The Beauty of a Melody

The fight is the challenge. The prize is the pride you gain from winning.

[dora-twill-blog]

Tristan and Chandler asleep in a hammock they made in the backyard of the Nardelli household.

"We should probably wake them up soon, they won’t sleep tonight."

"Hmm… but they look so cute though."

"Very true."

Taken by Lydia standing next to a smiling Melodee

[melodee-winston]

Forever and Always || OS

Today was the special day of being honored to meet Nemoran. Dorian had told me plenty about her and deep down, I had to admit I was a bit nervous. It seemed like she would take a while to get to know but I just hoped she wouldn’t completely hate me. Sometimes I wasn’t easy to get along with and that worried me.

As I was slipping into a pair of jeans, Dorian came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist. “I’m nervous,” I stated, running a hand through my hair as I stared at the ground. He let out a small chuckle then pressed his lips to my bare shoulder.

"Don’t be. She may ask a lot of questions but she’ll learn to love you. I mean, I did so why wouldn’t she?" His words made me feel a bit better but before anything else could be said or done, someone was knocking on the front door. "I think she’s here."

I nodded my head, letting out a long sigh before following him into the living room. As he opened the door and greeted his sister, I stood a few feet away and suddenly started to feel nauseous. I didn’t know whether it was from the pregnancy or the nerves, but I forced the feeling out because when I looked up I realized she was staring at me. If I didn’t know any better, it almost felt like she was sizing me up.

"It’s nice to finally meet you. I’ve heard a lot about you," I said, giving her a smile that I hoped didn’t look too forced. She just nodded, keeping her eyes on me.

"Pregnant, huh?" Her question took me by surprise. I had tried to prepare myself for what to expect but it seemed she would just keep me on my toes with this conversation. From behind his sister, I saw Dorian trying not to laugh and I was sure it was from the look on my face.

"Um, yeah." Almost instinctively, my hand pressed against my stomach in a protective way. I tended to do that a lot but it was my first baby so obviously I would be protective.

"Dorian, could you give us some time alone?" Nemoran asked without taking her eyes off of me. My eyes flickered from her to Dorian and back, not sure what to do. I knew I could handle her but I didn’t really want him to leave.

"Be nice," he said, though I wasn’t sure who he was directing it towards. Maybe it was meant for both of us, who knows. He nodded at his sister then pressed a kiss to my forehead. The moment he was out of the room, that nauseous feeling came back. Without saying anything, I lead her to the dining room table and took the seat opposite of her.

"Boy or girl?" She asked. I stared at her for a few seconds, leaning back in my chair. I wasn’t surprised she was asking about the baby. Her brother was the father so obviously she would be curious.

"Too early to tell." I was only in my first week or so and I still had many months to go. That was a scary thought, but I knew I could handle it. Besides, there were a lot of people here to help me out whenever I needed it and I was grateful for that.

"I know that. I meant which do you want?" Her voice hinted minimal annoyance but I ignored it for the sake of the both of us. I could see how she was related to Dorian now.

"It doesn’t matter to me. But I think we both kinda want it to be a boy… Jamison." We’d only dreamed about it and maybe it would come true but if it turned out to be Lyla first then we would still be more than happy. She just nodded before going silent again, and even if I knew the silence should have made me feel awkward, I actually felt comfortable just sitting here.

"Do you love him?" She asked after a while, keeping her eyes locked on mine again. She had the same dark blue eyes as Dorian and now that I was really looking at her, I started to see the resemblance between them. I mean, they are twins so clearly they had to look somewhat alike. Then I suddenly started to wonder if she had planned out the questions she was going to ask me or if she was just saying whatever she thought of. Maybe both.

"I do. Very much." My voice was steady, wanting to make sure she knew I wasn’t lying. She just nodded in response but somehow I knew she believed me.

"Melodee, let me just tell you something," she started off, leaning forward in her chair a bit. "My brother means a lot to me and he’s probably my best friend. I’ve seen him go through things that he shouldn’t have ever gone through and the fact that he’s let himself open up to you just shows how strong he really is. I’ve only seen him look at one other girl the way he looks at you and she broke his heart. Though, I have to be completely honest with you and say that the way he looks at you is… different. It’s like he knows that he’s looking at the one." She paused for a few seconds and as she did, I tried to let her words sink in. "Maybe you are the one, who knows. But Melodee, if you break his heart… I can’t even tell you what I’d do. His first love broke him and you saw how cold he was. Don’t do it to him, just don’t."

"I won’t, I promise." My words sounded desperate but that’s exactly what they were. "Nemoran, I’ve never loved anyone as much as I love your brother. He sees me so much deeper than a lot of people do and that’s something I would die to hold onto. I’m ready to be a mother and I’m ready to spend the rest of my life with him. Maybe that sounds crazy because we’re both so young and have so much time ahead of us, but it’s what I want. I’m not perfect, and neither is he for that matter, but he makes me feel like a better person and I’d never even consider throwing that away." By the time that I was finished, tears welled up in my eyes and started to spill over. I quickly wiped them away and let out a small laugh. "Sorry, being pregnant makes me abnormally emotional." She finally smiled at that, nodding her head before suddenly getting out of her seat to wrap her arms around me.

