cw: sexism, custody issues
[name_f]Nicasia[/name_f] " [name_u]Nikki[/name_u] " [name_f]Margot[/name_f] Walderen (27) is the mother of Margus’s’ child, the aforementioned cousin of the triplets and their aunt. To say her life is complicated right now would be an understatement: Nikki’s pretty overwhelmed. The root of the paternity revelation stemmed from custody issues. While Nikki’s ex didn’t believe he fathered her son, his parents absolutely did, and began pushing to assume primary custody of him. Their reasoning was that [name_u]Nikki[/name_u] had the audacity to not be in a relationship with anyone at the time of conceiving, which was all they needed to know to push for her parental rights to be diminished, in spite of their son protesting. To say he and [name_u]Nikki[/name_u] have been on poor terms for several years is an understatement: he called her a plethora of insults when she revealed her pregnancy [entirely blaming her] and accused her of attempting to trap him, when in reality she genuinely believed he was the only reasonable answer for the father of her son.
Although it was a shock to discover the seemingly impossible had happened, [name_u]Nikki[/name_u] was somewhat relieved in another sense, as it meant not having her son around people who absolutely despised her, when their child was also behaving recklessly [and is suspected of having fathered another child on an ex-girlfriend, who was only seeing him at the time; he refuses to acknowledge them as well]. They made one last attempt at fighting - insisting the test was wrong or [name_u]Nikki[/name_u] somehow sabotaged it - but this was thankfully dismissed in court, and since then, blocking their moves to see her child have been much easier; a weight lifted from both he and his mom’s lives.
Throughout this madness, Nikki’s ensured her son’s been shielded from the chaos and mudslinging. She’s been prone to negatively comparing herself to her sister [the triplets mom] who she feels has always excelled at being responsible far better, and not bringing madness in the wake of her actions. This hasn’t dampened the sister’s closeness, nor that of their children’s, as the cousins absolutely adore one another and have a huge array of games they play when spending time together: after all, having a boy present means certain roles can now be fulfilled much easier - namely as Nikki’s son loves pretending to fly, so the mermaid princesses gain a much needed bird-man ally. He often spends two nights a week at his aunt and uncle’s, as [name_u]Nikki[/name_u] has to work late twice in her job as a paralegal, with it assuring her family are there for her son if she can’t be physically present.
Since the test came back positive, she’s kept [name_m]Margus[/name_m] at an arms length emotionally, while processing the revelation. She knows her son deserves to know the truth and be given an opportunity to bond with his biological father, but at the same time she doesn’t want to force anything either way, and knowing Margus’s bond with her nieces has made [name_u]Nikki[/name_u] a little apprehensive: she doesn’t want her son feeling like there’s a competition with his cousins for closeness. For now, Nikki’s been focused on ensuring the legal side of things is sorted out - to keep her son’s alleged former grandparents aren’t raising hell - but she knows a proper conversation is needed, and that really does scare her.