I loved how my dad loved Sophia. She was his new favorite sim, it seemed. If I ever lost him at a party, all I had to do was find Sophia because he was always somewhere nearby, admiring and watching over her. While Mama was filling me in on Alessia’s situation, I saw him give Sophia a gift. He could have simply put it on the table just like everyone else, but he had to hand-deliver it so she knew he cared. If she weren’t so wonderful, I think I’d have the right to be jealous, ha ha.
Just like at her birthday party, Sophia was the first one to hit the dancefloor, and one by one, everyone joined her. Even Alessia came out from wherever she was hiding. Previously, Chi Chi had latched onto Sophia and talked her ear off all afternoon, but she found a new friend in my mother, and that made me very nervous. I overheard Mama gushing about becoming a grandmother, and Chi Chi reminisced about Luna’s infancy. I just knew they would eventually start talking about me, so I grabbed Less and got out of there.
We went upstairs, but as I stepped inside her room, the reality of her situation hit me hard. The familiar purple and blue color scheme I remembered remained, but everything else had changed. Three cribs had replaced her bed—two blue ones and a purple one. A changing table and other infant furniture crowded the walls, and baby play things lined the floor. These babies not only turned Less’ world upside down with their presence, but also they displaced her, and now she slept in my room. I couldn’t judge her for not appreciating the joy and privilege of becoming a parent because I had never faced the devastation of having my world upended like that. Me and Sophia’s world would change with just one baby, but Less was having THREE she never wanted, and I felt for her.
“Less… I know this is a lot, especially since you didn’t want any of it. But you’re not alone. Me and Sophia will be here for you.”
“No, you won’t.” Her voice sounded so hopeless and sad. “You’re gonna have your own family to worry about and forget all about me.”
“What? How could you think that? Yes, I’ll be busy with my family, but you’re still my family. I could never forget about you. You’re my sister! And these babies are my family too. I might not be able to come all the time, but I’d never leave you in a lurch.”
“Luca, I… I can’t handle this!”
“You can! As soon as you see the babies, you’ll know exactly what to do. It’s in you! And maybe you won’t like them, but you’ll love them. And because you love them, you’ll do whatever it takes to make sure they have everything they need.”
“How do you believe that?” she asked.
“You come from a long line of amazing mothers. I’m sure you’ll find your way.”
“I doubt that, but I’m glad you believe in me.”
I hated seeing her so down and wanted to cheer her up so badly. This moment was probably all wrong for our story, but she loved gossip even more than Mama. If I framed it right, maybe it would boost her spirits.
“You wanna know something Mama doesn’t know?”
Her face was still droopy, but it lit up ever so slightly, just as I expected it would.
“Me and Sophia had trouble getting pregnant.”
She gasped.
“Turns out we both had low fertility. We had to do IVF.”
“Oh, Luca! I feel like such a dunce for complaining around you!”
“It’s okay. You didn’t know.”
“Yeah, but still. Why didn’t you say anything?”
“I mean, it doesn’t segue well in conversation. ‘Luca, I’m pregnant!’ ‘Oh yeah? I might not be able to have children.’ Nah. Besides, by the end we were just so depressed like you are right now. We didn’t want to bring anyone into that.”
“I understand. I hate that for you, but I’m glad you finally got your baby. Do you want to meet mine? I know they’ll be in love with you.”
I was very surprised she invited me to feel the babies and hoped she was slowly coming around. I still couldn’t believe she had THREE of them in her little body. I placed my hands on her tiny belly and felt an itty bitty bump. It was small, but it was there. Suddenly, hit me that I was an uncle! I never thought I’d be able to say that.
“Hey, little guys! This is Uncle Luca. I know it’s a bit crowded in there, but play nice and be good for mommy, okay? I love you all so much!”
“You’re such a doofus.”
“Thank you, big brother. I don’t deserve you.”
“It’s gonna be okay, Less. We got you.”
