104: More Cautious Than Before

Armand

     There she is…with that man again.

     I sit with a pair of binoculars on the deck of the house I’m renting. It overlooks a couple of houses that Marie frequents, and I can't believe my luck in that coincidence. I'd first seen her working, helping with the construction of a bar an informer had told me she worked at.

    I'd gotten delayed in Champs les Sims thanks to drug charges against my parents. The government wouldn't let me leave, claiming that my fortune was directly related to their past dealings. I don't know if the starting money I had came from that or clean money they gave me, but at any rate, my fortune is clearly my own. I distanced myself from my parents before any of that happened. Though still in the same town, I rarely saw them. It took a few weeks to prove my innocence. I had to take care of that and make sure my sister was okay. She's staying with friends, what she prefers. I'll take her under my wing when I return with Marie.

     At least, that was my plan before seeing her with that huge lummox only minutes after first spotting her. That they're in love is obvious. Once I saw her with him, I changed my original plan.

     I don't want to announce my presence. That would be stupid and too easily place me in a position where I could be attacked, verbally and physically.

     So I sit, biding my time and debating how to go forward. I need to get Marie's attention without alerting her new friends.

     But first, I need to get rid of the huge lummox.

     Another car pulls into the driveway, and the sight of the man that gets out of it nearly causes me to drop my binoculars. John Parren! I move my binoculars aside and see the rest of the Parrens get out of the vehicle.
     Marie's father is here!

     Now, I will have to be even more cautious than before.

Jesse

     I watch Mr. Parren get out of their rental car with a stern expression on his face. I have as of yet to see the man smile. Oh, sure, he hugged Marie tightly like any loving father would do, but he didn't look happy as he did it. I'd say more concerned than anything.
     The man scares the living shit outta me. When Marie had gasped in surprise during the trial, I could hardly focus on anything but my own shock. I missed half of what my girlfriend said on the stand, unintentionally of course, because of my own racing heartbeat in my ears. I don't really know the guy, but little comments Marie has made make me believe he did just a little more than regular police work. Marie said he saved her mom from a crazy, powerful man that had kidnapped her. He killed the guy.
     He looks at me, still not smiling. I can't tell what he's thinking. Then, he pauses suddenly like something unexpected occurred to him. Holding the door open for his wife, he looks around at the surrounding hills with a thoughtful scowl on his face.
     Marie's mom gets out of the car with a simple smile on her pretty face framed by jet-black hair. Next, I see a teenage boy get out of the backseat before offering help to a teenage girl. The boy has the same jet-black hair, but his eyes look more like Mr. Parren's. Talking in rapid French, a redheaded boy bounds full of energy out of the other side of the backseat.
     "Is everything okay, John?" Marie's mom asks her dad, noticing his strange behavior.

     FINALLY, the man smiles. "Yes," he tells her.
     Satisfied that her husband is okay, the woman dashes up the stairs to throw her arms around Marie.

     "Marie! Oh, Marie, my brave Marie! It hasn't been the same since you left! Are you okay? Are you getting enough to eat? Do you need more money? Clothes? What an ordeal you had to go through this morning! Let me look at you!" She steps back and holds Marie's arms, smiling. I notice she has incredible violet eyes, set off even more by her dark hair.
     Marie acts surprised at her mom's behavior, like she isn't used to getting this. "I..I'm fine, Mom."
     Mrs. Parren's eyes switch to me, and I decide to jump right into an introduction. "Hi, Mrs. Parren. My name's Jesse." I hold out my hand, and she puts her little one in mine.
     As I gently shake it, she looks abashed at me, albeit in a nice way. "Oh, don't call me that. Elena is fine. Mrs. Parren makes me sound old."
     Ah, she's one of those belle-of-the-ball types, vain and thinks every man she meets is dying of love for her. Well, I guess she got used to it with those eyes.

     "Je m'appelle Benjamin!" the little redheaded tyke says as he bounces over to me. Before I can respond, he starts spouting off question after question. I catch the word 'pool' in his rapid speech before Mr. Parren reminds him to speak in English. Benjamin's eyes tilt down in an angry look back to his step-father, his face remaining forward.
     I almost replied to him in French, but after listening to Mr. Parren get onto him for not speaking English, I decide not to. "Hi, Ben. Marie has told me a lot about you." Ben is the literal redheaded step-child of the family, the son of Marie's mom's second marriage, the son of the man that got shot by the man that Mr. Parren eventually killed.

