After the Plague (new, Nov 13)

[Nettlejuice]

It's so lovely to see Hank and Henrietta, he's doing great for a single parent =D

[Tixxis]

My eye misted over when Henrietta showed her drawings: a cop and a robber, then, her parents as kids. So sweet!
I also liked how you portrayed Ian's trouble at school. It's tough to be the smartest kid on the block (and good looking).

[MarianT]

Thanks, everyone!

@Tixxis, I got a little misty myself when writing about them. It's so adorable when the parents and children cuddle. Ian's problem came about by accident -- I was clicking on something else when the chance card came up, so I never did read what it said, just the notification afterwards. He really was sad when he came home from school, though. It's hard to convey the sobbing under the covers.

[MarianT]

Round Nine

Chapter 39 – A Week with the Dahls

Everyone in Oasis Springs was happy when a container was found with some fancy clothes and furniture. Benson put some of the furniture on the roof, along with a wedding arch. With so many teenagers in town, it wouldn't be long before some of them became old enough to get married.



Bristol picked out a dress for herself...



...and chose one for Lucienne.



Then the two of them decided that Benson needed something more stylish. He didn't want anything with sequins, but they were satisfied with his new suit.



Benson was making progress at work. He invented a cloning device. His first success came with a lemon that he'd picked.





Replicating a serum was more difficult, but eventually he succeeded.



The next thing Benson made was ghost goo serum. No one wanted to test it, so he tried it himself.
It didn't have any effect, though. Benson didn't know whether he was disappointed or relieved.



His last invention was an Electroflux Wormhold Generator. He tried to make contact with aliens through it, but nothing happened.



At home that evening, he and Bristol decided to take off in the rocket to have some fun. Lucienne couldn't help switching to the rocket channel to see what they were doing.



Unfortunately, it was a two-way channel, and her parents overheard her giggle. Her dad had some words for her when he came home. It was time she started getting grades higher than a C,...



 time she started helping around the house...



...and time she got a job.



Lucienne felt panicky about leaving childhood behind, so at the earliest opportunity she went to Child's Play to get a toy. "It's for my cousin," she told the clerk, relieved that she wasn't being waited on by someone who knew her family. But the clerk was too distracted by the damage that someone had done to the dollhouse to pay much attention.



"I know how to fix it," Lucienne declared. She fell in love with the dollhouse immediately, and resolved to start saving up to buy one.



One evening Benson managed to transform his old tent into a fountain. It was worth a lot of money, but he decided to keep the fountain. Someday he or his descendants would have a house to go with it.



He went upstairs to work on the rocket, upgrading its maneuvering thrusters. Bristol went with him.



While he was welding, Bristol went downstairs to get a better look at some strange lights...



It was hours before she returned, and Benson had no idea where she'd gone. "What happened to you?" he demanded. "One minute you were helping me with the rocket, and the next you were gone."



Bristol tried to explain that she'd been abducted by aliens. "That's an urban myth," Benson told her. "Sure, there are aliens, but it's just prejudice to say that they go around abducting people."



Lucienne was even more scathing. "Honestly, Mom, even I could come up with a better story than that."



After a couple of days of being scoffed at, Bristol googled "alien abductions" on the Internet and found that there was a support group meeting for people who had been abducted. She called the number, and Peter Lee came over to listen to her describe her experience.



"Unfortunately, the only way people will believe in what happened is if they experience it themselves," he told her. "But there are others who've been abducted – me, for one, and my sister. And I think one of the new people – Ismael Dillard."

[Nettlejuice]

Poor Lucy, feel sorry she seems to be growing up faster than she wants. Hope one day Benson's dream house will be built to accommodate that fountain.

[Tixxis]

There are two beautiful half alien girls living in this community and poor Bristol had to find a support group before anyone believed her?
It's so unfair. Well, life can be unfair. And - of course - in Real Life hardly anybody believes in alien abductions (anymore).
I can't wait to see what happens next. In the meantime, my heart goes out to Bristol.

[MarianT]

People believe in aliens, just not abductions.

[Tixxis]

People believe in aliens, just not abductions.

Oh! Why didn't I think of that?
It all makes perfectly sense now.
Sorry, Marian, sometimes I'm a bit slow on the uptake.

[MarianT]

Chapter 40 – A Week with the Lewises

Olivia was thrilled to hear that there was new clothing available. She immediately set up two more mannequins in her store – one for the men...



