Brilliant Minds: The Wainwrights of Sunset Valley – Chapter 43

Brilliant Minds: The Wainwrights of Sunset Valley

Chapter 43

After their vacation, the Wainwrights returned to their research with renewed fervor.  They had made great progress toward a more stable and effective formulation of their anti-aging compound, LI-WX923.  It was still in a prototype stage, but they had a working version that made it through the initial testing phase.  Their original formula worked, but degraded too quickly to be of practical use.  They tweaked it, ran more experiments, and after a fair amount of trial and error, they now had a formulation that stayed at peak efficacy for a month in proper storage.  The Wainwrights had kept cow plants alive for the equivalent of three times their normal lifespan with LI-WX923 so far, much more efficiently than using rare and expensive life fruit alone.

When Susan presented the data to the board, they changed her title on paper to “Creature-Robot Cross-Breeder” to honor the achievement.  On their way out for the day, Boyd congratulated her, but lamented not going to the meeting with her.  He’d stayed behind in the lab to finish some ongoing tests, and then tossed a few extra swordfish to the functionally immortal cow plants instead.  “I could’ve had that swanky level 9 title conferred on me, too.”

“Oh, you got it.”  Susan gave his shoulder a squeeze.  “I just happened to be there and got all the praise in person today.  But I’m sure they’ll stop by and make it all official for you before you leave tomorrow.”

Boyd gave her a rueful smile.  “I know.  I’m just a little jealous.  Being honored by our colleagues as a top scientist is my lifelong dream.  I’m thrilled for you, but give me my five minutes to pout that I didn’t get it today, too.”

“Fair enough.”

After work, Boyd and Susan changed, put Orion in his playpen, and went out to check on their plants in the greenhouse.  Their collection of rare and exotic plants was not only expanding, but thriving.  Their first money tree seedling had grown quite large and would bloom before long, while a second, smaller one, grew beside it.  Their crystal plant from Oasis Landing thrived, and their life fruit, death flower, and flame fruit plants were all going strong, too.  The one they were most excited about at the moment, though, was the so-called forbidden fruit, grown from the engineered seed with sim DNA.

“I think it’s finally ripe.”  Susan bent down over it.  “I’ve never seen a live one of these before.  Just the harvested ones at University.”

“If the fruit gives us enough seed, maybe we can plant several for research at the lab.”

“I’m half-surprised you’re not planning to eat it and try the plant sim lifestyle.”  That was a known side effect from eating the forbidden fruit.  The Wainwrights had read all of the existing research on forbidden fruit and the plantsim metamorphosis.  It fascinated them from a scientific perspective.

“I’m not that adventurous for science.”

“Says the man who went through a time portal and let his descendant talk him into a life-extending serum tattoo, so he could poke around a radioactive wasteland in the future,” Susan teased.

“You went, too.  You’d have gone with me the first time, if he hadn’t insisted one of us stay.  But to your original point, there’s a big difference between some age fudging and exploration, and experimenting with something that could permanently alter my state of being.  There’s a reason you didn’t see me sipping any fairy or werewolf or vampire potions when I dabbled at alchemy.”  He watched Susan carefully brush dirt off of the top of their fruit.  “Is it ready for harvest?”

“I think so.  Shall I do the honors?”

“By all means.”

Susan tugged gently on the stem.  “It’s large.  Heavy.  I think it might be bigger than we thought.”

“Need a trowel?”

“No.”  She dug in her fingers.  “I’ve got it.  It’s coming loose.  It’s got a second bulb and—oh!”

Boyd saw it a second after Susan did.  The first “bulb” was not a bulb at all.  It was a head, with a face.  He stared at the green bundle in her hands in shock.  “Holy plumbob!”

“A plantsim!”  Susan was as stunned as her husband.  “I didn’t think our fruit could turn into one of these!  I thought a plantsim had to fertilize a forbidden fruit for it to grow a baby!”

