12. Sarah
SARAH
After dinner, we’d all gone to our rooms, too tired to do anything but sleep.
Doran had offered to sleep on the couch, but I’d refused, telling him that he was my mate and it was stupid to have him sleep anywhere else, as it was his bed too.
Luckily, the bed I’d brought from Earth was big enough.
It was an Alaskan king which I’d ordered a week before discovering Harold’s unfaithfulness.
It arrived after I’d kicked him out, so he’d never gotten to sleep in it.
Which felt right, as now, my scientifically proven soul mate would get to be the only man to ever use it.
As Doran had cautiously climbed in beside me, taking care to not touch me, I’d felt a triumphant “fuck you” at Harold had just happened and felt happy about it.
Childish? Perhaps, but I didn’t give a hoot about that.
This morning, I’d woken up curled against Doran, my face on his chest, drooling.
He’d been wide awake, a content but wary look on his face. I decided to play it cool while trying to surreptitiously wipe the drool off of him and my face.
“Good morning!”
“Good morning. I was expecting Bob to wake us up, but he appears to have decided to not blast his morning routine at us today.”
“Morning routine?” I asked, sitting up.
“He does a colony wide wake up call. Only the rooms of very young children are exempt, which I’d informed Darren and Tarek about yesterday evening, so they knew to tell Bob which room they had Laura in.”
“And he didn’t give any of us a wake up call this morning, gotcha. He probably decided we could use a lie in.” I glanced up, knowing that either a wall or ceiling was imbued with smart tech. “Bob, thank you for letting us sleep in.”
“You’re most welcome! It’s currently ten-thirty-seven a.m. here in Walnut Grove, and a comfortable seventy-four degrees.
The high will be seventy-six today. Work has begun on the schoolhouse, park, and playground, and is expected to be complete within six days.
Your greenhouse kit is being delivered this afternoon; expect it around two.
The strawberry plants you requested had their sample approved by the lunar base, so it will arrive with your greenhouse.
More of that precise variety will arrive within a week as I’ve placed the appropriate order now that we know they won’t become space dust.”
“Um, thanks.”
I went into the bathroom, loving how we had a private one just for our own use attached to the bedroom.
A lovely clawfoot tub that was long and wide enough for Doran to fit into took pride of place, with a separate large shower cubicle along another wall, which was big enough for us both to fit inside.
Someone had unpacked the box marked toiletries and thoughtfully placed the bottles of shampoo, conditioner, and bubble bath on a corner shelf at the foot of the tub, where a hand held spray head was hooked above the faucet handles in a cradle.
I peeked in the shower and found shower gel and the kids’ shampoos in there and smiled.
I’d move those into their shared bathroom later.
I quickly had a pee, then came out to let Doran make use of the facilities while I peered into the walk-in closet to select my clothes for today.
I settled on a t-shirt and jeans, as the house was comfortably warm.
I could always grab my jean jacket if I went outside and felt too cold, which I was pretty sure was not going to happen, seeing as I’d just left heavy coat weather behind.
Doran came out, and we did an awkward little dance as he went to get around me to get out his own clothes.
“Mind if I shower first so I can go down and make everyone’s breakfast?”
“That’s fine," he called out agreeably from the closet. “Do you want me to take you shopping for food later? Or are you going to replicate all the ingredients?”
I blinked. “I can do that? And not just entire meals?”
“You can, but the more you use it, the more matter we have to load it with. It’s not a big deal, just something to keep an eye on so you don’t run out of matter before topping it up.”
I had no idea how to even do that. Yet another thing I needed to learn. “I’ll replicate ingredients this morning, and we can go shopping after breakfast, if that’s okay?”
“Sure.”
I clutched the panties and bra I'd snagged out of my drawer and hustled into the shower, making sure to grab my own shampoo and conditioner from beside the tub first.
I went downstairs, thankful that my hair towel dried easily, thanks to its short length. Varek was already downstairs with their boys, who were sitting in the front room happily watching a vintage episode of Captain Kangaroo, of all things, on the viewscreen a part of the wall had turned into.
“Darren is changing Laura and will be down in a moment. He asked me to find out where the recycler is, so he can dispose of her used diapers.”
