Better Looking, 2005

Havar, fall, 2005
mini-update

They decided to let Laci walk to school by herself this year.

Well, not all the way by herself. She walked with the other children in the townhouse complex, so in total it was six children walking to school. Unbeknowst to the group of school children there was usually an adult walking a safe distance behind them, just to keep an eye on things.

Laci was trying to prove her independence, which Bradford had a hard time trying to deal with. She was still his little girl, bringing home friends from school,

and playing with her little sister

even though Lilly would try to eat the heads off the dolls.

Suzanna had to remind him that she wasn't a teenager and not to worry about it so much. He tried, he focused on Alan, lavishing attention on the elderly dog

and enjoyed the rare moment of quiet before Suzanna came home for dinner.

"How long is a honeymoon?" Laci asked as the family sat down to dinner.

"Not too long. It will be fun. You get to stay with your cousin, Veronika, and walk to school from your aunt and uncle's house."

"Yea...but I'll miss you guys."

"We'll be back soon. You remember camp?"

Laci nodded. "It was fun! I caught a fish, but I threw it back so it wouldn't die. Then it stayed near the surface of the lake swimming on its side and waving at me."

Bradford and Suzanna exchanged a glance.

"Well, we won't be gone as long as you were at camp."

"I guess that's ok then....Will you bring me a present?"

"We'll try."

*****

Suzanna breathed in the fresh mountain air and calmly dropped a seed into the fresh soil. She didn't have time to nourish a garden at home, but here she was free to work in the small greenhouse, planting fresh herbs and enjoying the heat from the sun warming the room.

She tried not to think about work, but she couldn't help it. She felt guilty leaving her patients. Thankfully, Ana Rayne was at home with her family, but Suzanna knew that it was a long road ahead of the little girl who still depended on machines. Her other patients...well, they needed a miracle and the medical centre was working on that. They had hired a research assistant who's work with sea lice could unlock a possible vaccine for the Plumbbob Virus.

"Stop thinking about work," she scolded herself. "Relax."

Bradford took relaxing to a whole new level, trying his hand at ax throwing.

"You should try it." he urged.

Suzanna shook her head. "My breasts are still sore."

He nodded, familar with the routine. It would take about two simlonic months until Suzanna got her "pre-pregnancy" body back as she called. Basically no more pregnany symptoms. However, even he noticed that this time the symptoms were lingering longer than usual.

"Want to play pool?"

"Sure, let me beat you really quickly before dinner."

"You mean, I'll beat you before dinner."

"Watch how an expert does this." Suzanna bragged as she prepared for her shot.

"It's kind of hard to watch myself," Bradford threw back at her.

"Now why would you do that. You wouldn't want to watch a loser." she said, admiring her husband's assets as he bent over the table to set up his shot.

"Well, I guess I should close my eyes, then."

"Beating you will be easier then putting on Lora's booties."

"Ha! Have you tried putting those things on when she's cranky? Not fun."

After successfully beating his wife in a game of pool, the couple moved to the game table.

"So, beating me is easier than putting on Lora's booties?" Bradford gloated.

"Oh, hush." Suzanna retorted trying to concentrate on placing the stick just so.

"This is relaxing.I'm glad we got such a good deal on this vacation. Technically it's the off-season."

"Maybe that explains why the resort is so empty."

"Well, it means more service for us."

"I guess. I wonder how the girls are doing."

"I'm sure they're fine. I doubt Fiona will allow them to make cookies again."

"Ugh, do you know I'm still finding cookie dough in the kitchen."

Ding Bing Dong

"Sounds like the dinner bell. Are you ready?"

The couple put the game away and walked upstairs to the small dining room.

"I wonder what's for dinner."

"It smells like beef."

"You can smell that?"

Suzanna nodded as the plates were brought out. Thick juicy hamburgers with thick cut fries were placed in front of them.

"Uh, oh!" Suzanna gagged and ran from the room.

****

"You should take the test."

"I don't want to, I'm sure it's nothing."

"Well, if it's negative then we can look to see if you have the virus. If it's positive, then...well, we'll know what to do then as well."

"Fine, I'll take it...after lunch. I'm sure it's nothing, I hope it's nothing. I hope it's not the virus. Gosh, didn't I take all sorts of precautions. Oh no! What about the girls? They could be infected."

Bradford sighed and pulled her into his arms. "The girls are fine. You do an excellent job of making sure that you properly disinfect during your exams."

"Besides, you might be right. The hamburgers may not have been grilled all the way." he lied, knowing that she didn't take a bite of the burger before vomiting.

"We have some free time before lunch," Suzanna whispered.

Bradford grinned. "What did you have in mind?"

***

"I hate this part." Suzanna whispered as Bradford wrapped his arms around her. "It always seems like it's the longest two minutes of my life."

Bradford smiled, "Try not to think about it. Just relax, dance a little bit." he said pinching her butt.

"How can you be so nonchalant about it? It's a big deal."

"My darling, you worry enough for the both of us."

DING! BING!

"That's the alarm," Suzanna whispered slipping out of his arms and into the bathroom to check the results.

Bradford took a seat on the sofa. He couldn't say that he was worried. They could afford another child...or two. He was concerned about her health. She just gave birth, could her body handle another pregnancy so soon?

"Well?" he asked as she sat down next to him.

"Positive," she whispered, her voice quivering with unshed tears. "How did this happen?"

"Well, when a man loves a woman-"

"Bradford, you know what I mean!" she said smacking his arm lightly.

"I guess a few of my guys managed to slip by."

"Ugh, you know what. I know how this happened. Fiona junxed us. She said that we would have another one and she jinxed us. Well, I'm going to jinx her back. I bet she'll have another set of twins, that will serve her right."

"Suzanna, it's not nice to jinx your sister-in-law." Bradford teased, "didn't they teach you that in school?"

"We're having a baby."

"Yea, we are." he said looking into her eyes and seeing the fear. "We'll be fine. We have stable jobs and a stable relationship. It will be fine."

"I know,"

"Then what are you worried about?"

"I don't know, it's just...it's so soon. Lora isn't even six simlonic months yet and here I am pregnant again."

"We're pregnant again." he corrected her.

"Since when do you carry the baby?"

"You know that in our relationship you're never pregnant. We're always pregnant. It takes two and I'm as much a part of this as you are. Unfortunately I can't take the pain away for you, but as soon as I figure out a way to do that I will."

"I know," Suzanna laughed. "If you had told me two years ago that in 2005 I would be married and about to have four children I wouldn't have believed you."

"Well, maybe it's four and five."

Suzanna sucked in her teeth. "It better not."

"You do know older women are more prone to having twins."

"Yea, well isn't fertility also supposed to decrease with age?"

"Perhaps we're the exception."

"Yea, some exception. We're like those fertile twenty somethings walking around."

"Yea, but we're better looking."

----

It's offical, my simmies run their own lives. Why do I bother even turning on the game. It's like they breed while I sleep.

Thanks for the hint, Suzanna.

This couple shouldn't be popping out kids like this. Their ideal family size is three, which they have. They are primary fortune sims, Suzanna is secondary knowledge and Bradford is secondary family, plus they're both over the age of 40. Their percentage of trying for a baby is something like 16% and what do they do? They get knocked up!

But they're so cute, so I can't be too mad.