“It must’ve been the DNA I engineered into the seed,” Boyd realized.  “I thought the splicing was just what allowed the genetic overwriting process to work.”

“That’s what I thought, too.  That’s what the research said.”

“Guess we need to publish an update.”

Susan used the hose to carefully clean the humanoid plant baby.  It squirmed and came to life, then opened its eyes and stretched its limbs, letting out a little cry.  “Oh, my Watcher, Boyd.  It’s a baby plantsim.  A living baby.  A girl.”  She wrapped her in a towel and met Boyd’s eyes with a mixture of amazement and disbelief.  “We have another baby.”

“Another surprise baby.”  Boyd could also hardly believe it.

“We’re four for four.  Unbelievable.  We really are getting too old for this,” Susan said, although her tone was not upset or unkind.  The little plantsim cried, and Susan rocked her gently.

“Yes.”  Boyd came to her side and examined their new green bundle of joy.  His mind reeled with the implications, but despite his anxious nature, he did not freak out.  They’d managed to handle Orion, after all, and a plantsim was less complicated.  They were a known and accepted, albeit rare, phenomenon.  Caring for one would be a once in a lifetime opportunity to learn about them and expand their scientific knowledge.  “But we’re probably better suited than most to take care of her.  At least there’s a legal protocol for registering plantsim births, and it’s not like we don’t have the money or space for another child.  Even if we aren’t as young as we used to be.”  He looked from the baby to Susan.  “Did you notice she looks like you?  Plant-ified, anyway.”

Susan saw it once he pointed it out.  The baby’s nose, lips, the shape of her eyes, and the position of her cheekbones were all similar to hers.  “Did you use my DNA in that seed?”

“Yes.  The forbidden fruit splicing research showed better success with female DNA.  If I’d known this was a possibility, though, I’d have checked to see if you minded first.”  Boyd felt bad about that; he knew all too well what it felt like to have his DNA taken to create a child without being told.  While that had not been intentional on his part, unlike the aliens with him, and Susan had never minded donating samples to help their research, he still felt like he should apologize.  “I’m sorry.”

“It’s all right.  I told you to use it if you needed it, as long as it wasn’t for anything nefarious.”  She smiled at the baby.  “I can’t really call her that.  I suppose that makes her my actual daughter, genetically speaking.  Think how much we’ll learn about plantsims raising her.”

“What do you want to call her?”

“She’s a plant, so… flower name?  She was born in early spring.  That makes me think bulbs.  How about, hmm, Iris?”

Boyd touched the baby’s hand with his finger, and she curled her little green ones around it.  “Iris is a pretty name.  It suits her.”

“Iris it is, then.  Iris Wainwright.”  Susan held up baby Iris and smiled at her.  “Welcome to the family.  Guess we’d better introduce you to your big alien brother, and figure out how to explain you to your even bigger human brother, and then your grown sister and her family.”

They brought Iris inside, and Boyd lifted Orion out of the crib.  Susan carried the baby to him while Boyd leaned Orion in to see her.  Both Boyd and Susan felt a sense of déjà vu, remembering how they first introduced Patrick to Orion back when he’d been born.

“Hey, Orion.  There’s someone we want you to meet.”  Boyd gestured to the baby.  “This is your new baby sister, Iris.”

“She’s a plantsim.  That means she’s a little different.”  Susan felt like even the conversation was the same, except now they were introducing their alien child to a plant one, a situation even more fantastical.  She had the thought that if someone told her back before they had Patrick that one day she and Boyd would have the family they had now, she’d never have believed it.  “Iris is a special baby from the garden that’ll grow up like one of us.  She’ll walk and talk and play like you, but she’ll also be like a plant in some ways.  She’s green, kind of like you, but she’ll really like being out in the sun, and need lots of light.”

Orion stared at Iris intently.  “Outside baby?”

“That’s right,” said Boyd.  “She came from outside.”

Orion touched Iris, and she cooed back at him.  “Sister.  Baby.”

