Alright guys, here's chapter 2 of Perfect Family.
"What are ya crazy, Eugene!" Tiffany shouted with her foreign accent, he looked up from the sleeping child, he was standing at the door, "shh, she's asleep." He hushed her, finding the basket he'd dug from the closet, a pillow inside, just until he could afford a cradle.
He approached his wife after putting the orphaned child down, "why not, Tiff?" He asked, glancing at the adorable little girl, "it's just a baby, and she has nowhere else to go." He said while he wrapped his loving arms around her, "where are her parents?" She asked, "I'm pretty sure they'll be looking for her."
Eugene shook his head, "Afraid not, her parents were murdered by fishermen." Tiffany awed, even she couldn't help but to feel bad, she looked at the girl, "well, I'm pretty sure she's got somebody, a grandmother, or aunt-" "we don't know that Fer sure, all he said was to take good care of her, she doesn't even have a name."
Tiffany rolled her eyes, "how are we supposed ta raise a child?" She asked, he shrugged, he'd never thought of that, he never had kids, after that explosion he'd lost some parts, and now he is unable have his own children.
"We'll figure somethin out, I ain't gonna let er suffer, how hard can it be?" He asked, harder than he would think, "how are you gonna afford all of this, shell need a bed, and diapers, bottles and clothes, how are you supposed to support her when you can't even take care of yourself?" Krabs looked away, walking over to the child who was starting to wake up.
"We can't just do nothin, Tiffany, she needs us." He said while he bounced her, "what she needs is to be put in an orphanage, where they'll take care of her." Krabs shook his head, "No, I won't let that happen, there's monsters out there who adopt sweet innocent children like her and do horrible things to them, I'm not about to let what happened to me, happen to her." Krabs shook his head.
When he was little, when his father had been shot in the first war, leaving him and his mother poor and with no money, she'd been arrested trying to steal a loaf of stale bread so he could eat, and sent to foster care, he'd been all over the place, with so many different families, he only had one friend which turned into his worst enemy, if he gave her up, she'd be the same way, but it's worse for younger girls.
"Whatever Eugene, but don't come crying to me when you need a break, she's all yours." Tiffany said before she walked into the bathroom.
"Ya hear that girl, you got a new daddy, and no matter how hard it'll be, I'll do everything in my power to keep you safe, I don't have much but, I can give you all I have, you'll grow strong and beautiful, like a beautiful pearl." He said getting a giggle from her.
"Oh? Ya like that little girl, me little Pearl."
The night was young, everyone had fallen asleep, the married couple tossed and turned in their sleep. Eugene, as usual, was dreaming about his Navy Days, he'd always end up telling his honorable stories, you'd never guess by the way he tells them that he had nightmares.
He ran behind a tall jagged rock, he'd been dressed in his combat uniform, face painted with black and green, he was sweating bullets, exhausted, but he had to keep going, he had to live. Enemy fighter jets swept across the sky, aiming his gun, he shot the pilot, he ran from the falling jet that was heading his way, jumping from the huge explosion.
Citizens ran all around in fear of being under attack, itd been so sudden, none of them had a chance to get ready, they all turned to the only man who knew how to fight. They begged him, as much as he wanted to back out, he knew that his home was at stake.
As he was running through the shredded land, he stopped when he seen an infant car seat sitting in the midst of it all, he could hear the child inside screaming for him.
"Pearl!" He shouted as he rushed to her car seat to find that she wasn't there, standing in front of him, a tall dark figure, who could not be recognized, held a crying infant in it's arm, a dagger in one of it's hands that he raised.
Eugene shot straight out of his bed, panting, looking all around him for the mysterious being, while off on the side of the bed in the tiny basket cried little Pearl.
"Hmm, Eugene, g, get up and shut her up" Tiffany ordered him, he glanced at her before getting up, he picked the young girl up, "yer ok, oh, ya had me worried." He said, turning to his wife who was trying to go back to sleep, "I just had a horrible dream about the-"
"Oh, Eugene, I don't want to hear about another city under attack dream, I wanna go to bed, some of us have a job to go to in the morning." She said as she covered her head with a pillow.
Eugene glared at her, "oh, like being a front desk clerk is a big job." He rolled his eyes before turning to leave the room.
For his current business, Eugene was the owner of an old retirement home, The Rusty Krab, second best to Shady Shoals, a new retirement that was a tough competition. Some of his old Navy buddies lived in his retirement home, finding it the cheapest place to live out the rest of their lives, they wouldn't want to pay too much for an old worn out bed that probably has bed bugs.
