2.5 Some Twisted Feeling

Out of some twisted feeling of obligation, Glycerine and Myles reluctantly bring their newborn daughter Spencer to visit Cinnamon, the only living grandparent.

"One!" Cinnamon grunts. "You got off lucky."

Glycerine narrows her eyes.

"Though I suppose you wanted twelve!" Cinnamon snarks.

"I don't know if I can handle another pregnancy," Glycerine mumbles.

"Hold her up. I want to get a picture to send to my brother."

Glycerine poses Spencer on a soft cushion, staring incredulously at her mother. "Your brother?"

"Yes, I have a brother. He lives in Bridgeport now, with his ridiculous husband."

"Oh?"

"We write each other. We're quite close."

Glycerine cannot imagine her mother being close to anyone.

"Anyway they never bothered adopting so he's not getting any grandchildren and I must lord this achievement over him."

"Well that makes sense," Glycerine says.

Pictures are taken.

"You never talked about your family much," Glycerine decides to pry into the issue. "I assumed they were not nice people."

"Well my father didn't approve of me eloping to Appaloosa Plains. He sent practically zero monetary support. Convinced Iggy's family to do the same. They thought we'd come crawling back."

"So you didn't have a good relationship?"

"It was fine, but my parents had me late in life. My mother was dead before I moved here, and my father died shortly after. I probably shouldn't have turned around and done the same as them, but here you are."

Glycerine is disappointed in the lack of details, but talking to her mother is so exhausting, she lets it drop.

The visit drags on, feeling more awkward with every minute. Cinnamon can't resist any opportunity to make Myles feel like he's not good enough to breathe her air, or any opportunity to point out how difficult it was to raise triplets, as if Glycerine should be eternally grateful she wasn't drowned at birth, or put away in some boarding school.

Then as they go to leave, Cinnamon up and dies.

Jym was tending the garden, so he's on the scene immediately, but is helpless to interfere.

I have a mod that keeps dogs from harassing the reaper. Ha ha!

Glycerine doesn't remember much of the afternoon. She must have come home, put Spencer to bed, and eaten something. She's staring blankly out the windows and her plate is as empty as her mind.

"Tough day, huh?" Jym sits down across from her with a bowl of chili.

"I mean... yeah... I guess." She frowns. "I have conflicted feelings."

"Mom was extremely old. At some point I think I forgot she could die. Or, would die."

"Yes, we all die," Glycerine sighs.

"Right."

"That's why it's important to live a good life while we can. I'm never going to make Spencer feel like my mother made me feel."

"What do you mean?"

"Seriously? You know what I mean."

"I think so. But if you want to talk about it..."

"I don't think I do."

"That's fair."

Jym breaks down into tears while he's putting the dishes away.

"Hey," Glycerine soothes, "if you need to talk... I'm here."

"I don't know what to say," he sniffles."I did everything I could, right? Everything I should have done?"

"Y-yeah. You were always there for her, Jym. Even if I don't think she deserved it."

Tilde has no tears to shed for the mother she despised, and in fact is out celebrating with a drink.

Jym is both surprised and somehow not surprised to discover his mother willed her house to Ron Bullock... some guy she has apparently been sleeping with since the triplets moved out. After Cinnamon's funeral, Ron and Jym discuss the status of the property over a cup of coffee.

"I didn't think she liked me that much. We just met up for-"

"I don't need to know all the details," Jym complains.

"Right, well, I've been living with my parents until now so it's nice to have my own place? But I don't know what to do with the orchards and stuff. That's all yours. It wouldn't be right for me to keep you from your family business."

"At least someone's here to take care of the dog..." Jym grumbles.

"Is there anything in the house you want?"

"Nope, nope, there is nothing I want from my mother's secret love-nest. It's all yours."

Spencer soon grows into a toddler.

She is adored by all.

Her aunt and uncle, without children of their own to shower with attention, are always eager to babysit and play with Spencer during the day.

At night, though, Jym and Tilde are off in their cozy apartment-like space above the barn, leaving Spencer's parents alone to deal with the toddler's unpredictable sleep patterns.

Myles loves his daughter, but when he's laying awake with only a half hour's rest, he is already certain he cannot possibly ever put himself through this again.





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Etc.: Cinnamon was crazy old. Story Progression set her up with Ron Bullock as soon as she was no longer under my control, and I almost didn't mention it in the story because... yikes???