Susan nodded.  “Your baby sister.  Yes.  You’re her big brother now.  She’s going to need you and Patrick, and Blair and Chris to help look out for her, like they do for you.”  Orion grinned and giggled, while Boyd and Susan smiled at each other.  “Looks like he likes her.”

“That’s good.  The last thing we need is sibling rivalries on top of everything else.”

Boyd and Susan waited for Patrick to come home from scouting to tell him about his surprise plantsim sister.  They felt a bit bad about the timing, because it was a big day for Patrick.  His birthday was around the corner, and he was graduating out of the elementary scouting program.  He’d worked hard on his badges, and he had an award ceremony that night.  His after-school session that day had been his last day at it.  Patrick came home beaming with pride.

“Mom!  Dad!  Check it out!  I got all my badges now.  They even gave me special ones for the frogs and rocks I collected in France.  I’m going to have the biggest collection in the troop tonight!”

“That’s great!  Your teachers said you had a knack for the natural sciences.  Almost as much as you do for art.”

“Not that that’s a big surprise.  Our family is full of scientists and geniuses on both sides.  Great job, honey.  We’re very proud of you.”  Susan hugged him.

“Thanks.”  It was then that Patrick noticed Iris on the baby mat.  “Whoa, who’s the green baby?”  He looked over at Orion in the playpen, and realized the baby was a different shade of green than his alien brother.

Susan picked Iris up and brought her over.  “She was a surprise.  This is your new little sister, Iris.  She’s a plantsim.”

“We kind of… grew her… in the garden,” Boyd told him.

Patrick was confused.  He’d heard of plantsims before because he’d had a lesson in scouts about rare and mystical things in the plant world.  He’d been told that plantsims grew from rare seeds that only plantsims produced, planted, and harvested, though.  “You can grow plantsims in the garden without a plantsim doing it?”

“Not usually,” Susan explained, while Patrick took a closer look at Iris.  “See, we ran an experiment on a forbidden fruit seed, where we had to put some sim DNA in it, and we used mine.  We planted it.  We thought it was going to make the fruit that if you eat it, turns you into a plantsim.  We wanted to study it for work.  But it seems that how we did it, it made a whole plantsim instead.  So, since we grew her, and she has some of my genes—”

“You decided to keep her?”  Patrick was amazed by his baby plantsim sister.  She cooed and watched him until Susan placed her back on her baby mat.  Patrick noticed Buddy watching in the doorway, listening, but he did not say anything.

“She’s family, so, yes.”

“Ready to be a big brother again?  Show Orion how it’s done?”  Boyd asked with a smile.

“Sure.  It’s not that hard.”  Patrick gave his parents a curious look.  “Hey, where’s she going to sleep?  I already share my room with Orion.”

“And me,” Buddy piped up.

Boyd and Susan exchanged a look.  “Your mom and I talked about that.  We decided you should have your own room, so we’re going to fix up the guest room to be yours by your birthday.”

“You’ll have your own bathroom across the hall from it, too.  Your own space and privacy.”

Patrick was thrilled.  “Awesome!  I can’t wait!”

Buddy came up behind him.  “Yeah!  Who wants to share a room with a bunch of babies anyway?”

Over in the playpen, Orion stopped playing with the abacus and stared in the direction of him and Buddy.  Although he resumed playing a moment later, it made Patrick feel guilty, despite knowing that Orion couldn’t see Buddy.  He had nothing against Orion, of course, but he kind of agreed with his invisible friend.  Patrick did want his own room without sharing, even if it was rude how Buddy had said it.

Susan told Patrick to finish his homework before the scouting ceremony, since they would be going to Blair’s afterward.  He took his notebook out on the back patio.

“Your baby sister looks like a green bean.”

“Don’t be mean.  She’s just a baby.  She’s kind of cool.  I’m going to ask my scout leader if I can get the ‘creatures of legend’ badge since I met and talked to a plantsim.  Mom and Dad are bringing her to the ceremony, so I can prove it.  I mean, just because she’s a baby shouldn’t mean she doesn’t count!”

