure. I wanted to come over and see you, to give you a chance to tell me everything that happened. And I mean everything."
A soft whimpering caught my attention and I looked down at the bag, which was now moving and whimpering.
"Okay before I tell you the story tell me whats in the bag."
Martin gave me a small smile and opened the bag. A small, brown and white, ball of fur popped out of the bag and ran a couple laps around the couch. It barked twice at Bella who was coming downstairs. Okay so it's a dog.
"This is Harley, he was a stray hanging around Jeremy's house. I say was because I've sort of adopted him."
Our conversation was cut short by the sounds of barking coming from the kitchen. Martin and I exchanged glances and then went to see what was going on. Harley had his back towards us and was crouched down barking at Bella. Bella was just standing still, staring at him.
"Harley," Martin said sternly.
"Shhh. Leave them alone," I told him, "Give them a chance to get to know each other."
Martin gave me a sideways look before turning back to the dogs. Harley wasn't baring anymore he was making a little whining noise as he hopped around in front of Bella. Bella barked a couple times and then she started copying Harley. A couple minutes later both of them were hopping up and down barking and yipping at each other. I'd never seen Bella so happy, she had her first friend.
"Well they seem to like each other," I told Martin.
"Yeah I'm a little surprised since Harley doesn't really like other dogs."
"I think it's kind of cute," I said as I watched them playing.
"Yeah. Adorable," Martin said sarcastically, "Now can we go back into the livingroom to finish our conversation.
I felt a knot form in my stomach and I looked at Martin. I gave him a small nod and headed back to the livingroom.
"Okay so where do you want me to start," I asked as we sat down on the couch.
"I know you went on a couple dates with that loser and I know he's Anna's father but I would really like to hear the rest of the story. A little more slowly this time."
I took a deep breath. "I went to meet the new family in the neighborhood. It was a pregnant woman, her two sons, and a husband who was barely around. I got there and started talking to the woman, Lenora. Neil, the oldest boy looked familiar but I had no idea why. Lenora yelled to her husband Jason to come outside. When he did I nearly lost it. It was Anna's father. Lenora asked Jason to help her bring the boys upstairs to take their naps. Lenora invited me in so I went inside to wait for her. I didn't want to say no because I was afraid she'd ask me why. Unfortunately Jason came back downstairs first. He started freaking out at me for trying to ruin his marriage. I told him the truth, I didn't know he was married and he was a scum for cheating on Lenora. He told me to mind my own business I wasn't his wife and I made the mistake of telling him that I was the mother of one of his kids. That's when he tried to kiss me. I shoved him off but Lenora had already seen. He tried to lie to her saying I came onto him but I told her the truth. She must have suspected Jason was cheating on her because she had no problem believing me. I left and came home. I wanted to tell you but I was afraid of how you'd react."
Martin stared at me. "What did you think I'd do? I love you, Johnnie. I would have believed you," he said as he stood up and began pacing.
"I wasn't thinking. I just wanted to forget any of it ever happened. I honestly didn't think I'd ever see Jason again."
"If you want this relationship to work you've got to start telling me everything."
I jumped up off the couch and stood in front of him. "So does that mean you forgive me?"
Martin thought for a moment. "Yeah I forgive you," Martin replied as he yanked me close and gave me the most incredible kiss.
Over the next few months I worked on planning the wedding while Martin worked hard at avoiding anything to do with the wedding. No matter what I asked him about he'd either shrug his shoulders or say "Whatever you want" and walk away. It was really getting annoying. So one day while he was out relaxing by the pool I cornered him.
"Baby," I whispered in his ear as I knelt down next to him, "We've got some things to discuss."
Martin groaned as he opened his eyes and looked at me. "Wedding plans," he asked.
"Wedding plans," I confirmed with a grin.
"I don't know what you need me for. I'm fine with anything you pick out."
"Martin, I would at least like you to show some interest in our wedding. At least with the things that have to do with you. Like the tuxedo, the cake, and the music. The rest of it I can do myself."
Martin sighed. "Okay. I'll go with you on Saturday to pick out a tux and the cake. Is that enough?"
I laughed and sat down on his lap. "For now," I told him as I gave him a kiss.
"For now? That implies that I might need to do more."
"Well that depends. Do you want a honeymoon?"
"Of course I do. Just tell me what you need."
"Well we need to ask Jill and Jeremy to watch Anna. We also need to plan on where we're going."
"I'll talk to Jeremy and you can talk to Jill. How about we go to Old Brecklin Beach. I loved going there as a kid."