"Mornin Eugene." Greeted Mabel, an elderly resident at The Rusty Krab, she was a sweet old lady, she was like a grandmother who always baked cookies, and wore too much perfume. Mabel awed when she seen the sleeping infant in his arms.
"Awe, oh my goodness, who is this lovely thing?" She asked as she slowly made her way over to the child, Eugene looked down at Pearl, "Her names Pearl, she me adopted daughter." He answered, Mabel gasped, "really, where'd you get er?" She asked as she rubbed to girls back.
Eugene sighed, "parents were murdered by whale hunters, found her by her dying father, I couldn't just, leave er there." He shook his head, "and, I'm not gonna put her in an orphanage, I still have nightmares about it." He shook his head, Mable awed, she completely understood.
"You're a lifesaver, Eugene, this lil girl is so very lucky to have you as her father." She said.
SIX MONTHS LATER- to get things going.
It was obvious from the beginning that all she wanted was the money, sure he didn't have much, but it was enough to buy her brand new clothes, and not some baggy clothes from the nearest Goodwill.
When he had finally put a stop to her wasting his money on clothes she only wore once, she was furious.
"Ever since you found that annoying thing, she's all you've cared about, you make me stop getting clothes for a bed, even she has newer clothes then me, you feed her like she's never been fed, you never once stopped to wonder how I felt!" She cried out to him as he slowly put the six month old baby down in her new bed.
"Shh, she's asleep." He hushed her, it felt like days that he felt that he was able to get her to fall asleep. Tiffany placed her hands on her hips, "really, Eugene, you're telling me to shush? I am your wife-" "and she is me daughter, and if I tell ya ta shut it, I mean shut it, if ya dare wake er ya be regrettin it." He pointed at her.
Tiffany gasped at his threat, how dare he threaten her! "You love that thing more then me!" Krabs glared at her, "Aye." he agreed, stepping forward, "So I do, someone's got to, and it sure in Sam hell ain't gonna be you."
Tiffany grawled, "do you want me ta leave you, Eugene? Is that it?" She asked, he rolled his eyes, "Whaddya gonna do, go work back out on the streets? go right ahead, who needs ya anyways, I've got more important things to worry about, like me precious daughter, there are plenty of fish in the sea." He said, and with that, she left.
Women were always out to get you, they marry you for the money, they either kill you and take all your life insurance money, or they divorce you and take everything you've ever owed, down to the very clothes on your back.
This was something that Eugene H. Krabs hadn't planned out, he wasn't a wealthy man, he had nothing to take, that was until, he wound up homeless, not even the money from the retirement home could get him out of this hole, he looked to the one person who he knew would never turn their back on him.
There was a knock at the door, the door opened, revealing an aging , a wide grin crossed her lips, "awe, son, glad ta have ya back home, it's been so long without Charles." She said, Charles was his fathers name.
Eugene hugged her and put on a fake smile, she pulled him out of the hug, "Oh, are ya alright, son?" She asked, he nodded taking her by her hands, "ma, I'd like ya to meet someone." He said, "oh? Is it a new girlfriend?" She asked but her son laughed.
Eugene turned around, picking his kid up he turned around and introduced her to his mother, "ma, I'd like ya to meet Pearl." He said getting an awe, "why, she's so cute, whose is she?" She asked, Krabs smiled, "she's mine, this is me daughter ma, yer a grandmother."
Holly, Mrs. Krabs, looked up at her son, dropping her expression, normally she'd be thrilled at the thought, "I, I know whatcha thinkin, yes she isn't mine by blood, but she is adopted, her parents were murdered-" and so he told the story of how she became his.
They sat in the house, Pearl was asleep in her father's old room. Holly shook her head, "whaddya doin, lad, takin in a child, better yet a baby!" She asked, Krabs shook his head, "well, I couldn't just leave er, ma, ya know that, she would've died that day."
"I ain't sayin whatcha did was wrong, but, ya coulda given er to the l-" "the orphanage, I know, ma, but I couldn't do that to the pour thing, you know what it was like when I was-" she looked away, she hated to be reminded of the memory.
"If they find out that youre homeless, they'll take her for sure." Holly said, "I know ma, that's why we need ta stay here for a couple o days, till able to raise up enough money to get a place." He said, his mother shook her head, she couldn't tell him no, that baby needed food, and water.
"How are ya gonna take care of this baby, when you can't take care of yourself?" Krabs shook his head, "I'm not worried about myself ma." He shook his head.
"Alright lad, if ya say so, ya best get a better payin job, that retirement home ain't gettin ya nowhere." She said as she went into the other room to head for bed.
To be continued…