    Marie stutters out the words like she's a bit embarrassed as she tells me, "He wants to know if you're going to grill ... hotdogs, and he wants to swim in the pool."
     "Sure, buddy, if it's okay with your parents," I reply.
     He spins around to his mom and asks her, in French, if he can swim in the pool right now.
     Elena sighs like she's tired of his energy, and I imagine she is after being cooped up in a plane for a long time. "Yes. Go ahead," she relents.
     Ben cheers and dashes down the porch stairs. As he runs around the house, he sheds most of his clothing, leaving it on the lawn. The kid must plan ahead because he wears swim trunks under his shorts. After a few moments, we hear a splash.

     Next, Marie's other younger brother Xavier comes up and introduces himself and his girlfriend Lee. He acts about as nervous meeting me as I did meeting his father. Lee hardly says a word, and I notice dark circles under her eyes.
     I invite everyone inside and happily discover that I do have hotdogs in the fridge. I'm going to cook for Marie's family, and I'm cooking -- hotdogs. Oh well. It's at the request of an eight-year-old.
     I let the Parrens relax at my house, knowing how they're all just happy to be done with their flight. I, however, cannot relax around Marie's dad. And this is the man I wanted to speak with about asking for his blessing!

     My phone chirps at me while I stand at the grill. Last night, I'd switched my service online to an old phone I still had. I remember why I stopped using this thing. The battery life on it is awful.

Do you need help?

     Erin. I look over at Bryce's house and see her standing on the porch outside his bedroom. She waves. Then, I see her typing up another text.

Bryce and I were wondering if you'd like some backup.

     I smile and start up a reply before a text from Bryce interrupts me.

You throw a party and don't invite me?

     I'm sure he means it in jest, especially taking into account Erin's earlier texts. Still, I can't help but sass back.

Then get your ass over here, but go get me some Buds first.

     I hear him laughing and assume he's standing at his bar. Then, I text Erin.

Yes, and bring some hotdogs if y'all have any. 

     Glancing up, I see her walk back into the house.

     Good. More people to throw all the attention off me. Besides, I'll bet Bryce wants to celebrate his mostly-victory over Simon. I breathe a sigh of relief.

     Not too much later, Erin walks around the side of my house wearing a bikini. Holy. Shit! I have to look elsewhere as I say, "Hey." Fuck! I didn't even think Erin would be the type to OWN a bikini, much less wear one. I take a deep breath and turn over the hotdogs.

     "Here ya go. Bryce said you wanted him to go get beer, so that's where he is," she explains, laying the hotdog package on the counter next to the grill.

     "Yeah," I agree, completely focused on the hotdogs.

     "Hello!" Ben calls out from the swimming pool, obviously speaking to Erin. She goes over to talk to him, and I breathe another sigh of relief.

     The rest of Marie's family decides to come outside, and Marie introduces everyone to Erin. I watch her brother Xavier's expression as he stares slack-jawed at her face.

     "She's Cristina's cousin," Marie tells her brother.

     Oh. He looked at her like that because she must really look like Cristina, not because she wore that. I'd thought he looked at her like that because he thought she was so hot he didn't know what to do.
     Erin jumps into the pool to play with Ben. I'm jealous. It's fucking hot out here, and I'd love to cool off. But I have too much to do right now.

    Bryce finally shows up, and I guess he's going to roast alive since he didn't change. The heat doesn't appear to bother Mr. Parren, either.
     Another round of introductions gets made with Bryce before we all try not to choke on my hotdogs. I drink three of the beers my best friend brought.

     "I would like to speak with you alone, if you don't mind," I hear Marie's father say in his deep voice, and dread fills my veins.

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Ugh! Why why why why WHY did I do this to myself? Maybe it's just me that's bothered by little things that wouldn't match up in a more real-to-life tale, like Marie calling Elena 'mom,' for instance, which is so American. I apologize. That's the way it is in Queen of Denial, where I use the Champs les Sims baseworld as their homeworld. In that tale, I made like it existed in its own little spot in space with no affiliation to anywhere. So, Marie called Elena 'mom' and I gave my characters whatever style name I wanted and it didn't matter. I've blown that out of the water now, but I'm going to stay with what I've always done. Sorry if this bugs anyone else. I wanted to put in this bit to let y'all know that it's not just you.

