Taa daa! The much awaited, highly anticipated chapter 23. I know this out a teensy bit late. I've had the pictures taken for a while...I was just suffering from intense laziness...sorry. But now, you can enjoy!
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LOTHARIO

Kaylynn and Don Lothario gathered in their green kitchen to celebrate Carmen’s birthday. Their youngest child was on her way to becoming a teenager, and the elderly couple felt bittersweet about their parenting days coming to an end. Carmen cocked her head to the side as she deliberated on a good birthday wish. When she finally realized what she wanted, she smiled and blew out her pink candles. Kaylynn and Don cheered and waited for their baby girl to age.


Carmen wobbled until she finally shot up into her teenage body. She admired her new figure and smiled, happy with the results. Don watched with horror as his little girl turned into a woman; he did not like what he saw. He hadn’t been around for Letti’s birthdays, so the protective fatherly feeling was new to him. “Carmen! You need to pull down that shirt or pull up that skirt! I can see your midriff. Actually…don’t pull up that skirt. It’s already far too short.”
Kaylynn shot her husband a look. “Don! Leave the girl alone!”


Carmen laughed and helped herself to a slice of cake. “Relax, Dad. I’ll change for school tomorrow.”
Don frowned uncomfortably. “You better. I know better than anyone how men can be. You can’t leave the house looking like that!” Kaylynn narrowed her eyes at her husband, wishing he would back off. Don, however, wasn’t taking any chances in keeping his daughters safe. After all his years of absence, Letti ended up pregnant and unmarried.


Letti, in fact, had been staying with her father since graduation. She spent most of her time reclining on Don’s bed, balancing books on her big pregnant belly. She read, moped, and read some more. After she missed Carmen’s birthday celebration, Don decided he’d better have a talk with his eldest daughter. When Carmen left for school the next morning, Don hiked up his steep stairs only to find Letti’s nose buried in another novel. He smiled warmly. “Good morning, princess. How are you and baby?”
Letti didn’t look up. “Hi. Everything’s fine.”


Don didn’t take Letti’s coldness personally. He knew how down she felt. “We really missed you at Carmen’s birthday. Everything okay?”
Letti sighed, closed her book, and swung herself on the edge of the bed. “I know. I’m sorry. I just don’t like people seeing me…this way.”
Don quirked an eyebrow. “What? Pregnant?" Letti hung her head and nodded. Don sighed. “Letti, there’s nothing to be ashamed about. People have babies all the time.”


Letti stood to face her father, frowning. “Yes but not from drunken nights with people they don’t love. People they can’t even tolerate for that matter.”
Don could see tears welling up in his daughter’s eyes. “Oh Letti, please cheer up. I hate to see you this way. Everyone makes mistakes, but this baby is here for a reason. It’s not all bad. Trust me, having unplanned children isn’t the worst thing that can happen to you. I have four of them! They are the best things that ever happened to me.”


A smile spread on Letti’s face and she let a loose a little laugh, realizing she in fact was an unplanned child just like the one growing inside of her. “Thanks, dad. I guess you’re right.”
Don smiled. “That’s my girl. I love you, darling. And I know you’ll love this baby as much as I love you.”
Letti nodded determinedly. “This baby is mine just as much as it is Martin’s.” She paused, then sighed as her face fell flat again. “I just…I’m ashamed. And worried. I’m turning out just like my mother. One night stands, having illegitimate children. I didn’t want this for myself, or any of my children. I don’t want to be that kind of mother.”


Don nodded. “I understand. I love your mother, but we made many mistakes." Letti was suprised to hear her father say he loved her mother. That was much different than the story Nina had spun to her daughter. Don continued. "But that’s not really who you are. There’s still time to learn from our mistakes, my love. It’ll all be alright.” Don pulled his daughter into a hug and kissed her hair while rubbing her back. He paused, and whispered into her ear. “You have a visitor downstairs.”


Curious, Letti waddled down the stairs and into the living room. She opened the big front door and found Martin standing outside. He wore paint stained overalls and had a timid grin on his face. Her heart dropped. “Martin? What are you doing here?”
He smiled humbly. “Hi, Letti. I just…” his eyes fell to her swollen stomach. “Wow. You look great. How are you feeling?”
Letti folded her arms over her belly, embarrassed. “Fine, thank you.”
Martin grew nervous. “Well uhm, I was wondering if you’d…come with me. I want to show you something. It’s really important.”


