Create a family (but it's got a twist)

[kitkatcookie]

Dr. [name_u]Juniper[/name_u] " [name_u]Pip[/name_u] " [name_f]Evadne[/name_f] Satterfield (32) is the other doctor involved with Della’s fling, but love rival is too serious of a title to give them. [name_u]Pip[/name_u] absolutely isn’t looking for a serious relationship, something they’re very upfront about, but given Della’s concerns it’s more on the head of the guy they’ve both been seeing, as he’s been pretty open about his fondness of [name_u]Pip[/name_u] - and there’s few things quite as difficult as a love triangle where all three parties are hoping for separate outcomes. Descending from a line of people working in the medical field, Pip’s the only child born to their parents, with a half-sibling born from their father’s third marriage [their mom was Wife No. 2]; and both siblings are now openly nonbinary - something [name_u]Pip[/name_u] jokes their dad had no choice but to accept. They were actually uncertain about being open with their gender identity around him, as he’s not a man known for being open about his inner thoughts - be they emotional or political, but he proved understanding and accepting; which truthfully made [name_u]Pip[/name_u] happier for their son and younger sibling than anything else - as they’ve always had the temperament best equipped for his distant nature, becoming gregarious and fun-loving so they’re always surrounded by positively focused personalities.

[name_u]Pip[/name_u] became a parent just after completing their medical degree: a one night stand at their graduation party, the after after after party as they call it, led to their son’s birth, and they wouldn’t trade this in for anything. Things can be a little awkward between themselves and his father - the guy really wanted to pursue a proper relationship, but [name_u]Pip[/name_u] knew it was just for the sake of a conventional family setting for their son to be raised in, one they knew had a chance of descending into dysfunction thanks to the pressure it could create. Pip’s also very aware that their family is not an easy one to acclimatise to: aside from their dad’s stern, foreboding aura, their half-sibling’s a college student majoring in psychology with a love of impromptu psychoanalysis, and their stepsister [daughter of their mom’s second husband] is frequently getting involved in whirlwind romances that have dramatic, chaotic endings - and that’s not including the extended clan of junior doctors, surgeons, nurses and midwives that make up the Satterfield’s history.

It’s not a secret that Pip’s son’s father feels they were unreasonable in immediately shutting down his offer, and the fact he’s trying for a baby with his current girlfriend has stressed their son out, as he worries a sibling could replace him. Pip’s had several awkward conversations with his dad about this - he’s quite an inherently defensive person who takes any perceived criticism poorly - but they’re hoping their son can be soothed through the input of his dad’s girlfriend, a woman they’re usually on better terms with given she’s got a less reactive nature. This is also why Pip’s pulled back from the colleagur they were seeing, as they don’t want to further complicate things or upset their child, who’s feeling quite fragile in what his family means to him currently. They’ve confided in their best friend, a midwife who specialises in home births, about this often; but for how they’re usually clued into the bigger picture, [name_u]Pip[/name_u] actually knows very little about [name_f]Della[/name_f]. In part it’s because they feel it’s rude to investigate her, but also stems from the fact they really do not want to be sucked into any more drama given Babygate [as their best friend’s codenamed the ongoing situation].

[jinxed_peach]

Dr. [name_u]Everett[/name_u] [name_u]Emerson[/name_u] [name_u]Slate[/name_u] [31] is the third member of the hospital’s love triangle. A promising plastic surgeon who got his career started with a little extra help thanks to his father who’s a retired surgeon and current board member of the hospital. The [name_u]Slate[/name_u] name is a bit famous considering some of the surgical techniques that the older Dr. [name_u]Slate[/name_u] had invented but [name_u]Everett[/name_u] tries not to make it seem like he’s just riding his father’s coattails and is hoping to someday make himself the face that comes to mind when people talk about a ‘Dr. Slate.’

He started seeing [name_f]Della[/name_f] first after a long night of surgery for the both of them and to blow off some stress which then began an affair of casual ‘stress relief’ for the both of them. He started seeing [name_u]Pip[/name_u] a short while later for similar reasons but unlike his relationship with [name_f]Della[/name_f] he felt much more attracted to [name_u]Pip[/name_u] and would often ask to take their relationship to a more committed level with dates that didn’t include getting frisky in the on-call rooms. [name_u]Pip[/name_u] repeatedly shot him down, thinking of their child and wanting to focus on them, as well as for their own personal disinterest in a relationship at the time. Much to Everett’s disappointment as he had fallen for them in a pretty large way. The constant rejection lead him to seek out some form of comfort in seeing [name_f]Della[/name_f] more frequently.

He enjoys her company plenty, but isn’t sure that he can love her like he loves [name_u]Pip[/name_u], something that he somewhat regrets not telling them as he wonders if it might have convinced them to take him up on his offer to go on a real date. Sometimes he confides his struggles, of both relationship wise as well as his issues with his father, with a friend of his who’s a NICU nurse and ironically the roommate of Pip’s midwife best friend. The two tend to swap stories about their respective friends but would never dare share any gossip about [name_u]Pip[/name_u] to [name_u]Everett[/name_u] or vice versa. The latest story they’ve exchanged has to two with the fact that [name_f]Della[/name_f] recently told [name_u]Everett[/name_u] that she’s pregnant and intends to keep the baby since she’s unsure of her ability to conceive a child later in life due to both her increasing age and the lack of options for partners. He was shocked by the announcement considering he’s been on the receiving end of her rambles about her uncertainty of having children but simultaneously relived by Della’s assurance that she’s perfectly comfortable with being a single mother if he chooses not to be in their lives, though she would love it if he was. Unsure of what to do he asked her if he could think about it for a while and is currently taking his time in getting an answer back to her.

He’s been purposefully avoiding [name_f]Della[/name_f] at work now while he tries to come up with an answer for her and honestly himself. He’s not ready to give up on his and Pip’s relationship and still hopes that they’ll come around to his attempts but is well aware of the fact that an upcoming baby might heartily throw a wrench into the whole ‘keeping things steady for their son’ thing that Pip’s working on. He’s been leaning on his NICU nurse friend a lot lately, hopeful that they’ll have some kind of helpful input for him.

[moonwriteen]

( uncensored death of a spouse and newborn child )
[name_f]Gola[/name_f] [name_u]Meredith[/name_u] McClure (34) is the NICU nurse that [name_u]Everett[/name_u] confides in. She lives with the midwife friend of [name_u]Pip[/name_u] - deciding to cease living alone in an empty home after her husband’s death and instead have at least a roomate to talk to other than her Birman cat, [name_f]Sephora[/name_f]. She decided to be a NICU nurse after going through a difficult birth as a teen - her angel daughter’s father was out of the picture from the start and she decided to be a single mom , however due to lack of oxygen in her little brain her daughter was diagnosed with severe celebral palsy five days after birth and died a month later while still in the NICU. [name_f]Unega[/name_f] McClure still has a grave that her mother visits weekly - instead of daily, as she used to before extensive therapy that her husband convinced her of going to. She is grateful for her therapist , even though she knows making contact with him outside of the care facility would be unprofessional - something even her midwife roomate has to remind her of. After losing [name_f]Unega[/name_f] , [name_f]Gola[/name_f] became obsessed with the medical care provided for newborns, how incubators work etc. and at 17 made the decision to be a NICU nurse. [name_m]Even[/name_m] if she couldn’t save her daughter, her husband always reminded her that it wasn’t her fault and she had no control over how the doctors handled the extremely difficult situation, as she was slipping constantly in and out of conciousness in the process , only barely surviving it herself. This traumatic experience let her to believe that there is nothing one can’t sacrifice for the health and well-being of children - that’s why she always advises [name_u]Everett[/name_u] to take responsibility for her and [name_f]Della[/name_f] 's child because “once the butterfilies in your stomach fly away and real life kicks in, you’re gonna regret you aren’t there for the little one, inveitably. As cliche as it sounds , family is everything, and that’s not because of society, we’re hormonally hard-wired that way”.

