Participants:
| Scene Title | Baby Fix |
|---|---|
| Synopsis | Two women get theirs when Melissa stops by with Junko. |
| Date | April 07. 2011 |
Village Renaissance Building: Elaine and Quinn's Flat
It's been a while since Melissa's spoken to Quinn and Elaine, much less visited. But with free time comes visiting! More, it's visiting with baby! She shows up at the door, after calling ahead, with Junie standing up in front of her, clinging to Mel's hands. She raps carefully on the door before giving the hand back to the toddler, grinning down at her. The diaper bag is slung over her shoulder, to rest almost on her back. And while waiting for the door to open, she's talking to the girl, mostly babytalk.
Melissa's lucky. About a minute ago, Quinn had been wearing headphones as she listened to something on her iPad. But now she was up, headphones around her neck and the device in hand as she was headed towards the table for something. Something she quickly forgets when she hears knocking on the door. Curious, she walks forward, and once a look through the peephole is had, she smiles wide. "Elaaaaaine! We have a tiny visitor!" And Melissa too!
The door is thrown open and Quinn waves. "Heeey!" she greets cheerily at Melissa, before leaning forward a bit so that her eyes are level to Junko. "«Hello to you to!»" For whatever reason, she chooses to greet the child in Gaelic. Maybe to see what her reaction is. "Come on in!"
Baaaaaaaaaaby! At first Elaine assumes it is Walter, as that is the normal baby visitor, but when she heads out of the bedroom, she's delighted to see a different baby-visitor, complete with a Melissa. She hurries over, offering Melissa a warm smile and Junko a sweet one as well. "We should have more tiny visitors more often!"
Junie doesn't seem to know what to make of the Gaelic, but that doesn't stop her from smiling up at Quinn, showing off a new tooth and babbling happily, and starting forward, which makes Mel move forward so baby doesn't tumble! "Hey, you've got more than a tiny visitor," Mel says, tossing grins at both the women, trying to speak over the babbling. In there is a definite "Yum!" Which Mel sighs fondly. "That's her word for anything yummy. Usually cookies." Then she's beaming at Junie. "She's a year old now!"
Quinn knows they have more than one visitor, and she shows it by stepping forward and hugging Melissa. "Babies get greeting priority, sorry," the musician replies with a laugh. "We have cookies, if she's allowed t' have one. Some drinks if you want one. I'd break out one a' the oreo pies I got at the store the other day, but I don't want t' make Junko jealous." Moving to the dinner table, Quinn sets down her iPad and headphones, stepping carefully because of the baby. "How've you been? Sorry I haven't been around. I've been busy."
"I'm a sucker for little human beings," Elaine agrees. She grins, peering at Junko. After a moment, Elaine looks back at Melissa. "It's good to see you too, though, I promise our love is not just for the little one." She looks towards said little one. "One year old… goodness, you're getting so big already!"
Melissa laughs and shakes her head as she returns the hug. "Totally understandable. I greet her before I greet Perry. And yes, she can have a cookie." Junie agrees, hollering another, "YUM!" which makes Mel grin and let Junie plop her butt down on the floor. "And I've been good. Keeping busy. Off probation so trying to figure out a new living arrangement with more room. What about you guys?"
She's able to straighten now that she's not having to hold Junie's hands, and she rubs her back lightly. "And yeah, one year old. I managed to get her birthday from some of the people I talked to. Her birthday's April Fools day, poor thing."
"April Fool's day? That's exciting!" Quinn replies with a laugh as she looks down at Junko. "God, a year old…" A girl taken in after the death of her mom. It can't help but make Quinn think back to her recent dream, just sort of staring down at Junko for a moment. "…Good you've been busy," she says almost absently after a few seconds. "How's Tartarus doin'? I miss that place."
"Oh, the poor thing is you, Melissa. April Fools means that little Junie's gonna be a prankster," Elaine says with a grin. "So you're doomed. Good luck with that." She nods a little bit in regards to Tartarus. "We should go by there and go dancing sometime soon, Quinn."