Letti started to say no, but stopped herself. She couldn’t push Martin away forever. Whether she loved him or hated him, they were having a baby together. Letti nodded in agreeance and soon found herself climbing into Martin’s car, driving down the road. After several minutes, Martin stopped the vehicle. “We’re here.” The pair climbed out and shut the car doors with a slam. Letti looked around, not recognizing her surroundings. “Martin, where are we?”
Martin smiled shyly. “This is my house.”


Letti looked up at a big, white house. It had beautiful, dark wood windows with bright white shutters. She looked it up and down, confused. “What happened to the little trailer you were living in with your brother?”
Martin chuckled. “I sold the trailer. This is the same property. Joshua and I built this house from the ground up.”
Letti was wide eyed with amazement. “This is amazing, Martin! I didn’t know you knew anything about architecture.”


Martin beamed. “I don’t. Well, didn’t. But I’m glad you like it. You do like it, don’t you?”
Letti nodded, smiling. “It’s beautiful.”
Martin took Letti’s hand gingerly. She flinched at first, then let him take it. His palm felt warm and soft in hers. “Can I show you around inside?”
Letti’s discomfort faded; she smiled at Martin. “Sure.”


They walked into the house. Martin placed his hands proudly on his sides and smiled. “This is the living room. Nice and spacious, with a back door that goes out to the deck. There’s two full bathrooms on this floor. Those are the only rooms without hardwood floors.”
“Wow, Martin”, Letti breathed “It’s wonderful.” Her voice echoed in the big empty room. She could smell the fresh paint and the polished wood floors.
He smiled, almost looking as if he was holding in laughter. “Go check out the kitchen.” He nodded towards a nearby door way. “It’s right over there.”


Letti waddled into the kitchen. Dark wooden counter tops and cupboards, all new appliances. Wow. Martin has really outdone himself. This must have cost a fortune. A kick from inside Letti’s womb interrupted her thoughts. She flinched slightly and brought her hand to her stomach. The baby had been going wild since she stepped foot in the house. She rubbed her tummy soothingly and the baby settled. Something is different about this house, something special.


Martin walked in. “Is the baby moving?”
Letti dropped her hands from her stomach. “Just stopped. Sorry.”
Martin’s face fell slightly, disappointed he wouldn’t have a chance to feel his child. “Oh.”
Letti could see his hurt and tried to change the subject. “What are you going to do with this house, Martin? It’s huge. Well, huge for one person at least. Is Joshua living here too?”
His eyes darted from side to side nervously. “Uhm, come upstairs. I’ll show you.”


Martin helped Letti upstairs and led her into one of the two bedrooms. He motioned for her to open the door. She did, and found nothing in the room but a beautiful, antique baby crib against the far wall. The sight of it took her breath away; she finally understood the real purpose of the big, white house. “Oh Martin…”


Martin walked in front of Letti and fell to one knee, smiling up at her. “Letti, this house was built for a family. Not just me, and not for my brother, but for you and our baby. I brought you here in hopes you’d like it; I can see you do. I put so much love and work into it. I know I’m not your ideal man, but I’ve changed a lot since I’ve learned I’m going to be a father.”
Letti’s heart pounded in fear and excitement.


Martin pulled a black box from his smeared overalls and opened it, revealing a shiny, diamond engagement ring. “Letti Caliente, will you marry me?”
Letti gasped at the ring, unsure of what to do. Her hesitation made Martin worry. “I promise, I’ll do whatever it takes to make you and our baby happy. Anything.” Letti didn’t love Martin, but he did seem to be making quite an effort. He really did love her. Accepting the ring was a one way ticket to the family she always wanted. A married mother, an involved father, and a big house.


Before making her decision, the words of her father flashed in Letti's mind. "There’s still time to learn from our mistakes..." Letti smiled and nodded, slipping the ring onto her finger. “Yes, Martin. I will marry you.”
Martin smiled brightly and stood to hug his new fiancée. “Thank you for giving me a chance, Letti. I promise, I’ll make everything right.”
Letti smiled and hugged him back, hoping she made the right choice.

CALIENTE

The first snow fall of the year came on the day of Jane and Ricardo’s wedding. Jane looked out at all her shivering guests, happy they still came to the event despite the weather. The ceremony started, and everyone watched with tears in their eyes as the love birds said their vows.