[name_u]Everett[/name_u] has been thinking about this a lot and thinks that the advice is worthwile - especially because Pip’s and [name_f]Gola[/name_f] 's midwife friend knows [name_u]Pip[/name_u] very well and she knows they aren’t chaning their mind about not complicating their situation further - he starts to think maybe it’s better to try working things out with [name_f]Della[/name_f] even if they aren’t in love , than making [name_u]Pip[/name_u] pressured to sidline her very precise life plan for what they appearently precieve like just a fling with a deep convo added here and there. It meant a lot more for [name_u]Everett[/name_u] himself, but oh well…

[name_u]Everett[/name_u] sometimes pities [name_f]Gola[/name_f] for her situation - not only did she lose a newborn daugher at 17 but when she finally found happiness and love after pre-med , marrying her husband , she had to lose him too in [name_f]April[/name_f] 2021 after he died in an attempted robbery of the place where he was working as a security guard. [name_u]Everett[/name_u] however sees her progress after she got a roomate and living with her and the Birman cat , she’s been enjoying life a lot more. [name_u]Everett[/name_u] sometimes tries to convice [name_f]Gola[/name_f] to go back to therapy but she has a hard time admitting that she needs help once again after having worked through the loss of her daughter. She has been trying to go for walks ,pratice mindfulness and going to church , but recognises that it can indeed prove to not be enough

[kitkatcookie]

[name_f]Tamarind[/name_f] " [name_f]Tamar[/name_f] " [name_f]Audra[/name_f] Satterfield (20) is the younger half-sibling of [name_u]Pip[/name_u] and aspiring psychologist, who’s tried their best to offer advice to their sibling, albeit doesn’t align with what [name_u]Everett[/name_u] hopes for. While their input isn’t always welcomed by family - especially their dad, who insists his younger child should become a private investigator given how astute they are, and tenacious when it comes to discovering things - their absolute love for them is wholehearted, and they’re a devoted auncle to their nephew. His spirited, optimistic outlook on the world greatly endears [name_f]Tamar[/name_f], who wants to see their positivity nurtured and encouraged, opposed to being dismissed by the more cynical members of their family: father included. Technically the middle child, [name_f]Tamar[/name_f] has a younger brother who’s coming towards the end of high school, but they’ve always been closer to [name_u]Pip[/name_u]: a combination of their mutual realisations about their identities, similar enthusiasm for working with people and confident demeanours - while the youngest Satterfield is a complete introvert who’d much rather be in his own company than trading gossip and discussing ongoing drama in the sphere’s of work and school respectively.

By no means does [name_f]Tamar[/name_f] have a negative opinion of [name_u]Everett[/name_u] or think he’s ill-intentioned, they just feel he needs to take a step back rather than pursue. They haven’t gone in depth with [name_u]Pip[/name_u] about this - that honour’s kept for their best friends, one of whom is a fellow psych major - however it’s obvious to everyone that [name_u]Pip[/name_u] isn’t planning on settling down with anyone, regardless of who it may be. [name_f]Tamar[/name_f] relates a lot to this as they’re demisexual and currently single, not having really been too bothered by hook ups even in the early college period, as their bigger priority was embracing the array of venues for nights out and socialising with friends old and new about campus. Outside of their love of psychology, Tamar’s an avid fan of 2000s video games, having inherited a lot of Pip’s games, and this is something they and their elusive brother enjoy doing together, joking about needing to introduce their dad to this world [he does appreciate Tamar’s humour really, for how stoic he presents as externally].

Always intrigued by learning, they’ve been learning how to make bath bombs and candles. It isn’t really to cut costs - they acknowledged they’re blessed to be from a financially successful family, and their parents are willing to help them get through college - but the personal touch means a lot to them. They attribute this a lot to their mom, the most easygoing and approachable person imaginable, who definitely balances out the aura their dad projects - not that [name_f]Tamar[/name_f] holds this against him. Since their teens, when they were trying to decipher the inner workings of everyone’s minds [and had no filter when it came to providing feedback and conclusions], they’ve calmed down considerably, but still find themselves wondering a lot about how people work internally. Although a different kind of doctor to most of their family and ancestor’s, they humorously lament about sticking to the Satterfield convention, and have jokingly begged their brother to abandon this while he still has a chance. One of the professor’s Tamar’s tutored by is actually the one [name_f]Gola[/name_f] saw, however due to client confidentiality they’re ignorant of this - although her roommate has realised who it is, having accompanied [name_u]Pip[/name_u] a few times to meet [name_f]Tamar[/name_f] on campus.

[CherryBomb50]

Dr. Florent Benoit Géroux (30) is also involved with the love triangle involving Everett and while he knows Pip more than Tamar, Tamar is far from invisible to him. He’s heard a lot from Tamar by his friend, a professor of Tamar and happens to know Gola very well. In fact, his sister Clem is actually the midwife Gola lives with! From it, he’s known a bit about Pip given their friendship with Clem. Florent is atheist but he is very respectful of other’s views and has also agreed with and supported Gola referencing her late child as an “angel”. Florent also works at the hospital although he’s a burn specialist, one who heals patients with burns. He’s even overheard Tamar crack a joke about Everett and Tamar’s friend responded, “Everett needs to see Florent cuz he just got burned!” At the same time, he’s glad Tamar isn’t too wrapped up in the drama, which he’s tried to stay away from, but insists the hospital can be “one big medical drama sometimes.” He doesn’t know Tamar’s friend but knows the friend’s elder sister, who he’s become good buddies with during his spare time. They watch movies together and visit the coffee shop a lot but they’ve stated they’re not a couple no matter what Tamar’s friend thought.

Florent himself hasn’t gotten into Babygate and initially thought the pregnancy of Della isn’t true, something Della’s two brothers debate over, but he did overhear Della saying it to Everett. Florent knows the least about Della and some people think he‘s closer with Della than he is. A reason for that is because they knew each other before they worked at the hospital together. They’ve known each other for a while but there’s never been really any close ties, just the two of them seeing and popping in and out of each other’s lives from time to time. They didn’t even know each other’s names until medical school, despite seeing one another much earlier than that. Before then, they thought of one another as, “that person who keeps randomly showing up throughout my life.” Florent remembers the first time they met in medical school and said, “Oh hi I remember you…somehow.” It always feels weird but at least they see each other as people and know each other more and aren’t just “there ironically“. It’s also coincidental that they are born within less than two weeks of each other and turned 30 recently. Before he overheard her, Florent thought Della was not actually pregnant given how Della felt like she was losing fertility at age 30, something she worried about a lot given her age. Florent never judged her worries regarding her age, he knows he’s in no place to judge, especially since Florent is the same age and secretly still a virgin.

