InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "It's got to be a fake!"

ciɳɗy (ciɳɗɛʀɛʆʆɑ) ѵɑkɑʀiɑɳ (silvershoes) wrote in valarlogs,
@ 2017-07-18 21:10:00

Entry tags:

!complete, cindy cendrillon (cinderella), veronica mars

Who: Cindy & Veronica
What: Visiting both the new mom and the new baby (and sharing some news)
When: Last week sometime!
Where: Veronica & Logan's place
Rating/Warnings: Pretty tame
Status: Complete

Veronica was slowly getting back to reality. It had been almost two months since she had Liam. Although she wasn’t quite up to her usual self she had started working again. Just a few cases for now, but it was nice to feel normal again, like an actual human and not just a mom. That being said she was extremely protective of her son. Other than work, she rarely left him out of her sight. It was even hard for her to trust Logan alone with the little guy. Not because he was a bad father. He was great with Liam. It was Veronica’s issue, her maternal instinct perhaps.

Instead of going out to meet Cindy she invited her friend over. The house was a bit of a mess, dishes piled up in the sink, baby toys strewn about the house. It was safe to say cleaning wasn’t Veronica’s top priority. Not that it really ever was to begin with. Liam was resting in his swing, memorized by the mobile hanging above when she heard the doorbell. “Sorry for the mess,” were the first words out of her mouth when she opened the door. She gave Cindy a sheepish smile as she backed away letting her friend in. Backup, of course, approached the familiar blonde, tail wagging. “And I’ve had no time to cook.” Not that Cindy would want her food anyway. Veronica was no cook, and those cookies she made with Cindy a few years ago were just more evidence of that. “I figured we could order some take- out. What are you in the mood for?”

“Hey, they don’t call me Cinderella for nothing,” Cindy winked, stepping inside to give Veronica a hug. “I’ll do some tidying up for you. Feel special too, because I don’t do it for just anyone.” First she knelt to love all up on Backup, since she was always happy to see this slobbery pup. He even seemed to be pretty good about the baby - hopefully he wasn’t too jealous?

But yes, in addition to helping out a friend during the tumultuous time of easing into being a new mom, she’d also come over to share some news of her own. Her and Garrus had agreed to not tell many people, not until the end of the first trimester, but they each told a couple of friends of their choosing - and right now, Cindy was eager to revel in her life-changing news with someone who had been through the whole pregnancy thing before. There were only a couple of weeks to go ‘til the end of the first trimester anyway.

And the doctor really wasn’t kidding about her getting bigger, quicker. Being pregnant with twins, at about ten weeks now, meant she had a bit of a bump already when she was normally flat-stomached.

To the kitchen she went! After stopping to greet Liam in his swing, bestowing a belly tickle and a smooch on him because so cute. Then she washed her hands at the sink, starting with the dishes. “Takeout sounds great though - how about Mexican?” You could get just about anything delivered these days. Bless GrubHub and UberEats.

Backup was actually great with the baby. He just liked to make sure he got attention too. Which had been a little difficult for Veronica lately, so the attention he was getting from Cindy was greatly appreciated. By both Backup and Veronica.

“I didn’t invite you over to clean,” Veronica argued feeling a little bad about it. Although not bad enough to full on stop Cindy. She followed her into the kitchen plopping down at the table with a clear view of Liam. Man, she was exhausted. “Mexican sounds delicious,” Veronica agreed grabbing her phone and pulling up GrubHub. “Tacos.” Yes lots of tacos. “Vegetarian and beef.” She did know her friend’s preferences. “And nachos.” Her mouth was beginning to water just thinking about it. “Anything else you want?”

Veronica looked exhausted - not in a bad way, of course. Just kind of in a ‘pooped, new parent’ kind of way. No doubt Logan was pulling his weight too, but still. Newborns were tiring in general. “Just pay me in tacos,” Cindy quipped as she did some rinsing, stacking the dishes into the washer. Helping out was no big deal; she knew she had friends who would do the same for her, which was one of the positive parts about living here even when shit hit the fan. “I’m completely fine with some veggie ones - and nachos with queso, naturally.”

She’d heard of pregnant women who were vegetarians but then experienced cravings for meat - so far, that hadn’t happened to her but she wouldn’t rule it out. Mostly she just wanted fresh everything - fruits and vegetables and, even in the hot weather, soup. “I’ll whistle while I work, but there’s something I should tell you too. Part of the reason I came over.”

“Got it,” Veronica replied placing the order and sending it off. “Food should be here in 50-65 minutes.” Seemed like forever with how much Veronica was craving it now.”

“Should I be worried?” Veronica’s brow rose. “You and Garrus aren’t going to leave Orange County and live on his spaceship are you?” It was mostly a joke. At least the spaceship part. But still you never knew. Veronica wouldn’t blame anyone for wanting to leave Orange County. But Cindy was one of the few Veronica had actually gotten close to. She would be sad if her friend left.

“Doubtful. This weird-ass place is home,” Cindy sighed with teasing dramatics. Sure, she and Garrus had a space penthouse in the Citadel and they’d spent their anniversary there. Sometimes it was great to get away like, you know, to someplace not on this planet (quiet neighbors too! Or...no neighbors).

But really, as far as she knew, there were no plans to vacate. The dishes now stacked and ready, she added soap and turned on the washer before giving the counters a quick scrubdown to make them sparkly. “I’m actually - “ She set the sponge down then, her hands fidgeting slightly. “I’m pregnant. With twins.”

