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- The Mess -
April 19th, 2024. Afternoon. Slateport City, Hoenn.
"You're pregnant again?" Harley gasped, rising from his seat at the Hayden's kitchen table, slamming his hands against the surface. "You little minx!"
May flinched in alarm as she attempted to feed her infant daughter, nearly dropping the spoon filled with baby food she was holding. "Harley!" she snapped, a blush forming across her cheeks. "I told you! It was an accident!"
Allie stared at her mother cluelessly before focusing on the spoon of Oran Berry mush that had nearly plummeted to the kitchen floor.
Harley narrowed his eyes. "Why, exactly, do you think that helps your case?"
"Sush, Harley," Solidad scolded lightly. He glowered at her as she turned her attention onto May, smiling. "I think that's wonderful, May. I'm happy for you."
"Thanks…" May sighed, putting the spoon back into the jar of baby food and placing it on the counter. Allie pouted as May rubbed her temples. "I'm not exactly sure how to tell Drew, though…"
Harley snapped his fingers. "Spice it up. Tell him it's not his," he suggested before gasping and placing a hand to his chest. "Tell him it's mine." A devilish grin crossed his face as he relished in his plan. "Talk about drama."
"No," Solidad responded without missing a beat. She tilted her head. "Why the hesitance? It's not like you guys are new to this." She looked to Allie, who was now desperately reaching for the jar of baby food on the counter. "You already have Allie."
May blinked, taking notice of her daughter's struggle and picked the jar up again, stirring the spoon inside. "Well, that's just it," May started as Allie opened her mouth expectantly. "Allie's not even a year old yet, so I'm afraid Drew will be a little… overwhelmed." She groaned, leaning back against the counter, much to Allie's dismay. "This is a mess."
"Well, you don't need to tell him right away," Solidad offered. "It's completely normal to take a few weeks. Some people even wait until the end of their first trimester." Harley made a gagging noise, mouthing the word 'boring', as Solidad smiled with a shrug. "Why not wait until then?"
May blinked, glancing to the ceiling thoughtfully. "I guess I hadn't considered that…" She eyed her daughter, who was in the beginning stages of making a fuss. "I mean, Allie will be a little older by then, so maybe it's not the worst idea in the world…"
The sound of a door clicking stopped May in her tracks.
"Hey," Drew's voice called as he entered the kitchen. "I'm ho—"
"May's pregnant."
Harley's announcement had been so nonchalant that May almost believed she had misheard him. But Solidad's immediate reaction of covering his mouth and the pale look on Drew's face were enough to confirm that she hadn't.
Just as May's jaw dropped, so did the baby food she held in her hands. It crashed to the ground, splattering all over the floor. Harley continued to struggle in Solidad's grasp and Drew looked like he might pass out. To top it all off, that was when Allie began to cry.
This really was a mess.
...And so it continues!