The Strange Case Of The Flores Family
I've been testing my game for a few days now, using a new save, putting mods back in piecemeal, and playing the 'No Skills, No Problem' scenario. My sim of choice for this playthrough has been one of the OG's- Andre DaSilva (given I'd taken out my tray as well).
Anyway, at some point or another I meet a sim known as Demi Flores. To be honest, I'd been making so many acquaintances along the way, I couldn't tell you where and when I'd met her. She invites me to her birthday party in Sulani, hosted at her place just west of the festival grounds. I noticed a familiar face in Paige, her daughter, whom I'd met in Myshuno Meadows' reception hall whilst touring the worlds, looking for digsites.
I'd paid down on an apartment in Evergreen Harbor, but resolved to not use it until I had overcome the first hurtle in making the 400k I owed to my late parents' debt collectors. Whilst utilising the facilities at the reception hall, some celebrity had dropped by, looking to host a meet-and-greet with fans- one of whom was Paige.
I greeted Demi with a hug, and was about to congratulate her when I glimpsed Rashad, her husband, motioning for her to "cut it out" in my periphery. At first I thought he was perhaps referring to something party-related, but in the back of my mind I was on high alert. Demi herself seemed to maintain her cordial smile, which only furthered the possibility I was overreacting...until it happened again...and again. I was one of perhaps two men (other than he himself) at the party (if it could even be called that, due to the lack of festivities and cake), and the other was their son. It wasn't always hugs, but anytime we seemed to get on in some intimate (but obviously platonic) sense, there would come the little "tch" or the crossed arms. I congratulated the lady of the hour, hugged Paige, and was on my way after the party ended.
Time passes, and I get a text from Demi, asking for advice. She'd wanted my input as to whether or not the two of them should try for a baby. Perhaps in that moment my subconscious synced with my consciousness, as the word "no" was typed and sent before I'd realised it. Alright, so he was a jealous person. Maybe that's all it was, and she loved him despite it. I'd only seen one instance of their rapport, so perhaps it was just a perspective issue. A few days later, she texts me again...same question. Weird, sure, but maybe she really wants this. Still, I just don't think it's a good idea. The kids are grown enough to leave the nest soon, and if there is something going on, she can leave him without anything holding her back.
The call comes through whilst I'm hawking my goods, my fiancée well into her pregnancy. The caller ID is in a language I can't read, the screen devoid of all light. Every sim knows who it is- The Reaper. The first sign is the language native to him alone, given all sims speak simlish (albeit in multiple dialects). The second is the black screen, a portal connecting to every possible means of communication in existence. The voice on the other end has no discernible tone. It isn't heard...it is felt. The words conveyed upon my memories of the sim in question, a bottomless pit in my stomach. "Paige Flores has passed away". *click* There are no condolences. No bedside manner to be observed. A pit of despair, coupled with a message etched in one's very soul.
I grieve for days. Despite not having known her well, she had just breeched young-adulthood, and her persona was that of a bright spot. I thought about visiting Demi, just to give my condolences, but couldn't bring myself to just yet. I'd places to go, promises to keep, and miles to go before I could see a grieving mother weep. That ever-cordial smile broken into pieces would not be good for my short-term motivation. Selfish, but true. Then the texts. Again and again, and again for good measure, Demi texts me to ask if she should try for a baby with Rashad. The "noes" get harder and harder to send. Her daughter has just passed, and instead of calling to talk, she just wants my opinion on having another baby. I manage to steel myself and pay her a visit, my fiancée beside me. Demi, with that cordial smile of hers, greets me, then has to leave for work. She's a mixologist at a nightclub in Del Sol Valley, and the flights to and from Sulani are limited (first come, first served, regardless of time). Rashad does his little passive-aggressive thing again, and I give him a stern talking to. He backs down, my fiancée pulls me away, and I leave on bad terms with him.
The next time I visit Sulani, I'm on my own, resolved to try and talk Demi into leaving Rashad, given the sheer number of texts I receive from her, always the same damned question. Rashad is home, and being overtly lovey-dovey. The snake. I manage to pull her away from the house, just to have a private chat and gauge things. Still with that smile of hers. Before I can get past the surface talk about Winterfest and the usual "so what've you been up to?", Rashad joins us, more kisses blown and even some "friendly banter" towards me. Even if I can influence her to leave, I need to be sure what I feel isn't just me being an over-cautious "Nosey Parker".
I return his banter, and sprinkle in some small talk. He's unemployed, whilst his wife (who's a Freegan, and thus hates the very concept of work) brings in the funds. I know he's a jealous so-and-so, so that's two strikes. I learn that the two of them met many years ago, whilst he was part of a clean-up initiative for Sulani, and she was traveling the length and breadth of the island, not a penny to her name, but not a care in the world. He was passionate about recycling, and it worked out for her to use recyclables for anything she needed (they'd even built their home from recycled material). Cute, but I needed more. Just then Father Winter comes bounding down the road. I get my gift, Demi and Rashad bid me goodnight, and as I'm leaving, I see Rashad do his usual out of the corner of my eye. I'll be back.
One thing that bugs me is that I don't even know how their daughter died. The obituaries didn't mention it, and I don't want to bring it up out of the blue, nor do I want to call forth their daughter's ghost without permission. After a pop-over to the nearby festival for some kava and pork, I return to the house to do the binding ritual, tethering Paige to the mortal plane. All I can hope for, is that no one decides to release her spirit just yet. Something in the back of my mind says there was something screwy going on that caused her death, and it's related to my feelings regarding Rashad.