“You should get one.  Probably for Orion, too.”

“I don’t think they even have an alien badge.  Besides, I can’t tell anyone outside of the family about Orion.  You know that.”

“An alien and a plant.  You’re the only normal one.”  Buddy flopped into the chair beside Patrick.  “Hey, doesn’t that make you the weirdo, then?”

Patrick frowned.  “Blair’s normal.  So is Chris.”

“She doesn’t count.  She’s old and doesn’t live here.  And he’s not your brother, he’s your nephew.  Here, you’re the only normal kid.  So that makes you weird.”

“Well, you’re talking to me, so I guess you like weirdos, then,” Patrick retorted.  “Anyway, you’re invisible.  You can’t talk about being normal.”

The Wainwright family piled into Susan’s Margaret Vaguester and headed to the school.  Before the ceremony started, Patrick excitedly introduced his parents to his troop leader and showed him baby Iris.  He was amazed to see a real plantsim.  He told Patrick he’d have the creatures of legend badge sent to him as soon as possible, then congratulated him and the rest of the family.  He was curious about Orion as well, but Boyd and Susan told their usual story that Orion suffered from a rare genetic condition.

Boyd and Susan were proud to see Patrick on stage with the other kids, being honored for their achievements.  They remembered Blair’s childhood scouting all those years ago, and mused about how time flew.  Now Blair had a son close to Patrick’s age, even though their newest kids were younger than him.  They never planned on such a large and late family, but they loved and were proud of them all.

After the ceremony was over, Patrick changed back into his regular clothes, and they grabbed a bite to eat at the diner before heading over to Blair and Cycl0n3’s.

When they got there, Blair had just gotten home from a late shift, and Chris was doing his homework.  Although he and Patrick were both in scouting, because he was younger, Chris was not part of the graduating troop.

The Wainwrights’ daughter was amazed when she saw not only her two younger brothers with her parents, but a little green baby, too.  “And who is this?”

“This is Iris.  She’s your new little sister.”  Susan held Iris out for them to see.

“She’s a plantsim.”  Boyd started explaining before anyone could ask.  He told them about the experiment, and how he and Susan expected to grow a forbidden fruit, but wound up with a plantsim infant bearing Susan’s DNA instead.

Blair was shocked and surprised, Chris was fascinated, and Cycl0n3 was stunned and amused.  “So that’s, what,” he counted on his fingers, “four unplanned kids you guys have now?  You trying to set a record?”  He laughed, while Boyd rolled his eyes.  Blair tried to keep a straight face despite her husband’s inappropriate remark, but on a childish level she agreed he had a point, and it was funny.

Susan chose not to dignify it with a response.  “We wanted you to meet her as soon as you could, so we brought her over.”

Chris touched baby Iris’ cheek.  “She’s neat, and she’s got pretty yellow eyes.”  He looked up at his grandmother.  “Hey, does she poop dirt?”

“Yeah, I didn’t think about that,” said Patrick.  “Do plantsims eat, or do they just suck in sunlight like regular plants?”

Boyd nodded.  “Plantsims photosynthesize for food.  They don’t need to eat.  Just plenty of water and sunlight.  So, to answer your question, Chris, not a whole lot comes back out, and what does, isn’t dirt.”

Blair held Iris and snuggled her.  “She’s adorable.  I’ve never seen a plantsim before, and definitely never thought I’d have one for a baby sister, but I love her!”  She played with her, and Iris made little happy noises.  “Welcome to the family, Iris!  I always wanted a little sister.  It’s too bad you came so late, even after your nephew,” she teased.  “Oh!  You need a rank to go with the Captain, Number One, and the Chief Engineer.  Science Officer, maybe?  Since you came from an experiment?”

Susan raised an eyebrow, amused.  “If you must, I’d say Chief Medical Officer instead.”  Boyd and Cycl0n3 agreed, and Blair giggled.

