Episode 13: The Seed Of Mystery
Sunday, 20th of Spring, 1977
A few days after the party, life is back to normal here in the ranch. Me and Ellen woke up, showered, ate breakfast, and went out to do our daily work. Ellen hand-washed our dirty clothes and towels while I brushed, fed, talked to, and milked Aloe. She is producing a little more milk now in the past few days. I looked at the bottle. Its nearly full. After placing the bottle of milk for shipment, I went to the chicken house to so the same for the eggs, then fed the chickens. Then I took Zara on over to the turnip and potato garden out east and stuffed all the ripe potatoes in the bags on Zara.
"They aren't too heavy for ya, are they?" I asked Zara.
She shook her head and grunted.
"I think that's a no," I said, speaking my thoughts aloud.
After my work was done, I rode Zara back into the stables.
When I came out of the stables I looked to my right and noticed Ellen hanging the washed clothes and towels on the clothesline to dry.
"It's warm. Such a comfortable Sunday," Ellen told me.
"Yeah. The warm air feels great," I said as I stretched my legs out, doing some minor exercises of leaning my torso to the left, and raising my right arm to the left, then leaning to the right and raising my left arm to the right.
"Well, I better get into the woods and chop some wood. I'll be back late noon," I told Ellen as I grabbed my wheelbarrow and super ax with me.
"Take care of yourself," Ellen called out to me.
"I'm always careful," I replied and left the ranch.
It is 5:50 p.m. when I got back and Derek has already left with my shipment. I put my wheelbarrow up near the wood shed and left my super axe along with the rest of my super tools in the tool shed, then I went in the house to eat a rewarding dinner from Ellen and get a good night rest with her.
Sunday, 22nd of Spring, 1977
"Tony? Wake up. Its daytime," Ellen nudged me awake.
"Wha...?!" I looked around, still half asleep.
A few minutes later, after bathing and eating breakfast, me and Ellen watched the weather channel. The weatherman announced that it'll be sunny for the next several hours following tomorrow.
"Awesome. No rain," I smiled, rubbing my hands together quickly until my palms warmed up.
"Yeah. If it rained tomorrow, the festival would most likely be cancelled," Ellen commented.
I looked at her with a puzzled stare.
"Rain can cancel festivals?" I asked her.
"Its never happened to us before, but I heard that's what'll happen if it rains on a festival day," Ellen gently scratched her left cheek in thought.
"Couldn't they just... postpone it and wait until the next day or something?" I suggested.
"You know, darling... That's a great idea. I'll ask Mayor Stan about it the next time I see him," Ellen said.
"Well, I better get outside and feed the livestock." I got up out of the couch and started to head out the door, but as soon as I opened it, I almost ran into Mike!
"Woah!" We both shouted in unison.
"Yikes!" Ellen yelped in surprise.
"Mike! What are you doing here?" I asked him.
"I came here to remind you that the Flower Festival is tomorrow," Mike replied.
I chuckled and shook my head. "Mike... I don't need reminding, thank you," I said in mild annoyance.
"Sorry... Its just that since I'm practically still a trainee shipper, I don't get to see you very often," Mike shrugged.
"Oh... Sorry that I yelled at you," I apologized.
"it's okay. Hi there, Mrs. Ellen," Mike noticed Ellen behind me and waved at her.
"Hello, Mike," Ellen waved in return.
"I see your baby is making you look like you ate a hundred rice balls- no offense," Mike joked.
"None taken," Ellen said with a sincere smirk with no trace of anger in her voice.
"Well, I better get going. See ya, Tony," Mike gave me a little salute, spun around on his heel and marched off.
"Yeah. later, Mike," I looked back at Ellen.
"Mikey- you gotta learn to like him," I said sarcastically.
Ellen giggled, then I walked out the door. I did my usual routing, feeding, brushing talking and milking Aloe, feeding the chickens, and watering all the potato seeds I planted yesterday. Then for the rest of the day, Ellen watched me ride around the ranch on Zara. She wanted to ride on Zara herself, but she's too afraid to do it. I felt sorry for Ellen being afraid- I've gotten used to riding a horse. But Ellen will overcome her fears soon enough.
Monday, 23rd of Spring, 1977
I opened my eyes the same time Ellen did. "Good morning, sweetheart," she said to me with a soft smile.
"Good morning. honey... Oh!" I gasped when I felt her stomach pressing against me with more firmness than before.
"What? What is it?" I asked her feeling alarmed.
Ellen threw the covers off from over me and her, revealing that her stomach has grown much larger now, as large as a watermelon would be if Ellen swallowed one whole.
"Wow. You look like you swallowed a whole watermelon now, honey," I gasped in awe, making my thoughts no secret to my wife.
"I know," she said, nodding in agreement with a worried look on her face, probably afraid that she might break her spine trying to climb out of bed.
Ellen has apparently reached the third trimester of her pregnancy, which likely means the fetus in her womb has fully developed now, nearing the final days of pregnancy. Ellen slowly turned her body away from me, trying to position herself to climb out of bed carefully. As I heard the mattress creaking when she was moving, I saw her swollen belly slowly roll with her body, turning counter-clockwise away from pointing at me to pointing upward towards the ceiling when she lay directly on her back, then she tried to climb out of bed steadily, placing her left leg towards the edge of the bed, her left foot inches from touching the floor, then she moved her right leg to the edge of the bed, then straightened her body to sit upwards, but at a slow pace and with my help, trying not to hurt her spine, or worse, break it. After rubbing her round stomach for a few seconds while taking a few breaths, she tried to stand on her feet, placing her bare feet on the wooden floor.