Carmen Lothario, unbeknownst to her, sat next to her father’s old lover, Nina Caliente. Nina, Ricardo’s stand in Mother for the event, watched her nephew proudly. Don and Kaylynn sat across the aisle, Kaylynn trying to ignore Nina while wondering where Dina was. While Don secretly stole glances at Nina in her form fitting red dress, Cassandra Dreamer stole glances at Don, her old fiancée. Letti sat way in the back, avoiding her mother and hiding her big belly. Despite the family, a few old college and childhood friends looked on at Jane and Ricardo. The couple kissed and everyone applauded, momentarily forgetting their petty grievances.


After the ceremony, the wedding party gathered on Jane and Ricardo’s roof top deck for the reception. The newlyweds laughed at themselves as Ricardo stuffed Jane’s face with cake. Don and Kaylynn started hula dancing and soon everyone joined in. Despite the awkwardness of family clashing, everyone seemed to be having a good time.


The reception lasted well into the night. Despite the cold winter air, everyone continued partying. Refreshments were running low, and Nina volunteered to retrieve more snacks from her old kitchen. She made up a cheese platter and was then distracted by the grimy kitchen sink. Scrubbing away, Nina didn’t hear Don enter the kitchen behind her. He stopped and watched her. “Fancy seeing you here,” he said with a purr in his voice.


Nina was startled but hid it with a well mastered coolness. She didn’t have to turn around to know who was behind her; she’d recognize that voice anywhere. “What do you want, Don?”
Don chuckled. “I was just looking for the bathroom. This house is a lot different than I remember.”
Nina snorted. “A lot can change in 25 years.”


Don’s cheeky smile fell off his face. He looked at Nina longingly and with a voice barely above a whisper said, “Not that much has changed.”
Nina chuckled and shook her head. She stopped wiping down the sink and started to face him. “Oh come on, you’ve got to be kidding me.”
Don stared at Nina like a sad puppy. “What?”
Nina place her hands on her hips firmly. “Are you trying to hit on me? At your son’s wedding. With your wife in the next room.”
Don smirked. “Oh don’t pretend like you don’t still have feelings for me, Nina. It may have been 25 years but I can tell there's still heat between us. I felt it the moment I laid eyes on you tonight. You look ravishing. It’s been a long time…but what we had was special.”


Nina laughed almost hysterically. “Special?! Don, all we did was sleep around. We were friends with benefits, two romance Sims with many, many lovers.”
Don nodded. “That’s why we worked so well. We had the same interests.”
Nina grew angry. “Stop it. You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Don protested. “Oh c’mon. You were always my favorite, Nina. Out of all the girls, you were the best. Not just in bed. Didn’t you know that? Don’t you wanna find out if we’ve still got something?”


Nina stared at Don, coldly and blankly. “Go to hell, Don. You’re a pathetic excuse for a husband, father, and man. You’ve got all your kids convinced you’re some kind of hero after all you’ve done is ruin people’s lives, including theirs. You ruined my sister’s too. She loved you more than anyone, and now she’s so delusional she couldn’t even attend her own son’s wedding. Not to mention you’ve taken my daughter from me. The daughter I raised and sacrificed for. She hates me and runs to your arms and I hate you for that. I never want to see you again. Get the hell out of this kitchen.”
Don hung his head, unsure of what to say. He walked out of the kitchen slowly, dejected, leaving Nina alone with buzzing thoughts and pumping adrenaline.

GOTH

Lucy looked down at her husband’s descended stomach. “How…what…” Her mind was drawing a blank.
Alex cleared his throat. “The best I can figure is that I have been implanted with an alien fetus by the aliens who abducted me last night.”
Lucy looked up at Alex, suddenly believing that he was truly abducted. “That’s possible?”
Alex rested his hands behind him, pushing out his tummy. “Apparently. Go on, have a listen.”


Unsure, Lucy slowly and carefully bent down next to Alex’s belly. She cupped her hand around her ear and listened intently. All sorts of odd gurgles an unidentifiable noises emitted from Alex’s middle. Lucy’s eyes went wide and she placed her hands on her husband’s stomach. Alex saw Lucy’s surprise. “Pretty cool, huh?”
Lucy beamed up at Alex, smiling happily.“There’s really a baby in there!”
Alex chuckled. “Well, I don’t know about a baby.”


Lucy took a step back and cocked her head to the side. “What do you mean?”
Alex crossed his arms. “Lucy, it’s an alien. We have no idea what it looks like or how it will behave. It could be dangerous, to me and others. I was planning on heading to the hospital after this talk to have it removed. That way the media will be alerted and my family's name cleared.”
Lucy balked, her motherly instincts kicking in. “Removed?!"


