Immortality Awaits: New Grill, Promotion, New Girl (7/15)

[Caterina]

The Fourth Bedroom

    Gabriella worked hard for most of her shift at the restaurant.  The room where the automatic
dishwasher was placed was very small.  It is hard to work in close quarters with someone and not get to
know them.  Gabriella met a young adult woman named Adalynn Blum.  Socializing with her helped the
seven-hour shift go by faster.  Gabriella was feeling inspired at the beginning of her shift but halfway
through she became tense because she needed amusement.  There’s nothing amusing about washing
dishes for seven straight hours.  The best part of her job was when the chef’s would start clearing down
their stations.  The serving pans that had contained that night’s entre were sent back to be washed. 
Some of them still had a little bit of untouched food in them.  Adalynn and Gabriella each grabbed a
clean fork and tasted the little bits of deliciousness that clung to the corners of the pan.  Their favorites
by far were the mashed potatoes and the dressing which were served with the roast chicken dinner.

    It was a little after 1:00am when Gabriella returned home from work still a little tense.  She watched
cooking shows to help her relax then went into the kitchen and cooked three single servings of Grilled
Cheese sandwiches.  Once again it was very late when Gabriella finally went to bed.  It was already
Tuesday.  Gabriella had the day off.

    Maaike had the day off too.  They spent a few hours cloud gazing together.  Gabriella told Maaike
about Adalynn whom she had met at work the night before.  Maaike suggested that Gabriella invite
Adalynn over for lunch to get to know her better.  “Having a good relationship with your co-workers
helps you get promoted.”  Gabriella agreed and invited Adalynn over.

    Adalynn and Gabriella discussed work and gossiped about their co-workers.  They talked about fine
cuisine, gourmet cooking, and flavor profiles.  Gabriella served grilled cheese sandwiches.  By the end of
lunch, she and Adalynn were friends.

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    Ulrike returned home from her shift at the art gallery.  She had worked hard and was promoted to
Hungry Artist.  Maaike spent the afternoon out in the neighborhood digging under rocks, looking for
frogs, and picking flowers.  When she came home, she lined the front walkway with red, white, and blue
flowers which she was planning to plant.

     After Adalynn left, Gabriella spent some time in front of the mirror freshening up.  She tried on all of
her outfits and even played around a little with makeup. 

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     Gabriella wanted to see more of Windenburg.  She chose to travel to Hare’s Square Park.  It was on
the waterfront and was absolutely beautiful.  She wondered if her parents or grandparents had spent
time at this park. 

     Gabriella met a few people who were having a club gathering nearby.  It was a very popular club and
that made her a little nervous.

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    After politely introducing herself, she continued to explore the park.  She found a little garden.  Seeds
had just been planted and needed watering.  Gabriella carefully watered them with a watering can she
found on the ground a few feet away.  It was starting to get dark.  Perhaps she could come back to check
on the plants in the morning before work.

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    The park was just as beautiful in the daylight as it was the night before.  The sun peeked out from
above the clouds and cast shadows onto the ground.  The plants that Gabriella watered were starting to
grow.  While gazing about the rest of the park, she spotted a community gardener who was playing
chess.  Her name was Stephany Andrade.  Gabriella asked her if she knew how to grow a death flower. 
Stephany’s face lit up.  Not many people knew about death flowers.  Stephany pulled out her phone and
showed Gabriella the website she used for researching gardening.  It had the step-by-step instructions
for growing the rare flower. 

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    Stephany had never grown a death flower.  She was limited to planting only the fruits and vegetables
on the community garden plant list.  She always dreamed of having her own garden where she could
plant whatever she wanted.

    The two of them talked for a few hours and became friends.  Gabriella told Stephany about her
culinary career.  “Fresh fruits and vegetables are a must for any aspiring chef.”  Even though her house
was quite large, there was plenty of room for a garden on her lot.  She and her other roommates would
be too busy with their careers to spend time gardening.