"Whew... Ooh..." Ellen slowly breathed in and out, trying to get used to her new body weight as she stood on her legs.
"Ellen...?" I called with concern.
Ellen finally stood on her feet, then she turned around and looked at me.
"I feel my body becoming heavier," she explained to me.
It didn't take me long to understand what is going on. It's all because of the fetus's body weight. I didn't know how to tell for sure, but I had a feeling that the baby is probably upside down in Ellen's womb right now, its head facing the small opening that it came in as one of my many sperm cells. I felt sorry for my wife, I can only imagine how it feels, having a nearly fully developed heavy fetus in your womb making your body twice as heavy. Must be a very uncomfortable feeling.
"Don't worry, darling, I can still walk. It's just that I can feel the baby's body weight pushing down with my own body weight, and it is not a comfortable feeling," Ellen added, and I could see her eyes wincing slightly.
I prayed that she doesn't get any back pains, because her distended belly looks a little too much for her average body to support.
I followed her to the bathroom to shower with her. When we showered together, I stood behind her, scrubbing her back with the bathing towel covered in soap suds. I touched Ellen's round belly a couple times briefly, but I never felt the baby punch, kick or move around at all while all of this was happening.
"Do you feel anything, honey?" I asked her while I continued gently scrubbing her back.
Ellen slowly shook her head. "No. He or she might be asleep," she guessed.
I sighed in depression. "I'm sorry, honey," I said sullenly, then handed Ellen the wet towel.
Ellen frowned incredulously as she turned around to face me and scrub my back. "Sorry for what?" She asked.
"For what you're going through. I've never put any thought into how uncomfortable and painful it is for women to bring new life into this world. I never asked my mother how painful it was for her to give birth to me," I said sadly as I felt my wife's swollen belly touching the lower part of my back.
"Tony, honey, don't beat yourself up about this," my wife reassured me, then she stopped scrubbing my back, then I turned around to face her while the shower head above our heads continued raining warm water down on our bodies. "Don't you remember? I wanted this, and I don't regret it at all. Yes, it is uncomfortable, but I don't for one second regret doing what we needed to do to have this baby."
I became speechless. After she said that, I developed a new respect for my wife, and for women in general. I don't know why, but I felt this urge to lean forward towards Ellen's neck and gently kiss her wet neck, so I did it, and when I did, my lips were making smacking noises on the wet surface of her skin, but the noise my lips were making were nearly drowned out by the sounds of the water splashing on us and around us. Ellen smiled, saying nothing, only enjoying me kissing her neck. Again, I don't know what compelled me to do that, I just wanted to.
Then minutes later after that, she started cooking breakfast as I watched television. I looked over at Ellen out of concern instead of focusing on the T.V. screen. Judging from the mildly pained expression of her face, Ellen is obviously uncomfortable with the extra weight our baby is giving her. But she's a real trooper about it, no doubt. She didn't cry or complain, she's just wincing uncomfortably about it.
"Okay, breakfast is ready," Ellen announced as she brought our plates to the dinner table.
I sat next to Ellen, still feeling vaguely worried about her. I took slow bites of my scrambled eggs and sausage. After eating my 4th bite of scrambled eggs, Ellen suddenly said: "Oh! I feel the baby moving!"
"Really?" I asked in surprise.
"Just now. I can feel it kicking," Ellen said, a smile on her face.
Finally something to take her mind off the uncomfortable weight. I reached out and touched Ellen's belly, touching the smooth yet firm round surface. I kept it there, waiting for something. Six seconds later, I felt a kick. A big one, too! I gasped in surprise!
"I felt it too! Did you feel that? That was a strong kick!" Ellen said.
"Yeah!" I nodded.
The baby started kicking twice, 5 times in a row.
"Pretty active, isn't he or she?" I asked Ellen as I felt more kicks on my hand.
"Yeah. Feels a little uncomfortable, too... And I think he or she is sitting on my bladder," Ellen said, wincing a little as she felt a little pain from all those kicks.
"Well, today is the Flower Festival. We better get ready for it. I'll go feed Aloe and the chickens before we head off," I said.
"You go do that, darling, I'll go freshen myself up," Ellen said as she slowly stood up out the chair and walked to the bedroom as I left the house.
As soon as I went outside, I saw that red haired girl, Lisa, the girl who's always with Mrs. Fortune, standing outside my ranch!
"Hey! What's your name? Ah, Lisa!" I called out to her as I approached her. "What are you doing here?" I asked her.
"Uum, I want an egg," She replied.
I frowned in confusion. "An egg?" I asked her again.
She nodded.
"Okay. An egg is what you want. Okay, no problem. Wait here," I said.
I ran to the chicken house, took one of my five eggs and returned to Lisa.
"Here you go. One fresh egg, just like you requested," I said as I handed her the egg.