On another note...
Elena! Oh, I've missed Elena! But I couldn't continue with my Queen of Denial story thanks to SWNT having a MUCH slower speed. Once the Parrens all get back to Champs les Sims, I'll be able to do another chapter there for the first time in... ?3? years. Plus, that bugger needs an overhaul.

Oh, and Elena is supposed to be pregnant here, but that save melted along with my hard drive last summer. Thank goodness I had a backup, where I've pulled all my QoD people from...from where I've pulled all my QoD people. Anyway, I'm making like she is preggers but not really showing, especially in that dress, which she likes because it makes her look thinner.

Still, this is nostalgic for me to bring back my first Sims 3 story's main character. She's wonderfully selfish, vain, a huge coward, and oblivious by personal choice. Yes, I definitely missed her.

And my brain has started concocting stuff for Ben...

81: Disturbing News

Marie

     Today is Christmas, and I wake up to my cellphone ringing. Xavier!

      I say his name excitedly when I answer.

     "Uh, Happy Christmas," he says awkwardly, and I laugh and say it back before we switch to French.

     "Did you have a good Christmas?" I ask.

     "It was okay. I'm more happy that Ben had a good Christmas. He's felt ignored even if he won't say it," he answers, talking about our little brother.
     Greg, my dead ex-step-father that spoke to me in my dream, was Ben's father, and he looks just like him. This bothers Dad because Greg was his mortal enemy, but he tries not to take it out on Ben. It bothers Mom because he's a reminder of how she loved Greg. That Ben has started showing signs of having a personality similar to Greg's hasn't helped matters.

     "Tell me what happened," I request, knowing from X-man's tone that there's more he's not telling me.

     "Well, I sort of had all of the attention for a while from Mom and Dad."

     "Continue."

     He laughs nervously, and I get suspicious. "It's not a problem anymore, but… I got Lee pregnant." He says the last bit in a rush.

     "WHAT?!" I yell into my phone as I sit straight up in bed. "How can that not be a problem?!"

     "Because she lost it last night," he answers me quickly.

     I can't decide how I should feel about that. On one hand, I feel sad for Lee, his girlfriend, to lose a baby. On another, I'm furious that Xavier got her pregnant in the first place. They're sixteen! On yet another hand, I'm somewhat relieved that she lost it, and that makes me angry at myself. I'm also angry at myself because I can't help but selfishly think that my little brother lost his virginity probably before I did.

     "The doctors," he continues, "say it wasn't an actual baby, that it was some kind of mutation like a mole or something like that." He pauses, "She's living here now after that fiasco with her mother. That woman kept me from seeing her for weeks, but Lee came home from the hospital with me this morning. She's been crying all day."

     "She's living there now?" I ask in disbelief. What an awful Christmas for her.

     "Yes, I don't know for how long. She acts like she doesn't want to go back to her mom because her mother was going to send her to a boarding school and move away completely after the baby was born. I would have never let that happen, but even more surprising was how she stood up to her mother. I hope that woman realizes that if she wants to fix her relationship with her daughter, she has to give her some space."

     My head swims as the information pours out of my brother like he's been holding it all in from everyone else. That, and he sounds so grown up.

     He continues, "I didn't get to see her for weeks, and now, I don't know how to handle the constant crying!" His voice sounds desperate.

     "You can hold her while she cries. She needs to cry, Xavier," I gently recommend.

     "But, I hold her, and she keeps crying! So, it doesn't help," he tells me, defeated. "I don't know what to do, so I gave her your room, making sure it was spotless first."

     People call me a 'neat freak.' If they knew Xavier, they'd know I'm nothing, nothing compared to him. I wouldn't be surprised if he went over the same places three or four times in case the previous times didn't get it clean enough down to the microscopic level. I learned to be so neat so to not have him constantly bothered with things being the tiniest bit dirty. The only time he'd allow himself to be a mess was if he was so absorbed in painting that he didn't notice.

