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| Scene Title | Baby Phobia |
|---|---|
| Synopsis | Melissa drops by Abby's place, and is confronted with something she didn't know she had a phobia about. Huruma, however, seems quite comfortable. |
| Date | June 27, 2010 |
Le Rivage: Abby's Apartment
Melissa called ahead of time, and despite there being a baby, Abigail was dis-inclined to tell the woman no. Just a request that she stop and pick up pizza for everyone. Extra-large should do it. Robert was out of town, Huruma snoozing in the house. Back not long with bags filled with the necessities to last Huruma for a week at most, not including what Peter was requested to bring home that had surely baffled him. Door would be unlocked, let herself in, don't freak when she showed up.
By don't freak was, don't be scared when in the kitchen, the sink filled with warm soapy water, there was a baby cradled along Abby's arm, other hand scooping warm water up onto the pale infant's body carefully, singing to the little creature that Huruma had dropped in her lap.
"Baby beluga in the deep blue sea, swim so wild and you swim so free. heaven above and the sea below and the little white whale on the go. Baaaaaby beluga, baaaaaby beluga. Is the water warm, is your momma home with you sooo happy" At her feet is Rhett, flopped on the ground and investigating the drips of water that come down Abby's elbows and fall to the floor.
Let herself in? There was really no chance of anything else. After all, Melissa let herself in last time she was here. And if the door's unlocked, there's really no reason for her to do otherwise anymore. Unless she hears certain sounds from the hallway, anyway. It takes a bit of maneuvering for Mel to get the door open though, considering she's carrying the pizza, a paper wrapped something sitting on top of that box, and has a bag slung over her shoulder with some sodas.
"Honey, I'm ho—" Mel breaks off, pausing when she hears the singing. It has her frowning, completely baffled. Is Abby treating the puppy like a baby and singing to him? If so, her and Mel are going to have to have a talk. "Abby?" she calls out, sliding the bag off carefully and setting it down, then moving into the kitchen. To stop dead and stare. "Abby…I know we joked once about alien babies popping out of people quick after the whole Darren handprint thing, but babies do not get born and that size overnight." At least as far as she knows. With all the abilities out there, who knows?
"Kasha, is not an alien baby. Kasha is a beautiful little girl who's momma died and Huruma is taking care of her" The little sponge lifted from the water and she squeezes it gently, a wash of soapy fluids falling over the little girls belly, legs kicking. "Oh yes she is. You'll teach her how to be a good momma won't you Kasha" Abby's pink hair is out, back in a braid so that it won't go wet while doing this. "Rhett is helping me bath her, aren't you Rhett? Who's my good dog!"
Scarlett glares from the back of the couch, the cat home and settling into the new digs. In Abby's room, there's a chirping that sings of it being Pila. The house back to it's multitude of pets. "Thanks for bringing dinner, I don't think I can cook tonight and Peter will be too tired"
Melissa stares, for a long moment, though it's at Abby rather than the baby. "Huruma…" she begins slowly. "Uptight black chick? About so high?" she asks, holding a hand up to demonstrate size. "Likes shoving kids' faces in the snow for throwing snowballs? And if she's taking care of…Kasha…why are you bathing her?"
She eyes the baby now, and doesn't seem to know what to do regarding her. She's certainly not going to break into baby talk, and isn't certain she wants to get any closer, but the pizza and package are starting to get heavy. There's a soft sigh, then Mel eases further into the kitchen, setting both things down on the counter, before moving the topmost package so it's not on top of the hot pizza box.
"Because Huruma's … sleeping and needed a break from the baby Mel. And I'm her friend and I promised I'd help her find a place for Kasha Mel. I help you bury skeletons, I help her take care of druggie's baby's" There's a shrug, using her chin in lieu of a hand to gesture towards the baby towels on the counter. "Can you get me one and there's… a box of soft chew under the sink, can you give a couple to Rhett for being such a good boy please? Because I have to get you outta the water. Yes I do Kasha. Such a lovely little baby you are, yes you are" Cooing to the infant.
For all her uptightness and apparent size, Huruma moves like a ghost. Next any of them chance to turn around, there she is in the doorway. Abby can tell that she still looks quite rumpled- Melissa is not as familiar, so it seems only as if Huruma is making that glower at something unspecific. Her eyes are brown, as per contacts, and the redness on the rest of her eyes seems to have dulled out.
"Was. I was sleeping." It almost sounds as if Melissa could have woken her; Huruma does not give a sign either way. She lifts a hand, running palm over skull, nails scraping on skin as if she were combing fingers through hair. "I used your sink." Presumbably, the bathroom.