Alex raised his eyebrows at his wife. “Yes, Lucy. It has be removed. Did you not hear what I said? This proves everything! My life's work is complete!”
Lucy wrinkled her nose and crossed her arms. “That’ll kill it.”
“Well, maybe not. It seems to be growing rather quickly. It’s possibly the gestation period will end rather shortly.” Alex shook his head. “That isn’t the point. My work is done. It may be better off dead now. It is a potential danger to me, you, anyone it comes in contact with.”
Lucy continued scoffing and frowning without saying a word.
Alex laughed. “Oh c’mon, Lucy. You are joking, correct?”


Lucy shook her head. “I don’t like this.”
Alex was appalled. “Lucy this thing could tear me open when it is ready to be born! I could die! Then you’re locked in the house with a vicious alien!”
Lucy paused for a moment and looked at her shoes. “We wanted a baby, Alex. We can’t make one, so we were given one. This is what we’ve been wanting. Besides, I don’t think it’s vicious.”


Alex thought and thought, not knowing what to say. He gave up, throwing up his hands. “Fine. Fine! But if it murders me, it’s your fault.”
Lucy’s face glowed as she smiled in excitement. “Oh, Alex! Thank you, thank you, thank you! I just know this baby is going to be perfect!”
Alex snorted. “Yeah. Whatever. I’m only agreeing to this for research. I don’t want to risk the hospital or military taking the fetus and making me out to be crazy.”
Lucy smirked. “Yeah sure, okay Alex.”
Suddenly, a strange smell filled the air. Alex sniffed. “Is something...burning?”
Lucy thought a moment until she realized what the smell was. “My pie!”, she exclaimed.


Lucy whipped around and snatched her blackened dessert out of the oven. Clouds of dark smoke filled the kitchen. Lucy sighed as she mourned her berry pie. Maybe I can’t handle an alien baby.


For the next few days, the Goths hid out in their home while Alex’s belly grew. Not wanting to risk being seen and questioned, the couple missed quite a few important family events. It was worth it, to Lucy, for the sake of the baby.


Eventually, the time came for Alex to go into labor. He felt strange, painful sensations in his abdomen and immediately began to holler. He gripped his stomach and swayed back and forth. “Lucy! Something is wrong!”
Alex threw back his head and screamed just as Lucy walked in. “Breathe Alex, just breathe! It’ll be over soon!”
Alex was panicked. “It’s tearing me apart! Just like I said! This is all your fault!”
Lucy began to worry, perhaps the baby was dangerous. “Don’t worry Alex! Childbirth hurts for women too!”


Before Alex could holler anymore, the baby was born. Alexander found himself holding a black eyed, green skinned infant. Alex looked into her eyes. “Remarkable!” The sight of his daughter took his breath away and he was instantly filled with nothing but love for the tiny creature. As she nuzzled calmly into his arm, he quickly realized the baby was neither vicious nor dangerous.


Lucy scurried over to come see her daughter. “She’s beautiful!”
Alex beamed, in utter shock. “It’s a miracle!”
Lucy played with the baby. “Hi there, precious! Hello there, Alba!”
A puzzled look spread across Alex’s face. “Alba?”


Lucy scooped up the baby and kissed her bald head. “Yes. Alba. That’s what we’re naming her.”
Alex watched his wife cuddle his alien daughter. “She’s really ours then. You were right.” He rubbed his head, mind still reeling in suprise.


The couple stayed silent, watching their new baby curiously. Lucy grew worried. “This isn't good. Nobody will understand, Alex. We’ve got to protect her.”
Alex nodded. “I've been thinking the same thing. t’s not safe for her here, or us. She’ll be taken, poked and prodded.”
Lucy’s eyes filled with tears. “We’ve got to get out of here. I’ve been doing some research...there’s a town down south where they see a lot of this.”
Alexander’s eyes went wide. “You mean I’m not the first to experience alien impregnation?”
Lucy nodded, bouncing Alba. “Not according to my research. It’s highly guarded by scientists and the military. Most of my findings were based on conspiracy theories.”
Alex pursed his lips and thought to himself a moment. “It’s worth a shot. We’ll leave in the morning. Where exactly are we off to?”
Lucy paused, thinking about all the friends and family she was about to leave behind. We have to. For Alba. She looked Alex in the eyes earnestly. “A place called Strangetown.”

TO BE CONTINUED