Red, the pregnancy that makes their parents stay together versus Maggie, that Purple kept from them and won’t make their parents stay together, that probably wouldn’t have even if Red had known about it. I think that would make Red have Feelings tm
SEE, YOU SEE THE VISION. Bcos I do think Red has some unprocessed feelings about that! Babies are supposed to keep you TOGETHER. If Red knew, they'd have done the RIGHT thing, like THEIR sire did. Marriage, mortgage, the whole nine yards. (They'd do it RIGHT. They'd do it better.)
But PURPLE, like ALWAYS, never gave them the CHANCE.
(Their sprout looks at them like they're a stranger.)
I really want their messy attempts at coparenting. Red probably has to pay child support. They pay nearly double the amount. They'd want more custody, but since Red is the working parent with a demanding job, Purple has primary custody.
They make sure their child is materially taken care of, but the emotional connection with Maggie is... hard. They lose so much time. They get holidays and the two weeks between flights, Purple lets Maggie stay with Red. Their sprout keeps getting bigger and Red has no idea how.
For Maggie's birthday, Red throws them a big Crew Bears party. Maggie is... appreciative.
"Thanks, Baba." Maggie hugs them. "But I haven't liked Crew Bears since I was 8. I'm more into true crime now."
And Red can't help but feel they're exactly like their own parents after all.