"Thank you, Melodee. Thank you for loving him and thank you for not hurting him. That really means a lot to me to know you’ll treat him right and I promise he’ll treat you right, too," she said before backing out of the hug to smile at me. "And welcome to the family." Not long after, she bent over and placed a gentle hand on my stomach. "I can’t wait to meet you. You’ll be in good hands." On this, Dorian walked into the room and a smile immediately took place on my face. I wondered if he had heard any of that but I honestly didn’t care if he did because I was not afraid to show him how I felt.

"You did good, bro," she said, glancing from me to him with a smile on her face. He just nodded, his smile reaching to his eyes as he looked at me. He was the one, definitely.

Nemoran quickly gave me another hug before hugging her brother, whispering something in his ear that I couldn’t hear. Whatever it was, it made him smile. As she left, Dorian made his way over to me and wrapped his hands around my waist, pulling me close as our lips pressed against each other’s.

"Let’s go take a bath," I say with a smirk on my face, already pulling him towards our bathroom.

"But you’re already pregnant," he said in a teasing manner but followed me anyways.

"Hun, I’m well aware of that. Believe me, there’s no way I could forget that there’s another human inside of me. And I’m not talking about you," I joked, rolling my eyes. Before we could enter the bathroom though, he pressed me up against the wall and leaned close enough to kiss me but not quite. The old me would have been afraid of this kind of closeness but I had changed and I was glad I had.

"I love you, Melodee Winston."

"I love you, Dorian Nardelli."

"Forever."

"And always."

[dora-twill-blog]

Clementine, Quincy and Lyla selling ‘tattoos’ to everyone.

"Remind me never to let Lyla near your children again, or any of my children for that matter."

"Well their lives will become extremely dull."

Taken by a proud Damon.

[melodee-winston]

Melodee and Nemoran at Nemoran's Bachelorette Party

"I haven't been this drunk since before the kids."

"I haven't been this drunk since I was with Fabio."

"I heard that."

"Sorry, Isa."

Taken by a laughing Chessa and an annoyed Isa

[alifewellsuited]

[watchoutformutts]

The funniest moment was a three way tie between Melodee’s Punishment, Chessa throwing up, and drunk Fabio

[dora-twill-blog]

Melodee’s birthday cake from Dorian.

"Oh my God did you make this?!"

"Well… we tried. And then failed. So we got Damon to make it. Jamison wouldn’t stop eating the batter."

Taken by a proud Melodee

[death-before-dishonor-daunt-blog]

Lyla, Hope, and Clementine after they decided to “Help” Gracie paint her room.

"Some how I don’t think Momma and Poppa are going to approve of this."

"Shhhh Gracie. It’s art."

Taken by and equally messy Gracie.

[lianusays]

Fabio and Damon arm wrestling

"Loser gives Dorian a lap dance."

"Prepare to give him a lap dance then, Fabio."

"Why are you always fucking use me as a bet?"

"Remember the last time you tried to give my husband a lap dance?"

Taken by an annoyed Dorian and Melodee

[dora-twill-blog]

Fabio, Isa, Dorian, Melodee, Miles, Chessa, Ayden, Lydia, Lianu, Damon, Cason, Finch, Ally and Ingrid sitting round a campfire.

"Oh look there’s an open flame, make sure you keep Damon away from it Lianu."

"Bite me Fabio."

"I’m pretty sure Damon does that enough of that."

Taken by Verity as she goes to join them with Domminick.

[dorian-nardelli]

Doree Timeline

3035- Return to District 13, Dorian and Melodee get engaged.

3036- Jamison is born.

3038- Dorian and Melodee get married, Lyla is born.

3047- Thalia and Chandler are born.

[fincheverett]

Oliver, Chandler and Alek at the Winstead farm

"Push over!"

"You push over."

"Play nicely!"

Taken by a laughing Finch and Melodee

[dorian-nardelli]

Thalia and Chandler being models for Auntie Isa.

"I have to admit that’s kind of cute."

"Are you drunk?"

"No. I’m just in love with my children. You did a great job Isa."

"It’s about time you appreciate my work."

Taken by a smiling Isa and a loving Dorian.

[melodee-winston]

Putting Thalia down for a nap

"She's looking at you, babe."

"I don't blame her."

"Shut up. She just loves her daddy."

"I know. I love her too."

Taken by a very happy Dorian

[melodee-winston]

Dorian throwing Chandler into the air

"Dorian, don't you drop our baby!"

"Sweet Melodee, I would never."

Taken by a worried Melodee

[lianusays]

Lyla meeting her new baby brother Chandler

"Aww they’re so cute!"

"You two should have more kids."

"I think I’ll pass for now…"

Taken by a spying Lianu while Melodee tries to convince Lianu to have more kids

[melodee-winston]

Chandler and Thalia after a bath

"Are my babies nice and clean now?"

"Our babies."

"I know, sweetheart."

Taken by a smiling Melodee and a proud Dorian