...and one for women. She was sad, though, that there were no new party clothes for children.



Still, the new clothes brought plenty of people into the store. Most of them just wanted to look, but Robert Pancake bought a new exercise outfit, and someone bought the woman's formal.



New clothes also meant that the Lewis family also got new formal outfits:















During the school week, all the children were busy with homework and their jobs. Jack managed to get promoted to a level 3 Barista, which meant that he could quit his job and concentrate on getting from a C to an A. Nancy and Alicia did homework together when they came home from Hamburgerman.



Besides school and work, Alicia was also busy painting portraits of her family. Here is the one she did of Jack:



And this is Nancy:



After he got his A, Geoffrey learned enough about painting to make a portrait of Alicia herself:



While their children were at school, Johnny and Olivia decided to celebrate his promotion to Jokesmith. Wisely, they decided not to try for baby.



With the start of the weekend, romances began to burgeon. Jack invited his friend Qimi over. While they were discussing the necessity for world peace, he made his move...



Is it possible that he's found his soulmate?



Geoffrey came home from work with the glad news that he'd been promoted to a level 3 Manual Laborer. Nancy built up her cooking skill by baking him a cake.



After he blew out the candles...



Geoffrey hurried upstairs to start a romantic relationship with Isobel Goth.



Jack couldn't understand why Robert Pancake was hanging around the house that evening. Sure, they were acquainted, but that didn't seem a sufficient reason.



When Alicia came home from work, all became clear.



All in all, Olivia and Johnny are pleased with their brood. Certainly, they're handsome enough:



As they should be, given their parents.

[Nettlejuice]

Zest-Lewis babies are always going to be good looking  Geoffrey in particular is rocking in purple.

[MarianT]

Geoffrey's glad to hear you think that. Many people think his brother Jack is the good-looking one.

[oshizu]

I so enjoy reading about the unfolding lives of your various households as they cross and intertwine.
The identity of Isobel Goth's parents escaped me, however, so I had to read back.
Would love a recap at some point to remind us who's with who and who their children are.   

Also very interesting how different sims have stepped forward to take up specific roles in the community.  Cassie/Alex are the welcome committee, Peter represents the abductions support group....

[MarianT]

@oshizu, I guess it is time for me to do another Recap -- after this round, I promise.

[MarianT]

Chapter 41 – A Week with the Bagleys

Elaine has been working out.



It's paid off – she's been promoted from Team Mascot...



...to Dance Captain.



Shayna's just been working. Besides running the bakery – which is making more money now that they only get serious customers – she's been taking care of the garden.



She's also in charge of repairs, but she told Elaine that cleaning would be her department.



From time to time, Armando calls Shayna and asks for a date. She finally explained to him that his timing was terrible. He was always calling just before she was going to bed. Alone. In order to sleep.



Shayna and Elaine got some new formal outfits, even though Shayna said she really didn't need one. Elaine insisted that she get a really nice dress.



For herself, Elaine got something more modern.



Elaine also tried to get Shayna lined up with Hank Goddard. "He seems okay, for a cop," she told her mother. "He's got a fear of commitment," said her mother. "Are you trying to get me out of the house?"



"And how are you doing in the romance department?" Shayna continued. "How are things going with Brayon?"

"We're just good friends and it's going to stay that way," said Elaine. "He's unemployed and hates children."



"Anything else you want to tell your mother?" Shayna inquired. There was something odd in her tone, and Elaine stopped running.

"Like what?" she asked nervously.



"Like what you and J. Huntington III were doing at the Museum the other day," said Shayna. "Cassandra Goth told me all about it."



"She saw you flirting," said Shayna.



"She even saw you kissing," she continued.



"Okay, I'll tell you," said Elaine. "I've decided not to get married, but I want to have children, so I've chosen J to be the father."

"What!?"

"He's good-looking, he's athletic, and he has a job so he won't be coming over all the time after I have the baby."

"Most people would consider that a problem," said Shayna.

"Not having Dad around worked for you and me," said Elaine. "I thought I'd continue the tradition. I plan on eating strawberries and listening to pop music the whole time I'm pregnant."

"Are you --?"

"Not yet," said Elaine, "but I'm working on it."

[Playalot]

Well, I might be biased, but I think J's a good choice.