     "It is still so fresh in her mind. You have to let her cry," I repeat.

     "Okay," he sighs. "So," he asks, changing the subject, "how have you been? Have you started giving SimFu lessons yet?"

     "I… no," I answer simply, hesitant about telling him about Jesse and how I almost taught him. "People have asked, but I don't think I'd be a good teacher."

     "That's crazy! Of course you would be! You should do it."

     "I'll think about it," I answer noncommittally. My phone beeps. "Dad is calling too," I tell Xavier after I check. "Go comfort your girlfriend."

     "Okay, and you have a good Christmas."

     "Thank you; I'll try," I say, smiling, and I press the button to switch over to Dad.

     Hearing his deep voice over the phone gives me a pang of homesickness. We exchange pleasantries for a while. I ask him about Mom's pregnancy; he asks me about my job.

     "It closed?" he asks in surprise when I tell him about the bar.

     "To be rebuilt. Bryce is still paying me anyway. Oh! Speaking of that. There's a little house I can rent from a friend, and I wondered if that would be okay with you. It should be cheaper."

     "Is it in a safe location?" he asks in his 'dad' voice.

     "Yes, of course. I even know everyone that would live around me," I answer in a convincing tone. Dad has been helping me pay for my little apartment, so he has a say in whether or not I should move.

      He tells me he and Mom hope to visit in a few weeks before Mom gets too far along in her pregnancy. They want to see if I've settled in nicely. He says he'll take a look at the place then.

     "Oh! Great," I say, trying to sound thrilled when instead, I'm worried about Dad's reaction to Jesse.

     "And, Marie… there's something I need to tell you. At first, I thought that I shouldn't, but now I think maybe you should know."

     "What?"

     "Dawson and Cristina are engaged," he says guardedly.

     "Oh," I say with mixed emotion. Did Erin know and not tell me on purpose? Then, I think of Jesse and brighten. "That's fine, Dad. Honest. Besides, it doesn't matter to me anymore," I say happily.

     "Oh?"

     "Yes."

     "Why is that?" he asks innocently, but I know from experience what he's doing.

     What do I tell him?!

     "Be…cause I have a boyfriend," I say and try to sound happy and not nervous.

     "You do," he states in a questioning way.

     "Yes."

     "What's he like?" he asks.

     I tell him how Jesse manages a store and has a big group of friends. I don't tell him Erin is Cristina's cousin, however. He hears about how I've become best friends with one of them in an offhand way.

     "Manager… How old is he?" Dad questions.

     "Twenty-six," I answer slowly. I already know what he's thinking.

     "Really? Well, then, I'm even more wanting to come and visit. I'd like to meet him," Dad says, and I picture him with his more-sinister smile.

     He says he'll call back when he knows for sure when he can come. The only thing preventing them from travelling is that Ben, Xavier, and (I guess now she's part of it) Lee are in school.

     We hang up, and my face drops into my hands.

     My phone rings again. Jesse.

     "Hello, Jesse," I say, still having thoughts of him and Dad meeting.

     "Merry Christmas. What's that tone for?" he asks, concerned.

     "Tone?"

     "Yeah. You sound worried."

      He got that from "Hello, Jesse"?

     "I don't mean to sound worried," I say truthfully but not telling him everything.

     "Well, okay. Anyway, come over. I want you to open your presents," he says happily.

     "More than one?!" I ask in a panic.

     "Yep! And I'm not telling you what they are, so get your cute butt over here." I can picture him grinning.

     "Okay," I smile a small smile, deciding not to tell him about Dad today. It can wait. Instead, I go and get on my new, used scooter to drive over to his place.

     Once there, Jesse pulls me off my scooter, barely giving me enough time to park it, and hugs me tightly like he hasn't seen me in months.

     "Finally. Just the one I want to spend Christmas with," he says before lovingly kissing me.

     This makes me think of something, and when he pulls back, I ask, "What about your family?"

     His face clouds over. "Nope," he answers and acts like that's all the answer I'm going to get.

     I bite my lip to keep from asking him if he thinks they miss him, whoever they are. The look on his face tells me that they're probably still alive somewhere and he's angry with them. Every time I've tried to get him to talk about them, he cleverly changes the subject and distracts me.