Clem was created by @moonwriteen.

[moonwriteen]

[name_u]Connor[/name_u] [name_m]Viorel[/name_m] Markham (32) is the father of [name_u]Pip[/name_u] 's son and therefore the person who caused the whole “Babygate” scandal by trying for a child with his current girlfriend. All of this is because he was adopted from Romania and always wondered who his true parents are , this missing piece has instilled a need in him to have a traditional family . This is why he tried to pursue [name_u]Pip[/name_u] relentlessly the moment he found out they were pregnant. He acted very excited when they told him , went on a few dates with them - bowling , kayaking , the movies and even a fancy restaurant - while paying for everything. At the eight date [name_u]Connor[/name_u] got [name_u]Pip[/name_u] their favourite flowers - jonquils and the tenth one culminated in [name_u]Connor[/name_u] serenading [name_u]Pip[/name_u] on his maple violin while in the parking lot of their apartament building - with a piece he composed himself , mind you.

[name_u]Pip[/name_u] invited [name_u]Connor[/name_u] in and decided to open up about why all of this made them feel quite uncomfortable - not only did they feel preassured but also put in the traditional role of a woman being pursued romantically , which not only made them dysphoric but also feel trapped in a way where they couldn’t really make a move and do something nice for [name_u]Connor[/name_u] because he was focused too much on [name_u]Pip[/name_u] and not telling them enough about himself. [name_u]Connor[/name_u] understood that and also confessed about why he acted that way and how being an adoptee affected his mindset. This made [name_u]Pip[/name_u] convinced that deciding on a long-term relationship for the sake of the child only while not even knowing each other would put too much preassure on them both and especially on [name_u]Connor[/name_u] who would probably see the potential deterioration of the relationship into disfunction as a failure in terms of a major life goal. [name_u]Pip[/name_u] spent the next few weeks convincing [name_u]Connor[/name_u] that respectful co-parenting is the best option for them and the next few months on discussing extactly how this will play out. When [name_u]Pip[/name_u] found out it was a boy, they decided to put [name_m]Viorel[/name_m] somewhere in the name of their son - because they valued the moment of vulnerabilty with [name_u]Connor[/name_u] and how he told them about his family with emotion nearly breaking his voice.

He said he knew why the parents he now has decided to adopt him - it turned out their biological children would be born with a high risk for cystic fibrosis and so they decided to give up on establishing their family the conventional way. His older sister was also adopted as a baby , but from Belarus - [name_u]Connor[/name_u] sometimes envies her as she is much more in touch with her roots, currently a journalist for the local newspaper and an activist for freedom of the media in Belarus - which is the last dictatorship of contienental Europe as of now. She’s also clearly his parents’ favourite - for having a “respectful humanities job, not just a head in the clouds”. [name_u]Connor[/name_u] never really wanted to go into medicine but wanted to earn the approval of his parents as a young adult more than he probably should have - despite his passion for violin and wanting to play in a professional orchestra , his parents never supported him in that goal and wanted him to pursue something that , quote “actually pays the bills and is not just an extension of a childish hobby we paid for to keep you busy”. And so - two of his life goals, being establishing a traditional family and becoming a violinist are ones that he failed at miserably which sometimes causes him to wonder if things would have been different had his 8-month-old self never left Romania. His current gilfriend who’s really into spirituality helped him come to terms with the fact that sometimes goals fail and the only way we can achieve peace with that is looking inward. [name_u]Connor[/name_u] loves her because she’s mysterious, has an artistic soul and is truly ubothered by the shallow things in life unlike so many of the rich doctors he knows. Her calm nature prevented him from literally assulting [name_m]Florent[/name_m] when drunk [name_u]Connor[/name_u] found out that he knows so much about “Babygate”, swearing at him and telling him to “quit gossiping and get the hell out of his family’s business”. If it wasn’t for his girlfriend’s sudden phonecall and a random passerby’s intervention, things would have gotten out of control and he knows that - he hopes [name_u]Pip[/name_u] never, ever finds out about the situation and it looks like they never will because [name_u]Connor[/name_u] 's girlfriend has decided to keep this private - especially becaue [name_u]Connor[/name_u] is the one having primary custody of his 8-year-oldson due to objectively better living conditions (with Pip’s full approval ) so discussing this stressful matter in front of him would be no good either.

[kitkatcookie]

[name_u]Shae[/name_u] [name_f]Ophelia[/name_f] [name_u]Livingston[/name_u] (30) is Connor’s girlfriend and secret keeper regarding the almost assault, however even her strong spiritual attunement has been tested given the incident. A lot of Shae’s life has been unconventional. Her parents were organic farmers who ran their own health foods store [all produce being home grown of course], and they lived on a commune with close friends, where [name_u]Shae[/name_u] was constantly encouraged to involve herself in gardening, woodworking and ecological awareness. This is where her spirituality stems from, as the natural world is supremely important for [name_u]Shae[/name_u], and she wishes to raise her own children with a connection to nature at the very least [faith, belief and other personal matters aren’t something she’s going to linger her on, as it will firmly be their choices]. Shae’s sister has now taken over primary management of their parents business, but she’s the accountant, and visits whenever possible or if staff cover’s required, sometimes donating flowers from her own garden for decorative special offers.

About the house she shares with [name_u]Connor[/name_u], she has multiple angel prayers kept and keeps numerous necklaces with a variety of saints upon them, which she wears in accordance with what she hopes to seek out. Shae’s also created a small space in their garden which is used if anyone needs time to compose themselves and think, something Connor’s son is especially receptive to, given his worries. He’s warmed to her because of how easily she gets on with [name_u]Pip[/name_u] and their side of the family, as [name_u]Connor[/name_u] can find the personalities of the Satterfield’s a bit much [especially given their establishment as medical practice workers in a variety of forms]; but his nerves regarding her very recent pregnancy are something even [name_u]Shae[/name_u] doesn’t quite know how to approach without help.

This has been put on the back burner for now though, due to the confrontation between [name_u]Connor[/name_u] and [name_m]Florent[/name_m]. While she wants to protect her stepson from enduring more upset, [name_u]Shae[/name_u] also can’t help but feel the truth will come out, and is doing her best to convince [name_u]Connor[/name_u] that it needs to be addressed somehow - even if she doesn’t have the immediate answers. It’s unstated but they both know Pip’s father is the one who truly scares him, as said man will fight tooth and nail for his grandson ifbhe disapproves of anything he could be exposed to - not that [name_u]Pip[/name_u] would exactly back down themselves, they’d just be more prone to talking and less immediate action. Sometimes, [name_u]Shae[/name_u] does find this a bit intimidating herself, as her family share the likewise calm, easygoing and gentle character she’s known for; never being too rash or prone to giving into sudden impulses [a side effect of having to financially handle the communal living arrangements and be self-sufficient].