"Yep, April Fools," Melissa verifies, grinning. Junie pushes herself to her feet, taking a few uncertain steps before landing on her padded bottom and waving hands. "YUM!" Melissa grins and nods at Elaine. "I know. Add in Kendall the illusionist, and it's just nuts. As for Tartarus…There's gonna be another auction soon. You should play, Quinn. You should both show up though."
"Oh god, with Kendall. You've fu- screwed." For once, Quinn managed to catch and correct herself, yay being responsible! "Play? Like, a show?" Tilting her head a bit, Quinn looks over towards Elaine. "Not sure I can auction m'self off this time, but I'm sure I can play. I have a new single comin' out next week, so a few show'll probably be in order to support it anyway."
Elaine grins. "Quinn can't play without me. Who'd play violin for her? We're totally a package deal, so no need to worry there. But yeah, you're in all kinds of trouble. Kendall already has too much of a taste for mischief." She looks back to Quinn.
"Oh I know. Believe me, I probably know better than anyone. Scaring people in my basement, scaring me after he died," Melissa says, shaking her head and finding a place to sit. "And a package deal sounds good," she adds, smiling. "But what've you two been up to? Good stuff, I hope."
"Ups and downs," Quinn mutters, eyes lowering down o the ground for the moment. "The ups have been wonderful, though." There's a very distinct and obvious smile offered over to Elaine. "The downs I'm tryin' not t' think about. Gotta stay positive. LOts t' be happy about right now, despite everythin' around us, so I'm trying t' stay with that."
Elaine smiles warmly back at Quinn, looking towards Junko for a moment. "There is plenty to still be happy about, and no reason to not live in the moment and do things in the present while things are good, am I right?"
"Good! Share some of the happy," Melissa says, smiling, watching Junie get up again, making her way towards Elaine, sensing an easy mark. And she gives good cute face when she grabs Elaine's leg and says, "Yum?" Who could resist that?!
"Uuuh…" Again, Quinn looks over to Elaine with a quirked eyebrow. They had decided not quite yet to share their big news, so she's not going to just up and volunteer it. "Things have just… with the exception of a few bumps in the road, things have just been really good for us lately." WHich isn't a lie. And Junko provides a good distraction, Quinn unable to keep from laughing at the baby. "She's adorable, you know."
Elaine looks back to Quinn, a bit of color on her cheeks before she looks back down to Junko. "Goodness me, you adorable thing you. You're just perfection itself, aren't you? Does the baby want some yums, mm? Shall I fetch you a cookie?"
"She always wants some yums. And she's learning pretty damn quick how to charm cookies out of everyone. You should see her with Devon and Perry," Melissa says, smiling at the girl. She looks back to Quinn and nods. "She is. She terrified me at first, you saw that, but now…she's just mine."
Watching as Elaine heads off towards the kitchen, trying to manuever with a Junko stuck to her leg and, once detached, wanting to follow, Quinn can't help but smile fondly. "Watch out for Inger," she warns, perpetually worried the baby is going to find some way to piss the cat off.
Turning back to Melissa, Quinn peers at her carefully. "Can you keep a secret? There's somethin' Elaine an' I haven't told anyone yet, an'… we're not until we get back from our trip t' Ireland. Because we know what people are gonna say if we tell them now, an'… I dunno. It just seems like a better idea t' us. You can't let her know I told you, though."
Melissa gives Quinn an amused look. "Quinn, hon, I'm all about secrets. I live a secret. So yes, I won't tell anyone." She pauses. "Can I tell Perry? If not, cool, just had to ask, since, yanno…" She trails off, shrugs, and smiles a dopey smile. "And I won't let her know you told either."
"Well… I don't really think Perry knows any of our friends, so… I guess? But not Kendall." Not that Kendall's as close as others, but Quinn does admittedly worry about him telling other people. A hand moves, settling on Melissa's shoulder as Quinn turns her from the open room, back to face the door. "I… Elaine an' I, we're kinda… unofficially engaged?" That's the best way to put it, right? "We're… waitin' until we get back from Ireland t' tell anyone. So we have somethin' t' show about it an' it's official, an' it seems less… inspired by some recent events I don't want t' get int'."
