Author's Note: Okay, here it is, the next chapter. We're so TERRIBLY
sorry that it took so long. After all, we DO have lives. Celia's class
play was last Thursday, and Margaret had ERB's (Educational Records Bureau,
i.e. the American Standardized Tests i.e. "Bubble Tests") all this last
week, plus a science test on Wednesday plus a History test on Friday. Oh
yeah, Celia also had a Geography quiz and a Math quiz, and Margaret had two
French quizzes and a Math quiz. Celia and Margaret also both had a chorus
concert last week. By the way, today was our sports day, and tomorrow we
have another concert, and Margaret, who is an actress, has two shows
beginning VERY soon. HOW EVIL IS OUR SCHOOL? Well, considering that is
one of the most academically and artistically rigorous schools in New York
(i.e. you have to be REALLY smart to go there), our work load this week was
light. Not to brag, or anything, but our principal always says, "Girls,
don't worry if you get a bad grade. Just remember, an F here is an A
anywhere else." But anyway, here's the chap. And by the way, we have some
actually worthwhile stuff to say. This chap will prove it. We're obsessed
with babies. We believe that the sole purpose of fics is to have all women
have LOTS AND LOTS of little babies. Sooooo anyway, SUBMIT TITLES! OH
YEAH. We're OBSESSED with descriptions in this chap. Look sharp. And, by
the way, this chapter is dedicated to Maria, fictional and real, because
today is her birthday, so if you like this chapter, or anything about it,
or this fic, or something specific about this chapter, or the character
Maria, or the way she's written, or any character, or ANYTHING related to
this fic, review and let us know that, and wish Maria a happy birthday, and
we'll give her all your good wishes, and maybe, just MAYBE, if we can a)
get her to agree and b) more importantly, get up the courage to let her
know that we put her in our fic, she'll write a little note back to you all
to say hi. So this is a motivation to review. And thanks to everyone
who's still reading and reviewing almost every chapter (you know who you
are, we're grateful to you)! Happy Reading!
Chapter 19: Three, Four, and…Fourteen!
Chris and Lorelai were sitting at the dining room table. Lorelai was, at this point, fairly large, as she was six months pregnant with twins.
"Okay, Chris, who do you want to invite to you birthday party?"
"Um, well, I wanna invite…umm…WyattEmmaJujuPeteMikeAlexanderAndrewLBrianClaireAndrewRJake!" said Christopher in one breath.
"Woah, slow down there," said Lorelai.
"Wyatt, Emma, Juju, Pete, Mike, Alexander, Andrew L, Brian, Claire, Andrew R, and Jake."
"Okay, I'll make the invitations and send them out. What do you want to do for your party?"
"I wanna have a sleepover at Grandma and Grandpa's! And I want Ms. Sassani to come! And Tristan! And Jess! And Rory!"
"Ok. But, honey, I'm not sure how many people can come."
"When Rory had a sleepover at grandma and grandpa's house, all her friends could come."
"Well, her friends were older. Your friends are only five. But I'm sure that some people can come."
"Fine."
&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&
"RORY, LORELAI!!!!! Yelled Lane and Sookie as they walked into the diner. The two Gilmore's rounded on them. (A/N: we know. Its really Danes and DuGrey but any way) "What?" asked Sookie as she saw Lorelai pull out a Kleenex and wipe her eyes.
"The Coffee machine broke," Lorelai sobbed.
"WHAT?!!!!!" Lane screeched.
"Sad, but true." Rory replied, soberly.
"Aw, man."
(A/N: we decided not to tell who said these unless NESSECARY. Just guess.)
"I think that I'll die."
"Et moi aussi"
"Well, Lane and I have good news. Right Lane?"
"Yup."
"I'm having triplets!!!!!!!!" said Sookie, excitedly.
"And, I'm going to find out later today!!!" said Lane.
"Fixed!!!!!!!" Luke said, pouring four mugs for them.
