Forums » General Roleplay » Meet Cute: A Meeting of Two Mothers (Closed)

It started as a normal day for young expecting mother Shinoa Bradford. Since she was expecting twins, Shinoa had decided to take a day to relax, having spent the last two to three weeks nesting, from cleaning up around the house to putting together the nursery, which was completed as of about a week ago with help from her Father. The carpet was shampooed and vacuumed, not a single plate in the sink or the dishwasher, the kitchen was swept and mopped...the garage was re-organized. With everything pretty much squared away and with her dog, Max, traveling with her Father on his business trip, Shinoa decided to take it easy. At thirty-seven weeks pregnant, she was about ready to pop any day now, but the two buns in the oven were being stubborn and choosing to overbake. Since it was gonna be an easy day, Shinoa decided to go to the Park to relax, maybe watch the birds, sit by the pond...or just waddle around the park, get her exercise in. Or maybe go get Ice Cream? Who knows, Shinoa would decide once she actually gets to the park.

One Bus Ride Later...
Upon arriving by bus, Shinoa needed a moment to stretch out her legs, which was a bit awkward with her swollen belly. Looking at her reflection on a tinted car window, she frowned before sighing and straightened out her dress. Slowly, she began waddling into the park, keeping her purse close. Looking around her, Theresa took note of how lively the other patrons in the park were. Going for a run, playing with their dogs, socializing even. Finding a spot by the lake, Shinoa ended up on the grass by the edge, smiling as she watched geese and birds flying in to swim in the lake. As she watched the birds, Shinoa also began caressing her very pregnant belly, a smile on her face.

It had been a... stressful day for Esmeralda, to say the least. While she didn't have any classes, she'd been having trouble making any progress on the story she was trying to write. Constant interruptions from a fussy, clingy baby didn't help either. Every few minutes, she'd find herself needing to get up to feed, change, or just cuddle Aiden, who was sitting beside her in a playpen that was set up for him in the living room as she worked, until he would settle down before starting up again a few minutes later.

Sighing with defeat and deciding she wasn't going to get any work done this way, Esmeralda decided to get some fresh air with her son and take him to the local park. Throwing on a simple blue blouse and jeans with some tennis shoes and semi-successfully dressing Aiden in a little onsie with cartoon pandas on them, she set out after informing the family she was living with where she was going.

As she pushed Aiden along in a stroller, she laughed softly to herself as he babbled, looking around the park with the pure wonder of a baby. Eventually, she had come across a nice spot by a lake, though she soon noticed someone else was there. "Oh, um... is it alright if I sit here for a while?" she asked a bit shyly. Aiden continued to babble happily.

Shinoa's smile never left her face, and she proceeded to look down at her belly. At this stage, she couldn't even see her feet anymore, not even the edge of her toes or toenails. Slowing down, she then cradled the unborn twins, interlocking her hands beneath the belly and then taking a deep breath as she looked up to see some of the birds flying off into the distance and in different directions. The gentle breeze proceeded to blow against her long hair and her dress a little bit. Her train of thought ceased as she heard another woman's voice. Shinoa turned around and looked in the direction of the other woman and also saw the infant in the stroller, who seemed relatively happy. Her hands slowly moved to her back as she gave the woman a warm smile. "Sure. I don't mind the company." She said. "How old's the little one?" She asked.

Smiling a bit, Esmeralda softly replied "Thanks" before taking out a blanket and laying it down on the ground. As she was taking Aiden out of the stroller, she caught the question from the other woman.

"He's two months." she noted, smiling brightly at Aiden, who cooed happily and began chewing on his fingers, causing Esmeralda to sigh a bit, though she still kept a gentle smile on her face as she gently pried his hand out of his mouth. "Aiden, honey, you really shouldn't be doing that."

It was then that she noticed the woman's stomach. "Oh, are you expecting? How far along are you?"

Shinoa simply watched as the mother lifted the infant out of his stroller after laying out a blanket on the ground. Such a happy baby, she thought, given how giggly he was and how he began chewing on his fingers before his hand was pried out of his mouth by his Mother, who told him that he shouldn't do that, prompting the expectant woman to smile, because it was rather cute. Adorable even. And it made Shinoa herself excited to when she got to me a Mother herself, granted it looked like it was gonna be a while until then. The other woman then asked if she was expecting and how far along she was. "I am. Thirty-seven weeks and expecting twins." She replied as she glanced down at the belly before putting a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Ah, so they'll be here any day, huh? Are you excited?" Esmeralda asked, a gentle smile on her face. "Oh! How silly of me, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Esmeralda, and this little one is my son, Aiden." Aiden, who was now laying on the blanket, waved his little hands around, giggling at the sound of his name. Esmeralda sat next to him, gently tickling his stomach, which made him giggle even more.

Her hands slow slid from her lower back to her belly as she cradled it once more. "Yeah, any day now. I thought they'd be here last weekend, but nope, they're being relatively stubborn about staying their mommy's tummy." She giggled. "Other then that, yes, I am very excited for the big day coming up."