She slowly took it into her hands. "Thank you. This is... the money I saved," she said, digging into her pocket and giving me $20. "Bye," she waved and walked away.
I shook my head and returned to work, getting the milker and brush from my tool shed, talking to, brushing milking and feeding Aloe, then I put the remaining four eggs in the shipping box and fed the chickens, then I watered my potatoes. After I was done, I returned home, but not before calling Mike and making arrangements with him to drive me and Ellen to town because I don't want Ellen walking for too long in her current state. Hours later, at 2:30, I was the first to step out of the house. Ellen came outside next, walking down the porch steps carefully, trying not to lose her footing, fall and hurt herself and the baby.
"You look great, honey," I complimented her truthfully.
Ellen smiled at me. "Even though our baby is making me look fat?" She asked me then rubbed her huge belly.
"Of course! No matter what! I love my wife and my soon to be born son or daughter!" I smiled.
She kissed me. "Thank you, darling. Let's go," Ellen said. We left the ranch together, heading for Mike's truck parked outside my ranch.
"Good evening ladies and gentlemen, I, Mike, will be your chauffeur tonight!" Mike said graciously as he opened the passenger seat door for Ellen, then we helped Ellen climb into the truck, then I follwed after her, then Mike went around and climbed into the driver's side, closed the door, and took off driving down the dirt road.
Just like last year, as soon as me and Ellen got to the town Square, we were instantly surrounded by people, and flowers. I noticed Eve right away and came over to see how she is doing. She was sniffing blue flowers.
"Beautiful flowers, aren't they?" Eve asked me.
I nodded. "Yeah. God is some talented artist, making something so beautiful," I said.
Eve scoffed, putting her hands on her hips. "God's got a little sense of humor. If flowers are supposed to cheer people up, wine would be much better. Don't you think so, Tony?"
I gave Eve a funny, skeptical scowl. "Ahh, no. I don't know about the wine part," I said as I shook my head in disdain.
"Aw, don't be such a sourpuss," Eve looked a little depressed.
I left Eve before she gets any more funny remarks. I approached Ann, who was watching her dad do his usual thing, worrying about not being able to by one of the perfume bottles.
"There he goes again. I told you he's like that every year in this festival," Ann said.
"I never said you were a liar," I remarked, watching Michael mumble saying: "When it just comes right to it, I can't buy it. There's no way... Oh jeez..."
I walked back to Ellen who was watching the statue of the Harvest Goddess.
"Hey, Tony. I wonder if men are not very interested in this kind of festival," she said to me.
"Only the ones who don't love nature," I replied.
"Do you love or hate nature?" Ellen asked me.
"Neither," I replied.
"Oh. I see," Ellen nodded.
"Is the baby still kicking?" I asked her.
Ellen shook her head. "Not right now. It was a few minutes ago, and it was moving around. Trust me, Tony, you don't want to be in my shoes. Feeling a baby move around a lot in your stomach is not a good feeling," Ellen said.
"Well, hang in there, honey, you only got a few days left," I assured her.
I then approached Tim and Lisa a few yards southeast from Ellen. When I left my wife's side, I heard Nina come up to Ellen and ask her about the baby.
"Hey, Tim. Do you know who that is?" I asked him.
"They say it's the statue of the Goddess of Land."
"Correction: she's called the Goddess of Harvest," I corrected Tim.
He looked up at me and frowned in confusion.
"They say that the Harvest Goddess lives in a small spring somewhere in the forest," Lisa added.
"I know. I've met her," I immediately blurted out without thinking.
Tim and Lisa looked at me in shock.
"What did you say?!" Tim looked surprised.
"You're saying you've actually met her before?!" Lisa couldn't believe it.
I couldn't believe I let that slip! I'm so stupid! "I, uh, ah... Hey! What's that over there?!" I pointed northwest.
Tim and Lisa fell for it and I ran off.
I then ran for priest Daniel and Maria who were not far west from where Tim and Lisa stood.
"Ah, Tony. How have you been doing?" Daniel asked me.
"Fine, Daniel. Hi, Maria."
"Hi, Tony. Are you enjoying the festival?" She asked me.
I knew that can't lie to her, I'm not a flower enthusiast.
"To be honest with you, I never grew up loving flowers, but I've learned to appreciate all my experiences," I said honestly.
"That's good, Tony! If there's anything that God has taught us, its that the heart is for appreciating flowers, and to being more open and relaxed," Daniel said, taking a deep breath and exhaling.
"My heart warms up with the joys of spring when its filled with the smell of flowers," Maria remarked.
I took a deep breath with them, inhaling slowly, and exhaling slowly. I wasn't just simply mimicking them, I tried to identify the scents my nose picked up. I thought I smelled rosemary, lavender, and another smell that I don't know how to describe.
"They sure smell good. Anyway, I better get going. Bye!" I left them, heading for the peddler woman at the southwestern corner wall of the town Square.
"Hi there. It's me again. Whatcha got this time?" I asked here.
"A really rare item," the elderly peddler replied with a smirk, grabbing one of the small boxes behind her and holding it, but she didn't open it yet.
"Is that so? How rare?" I asked her.
"So rare, it's probably the last of its kind in this world." Then she opened the box, revealing to me what is inside it.
It looks like a crystal flower seed, I couldn't tell if it's real or fake.