"LUKEY!!!! You saved my life!!!!!" Lorelai sobbed, her eyes filled with tears of joy.
&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&
Rory was calmly and quietly walking in the park when Lane walked up to her. Actually, ran, shaking violently.
"Rory! Will you come to the doctor with me? I'm soooo nervous!"
"Sure, Lane, but do you think you can stop shaking enough to drive?"
"No, I think you'd better drive," said Lane.
"Okay, let's take my car." They walked back to Rory and Tristan's apartment building and got in their car. The drive to the doctor's office in Hartford was fairly silent. When they reached the doctor's office, they sat in the waiting room until Lane's name was called.
"Mrs. Cho?" called the nurse at the front desk. Rory and Lane got up and walked into the room. Shortly, the doctor came in and did the sonogram.
"Mrs. Cho, would you like to know what you're having?"
"Yes, please," said Lane, and began to shake even more violently than before.
"Okay….you're having a girl…" said the doctor.
Lane smiled.
"And a boy…" she continued.
"Twins?" cried Lane.
"And a girl…" continued the doctor.
"TRIPLETS?" shouted Lane.
"And a boy," she finished.
"OH MY GOD!!!!!!!!!" yelled Lane and Rory. "QUADS!!!!!!!"
"Come on, Lane, get dressed, we've got to go. I need to get back to my mom and Luke's for Chris's party."
&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&
Rory dropped Lane off at her and Henry's apartment, and drove on to Lorelai and Luke's, where things were being set up. In the living room, there was a long table that was all set with brightly colored party goods. There were eight places, because three children, Brian, Claire, and Jake, had been unable to attend.
All of a sudden, the doorbell rang. Chris ran downstairs. He looked slightly disheveled, but adorable. He'd picked out his own outfit and dressed himself with no help whatsoever. He was wearing khaki pants, and a blue and gray striped turtleneck, blue socks, and sneakers. The outfit looked quite nice on him, but his shirt was only half tucked in. As he rushed towards the door, Maria, who was standing in the hallway, scooped Chris up, gave him a hug to acknowledge his cuteness, and tucked in his shirt as he squirmed violently. She put him down and he answered the door. There stood Wyatt. He was wearing red corduroy pants and a white t-shirt which said in red letters "The Chef's Son". Wyatt went in and stood next to Chris.
Then the doorbell rang again, and outside stood Andrew L and Mike, accompanied by Taylor. Lorelai, who was looking on from afar, looked quite appalled when Taylor came in with a son. Taylor promptly left without saying anything. Mike, always Taylor's son, was wearing gray pants and an olive green sweater. He had on brown loafers. He looked like a mini Taylor. Andrew L was simply wearing blue jeans and a white turtleneck.
"Hi, boys, it's very nice to see you!"
"Ms. Sassani, what are you doing here?" asked Wyatt, always the first to speak his mind.
"Yeah, why are you here?" piped up Andrew L.
Mike, always needing to be the leader, said, "I know why she's here! She's here because….ummm….okay, I don't really know."
"I'm here because I'm a very good friend of Chris's mom and sister, Rory," answered Maria.
"Oh," they all said together.
At that moment, through the door, which was still open, walked Emma and Pete. Everyone greeted each other, and Maria explained her presence. Both looked very nice. Emma was wearing a skirt that looked an awful lot like one from Chilton, a white short-sleeved blouse, and a blue cardigan. Pete, who had just come from a Little League game, was wearing his uniform, which consisted of white pants with a green stripe down each leg, a white t-shirt with green sleeves and a green collar, and a green baseball cap. The shirt said his number on the back. And, since it was mid-November and fairly cold, he had a white long sleeved shirt underneath. All the boys sat down, and about three minutes later, the doorbell rang.
Maria opened it, and Juju looked adorable. She was wearing a white smocked dress with pink, purple, and pale blue flowers. Her sash, which was pale pink, was tied in a big bow behind her back. Her smooth, medium-length black hair was pulled into high pigtails, which were tied with pale pink bows. She was wearing white tights and black patent-leather shoes. About ten minutes later, when the party was really starting, there was a knock at the door. It was Andrew R.