"I'll call Jill tomorrow after we get back. And how about later on tonight we check out some hotel at Old Brecklin Beach?"
"Sounds good," Martin said as he began nuzzling my neck.
After Anna turned one I decided to slow my hectic life down. I didn't take anymore night classes and I stopped working on the weekends. But no matter how much time I spent with her the person she was always excited to see was Martin. Her first word was DaDa and she first walked for Martin. Sure I was in the room but she was walking to Martin. Sherry asked if any of it bothered me and it honestly didn't. Anna was happy and it was obvious to everyone that Martin loved her like she was his. He took her to the park, to her playgroup, and even to a couple doctor appointments. Because of all the time they spent together Anna developed a few quirks. She had to have Martin read her a story, give her a bath, and then put her pjs on or she'd scream for hours.
"Hey munchkin, you ready for a story," Martin asked as he picked up Anna.
"DaDa. Doggie. Doggie," Anna said excitedly as she clapped her hands.
"Does that mean you want me to read The Pokey Little Puppy?"
"Doggie," Anna squealed.
"Okay. Lets go get The Pokey Little Puppy," Martin said as he picked her up.
"Smooshie, DaDa," Anna asked.
"A hug? Well I'll see what I can do,"Martin said as he hugged her, "Story time."
My wedding day arrived sooner than I thought. Before I knew it, it was October 12th, the night before my wedding. Sherry and Jill spent the night at the house with me and Martin and Jeremy stayed at Sherry's with Ricky. I couldn't believe how nervous I was, I barely even slept. Well it was a toss up between nerves and Sherry's snoring. By morning I was a wreck. Sherry and Jill had to take turns between helping me get ready and getting Anna ready. I had decided to have a small wedding in the backyard. I only invited Sherry, Ricky, Jeremy, and Jill. My parents and Martin's parents couldn't make it so we promised them a video and lots of pictures. Martin decided weeks ago to change his last name to Walker although I'm not sure why. The butterflies in my stomach were flopping around as I walked down the aisle. I couldn't believe how handsome Martin looked in his tux. We made an agreement if he couldn't see my dress I couldn't see his tux. It made me nervous at first but now I realized I had nothing to worry about. We said our vows, exchanged rings, and had our first kiss as husband and wife. It was absolutely perfect. Even Anna was quiet and stayed at the end of the aisle. Five hours later and Martin and I were on our way to the airport to go on our honeymoon to Old Brecklin Beach.
Here are some of our wedding photos:
We made a special postcard for Jill and Jeremy who were nice enough to stay at they house and watch Anna. I thought Old Brecklin Beach would be boring since everything I read about made it seem like it was, well less than fun. But Martin knew all the best restaraunts and clubs. What? It's not like we could spend all our time in the hotel room. As much fun as our honeymoon was I couldn't wait to get home. I missed Anna so much. So did Martin. |
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Simmers' Paradise / Sims Stories / Johnnie on the Rocks
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on: August 04, 2007, 08:16:50 pm
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Chapter Four-The Huge Mistake
Over the next few weeks Martin became a total godsend. Work, school, and taking care of Anne began to take its toll on me. I was exhausted and extremely irritated and I took it out on Martin. Martin didn't get angry though, he just started taking care of Anna. He would feed her, change her, bathe her, and tuck her in. My favorite to watch was when Martin would cuddle her or play with her. I never heard Anna coo or laugh so much. Whenever I watched them together I found myself wishing Martin was her dad instead of Jason. Then I realized Martin WAS her dad. One day after Martin tucked Anna in I decided to make sure he really wanted to do this.
"Martin, you know you don't have to take care of Anna all the time. I don't want to force you to be her dad if you don't want to be."
Martin gave me a smile. "Believe me Johnnie if I didn't want to take care of her I wouldn't. And I can't expect to be a part of your life if I'm not a part of Anna's. Besides I want her to know not all men are evil scumbags like her biological father."
I tried not to jump up and down or do cartwheels. Martin was like a dream come true. I couldn't wait to call mom and tell her she was so wrong about Martin. She still couldn't let go of what happened in high school. Me, I was so over it.
I came home from work early one day to find Martin sleeping on the couch with Anna on his chest. They looked too cute to disturb. I wrote a quick note to Martin telling him I had gone to greet our new neighbors. I knew from our neighborhood gossip, Mrs Brentwood, that it was a woman with two toddlers and another one on the way. Apparently her husband worked alot so the woman was home all alone with the kids. I walked the three long blocks to her house. The woman was sitting on the front steps absent mindingly rubbing her belly while she watched her two boys playing. She saw me coming up the walk way and sttuggled to stand up and meet me part way.