Shae’s only three weeks into her pregnancy but very excited! Her sister has two kids - fraternal twins - and she’s always adored them, so having a baby with [name_u]Connor[/name_u] feels incredibly fulfilling, given how much she loves her niece and nephew. His son has been told and thankfully the conversation didn’t become negatively focused, as [name_u]Shae[/name_u] informed [name_u]Pip[/name_u] immediately after the pregnancy tests confirmation, allowing them time to speak with him as well [and they’ve never been disaparaging about this development to him]. While there’s still some evident nerves, it’s clear he’s settling into the idea of being a big brother more and more, but this has increased Shae’s desire to make amends with [name_m]Florent[/name_m] and address what’s been going on.

[CherryBomb50]

[name_f]Joanna[/name_f] [name_u]Kacey[/name_u] [left] and [name_m]Ken[/name_m] [name_m]Joshua[/name_m] [right] Livingston-Kay (4) are Shae’s niece and nephew, from her sister. They’re fraternal G/B twins and excited to meet their new cousin but for the meantime, they’re just enjoying kiddie life and playing fun games. They were planned to some extent, their mother thought she had a pregnancy when her period was late, but no, it was just a late period. So when she conceived her twins and had a late period, she thought nothing of it and was (pleasantly) surprised that she was expecting twins! Their names were based from names their parents liked, loving a lot of J or K names, but not wanting them both to have J names or K names given the connotations with the Duggars or Kardashians respectively. Their parents are not sure whether to have more children or not and seem satisfied with what they got, but aren’t completely counting it out.

[name_f]Joanna[/name_f] and [name_m]Ken[/name_m] are slightly aware of Connor’s son but don’t see him often, considering he’s not their family. Their mother doesn’t like to get with Connor’s dramatic side, let alone have the twins involved, so [name_f]Joanna[/name_f] and [name_m]Ken[/name_m] have stayed out. They’ve never met [name_m]Florent[/name_m] but slightly know his sister [name_u]Clem[/name_u], since she was the midwife who delivered them. They’ve heard a lot of mentions of [name_m]Florent[/name_m] and [name_u]Pip[/name_u], the latter who they’ve seen in person, but aren’t sure of their roles in the life of [name_u]Shae[/name_u] and [name_u]Connor[/name_u]. As for [name_f]Della[/name_f], they’ve never met her or even know her name, simply referring to her as “The pregnant woman who’s not our aunt”. [name_f]Joanna[/name_f] and [name_m]Ken[/name_m] love running through fields and enjoy playing in the pool. They love fresh fruit and singing with their mother and father. Sometimes they can be a handful but usually they’re good stress relief.

[I_meme_it]

Fideline ’ Fi ’ Noelle Hammett-Kay (7) is the paternal cousin of Joanna and Ken. Virtue names are basically a given within the Hammett family, constantly cropping up, although people prefer to avoid repeats. It started as a means of blessing children in the 19th century for the family - Fi’s mom, a Hammett, having traced her family tree as part of a university project while she was studying biology - and has continued to this very day, with Fi and her younger brothers’ receiving names within that vain themselves (with the approval of their father).

Fi’s aunt, Faith, is also a parent, having had her now 1-and-a-half year old son a year ago when she was 16. Given Faith’s influencer status, there were some arguments between Fi’s mom and her younger sister about Faith’s YouTube career, as the family didn’t want it to become a family channel, feeling it was inappropriate to broadcast the life of Faith’s young son or their own personal lives to the internet. After some bickering, peace resumed and Faith has kept to her word about not going down that path, instead focusing on giving advice for young, aspiring models and doing makeup tutorials instead.

She tends to enjoy spending time with Joanna and Ken because they help escape this dramatic edge of things, although Fi’s 5-year-old brother is definitely closer to them, on account of their smaller age gap. It’s Fi who shares the twins love of the water though, and she’s a very strong swimmer, something encouraged by her dad, who’s a scuba diving instructor during the summer months; with the family running their own coastal holiday retreat business, something Fi loves and has led to her amassing a large amount of friends who live all across the States, using email to remain in touch with them.

~

Faith was created by @Lindseylloyd052399

[moonwriteen]

[name_m]Patrick[/name_m] [name_m]Viorel[/name_m] Markham (8) is [name_u]Connor[/name_u] and [name_u]Pip[/name_u] 's son and the stepson of [name_u]Shae[/name_u] - unfortunately he doesn’t often meet his stepcousins , including Fi , [name_m]Ken[/name_m] and [name_f]Joanna[/name_f] because of the reluctance of [name_u]Shae[/name_u] 's family to deal with [name_m]Patrick[/name_m] ’ s father and his dramatic side. This leaves [name_m]Patrick[/name_m] feeling quite isolated and lost - that 's why he takes a lot of comfort in his stepmother’s garden where everyone has time to reflect on their worries and have a moment of silence.

He admires his stepmother 's diverse skillset in gardening , woodworking and so on - he loves telling everyone he’ll be either a carpenter or a forest ranger which earns him a lot of praise from his teachers who have a breath of fresh air among all the kids who want to become influencers or Youtubers. [name_m]Patrick[/name_m] also initially felt saddend by the prospect of having a stepsibling and thought that he was going to be replaced and moving back to his mom’s house - which he really , really doesn’t want because his secretly afriad of his maternal granddad with whom [name_u]Pip[/name_u] has been in contact quite often recently so as to shoo away [name_u]Pip[/name_u] 's aspiring partner, [name_u]Everett[/name_u]. [name_m]Patrick[/name_m] doesn’t like his granddad and his serious , often even confrontational demeanor , especially towards [name_u]Connor[/name_u]. Ironically , he was named after that very same granddad because it’s a big time family name in the Satterfield family. After a very long and tearful coversation with his mother , [name_m]Patrick[/name_m] however understood that having a stepsibling doesn’t mean being replaced and everyone in his life is going to continue to love him just as much.

[name_m]Patrick[/name_m] knows that his stepmom [name_u]Shae[/name_u] 's sister is against him meeting often with [name_f]Joanna[/name_f] and [name_m]Ken[/name_m] and he really regrets it because he loves running and being around water, too , and has heard countless stories about how cool their paternal cousin [name_f]Fideline[/name_f] is so he would like to meet the family and actually have someone close in age for him to play with. He also heard his stepmom’s sister shouting something about a man named [name_m]Florent[/name_m] who was hit by his father and about a secret that must be kept. He quickly went back to play in the garden because he didn’t appreciate the shouting nor understand anything.

He has cousins who are 9 and 11 on the side of his father’s older sister, however he doesn’t always understand them because the the kids of [name_u]Connor[/name_u] 's older sister tend to use Belarusian as their secret code whenever they don’t want to reveal something to other children.

Because of that, [name_m]Patrick[/name_m] has been trying to convince his paternal aunt to enroll him into the language lessons which she is still discussing with [name_u]Connor[/name_u] and [name_u]Pip[/name_u].

