Chapter 1.4: A fruit tree in winter

The reality of house bills hits Silvia really hard. Right when she felt like life was going to be better again, life had to throw her back down. Silvia hurries back up to her floor. As soon as she sees Irwin awake, she informs him of the bad news.

Irwin, again, comforts Silvia. They've pulled together §3,000 simoleons in a short amount of time. They can do it again, and faster since Irwin's been getting better at inventing, and Silvia's finished her second book, "Vampires: facts versus fantasy" and was working on her third book, "The Relationship between Vampires and Quailhogs Inc."

Silvia and Irwin use the money they've accumulated to pay for the bills, and both get back to work.

Although Silvia is taking time off from work, she's been interviewing people when she can and writing positive or negative reports about them. She constantly calls work and checks in. Her third book is finished. It was more like a long article than a real book. Luckily she got another writing opportunity. A wealthy reader had come across her books and wanted to sponsor her. Day and night, Silvia sat in front of her computer writing. 

No matter how relentlessly Silvia works, there are moments when she just can't concentrate. It's worst when Irwin is gone, either to the consignment store to sell stuff or to the junkyard to collect more scrap. When Irwin is at the Junkyard he would spend hours and hours there. Alone in their little studio, Silvia struggles to find motivation to continue working. Theses days she has an image of a tiny ant in her head. The ant frantically tries to move out of the way as a huge shoe stomps on the ground. The shoe misses, but barely. The ant continues scrambling to get ahead of the shoe, but it seems like the shoe gets closer and closer.

Rarely, but sometimes, Silvia and Irwin take a break at the same time. They usually lie on their bed and spend the night talking. Usually they talk about serious stuff, such as money and jobs, but they also talk about trivial stuff, like what their favorite food is, favorite color is. Silvia finds out that Irwin wanted to be an astronaut when he was younger. She laughs when Irwin tells her that he gave up on that dream because of the athletic skills it requires.

Irwin spends most of his time making widgets. 

Sometimes he gets frustrated and tired.

He takes a break by taking a nice, long bath. Silvia once saw his puffy hair wet and down and asked him why he didn't do anything about his hair. Irwin just doesn't care. His hair is naturally puffy like that. If his mom was around, she would force him to cut his hair. Now that he's an adult, he can choose what he wants to do with his hair. He chooses to do nothing about it. 

Irwin gets back to work. 

Despite being a handy, genius inventor, Irwin is actually very clumsy. He often gets stuck by the elevator doors and trips over nothing. 

After a few trips to the toilet, Silvia discovers that she's pregnant. Lately it's been all work and no play, so there's no question who the father is. The first thing that comes to her mind, sadly, is money. Baby = lot of money. She and Irwin don't have that much money. She's not even sure what Irwin would think. Since that night at the park, they haven't really had time to be romantic. They did flirt with each other occasionally, but  both of them had been so busy, and so exhausted. Technically, they were still just housemates. Possibly they were dating, but nothing's been said.

When Irwin comes back from the Junkyard, she blurts it out.

"I'm pregnant"

"Oh, well, umm, pregnancy is a natural consequence of woohoo intercourse, and it's the fertilization of...." Irwin fumbles.

"Irwin, I know what a pregnancy is. I'm pregnant with our baby." Silvia is used to Irwin now, but she's still unsure how he would react. Silvia waits for Irwin's brilliant brain to understand the situation. She tries to come up with reasons why they should keep the baby. Given that "they" would be together.

"That's amazing! I mean, brilliant! I mean, wonderful! Silvia, are you really, really pregnant? Does that mean you have a baby inside your stomach? I mean, that does mean you have a baby in your stomach. Our baby. But, how does a baby fit in your stomach? I mean, I've read the biology books about it, but they don't say much about pregnancy. I need to read a pregnancy book!" Irwin is beaming with joy and happiness. Silvia is delighted and relieved. It seems Irwin is taking it well.  She wonders how Irwin is so full of happiness even in times like this.

"Irwin-, a baby is going to cost a lot of money. I don't know if we can afford this" Silvia doesn't want to put a damper on his spirits, but she tries to be the realistic one. 

"I know, but we'll get through it. I know we will. We're getting close to §3,000 now. We can get that cure soon, and you can start working again. We'll get through this." Irwin sounds so sure about it. Silvia thinks he's being too optimistic, but when he says it like that, she feels like she can almost believe it too.

One night as they get ready for bed, Irwin mentions the possibility of moving places. The apartment bills are just way too high, and saving §3,000 while keeping up with bill payments seem like it would take a long time. Also, the one room studio has absolutely no space for expansion. Since Silvia will be having a baby soon, it might be a better idea to move into a house instead of the apartment they are currently living in. Silvia agrees and they get ready to move. 

 Another house bill is looming over them. They manage to pay it by selling the apartment. They have a little over 11,000 simoleons left after paying the bills. They manage to buy a small plot of land right outside downtown, not too far from their previous home. It's about the same distance away from Silvia's job. It's slightly further away from the junkyard, but Irwin assures her that it's not a big deal. The house is tiny; smaller than the apartment even, but now they can expand as the family grow larger and they have more money.

Irwin has a collection of items he's salvaged from the junkyard. He had hoped to be able to repair and use them, but it turns out none of the electronic appliances were in any condition to be fixed. Luckily, furniture pieces are still usable. Irwin decides to detonate the junk for scrap and causes a fire disaster.

All the neighbors came around to watch as Irwin extinguished the fire. 
Silvia, in a sentimental mood, decided she wanted a picture of the disaster.

