Peri wakes up and I pick her up to give mama a good look at her.
Lea: She looks a lot like you did as a baby. It brings back so many memories…although that was a very tough time for me.
I would love to hear more about that, but before I get a chance to ask for more details…my mom turns towards Q, who’s sitting at his computer checking for a message from his client.
Lea: Hey handsome!
Q waves awkwardly.
Lea: My daughter offered me a chance to house sit for you all while you’re away. I promise that I’ll do a good job. You’d never even know I was here!
The confusion on Q’s face is unmistakable.
Furious…I pull her over to the side.
Alida: Why the hell did you do that? I told you that I wanted to talk to him first.
Lea: I know…I just wanted him to know that I’m capable of taking good care of his place.
Alida: By blindsiding him?! Just go…now I have to try and fix the mess you’ve made.
Lea: Sorry…yeah, I’ll go. Let me know what he says. *heads towards the door*
I sit down at the counter next to Q.
Quincy: What was that about?
Alida: *deep sigh* I mentioned that we might need a house sitter while we’re away. Since she’ll be released from the halfway house soon, I thought it would be a good chance to help her get on her feet. I didn’t know she would pull that. I’m so sorry. I mean this is your house…I really wanted to discuss it with you first.
Quincy: Do you trust her?
I think about it…
Alida: Not as far as I can throw her. Honestly, I should have cut all ties with her when she first showed up at my doorstep because that’s what she deserves. It’s basically what she did to me. *frustrated sigh* But for some reason…I can’t. She has this weird hold on me. And…I just don’t want to see her out on the street.
Quincy: You still love her. There’s nothing wrong with that. She’s your mother. Maybe there’s hope for a relationship down the line.
Alida: Maybe…but I won’t hold my breath.
Quincy: *deep in thought* I’m okay with her watching the house while we’re gone.
Alida: *surprised* You are?
Quincy: I know how family can be. You give her this one chance…if she messes it up, then you can say that you’ve done your part.
Alida: Yeah…okay. I’ll let her know. But it’ll only be while we’re gone. She has until then to get her shit together.
Quincy: That’s reasonable. And for the record…this is your house now too. We’re a family.
Q gets up to check on Peri and I find myself loving him just a little more.
Q lifts Peri out of the crib and cuddles her while I open up my computer to check for unfinished programming projects that I’ve started, but never completed. The first thing I see is the fake charity website that I once planned on creating. It was the whole reason why I learned to program in the first place. I still have no doubt that it would make me a lot of money. I could even upload pictures of Peri…pretending that she’s a child in need. As cute as she is…I’d make a killing.
Then I realize…I can’t do it. Getting caught would mean fed time. I can’t risk serving time in prison like mama. I could never be away from Peri…leaving it up to Q to raise her. If I’m going to build my wealth…I’ll have to do it legally – no more hacking, no viruses and no fake charity. Being around mama again has made that clear for me. I delete it all…for Peri.
Michelle arrives late in the afternoon, ready to help me with decorating the downstairs. Always happy to see her, I pull her into my arms.
Michelle: I think I have a plan, but unfortunately…I don’t have a whole lot of time to execute it –
Alida: Don’t worry about it. I’m not trying to bog you down with this. I never should have asked.
Michelle: Hush…you know I have your back. I was going to say that I don’t have time to execute it all right away, but I can get it done a little at a time. I just need you and Q’s input on my design ideas.
We all congregate downstairs.
Michelle: Okay…this is what I’m thinking. We can keep this hall space simple…leaving plenty of room for family portraits on the walls. Q…your photography space should be elegant and professional. I’m thinking a red would look great on the walls. And as far as Peri’s bedroom is concerned, how about if we go with a very gender-neutral theme with a few feminine touches …while at the same time giving her room to define who she is for herself?
Alida: I like that idea.
Quincy: Sounds good to me, but we’d like to compensate you for your time. And of course, we’re paying for anything you need to purchase.
Michelle: You can pay for the purchases, but there’s no way I’m charging you for my help. Consider it a gift.
Quincy: There has to be something we can do. I insist.
Michelle: Well, I could use some new headshots. Those can be expensive and I don’t trust just anyone with my image.
Quincy: Done!
Michelle: I’d like to get Peri’s room done right away. I can spread the rest of the work out over time.
Alida: Well…we’ll be spending at least part of the summer with Q’s parents in Sulani. You can take all the time you need while we’re gone.
Michelle: Awww…so you’ll be leaving. I’m happy for you but sad at the same time. I’ll miss you all.
Alida: We’ll miss you too, but we’ll talk every single day. Believe that!
(Note: We’ll just ignore Q’s sudden change of clothes. He went and took a shower in the middle of the day and I forgot to make sure he changed into the same clothes =/)
You get a lot of visitors when there’s a new baby in the house. Michelle remains downstairs trying to come up with a plan for the 3rd room. Not ten minutes later, Q’s dad shows up. He and Q sit down on the couch to talk about the move to Sulani. It turns out that Quincy Sr. has decided to take orders in Sulani which will delay his actual retirement for a while. He seems to be excited about the chance to continue working while making his wife happy at the same time.
I sit down at my computer and work on another project during the visit.
Quincy Sr. spends the last part of his visit bonding with Peri. Then he says his goodbyes. Michelle also spends time with Peri before leaving.
It’s late by the time we have the house to ourselves again. Q and I sit down to eat left-over pizza together. We’re too tired for anything besides a quick kiss blown across the table and a few, I love yous. After dinner, it’s straight to bed for both of us.
(Generation 1a Chapter Summaries)