Always very quiet and conservative, Andrew, who was wearing a navy blue suit, a light blue button-down shirt, and a blue and gold striped tie, said very quietly, "Sorry I'm late."
"It's okay, Andrew," replied Chris, and the kids started playing games.
The door opened.
"LORELAI!!!!!! A ROBBER!!!!!!" Mike yelled at the top of his lungs as Tristan walked through the door.
"Zip it, kid," Tristan muttered as Lorelai and Rory came rushing into the room.
"Hush, Mike. It's Just Tristan." Rory said, softly.
"Only. If it weren't for me, there wouldn't be any cake."
"TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN!" Chris screeched.
&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&
Rory and Tristan and Luke stood in the kitchen. They had just finished decorating the cake.
The vanilla cake had a white layer of icing. In the center of the top of the cake, there was a coffee cup shape made of icing. The coffee cup said 'CHRIS DANES' on it. The cake was chocolate with vanilla icing between the layers. Rory was putting candles on the cake in intervals. Maria and Lorelai were in the living room.
"Tristan, can you go tell mom to get everybody around the table for dinner and cake?" Rory asked.
"Sure."
"Thanks."
&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&
All of the children were assembled at the table. The room went pitch black.
"HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU,
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU,
HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR CHRI-IS,
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!" sang 14 voices, only six of them in unison. Maria's voice was very beautiful and it was the loudest of them all. It was easy to tell she'd had voice training. (A/N: Real Maria was a voice major in college and has a VERY nice voice. Real Maria is our chorus director, if you didn't already know.)
&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&
"Thanks for coming!!!!" Chris called to Andrew L, Mike, Andrew R, and Pete.
"OKAY, PEOPLE, PILE IN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" called Lorelai in her typical Lorelai-ish way. She was motioning to the car. Her van, to be exact. She and Luke had bought the van when they found out they were having twins. It could transport seven people. Chris and Wyatt jumped into the way back. It seated three people, and Alexander would be joining them shortly. They would pick him up on their way to Hartford. In the back were Emma and Juju, and in the front was Maria driving and Rory in the passenger seat.
(A/N: In real life, if the real Maria were driving, we would request that you all run for your life. She is THE CRAZIEST person on earth and his highly likely to get into an accident within the first mile of her trip.)
Meanwhile, Lorelai, Luke, and Jess were being driven by Tristan in Rory and Tristan's sliver Honda Civic. Tristan and co. got off successfully and were well on their way to Hartford in no time.
Meanwhile, Rory and Maria were slowly inching along in their van full of five-year-olds. It seemed as if there were constant problems. Finally, everyone arrived. They all went into Emily and Richard's house, which was empty, because they were away on business. Maria, Jess, Tristan, and Rory brought the kids up to the attic, which had been turned into a large carpeted playroom for Chris. There were also two small bedrooms opening off of it and a bathroom. Jess and Tristan got Wyatt, Chris, and Alexander ready for bed, and Maria and Rory helped Emma and Juju. When everyone was ready, the kids all got into their sleeping bags. Rory and Tristan retired to one bedroom, and Maria and Jess retired to the other.
Maria and Jess each sat down on one of the single beds in the small room they were to share.
"So, Jess, I guess I don't really know you that well," said Maria.
"Well, I'd love to get to know you better," answered Jess. He got up and joined Maria on the other bed.
"And I you. You know, this is kinda awkward. We're sharing a room, and we're not married, or engaged. Heck, we're not even dating," returned Maria quietly.
"You know, Maria, things don't stay the same forever." Jess leaned into kiss Maria. But their romantic moment was interrupted by a knock at the door. Maria opened the door, and there stood Juju in her nightgown.
"The dark is scary," said Juju. She sniffed a couple of times. Maria picked her up. She gave Juju a warm hug and kissed her forehead.