[CherryBomb50]

[name_m]Brendon[/name_m] [name_m]Caleb[/name_m] Whitford-Markham (32) is Patrick’s paternal uncle and the husband of Connor’s sister. He’s a brother of [name_f]Della[/name_f] and is aware of the drama [name_f]Della[/name_f] had with [name_u]Pip[/name_u], something he never expected, seeing he married and had children with his wife before Babygate. Despite his disdain with how the situation planned out, he’s still madly in love with his wife and doesn’t let the drama affect her or the kids. He can’t be responsible if they know and he doesn’t want to overshield, especially not with his wife, and he’ll answer her questions honestly when she asks. Not to mention, she’s feeling the same way given her brother Connor’s incident with Dr. [name_m]Florent[/name_m] Géroux. [name_m]Florent[/name_m] questioned what he did to set [name_u]Connor[/name_u] off but isn’t the type to tell people. Brendon’s wife overheard [name_m]Florent[/name_m] and his sister [name_u]Clem[/name_u] talking about something serious but has no idea if the conflict was what they were talking about, since they conversed all in [name_u]French[/name_u]. She can’t complain; in public, she does the same thing in Belarusian. [name_m]Brendon[/name_m] himself hasn’t gotten involved and barely knows anyway, seeing as it’s still quite secretive. Everyone who knows is secretly glad that [name_m]Florent[/name_m] doesn’t have children of his own because that would be an added hassle.

[name_m]Brendon[/name_m] works as a translator so he knows a lot about other languages and thanks to his wife, he knows Belarusian and is happy his wife brought the language and culture to her children. In fact, [name_m]Brendon[/name_m] finds his children a bit of a solace given some of the awkwardness around the conflict about the families. Secretly [name_m]Brendon[/name_m] does not like [name_u]Everett[/name_u] and finds [name_u]Everett[/name_u] “callous and careless” but [name_f]Della[/name_f] has tried to get [name_m]Brendon[/name_m] to warm up to him, or at least not feel the heavy disdain he’s felt. [name_m]Brendon[/name_m] has a respect for [name_u]Pip[/name_u] about they handle everything, especially raising [name_m]Patrick[/name_m]. While [name_m]Brendon[/name_m] found Della’s pregnancy a bit impulsive, he knows he’s in no place to judge. After all, he and his wife were in their early twenties with the children whereas [name_f]Della[/name_f] wanted her own children but didn’t have a pregnancy until 30. When word got out that [name_f]Della[/name_f] was pregnant, he believed it 100% while his brother initially did not. Brendon’s children are very fluent in Belarusian and he loves to talk with them in both languages as well as give them a good childhood.

[jinxed_peach]

[name_m]Moszek[/name_m] ‘Mose’ [name_u]Levi[/name_u] [name_m]Whitford[/name_m] [34] is the eldest brother of [name_m]Brendon[/name_m] and [name_f]Della[/name_f]. He’s also similar in profession to [name_f]Della[/name_f] as he’s an ultrasound tech but does not work at a hospital like his sister, instead working at a private clinic. He didn’t believe [name_f]Della[/name_f] about being pregnant considering he knew what a control freak his sister is and was doubtful that she would get pregnant without being married like she always said she would. There’s also the element that when they were teens he pranked her pretty intensely and repeatedly throughout the years. She always promised to get him back and he wondered if this might be it.

He called her bluff and asked her to come into his clinic for a scan which of course ended with him being proved wrong and her confirming that it was not a practical joke. Though in a way the joke was on her as the scan showed something else as well, two heartbeats. Now knowing that his sister was indeed pregnant, and with twins nonetheless, [name_m]Mose[/name_m] offered his sister his financial support as he’s a bachelor with a decent income. Like his brother he’s somewhat critical of the impulsive choice to keep the pregnancy he acknowledges that it’s not up to him. He’s trying to be supportive in other ways as well, such as helping [name_f]Della[/name_f] come up with a way to announce her pregnancy to their father. Like [name_f]Della[/name_f] he has a lot of respect for their father raising the three of them on his own and is hoping that [name_f]Della[/name_f] will have a similarly smooth time raising her kids as a single mom.

The topic of kids is not really something [name_m]Mose[/name_m] wants. During college his girlfriend at the time had a pregnancy scare and the event pretty much almost ended their relationship. In that moment when he was just twenty-one, waiting for his girlfriend to take another pregnancy test to find out if the first one was just a false positive, that was when he decided himself that he didn’t want kids. Though he does love being an uncle to Brendon’s children and is promising to be just as fun of an uncle to Della’s children.

[CherryBomb50]

[name_m]Egor[/name_m] [name_u]Miles[/name_u] Whitford-Markham (11) is Mose’s eldest nephew, the son of [name_m]Brendon[/name_m] and his wife. [name_m]Brendon[/name_m] was 21 when [name_m]Egor[/name_m] was born, a sharp difference between him and [name_f]Della[/name_f], who had not yet gotten pregnant until she was 30, and [name_m]Mose[/name_m] who does not have children. At first it felt odd, since [name_m]Brendon[/name_m] never seemed like the type growing up to end up being a young father. But [name_m]Brendon[/name_m] was always someone who was very strong about decisions when he knew what he wanted, and if he didn’t think it was the right choice, he wouldn’t be so strong. [name_m]Egor[/name_m] has inherited a bit of that trait, although for now it’s on much smaller life decisions like what elective he’s planning to take when he goes to middle school next year. He also loves [name_m]Garfield[/name_m] and has been reading the comics since he was 6. [name_m]Egor[/name_m] is the elder sibling, [name_m]Brendon[/name_m] and his wife had another child 2 years after [name_m]Egor[/name_m] was born. They’ve carried on [name_m]Mose[/name_m] and Della’s tradition and they too like to prank one another.

[name_m]Egor[/name_m] is a happy boy who loves being a kid but also feels a good sense of being the eldest grandchild to both his parents’ sides of the family. He is at that stage of life where he wants to be cool and gets embarrassed by his parents when they’re being “corny”. Not getting involved in Babygate is his own choice, he wouldn’t have been involved anyway, but [name_m]Egor[/name_m] personally finds Babygate “very cringey and not cool”. He doesn’t want his friends knowing about it either. While [name_m]Egor[/name_m] may seem “too cool for school”, he still gets good grades and had to reluctantly listen to a teacher who told him to stop speaking Belarusian in class because she assumed he was “telling the other students bad words in a foreign language”. [name_m]Egor[/name_m] doesn’t cuss but lately he’s been listening to music with swear words and his parents have had to get him to listen to only the clean versions of those songs. [name_m]Egor[/name_m] absolutely adores his half-Belarusian culture and has also learned about Connor’s Romanian culture as well. He and [name_m]Patrick[/name_m] have a relatively good cousin bond, but he can’t help but use Belarusian whenever [name_m]Patrick[/name_m] asks him something he doesn’t want to answer. He’s seen [name_u]Shae[/name_u] before and absolutely loves her. There was an awkward moment when [name_m]Egor[/name_m] accidentally referred to [name_u]Shae[/name_u] as “Connor’s wife”, when they’re really just boyfriend and girlfriend. He apologised for the mistake and his mother did too and [name_u]Shae[/name_u] accepted, feeling glad that at least [name_m]Egor[/name_m] didn’t make the error in front of Shae’s sister. [name_m]Egor[/name_m] has also heard his aunt [name_f]Della[/name_f] is pregnant and heard between [name_m]Mose[/name_m] and [name_m]Brendon[/name_m] that it’s twins. He’s excited about having more cousins, this time being paternal cousins, and he loves having that role of eldest again.