"It is called the 'seed of snow flower'. I'm selling it for $1000. Do you want it?" She asked me.
I shrugged. "Sure," I said with a shrug. I instinctively knew that I better buy this thing because I have a good strange feeling about this seed.
I pulled out my wallet and gave her the money.
"Thank you very much," She gave me the small box containing the seed.
I looked at it. it's the most beautiful flower seed I've ever seen in my life. It looked more like a light blue jewel than a seed.
"So, uh, do I just plant it in my ranch?" I asked her.
"Use it in the winter, at the mountain's peak," the peddler woman advised me.
"Thanks for telling me that. See you later," I waved bye.
"Come visit again," the peddler smiled warmly.
I placed the small box in one of the pockets of my overalls as I walked up to Nina, who is dancing around the water fountain, twirling around.
"What are you so happy about?" I asked her.
"Flowers are covering the whole town. Ellen is having her first baby. I am so happy! Are you happy?" She asked me.
"Of course I am. Why, do you expect me to dance?" I asked her.
She stopped dancing. "You sure are a mood killer," she said sullenly.
A few minutes later, Mayor Stan called out by megaphone saying: "Everyone, the dancing part will be starting in three minutes. Pick a dance partner as soon as possible."
"Uh oh." I said.
I weaved my way through the crowd, looking for Ellen. I eventually found her.
"There you are, darling." She smiled at me.
I cleared my throat and extended my right hand out at her.
"Honey, would you like to dance with me, for old times sake?" I asked her.
Ellen giggled. "Darling, this isn't like last year. We're married now. Of course I'll dance with you," she replied.
Three minutes later, everyone who wanted to dance started dancing when Stan started playing the song "Earth Angel" performed by The Penguins over an old phonograph device made back in the early 1950's.
We started dancing to some jazzy music. Michael danced with Liz, Tim danced with Lisa, and Stan danced with his wife. I didn't do any fancy moves with Ellen this time, I wanted to be careful considering she has a baby in her belly and I don't want to risk injuring her or the baby, so I just did simple twirling and basic footwork dancing with Ellen. After the festival ended, it was evening by the time we got back home in the ranch. Me and Ellen got back home and jumped in the bed and fell asleep.
"Good night, darling," Ellen said to me, her huge belly making a big bulge in the bed sheets as she faced the ceiling laying on her pillow.
"Good night, dear," I said as I put my hand on her belly.
I felt the baby kick one time before I closed my eyes.
Tuesday, 24th of Spring, 1977
Me and Ellen woke up and climbed out of bed. The baby is still giving Ellen some minor discomfort, but she's taking it without breaking a sweat or tear. We showered together, brushed our teeth and hair, then I got dressed into my overalls and cap and Ellen out on her blue maternity dress and we went into the living room to eat breakfast. I watched the weather news while Ellen was cooking.
"How are you doing, ladies and gentlemen? It'll be quite sunny tomorrow, so be sure to come outside and catch that warm, tasty spring air!" The weather woman said.
After Ellen was done cooking, we sat together and ate breakfast.
"So how's the baby?" I asked Ellen after taking a bite of a hash brown.
"Oh, he or she has been pretty restless lately, moving and kicking. My spine hurts from all that movement," Ellen replied then took a bite of a piece of a waffle.
"I guess that's the baby's way of saying 'Let me out, mama! I want out, please!'" I joked.
"Well I'm sorry to disappoint the baby, but my body isn't quite ready to let him or her out yet... But its only a matter of time, though," Ellen said, looking down at her huge belly pushing the fabric of her dress.
"I better get outside and do my job, honey. I'll be back," I said, after eating the plate clean.
"Okay, darling. Take care of yourself," Ellen said.
"How many times are you going to say that? I'm always careful." I gave her a thumb up with my left hand before going out.
I went to the tool shed and grabbed my milker and brush and went in the cow house to take care of Aloe.
"Heeey, Aloe. How are you?"
"Mooooo!" Aloe mooed in reply.
"I bet you're really hungry. But first, I need to brush you and take some of your milk," I said.
I approached Aloe and started brushing her body.
"Yes, Aloe, good girl. Good girl. you're looking very pretty today, but I'll make you much more prettier," I said as I brushed.
"Moooo!" Aloe mooed, possibly flattered by my words.
Then I grabbed the milker, placed the funnel on Aloe's udders then placed the other end of the milker in a bottle, then I began squeezing milk out of Aloe's udders until the bottle is full. I then took the bottle to the shipping box and put it in.
"Thanks for the milk, Aloe. now, your reward," I gave Aloe a handful of grass for her to eat then I left the cow house then went to the chicken house to feed my chickens and a little chick that hatched a few days ago, and store their eggs up.
Then I returned to the tool shed to get my sprinkler. "Sprinkle time." I said as I grabbed ahold of it. I went to my garden and sprinkled all the potato seeds. After that, I took my super axe and wheelbarrow to the mountainside forest to chop some wood.
When I reached the forest, I decided to pay a visit to Luke and his carpenters. I only got about six hours before sundown. i saw a squirrel run past me.
"Whoa!" I gasped.
I watched the squirrel as he climbed up a nearby tree, disappearing into the green leaves.