That gets a grimace. "Can we not talk about bodies?" Mel asks hopefully. "I dreamed of freakin' zombies last night. And they were all my friends, dying to eat my brain," she says, absently rubbing at her forehead. Right where Abby knows there's a scar. Apparently it played into the dream.
She eyes the baby as though she'd jump out of the water and attack, but grabs a towel, offering it to Abby, then digging under the sink for Rhett's treat. She crouches down next to the puppy, because puppies she understands, and offers the treat to him. Huruma's voice has her glancing up to the woman, watching her for a few seconds before she looks back to Abby. Distraction time! "Brought something for you," she says, motioning to the paper wrapped…thing. "Thought it would help make the apartment look less empty."
"Mel, at this rate, I'm going to have my place furnished by you Melll-" Abigail gives a bit of a jump, unused still to Huruma showing up so randomly. "I'm sorry if I woke you Huruma. If you need something to eat, Mel brought pizza and I got some coffee perking" SHe offers, squishing wet child to her shoulder and covering her with a towel. "And my bathroom is open to you anytime Huruma"
Out of the kitchen she slinks, making for the couch so she can get the baby back into clothes and a diaper quick as possible.
Huruma's expression is stony, save for a small flare of her nostrils. "Don'joke about zombies." Her voice practically vibrates against the kitchen tiles. Sleep is an old friend that leaves Huruma much more coherent. "You'aven't needed t'actually fight any."
The woman watches Melissa until Abby goes about with her babysitting and sidles into the living room. At that point, she looks after the mane of cotton candy hair, glances back to the punkish girl, and turns to meander after Abby. It is almost like an animal that happened to get inside; she knows what she wants to do, relatively speaking- and it seems to take her a minute of calibration-to-foreign-area before she does.
"That's the last one, Abby. There's a reason for it," Melissa says, shrugging and carrying it out to the living room so Abby can look at it after she's done with baby duties. "And I'm not joking about 'em. I had a nightmare's all. Just like I told Abby," she says, flopping down in a chair after she's set the package down.
"There were zombies? I thought there were just… mechanical crabs and … things…" Mel might not know what they're talking about. A onesie is wriggled over the babies head, Abigail taking her time to get the wriggly lump of fist sucking flesh dressed, hoping that Huruma is paying attention because the moment it's done, wrapped in a blanket nice and snug again, swaddled into contentment, she's laid carefully against Huruma's shoulder
'I am eating now" Eyebrows up and smiling. "You got her while I'm eating"
No arguments allowed. She's got a present to open before she can get to the pizza. "Nightmares will go away, think of a safe place, once you realize it's a nightmare, you have more control than you can fathom, in your dreams"
Away from the pizza, onto the kitchen counter, she grabs scissors to start to carefully undo the packaging.
"There were zombies in Angola, too. Danko an'I fought them there, too, more than- say- a dozen years back…" Huruma mentions this as she slinks closer to peek at how the diaper thing is done. Her family- and for the short time she had the twins- and really anyone else she knew when she was small- let babies roam on their own, take a 'break' wherever. Culture clashes.
Whatever she had been thinking about nigh vanishes when Abby tells her that it is her turn. Huruma lifts her hands, pauses, fingers flexing. The baby girl is probably just watching this as it happens. Well? What are you gonna do?
Finally, Huruma purses her lips and picks up the freshly bathed baby- only to put herself down on right there on the floor, Kasha on her lap. Hmm.
Nope, Melissa definitely doesn't know what they're talking about, but after a quick look of confusion she shrugs it off. They'll explain if they want to. Otherwise, why worry? Abby's advice regarding nightmares has Mel pausing for a moment to think about that, then slowly smiling. "Oh…I think I can do that," she murmurs. Then she sits up, leaning forward to watch Abby open the package.
It wasn't what she was expecting, not in the least. The painting of the man in the river spreading ashes. Sure, maybe morbid. But she had fallen in love with it at first sight. Wished that it hadn't gone up for raffle and maybe she might have been able to buy it off Mel. SOmeone had won it? Mel won it? Danko did what?
Abigails face falls and she looks over to Huruma as if she hadn't heard properly.
Huruma, unfortunately, is in her own little world at current. Baby up, up, up, baby down. Big lady makes for a sturdy ride, and every time that Kasha comes down, down, Huruma murmurs something into her ears. If Abby has a question about something, perhaps best to get clarification quick.
Melissa frowns as she watches Abby's face, looking disappointed at the reaction, not realizing that it was Huruma's words that caused it rather than the painting. She shrugs and leans back a little. "You don't have to keep it if you don't want it."
"No! no, no, I love it, this was the one I was hoping to win Mel, it's gorgeous. I think.. I met the man that this painting is about. I think. It's beautiful and I know exactly where I'm going to put it Mel" A glance over her shoulder to Huruma playing with Kasha shows a different kind of smile, the woman getting along with the infant.