[jinxed_peach]

Jumping ahead into the future! ~time machine noises~

[name_f]Amelia[/name_f] [name_u]Clare[/name_u] [name_u]Slate[/name_u] [3wks] and [name_m]Langston[/name_m] [name_u]Henry[/name_u] [name_u]Slate[/name_u] [3wks] are two of Egor’s cousins and the twins that have been the subject of many a conversation. [name_m]Born[/name_m] to Dr. [name_f]Della[/name_f] [name_m]Whitford[/name_m] and Dr. [name_u]Everett[/name_u] [name_u]Slate[/name_u] who initially started their relationship as a means of casual ‘stress relief’ among collogues until [name_f]Della[/name_f] found out she was expecting them. The relationship between their parents was initially decided to be platonic co-parenting considering they hadn’t even been dating before the baby news hit them and [name_u]Everett[/name_u] was still pretty hung up on [name_u]Pip[/name_u].

As her pregnancy progressed [name_f]Della[/name_f] was already preparing for Everett’s support to someday end when he got tired of her or if the moment ever came that he finally won [name_u]Pip[/name_u] over. It was a hard thought to come to terms with, she herself had very strong feelings for him but knew they weren’t on the same page. Though little by little she was proven wrong. [name_u]Everett[/name_u] would buy her ginger candy to help with her morning sickness, hold her hand at every prenatal appointment, and eventually started sleeping over more and more under the guise of “Driving you to work so you don’t fall asleep on the subway and miss you stop.” since her early pregnancy fatigue was pretty bad on account of it being twins.

He didn’t think it would happen, but [name_u]Everett[/name_u] found himself falling for [name_f]Della[/name_f] more and more. His interest in [name_u]Pip[/name_u] proved to be somewhat of a phase, although the two co-workers remain decent friends. During a sleepover at Della’s after feeling the babies move for the first time he was overcome with emotion and asked her to move in with him, accompanied by a pretty cheesy speech that he had fallen in love with her and their children. [name_f]Della[/name_f] agreed and sealed the agreement with a kiss.

Now officially dating and more than halfway through the pregnancy, or rather even closer considering how the doctors knew that twins are prone to early delivery. They set to preparing for the twins’ arrivals. Now living in Everett’s much larger apartment they prepared a nursery and settled on baby names, both of the children have namesakes for their middle names. [name_u]Clare[/name_u] is after Everett’s deceased mother, and [name_u]Henry[/name_u] is the name of Della’s beloved father.

Due to their hospitals low amount of maternity leave, [name_f]Della[/name_f] worked well into her third trimester. She was in the middle of a surgery when she started feeling contractions. She had a co-worker sub out for her as she hurried to contact [name_u]Everett[/name_u] and get to labor and delivery. After laboring for nearly 24 hours she delivered their two babies. Her and [name_u]Everett[/name_u] fell in love with their children instantly. Once again [name_u]Everett[/name_u] made another pretty cheesy speech, and asked [name_f]Della[/name_f] to marry him. [name_m]Just[/name_m] as before, she agreed with a kiss.

[CherryBomb50]

I figured since Shae was pregnant too and Della had just given birth, that Shae would be approaching the time she would give birth to her baby! I know Shae was pregnant a little before Della since she was a few weeks pregnant and Della was only recently pregnant before the fast-forward, but I figured Amelia and Langston’s birth would be earlier anyway since they’re multiples and Shae’s baby-to-be is a (presumed?) single birth. I love the fast-forward by the way, FUTURE! FUTUREEEEE!

Matoaka Eny (34) is the surgeon who Della switched out to when delivering Amelia and Langston. She works at the hospital as well being a paediatric surgeon and has become good friends with most of the doctors and nurses there. The first person she immediately clicked with is Gola, seeing Gola is a fellow Native American, although Gola came from Cherokee descent and Matoaka came from Algonquian descent. She finds Gola a very helpful person in guiding Everett into solving his love triangle dilemma between Pip and Della. She also wishes Pip the best and always found them to be super mature about everything. Sometimes Matoaka jokes that Della and Everett “love being the centre of attention at the workplace“ but she’s truly happy for them and she likes having around because it makes everything “more interesting”. She’s heard from Pip that Pip’s son Patrick is gaining a new paternal half-sibling — Shae is due to give birth any day now! Pip hasn’t gotten themself too involved with Shae and Connor for now and has let them move on and can’t help but wonder if Shae’s sister ever made amends with Connor or not.

Matoaka does not have children of her own and personally doesn’t want any. She did have a pregnancy scare in college with her then-boyfriend Mose. Matoaka has since made amends with Mose but the two decided not to get back together or have children. She feels bad for the way she ended the relationship with him, seeing the two basically flipped out and left one another after the false pregnancy scare. Deep down she’s glad it wasn’t a real pregnancy and enjoyed having more time to focus on pursuing higher education in medical school before becoming a paediatric surgeon. Matoaka can’t help but feel better with Mose not working at the same clinic as her because she feels this would have been very awkward and counterproductive in the amending process. She credits Della for helping her and Mose get on a friendly level and believes Della is a kinder person than she gets credit for. She’s excited Della is getting married to Everett and would love to be a guest at the wedding. She has heard that Della and Everett are planning to send wedding invitations soon, that is, when they’ve found the perfect wedding date.

Gola was written by @moonwriteen.

[I_meme_it]

Ihrin Sunshine Markham (7 weeks) is Shae and Connor’s daughter, younger half-sister of Patrick and cousin of Joanna and Ken, as well as Connor’s sisters’ children. Having a first name chosen for her fathers’ Romanian heritage, Ihrin’s the absolute center of Shae’s world, being doted upon by her mother, who ensured her nursery has a specific angel prayer just for her daughter. Ihrin was a water birth at a midwifery unit, Shae having felt it was best to be directly one-on-one with specialists to ease her nerves as a first-time mother, and thankfully there were no complications; with her having sent organic produce to those involved in the delivery as thanks for their kindness and exceptional care.

Patrick’s currently staying with his mother, so there’s time for Ihrin to settle into life at home, as well as the fact Shae’s been quite exhausted from the labour process, and having an outdoor obsessed little boy to also care for would have been a lot for her and Connor. While he had some nerves, due to Pip’s father still not particularly liking Connor, Patrick’s thankfully been having a lovely time with Pip and their side of the family, even coming to see his namesake as less intimidating due to the Everett situation having cleared up with him happily settling with Della, instead of pursuing Pip when they didn’t want a serious relationship.

There is a meeting arranged between Ihrin and her cousins - Joanna and Ken - but it’s become known to Matoaka, through her friendship with Pip, that the relationship between Connor and Shae’s sister has remained distant. While by no means are they hostile, she still feels uneasy about the incident regarding Florent and worries if it happens again, that Shae will feel responsible somehow, as she coincidentally stopped things from escalating. This is an opinion she hasn’t voiced, as she wants her twins to enjoy meeting Ihrin, and to not spark a proper argument at this introduction - primarily for the well-being of her beloved sister and niece.

