2.11 I know it's love that makes me feel this way

Her plans to take over the newspaper at some point demanded more of her time than Britney would have thought. To make sure the kids were alright at all times, she sometimes invited her sister Beth over, who she hadn’t seen for a long period of time. Beth was delighted to see her nieces and her nephew, but she did not approve of being used as a babysitter whenever Britney needed her. To her, it seemed like she was called up whenever it was convenient for her sister, and ignored for the rest of the time. Of course, Beth was willing to do anything for her family, and for her big sister, but this was a little too much, even for her. 

She never said anything, though. By her mother’s death, the family had broken apart a little, and she was desperately trying to fix it. Her marriage did not really challenge her, instead it was just boring. She couldn’t even muster up enough strength to work hard for a promotion at work, because the dull everyday life had drained all the zest for life out of her. The kids were giving some of that back to her.

Beth noticed that Christina followed her sister Cyra everywhere she went. Whenever she was talking to Cyra, Christina was there just one second later. She didn’t want to steal her sister’s thunder, she just seemed desperate for some attention. Beth wondered what had made her niece as needy as she was now, but when she approached Britney with this subject, her sister claimed that nothing was wrong, at all. No, absolutely nothing. All of them were doing fine, and no one was neglected at all. Beth, not having suggested any of this, drew conclusions from this reaction and tried to stop by for Christina more often. The girl needed a family, someone grown-up to talk to.

This, however, was too much for Britney. She felt like Beth was bursting into her life, trying to take away her children. She knew, of course, that Christina had to make it on her own most of the time, so she didn’t need her little sister to tell her that. Everything was going to be fine at some point, after she had taken over the newspaper, which had become her ultimate goal by now. And whoever didn’t accept that was no longer welcome in this house.

She had been working for a perfect life for too long now, and nothing was going to mess this up.

The only day she allowed herself to shut the computer down for an entire day, and to have some fun, was on Halloween. Her kids had begged her to throw a party, which she did.

Christina didn’t want to participate, instead she wandered around the neighborhood and collected candy on her own. Most people didn’t recognize her without her sister marching in front of her, but she still was given numerous pieces of candy. 

Everybody else had a blast at the party, including all of Britney’s siblings, who she had invited to come along. This was the perfect night to patch things up with Beth, who hadn’t returned her calls for a while now. What had been said that night hadn’t been very kind, and both of them were hurt. Before Britney could speak her mind, unexpected nausea came over her and she had to run to the bathroom. When she got up from the ground, feeling queasy and sick, Beth was already waiting for her. She was smiling and asked whether Britney would prefer another girl or a second boy.

Indeed, she was pregnant again, and released from work for the time being. Since her plans were no longer a secret, this was best for everybody. Although she was fairly sure that nobody would dare to physically hurt her or the unborn baby, she no longer felt safe in those rooms. Every single one of her colleagues looked down at her, some made snotty remarks about her being pregnant for the third time, and a couple of them aimed at getting on her nerves as much as possible. Paper stacks disappeared, interviews were deleted, and coffee was spilled all over newest research. Somehow, she kept a smile up on her face, but it failed to reach her eyes. The whole situation was getting to her, and having a few months off would help to sort things out. Fortunately, her boss had to pay her maternity leave, so that they didn’t have to worry about money at all.

Spending more time at home visibly relaxed Britney, so much that she started transferring her new calmness to her children. Christina started being more open-minded and occasionally met with a girl whose parents were very poor and could not afford to buy her the newest technical gadgets. Therefore, most kids forewent her during classes and in the afternoon. Christina knew what it felt like to be unpopular, and the two girls decided to hang out every now and then. Even though it was rather a friendship of convenience, making both girls feel less lonely, Christina noticeably flourished. 

Britney also made some new acquaintances. Surprisingly, no one less than the sister of the guy who had once robbed Britney of all her work secrets came up to her, congratulating her on the way she was heading, workwise. Britney hesitated to respond to this in any way, because she considered this to be trick or a sick joke of some sort. It wasn’t. The woman, who introduced herself as Mercedes, told Britney that she had been watching her journalistic efforts for quite some time now, and admired the way she handled everything. Especially with her boss being a former criminal.

It took Britney a minute to respond to this. A former criminal? She had not known about this. Apparently, he had come all the way across the country, having been in prison for a few years and trying to start a new life. Not many people knew about this, but now Britney did. And she beamed with happiness as soon as she heard it. This was going to be the straw that broke the camel’s back! [a/n: where’s the sense in that saying? I don’t get it. Why break a camel’s back? And with a straw? Never mind.] Once she revealed his background story, nobody would stand between her and the executive chair.

Thrilled, she spent all of her time on the computer again, doing research about her boss and finding more than enough. Not only had he been a criminal in his hometown, arrested for stealing money from the company he had previously worked for, he was also a known pimp. This was getting better by the second. Britney could already see the new name on the side of the building, introducing the world to her very own newspaper.

But before that, it was time for Christopher to age up into a child! Months had passed so quickly, and he had spent most of this time with his father.

He insisted on keeping his hairstyle, and his parents agreed. He looked cute, yet sure of what he wanted. There was no way their boy was going to experience trouble in life later, unlike his sisters. He would be fine once he was left alone.

Maybe he was going to be an artist, entering the world with his famous paintings and exhibitions. His first works already showed a distinct understanding of the world he lived in, and even though he still lacked certain techniques, the deep and meaningful combinations of colors and the wideness of his paintings expressed the creativity that was in his head. Nature and abstract trains of thoughts merged into mysterious beauty.

As Britney’s pregnancy progressed, the backaches forced her to kick back much more than she wanted. At least this gave her the chance to watch her girls interacting with each other. It was obvious that Christina grew more independent from her sister with every week that passed, yet she was far from being a self-confident girl. Only time could tell how she was going to adapt to the circumstances in her house, the circumstances that were constantly changing.

Way too soon, Britney went into labour. She had been assured that it was at least two more months before she had to give birth, so she was scared to no end when the first contractions hit her. As quickly as she could, she headed to the hospital where a surprise was waiting for her.

Twins, again! She named them Chad and Carole, and when she was finally able to take them home, she and Karim made a decision.

They were done now. Their family was complete with five wonderful children. Britney really hoped that she would not be alone in this, that Karim finally understood that all of the children were his responsibility, just as they were hers, and that all of them needed his constant affection, and his unconditional love.

That night, Britney spent many hours at her grand piano, playing a number of songs she knew. The music that came from the beautiful instrument calmed her, and the feeling her fingers gave her as they ran over the black and white keys was indescribable. It had been long since she had written her last songs, but now so many ideas overran her mind, not stopping for one moment. Her children were her inspiration, and this was the way it was always going to be.

Author's notes: I most certainly didn't expect them to have twins again! Britney had gotten that hormone therapy when she was much younger, and then I forgot all about it. Until now. Chad is named after Chad Kroeger, the lead singer of Nickelback. Carole's namesake is Carole King, whose music I absolutely adore. No more babies, I promise! Well, at least I hope so. Karim is pretty old already, and I don't want her to raise the kids all on her own. That would be like an re-enactment of her mother's life. 
I'm caught up here now, which is why I will go over to the Vocis' save and play some more. I already have an idea who I want to be heir, and I have started indicating it, too. ;)