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   Gabriella asked Stephany if she would like to move in with her, Ulrike, and Maaike.  Stephany would
have her own bedroom and all the gardening supplies she needed.  She would be able to spend all day in
the garden and grow whatever she wanted.  Happily, Stephany said “Yes”.

    Stephany wasted no time when she arrived at the house.  She saw the flowers that Maaike had lined
up on the front walkway and started planting them.

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     Stephany didn’t seem to notice Ulrike when she came home from work.

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    Ulrike waited patiently for Stephany to look up from her gardening so that she could introduce herself.

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    She waited and waited.

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     Finally, Stephany stood up and Ulrike was able to say ‘HI’.  Ulrike was a bit annoyed with Stephany
and it showed on her face.  Their relationship was not off to a good start.

[FrancescaFiori]

Oh, dear. Stephany may be a bit too focused. Great addition to the household, though!

[Nettlejuice]

Urgh, wish Sims could talk and garden then I'm sure the girls would have a great relationship by the time Stephany was done.

[Joria]

Urgh, wish Sims could talk and garden then I'm sure the girls would have a great relationship by the time Stephany was done.

I know!  Annoying isn't it?  They either have to stop gardening or just irritate the other Sim.

 I loved the look on Ulricke's face though!  This story is moving right along so nicely!  Good for you getting your gardener right away.

[Caterina]

@Joria
The .png file format that the screenshots are saved in showed her expression much better.  She looked really annoyed.  I will have try to be a little closer to my subjects so I can capture their emotions better.

[Caterina]

Who’s Coming to Dinner?


     Thursday morning the kitchen sink broke.  Ulrike, still in her sleepwear, called a repairman. 

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    The repairman arrived and, before he even fixed the sink, Ulrike asked him to hang out so she could
get to know him better.  His name was Devan Harman and he was evil.  Ulrike asked him to leave. 

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    She tried again and again to hire a different repairman but Devan kept showing up.  Discouraged, she
let him fix the sink.  After he left, she bought a dishwasher and hired a maid.

    On Friday, Maaike completed her Bestselling Author aspiration.  Stephany held a club gathering for
the Garden Gnomes.  Gabriella said an awkward “Hello” to Bjorn Bjergsen.  Wasn’t he Aunt Kara’s
biological father?  How is it that he looks like he hasn’t aged?  Were the other people in the drawings
around in this time too?  Maybe Grim would have the answers though she was in no hurry to meet him.

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    Realizing they weren’t going to meet any other repair men, Maaike asked Devan to move in.  He was an
Evil, Active, Perfectionist with 19 days till Elder.  He brought $20,000 into the household.  They ordered
another bedroom and a bathroom.  While Ulrike was at work working on her next promotion, the rest of
the girls gathered in the dining room to get to know Devan.

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     Gabriella was promoted to Caterer on Saturday.  On Sunday, she bought a bar on a whim.  Actually,
she bought a living room that included a bar.  It was blue and beautiful.  Gabriella decided to throw a
dinner party to celebrate all of the week’s accomplishments.  She invited her co-worker, Adalynn.

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    The dinner party was a Gold Medal success!  As a reward Gabriella received a Master Chef Pot Rack and a
Stainless Steel Auto Pot, and a plus three confident buff, “Host’s Masterpiece”, that lasted four hours.

[Caterina]

Old Man, Young Man, Fisherman, Spouse?


    Monday morning the bills came for the first time.  Gabriella was surprised that they were only $2,885. 
The Frugal reward trait that she purchased must be helping.

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    Maaike and Ulrike went to work and both received promotions.  Meanwhile, Gabriella and Stephany
went to Willow Creek park.  Stephany wanted to collect more cuttings for their garden.  Gabriella had a
different idea for being there.

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    The girls met and elder fisherman, Darwin Wray.  He was an Ambitious, Kleptomaniac, Slob.  They
asked him all sorts of questions to get to know him.  Stephany even asked if he was single!  He was.

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    Gabriella asked Darwin to join her in a game of chess.

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    She wanted to learn more about him if she was going to invite him into the household.  Gabriella
needed someone to catch Angelfish for the Ambrosia recipe.  They discussed their interests and became
friends.