“Oh, umm, there's one in the laundry room. I’ll show him where that is.”
Varek nodded, and I decided I needed to order a Diaper Genie for their room so he wouldn’t have to keep carrying them down one at a time in order to avoid stinking up their room.
“What do you kiddos want to eat?” I asked the boys.
“Cocoa Pops!” they yelled in unison.
“Cheerios with sliced bananas," came a correction from the stairs.
“Okie dokie, I’ll see if we can get that replicated,” I said, making myself scarce so as to not be party to the boys’ complaints and their father’s replies.
I’d gotten their bowls ready by the time Darren joined me in the kitchen. “Thanks. They can also have Alphabits, oatmeal, and Cream of Wheat,” he said. “I usually made French toast on Saturdays and pancakes on Sundays, but you don’t have to go to any trouble."
I nodded, smiling. “I think that sounds nice. I think I’ll start that tradition here too. My kids will love it!”
He smiled back, grabbing Laura’s sippy cup from beside the sink to make her drink.
“Can they have some apple juice, with a quarter of it extra water added? Laura has hers fifty-fifty if she gets juice. Until they’re better about brushing their teeth well, I’m trying to keep sugars of all kinds reasonably low.”
“Sure thing,” I replied, getting the replicator to materialize the request in two small plastic tumblers. I sat them on the table in the kitchen alongside the bowls and called them into the kitchen to eat.
Varek carried in Laura's high chair, and Darren handed her her drink after placing her in it, while he asked the replicator to make her a small plastic bowl of dry Cheerios and a small banana. He placed those directly onto her tray, first peeling the banana.
“Oh, Varek said you needed to know where the recycler is.
It's in the laundry room, which is that alcove next to the back door," I said, pointing to the quadruple set of folding doors that closed the two washers and dryers off. The recycler was set in the wall beside the dryer on the end. I knew it turned whatever we put in it into base atomic particles, but had no clue where it stored everything. Another item to add to my list of “stuff I don’t know and really need to learn”.
“Thanks. I tied her dirty diaper in an old shopping bag I’d put in her diaper bag for emergencies. I’ll bring it down after breakfast.”
Doran joined us, carrying a basket of eggs.
“Where did those come from?” I asked, pointing.
“Nick brought them over. He’s here to pick up the boys,” he explained. “I saw him coming up to the door as I came down the stairs.”
I took the eggs from him. “I’ll make us some eggs and replicate bacon and toast,” I said happily.
“I’ll go say hi,” Darren said, ducking out.
“He’s on the porch. He said he’d wait there,” Doran called after him.
The boys had already finished chowing down and went to jump up from the table.
“Finish your juice,” I told them, holding back my laughter at their eagerness to go play at their friends’ house.
They didn't even bother to sit down, reminding me so much of Caleb in that moment that I felt a stab to my heart. They quickly guzzled their juice.
“Brush your teeth and get your shoes on,” Varek told them as they dashed out of the kitchen. “And no running in the house!”
I laughed. “Kids are all the same.”
I went over to the stove. They’d put in a human style electric stove and one of Grammie’s cast iron skillets sat on a burner, ready to be used.
I heated it up, asking the replicator for some oil to put in it to fry the eggs.
I smiled as I fetched it, seeing how much of a mess Laura was making eating her banana.
Doran was watching her with fascination, and I found myself wondering if he’d like us to have a baby together.
It was something we definitely needed to discuss, as I was thirty-eight and not getting any younger.
I wanted all my baby days behind me before I turned forty, thank you very much.
I paused in the middle of cracking the eggs, surprised at myself.
Did I want another baby? I snuck another peek at little Laura.
Yes. Yes, I did. At least one more.
“Okay, that’s the boys gone,” Darren said, returning.
“Oh, good. Now, how would you like your eggs? I’m doing scrambled, but you can have onions or cheese or whatever added to it.”
“Just with salt and pepper, please,” Darren asked, and the other two decided to go along with the same, which made things easier for me.
I wonder what a baby with Doran would look like. I’m sure the info packet said genetics would make the kid Dragonii, but their hair and eye color could lean towards either of us. Would it have my hair or his? I’d love to see a baby with his eyes…