Dropping the bomb and opening up the floor for questions. Always fun.

If Veronica was the squealing type, this would be the time. However, she was far from it, and even if she was the type she was too exhausted to squeal anyways. “Congratulations,” she said instead with a genuine smile. “Welcome to the club,” she added with a hint of excitement. It’d be nice for Liam to have friends to grow up with. Although twins, that was going to be a ton of work. She’d definitely have to return the favor and clean Cindy’s house in about nine months.

But Cindy was right. Veronica did have questions. Because, well, Garrus. “Are your kids going to be blue? Or like an alien, turian?” Might as well get specific. “How does that even work?” Although she wasn’t sure she wanted to know the details of Cindy’s human-turian sex life.

Veronica didn’t need to worry, Cindy wouldn’t spill too much about the wonders of doing an alien. Some people were admittedly more curious than others, but at least she could count on her fellow blonde to not be nosy about something like this. Other things, definitely, but xenophilic relations? Nope.

“No, they’re definitely human,” she laughed, leaning against the counter. “Our DNA isn’t even compatible, and he knew it wouldn’t be. So he froze some baby batter before transitioning entirely to a turian - it was stored at a clinic until I was ready to be inseminated. Which is still the worst word ever,” and at that she crinkled her nose. “I took fertility drugs before the appointment, to up our chances of conceiving the first try - and when you do that, you sort of also up your chances for multiples.”

Hence the twins. They didn’t run in either her or Garrus’ family, so it’d be a first. The first grandchildren in general, which was also pretty exciting.

“Smart. I knew there was a reason I liked Garrus,” Veronica quipped. It was obvious this was something both Cindy and Garrus wanted especially since they had to prepare for it. Think about it and wait for the right time. Veronica loved Liam, but she hadn’t exactly planned on getting pregnant.

“So twins,” Veronica went on, not needing to know anymore about how they had conceived. The important thing was they had, and now Cindy was going to be a mom. “Get ready to be exhausted.” Veronica would definitely try to help out though. It was the least she could do with Cindy over here washing her dishes.

Having a baby was something they’d talked about even before that pesky alien invasion happened - but since that took literally a year to play out, they had to wait until they were sure they’d even have a planet to raise a child on. Cindy knew it was the right time though. She and Garrus also had to be mentally and emotionally ready for this sort of thing - it was just that they weren’t expecting the whole twins aspect.

Oh, well. Life threw curveballs sometimes, right? Cute ones. Like Liam. Whom Cindy went to go talk at some more (before she potentially started collecting Veronica’s laundry to do a load or two - she was nice like that). “You’ll have some friends about your age, buddy,” she told the baby, giving him her index finger to grasp at while he cooed and smiled (it was probably gas). “We’re definitely up for playdates.”

Then she straightened up, brushing her bangs out of her eyes. “The whole pregnancy is considered ‘high risk,’ so yeah - I can’t even imagine how rolly-polly I’ll get. And afterward?” Cindy had to wince. “Exhausted seems to cover it. Just promise you’ll be here to keep me company when I need a crane to be moved?”

As much as Veronica loved Liam, sometimes he could be a pain. Like when he woke her up multiple times a night with his cries. Right now though, he was somewhat calm. It was the swing. The kid loved that thing. She was definitely going to have to get Cindy one, or two actually.

“Promise,” Veronica agreed. “As long as you don’t mind I bring that one,” she nodded at the swing where Cindy had just greeted her little one. “How worried should I be about the high risk?” Yes, Veronica could come off cold, but believe it or not she did actually care about her friends.

“Mind? Are you kidding? He’s welcome aaaanytime,” Cindy assured, stroking Liam’s cheek. Babies had such soft skin, and that special baby smell - like cotton and sunshine (when they hadn’t shit their diapers, that is). She knew there was probably some scientific explanation for that pleasant scent but she’d just prefer to think of it as something whimsical instead.

Point was, she’d gladly be around as Auntie Cindy - it would be nice, especially since Sharon had moved away with Viv. Cindy did miss the tiny crumb-gobbler. “When he’s a little more sturdy and you’re ready to leave him with a babysitter, I will gladly volunteer for that too,” she grinned. “It’d be good practice.”

To be of even more use, she began collecting the spare articles of clothing around that needed to be washed - Veronica’s place did kind of look like a tornado whipped through, but hey, Cindy was here to help. While she could still move comfortably. And by the time she got the washer going, their Mexican feast would probably be here. “I wouldn’t be too worried,” she promised. “Everything looks good so far and I know I’ll have healthy babies. But it’s just more chance for complications, I think. More chance for me to deliver them prematurely.” In fact, the average twin pregnancy was about thirty-five weeks - they tended to always arrive early, and really, Cindy was a small person. She couldn’t help but be mindful of back problems, at the very least.

“Hopefully you won’t be too big to move by then,” Veronica quipped. Leaving Liam was still difficult for her. She barely left him alone with Logan, mostly when she actually had to leave the house for a case.

Delivering prematurely didn’t sound like the worst thing. Minus the risks involved with it, but there definitely became a point where Veronica wanted Liam to just get the fuck out already. She knew Cindy would take care of herself though, do everything she could to keep her babies healthy. “So 10 percent worried,” she joked. “Noted.” Serious talks weren’t always Veronica’s strong suit. As if the delivery man knew that, the doorbell rang right on cue. Veronica got up retrieving the food and signing the receipt before carrying the bags back into the kitchen. “Enough cleaning my house,” although she was grateful for it there was also a hint of guilt. “Time to dig in.”