     I take my turn changing the subject somewhat by saying, "And we have Pamela's this afternoon." My boss's sister. That'll be awkward at best, but Jesse's more than once mentioned how he considers them his family.

     His expression brightens, and he says, "Yep, but that's not 'til later." He pulls me towards his house, saying he wants me to open my presents. I'd already put his on his little table (he didn't want a tree), and I'm surprised that he's more excited about me opening my presents than wondering what his is. I got him a watch.

     When I walk inside, I see three presents on the dining room table.

     "Jesse…" Now, I feel bad. He got me more.

     "Don't worry about it. The biggest one was a last minute thing. Open that one first."

     The present sits in my lap as I sit in one of the chairs. In it, I find a couple of crop tops and short shorts. When I look up at him and see his grin, I can't help but laugh.

     He keeps grinning as he shrugs and says, "Yeah, well, I thought I'd add more of what I like to your wardrobe." Then he encourages me to open the next one.

     "Not until you open yours," I demand, and he does. It's a diver's watch that he'd once looked at in a catalogue and said it was the best.

     He smiles, but then he mildly chastises me as he says, "This costs way too much for what you make."

     I quickly turn my face to the side in a miffed way and stay quiet.

     "Thank you," he says in a deep voice, gently grasps my chin, and kisses me sweetly.

     My insides melt, and my hands reach up into his hair to hold him to me so he'll keep kissing me. To keep from hurting his neck, he gets down on his knees in front of me, and his hands hold my head in place.

     He groans and says, "Open the other two, Marie, before you make me change my plans."

     I smile and do, but it's a little more difficult because he doesn't move. His thumbs play with the insides of my thighs while I open the next present: lingerie. I blush and immediately put the lid back on the box to his chuckling.

     "Now the last one," he requests quietly, and I pick up the small, narrow box.

     He got me a diamond tennis bracelet.

     "You," I say breathlessly, "you said I spent too much, Jesse." I put the box back on the table and my face in my hands.

     "No, I didn't spend too much," I hear spoken softly from just behind my hands.

     I start shaking, and the reminder that Dawson is engaged runs unbidden through my thoughts.

     Jesse can't afford that! How does he even afford his house with his probable salary? If he had that saved, he shouldn't have spent it on me.

     "Do you not like it?" he asks, a little worried.

     "I don't need it. It's too much."

     He gets quiet, and when I pull my hands away, I notice they're moist. True to form, he reaches up and wipes my cheeks.

     "I don't know why I'm crying," I quickly say, my heart aching.

     "Because I pushed again. It's okay, Marie. We can put it aside for later if it's too much right now. I just wanted to get you something really nice."

     "No, no, it's fine. I like it. It's just…"

     I thought I was okay with this. I don't need to feel sad. I have Jesse. I love Jesse!

     "It's what?" he gently prods.

      No, I can't tell him this. He'll think that I'm upset the bracelet isn't an engagement ring. I don't need to be engaged to Jesse. I still don't know enough about him, his parents, for example.

     He's waiting for me to say something.

     I choose a lesser worry to mention. "You shouldn't have spent that much on me, someone you haven't known long."

     "I wanted to. I wanted… Well, I wanted… to do more," he says slowly and carefully, "but I didn't."

     Strangely, relief floods through me, and I bury my face into his shoulder and neck, finding comfort I need. After a moment, I finally say, "It's beautiful, Jesse. Thank you."

     "Well then, you're welcome, little lady," he says in an exaggerated, cowboy-type accent, making me smile even though he can't see. Then, his posture changes subtly before he turns his head and says into my ear, "And I'd like to see it on you… Just that and nothing else."

     My eyes widen, and I lift my head up to see his sultry expression before he kisses me. Without another word, he takes me upstairs, and we make love.

     And I don't care that Dawson's engaged.

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Just to answer the question about the hint to which I alluded earlier: Marie kept me from having her tell Jesse about her dad (and other family) visiting. That's the surprise I meant. *Candace Flynn-like giggle* That's a fun chapter I wrote ages ago. I originally planned on having her tell him in this chapter, but she artfully skipped around it. She surprised me by making her "not" hurt by Dawson getting engaged a bigger deal.

Also, I've released the poses for this chapter here.