"Hi there. Welcome to the neighborhood. I'm the welcoming commitee, Johnnie Walker. Yes it's my real name," I added quickly when I saw the look of surprise on her face, "Your boys are absolutely adorable."
"Thank you very much," she said, her face beaming, "Neil, the red head is three. He looks just like his daddy. Brandon is almost two and unfortunately he looks like me. I'm Lenora Landry. It is so nice to meet you. So far people avoid me like I have a contagious disease."
"They were like that when I first moved in, and while I was pregnant with Anna but after awhile they'll get comfortable with you. Then you'll never get rid of them. Especially Mrs Brentwood. I think she's the devil disguised as a little old lady."
Lenora laughed, then the two of us grew quiet and watched the boys play. I stared intently at Neil, there was something familiar about him, but I couldn't figure out what it was.
"So how old is you daughter,"Lenora asked suddenly, "I'm hoping we're having a girl. Maybe they can be friends."
"Anna is 5 months old. Even if you have another boy they can still be friends. If Anna is anything like me she'll be a little tomboy," I told Lenora, "So is your husband hiding at work?"
Lenora smiled. "No. He's hiding in the house. JASON!"
Jason? No it couldn't be. I stared at the front door and sure enough, Lenora's husband, Neil and Brandon's father, was Anna's father. He stopped suddenly and stared at me in shock.
"Honey, help me put the boys down for their nap. Oh where are my manners? This is Johnnie Walker, my one and only friend. She's going to come in and visit with us for a little while,"Lenora informed him as she picked up Brandon.
Jason picked up Neil and glanced nervously from Lenora to me. I knew he was wondering if I had told Lenora about us. I gave him a small smile. Let him wonder. I followed Lenora and Jason inside and waited in the living room while they went upstairs to put the boys down for their naps. Jason came downstairs first. I had my back to the stairs and Jason grabbed my arm and whirled me around.
"What the hell are you doing here, Johnnie," he asked angrily through clenched teeth, "Are you trying to ruin my marriage?"
"I came here because I heard your pregnant wife was pretty lonely spending all her time taking care of the boys. I had no idea YOU were her husband. I didn't even know you were married! How could you cheat on Lenora? She's such a sweetheart."
"It's none of your business what I do! You're not my wife!"
"No I'm just the mother of one of your kids," I spat out angrily.
Jason's jaw dropped and he stared at me. I wished I hadn't told him. What if he tried to take Anna from me? What if this breaks up his marriage? I would never forgive myself if I hurt Lenora. The poor woman had enough to deal with being pregnant while she took care of two energetic boys. I was surprised when Jason grabbed me and kissed me hard. I pushed him away and glared at him.
"Jason, what is going on," Lenora asked quietly from the stairs.
She stared at him as she slowly walked over to where we standing. Her eyes were filled with tears that were threatening to spill down her cheeks and her face was crestfallen. I had no idea what to say to her. This had to be awful for her.
"Lenora, I am so sorry. Johnnie was telling me how handsome I was and that she wanted to kiss me. I just....." Jason started to explain but I cut him off with a slap to the face.
"Don't you dare lie to your wife," I snarled, "She deserves to know the truth. Lenora, I hate to be the one to tell you this but about a year and a half ago Jason and I went on a couple dates. I was new in town and it was a blind date. I had no idea he was married because if I did I never would have went out with him. Another thing, Jason and I have a baby together. Anna is his daughter."
Lenora stared at Jason before turning to me. "Thank you for being brave enough to tell me the truth. I hope you don't think I'm rude if I ask you to leave. Jason and I have to have a serious talk.
"I understand completely," I told her, "If you need to talk Jason has my number."
I turned and left the house as fast I could. This was once arguement I did not want to hear.
When I got home, Martin asked about the new neighbors. I told him about Lenora and the boys but I left out the part about Jason. I had no idea what he would do if I told him. He smiled and went to the basement to work out while Anna finished her nap. I waited until I heard the weights clanking before I called Sherry.
"Don't talk just listen. I've got something big to tell you but I want to do it away from Martin. I'll be over to pick you up in fifteen minnutes. You better be ready."
I hung up before she could protest and went upstairs to change. I was tempted to burn the clothes Jason had touched but I figured I was being overly dramatic. I fixed my hair and make-up then yelled down to Martin telling him I was going shopping with Sherry. Sherry was waiting outside her house looking annoyed, she hated it when I informed her she was doing something. She got in the car with a sigh.