"Well well. If it isn't Tony the family man. How's your work coming along, mate?" Emmet asked me as he approached.
I turned around, not expecting him to find me so quickly.
"Emmet. Oh, things are going great. Harvesting has never been better," I smiled at him.
"Good, good, that's very good. And how about your wife? How is she?" He asked me.
"She's okay. Since the baby's getting heavier and more active, Ellen has been feeling less energetic lately," I said.
"Oh, I see. Tell her I said hang in there," Emmet gave me a quick salute.
"I will. Anyway, where's Luke?" I asked Emmet.
He's in his house tree, trying to figure out some complicated blueprints. it's best not to disturb him when he's studying hard on something," Emmet warned me.
"Oh, okay. well I best get to wood chopping. Nice talkin' to you, Emmet," I said, pushing my wheelbarrow forward.
"Nice talking to you too, Tony. Take it easy," Emmet waved bye.
Later that evening I returned home with 60 blocks of wood. I was so tired, I ate some of Ellen's potato pie and slept in early.
Thursday, 26th of Spring, 1977
As Ellen and I woke up, I reached into the pocket of my pajamas, and pulled out the seed of snow flower. I focused my eyes on it. It looked beautiful, the sunlight from the window reflecting on it.
"Darling, what is that, a diamond?" Ellen asked me.
"No, it's a special flower seed." I replied.
Ellen lifted her left eyebrow. "A flower seed? Doesn't look like any flower seed I've seen before. Where did you get it?"
"From the wandering peddler in the Flower Festival." I replied.
Ellen moaned in disappointment. "Honey, haven't I told you before to never buy anything strange at that festival?" She scolded me like she is my mother.
"But honey, I have a good feeling about this seed! The peddler woman told me to plant it at the mountain top in the winter. This year's winter, I'm going up there." I said.
Ellen slowly climbed out of bed, then sighed.
"Okay... I trust you Tony... Just... be careful how you spend your money. I don't want you to end up regretting it. Remember, we have a baby on the way. Try to remember that our child comes first before your curiosity over a strange seed," Ellen said.
"Thanks, honey," I softly patted her on the back then we smooched for a while.
After eating breakfast, we came outside to do our work. I brushed, milked and fed Aloe, fed my chickens and stored their eggs in the shipping box, watered the sprouting potatoes, and then rode on Zara to Neighbor Town to go grocery shopping at Ellen's mom's place. Then before heading back home, I decided to head on over to Nina's place and find out what this seed of snow flower really is... That is, if she knows anything about it. I took the seed out of my pocket and looked at it. It glittered beautifully in the sunlight. I then put it back in my pocket, strapped the grocery bags on Zara and rode on over to Liz's shop, where Nina, as usual, is watering the flowers out front.
"Tony! How are you? Nice horse," Nina smiled.
"Thank you. Nina, there's something I want to ask you."
"Really? About what?" She asked as she purred the watering can's water on a pink flower in a flowerpot.
"How much do you know about flower seeds?"
"A lot. I know almost every flower seed that exists," I dug into my pocket after she said that.
"Well, can you tell me everything you know about this particular flower seed?" I showed Nina the seed.
She looked at it with wide eyes. "I... I never seen anything like it. What's it called?"
"The peddler in the Flower Festival told me that it is called the snow flower seed or something like that," I replied.
Nina gasped, which made my heart jump. "No way! Seriously?! This is THE seed of the legendary snow flower!?" Nina exclaimed in shock and disbelief.
"Hey, I'm just as clueless as you." I shrugged.
"Tony, the snow flower is incredibly rare! I had a feeling that there is a flower that thrives in winter, but now, your discovery proves it!" Nina exclaimed excitedly.
"Well, we won't be sure until i plant it. The peddler said to bring the seed up to the mountain top and plant it there in the winter," I said.
"In the winter, huh? That makes sense. The flower can't survive in spring and summer like common flowers. Well, good luck planting the flower next winter, Tony! Now do you believe that there are certain kinds of flowers that live in winter?" Nina asked me as I climbed on Zara.
"Nina, I've seen some things that made me open my mind to a lot of things. I may not be a nature enthusiast like you, but I've learned to believe in the unbelievable." I then rode off. I came back home, and for the rest of the day, me and Ellen watched horror movies on television with Koro.
Monday, 28th of Spring, 1977
It is raining outside. Ellen and I gathered near the window to watch the heavy downpour of rain fall from the gray skies after we showered and brushed our teeth. Ellen had her arms wrapped on me and I had my right hand resting on and rubbing her swollen belly. I felt the baby kick a few times.
"Honey..." I said.
"What is it, darling?" Ellen turned her head to the right look at me.
"I think I've come up with a perfect name for the baby if its a boy," I said.
"Really? What is it?" Ellen asked me.
I looked at her coyly. "I'm not telling you yet," I said with a smile.
"Oh, come on, sweetheart! Tell me!" Ellen whined like an excited child.
"When the baby's born, I'll tell you. Until them, I'm keeping it a secret," I said.
"Awww..." Ellen felt disappointed.
She felt the baby's kicking intensify a little. "Oh my goodness! The baby seems upset that you're not telling me the secret," she remarked.
I chuckled. I crouched down on my knees to Ellen's swollen belly.