As the conversation progressed, the other woman soon introduced herself as Esmeralda as well as her infant son, Aiden, who giggled, even more so when his mother tickled his stomach. "Cute. Well, I'm Shinoa. And it's wonderful to meet you, Esmeralda." She straightened out her dress. "So what brings you and Aiden out today?"

Esmeralda let out a soft laugh in response to what the other woman had said. "Well, hopefully they won't give you too much trouble when they decide to come out. I think I only slept for two hours a night that first week after Aiden was born. And there are still nights that he decides he doesn't want to sleep well."

As Shinoa introduced herself, Esmeralda smiled. "Shinoa... that's a pretty name. It's wonderful to meet you as well. As for why we're here... well..." a soft, amused sigh escaped her lips before she continued. "I guess you could say we both needed some fresh air. Aiden was being especially fussy today and a fussy baby doesn't really help when you're trying to get work done, so I figured a bit of sunshine at the park was a good idea for the both of us. What about you?"

When Esmeralda mentioned the lack of sleep after her son was born, she had heard some stories when at the hospital in the waiting room, where she hears new moms talk about the lack of sleep, not to mention that she read about it in one of the pregnancy guides she had at home. However, she wasn't the most worried because she was also living with her Father and Grandmother, who'd be able to help on occasion so that she could rest. But hopefully the babies wouldn't be too fussy or anything, or the entire Bradford household would have their work cut out for them.

Shinoa smiled when Esmeralda told her about how she and Aiden needed fresh air and how he was being fussy while she was trying to get work done. So a working Mom too? Must be tough. Not to mention the woman didn't look all too much older then Shinoa herself. "Kinda the same. I just wanted to get out of the house. My Dad and my Grandma are both out of town right now. I also have a Dog, but he's away with my Dad. So I've been home alone and feeling coped up in my room. So I just took the bus here because I can't drive comfortably anymore." She smiled.

She would then turn to look out at the lake, watching birds swim around, dip their heads in the water briefly, fly away and all. "And I came to enjoy the view. Being around the water relaxes me."

(Blech, sorry for taking so long to respond! Busy day today.)

A look of slight surprise flashed across Esmeralda's face when Shinoa mentioned her dad and grandmother, though she quickly brushed it off. "Ah, so you've got you're family to help out? That's always nice. The people I live with are always offering to help out, but I always feel bad when they do since they've already done so much for me." a soft, slightly guilty, laugh escaped her. Though, she smiled at what Shinoa had said next. "It is a pretty view over here." she agreed.

As the two women spoke, Aiden stared up at Shinoa with wide, curious eyes. Esmeralda let out a soft laugh when she noticed. "I think Aiden's curious about you... would you like to hold him?"

((You're good. It's only been a day. And I know the feeling.))

"Yeah. Though lately, my Dad has been traveling a lot because of what he does for work and my Grandma is on the other side of the world." She responded. "Sadly because of the two buns in the oven, me and my Mom aren't on talking terms anymore, so without my Dad and my Grandma, I don't know what I'd do." Her smile turned into a frown as she began holding her belly, stroking it as she felt one of the twins beginning to kick.

And it was near impossible to tell which one was kicking. Her frown left as quickly as it came when she looked over at the birds again, coming and leaving, swimming around in the water. "But I'm grateful. Just wish I had my Dog, but my Dad wanted me to have more time to rest."

Her gaze traveled down to the infant, who was staring with curiosity. "Oh, no. But thank you. Is he curious about the big belly?" She asked, smiling and letting out a soft laugh.

"Ugh, it sucks not being on speaking terms with family... my parents pretty much immediately kicked me out when I told them I was pregnant with Aiden and I haven't seen or heard from them since..." Esmeralda sighed, though soon brushed it off with a soft smile. "Still, the family that took me in is really nice... I guess we can both count ourselves lucky we have somewhere we can go and people we can rely on at the end of the day."

She soon let out a soft laugh in response to what Shinoa had said next. "He probably is. He's always curious about every new thing that he sees. Probably going to be getting into a lot of trouble with that curiosity when he gets older." Aiden continued to stare at Shinoa, though he soon offered her a bright smile and giggle.

Well, that was something Shinoa could agree with Esmeralda on. Not being on talking terms with her family really sucked. And it was heartbreaking to hear how her parents had kicked her out. Shinoa once again frowned as she thought about how things went with her Mother when she found out about the pregnancy and what had happened with the test. Though she wasn't kicked out immediately, there were several fights and arguments before then, which got worse as soon as Shinoa found out she was expecting twins. After that, her Mother kicked her out and she moved in with her Father and Grandmother, who were appalled by their Mother's behavior. Since then, she hasn't spoken to her Mother or that side of the family. If not for them, Shinoa probably would have had a much more stressful pregnancy.

Her attention soon turned back to the infant, Aiden. "Well, I guess it won't hurt to satisfy the curiosity, just a little bit. I should probably sit down anyway, my back is starting to hurt." She took a deep breath.

If there was anything she wanted to complain about aside from the bathroom frequency, it was the difficulty breathing. Sadly this weighed a little more on her because of growing two human beings. "Mind if I join you and Aiden for a little bit?"