"I'm going to hang it in my room. Find some paint to go with it. It's beautiful. how many people can say they have an issac Mendez in their apartment?"
"I much prefer Thomas Brill. When it comes to …such paintings." Huruma brings the baby down to her lap again with a tiny smile. "Kidogo ndege, ulikuwa juu, juu-" The baby gets a faint tickle.
Melissa smiles. "Good, I'm glad. I didn't win the won I wanted, but won this one. Figured it'd look better on your walls than mine." The smile slides into a grin. "Though I'm gonna try to buy Quinn's painting off of her. And not many. Aside from Linderman, I only know you, Quinn and Peyton with 'em." Beat. "Unless that Richard guy has some. He said he was a collector."
"Richard has some, I know. But I think they're Brills, like Huruma said. Prophetic paintings seem to be pretty in the want. But I think these ones might have been ones that came to pass already or I doubt Mister Linderman would have given them up." The frame of the painting it touched reverently before put off to the side some place safe and away from where it could be damaged. Time to buy renters insurance, ask Robert how to go about insuring the painting.
She nudges Melissa, gesturing discreetly to Huruma and her interaction with Kasha, the puppy even having gone so far as to plop down facing Huruma and the baby, chin on paws and watching the ongoings.
"Brill was more metaphorical." Huruma makes this second comment before glancing to the puppy, then back to the baby perched on her lap. The woman makes a slight face at the dog, as if to say 'mine'. Perhaps a spot of forcible intimidation.
Melissa looks up at Abby at the nudge, and gives her a curious look. What? It's a baby. "So, uh…You guys look busy, what with the baby and all. Should I head on out?" She doesn't want to overstay her welcome after all.
Mel doesn't know Huruma enough to appreciate what she's seeing, though even as Rhett scuttles back, away from the pair on the floor and towards the relative safety of Abby and Mel, Abigail shrugging. 'Stay, have some Pizza. Huruma's gonna sleep again and I'm babysitting till the baby sleeps. Maybe Peter will haul his arse in here at some point"
"He will never let m'live this down, I fear." On the topic of Peter. Huruma leans her back up against the sofa, burbling Kasha in hand. When she is not without sleep and with a decided amount of reason- Huruma does not do half bad with babies. Insecurity made her paranoia resurface. Abby has been absolutely fantastic for that problem.
Melissa laughs. "Before dawn? Because that's what time he got home last time I was here. Well, last time I was here for an extended length of time. But yeah, I can hang around. Pizza is always good." She glances at Huruma and shrugs. "Don't know what to tell you there. Though what's the big deal about you having a baby?"
It's not Abigail's story to tell, of Huruma and her track record with children. "Some people Mel, they're not baby people. Huruma, she's not a people person. What makes her a fabulous bouncer, is what makes her… well…" A gesture to Kasha. "But then again, she's doing just fine with kasha. So."
So.
"Movie, something funny, Huruma needs to relax and we can pass the baby around and take turns taking care of her"
Abby does well enough in explanation, and Huruma tacks on a bit. "I did not- do so well, wit'my first pair. They lived- barely." Before the night is out- Melissa is likely to get an eyeful of the picture of Dajan and Badrani that Huruma always keeps tucked away somewhere. Like any good accidental mother. Et cetera.
Pass the baby around? As in…Melissa will have to hold something that small and wriggly? It has the pain manipulator's eyes going wide, and maybe there's even just a wee bit of fear in them. "Movie…" Something she's good with. "I have a few, in the bag. Figured just in case. Want funny funny or stupid funny? 'Cause I got Princess Bride and Idiocracy." Huruma gets a nod, but doesn't say anything. What do you say when someone tells you their kids barely lived? And she's trying not to think of kids at the moment, which is tough with one being in the room.
"Princess bride. Everyone onto the couch, like the strange demented group of family and friends that we are" Abigail requests, nay, orders. "I'll get the plates and the pizza and the bottle. Let us get a few hours of fun in before we all go to our respective beds"
Huruma may have fussed if she knew she would not need help at one point or another; no fussing about staying and doing such mundane tasks tonight. Kasha will surely not mind the company either. This is quite possibly the most interaction that she has ever gotten in her short life thusfar. For the interim- Huruma stays quiet, on the floor against the sofa with the runt.
On the couch? With the baby? That has Melissa muttering softly as she gets up to grab the movie. "If I didn't have to go home I'd totally get drunk. Make this easier." But the movie is taken out of her bag, and pops it in the DVD player, getting it all set up and everything. Then she turns back towards the couch, then settles on the end furthest away from the baby.