"Shh, sweetheart, it's okay. There's nothing wrong. If I take you back to bed, will you stop being scared?"
"Mmm-hmmm." Maria walked Juju back to her sleeping bag. Then she came back into the room.
"So," spoke up Jess, "tell me again why it is you don't have kids?"
"You see, Jess, it's quite logical. I'm not married. But hey, I'm young, I've got plenty of time."
There was a silence. (A/N: Did you know that it has been scientifically proven that there is a lapse in every conversation at least every 21 minutes? We think that's awfully cool!)
"Hey, Jess?"
"Yeah?"
"Let's just keep our little 'romantic moment' between the two of us, okay?"
"Sure thing."
That's it, we ended the chapter on an M/J note because the chapter is dedicated to Maria. Soooo, don't forget to wish her a happy birthday by pressing the happy little blue button (which by the way, would appreciate your patronage…). So, please, since there unfortunately is only one door, try not to trample other readers as you exit. This is for your health and well-being. Thank you and Happy Reading!
Chapter 19: Three, Four, and…Fourteen!
Chris and Lorelai were sitting at the dining room table. Lorelai was, at this point, fairly large, as she was six months pregnant with twins.
"Okay, Chris, who do you want to invite to you birthday party?"
"Um, well, I wanna invite…umm…WyattEmmaJujuPeteMikeAlexanderAndrewLBrianClaireAndrewRJake!" said Christopher in one breath.
"Woah, slow down there," said Lorelai.
"Wyatt, Emma, Juju, Pete, Mike, Alexander, Andrew L, Brian, Claire, Andrew R, and Jake."
"Okay, I'll make the invitations and send them out. What do you want to do for your party?"
"I wanna have a sleepover at Grandma and Grandpa's! And I want Ms. Sassani to come! And Tristan! And Jess! And Rory!"
"Ok. But, honey, I'm not sure how many people can come."
"When Rory had a sleepover at grandma and grandpa's house, all her friends could come."
"Well, her friends were older. Your friends are only five. But I'm sure that some people can come."
"Fine."
&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&
"RORY, LORELAI!!!!! Yelled Lane and Sookie as they walked into the diner. The two Gilmore's rounded on them. (A/N: we know. Its really Danes and DuGrey but any way) "What?" asked Sookie as she saw Lorelai pull out a Kleenex and wipe her eyes.
"The Coffee machine broke," Lorelai sobbed.
"WHAT?!!!!!" Lane screeched.
"Sad, but true." Rory replied, soberly.
"Aw, man."
(A/N: we decided not to tell who said these unless NESSECARY. Just guess.)
"I think that I'll die."
"Et moi aussi"
"Well, Lane and I have good news. Right Lane?"
"Yup."
"I'm having triplets!!!!!!!!" said Sookie, excitedly.
"And, I'm going to find out later today!!!" said Lane.
"Fixed!!!!!!!" Luke said, pouring four mugs for them.
"LUKEY!!!! You saved my life!!!!!" Lorelai sobbed, her eyes filled with tears of joy.
&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&
Rory was calmly and quietly walking in the park when Lane walked up to her. Actually, ran, shaking violently.
"Rory! Will you come to the doctor with me? I'm soooo nervous!"
"Sure, Lane, but do you think you can stop shaking enough to drive?"
"No, I think you'd better drive," said Lane.
"Okay, let's take my car." They walked back to Rory and Tristan's apartment building and got in their car. The drive to the doctor's office in Hartford was fairly silent. When they reached the doctor's office, they sat in the waiting room until Lane's name was called.
"Mrs. Cho?" called the nurse at the front desk. Rory and Lane got up and walked into the room. Shortly, the doctor came in and did the sonogram.
"Mrs. Cho, would you like to know what you're having?"
"Yes, please," said Lane, and began to shake even more violently than before.
"Okay….you're having a girl…" said the doctor.
Lane smiled.
"And a boy…" she continued.
"Twins?" cried Lane.