"Hey, listen little guy... or girl, I want the name to be a surprise! so just be patient, okay? Trust me, you'll like it." I said to the baby.
Then I saw a little lump appear near Ellen's distended belly button for a split second then the lump settled back down. The baby kicked in response to my remark. Ellen smiled.
"I guess that's his or her way of saying: "No way, Daddy! I want to know my name now!'"
"Maybe later. i better get outside and feed my livestock and fix the fences," I said as I stood up and left.
I fed, brushed, talked to and milked Aloe, then fed the chickens and stored their eggs, then I went outside with Zara to pick all 36 ripe potatoes. I accidentally dropped one of them, but its not a major loss. After that I got to work on fixing the broken fences. all that work nearly took a whole day to finish, and I was outside the whole time! i rested in my tool shed a few times to take a break. After I was done, Ellen gave me two rewards: A pumpkin pie, and when we were in bed before falling asleep, more than a dozen kisses to my face.
Wednesday, 30th of Spring, 1977
I opened my eyes to see Ellen looking at me coyly.
"Rise and shine, darling," she said. I stood up and rubbed my eyes.
"Good morning, Ellen," I said.
Me and Ellen were both sitting in the bed. I looked at Ellen, then at her stomach which is resting on her thighs, which have gained some fat over the past few weeks.
"Did our baby give you any trouble lately?" I asked her.
"Nope, the baby has been well behaved lately, although it does kick every once and a while," Ellen said then suddenly flinched because the baby started kicking and Ellen wasn't expecting it. "... Like just now. So what do you plan on doing, today, darling?"
"Well, after feeding Koro, Zara, Aloe and the chickens, I'm going to go see your uncle and buy another cow," I said.
"Another cow? Okay! Sounds good to me. Go for it!" Ellen urged me.
Hours later, I was on my way to Liz's shop. As soon as entered, I saw Liz behind the service desk waiting for a customer to arrive.
"Hi, Tony! Let me guess... Grass seeds, right?"
She's a good guesser!
"Bingo!" I grinned, placing 5 grass seeds next to the cash register.
"Wow, you're on a roll there!" Liz said as she calculated the price on the register.
Minutes later I arrived at Ellen's uncle's place.
"Tony! Long time no see! How's Ellen?" He asked me as soon as I came in.
"She's fine. The baby is very active and all that..." I replied.
"I see, I see. She's tough. I know my niece. So, what brings you here?"
"I'm here to buy a cow," I replied.
"Another cow, huh? I suppose this year in the ranch is a good year for you!" Ellen's uncle smiled.
"Well, Mrs. Fortune told me good fortune will come to me at the ranch. I believe it!" I smiled back.
"You head on back to the ranch. I'll be over there in a jiffy," Ellen's uncle went out back.
I left the shop, climbed on Zara and rode out of town. Minutes after I came to the ranch, Ellen's uncle arrived with the little female calf. I decided to name her Star. After that, Ellen's uncle left and I put Star in the cow house with Aloe.
"Hey, Aloe! This is your new roommate, Star. Star, you be good with Aloe, all right?" I said as I gently brushed Star's body.
"Moooo!" She mooed.
Then I gave Star her share of fodder and I came back in the house to relax with Ellen all noon and evening, watching television shows and all that fun stuff.
Thursday, 1st Of Summer
When me and Ellen were eating breakfast, we heard someone knocking on the door.
"My land! Who could that be in this hour?" Ellen asked me.
"Let's find out," I stood up out the chair and approached the front door.
"Who's there?" I called.
"Mayor Stan," Stan replied.
"Stan? What an unexpected surprise." I said as I unlocked the door and put my hand on the doorknob and pulled the door open, revealing Stan in his blue suit and smooth oiled light brown hair and blue suit with a white dress shirt underneath and a necktie with blue and black checker patterns on it.
"Hello, Mr. Tony. I've received a notice from your father this morning," Stan told me.
My eyes widened.
"My father?" I repeated.
"In the notice he told me to tell you that he will visit you by the end of summer next year," Stan announced.
"Tony? What's going on?" Ellen came to my side.
"Mayor Stan received a letter from my father. He said that both he and my mom will visit us next year on the last day of summer," I told Ellen.
Stan nodded. "He's so worried about how you live here, so do all you can to make him feel at ease, then," Stan instructed me.
"I'll do my best. Thank you, Stan. Have a good day," I waved bye as he left the house.
"Have a good day, Tony and Ellen. I wish the best for both you and the baby," Stan said before I shut the door.
"So your parents are coming to visit us next summer... I can't wait to meet them," Ellen smiled excitedly.
"Yeah... But first, we got a long harvest to go through," I said.
Then I bolted out the door. I fed my livestock and prepared their products for shipping, then I went to Neighbor Town and bought nine tomato seed bags and eight corn seed bags. I planted the tomato seeds southwest from my tool shed, first using my super gardening hoe to till the soil with its shockwave blast, making four vertical rows of tilled soil, then I planted them, then I planted the corn seeds where I used to grow turnips and potatoes last season.
But I didn't have enough corn seeds to fill the last patches of tilled soil, so I planted the last few seeds of tomatoes among all corn seeds. Not very organized, I admit, but I had no other ideas, besides, I'm tired, especially after sprinkling water on them. A few minutes later, Derek came by to pick up my shipment.
