Chapter 7; Fame, Success, and Bad Apples

A few days after going to back to work I had gotten yet another promotion.  All of that hard work on maternity leave must have paid off.  That left only 3 more promotions.  My dream was so close but yet so far.

But the happiness of my promotion was short lived when I had recieved a call later that day telling me that Simis had passed away.  The news hit me like a bullet.  I was speechless.  My boss, and best friend, was gone.  All of the celebration of my promotion was sucked out of me faster than a vacuum.

To make matters even worse Cyclon3 had gotten a call as well informing him of the death of Victoria Andrews, one of Cyclon3's best friends.  Cyclon3 and I were very quiet for the rest of the night.  We tried to act lively and happy so we wouldn't concern our children but it wasn't easy and they saw through our masks.  It was so hard to believe that our best friends had both passed away today.

Blake celebrated his birthday a few days after we recieved the tragic news.  The atmosphere of our home was still sad so it wasn't a very happy birthday, it was quiet and awkward.

Even Mitch grew up. 

Miranda insisted that Blake get a job with her at the bookstore.  He was excited about working with his older sister, as they were still very good friends.  It amazed me at how grown up my babies were.  I was very proud of them.

Age had even caught up with me and I had grown a full head of grey hair.  I was now an official 'old lady'. 

Over the next few days I had noticed that Blake was starting to become a bit of a rebel.  He was skipping out on his homework, and I had even overhead some of his phone calls with his friends about skipping school. 

Though one particular night we decided it was the final straw.  The day had started out great, I had even earned another promotion!  However Blake decided it would be a good idea to go to a club on that school night.

It doesn't sound that bad, but he had missed his father's birthday.  We also we had no idea where Blake was and we were going crazy calling his friends and trying to track him down.

He ended up getting caught by a cop for being out past curfew and taken back home.  Cyclon3 and I were beyond disappointed in him.  Cyclon3 was more furious with him though.

Cyclon3 did not hesitate to let him know and as soon as Blake got home he unleashed his wrath.  Blake was to be grounded for a long, long time. 

Blake ran to his room and slammed his door so hard that the walls shook.  Cyclon3 felt horrible for being so hard on him, but Blake had to learn his lesson and it was only for the best.  We couldn't have our kids running around, partying, and getting arrested all the time now could we?

The next day the house was so silent and full of tension that I had to escape.  Vj Alvi had been interested in some of the books I had written and he made me an offer I couldn't refuse.  Since Vj was rather famous around Sunset Valley, he was willing to help get the word around about my books and earn me some extra money and fame.  I was ecstatic about finally getting some of the appreciation I deserved for my hard work!

When I got home Blake had approached me uneasily.

     "Hey mom, look I'm real sorry about last night."

     "Thanks, I appreciate it but I don't think I'm the one you should be apologizing to," I said, gesturing towards Cyclon3 in the other room.

     "Err, right," he looked down at his feet and reluctantly began walking towards his father.

I was happy to see Blake taking responsibility for his actions and apologizing to us.  He really wasn't a bad kid, he just made a mistake and wanted to have a little fun.  Cyclon3 accepted his apology and the two began to talk like they normally did.

Mitch had celebrated yet another birthday and joined his siblings in teenhood.  It was sad to see my last baby grow up.  He got a job at the book store just like his older brother and sister.

I hadn't noticed what fitness nuts my children were.  Blake and Miranda liked to jog every morning and work out by the TV.  It was good to see them concerned about their fitness.

Mitch was the real athlete of the family though.  He loved to play catch and work out and he was constantly telling me about how he planned to become a famous athlete when he grew up.  I really hoped he would achieve his dreams too, just like I had.