"And a girl…" continued the doctor.
"TRIPLETS?" shouted Lane.
"And a boy," she finished.
"OH MY GOD!!!!!!!!!" yelled Lane and Rory. "QUADS!!!!!!!"
"Come on, Lane, get dressed, we've got to go. I need to get back to my mom and Luke's for Chris's party."
&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&
Rory dropped Lane off at her and Henry's apartment, and drove on to Lorelai and Luke's, where things were being set up. In the living room, there was a long table that was all set with brightly colored party goods. There were eight places, because three children, Brian, Claire, and Jake, had been unable to attend.
All of a sudden, the doorbell rang. Chris ran downstairs. He looked slightly disheveled, but adorable. He'd picked out his own outfit and dressed himself with no help whatsoever. He was wearing khaki pants, and a blue and gray striped turtleneck, blue socks, and sneakers. The outfit looked quite nice on him, but his shirt was only half tucked in. As he rushed towards the door, Maria, who was standing in the hallway, scooped Chris up, gave him a hug to acknowledge his cuteness, and tucked in his shirt as he squirmed violently. She put him down and he answered the door. There stood Wyatt. He was wearing red corduroy pants and a white t-shirt which said in red letters "The Chef's Son". Wyatt went in and stood next to Chris.
Then the doorbell rang again, and outside stood Andrew L and Mike, accompanied by Taylor. Lorelai, who was looking on from afar, looked quite appalled when Taylor came in with a son. Taylor promptly left without saying anything. Mike, always Taylor's son, was wearing gray pants and an olive green sweater. He had on brown loafers. He looked like a mini Taylor. Andrew L was simply wearing blue jeans and a white turtleneck.
"Hi, boys, it's very nice to see you!"
"Ms. Sassani, what are you doing here?" asked Wyatt, always the first to speak his mind.
"Yeah, why are you here?" piped up Andrew L.
Mike, always needing to be the leader, said, "I know why she's here! She's here because….ummm….okay, I don't really know."
"I'm here because I'm a very good friend of Chris's mom and sister, Rory," answered Maria.
"Oh," they all said together.
At that moment, through the door, which was still open, walked Emma and Pete. Everyone greeted each other, and Maria explained her presence. Both looked very nice. Emma was wearing a skirt that looked an awful lot like one from Chilton, a white short-sleeved blouse, and a blue cardigan. Pete, who had just come from a Little League game, was wearing his uniform, which consisted of white pants with a green stripe down each leg, a white t-shirt with green sleeves and a green collar, and a green baseball cap. The shirt said his number on the back. And, since it was mid-November and fairly cold, he had a white long sleeved shirt underneath. All the boys sat down, and about three minutes later, the doorbell rang.
Maria opened it, and Juju looked adorable. She was wearing a white smocked dress with pink, purple, and pale blue flowers. Her sash, which was pale pink, was tied in a big bow behind her back. Her smooth, medium-length black hair was pulled into high pigtails, which were tied with pale pink bows. She was wearing white tights and black patent-leather shoes. About ten minutes later, when the party was really starting, there was a knock at the door. It was Andrew R.
Always very quiet and conservative, Andrew, who was wearing a navy blue suit, a light blue button-down shirt, and a blue and gold striped tie, said very quietly, "Sorry I'm late."
"It's okay, Andrew," replied Chris, and the kids started playing games.
The door opened.
"LORELAI!!!!!! A ROBBER!!!!!!" Mike yelled at the top of his lungs as Tristan walked through the door.
"Zip it, kid," Tristan muttered as Lorelai and Rory came rushing into the room.
"Hush, Mike. It's Just Tristan." Rory said, softly.
"Only. If it weren't for me, there wouldn't be any cake."
"TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN TRISTAN!" Chris screeched.
&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&
Rory and Tristan and Luke stood in the kitchen. They had just finished decorating the cake.
