(no subject)
White Elephant --> An Odd Number of Stars
Rainbow Sherbert 9. White
Grape 12. 180
Flavour of the Day 42. profligacy
Gummy Bunny: 31_days: 16. cauterize my feelings with your flaming tongue
Malt: Back to School Challenge Reward 2010: 25 : Grace : a decision that changed our lives
Caramel [2017]
Rating: PG words: 1204 summary: Juliet’s decision making skills are called into question.
Notes: I probably should mention that Grace and Juliet really are my otp, it’s just I hate relationships that are flawless. Hence, the flawed but still perfect relationship. This is set in 2017. Also, white elephant is an idiomatic expression, meaning an unnecessary possession.
“What do you mean, ‘we’re not getting a car’?” Grace stared at Juliet in surprise. “We have a toddler, Juliet!”
“And we live in central Paris.” Juliet added enthusiastically. Grace was suspicious of her wife’s gleeful mood, worried that it was at the cost of her mode of transport.
“And we still have a toddler!” Why was this so hard for Juliet to understand! Grace bit her lip in annoyance.
“We don’t have a car and we’re not getting a car.” Juliet’s tone was final, as if she hoped to settle this dispute with a simple sentence.
“I am your wife and I say we are getting a car.” Grace disagreed vehemently.
“Why?” Juliet demanded in exasperation. “You have the metro system at your fingertips, as well as all the resources Paris has to offer.” Grace was about to snap at the small brunette, explaining that the metro system was no suitable place for Emily when she realised what Juliet had just said.
“All the resources Paris has to offer?” She repeated, phrasing Juliet’s statement as a question. “What have you done Juliet?” Juliet seemed either not to hear the growing anger and frustration in Grace’s voice, or she was very good at ignoring it.
“Well, you know those bikes around Paris?” Grace didn’t pause to hear the answer to Juliet’s rhetorical question.
“We have a three year old.” She reminded Juliet through clenched teeth.
“Well, I signed us up for them!”
“Are you even listening to me?!” Grace clamped a hand over her mouth and both Grace and Juliet stood in silence to check whether Grace’s shout had woken up their daughter. After they were both sure that the shout hadn’t disturbed Emily, Grace glared at her wife again. “I need a car, Juliet.” She hissed, angrily. “I need a car because I need to go grocery shopping. I need to drive Emily to play dates with her friends, some of whom live in the suburbs. I need to do all the things a housewife has to do and I need a car for that.”
Juliet’s expression of glee had fallen slightly as she listened to her wife’s worries but then returned with Grace’s finishing sentence. “And you’re going to have a car!” she promised, grinning. Grace stared at Juliet in total confusion, wondering what on earth was up with her wife.
“You just said that we don’t need a car.” Grace reminded Juliet. “You said we’re not buying one.”
“We’re not.” Juliet repeated. “Parisian resources make it superfluous.”
Grace took a deep breath. “What have you done?”
“Well, the French have this thing called Le Bluecar: it’s an electric car that is positioned around certain terminals in Paris. It’s wonderful for the environment and you have your car.” Juliet was grinning as if this was the best compromise in the world. Grace stared at Juliet in amazement.
“You want me to have a communal car?”
“Yes.” Juliet nodded happily.
“You’re a regional partner at an influential law firm Juliet.” Juliet frowned.
“What does that have to do with anything?” She asked, confusion tinging her voice with worry.
“Appearances matter.” Grace pointed out. Juliet bit her lip, uncertainty erasing all evidence of her gleeful mood.
“James comes in on the metro too.” She pointed out, shrinking slightly in her seat on the sofa. Grace began pacing again, her bare feet silent against the carpet in the middle of their living room.
“Does James have a car?” Grace knew the answer to the question.
“Yes.” Juliet seemed to be shrinking against the couch. “He has a Maserati.”
“Do you know why he has a Maserati?” Grace demanded, pausing to fix Juliet with a glare.
“Because he hates the environment?” Grace sighed at Juliet’s answer and sat down next to Juliet, taking her wife’s pale hands in her own.
“Juliet, I understand what you’re trying to do. And look, I completely agree with you. It’s just its hard to be a good housewife without a car of your own. You know I’ll try and use the car as little as possible, but I need it for Emily. And especially if we’re going to have another child.” Juliet refused to meet Grace’s eyes. Grace sighed and slowly stroked Juliet’s pale palms with her thumb.
Juliet wasn’t saying a sound. “Baby?” Grace shifted on the sofa to examine Juliet’s face. Juliet sniffed an turned away from her wife.
“It’s stupid. It was a stupid idea. I’ll make Jean Corin reverse to tomorrow.” Juliet’s admission was dotted with tears. Grace suddenly felt awful.
“It wasn’t a stupid idea.” Grace tried to correct, lamely.