Esmeralda shot Shinoa a sympathetic smile when she mentioned back pain. "I know that struggle. My back was always killing me when I was pregnant, and that was just with one kid. Can't imagine how much worse it is with two." she spoke, nodding in response to Shinoa asking to join her and Aiden for a bit. "Go right ahead. There's plenty of room on the blanket." Aiden cooed happily, clapping his hands.

Shinoa only nodded at the mention of the back pain. Must've been the bane of every pregnant woman. And it always got worse the further along the pregnancy had progressed. Sadly, Shinoa didn't know what it was like with one baby, as this was her first pregnancy. To have conceived twins naturally at her age still left her rather shocked, as she believed that twins were more common with older women, like anywhere passed twenty-six or even twenty-seven. "Makes it tough for me to be on my feet longer then thirty minutes. Most days I just wanna lay in bed or sit on the couch all day long." She said as she began waddling towards Esmeralda and Aiden.

When she got on the blanket, she straightened out her dress before slowly sitting down with the mother and infant. Taking a deep breath and then straightening out her hair and stretching out her legs, she looked down at Aiden, before smiling. "Hello there, little one." She greeted him before reaching out with her finger, wondering how he'd react.

Esmeralda gave Shinoa another sympathetic smile. "Well, hopefully the little ones decide to come soon and you won't have to deal with the back pain too much longer."

As Shinoa reached her finger out towards him, Aiden happily grabbed a hold of it, beaming and giggling up at her. Esmeralda smiled softly at the scene. "Well, Aiden seems to like you. Just be careful. He has a tendency to try and put anything he can get his hands on in his mouth. He doesn't have teeth yet, but still." she noted with a soft laugh. "I still can't believe he's already two months. Feels like he was a brand new baby only yesterday..."

Shinoa started gently caressing her belly while also entertaining Aiden. Given how much the little one has already grown, Shinoa was certainly worried about how much time would fly and how it probably would not be long until her twins were toddlers and getting ready for pre-school. As she smiled, she kept an eye on Aiden as she played with him, mainly so that her finger doesn't end up in his mouth. "One thing I have heard is that they grow up fast." She then looked down at her belly still on her face, as she caressed it, her face lighting up as she felt a kick or two. "To have a life growing inside of you is a miracle on its own. But to have two growing at the same time. It really is a blessing. The only downside is that I can't ever tell which one's kicking." She sighed happily. "While I'll miss having them in my tummy, there are things about pregnancy I definitely won't miss."

Esmeralda smiled gently at the scene between Aiden and Shinoa. As Shinoa continued to play with him, Aiden continued to giggle, obviously having quite a bit of fun and enjoying the attention.

Though, as Shinoa spoke, Esmeralda let out a soft laugh, nodding in agreement. "I certainly don't miss the back pain and the nausea from pregnancy... and yeah, it is pretty miraculous... though, I don't blame people who don't want to be pregnant. It's definitely a big task, especially if you don't have the resources to support it." she sighed, but soon shook her head, smiling. "Regardless, have you thought of names for you little ones?"

Not missing back pain and nausea during pregnancy was definitely something that Shinoa could agree with Esmeralda on. While the easiest way for her to combat nausea was to drink peppermint tea, which also helped out with the morning sickness early on, there weren't too many ways for her to combat the backache, especially since she didn't have a significant other to turn to for love or comfort. So whenever she was dealing with back pain, she'd be sitting on the couch, but the belly band did help a lot since she was now in the third trimester. "Mmmm, I won't miss either of them. You can also add in the constant gassiness. I will definitely not miss that at all." She added, chuckling. "Or the stomach growls. Those can get pretty embarrassing."

As the conversation continued, Shinoa only nodded as she looked down at her belly, feeling a kick around the moment that Esmeralda said that she didn't blame anyone for not wanting to get pregnant, especially if there was no access to resources to support it. On that note, Shinoa was very lucky to have had her Father and Grandmother to support her, both emotionally and financially. Not everyone was that lucky though. "I was lucky there, but I can't say the same for everyone else. Definitely made for a less stressful pregnancy." Shinoa commented. "Carrying life and bringing it into the world is stressful on its own, so I can't imagine what'd be like without the necessary support or resources which are very important."

When asked if she had names for the little one, Shinoa shook her head. "I haven't. Though I should probably decide soon since I don't have much longer until I pop."

Esmeralda let out a soft laugh when Shinoa mentioned the gassiness and the stomach growls. "Oh god, don't remind me. The gas and stomach growls were terrible when I was pregnant." Though a bit of a saddened smile crossed her face as Shinoa mentioned not imagining what it would be like to not have support or resources during pregnancy.

"It's hard to not have those resources, trust me... I'm lucky Aiden and I are both alive and healthy today. Being pregnant and homeless is... hard. I'm grateful the family who took me in found me when they did..." she sighed, though soon shook her head as if to clear away thoughts that were starting to cloud her mind. "Ah, sorry, I'm probably bringing down the mood. I could try and help with trying to figure out names, if you'd like."