“All right then.  Chief Medical Officer it is!  But don’t worry, mostly I’ll stick with Iris, since you’re such a pretty little flower.  Yes you are.”  She made playful faces at her as she baby-talked.

Blair and her mother sat down at the table to talk while she held Iris.  “You’ve sure got your hands full now, huh?  Managing the lab and two small kids, plus one almost a teenager?”

“Don’t remind me.  I already went through your teenage years once.”

“Come on, Mom.  I wasn’t that bad.  I never snuck out or TP’d the neighborhood or any of the other things I’ve hauled kids in for while patrolling.”  She looked at Iris.  “I kind of hoped I’d be having a playmate around her age before long, but we don’t want another baby until we can move.”

“How’s that going?” Boyd asked as he joined them.  “Find anywhere you like yet?”

“A few nice places, and one that’s amazing we’d love to have.  It’s up on the cliffs, with a great view of the ocean.  Three bedrooms, two and a half baths, really spacious and open.”  She sighed.  “But out of our price range by a good bit.”

Susan exchanged a look with Boyd.  “How much?”

“A lot.  It’s not mansion priced, like your place, but still more than we can afford.”

“You have a birthday coming up,” hinted Boyd.  “Maybe we can help you out.”

“Oh, Dad, that’s nice of you to offer, but—”

“But what?”  Susan cut her off.  “I know you said you wanted to earn your own way in life, and we respect that.  We’re proud of you and everything you’ve accomplished.  But we also know how hard it can be.  The real estate market is very competitive in this town.  We know how hard you and Cycl0n3 work, and how much you want a new house so you can have another baby.”

Boyd gave Blair a sympathetic look.  “Let us help you get a place.  If you don’t want us buying the whole thing for you, use the money you’ve got, and we’ll just make up the difference.  But we want you and our grandkids to live where you want and where you’ll be happy.  We hate to see you struggle and put your life on hold if you don’t have to.”

“It’ll be our birthday present to you.”

“In addition to that party you’re throwing for me?”  Blair smiled at her parents.  “All right.  If you’re sure.  Thank you.  I’ll talk to Cycl0n3 and we’ll let you know.”

Blair and Cycl0n3 discussed Boyd and Susan’s offer that night after they left, and they decided to take them up on it.  The home on Redwood Parkway that they’d liked so much, called “Unfurled” in its listing, was a spacious upgrade without being ostentatious.  Blair still did not want to feel like she was leeching off of her parents’ recent wealth, or for others to think she was some spoiled heiress whose parents paid her way through life.  Boyd and Susan gifted her the down payment for her birthday, and with what they’d saved and the sale of their old house on Maywood Lane, Blair and Cycl0n3 were able to claim their new home.

They had no regrets.  The new house had so much more space that they realized how cramped their old one was.  Blair and Cycl0n3 bought a chess table for the back patio, which overlooked the ocean.  Blair noticed they could see her parents’ house up on Summer Hill Court from their view, and that they would be able to see her home from theirs as well.  When they moved, they brought along the stereo, TV, and computer that had caused a fight between her and Cycl0n3 not long ago.  Blair was glad that having to watch every simoleon would be a thing of the past.  Their income easily covered the expenses of the new house now that it was paid for.

On Blair’s birthday, her parents threw her a party at the same rustic bistro where she’d had her wedding rehearsal dinner.  Although she had the typical mid-life birthday musings where she reflected on her life and where it was headed, she was happy and did not experience any sort of crisis about it.  She was surrounded by family and friends, and felt loved and special.  What more could she ask for?

Susan sat with Blair while they had cake.  “So, how are things going in the new house?  Will one of those bedrooms be turning into a nursery?  I saw you’ve got a crib set up.  Anything you want to share?”

“No, Mom.  There’s no baby yet.  I figured we’d keep it up for when Orion and Iris visit, and hopefully soon, it’ll have a more permanent occupant.”  Blair took a bite of birthday cake.  “We’ve started trying, but no luck yet.  I’m kind of surprised.  I guess I didn’t get whatever gene you or Dad has that makes getting new babies so easy.”