Brows lift and Melissa's mouth drops open, but she manages to restrain any sort of loud squeal-like noise. "Seriously? Congratulations, Quinn!" There's a pause, and some question rolls through her mind, but she squashes it and smiles, giving Quinn a hug. "That's great. I'm so happy for the both of you."
The hug Quinn should have expected - but she wasn't. So when Melissa attaches herself to Quinn, the Irishwoman stumbles back a bit, caught by surprise. A quick hug back, and she begines to untangle herself from Melissa. "Seriously. It's… we made kind of a… promise? I wasn't goin' t' call it an actual proposal, but Elaine… that's what she wanted. But we promised if it felt right in a year, we'd get married. If not… we put it off a bit longer. Hopegully, it'll feel right."
"You two look good together, act good together. I'm sure it will. I'm really happy for you," Melissa says, smiling and sitting back down. "Seems like the time for couples. Nadira's engaged. And pregnant."
"Thank," Quinn says in reply to the compliment, before blushing a bit. But she's quickly distracted, her eyes widening. "I know! Well… She's been engaged for a few mnths now? Since December I think?" She shrugs a bit. "But man, I saw her ;ast week, I can't believe she's pregnant! That's so crazy. She never struck me as the type."
"I don't know why they think it's a good thing considering that the father is wanted by how many government agencies?" Melissa says with a mild grimace. "But hey, their life, their choices. So long as they're happy."
"Well…" Quinn eyes Melissa for a moment, and then shrugs. "Sometmies people don't have as much control over those things as they want." Being reminded who Nadira's fiancee is makes QUinn a little unhappy; she hasn't told her friend to her face, but she strongly disapproves. FOr obvious reasons. "I think they'll manage. If anyone can, I think it's Nadira. Plus, it's not like she's wanted. She can get through this fine. I'm more worried about raisin' a kid here."
"Here in New York?" Melissa looks towards the kitchen and Junie. "Yeah. I was terrified for Junie when the Dome was up," she murmurs. "Was worse because I had another girl I was watching. Her mom got stuck on the other side of the Dome, just a few feet from her daughter." She looks back to Quinn. "I actually had a pregnancy scare, right when the Dome went up. Luckily it was just a scare though. We're not at all ready for another kid in the mix."
"…you an' Perry did? I dunno, I imagine you two would be adorable with a kid of your own. But… yeah I don't blame you." Quinn shakes her head, sighing a bit. "What's it like, anyway? Taking' someone in like that?" Quinn can hear Junko squeal form teh kitchen, probably ELaine giving her another cookie. "If… you don't mind me asking."
"Mmm, yeah. And I know any kid of his would be so freaking adorable it'd almost be illegal," Melissa says, smiling. "And it's…well, it's what I do, really. I mean, I took in Kendall, then Ling and Faron and Edgar, then Junie and most recently, Devon. Hell, might even have another." She smiles wryly. "I think I have an adoption issue."
She stretches her legs out and shrugs. "I find it fulfilling. My life may have been crap, but I can help make it a little better. And usually the people take in I end up adopting emotionally. Kendall and Devon may as well be my brothers, and Junie? She is my daughter, I just didn't give birth to her." Her smile goes goofy again. "Should've seen me when she said mama for the first time. I started bawling."
"Mmm…" Quinn seems lost in thought for a few moments, staring somewhat blankly ahead. But, eventualyl she snaps out of it. "I'm glad it's been good for you," she replies with a smile and a slow nod. "I think maybe that'll be me someday. But not for a while. I'm just deciding t' get married. One thing at a feckin' time."
Melissa looks back to Quinn and smiles. "It's amazing. I know some people say that there's nothing like seeing a child that you made, but I don't think I could love Junie anymore if she'd come from me. And I think you two would make wonderful parents. Though you'd probably have any kid banging on a keyboard before he or she could walk," she says, grinning.
"Haha, thanks." Quinn actually blushes a bit at the thought that her and Elaine would be great parents. "I think Elaine would be. She's… I could see her bein' more motherly than I am. I think I'm way too lazy," she says with a laugh and a shrug. "Anyway, I was just kinda curious. It sounds nice." It sounds like something to think about. You know, for teh future. A different one than the one on her mind.