“You’re right.” Juliet agreed bitterly. “It was an idea for a single woman, not a household. You know, it’s not that I forget about Emily, it’s just I forget she’ll want to have play dates and go to birthday parties. I forgot that a mother always needs to be prepared.” The stream of tears down Juliet’s face was now a steady waterfall.
Grace took one of the tissues from the coffee table in front of her and slowly wiped Juliet’s tears off. “Baby, it’s okay.” She repeated. She slowly caressed Juliet’s check. Juliet looked at her, tears still spilling from her eyes.
“I’m the worst mother in the world, aren’t I?” She whispered quietly. The words stuck in Grace’s throat for a moment before she pulled Juliet into a fierce embrace.
“You’re not.” Grace said the words with absolute conviction. “You’re the best mother I have ever seen. You balance your work life with taking care of Emily. You know as well as I do that every evening Emily insists on sitting on the stairs, waiting from Maman. She adores you.”
“Then why didn’t I think of any of those things about the bluecar?” Juliet asked, lying down in Grace’s lap. Grace started stroking Juliet’s care absently.
“Because you have to consider everything that’s going on at Hewitt and Nobel too! At least I only think about Emily.” Juliet gave a weak smile.
“She is pretty demanding, isn’t she?” Juliet agreed. Grace grinned happily.
“That she is. Reminds me a lot of her mother.” Grace agreed.
“Moi?!” Juliet asked in mock surprise. “I am an angel, I’ll have you remember.”
“How could I forget?” Grace agreed. Juliet grinned as she pulled herself up so she was sitting in Grace’s lap and leaned down to give her wife a kiss.
“I have no idea.” Juliet agreed, tracing the contours of Grace’s face that she knew so well, comparing her own pale hand against the pale coffee colour of Grace’s face. Grace buried her face in Juliet’s shoulder, nuzzling her gently.
“So, shall we go to that Mercedes dealership this weekend? Emily is going to spend the day in Strasbourg with your parents, so…” Grace’s words were muffled but Juliet still understood them, chuckling ruefully.
“A Mercedes?” She asked with a raised eyebrow. Grace pulled back, grinning.
“I’m open for discussion.” Grace admitted with a shrug. “As long as the other option in a Ferrari.”
“I thought we were saving up for Emily’s sibling.” Juliet pointed out. Grace puffed out a sigh of defeat.
“Siblings are overrate.” She mumbled in mock annoyance. “Ferraris on the other hand…”
Rainbow Sherbert 9. White
Grape 12. 180
Flavour of the Day 42. profligacy
Gummy Bunny: 31_days: 16. cauterize my feelings with your flaming tongue
Malt: Back to School Challenge Reward 2010: 25 : Grace : a decision that changed our lives
Caramel [2017]
Rating: PG words: 1204 summary: Juliet’s decision making skills are called into question.
Notes: I probably should mention that Grace and Juliet really are my otp, it’s just I hate relationships that are flawless. Hence, the flawed but still perfect relationship. This is set in 2017. Also, white elephant is an idiomatic expression, meaning an unnecessary possession.
“What do you mean, ‘we’re not getting a car’?” Grace stared at Juliet in surprise. “We have a toddler, Juliet!”
“And we live in central Paris.” Juliet added enthusiastically. Grace was suspicious of her wife’s gleeful mood, worried that it was at the cost of her mode of transport.
“And we still have a toddler!” Why was this so hard for Juliet to understand! Grace bit her lip in annoyance.
“We don’t have a car and we’re not getting a car.” Juliet’s tone was final, as if she hoped to settle this dispute with a simple sentence.
“I am your wife and I say we are getting a car.” Grace disagreed vehemently.
“Why?” Juliet demanded in exasperation. “You have the metro system at your fingertips, as well as all the resources Paris has to offer.” Grace was about to snap at the small brunette, explaining that the metro system was no suitable place for Emily when she realised what Juliet had just said.
“All the resources Paris has to offer?” She repeated, phrasing Juliet’s statement as a question. “What have you done Juliet?” Juliet seemed either not to hear the growing anger and frustration in Grace’s voice, or she was very good at ignoring it.
“Well, you know those bikes around Paris?” Grace didn’t pause to hear the answer to Juliet’s rhetorical question.
“We have a three year old.” She reminded Juliet through clenched teeth.
“Well, I signed us up for them!”
“Are you even listening to me?!” Grace clamped a hand over her mouth and both Grace and Juliet stood in silence to check whether Grace’s shout had woken up their daughter. After they were both sure that the shout hadn’t disturbed Emily, Grace glared at her wife again. “I need a car, Juliet.” She hissed, angrily. “I need a car because I need to go grocery shopping. I need to drive Emily to play dates with her friends, some of whom live in the suburbs. I need to do all the things a housewife has to do and I need a car for that.”