"Let's see... one bottle of milk and six eggs. That's it?" Derek asked me.
"Yep." I nodded.
"You're becoming a pretty good rancher, Tony. I remember last year you didn't have much to ship. Look at you now! You'll earn $500 for the shipment tomorrow. See ya." Derek left.
I entered my house and earned all my rewards from Ellen for being such a hard worker. Not only Ellen is cute and kind, but she knows how to praise a hardworking rancher.
Monday, 5th of Summer, 1977
Ellen and I were watching the weather news while eating breakfast. It'll be sunny tomorrow still.
"Hey, Tony, I just thought about something," Ellen said.
"What is it?" I asked after licking syrup off my lips.
"Do you think that Zara is a descendant of a Thoroughbred. Don't you think so?" She asked me.
I don't know much about Thoroughbreds, but I heard those kinds of horses are best used in horse racing. I remember back when I was seven years old, my Dad used to be a horse racer in Mineral Town. I don't remember the name of his horse, but I do remember that it was a stallion mustang.
"A Thoroughbred? I never thought about that. What makes you think so?" I asked Ellen before eating my boiled egg.
"Because she has a pretty fine coat of hair," Ellen replied.
"I'll have to check and see when our chores are done," I replied.
After eating breakfast, I went outside. Ellen stayed behind to wash our plates, but eventually she'll have to come outside too and wash our clothes and hang them on the clothesline. I went to the tool shed and grabbed the milker and brush and done my usual routine with Aloe and Star. Then I fed the chickens and prepared the six eggs for shipment, then I sprinkled all the sprouting tomatoes and corn. Ellen was in the stables talking to Zara and petting her soft, smooth mane.
When my chores were done, I joined up with Ellen in the stable.
"I want to ride Zara," Ellen said.
Zara simply grunted.
"Well, if you feel ready... Try it," I suggested.
I opened the door and let Zara out. Ellen looked hard at Zara's saddle. She thought long and hard before making her decision.
"... I changed my mind," she finally said.
"What?" I couldn't believe she refused at the last minute.
"What if I fall off Zara? I don't want to hurt the baby. I'll wait until the baby is born, okay honey?" Ellen replied.
I shrugged. "Suit yourself."
I led Zara back in her cubicle and shut the door. Zara stuck her head out over the little door and whined at Ellen.
"I'm sorry, Zara. I promise I'll ride you some other time." Ellen said as she rubbed Zara's long face.
For the next few days, all me and Ellen did were our usual work routines ever single day- taking care of Aloe and Star, the chickens, Koro and Zara, and watering the tomato and corn plants... We almost felt alone... But we shouldn't be. Ellen and I both love animals, and the animals in our ranch are basically our friends. Whenever we had free time, we visited them, talked to them, gave them baths, all that stuff. so really, neither me or Ellen were alone. We also had each other, and our baby. Speaking of the baby, as the days passed, Ellen tells me that the baby gradually gets more and more heavier every day, she can feel the baby pushing down more and more on her stomach a little. When I looked at her belly, I can see that the bulge made by the baby's head is drooping down a little below bellybutton level. I recalled that several weeks ago, the bulge of Ellen's belly was a several inches above bellybutton level. I knew very little about the stages of pregnancy, but I had a feeling that I knew someone who might know.
I went to Neighbor Town on the 7th day of summer and talked to Mrs. Fortune everything she knows about pregnancy, and she said that in the third trimester of pregnancy, as the baby grows during the third and final trimester of pregnancy, its body is slowly slowly turned upside down so that it will leave the mother's womb head first instead of legs first. That's probably why Ellen feels some pressure pushing down on her stomach a little. Question is, when is the day Ellen will deliver the baby? We'll just have to wait until that time comes. On the 11th of Summer, Aloe is starting to produce more milk than usual, about a 2 gallons! Amazing, huh? Anyway, as me and Ellen do our daily routines of taking care of our animal friends and watering the tomatoes and corn so they can be ripe for harvest, we wait patiently for the birth of our baby.
Monday, 12th of Summer, 1977
Ellen and I woke up out of bed as soon as our alarm clock rang.
"Good morning, darling," Ellen smiled at me after I got out of bed.
"Good morning back to you, darling," I replied cheerily and gave Ellen a little smooch on the tip of her nose after I punched the clock to stop the ringing.
Ellen giggled for a second but then her face suddenly frowned, then quickly turned into a contorted, twisted face attacked by pressure and pain.
"Ugghh... Ugghhh..." Ellen started grunting as if she got suddenly constipated.
"Honey...?" I was confused and nervous.
"Tony, darling... It's time...! The baby is on its way out!" Ellen said, bending over from the birthing pains as she slowly made her way back to the bed. I helped her get on the bed and laid her down.
My heart was racing like crazy! Ellen is about to deliver the baby!
"Go... get a doctor, Tony! Uggghhh..." Ellen instructed me and continued straining and grunting, feeling her muscles violently contracting, slowly pushing the baby out her womb.
"A doctor?! But Neighbor Town doesn't have any... Wait! Hang on, Ellen, I know someone who can help! Hang on!"
