Chapter 17

I don't know if Nina jumped by surprise, as I opened the door to the wardrobe from the inside, or not because I didn't see her at first. I had to look out into the hall to see her. There she was coming toward me with a little smile on her face.

"Hi there," she said just before her lips closed my before I had the time to greet her verbally. I almost forgot my mission as her tongue started to play hide and seek with my tongue but with resolve I ended the game and told her why I was here. She was reserved delighted at the news. She knew of course that we wanted Chris to come and live with us and she had agreed to it fullheartedly so I didn't understand her reluctance now until she explained it to me.

"Don't set your hopes too high. She might be thrilled just now at the novelty of it all, but when she wakes up to reality again she may very well regret it all and want to move back to her own time again."

"Well, that is a risk we all have taken, isn't it. Who knows what lies ahead? Besides I thought that we could set up a Machine in her apartment that way she can continue her school and come Home every night."

"I don't think that would be a good idea. I don't like the idea of spreading your Machine around to much. We already have two outside your immediate control, this one and the one over at Fritz'. Let me think a little about it, will you?"

I already relied a great deal on her advice. They were seldom based on complex idea buildings but rather on mere common sense. Surprisingly often did they come out better than my own technically oriented solutions, so I just let this problem lie.

Nina and I entered the living-room in which Anita and Chris already sat sipping on a glass of wine. Chris' eyes grew big when she saw the beautiful and quit obviously pregnant, woman by my side. Nina smiled a hello to Anita and took the few steps over to Chris. As she offered her hand in greeting Anita stood, motioned to me to sit, poured me a glass of wine and disappeared for a short while. When she came back she had a bottle of mineral water in her hand.

"No alcohol for you, Nina," she said as she sat the bottle down on the table in front of her.

We all sat in silence and sipped our wine and mineral water respectively. I found the silence a little uncomfortable but didn't know what to say so I just sat there, relying on the women knowing what they were doing. Chris looked from me to Nina, from Nina to Anita. I could see that a little blush had colored her cheeks.

"So, I finally get to meet you," Nina started. "I've heard so much about you."

"Oh, you mustn't take this wrong but I've never heard of you, well Dad told me about you just this night, but I never thought..." her voice just faded away as the last syllable had passed her lips.

"Never thought what?" This time Anita spoke.

"Oh. You know... Her... Nina... You know?" she begged for understanding.

"No, I don't know."

I don't know if this was they way Anita had rised our daughter, forcing her to think for herself, dare to see the problem, to vocalize it and find the solution herself, but if it was I was more than satisfied with the result.

"May I be frank?"

"Of course. We wouldn't have it any other way."

"Is she... Is Nina living here too?"

"Yes."

"Oh!"

"Sooo?"

"Nothing. Nothing, it's just fine. As a... what should I say, a wife?"

"Yes. And lover."

"Oh!"

"So if I was to live here as well..."

"Yes?"

"I would have to... Does she know about Dad and me?" she asked Anita in a theater-whisper that both Nina and I heard.

"Of course I do," Nina answered the question which was directed to Anita.

"Oh," a deeper blush covered all of her visible body by now.

"And you know about me and your mother, so it isn't more than fair that we should know about you, or?"

"No. Of course, it's just so embarrassing to know that you know that Dad and I..." again her voce just trailed off.

"So, if you were to move in with us would this make you uncomfortable?"

"No. Of course not!" Chris said firmly.

"And you would live here as... What? Daughter?"

By now Chris wasn't blushing. Her face seemed to have caught fire and I was afraid that she would suffer a stroke so much blood had gathered in her head.

"Yes. And maybe," she whispered so low that I could hardly hear her but both Anita and Nina heard her perfectly.

"Maybe?"

"I could maybe lend him sometimes?"

Now both Anita and Nina moved over to Chris and took her in their arms.

"Of course you can darling. None of us would have it any other way."

Chris buried her head in Anitas shirt and I could clearly hear her sob.

"So, so," Anita soothed her, "so, so, everything is going to be sooo nice."

When Chris had calmed down the three women sat there chatting leaving me to myself but slowly they dragged me into the conversation and soon we talked all at the same time and laughed at the jokes and silliness that just seemed to pop up at intervals.

Sometime during the evening Anita produced a rough layout of the house.

"Look here. You can chose whichever room you want to call your own."

"Oh, I thought..."

"I said your own room. Not your bedroom, silly. Well it can be your bedroom as well, if that is what you choose. But mainly a room were you can do whatever you want to do in private."

"Oh, can I have that one?"

I bent over to look closer and I saw that she had chose a room on the second floor that had a gable window.

"OK, you may from now call it yours. No one will enter it without your permission so you have to do all the cleaning yourself."

"Will you too have your own rooms?"

"Maybe. We haven't decided yet. We are getting more and more comfortable with all three of us together so... Now that we are four I'm sure that will work out as well."

"Five very soon," Nina announced.

"Yes, sorry, five very soon. Isn't it fantastic? Your going to be a mother and you aren't even pregnant!" Anita giggled to Chris.

"When is it due? Do you know what it is?"

"What it is?"

"Yes. A boy or a girl?"

"How could I know that?"

"Well, there are ways you know?"

"Ways? You mean look at the size of the stomach and that sort of thing?"

"No. They scan you."

"Scan?"

"Chris, I don't think that you realize this but Nina lives in the fifties. They didn't have all this stuff back then."

"Oh. Really? Wow. You must tell me all about it sometime," Chris almost jumped a little of excitement in the sofa.

"I'll do better than that. I'll take you there."

"Oh could you?"

"If it is OK with your father. He's in charge of the outside contacts."

The three women laughed at this even if it was true.

Suddenly Chris yawn a little and Anita saw it even if Chris tried to hide it. No wonder I realized, we had been talking for more than four hours, consumed three bottles of wine and add to that Chris had drunk almost half a bottle earlier.

"I think it's time for bed," Anita announced. "The bathroom facilities are a little poor but there is water, only cold, well and you can take a leak as well, the toilet works. I'm afraid this is what we have to live with for at least a month."