The Vincis (A) - Round 4

Starring:

Gretchen Chin, Adult Knowledge Sim, LTW Become Mad Scientist

Salvatore Vinci-Chin, Child Knowledge Sim, LTW Grow Up Well

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Last round at the Vinci-Chin house, Gretchen adopted Sal and began working her way up the food chain in her science career. The two get along famously, and Sal is definitely being spoiled, though he retains his sweet, friendly nature.

Gretchen had come to the realization after visiting Enzo on campus that there probably was no chance for a romance between them. She knew that he lived in a house with Paolo and his girlfriend Caitlin, and Caitlin's sister Fiona. Gretchen may have fallen in love when it wasn't the best idea, but she wasn't stupid. She knew that Enzo would likely find someone at college, and perhaps it was better that way. He was so much younger than she was, and now she was his brother's adoptive mother. Even thinking the phrase made her head spin a bit. Yes, Gretchen decided she needed to move on, and Craig Ray was a wonderful man she'd met at work.


They'd been spending more and more time together when Salvatore wasn't around. Gretchen didn't want Sal to feel like she was distracted from him in any way, so she tried to be discrete.



Unfortunately, all the discretion in the world couldn't prepare her for what happened after her night with Craig.


All the nausea she'd been feeling for the past week finally made sense. She was pregnant. This was...an absolute disaster. She wasn't even married to Craig, and things with she and Sal were going so well... how would he feel about it? Would he think she was a tramp? Would he hate her for sleeping around? For getting pregnant with another baby when he was supposed to be her baby? Gretchen was sick with more than just morning queasiness; she was downright ill with worry.



But there was no time for worry. She had things to do. Like congratulate Sal on his special fundraising success at school. He was such a bright boy. Gretchen worried more about what would happen when he found out she was pregnant.


But Salvatore remained oblivious thanks to Gretchen's careful concealment. He brought home Imelda Vinci from school one day - his brother's daughter. It seemed weird to think that Enzo was old enough to have a kid of his own now. What was even more weird was that he was technically Imelda's uncle! He teased her mercilessly about this fact, but with good humor, enjoying tormenting her because she would chase him and play when she got mad.



Unfortunately for Gretchen, the time came when Gretchen was unable to hide her pregnancy any more, and she had to confess to Salvatore when he asked why she was gaining weight. She explained that sometimes these things simply happened, and Salvatore took the news thoughtfully, without any heartache or bad feelings. In fact, he seemed more curious than anything to know how babies were made - a conversation Gretchen was NOT ready to have with him.


Unfortunately, only a day later, it seemed as though the stress of worrying took its toll on the pregnant Gretchen, and she lost the baby. It was a shame because it had occurred to her so recently that Salvatore would have been fine with it. In fact, he probably would have loved to have a sibling. But it was too late for that now. Gretchen felt drained, exhausted, and as though the tears would never stop.


It was the dear Salvatore that helped her get through it. He was such a sweet child, and he hugged her tightly when he came home from school, saying he was sorry the baby got lost. It made Gretchen cry harder, but she was so thankful for Sal, she could hardly stand it.


Every day, it got a little easier. Sal went out into the greenhouse and came back with a basket full of tomatoes, carrying them in and plopping them on her bed to cheer her up. "Look what we grew!" he said excitedly. Gretchen looked at him proudly. "You know what else is growing?" she asked, and he looked at her quizzically. When he shook his head no, she answered with a smile. "You. We need to be throwing a birthday party for you here soon, young man." Sal agreed and leaped up excitedly. "Can I invite Alex and Aurélie and Imelda and..." he asked, bouncing down the hallway. Gretchen knew she had to get up.


She called in sick to work so she could plan, and a few days later, everything was ready.


Everyone Sal wanted to invite was there, and Alex even brought his older brother Alain along. They all cheered as Salvatore grew from a bright, wide-eyed boy into...



...a handsome, intelligent young man. It was truly a day for celebration. "What do you think you want to be when you grow up, Sally?" Gretchen asked him. He gave it some thought and finally answered, "I think I'd like to work near the water. On the ocean. Maybe be a fish doctor or something like that." Gretchen ruffled his hair, and Salvatore smiled.


Although it was his birthday party and Gretchen had worked hard to prepare everything, Sal could see that she still looked tired. He thanked everyone for coming and quickly shooed them on their way. Then he and Gretchen sat down for a quiet game of chess. They talked a lot while they played, and he softly expressed his sorrow for her.


He even worked hard to make sure that he could take care of his mom the way she had always taken care of him, and he took over kitchen duties for a while so she wouldn't have to cook. He teased her lightly, "You weren't really built for the kitchen anyway, Mom." She chuckled and agreed.


After a while, Gretchen felt well enough to go out, and she and Sal went on hikes together, sharing their love of nature. Slowly but surely, she started to feel alive again, well again, and it was at that moment she really looked at Sal for the first time since he'd grown and realized what a handsome young man he was.

"Sal, look at you!" she exclaimed. "We've got to get you into private school before you're too old. Your brothers both got in, and you can too. It's great on a resume and on your transcripts for college, and you won't feel bored the way you do in your courses now."


Gretchen jumped into action, inviting the headmaster and scouring the house. Sal smiled, thinking how nice it was to see her back on her feet again. She was too naturally happy a person to stay down for long.


The headmaster did come, but unfortunately, he was not impressed enough with their modest home to admit Salvatore. Gretchen was furious and wanted to tell the man a thing or two. Sal calmed her and shrugged. "We'll get him next time," he said simply and hugged Gretchen. Things were going to be all right.

Stay tuned for the Cleary house, with the new baby and the loss of Roisin to her new hubby Santiago!

~*~*~*~*~

Scoring:

No new points, I don't think.

Net worth to be added to neighborhood total: $TBA

[[Author's Notes: Wow, so Gretchen's pregnancy was completely unplanned, and the miscarriage was unfortunate but definitely a solution to a problem for me, as the player. I didn't want to marry in Craig Ray and have a townie couple...I'm already letting my population sort of boom with these gen2 babies, and I didn't really want her to have to raise the child alone - nearly an impossible task if I ever hope her to get to TOC. Sal turned into SUCH a handsome teen, but he looked so much like Paolo that I had to distinguish him somehow; hence the hair and the glasses and five o'clock shadow. I think it makes him bookish, which fits since he's a knowledge sim. I'm not quite sure how his outgoing nature is going to mesh with his niceness and bookworm tendencies yet. Guess we'll just have to wait and see how his personality manifests itself. Not sure what will happen with Gretch later in life, though Sal will obviously inherit the house. Their future's a mystery to me, so I guess I'll just play it by ear. Oh, btw, Sal's LTW is to Become the Hand of Poseidon. :') So cute. No bloopers for this round; it was a quick one.

This Entry's MP3:
TBA]]