"I hate when you call me and do all that spy crap. 'Don't talk just listen.' What was so important that you had to disturb my relaxing day off?"
"I'll tell you when we get to the store. Right now I just want to relax and try to calm down."
Sherry glared at me before she turned up the music. It was her way of telling me she was mad as hell. It took ten minutes to reach Nora's. Sherry's eyes lit up and she gave me a sideways look. She loved Nora's designs but she couldn't afford to buy them too often.
"Why are we here? You know I can't afford to buy anything and it depresses me seeing things I want but can't have," Sherry informed me sharply.
"I'm going to buy you something. Pick out one outfit and it's yours. And don't argue with me," I told her when she started to protest.
Sherry pretended to be anoyed but I could see the excitement in her eyes. I decided not to tell her about Jason and Lenora until after she picked out an outfit. If only I had known. It took close to three hours for Sherry to decide on a beautiful gold dress, 'that showed off her gorgeous figure' as she put it.
"Before I buy your dress there's something I need to tell you. Remember Jason. Well I found him," I told her.
"What?! Where?! Is he alright?"
I took a deep breath before continuing. "Jason, his pregnant wife Lenora, and his two sons moved to a house three streets away from me. I went to make friends with Lenora not knowing her husband was Jason. Lenora invited me in and while she was upstairs he kissed me. I cannot tell you how repulsed I was."
Sherry's jaw dropped. "That little rat is married!! Wait til I get my hands on him. I'll make sure he won't be spreading his love no more."
"Sherry," I exclaimed in surprise and we both burst into giggles.
Sherry wanted to try on a few more outfits while I went and paid for her dress. I got to the counter and the two cashiers looked at each other. The blonde whispered something in the brunette's ear and they both smirked. The brunette stepped forward and took the dress from me.
"Oh what a beautiful dress," Tiffany commented as she looked at the dress then she glanced at the tag, "This cannot be for you. You are not that....big."
I stared at her a little surprised by her attitude. "It's for my friend and just because she was lucky enough to be blessed with curves does not make her big. Jealously is an ugly thing, Tiffany."
She narrowed her eyes before she quickly plastered on a fake smile. "Right. So the woman you're with, is she the one the dress is for?"
I wondered why she was so interested in Sherry and her new dress. "Yes. Not to be rude but you seem a very interested in Sherry's dress."
"I don't care about the dress," Tiffany snapped, "It's your friend, Sherry I'm curious about. Julie and I are wondering why Ricky is interested in a cow like her when he could have me."
I was really close to yanking Tiffany over the counter and beating some sense into her.
"It couldn't be your pleasant attitude," I commented dryly while I rolled my eyes, "Maybe he likes women with curves. Now could you please wrap the dress? I'm in no mood to discuss my friend and her love life with you."
Tiffany turned and took the dress to the counter behind her and wrapped it for me. Julie hurried over to her and the two of them whispered back and forth. I had a feeling they were talking about me and Sherry. My patience was wearing thing by the time Tifffany returned with the dress. She slid it acrossed the counter and gave me a big fake smile.
"Your total is $1354.87. So Julie says you have a daughter.......with a married man. That's not true is it? I mean how trampy....oops I mean tacky can you be."
I handed Tiffany my credit card and resisted the urge to slap her.
"Who my daughter's father is is none your business, Tiffany. And I'm sorry that you and your friend Julie are so pathetic that you need to try to bring other people down to make your life seem worth while. Sherry is a successful interior designer and I am the head of a research lab while you two are store clerks. I can see you two aim high." I said with a smirk.
I picked up the dress and yanked my credit card away from Tiffany. I stomped over to Sherry. She looked at me a with a smile.
"Something wrong? You look like you're about to kill someone."
"I just want to get out of her," I told her as I shot a dirty look at Tiffany and Julie, "By the way, who's Ricky?"
It had been a week since my run in with Jason. A very long, strange week. Martin was acting so strange I had a sinking feeling that he might know about Jason. Martin and his cousin, Jeremy were working on opening their contracting business. Anna was cutting teeth so she was getting really cranky. Everytime Martin and I were alone together we both were on edge. We couldn't think of a thing to talk about and we were both a little jumpy. One night after I put Anna to bed I walked into the bedroom and Martin jumped up off the bed, shoving something under the pillow.
"Johnnie," he exclaimed nervously.
"Yes Martin it's me," I said shaking my head.
"I..uh...well," he stammered.
"Martin, are you alright? You seem a little twitchy."
Martin took a deep breath and pulled a little black box from under the pillow. Before I could say anything he dropped on one knee.