"Lazy? You were great with Junie," Melissa says, smiling. "And hey, before I got her, could you have seen me as a mother? With as terrified as I was of babies? Hell, pregnant women and unknown babies still terrify me. Once I found out that Nadira was pregnant I stayed well away from her."
"I guess you're right. If adopted, though, they'd be older than Junie." And probably not as old as the girl in her dream, but that wasn't exactly by choice. "An' yeah, I remember. Good thing you got on board with not bein' scared, huh? But I don't get why pregnant women scare you. It's a good thing you weren't around Delilah over the summer."
"Because there's a little squirming life in there," Melissa says, motioning with her hands in a general spherical shape, a horrified look on her face. "And they do things like go into labor. Have you ever seen a woman in labor? I have. I helped out when I was at the Suresh Center. Better than an epidural. And it's frightening!"
"Really? That bothers you?" Quinn sounds more than a little amused, her arms crossing. Out od the corner of her eye, she sees Elaine finally coming back out of the kitchen, carrying Junko towards the couch - and Inger running away and towards Quinn's room upon their approach. "I mean, I can understand the rest. I wouldn't want t' be there while another woman gives birth, unless it's, well, Elaine."
Melissa shudders. "It's horrifying," she repeats. "I happened to glance once, as the head was coming out. It's just not right, man. It was almost enough to make me wish I was a guy." She smiles at Junie, but lets Quinn have Junie time. "But very glad someone went through it with Junie. And anyway…Other than…happy things…what've you guys been up to? Haven't seen you since what, January? Right after we got back from hawaii? You liking your new job?"
"Well, I mean…" Quinn rolls her shoulders a bit. "The usual. I mean, there was my concert in February. Which, you know, had FRONTLINE come to it lookin' for fugitives. Workin' on music. Watchin' Elaine gettin’ shot, havin' t' help fend off Sylar at a gala cause he's attackin' a friend of mine, weird bullshit dreams going about, watchin' my ex-girlfriend have a breakdown…" her voice is dry through the whole list. "It's been thrilling." She lets out a sigh, shaking her head. "It hasn't been all bad, but the last two months have been hard."
Melissa gives her a sympathetic look. "I really do sympathize. I've had the Dome, then work as usual for the most part. But the Dome was bad enough for several months." She glances to where Elaine disappeared. "Is Elaine alright now? I can check, see if she's in pain?"
"No, it was… over a month ago, now. She's fine." Quinn smiles at Melissa, shrugging. "She's fine now, as well as I'm aware. You're welcome t' check, though. Thanks. Some guy in one of her classes basically got made because she's evolved an' it made her basically destroy the curve in class, or some stupid bullshit reason like that, I forget. So… he shot her. I had t' throw out a bunch of lights t' make sure he didn't get away. It wasn't a fun day."
"Wait, wait, what?" Melissa says, frowning. "He got pissed because she blew the curve? Language classes, I'm guessing? That's total bullshit. I hate people like that."
"Like I said, some stupid bullshit reason like that." Quinn can't help but shake her head, looking towards the couch as she hears Elaine say something in Gaelic that the baby certainly can't understand. "Threw away his life because one woman had it easy. It's awful."
"Well, I'm glad that she's alright. I know it's not fun when someone you love gets hurt." Melissa smiles faintly. "Made it easier when I did love anyone, but damn if life isn't more satisfying now."
A smile on her face, Quinn gives a gentle shake of her head. "No, it's really not. It's been happenin' a lot over the last year too. I never used t' get caught up in this shit. What the hell happened?" There's a bit of a laugh, Quinn nudging Melissa with her elbow. Whatever supposedly witty remark she was going to make, though, is interrupted by a giggling baby.
"Come on. What do you say we get some ice cream and cookies, and sit down on the couch. We have plenty left from Elaine’s birthday." Quinn steps to move away, motioning for Melissa to follow. "Heck, maybe we can even introduce Junko to the awesomeness that is Doctor Who."
Hopefully, there'll be no Weeping Angels today.