The vanilla cake had a white layer of icing. In the center of the top of the cake, there was a coffee cup shape made of icing. The coffee cup said 'CHRIS DANES' on it. The cake was chocolate with vanilla icing between the layers. Rory was putting candles on the cake in intervals. Maria and Lorelai were in the living room.
"Tristan, can you go tell mom to get everybody around the table for dinner and cake?" Rory asked.
"Sure."
"Thanks."
&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&
All of the children were assembled at the table. The room went pitch black.
"HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU,
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU,
HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR CHRI-IS,
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!" sang 14 voices, only six of them in unison. Maria's voice was very beautiful and it was the loudest of them all. It was easy to tell she'd had voice training. (A/N: Real Maria was a voice major in college and has a VERY nice voice. Real Maria is our chorus director, if you didn't already know.)
&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&
"Thanks for coming!!!!" Chris called to Andrew L, Mike, Andrew R, and Pete.
"OKAY, PEOPLE, PILE IN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" called Lorelai in her typical Lorelai-ish way. She was motioning to the car. Her van, to be exact. She and Luke had bought the van when they found out they were having twins. It could transport seven people. Chris and Wyatt jumped into the way back. It seated three people, and Alexander would be joining them shortly. They would pick him up on their way to Hartford. In the back were Emma and Juju, and in the front was Maria driving and Rory in the passenger seat.
(A/N: In real life, if the real Maria were driving, we would request that you all run for your life. She is THE CRAZIEST person on earth and his highly likely to get into an accident within the first mile of her trip.)
Meanwhile, Lorelai, Luke, and Jess were being driven by Tristan in Rory and Tristan's sliver Honda Civic. Tristan and co. got off successfully and were well on their way to Hartford in no time.
Meanwhile, Rory and Maria were slowly inching along in their van full of five-year-olds. It seemed as if there were constant problems. Finally, everyone arrived. They all went into Emily and Richard's house, which was empty, because they were away on business. Maria, Jess, Tristan, and Rory brought the kids up to the attic, which had been turned into a large carpeted playroom for Chris. There were also two small bedrooms opening off of it and a bathroom. Jess and Tristan got Wyatt, Chris, and Alexander ready for bed, and Maria and Rory helped Emma and Juju. When everyone was ready, the kids all got into their sleeping bags. Rory and Tristan retired to one bedroom, and Maria and Jess retired to the other.
Maria and Jess each sat down on one of the single beds in the small room they were to share.
"So, Jess, I guess I don't really know you that well," said Maria.
"Well, I'd love to get to know you better," answered Jess. He got up and joined Maria on the other bed.
"And I you. You know, this is kinda awkward. We're sharing a room, and we're not married, or engaged. Heck, we're not even dating," returned Maria quietly.
"You know, Maria, things don't stay the same forever." Jess leaned into kiss Maria. But their romantic moment was interrupted by a knock at the door. Maria opened the door, and there stood Juju in her nightgown.
"The dark is scary," said Juju. She sniffed a couple of times. Maria picked her up. She gave Juju a warm hug and kissed her forehead.
"Shh, sweetheart, it's okay. There's nothing wrong. If I take you back to bed, will you stop being scared?"
"Mmm-hmmm." Maria walked Juju back to her sleeping bag. Then she came back into the room.
"So," spoke up Jess, "tell me again why it is you don't have kids?"
"You see, Jess, it's quite logical. I'm not married. But hey, I'm young, I've got plenty of time."
There was a silence. (A/N: Did you know that it has been scientifically proven that there is a lapse in every conversation at least every 21 minutes? We think that's awfully cool!)
"Hey, Jess?"
"Yeah?"
"Let's just keep our little 'romantic moment' between the two of us, okay?"
"Sure thing."
That's it, we ended the chapter on an M/J note because the chapter is dedicated to Maria. Soooo, don't forget to wish her a happy birthday by pressing the happy little blue button (which by the way, would appreciate your patronage…). So, please, since there unfortunately is only one door, try not to trample other readers as you exit. This is for your health and well-being. Thank you and Happy Reading!