-I'm just being paranoid...right?
Anyway, at some point or another I meet a sim known as Demi Flores. To be honest, I'd been making so many acquaintances along the way, I couldn't tell you where and when I'd met her. She invites me to her birthday party in Sulani, hosted at her place just west of the festival grounds. I noticed a familiar face in Paige, her daughter, whom I'd met in Myshuno Meadows' reception hall whilst touring the worlds, looking for digsites.
I'd paid down on an apartment in Evergreen Harbor, but resolved to not use it until I had overcome the first hurtle in making the 400k I owed to my late parents' debt collectors. Whilst utilising the facilities at the reception hall, some celebrity had dropped by, looking to host a meet-and-greet with fans- one of whom was Paige.
I greeted Demi with a hug, and was about to congratulate her when I glimpsed Rashad, her husband, motioning for her to "cut it out" in my periphery. At first I thought he was perhaps referring to something party-related, but in the back of my mind I was on high alert. Demi herself seemed to maintain her cordial smile, which only furthered the possibility I was overreacting...until it happened again...and again. I was one of perhaps two men (other than he himself) at the party (if it could even be called that, due to the lack of festivities and cake), and the other was their son. It wasn't always hugs, but anytime we seemed to get on in some intimate (but obviously platonic) sense, there would come the little "tch" or the crossed arms. I congratulated the lady of the hour, hugged Paige, and was on my way after the party ended.
Time passes, and I get a text from Demi, asking for advice. She'd wanted my input as to whether or not the two of them should try for a baby. Perhaps in that moment my subconscious synced with my consciousness, as the word "no" was typed and sent before I'd realised it. Alright, so he was a jealous person. Maybe that's all it was, and she loved him despite it. I'd only seen one instance of their rapport, so perhaps it was just a perspective issue. A few days later, she texts me again...same question. Weird, sure, but maybe she really wants this. Still, I just don't think it's a good idea. The kids are grown enough to leave the nest soon, and if there is something going on, she can leave him without anything holding her back.
The call comes through whilst I'm hawking my goods, my fiancée well into her pregnancy. The caller ID is in a language I can't read, the screen devoid of all light. Every sim knows who it is- The Reaper. The first sign is the language native to him alone, given all sims speak simlish (albeit in multiple dialects). The second is the black screen, a portal connecting to every possible means of communication in existence. The voice on the other end has no discernible tone. It isn't heard...it is felt. The words conveyed upon my memories of the sim in question, a bottomless pit in my stomach. "Paige Flores has passed away". *click* There are no condolences. No bedside manner to be observed. A pit of despair, coupled with a message etched in one's very soul.
I grieve for days. Despite not having known her well, she had just breeched young-adulthood, and her persona was that of a bright spot. I thought about visiting Demi, just to give my condolences, but couldn't bring myself to just yet. I'd places to go, promises to keep, and miles to go before I could see a grieving mother weep. That ever-cordial smile broken into pieces would not be good for my short-term motivation. Selfish, but true. Then the texts. Again and again, and again for good measure, Demi texts me to ask if she should try for a baby with Rashad. The "noes" get harder and harder to send. Her daughter has just passed, and instead of calling to talk, she just wants my opinion on having another baby. I manage to steel myself and pay her a visit, my fiancée beside me. Demi, with that cordial smile of hers, greets me, then has to leave for work. She's a mixologist at a nightclub in Del Sol Valley, and the flights to and from Sulani are limited (first come, first served, regardless of time). Rashad does his little passive-aggressive thing again, and I give him a stern talking to. He backs down, my fiancée pulls me away, and I leave on bad terms with him.
The next time I visit Sulani, I'm on my own, resolved to try and talk Demi into leaving Rashad, given the sheer number of texts I receive from her, always the same damned question. Rashad is home, and being overtly lovey-dovey. The snake. I manage to pull her away from the house, just to have a private chat and gauge things. Still with that smile of hers. Before I can get past the surface talk about Winterfest and the usual "so what've you been up to?", Rashad joins us, more kisses blown and even some "friendly banter" towards me. Even if I can influence her to leave, I need to be sure what I feel isn't just me being an over-cautious "Nosey Parker".
I return his banter, and sprinkle in some small talk. He's unemployed, whilst his wife (who's a Freegan, and thus hates the very concept of work) brings in the funds. I know he's a jealous so-and-so, so that's two strikes. I learn that the two of them met many years ago, whilst he was part of a clean-up initiative for Sulani, and she was traveling the length and breadth of the island, not a penny to her name, but not a care in the world. He was passionate about recycling, and it worked out for her to use recyclables for anything she needed (they'd even built their home from recycled material). Cute, but I needed more. Just then Father Winter comes bounding down the road. I get my gift, Demi and Rashad bid me goodnight, and as I'm leaving, I see Rashad do his usual out of the corner of my eye. I'll be back.
One thing that bugs me is that I don't even know how their daughter died. The obituaries didn't mention it, and I don't want to bring it up out of the blue, nor do I want to call forth their daughter's ghost without permission. After a pop-over to the nearby festival for some kava and pork, I return to the house to do the binding ritual, tethering Paige to the mortal plane. All I can hope for, is that no one decides to release her spirit just yet. Something in the back of my mind says there was something screwy going on that caused her death, and it's related to my feelings regarding Rashad.
-I'm just being paranoid...right?
