Today was a great day to be on the beach. The sun was warm and inviting, the sand was soft and free of litter, and the water was cool and refreshing. Tandi lived for days like this. It's the whole reason that she and her boyfriend lived within driving distance of the beach. She loved the feel of fresh sand between her toes and the glorious warmth that always washed over her as she basked in the sun. She could have even just sat there and watched the ocean surf crash against the shore for hours if she really wanted to.

But today, that wasn't going to happen. Today, she was going to meet up with an old friend.

As Tandi strolled across the sand, she noticed a young woman off in the distance. It was Penny. A good friend of hers from her old high school days. The two were practically inseparable. Up until graduation anyway, when they both went their separate ways in the hopes of pursuing their dream jobs and whatnot.

Regardless, she hadn't seen her in years; so naturally, she was rather excited to gaze upon her visage once again. Especially when there was so much catching up to do. She immediately attempted to get her attention.

"HEY!" exclaimed Tandi as she waved emphatically at her long lost friend. "PENNY! OVER HERE!"

Penny, a rather tall and lanky mouse in a green one-piece, noticed Tandi right away and immediately became shocked at what she saw. With her attention securely acquired, Tandi began to move towards her. Tandi's friend, meanwhile, began to make a mad dash towards her. Penny intercepted her before she could take even five steps.

"Oh my goodness," said Penny with her eyes wide open. "Tandi, is that really you?"

"What?" declared Tandi with a grin. "Do you really think I could be anybody else?"

Penny stared at her old friend in pure amazement. "When did you get pregnant?" she queried with an air of genuine surprise. "And how did you get so huge?"

Tandi stood there for a moment, confused by her question. She then looked down and noticed the rather large belly jutting out from her midsection. A belly that looked all that much larger compared to her skimpy string bikini.

"Oh! That's right!" said Tandi with blushing cheeks and a shy smile. "You didn't know I was three months pregnant, did you?"

Penny's eyes had suddenly become a lot wider.

"YOU'RE ONLY THREE MONTHS PREGNANT!?" shrieked Penny with incredible alarm. "What are you trying to do? Out-breed China?" she asked with authentic concern in her voice.

Tandi quickly realized that she needed to pacify the situation, before her friend suffered an aneurism. "Hey, hey, easy now. There's no need to suffer a stroke. I know you have questions, but can you please just try to relax?"

"Relax?" questioned Penny. "I haven't seen you in like five years, and not only are you pregnant, but you look like you're about to drop at any given moment. I think I deserve a little bit of an explanation here."

"Oh, well come on then!" declared Tandi eagerly. "Follow me and I'll answer all of your questions." "Besides," Tandi continued. "Like you said, it's been nearly five years. I'd love to hear what you've been up to since then."

Tandi then gave a huge smile to her friend. Despite the awkward beginning, she really was happy to see her again. And deep down, Penny was glad to see her too. She had just been caught off-guard by the sheer magnitude of Tandi's pregnancy is all.

Regardless, once the two women started talking, the conversation went a lot smoother. And after a while, they were laughing it up just like they used to do back in Middleton High.

So overall, a good time was had as old friends were reunited. Today was definitely a great day to be on the beach.

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artwork and characters copyright SatsumaLord
background image copyright its original owner