~

Shae was created by @kitkatcookie

Connor was created by @moonwriteen

[CherryBomb50]

Warning for alcohol and motorcycle accident (not fatal).

Dean Tarian Livingston-Kay (31) is Ihrin’s maternal uncle and Shae’s brother-in-law. He is Joanna and Ken’s father. He’s married to Shae’s sister and is completely understanding of her situation against Connor. Dean knows Shae will make sure Connor comes around for her but he’s concerned about what Connor himself thinks. Does Connor want to make amends with his sister-in-law? Will he own up? And what about Florent and Pip – has he, or will he own up to them either? Dean feels his wife isn’t the type to forgive if she feels someone isn’t all-around genuine. Dean and his wife have given well wishes to Ihrin, they truly adore the sweet child that she is.

Dean is not a doctor, he’s a computer consultant, but he has tremendous respect for doctors. He can’t help but be very supportive of them, especially Pip and Florent, which is why he feels so strongly favourable of them. His father was in a motorcycle accident at one time, but was healed by Pip and Florent. They were not just good doctors but genuinely caring people and Dean always remembered this. Although he does think Connor did them dirty, he adamantly doesn’t hate Connor. He knows Connor himself had a hard life and has said and done irrational things while drunk and he really wants Connor to stop this before it hurts someone – like himself. Dean’s father was drunk at the time of the crash and hit a guardrail. Thankfully nobody else was harmed, but Dean had trouble seeing his father in the same way. His father raised him and his brother all his life, Dean always saw his father as a smart and inspiring person, so it felt like betrayal. His father wasn’t mean, but just “plain stupid” in that moment according to Dean. If it wasn’t for Dean’s brother, who is also a father to Fi and her younger brothers, Dean wouldn’t know how to talk to his father since the crash. Thankfully his father has made better choices and takes extra measures to avoid driving/motorcycling drunk. Dean isn’t mad at his father or at Connor, but is just greatly disappointed in a way that can’t just be easily shaken off. He knows both have so much potential to grow and change from their bad decisions and hopes they do that as soon as possible.

That being said, he absolutely adores his daughter Joanna and son Ken and will be the best father and example he can be. He’s not perfect; he actually used to be terrible at cooking and wants to get his house remodeled, but only by professionals because he has no capabilities to remodel his own house. But he’s an amazing parent and amazing husband. He loves picking fruit with his kids and loves watching movies with his wife when the kids are asleep. He and his wife were both surprised when they learned they were expecting twins, but it’s the best miraculous gift they could have, and they love Joanna and Ken just as they are.

Fi was created by @I_meme_it.

[Lindseylloyd052399]

[name_f]Erica[/name_f] [name_f]Mae[/name_f] [name_m]Howell[/name_m] (24) is a co-worker of Dean’s and a friend of [name_f]Tamar[/name_f]. She is originally from [name_u]New[/name_u] [name_u]Zealand[/name_u], and moved to the US when she was 18. She works as a receptionist, but she sings part time at a coffee shop nearby. She and her boyfriend actually welcomed a baby girl that her boyfriend actually delivered by himself at home when the midwife couldn’t make it on time. She is still very nervous about motherhood, but still loves it.

[CherryBomb50]

[name_u]Chance[/name_u] [name_m]Alvin[/name_m] Hammett-Kay (34) is well-aware of [name_f]Erica[/name_f], asking her to sing at the coastal holiday retreat business and like her, has a part-time job: every summer, he’s a scuba diving instructor! He’s the father of Fi, brother of [name_u]Dean[/name_u], and uncle to [name_f]Joanna[/name_f] and [name_m]Ken[/name_m]. By chance (pun definitely intended), he happened to have a virtue name which isn’t a tradition in the [name_u]Kay[/name_u] family, seeing as [name_u]Dean[/name_u] doesn’t have one. He and his wife were already a solid couple, but she couldn’t help but immediately think he’s “a keeper” when they first met. [name_u]Chance[/name_u] is a-ok with the idea of virtue names as long as he gets some choice in the matter and with his son, he had been much more immersed in scuba diving at that point, and gave him a water-related middle name.

[name_u]Chance[/name_u] is rather virtuous, but uses it in a kind and comforting way, not a holier-than-thou way. He’s been Dean’s main rock on a lot of his concerns and helped him through the dilemma regarding their father. [name_u]Chance[/name_u] doesn’t know [name_f]Erica[/name_f] as much as [name_u]Dean[/name_u], since [name_u]Dean[/name_u] and [name_f]Erica[/name_f] are co-workers, but [name_u]Dean[/name_u] recommended her to him. [name_u]Chance[/name_u] enjoys Erica’s music and is happy to build up her career and resume a bit. He knows about [name_u]Pip[/name_u] from Erica’s friend [name_f]Tamar[/name_f], who is Pip’s half-sibling. He’s asked [name_u]Dean[/name_u] about [name_u]Pip[/name_u] and gotten a pretty strong opinion on [name_u]Pip[/name_u] from [name_u]Dean[/name_u]. Thankfully [name_u]Pip[/name_u] is not the type to be super miserable right now and is actually doing amazing. [name_u]Pip[/name_u] is close with their son [name_m]Patrick[/name_m] and has been understanding of Patrick’s feelings towards Pip’s father. Since [name_u]Everett[/name_u] has moved on with [name_f]Della[/name_f], Pip’s father hasn’t been shooing off [name_u]Everett[/name_u] anymore and has come to a civil agreement with [name_u]Pip[/name_u] not to discuss bad talk about [name_u]Connor[/name_u] when [name_m]Patrick[/name_m] is around. Still, [name_u]Pip[/name_u] and [name_m]Patrick[/name_m] have been a lot more honest in their conversations out of fairness. While they didn’t discuss one-night stands out of staying appropriate, [name_u]Pip[/name_u] gave [name_m]Patrick[/name_m] an honest explanation that they and [name_u]Connor[/name_u] were not meant to be in a serious relationship and that they still love him as their son anyway despite their dramatic changing lives. [name_u]Pip[/name_u] and [name_m]Florent[/name_m] have became good friends in the months since [name_u]Shae[/name_u] and [name_f]Della[/name_f] announced their pregnancies and they’re on better terms since the months after and the births of [name_f]Amelia[/name_f], [name_m]Langston[/name_m], and Ihrin. [name_u]Chance[/name_u] overheard [name_u]Pip[/name_u] and [name_m]Florent[/name_m] having a positive conversation outside one day but they awkwardly stopped talking when they saw [name_u]Shae[/name_u] and [name_u]Connor[/name_u] in the corner of their eyes. When [name_u]Shae[/name_u] and [name_u]Connor[/name_u] left off into the distance, they both claimed, “Ah, well you’re cooler than [name_u]Connor[/name_u] anyway,” and “Don’t let seeing them ruin a nice day”. It’s likely [name_u]Shae[/name_u] and [name_u]Connor[/name_u] didn’t see them. [name_u]Chance[/name_u] was feeling good about [name_m]Florent[/name_m] and [name_u]Pip[/name_u] being friends, but he’s heard gossip around the hospital that [name_u]Pip[/name_u] and [name_m]Florent[/name_m] are not real friends, just co-workers who teamed together because they want to “get back” at [name_u]Connor[/name_u].