Susan laughed.  “Iris and Orion didn’t come from your typical baby-making situation, and unless you want to hear an angry monologue about the aliens, I’d suggest not repeating that to your father.  As for Patrick, well, you’re still younger than we were when he had him, and he happened despite prevention.  So I wouldn’t worry too much.  It’ll happen in time.”

Blair spotted Patrick taking a break by himself after playing tag with Chris.  “Hey, Captain!”

“Hey, Blair.  Happy birthday!”

“Thanks.  Are you having fun?  I know restaurants can be kind of boring for kids after the food and cake are gone.”

Patrick shrugged.  “It’s okay.  Chris and I were playing for a while.  He went to see if we could get some play mats to draw on.”

“That sounds fun.  So, you’ve got a birthday coming up, too.  You’re going to be a teenager.  I can hardly believe it.”

“Yeah.  It’s cool!”

“It is.  Before you know it, you’ll be driving.”  She gave him a playful look.  “Though you better not get any speeding tickets when you do.  Just because I’m a cop doesn’t mean you’ll get out of them.  You’re going to stay out of trouble, right?”

“Like you, you mean?  Mom and Dad always say how good you were growing up.”

“Do they?  Well, it’s true I didn’t get into trouble much.  I was probably one of the only kids who made it through all of school never cutting class even once.”

Patrick was dubious.  “Never?”

“Nope.”  She raised an eyebrow.  “Am I to take it you can’t make that claim, Captain?”

He smirked.  “Well, I’ve never got in trouble for skipping class, either.”

After she finished talking to Patrick, Blair picked up Iris from her play mat.  She was still enamored with her new baby sister.  “You’re just like an adorable little green doll.”  Boyd came over to chat while she snuggled her.  “I was just thinking about how you said plantsims don’t eat.  I guess that means she won’t get to enjoy her birthday cakes when the time comes.”

“Not necessarily.  We’ll figure out something.  Maybe she’d like a fertilizer cake.”

Blair made a face.  “That sounds pretty gross, but I’m glad for her.  A birthday with no cake would be sad!”

While Blair chatted with her father, Cycl0n3 saw Parker and decided to do some off-duty questioning.  He still had not said anything to Blair about what he saw outside the bookstore, because he wanted more proof.  “Hey, Parker.  How’s it going?”

“Not bad.  This is a nice party you guys threw for Blair.  Thanks for the invite.  I’m glad she’s having a good time.”

“Yeah.  You know her.  Happiest around friends and family she can trust.”  Cycl0n3 gave him a pointed look.  “Speaking of which, I hear you and Tam have gotten more serious.  Kind of surprised me, considering.”

Parker gave him an odd look.  “Considering what?”

“Considering you’re getting it on with Nancy Landgraab.”  Although that was not what Cycl0n3 actually believed, he figured it would get a reaction.

He was right.  Parker went from calm to irate in a flash.  “Nancy Landgraab?  What the plum are you talking about?”

“Well, a little birdie told me they saw you and her talking all close and, you know, intimate, outside of the bookstore not long ago.  She even gave you a gift or something.”  Cycl0n3 was proud of his cover story.  “I mean, she’s a little old for my taste, and married, but hey, whatever floats your boat.”

Parker was not amused.  “That’s ridiculous!  I don’t know who you’ve been talking to, but that’s a load of crap.  I’ve never slept with Nancy Landgraab!”

“So you weren’t out with her by the bookstore, then?”

Parker’s raised voice caught the attention of those around them.  Blair and Boyd both looked over, and Blair set Iris down.  “What’s going on?”

“Nothing.  Cycl0n3 heard some stupid rumor and thought it was true.”

“Oh, just a rumor, then?  That’s good to know.”  He only partly hid the sarcasm in his feigned nonchalance.