Irwin lucks out and get a lucrative job opportunity with the military. After making three floor hygienators for the military, he gets paid a handsome amount, enough to finally buy the Vampirism B-gone potion. Silvia basks in the sun, this would be the last time she burns under the sun.

gulp gulp gulp

and, she checks herself on the phone, just to see if she's back to normal.

She quickly runs out to hug Irwin. She's so grateful that Irwin was there through the whole thing.

"I really couldn't have made it through without you." Silvia shyly admits. She would have never imagined that this geeky, awkward housemate would mean so much to her. They haven't talked at all about future plans, but now that the vampire situation is over, Silvia hopes they will have some time to discuss their possible future together soon.

On his way back home from the junkyard, Irwin takes a detour to the local stylist. He never really cared about his appearance. He didn't care about how he looked, and certainly nobody else seemed to care. But, 

He recalls a conversation he had with Silvia on one of their late night breaks. They were on the topic of glasses. Silvia told him that the glasses she wears to work are fake; they don't have any prescription. Silvia went on to talk about how important it was to look professional if you wanted to be taken seriously. 

Irwin looked at himself in the mirror. He knew he looked like a kid. Many people thought he was younger 

than Silvia, when they were actually the same age. To some extent, he liked being mistaken as a teenager. It was a nice excuse for a lot of awkward situations. There are a lot of unwritten rules adults in grey suits must follow. However, as long as Irwin dressed as he usually does, he was more or less exempt from those rules. 

'But I'm going to be a father now' Irwin thought to himself. 

He also had a serious, life-changing event planned out. He wanted to be perceived as being serious. It was time for a makeover.

A haircut, new glasses, new clothes. 

Irwin feels a bit awkward, more awkward than usual. The person in the mirror doesn't really look like him, doesn't really feel like him. He looks, so much more like a real adult.

He changes into formal clothes and checks himself out in the mirror. He finds a pimple and quickly exterminates it. He feels awkward but confident. Ready to take a big step and head into adulthood.

It takes a moment for Silvia to recognize Irwin. The only thing she could say was,

 "Ha, hair.... Irwin, your hair!"

Irwin has another surprise for Silvia hidden behind him.

"Do you like it?" Irwin asks.

"I love it! Thank you so much Irwin!"

Irwin still has one more surprise up his sleeve

"Silvia, will you..."

Everything was going so smoothly, just like Irwin had planned. But, his clumsiness strikes yet again, as he almost drops the box.

Luckily, Irwin catches the box, saving him from further embarrassment. 

"Silvia, will you marry me?" Irwin asks with a shy grin.

"Yes, yes, yes! Of course! Yes!" Silvia is so happy, she's almost scared that she can be so happy. 

They decide to have a quick private wedding right then and there. Silvia's due date is right around the corner, and they both didn't have any relatives to contact for a big wedding party.

Their one audience to the wedding is the baby. The new husband excitedly tells the baby the good news. 

As if one cue, Silvia goes into labor. Talk about a shotgun wedding.

Silvia gives birth to a beautiful baby girl. She names her Samantha. She's a perfectly normal baby, with nothing missing and something extra. Samantha is a vampire.

Silvia curses Basil, curses any Sim God she can think of, curses all those scientists who participated in Vampire B-gone project. Irwin is right behind Silvia, aw-ing and coo-ing at the little princess. She's just a baby, but she's beautiful. He's also simultaneously explaining to Silvia possible reasons for why Samantha was born a vampire. 

"You WERE a vampire for most of the pregnancy, and the cure potion was an unfinished test product. The most likely reason is the fact that the potion was meant for one person only. It cured you of your vampirism, but not Samantha's."

It's hard for Silvia to whole-heartedly love baby Samantha. Irwin doesn't seem to mind at all that the baby is a vampire. He just seems so happy to have a little girl. To Silvia, Samantha is a constant reminder of her dark vampire days. She had hoped by taking time off from work, and staying home most of the time, nobody would know of what had happened. She feels guilty for having feelings like this. She wants to be a good mother, a loving mother. She's not so confident about it anymore.

The little baby, oblivious of her mother's inner turmoil, smiles and reaches out for her mama. Without even thinking, Silvia smiles back and coos at the daughter. She realizes how natural that was, how easy it was to smile and snuggle her daughter. Life has its ups and downs. So far Silvia has been having one very bumpy ride, but she knows now that troubles will pass, and that Irwin will be with her.

"Welcome to the world, Samantha"

Silvia smiles lovingly at her daughter. Raising this child will definitely not be easy. But she won't be alone in the endeavor, and she won't give up without even trying. 

Irwin begs Silvia for a chance to hold Samantha. Irwin melts as he snuggles the baby.

"I think I'm in love. She's the prettiest thing that's ever existed!" Irwin is in love.

Silvia smiles while looking at the father and daughter. With Irwin by her side, Samanthat will grow up in a loving family. She's sure of it. 

________________--

Chapter Notes:

Wow, this random legacy thing is definitely throwing random obstacles in my face at every moment. I really wasn't sure how the pregnancy would work out, since Silvia got cured during the pregnancy. I did think that there might be a chance of getting a vampire baby. And,,, wah lah~!

I'm really excited about the next generation now. Baby vampire Samanthat is super adorable and slightly creepy at the same time. She looks so different from the regular identical babies, which makes her look so much prettier. 

Here is the roll for Generation 2:

Mixed Couple

2 children

Professional Sports

Job Hopper

5 Star Celeb

Multi Cultural

Samantha got the Adventurous and Loves the Outdoors traits.

Her favorite musics is French, her favorite food is shwarmas.... sooooooo-  ;)

Title: 

Sometimes our fate resembles a fruit tree in winter.

Who would think that those branches would turn

green again and blossom, but we hope it, we know it.

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe