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WOW that was fast! =D Hey everybody! Here's chapter two of the ongoing story of Petie and Momma finally getting some help!
As she hinted last chapter Vastella is now trying to help Momma overcomer her issues of her husband all but abandoning her, but will the snooping psychics help Gwen or hurt her? You won't get to find out cause somebody a bit more capable will take over helping the older lady in a rather unexpected way! =D
This time the ink blot is to represent the top of an abomasnow head! =D Why? Read to find out! ^w^
Anyway enjoy and thanks for reading! ^w^
All characters owned by me
“I don’t know…”
”Come on, you haven’t had a night out since you’ve moved here… probably longer!”
”But Petie…”
”Is staying at Andrew’s house for a sleepover, Jules is too, I heard it from them this morning. I think they’ll be fine.”
”But…”
”You’ve met Andrew’s mother and explained to her about all of your baby bears quirks and several of Jules; I know this isn’t their first time doing this.”
”Well yes…”
”And you trust her to keep them safe and that they’ll have a good time, right?”
”Yes, I do… but…”
”And I happen to recall you got your latest book done ahead of schedule and sent to your publisher, right?”
“I did…”
”Then why not have a night out on the town? Your kids are safe. Your work is done, and your best friend is asking nicely… so why not?”
”W-well… I… but… oh all right… but just this one time, okay?”
”We’ll see how you enjoy it before I make that promise Gwen.”
”Fine…”
”Don’t look so glum! I promise this’ll be a night you won’t forget!”
*********************
Gwendolyn sighed as she slowly showered and gave her fur a deep washing and shampoo. Maybe Vastella did have a point… she hadn’t had a night out on the town, well one without bringing Petie along, for a long time now. So long she actually couldn’t remember when the last time had been. Probably when her husband was still around…
Shaking her head to chase that thought out of it she focused on her shower as she plucked up some lavender scented fur-wash, it might just be one night out but at the very least she wanted to look her best for it. She had no clue where Vastella would take her after all. After finishing washing her fur she focused on washing her hair. She normally didn’t put too much effort into her appearance since she only went out to go shopping, take Petie somewhere, go to book signings or see one of her publishers in person… the latter had mercifully been happening less as of late since most of her publishers and book signings required her to make an overnight trip. Even with so many reliable babysitters she felt just as nervous letting Petie and Jules stay with them as she had been when Petie was a toddler and cried whenever she left the room.
Finishing her shower and stepping out to dry off she stole a glance in the mirror. She wasn’t much for personal vanities but even she had to admit for a mother of three she looked amazingly good… which was probably why she could pull off looking so young in those commercials with Petie. She blushed a little remembering all the diaper commercials Petie and Jules had shot for Cuddlebutts with her playing the mother. She wasn’t sure it was a good idea when Petie had talked her into signing the contract for them… but she had a small part of her that enjoyed looking so young again, like back when she and Alex had just been dating.
Focusing back on the task at hand she dried off and started on brushing out her hair. It wasn’t so much to help style it as to give it a glossy shine, Gwen’s hair was well know for just bouncing back into its natural shape no matter how much attention she gave it. Looking her face over she decided she might as well put on her make up now… Vastella had asked her to dress nicely and none of her nice outfits would get close enough to her face to smudge it any.
Slowly applying her make up she couldn’t help but remember her children… back to how little Petie always found it hilarious to ask for a kiss just after she put her lipstick on and giggled at the mark it left, to when she first taught Sarah how to put it on and caught her practicing on Petie less then an hour later, all the way back to how when Alex Jr. was a toddler he somehow always found a way to get a hold of her lipstick and use it to scribble on the wall. She sighed softly as she finished her touch ups. Her children were her life, since her husband never came home they were her guiding light in the storm and she could find herself remembering them in the smallest things.
Going back to her room it took her a few minutes of digging around in her closet to find what she was looking for. She pulled the soft blue sleeveless dress out and looked it over. She hadn’t worn this one since she received that award for one of her short stories several years back… but considering her other nice dresses were even older this was probably the only one she could still fit into. It took her a moment to get it on and it was a little tighter then she’d expected, but it fortunately looked okay and wasn’t too uncomfortable… though she wasn’t sure she liked how well it showed off her figure. This was just a night out after all; she didn’t need to attract any unwanted attention.
Pulling a coat on in case it got nippy and grabbing her purse she stopped long enough to give herself one more once over in the mirror to make sure everything was in place and she looked all right. She couldn’t resist a slight smirk, she looked like she was years younger on her way to a date. Shaking her head slightly she headed out the door to meet up with Vastella, her on a date? That’s a laugh; she was married after all…
***************
This should work… it should work or it could backfire horribly. Vastella seriously hoped it was the former. Her plan was simple and to the point, meaning it could probably go wrong in more ways then she could imagine. Pushing that thought out of her head she focused on smiling and making casual conversation with Gwen. It’d been too long since they just got to talk about everyday stuff without bringing Petie or Jules up but this was also to keep Gwen from focusing to much on missing her little ones and wanting to go back home.
Her first goal was to get Gwen back out into the world and interacting with adults other then her publishers talking to her about her latest work, fans wanting her to sign a book, or something to do with her kids. Ever since her husband had all but abandoned her she’d cut off contact and all but shut herself up in mothering and writing… and if Vastella wanted to help her any with her husband issues she had to get her out of that little prison she’d made for herself. Of course that wasn’t to say it was going to be easy…
Her first stop was a little night club by the name of Ricky’s. It wasn’t fancy, it wasn’t huge, it wasn’t anything special… but it was a place people went to relax, unwind, have a drink, and maybe enjoy a little music and dancing, a nice, calm, casual place. If anything it would be the perfect spot to go to get Gwen comfortable to the idea of going out for the night and enjoying herself rather then staying home again… at least that was the plan. There were just so many ways this could go wrong Vastella was already thinking of various ways to run damage control even as they walked through the door.
**************
She sighed, lightly swishing her drink with one claw before picking it up and taking a sip. Gwen felt so out of place here she wasn’t even nervous, just annoyed and bored. She wasn’t sure why Vastella dragged her here... sure the music was okay but this really wasn’t her kind of thing. Despite Vastella’s prodding to get out on the dance floor she’d snuck over to the bar and ordered something mild to drink… she wasn’t big on alcohol but she could enjoy it a little at least. Mostly she was just trying to go unnoticed… a feat that took considerable skill considering she was one of the tallest people in the place.
Sighing and having another sip of her drink she watched Vastella socialize and enjoy the dance floor, the Gothitelle casually glancing at her every few minutes… probably checking on whether or not she given up and tried to leave yet no doubt. Sighing again Gwen shifted in her seat, it’s not in her nature to just up and leave so she might as well try to find SOMETHING to enjoy here. Looking around at the people in the club again she settled into an old hobby she hadn’t had a chance to indulge in very often as of late, people watching.
Getting comfortable in her chair she started looking around. She used to do this all the time… at one point it was her best way to come up with new characters for her books. In fact she could remember doing it every time she took her kids to the playground. Taking another sip of her drink she looked around. Where to start? Maybe the zangoose and seviper couple alternating dancing and trying to kill each other on the far side of the room? That looked like it was going to go places… probably the hospital…
“Pardon me, is this seat taken?”
“Huh? Oh, no. Go right ahead?”
She blinked and looked to see who spoke, having answered purely on reflex. “Thank you.” She found herself looking at a large Abomasnow guy; he was as tall as her if not taller which was quite a feat. As he sat down she looked him over, beyond being tall and broadly built he looked surprisingly calm and neat, despite wearing an outfit that looked like he just came from the gym. She immediately noticed the official pro league logo on his outfit. So he worked in the league somewhere? Interesting…
Still looking him over she noted he didn’t look like a fighter. Sure he was big and probably intimidating for smaller folks but he didn’t look like he fought for a living… though she couldn’t quite place what made her think that. Then she realized she’d been staring at him for the past minute and he was looking back with a bemused look on his face.
“Oh! Oh... sorry…”
“It’s okay… and no I’m not a fighter.”
”… It was that obvious?”
He chuckled and shook his head “Naaa… it’s just normally the first thing people ask whenever they seem me in my work duds.” he said, his voice polite and slightly amused. Now she understood why she somehow knew he wasn’t a fighter. His disposition, his expression, he just didn’t seem like the kind of person who could actually purposely fight against somebody. “Well then, are you going to leave me in suspense or are you gonna tell me what your job is then?” she asked, finding herself smiling as well.
“I work in Physical therapy, I’m the guy who keeps the fighters from ending up hurting themselves.” He said, a small amount of pride in his voice as he grinned “Now how bout you? You managed to squeeze what I do for a living out of me, care to fill me in on what you do?” he asked still smiling. She chuckled and shrugged “I’m a writer actually… been writing for a long time.” He nods, eyes showing he was actually listening and paying attention “What do you write then? Magazine articles, fiction, technical info, or something else?”
“Actually I’m a fiction writer… I dabble mostly in fantasy and science fiction, light novels and that sort of thing.” She said off hand, hiding a smile “Why? You much of a reader?” he gave a pleasant laugh and shook his head “Not really… not as much as I’d like to be anyway.” Still smiling he looked back at her “Anyway I come here every so often… but I don’t remember ever seeing you before. Are you new in town?” Hearing that she actually gave a hearty laugh and shook her head “No, no, I’ve been here for a while… just don’t usually go out to places like this. Just got dragged here by a friend is all.” She took another sip of her drink, giving the Abomasnow time to order his “Anyway that’s why I’m here… what’s your reason for coming? Oh! And My names Gwendolyn by the way, you can call me Gwen if you like.”
“Nice to meet you Gwen, I’m James.” And he shifted a little in his seat “Just coming here to unwind a little is all… let off a little stress outside of helping pro-leaguers work off theirs.” She nodded, she could understand that… but at the same time the little part of her that was curious to know more kept shouting till she couldn’t resist “Care to talk about what’s got you so stressed?” she asked, her inner writer already typing out a profile of James’s “Character” and eager to know more.
“Oh… it’s nothing big… just…” he sighs and shifts visibly “Just still a little hard making ends meet the way they use to since the divorce…” he said quietly, staring at his drink half thoughtful, half sad. Gwen flinched at that “Divorce?” she asked, keeping her voice level as several alarms went off in her head at that word. He nodded solemnly “Yeah… it’s been three years since my wife packed what she considered hers and left me to find someone more “Risky”… she left Rose with me so I’ve been having to work harder to provide for her too…”
“Rose?” more alarms were going off in Gwen’s head, but this time they were quieted by her ever growing curiosity. “Rose is my daughter…” he reached into his back pocket and pulled out a wallet, leafing through it for a moment, blushing a little “I know it sounds stupid but I keep a picture of her with me to remind me what I’m working for in the hard times… here we go.” He pulled out a relatively new photograph of a pretty kangaskhan girl who looked to be in her mid teens “This is from her sweet 16 party last year, took a lot of extra shifts to make it special for her but it was worth it.” He said, smiling proudly.
All the alarms in Gwen’s head went silent as she automatically shifted into “One parent talking to another” mode “Oh my, she’s beautiful!” she gushed looking at the photo and making him smile even more “Thanks… even at 16 she’s my little girl if you know what I mean.” He said as Gwen nodded, taking her turn to smile “I know exactly what you mean, I still feel that way about my kids. I’d show you… but I left the pictures at home.” She blushed and rubbed the back of her head “Like I said I usual don’t go out like this.”
“It’s okay; can I ask how old they are? Maybe Rose has seen them around her school?” he asked, obviously interested as Gwen smiled “Well… I doubt it… my eldest boy is away playing in the sports league and my little girl is away at college. Maybe she met my little baby bear though? He’s a freshman at the PCA.” James’s eyes lit up at that “Really? That’s wonderful!” the PCA was a big name in town, so having a kid there was bragging rights “Actually I’ve been saving up so Rose could attend there, finally managed to get her enrolled too so she’ll be starting her Junior year there. She’s wanted to go there for so long…” Gwen nodded “It is one of the best schools around, wish her good luck from me okay? Oh! And if she see Petie around campus, that my baby bears name by the way, then say Hi.” She added with a chuckle.
*************
From across the room Vastella could see the two talking and hitting it off. This wasn’t exactly part of her plan to help pull Gwen out of her little shell, but it if had been part of her plan it probably wouldn’t have worked half as well… whoever this large gentleman was he certainly had managed to make an impression on Gwen…
It took every ounce of her will power to keep from psychically eavesdropping on their conversation but she’d managed to settle on her talents at lip reading… unfortunately thanks to the whiskers obscuring the Abomasnow’s mouth she had to settle for half the conversation. From what she’d gathered he worked in the league, was divorced, had a daughter, and was managing to make Gwen genuinely smile as the two sat there and talked about their respective kids.
This… this could work… a good friend, a non-HER good friend, could be just the ticket to help Gwen. If they were just friends by the end of all this anyway… that was an interesting thought, and one she wasn’t sure she should even consider, but it WAS a possibility. She’ll definitely want to keep a close eye on these two, things have taken an interesting turn here…
****************
The two seemed to talk for hours, having long since finished their drinks and forgotten about ordering new ones. They talked about themselves, their hobbies, likes and dislikes, but most of all they talked about their kids, Gwen’s deep love for all three of her kids and James’s devotion to his daughter. It gave them a surprisingly broad middle ground to meet on and they explored it in full till James happened to glance up at the clock above the bar.
”Oh! I’m gonna have to get going! If I don’t get some sleep tonight I’ll be dead for work tomorrow!” getting up he paused to turn and smile at Gwen “It was great meeting you… think you’ll be free to talk again sometime?” he asked politely. She couldn’t help but smile “Of course! Do you have a cell phone number? I’ll call you when we can meet again, how’s that?”
”That’d be great. Here…” he scribbled down his phone number quickly on a scrap of paper and handed it to her “Take care now… and take care of that little boy of yours too.” He said smiling. By the time Gwen figured out that he’d paid for her drink as well as given her his number James was long gone.
She chuckled and smiled, slipping the piece of paper into her purse. This guy was something. Polite, kind, respectful, funny, and caring… he almost reminded her of how Alex use to be back before they got married… she quickly shook her head to clear her thoughts. She was MARRIED, and James was just a friend after all… just a friend.
“I see you made a new friend there.”
Gwen jumped a little and turned to find Vastella smiling at her “I saw you two hitting it off from across the room… I told you you’d have a good time if you came.” She said grinning as Gwen blushed “Oh… that was James… he’s just a friend is all.” She managed to stammer out, feeling rather put on the spot as Vastella smiled and patted her arm “Sure he is! It’s great to see you making a new friend is all! So… when are you going to see him again?”
”What?”
“I saw him give you his phone number, when are you two gonna meet again.”
”I don’t know… Petie and Jules…”
”Are more then welcome to stay at my place if you’d like to go out and meet with a friend, it’ll be my pleasure even.”
”I don’t know…”
”Come on, it’ll do you a world of good to get out of the house every once and a while… tonight wasn’t too bad now was it?”
“Well…”
”It couldn’t hurt could it?”
”Well… no, I guess you’re right… meeting a friend for a chat couldn’t hurt…”
“Glad to hear you say that.”
To Be Continued~
As she hinted last chapter Vastella is now trying to help Momma overcomer her issues of her husband all but abandoning her, but will the snooping psychics help Gwen or hurt her? You won't get to find out cause somebody a bit more capable will take over helping the older lady in a rather unexpected way! =D
This time the ink blot is to represent the top of an abomasnow head! =D Why? Read to find out! ^w^
Anyway enjoy and thanks for reading! ^w^
All characters owned by me
PCA – Counseling Part 2“I don’t know…”
”Come on, you haven’t had a night out since you’ve moved here… probably longer!”
”But Petie…”
”Is staying at Andrew’s house for a sleepover, Jules is too, I heard it from them this morning. I think they’ll be fine.”
”But…”
”You’ve met Andrew’s mother and explained to her about all of your baby bears quirks and several of Jules; I know this isn’t their first time doing this.”
”Well yes…”
”And you trust her to keep them safe and that they’ll have a good time, right?”
”Yes, I do… but…”
”And I happen to recall you got your latest book done ahead of schedule and sent to your publisher, right?”
“I did…”
”Then why not have a night out on the town? Your kids are safe. Your work is done, and your best friend is asking nicely… so why not?”
”W-well… I… but… oh all right… but just this one time, okay?”
”We’ll see how you enjoy it before I make that promise Gwen.”
”Fine…”
”Don’t look so glum! I promise this’ll be a night you won’t forget!”
*********************
Gwendolyn sighed as she slowly showered and gave her fur a deep washing and shampoo. Maybe Vastella did have a point… she hadn’t had a night out on the town, well one without bringing Petie along, for a long time now. So long she actually couldn’t remember when the last time had been. Probably when her husband was still around…
Shaking her head to chase that thought out of it she focused on her shower as she plucked up some lavender scented fur-wash, it might just be one night out but at the very least she wanted to look her best for it. She had no clue where Vastella would take her after all. After finishing washing her fur she focused on washing her hair. She normally didn’t put too much effort into her appearance since she only went out to go shopping, take Petie somewhere, go to book signings or see one of her publishers in person… the latter had mercifully been happening less as of late since most of her publishers and book signings required her to make an overnight trip. Even with so many reliable babysitters she felt just as nervous letting Petie and Jules stay with them as she had been when Petie was a toddler and cried whenever she left the room.
Finishing her shower and stepping out to dry off she stole a glance in the mirror. She wasn’t much for personal vanities but even she had to admit for a mother of three she looked amazingly good… which was probably why she could pull off looking so young in those commercials with Petie. She blushed a little remembering all the diaper commercials Petie and Jules had shot for Cuddlebutts with her playing the mother. She wasn’t sure it was a good idea when Petie had talked her into signing the contract for them… but she had a small part of her that enjoyed looking so young again, like back when she and Alex had just been dating.
Focusing back on the task at hand she dried off and started on brushing out her hair. It wasn’t so much to help style it as to give it a glossy shine, Gwen’s hair was well know for just bouncing back into its natural shape no matter how much attention she gave it. Looking her face over she decided she might as well put on her make up now… Vastella had asked her to dress nicely and none of her nice outfits would get close enough to her face to smudge it any.
Slowly applying her make up she couldn’t help but remember her children… back to how little Petie always found it hilarious to ask for a kiss just after she put her lipstick on and giggled at the mark it left, to when she first taught Sarah how to put it on and caught her practicing on Petie less then an hour later, all the way back to how when Alex Jr. was a toddler he somehow always found a way to get a hold of her lipstick and use it to scribble on the wall. She sighed softly as she finished her touch ups. Her children were her life, since her husband never came home they were her guiding light in the storm and she could find herself remembering them in the smallest things.
Going back to her room it took her a few minutes of digging around in her closet to find what she was looking for. She pulled the soft blue sleeveless dress out and looked it over. She hadn’t worn this one since she received that award for one of her short stories several years back… but considering her other nice dresses were even older this was probably the only one she could still fit into. It took her a moment to get it on and it was a little tighter then she’d expected, but it fortunately looked okay and wasn’t too uncomfortable… though she wasn’t sure she liked how well it showed off her figure. This was just a night out after all; she didn’t need to attract any unwanted attention.
Pulling a coat on in case it got nippy and grabbing her purse she stopped long enough to give herself one more once over in the mirror to make sure everything was in place and she looked all right. She couldn’t resist a slight smirk, she looked like she was years younger on her way to a date. Shaking her head slightly she headed out the door to meet up with Vastella, her on a date? That’s a laugh; she was married after all…
***************
This should work… it should work or it could backfire horribly. Vastella seriously hoped it was the former. Her plan was simple and to the point, meaning it could probably go wrong in more ways then she could imagine. Pushing that thought out of her head she focused on smiling and making casual conversation with Gwen. It’d been too long since they just got to talk about everyday stuff without bringing Petie or Jules up but this was also to keep Gwen from focusing to much on missing her little ones and wanting to go back home.
Her first goal was to get Gwen back out into the world and interacting with adults other then her publishers talking to her about her latest work, fans wanting her to sign a book, or something to do with her kids. Ever since her husband had all but abandoned her she’d cut off contact and all but shut herself up in mothering and writing… and if Vastella wanted to help her any with her husband issues she had to get her out of that little prison she’d made for herself. Of course that wasn’t to say it was going to be easy…
Her first stop was a little night club by the name of Ricky’s. It wasn’t fancy, it wasn’t huge, it wasn’t anything special… but it was a place people went to relax, unwind, have a drink, and maybe enjoy a little music and dancing, a nice, calm, casual place. If anything it would be the perfect spot to go to get Gwen comfortable to the idea of going out for the night and enjoying herself rather then staying home again… at least that was the plan. There were just so many ways this could go wrong Vastella was already thinking of various ways to run damage control even as they walked through the door.
**************
She sighed, lightly swishing her drink with one claw before picking it up and taking a sip. Gwen felt so out of place here she wasn’t even nervous, just annoyed and bored. She wasn’t sure why Vastella dragged her here... sure the music was okay but this really wasn’t her kind of thing. Despite Vastella’s prodding to get out on the dance floor she’d snuck over to the bar and ordered something mild to drink… she wasn’t big on alcohol but she could enjoy it a little at least. Mostly she was just trying to go unnoticed… a feat that took considerable skill considering she was one of the tallest people in the place.
Sighing and having another sip of her drink she watched Vastella socialize and enjoy the dance floor, the Gothitelle casually glancing at her every few minutes… probably checking on whether or not she given up and tried to leave yet no doubt. Sighing again Gwen shifted in her seat, it’s not in her nature to just up and leave so she might as well try to find SOMETHING to enjoy here. Looking around at the people in the club again she settled into an old hobby she hadn’t had a chance to indulge in very often as of late, people watching.
Getting comfortable in her chair she started looking around. She used to do this all the time… at one point it was her best way to come up with new characters for her books. In fact she could remember doing it every time she took her kids to the playground. Taking another sip of her drink she looked around. Where to start? Maybe the zangoose and seviper couple alternating dancing and trying to kill each other on the far side of the room? That looked like it was going to go places… probably the hospital…
“Pardon me, is this seat taken?”
“Huh? Oh, no. Go right ahead?”
She blinked and looked to see who spoke, having answered purely on reflex. “Thank you.” She found herself looking at a large Abomasnow guy; he was as tall as her if not taller which was quite a feat. As he sat down she looked him over, beyond being tall and broadly built he looked surprisingly calm and neat, despite wearing an outfit that looked like he just came from the gym. She immediately noticed the official pro league logo on his outfit. So he worked in the league somewhere? Interesting…
Still looking him over she noted he didn’t look like a fighter. Sure he was big and probably intimidating for smaller folks but he didn’t look like he fought for a living… though she couldn’t quite place what made her think that. Then she realized she’d been staring at him for the past minute and he was looking back with a bemused look on his face.
“Oh! Oh... sorry…”
“It’s okay… and no I’m not a fighter.”
”… It was that obvious?”
He chuckled and shook his head “Naaa… it’s just normally the first thing people ask whenever they seem me in my work duds.” he said, his voice polite and slightly amused. Now she understood why she somehow knew he wasn’t a fighter. His disposition, his expression, he just didn’t seem like the kind of person who could actually purposely fight against somebody. “Well then, are you going to leave me in suspense or are you gonna tell me what your job is then?” she asked, finding herself smiling as well.
“I work in Physical therapy, I’m the guy who keeps the fighters from ending up hurting themselves.” He said, a small amount of pride in his voice as he grinned “Now how bout you? You managed to squeeze what I do for a living out of me, care to fill me in on what you do?” he asked still smiling. She chuckled and shrugged “I’m a writer actually… been writing for a long time.” He nods, eyes showing he was actually listening and paying attention “What do you write then? Magazine articles, fiction, technical info, or something else?”
“Actually I’m a fiction writer… I dabble mostly in fantasy and science fiction, light novels and that sort of thing.” She said off hand, hiding a smile “Why? You much of a reader?” he gave a pleasant laugh and shook his head “Not really… not as much as I’d like to be anyway.” Still smiling he looked back at her “Anyway I come here every so often… but I don’t remember ever seeing you before. Are you new in town?” Hearing that she actually gave a hearty laugh and shook her head “No, no, I’ve been here for a while… just don’t usually go out to places like this. Just got dragged here by a friend is all.” She took another sip of her drink, giving the Abomasnow time to order his “Anyway that’s why I’m here… what’s your reason for coming? Oh! And My names Gwendolyn by the way, you can call me Gwen if you like.”
“Nice to meet you Gwen, I’m James.” And he shifted a little in his seat “Just coming here to unwind a little is all… let off a little stress outside of helping pro-leaguers work off theirs.” She nodded, she could understand that… but at the same time the little part of her that was curious to know more kept shouting till she couldn’t resist “Care to talk about what’s got you so stressed?” she asked, her inner writer already typing out a profile of James’s “Character” and eager to know more.
“Oh… it’s nothing big… just…” he sighs and shifts visibly “Just still a little hard making ends meet the way they use to since the divorce…” he said quietly, staring at his drink half thoughtful, half sad. Gwen flinched at that “Divorce?” she asked, keeping her voice level as several alarms went off in her head at that word. He nodded solemnly “Yeah… it’s been three years since my wife packed what she considered hers and left me to find someone more “Risky”… she left Rose with me so I’ve been having to work harder to provide for her too…”
“Rose?” more alarms were going off in Gwen’s head, but this time they were quieted by her ever growing curiosity. “Rose is my daughter…” he reached into his back pocket and pulled out a wallet, leafing through it for a moment, blushing a little “I know it sounds stupid but I keep a picture of her with me to remind me what I’m working for in the hard times… here we go.” He pulled out a relatively new photograph of a pretty kangaskhan girl who looked to be in her mid teens “This is from her sweet 16 party last year, took a lot of extra shifts to make it special for her but it was worth it.” He said, smiling proudly.
All the alarms in Gwen’s head went silent as she automatically shifted into “One parent talking to another” mode “Oh my, she’s beautiful!” she gushed looking at the photo and making him smile even more “Thanks… even at 16 she’s my little girl if you know what I mean.” He said as Gwen nodded, taking her turn to smile “I know exactly what you mean, I still feel that way about my kids. I’d show you… but I left the pictures at home.” She blushed and rubbed the back of her head “Like I said I usual don’t go out like this.”
“It’s okay; can I ask how old they are? Maybe Rose has seen them around her school?” he asked, obviously interested as Gwen smiled “Well… I doubt it… my eldest boy is away playing in the sports league and my little girl is away at college. Maybe she met my little baby bear though? He’s a freshman at the PCA.” James’s eyes lit up at that “Really? That’s wonderful!” the PCA was a big name in town, so having a kid there was bragging rights “Actually I’ve been saving up so Rose could attend there, finally managed to get her enrolled too so she’ll be starting her Junior year there. She’s wanted to go there for so long…” Gwen nodded “It is one of the best schools around, wish her good luck from me okay? Oh! And if she see Petie around campus, that my baby bears name by the way, then say Hi.” She added with a chuckle.
*************
From across the room Vastella could see the two talking and hitting it off. This wasn’t exactly part of her plan to help pull Gwen out of her little shell, but it if had been part of her plan it probably wouldn’t have worked half as well… whoever this large gentleman was he certainly had managed to make an impression on Gwen…
It took every ounce of her will power to keep from psychically eavesdropping on their conversation but she’d managed to settle on her talents at lip reading… unfortunately thanks to the whiskers obscuring the Abomasnow’s mouth she had to settle for half the conversation. From what she’d gathered he worked in the league, was divorced, had a daughter, and was managing to make Gwen genuinely smile as the two sat there and talked about their respective kids.
This… this could work… a good friend, a non-HER good friend, could be just the ticket to help Gwen. If they were just friends by the end of all this anyway… that was an interesting thought, and one she wasn’t sure she should even consider, but it WAS a possibility. She’ll definitely want to keep a close eye on these two, things have taken an interesting turn here…
****************
The two seemed to talk for hours, having long since finished their drinks and forgotten about ordering new ones. They talked about themselves, their hobbies, likes and dislikes, but most of all they talked about their kids, Gwen’s deep love for all three of her kids and James’s devotion to his daughter. It gave them a surprisingly broad middle ground to meet on and they explored it in full till James happened to glance up at the clock above the bar.
”Oh! I’m gonna have to get going! If I don’t get some sleep tonight I’ll be dead for work tomorrow!” getting up he paused to turn and smile at Gwen “It was great meeting you… think you’ll be free to talk again sometime?” he asked politely. She couldn’t help but smile “Of course! Do you have a cell phone number? I’ll call you when we can meet again, how’s that?”
”That’d be great. Here…” he scribbled down his phone number quickly on a scrap of paper and handed it to her “Take care now… and take care of that little boy of yours too.” He said smiling. By the time Gwen figured out that he’d paid for her drink as well as given her his number James was long gone.
She chuckled and smiled, slipping the piece of paper into her purse. This guy was something. Polite, kind, respectful, funny, and caring… he almost reminded her of how Alex use to be back before they got married… she quickly shook her head to clear her thoughts. She was MARRIED, and James was just a friend after all… just a friend.
“I see you made a new friend there.”
Gwen jumped a little and turned to find Vastella smiling at her “I saw you two hitting it off from across the room… I told you you’d have a good time if you came.” She said grinning as Gwen blushed “Oh… that was James… he’s just a friend is all.” She managed to stammer out, feeling rather put on the spot as Vastella smiled and patted her arm “Sure he is! It’s great to see you making a new friend is all! So… when are you going to see him again?”
”What?”
“I saw him give you his phone number, when are you two gonna meet again.”
”I don’t know… Petie and Jules…”
”Are more then welcome to stay at my place if you’d like to go out and meet with a friend, it’ll be my pleasure even.”
”I don’t know…”
”Come on, it’ll do you a world of good to get out of the house every once and a while… tonight wasn’t too bad now was it?”
“Well…”
”It couldn’t hurt could it?”
”Well… no, I guess you’re right… meeting a friend for a chat couldn’t hurt…”
“Glad to hear you say that.”
To Be Continued~
Category Story / Pokemon
Species Unspecified / Any
Size 360 x 360px
File Size 15.2 kB
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