Juliet’s expression of glee had fallen slightly as she listened to her wife’s worries but then returned with Grace’s finishing sentence. “And you’re going to have a car!” she promised, grinning. Grace stared at Juliet in total confusion, wondering what on earth was up with her wife.
“You just said that we don’t need a car.” Grace reminded Juliet. “You said we’re not buying one.”
“We’re not.” Juliet repeated. “Parisian resources make it superfluous.”
Grace took a deep breath. “What have you done?”
“Well, the French have this thing called Le Bluecar: it’s an electric car that is positioned around certain terminals in Paris. It’s wonderful for the environment and you have your car.” Juliet was grinning as if this was the best compromise in the world. Grace stared at Juliet in amazement.
“You want me to have a communal car?”
“Yes.” Juliet nodded happily.
“You’re a regional partner at an influential law firm Juliet.” Juliet frowned.
“What does that have to do with anything?” She asked, confusion tinging her voice with worry.
“Appearances matter.” Grace pointed out. Juliet bit her lip, uncertainty erasing all evidence of her gleeful mood.
“James comes in on the metro too.” She pointed out, shrinking slightly in her seat on the sofa. Grace began pacing again, her bare feet silent against the carpet in the middle of their living room.
“Does James have a car?” Grace knew the answer to the question.
“Yes.” Juliet seemed to be shrinking against the couch. “He has a Maserati.”
“Do you know why he has a Maserati?” Grace demanded, pausing to fix Juliet with a glare.
“Because he hates the environment?” Grace sighed at Juliet’s answer and sat down next to Juliet, taking her wife’s pale hands in her own.
“Juliet, I understand what you’re trying to do. And look, I completely agree with you. It’s just its hard to be a good housewife without a car of your own. You know I’ll try and use the car as little as possible, but I need it for Emily. And especially if we’re going to have another child.” Juliet refused to meet Grace’s eyes. Grace sighed and slowly stroked Juliet’s pale palms with her thumb.
Juliet wasn’t saying a sound. “Baby?” Grace shifted on the sofa to examine Juliet’s face. Juliet sniffed an turned away from her wife.
“It’s stupid. It was a stupid idea. I’ll make Jean Corin reverse to tomorrow.” Juliet’s admission was dotted with tears. Grace suddenly felt awful.
“It wasn’t a stupid idea.” Grace tried to correct, lamely.
“You’re right.” Juliet agreed bitterly. “It was an idea for a single woman, not a household. You know, it’s not that I forget about Emily, it’s just I forget she’ll want to have play dates and go to birthday parties. I forgot that a mother always needs to be prepared.” The stream of tears down Juliet’s face was now a steady waterfall.
Grace took one of the tissues from the coffee table in front of her and slowly wiped Juliet’s tears off. “Baby, it’s okay.” She repeated. She slowly caressed Juliet’s check. Juliet looked at her, tears still spilling from her eyes.
“I’m the worst mother in the world, aren’t I?” She whispered quietly. The words stuck in Grace’s throat for a moment before she pulled Juliet into a fierce embrace.
“You’re not.” Grace said the words with absolute conviction. “You’re the best mother I have ever seen. You balance your work life with taking care of Emily. You know as well as I do that every evening Emily insists on sitting on the stairs, waiting from Maman. She adores you.”
“Then why didn’t I think of any of those things about the bluecar?” Juliet asked, lying down in Grace’s lap. Grace started stroking Juliet’s care absently.
“Because you have to consider everything that’s going on at Hewitt and Nobel too! At least I only think about Emily.” Juliet gave a weak smile.
“She is pretty demanding, isn’t she?” Juliet agreed. Grace grinned happily.
“That she is. Reminds me a lot of her mother.” Grace agreed.
“Moi?!” Juliet asked in mock surprise. “I am an angel, I’ll have you remember.”
“How could I forget?” Grace agreed. Juliet grinned as she pulled herself up so she was sitting in Grace’s lap and leaned down to give her wife a kiss.
“I have no idea.” Juliet agreed, tracing the contours of Grace’s face that she knew so well, comparing her own pale hand against the pale coffee colour of Grace’s face. Grace buried her face in Juliet’s shoulder, nuzzling her gently.
“So, shall we go to that Mercedes dealership this weekend? Emily is going to spend the day in Strasbourg with your parents, so…” Grace’s words were muffled but Juliet still understood them, chuckling ruefully.
“A Mercedes?” She asked with a raised eyebrow. Grace pulled back, grinning.
“I’m open for discussion.” Grace admitted with a shrug. “As long as the other option in a Ferrari.”
“I thought we were saving up for Emily’s sibling.” Juliet pointed out. Grace puffed out a sigh of defeat.
“Siblings are overrate.” She mumbled in mock annoyance. “Ferraris on the other hand…”