“Yeah.  She donated some money to the policeman’s benevolent fund, and passed me the check when we ran into each other.  My mom used to work for her, you know.  That’s probably what whoever saw.  I guess that constitutes having an affair now.”  He rolled his eyes.  “So, I’d appreciate it if you didn’t go around repeating that BS, since it’s not true, she’s married, and Tam really doesn’t need to hear lies about me, okay?”  Parker gave Blair an apologetic look.  “Sorry about the drama at your party, Blair.  We’re cool now, though.  Right?”  He looked at Cycl0n3.

Cycl0n3 was more certain than ever that something was going on, but he played along.  Pushing it farther wouldn’t get him anywhere, and would just upset Blair on her birthday.  “Sure.”

Tamara came by just as the situation wound down.  “Let me guess.  Cycl0n3’s being himself, as usual?”

“He heard some rumor about Parker and Nancy Landgraab, but Parker told him it wasn’t true.”

“Huh.  It better not be.  Not now that we’re serious.  I’ll have to kick his butt if he is.  Also, happy birthday!”  She hugged her.

“Thanks.  It’s been great.  I’m glad you were able to come.”

“Wouldn’t miss it.  So, how are you doing?  Enjoying the new house?”

“Oh, it’s great!  I’m so glad we moved.  It’s got so much space, and the view is amazing.”

Tamara gave her a knowing look.  “What about new additions?  Any on the way yet?”  Blair had told her about wanting another baby the last time they’d had lunch.

“Not yet.”

“Aw.  Well, hopefully soon.”  Tamara’s smile widened.  “Especially because maybe that one could play with mine.”

Blair realized what Tamara was saying.  “Tam!  You’re having a baby?”

“Told you Parker and I were serious.  I think he’s the one for me, Blair.  We really love and get each other.  He’s not into marriage, but he does want to be a dad, and I want kids before it’s too late, so… I can live with that.”

“That’s great!”  Blair gave her a big hug.  “I’m so happy for you.  Wow!  Now you and Emma are both having kids.  I know I have Chris already, but it’d be so cool if all three of us had babies the same age.”

“Well, I’m sure it won’t be hard to talk Cycl0n3 into getting right on that with you,” Tamara teased, and Blair giggled.

“No.  No it won’t.”

After the party was over, they went home.  Chris gave his mother a birthday hug and went to bed, and Cycl0n3 broke out the bottle of fancy French nectar that Susan had given him.  “Your mom said to save this for a special occasion.  I’d say this counts.  A birthday toast.  To the sweetest woman I’ve ever known, who’s still putting up with me on her mid-life birthday, despite knowing me since high school.”

“Oh, you’re not so bad.  I think you’re pretty sweet yourself.”  She kissed him on the cheek, and he laughed.

“Hey now!  Watch it.  That kind of talk will completely ruin my reputation as a rude llama.”

They enjoyed the nectar together.  Afterward, Blair drew Cycl0n3 into an embrace.  “I had a really nice birthday.  Thank you.”

“Well, your parents threw the party, but I did do my best not to ruin it for you, so, you’re welcome,” Cycl0n3 teased.

“I meant what I said.  You really are sweet when you want to be.”

“Boy, do I have you fooled.  Lucky me.  Because that means I’ve still got you.”

“Silly.”  She kissed him.

“Speaking of lucky… want to get it on your birthday?”  He waggled his eyebrows.

“Oh, you!”  She gave him a playful swat.  “Don’t mess up the end of my birthday ruining the romantic moment.”

“Right.  Shutting up.”  He leaned in for a kiss.

Blair had reached the midpoint of her life, but she was happier than she’d ever been, and didn’t regret a moment of it.

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Author’s Note:  With the addition of Iris to the Wainwright clan also comes an update to the Children of Sunset Valley page.  She now has an entry (with just her cute green burrito baby picture) and several other Sunset Valley kids aged up during the timeline of this chapter. One to teen, two to child, and two to toddler, all with new pictures.