I ran to the living room and called Derek by my phone to pick me up and drive me to Neighbor Town. It took him two minutes to arrive, and when he did, I bolted out of the house and ran as fast as I could towards the gates of my ranch out in the rain and jumped into his truck, and without hesitation, he drove off towards Neighbor Town.
As soon as we got there, I informed Mrs. Fortune, priest Daniel and Ellen's mom of the situation. Derek drove us all back to my ranch as quickly as we could and entered the ranch. Ellen's mom and immediately went to the bedroom to help Ellen out. I was in the living room with Daniel, waiting for Mrs. Fortune to assist Ellen in delivering the baby. I could hear Ellen grunting and yelling in pain from the living room. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to realize how painful it is to push a baby out of your body. I nervously ate a bread roll, fearing for my wife's life.
"Aren't you excited, Tony? You're about to have a baby soon," Priest Daniel smiled at me modestly.
"Happy? If you were me, you'd be both happy and terrified." I said.
I walked into the bedroom to check on Ellen. She was in the bed, the bed sheets covering her lower body while Mrs. Fortune had her hands inside the sheet, waiting to catch the baby.
"Come on, Ellen, you can do it! Push! Push!" Mrs. Fortune loudly urged Ellen.
I saw beads of sweat appear all over Ellen's face as she bared her teeth and strained. Seeing my wife in pain trying to release the baby made me feel all nervous. I slowly approached Mrs. Fortune and said meekly: "Is there anything I can do to help?"
Mrs. Fortune took a quick look at me and quickly fanned her left arm at me trying to shoo me away like I'm some kind of fly.
"Get out of my way! Get out!" She shouted at me.
I was shocked, and that made me feel more confused and scared, I started pacing around the room.
"Ugggghh... OUUUCH!" Ellen strained with all her might and cried out in pain, beads of sweat falling from her face.
"Don't be walking about, Tony," Ellen's mom told me.
She's right. I'm only making the atmosphere in the room more tense. Calming my fears, I walked up to Ellen.
"Ellen...? Sweetie? Are you okay...?" I asked her, my voice nearly breaking up with grief.
"I... I'm okay, honey. Don't worry. Please go to work." Ellen said in a soft, weary voice.
"Are you sure?" I asked her, holding her left hand.
"I'll do alright. Trust me," Ellen assured me with a weak smile.
"Okay, Ellen, bear with me. One, two, three! Push!" Mrs. Fortune coached Ellen.
"Yaaaarrgh!" Ellen shouted in pain then continued pushing, baring her teeth.
I took one last look at Ellen before leaving the room and the house. As I was feeding Koro, Zara, Aloe, Star and my chickens I told them all that Ellen is delivering a baby right now. They were pretty excited about it. Koro barked happily, Zara neighed happily, Aloe and Star mooed happily, and the chickens clucked happily. I think its their way of congratulating me. Then after sprinkling the tomato plants and corn stalks I returned back to the house ASAP. As soon as I opened the door and came in I heard an amazing sound that echoed in my ears.
"Waah! Waaah!" I heard a baby crying!
"Ohhhh, my..." Tears welled up in my eyes.
My lips trembled. I couldn't believe it... I'm a dad now...
"Congratulations, Tony!" Daniel shook my hand.
"Thank you..." I said, my voice all broken with grief... I wouldn't call it grief because I'm happy, too. I walked to the bedroom.
"Waaah! Waaah!" The baby continued.
I entered the room. I saw Ellen's mom and Mrs. Fortune surrounding the bed like guards.
"Tony... come here," Ellen's mom called out to me.
I approached slowly.
"This reminds me of the time Ellen was born. She cried as loudly as my little grandson is doing right now," Ellen's mom remarked.
I moved past Ellen's mom.
"Ho-ho-ho... Kudos to you, Tony. It's a healthy baby boy," Mrs. Fortune said.
I gasped softly...
"A...A..." I got all choked up.
I approached Ellen laying in the bed with the baby.
"Honey...?"
"Darling... This is it... This is our baby..." Ellen smiled weakly.
I looked over at the baby. He is still crying, his little head slightly red from the blood rushing around his head. I didn't know what to say or do. He looked is so cute, laying there next to his mom.
"I... I... Wow... He's... so cute..." I slowly shook my head in surprise, my eyes watering.
I wiped my tears with the red rag tied around my neck.
"Darling, please name him," Ellen told me.
This is it. This is the moment when I name my child. "Okay. His name will be... His name will be... It will be..." I couldn't make myself say it, the word was caught in my throat.
"Calm down," Mrs. Fortune patted my back.
I calmed my nerves, took a slow, deep breath and said:
"... His name will be Pete, named after my late grandpa Peter," I declared.
Ellen smiled.
"Thank you, honey. I'm so happy," she said weakly.
"We both should be happy," I leaned forward and kissed Ellen on her forehead.
She smiled at me. Ellen's mom clapped, then Mrs. Fortune. As soon as Daniel, Ellen's mom, and Mrs. Fortune left, I went to the peak of the mountain, stood on the cliff's edge and shouted at the top of my lungs:
"I'M A DAAAAAAAAD!"
My voice echoed through the skies and I smiled proudly as I heard the echoes of my voice fade away.
On Monday, 12th of Summer in the year 1977, our baby boy, Pete, was born.