The mail! What's in there?
Bills. It's always bills.
They are what motivate Naomi to go to work. Though they are no longer the only motivation. Naomi finds her new responsibilities gratifying as she watches the support for Salvatore grow. He's been re-elected as mayor and made her a permanent member of his campaign team.
Unlike Naomi, Calvin's reasons for his own work are just the bills.
He would dive more often, but the stench is overpowering.
Sometimes it's even downright sickening.
Still, it does leave him with a lot of free time. Most of his old friends have either moved away or stopped partying due to life getting in the way. Calvin's not much different, he supposes. It just happened to him earlier.
Some of Naomi's new responsibilities involve her making appearances in offices and institutions around town. Today, it's the police station.
She comes home tired and in need of a shower.
But her workday isn't really over.
If anything, it's just getting longer.
Calvin scowls as he mops the floor. The "little while longer" of business Naomi promised has stretched out into oblivion. He wonders when she'll be done rehearsing speeches in the bathroom and if there will be a round of answering emails afterwords or talking to supporters or what-have-you on the phone.
He keeps himself busy with more chores. He's starting to get creative with how he gets them done.
He's no longer surprised when he goes to bed alone...
And eats breakfast alone...
Naomi's sleeping schedule is too erratic for him to follow. Sometimes she only turns in when he's just woken up.
This particular morning, though, Naomi is up not long after he is. Her phone vibrates impatiently on their dresser, pulling her out of her sleep.
The phone call is not a happy one. Naomi's mother passed away in her sleep. She was living alone in her apartment in Starlight Shores, Sage's coworker informs Naomi, she missed work which alerted the office to her passing. She never missed work.
After changing Evan's diaper, Calvin is surprised to find Naomi eating breakfast.
"Did you get enough sleep?" he asks warily. The bags under her eyes are dark and her eyes are bloodshot.
"Couldn't sleep," Naomi mumbles, "They called...mother's gone..."
"What? Oh, I'm so sorry!" Calvin's tone immediately becomes comforting and apologetic. "Are you ok?"
"..."
Naomi tries to get up and to the bathroom to get ready for work, but Calvin stops her.
"Don't you think you should take some time off?" Calvin asks gently.
She looks at him like he just sprouted a pair of wings. "Why would I do that? They still need me..."
"Your mom just died. Don't you want to take some time just to...come to terms with that? Or to grieve?"
Naomi's face is blank. "She's gone. She would want me to go back to normal as quickly as possible. I'm going to work." She pushes past Calvin, leaving him in confused silence.
The only thing Naomi would compromise on was having a coworker drive her to the office and only because she was badly sleep deprived. Calvin grimaces as he harvests his Mandrake plant. Her reaction was just so...removed. She must still be in shock, he reasons.
He resigns himself to making sure everything at home is well looked after. She'll at least not have any of that on her mind.
He also sends his parents his latest dumpster diving profits. He knows how much their support meant to Naomi. She'd be relieved to know that it's being paid back.
He sighs. Why isn't there something he can do about this?
As Calvin thought, once Naomi has had some time to acknowledge Sage's death, her emotions come to the surface. She only lets herself cry at the end of her work day when she's sure she's alone.
She's barely done wiping her eyes when Salvatore comes outside.
"Hey, Naomi, I just wanted to make sure things are ok. You looked off today," he says with concern.
She smiles weakly at him, "I just got news about a death in my family this morning, but I should be ok."
Salvatore frowns, "Do you need some time off? It would be no problem."
Naomi vigorously shakes her head, "No, I'll be ok. Things are too busy right now for me to take time off."
"I don't want you to push yourself too hard..."
Naomi shakes her head once more, "Really. I'll be alright. Thank you for your concern, though. It's just fresh right now, is all."
"Well, just take it easy on yourself. If you need anything, just let us know."
"Thanks."
Naomi makes herself a small salad and sits down to eat.
"Oh, you're home. How are you feeling?" Calvin asks as he comes out of the nursery. Evan is sleeping soundly in his crib.
"Fine."
Once Calvin finds out that Naomi will still go to work, he is...concerned.
"Are you sure about this?"
"Yes. What I need right now is to feel normal. Work makes me feel normal," Naomi snaps.
Calvin sighs, but decides not to push the issue.
Naomi takes an extra long shower after dinner.
Yet, her mind continues to wander.
Mother wouldn't like that, Naomi chastises herself, pull yourself together.
And so she gets right back to work.
She can't let herself dally.
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AN:
I didn't know this, but apparently Salvatore and Sage were romantic interests!