To Chance’s surprise, the rumour is false. [name_u]Pip[/name_u] and [name_m]Florent[/name_m] don’t work in the same unit but they work in the same hospital and meet up on lunch breaks. Also [name_u]Pip[/name_u] was already friends with [name_u]Clem[/name_u], Florent’s sister, who was the midwife roommate of [name_f]Gola[/name_f]. In the last few months, the four have been having alternating Video Game Night/Movie [name_u]Night[/name_u] every week where the winner of Video Game [name_u]Night[/name_u] gets to choose the movie for the following week’s Movie [name_u]Night[/name_u]. [name_f]Tamar[/name_f] loves 2000s video games and whenever they’re around, they join the four whenever it’s a 2000s video game. [name_f]Erica[/name_f] has joined [name_f]Tamar[/name_f] on the occasional times they visit the group on Nights. [name_f]Erica[/name_f] told [name_u]Chance[/name_u] the next day, “I think [name_m]Florent[/name_m] was shocked at how badly we beat him.” [name_u]Chance[/name_u] asked, “Oh god, [name_m]Florent[/name_m] was assaulted for real this time?! WHAT?” [name_f]Erica[/name_f] told [name_u]Chance[/name_u] to calm down, there was no assault, she actually beat him in a 2000s video game. She then tells [name_u]Chance[/name_u] to ignore the rumours, [name_u]Pip[/name_u] and [name_m]Florent[/name_m] are truly bonding alongside each other’s family and friends, and they’re actually fun people and not vengeful. But even when [name_u]Pip[/name_u] and [name_m]Florent[/name_m] are alone, they’re still close and they have something fake friends do not have: trust. They’ve both told one another a secret which [name_u]Chance[/name_u] doesn’t know and neither does anyone other than [name_u]Pip[/name_u] and [name_m]Florent[/name_m] themselves: [name_u]Pip[/name_u] is the only one who knows [name_m]Florent[/name_m] is a virgin and [name_m]Florent[/name_m] is the only one who knows [name_u]Pip[/name_u] got their stepsister out of her latest toxic dramatic relationship by convincing him to leave her. Regarding Pip’s secret, they doesn’t like to think about what happened and knew their stepsister wouldn’t have liked it, but they know it was the best for both. The waning thing about Pip’s friendship with [name_m]Florent[/name_m] is that [name_m]Florent[/name_m] has not met [name_m]Patrick[/name_m], although [name_f]Gola[/name_f] and [name_u]Clem[/name_u] have. [name_m]Florent[/name_m] respects [name_m]Patrick[/name_m] but he and [name_u]Pip[/name_u] feel wrong trying to introduce [name_m]Patrick[/name_m] to the man his father controversially almost attacked. [name_m]Florent[/name_m] feels bad because he feels lesser of a friend to [name_u]Pip[/name_u] than [name_f]Gola[/name_f] and [name_u]Clem[/name_u] for this reason, but reassures [name_u]Pip[/name_u] that he is not using this to end their bonding friendship over something that wasn’t even his own fault.

[name_u]Chance[/name_u] himself is very close with his wife’s side of the family and he himself has made some friends, surprisingly [name_u]Everett[/name_u]. He knows his friendship with [name_u]Everett[/name_u] is odd but he’s recently been invited to [name_u]Everett[/name_u] and Della’s wedding. He and his wife had Fi and their son before but [name_u]Chance[/name_u] relates to Everett’s desire not to ride family coattails. [name_u]Chance[/name_u] may be a big part of the coastal holiday retreat business but he likes time for himself and he’s grateful and glad he has his summer job as a scuba diving instructor to practice his dream. [name_u]Chance[/name_u] feels [name_u]Everett[/name_u] is a good person and he too has revealed a secret to [name_u]Everett[/name_u]: he secretly wants to scuba dive full-time.

[kitkatcookie]

Ruby Jonquil Livingston-Kay (31) is Chance’s sister-in-law, Dean’s wife and mother of Joanna and Ken. Having taken over her parents organic produce business, Ruby’s seen as the contrast to her sister Shae in many senses: she’s blunt, forthright and no-nonsense, ultimately a result of her career, where she faced patronising and blatantly sexist questions regarding her appointment as the new manager without her husband’s involvement, respecting Dean’s career and not feeling it was right to pull him into her affairs at the expense of what he chose his path to be. Although many people assume having twins would put Ruby off conceiving again - especially given the boundless energy Jo and K [as she affectionately calls them] posses - now they’re getting older, she’s spoken to her husband about the possibility of having another baby, feeling she would like to expand her family at least one more time. The only thing she and Dean are wary of is the notion of having twins once more, as two sets of doubles might just drive them both mad [not that Ruby would really mind deep down, as the bond shared between Joanna and Ken means the world to her, reminding her of the closeness she and Shae have maintained through thick and thin…and more recently this has been put to quite the test].

To say Ruby and her sister’s boyfriend have a strained relationship is an understatement. Even before the incident involving Florent, Ruby and Connor didn’t see eye to eye much, with her finding his temperament- and how Shae had to act as a calming agent - a point of stress, as she didn’t want her sister to feel responsible for times where Connor was pushed to breaking point. The almost-assault on Florent was the final straw for Ruby though, and she didn’t take one moment to not voice her upset at the situation. While she understands no-one wants their personal life to be gossiped about or treated akin to a soap opera to be observed by others, almost attacking someone is way beyond what Ruby considers acceptable - given that Florent wasn’t being malicious or threatening Connor’s family in any sense. This prompted her to pull back her twins from spending time with him unless she or Dean were around, as she found her trust in him shattered, and outright refused to be involved in keeping this information from Pip, as she knew it wouldn’t end well either way. She knows that Connor sincerely loves her sister, never mind Ihrin and Patrick, which pains Ruby more in a sense, as she wants Shae to be surrounded by warmth and affection, however the idea she’ll feel she has to be responsible for Connor if this ever happens again is something Ruby feels she can’t let happen.

For how she seems more brittle and argumentative, Ruby’s spirituality mirrors her sisters’ entirely, and she includes her, Ihrin, Patrick and Connor [for their conflict] in her daily angel prayers, as well as having crafted a special mobile for her niece, who she already adores. Ihrin’s birth has made Ruby and her family a bit more physically present, as she’s been providing Shae with support and advice on adjusting to the demands of motherhood, although relations remain cool between her and Connor [not that she actively wants arguments, in spite of some assuming otherwise due to what they’ve heard]. Ruby’s also a strict vegetarian, although she doesn’t enforce this on her family, and has learned to cook a wide array of dishes to shoot down any critiques of her diet being boring or repetitive; now involving Jo and K in some meal prep, although she’s very careful about what they can do. She still plays the cello - an instrument introduced to her when she was 7 - and enjoys gardening to relax, having created quite the beautiful, tranquil space at she and Dean’s home, that encourages reflection and introspection when visited.

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Joanna & Ken ads credited to @CherryBomb50

Connor is credited to @moonwriteen