"Johnnie, I know this might seem sudden. Or maybe you've been expecting this since I moved in. I don't know. I do know that I love you and I want to be with you forever. What I'm saying is. Johnnie, will you marry me?"
Of course I wanted to marry him but for some reason I was speechless. I let him put the ring on my finger and I stared at it, admiring the way it sparkled. Martin stood up and looked at me. I finally realized I hadn't given him an answer.
"YES," I squealed as I jumped into his arms.
My life was almost perfect, Martin and I were finally engaged. Life could not get any better. Martin just got home from work and he was upstairs getting ready, we were going to Chez Marco to celebrate our engagement. Sherry had already arrived and was busy playing with Anna. I invited her to come but she said she wasn't going to intrude. I was sitting on the couch waiting impatiently for Martin to finish whatever he was doing. I had just checked my watch for the fifth time when Martin came downstairs. He looked gorgeous, he was wearing jeans and a black wife beater and he had a dress shirt in his hand.
"Ready," he asked with a smile, "You might want to wipe the drool off your face."
I rolled my eyes and stood up. "Very funny. Of course I'm ready. I've been waiting for you."
"JOHNNIE! JOHNNIE WHERE ARE YOU?!"
Martin and looked at each other and headed for the frontdoor. We were both wondering who could be yelling. I walked onto the front porch and part of me wasn't surprised to see Jason staggering around my front yard. He was obviously drunk. He looked up and saw Martin and I standing on the porch watching him.
"So whose the muscle, Johnnie? Did you hire him to protect you? Are you that scared of me," Jason asked angrily.
"Who the hell are you," Martin demanded as he walked down the steps towards Jason.
Jason looked at me and grinned. "You didn't tell him? My name is Jason Landry and I am the father of Johnnie's ba....baby. And who exactly are you?"
"I'm Martin Agnelli and I'm Johnnie's fiance. So you're the scumbag? Johnnie, I'm a little disappointed that you'd waste your time with this loser."
Jason took a step towards Martin. "I'm not a loser! I was good enough for her to sleep with."
I could tell by the look on Martin's face he was getting really angry. Jason was way too drunk to notice. Sherry was watching the scene from the living room window.
"I've got nothing against you, its Johnnie I have a problem with. You all but ruined my marriage. Lenora kicked me out until I agree to go to a marriage counselor. I barely get to see my boys. YOU RUINED MY LIFE," Jason screamed angrily.
Martin looked at me for a moment and I could see the hurt in his eyes. He was upset that I hadn't told him anything about what happened with Jason.
"Listen you're drunk. Go home and sleep it off,"Martin told Jason.
"I DON'T HAVE A HOME THANKS TO HER!"
Jason glared at Martin and bunched his hands into fists. He stumbled around until his back was towards Martin.
"Where'd ya go, you coward? Don't you want to defend your little wh...."
He didn't get to finish his sentence because Martin tackled him. It took about two minutes for Martin to kick Jason's a$$. Jason got up and stumbled away.
"This isn't over, Johnnie."
Martin stormed into the house and Sherry had enough smarts to hurry upstairs with Anna. Martin was pacing back and forth in the living room by the time I came inside. The hurt and anger he was feeling was obvious. I had no idea what to say to him. He had every right to be angry with me. He finally noticed I was there and stopped pacing.
"How come you didn't tell me, Johnnie? Didn't you think I had a right to know?"
"Martin I am so sorry. I know I should have told you, but..."
"But what, Johnnie? You trust me enough to take care of Anna but you don't trust me enough to tell me about this Jason guy. What did you think? That I was going to leave you? You told me before you made a mistake by sleeping with Anna's father and I believed you."
"I have no excuse for not telling you," I started, tears welling up in my eyes, "Last week when I went to meet our new neighbors I had no idea it was Jason and his family. I was talking to his wife, Lenora, and he came outside. Lenora invited me in and I didn't want to say no. I mean what could I possibly say if she asked why. 'Sorry Lenora but last year I slept with your husband and now I had a baby with him.' Jason kissed me and Lenora saw. I had to explain everything to her."
Martin just stared at me and I wondered if I had just ruined things.
"Martin? Please say something," I practically begged, tears streaming down my cheeks.
"What do you want me to say, Johnnie?"
"That we're not over."
"I don't know, Johnnie. I need some time to think."
Martin turned around and walked out of the house. I stood there watching the door, hoping that Martin would come walking back in so we could make up. I stood there for ten minutes but Martin didn't come back in. I managed to make my way to the couch even though my tears blurred my vision. I had just ruined everything. |
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