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    It was nearing 4:00am.  Gabriella was about to cook something on the grill when someone caught her
eye.  There was something about him that seemed familiar, maybe it was the color of his hair.  It was the
same color as her father’s.  He was a teen named Jared Knight.  Gabriella enjoyed every minute of the
time they spent together stargazing.

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    After dinner the next day, Gabriella went to Desert Bloom Park in Oasis Springs.  It was the same park
where her grandmother and grandfather met.  She spotted Darwin fishing nearby.

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    Impressed by his catch, Gabriella asked him to move in. 

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    Darwin was five days younger than Stephany and brought $19,983 into the household.  Another
Outdoor themed bedroom was ordered and added to the house.


    Gardener:  check.

    Handyman:  check.

    Fisherman:  check.

    Spouse?

[Joria]

Love the title!  Reminds me of days happily jumping rope to a poem that would decide who I would marry, "doctor, lawyer, beggarman, thief",  lol.  I love your writing style and can hardly wait who "spouse" will be.

[FrancescaFiori]

Nice! The household is really coming together. I laughed about getting the same evil handyman every time you called. Oh well, I guess sometimes you have to take what you can get.

Jared is very cute. I hope he ages up to Young Adult soon!

[Caterina]

Butterflies


    After inviting Darwin to move in, Gabriella saw Jared Knight at the park.  He asked her to cloud gaze
with him.  She had butterflies in her stomach. 

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    “He is too young for me.  Why do I get butterflies when I am around him?”, she thought.  Gabriella
found herself trying to impress Jared.  She performed the ‘exploding ice cube trick’ at the bar.

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    Gabriella loved spending time with Jared.  There was something about him that seemed familiar and
exciting at the same time.  Perhaps it was because he was young, still a teen, and she had missed out on
her own teen years.  Maybe because spending time with Jared was like what spending time with her
twin brother would have been like.  Gabriella revealed a deep secret to Jared.  They talked about her
dreams and she told him her dramatic story.  She felt like she could tell him anything.

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    Later, Jared tried to make Gabriella laugh with his impression of a crab.

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    Darwin and Stephany were at the park that day also.  Darwin broke open the passage to the forgotten
grotto and swiped a paper towel holder from the bathroom on his way home.  Stephany gathered
cuttings from all of the plants she didn’t already have in the garden.

    Before leaving, Gabriella stopped by the playground equipment and tried to act like a giant sea crab. 
She must have done something wrong because the children didn’t seem very entertained.

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    Gabriella was enjoying life.  She had once thought that she would be too busy, or too burdened with
completing her requirements for immortality that there wouldn’t be any time for fun.  Happily, she was
wrong.  It had been a good day.

[Caterina]

Dinner Party Romance


    It was the middle of the second week.  Gabriella and her ‘crew’ continued to work hard. 

    Stephany visited Hare Square park to harvest the plants there.  They still didn’t have a tomato in their
home garden.  Before returning home, she joined the community gardener in a game of chess.  “So,
what’s new?  What have I been missing since I joined the private sector?”, she asked.  The other
gardener responded, “Not much.  The gardeners have their own softball team now.  We won our first
game against the fishermen.”  Stephany didn’t care much for sports.  She excused herself and went
home to plant her newly acquired tomato.   

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     Needing to throw five Gold Medal parties, Gabriella planned a House Party.  The party was not as
successful as her dinner party earning only a silver medal.  One of the goals of the party was for sims to
kiss three times.  There had been no romance in the home so far.  Stephany volunteered to help out.  So
did Ulrike.  Ulrike tried her charms on Devan while Stephany began flirting with Darwin.

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    Ulrike and Devan were not clicking at all.  Their romantic relationship bar was in the red!  Stephany,
however, was having much more success with Darwin.  Before the night was over they had shared their
first kiss.

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    On Thursday, while the others were at work, Stephany went to Willow Creek to gather more cuttings. 
She found an amazing tree alongside the river.  She watered it.  She talked to it.   She watered it some
more.  Then, as she was exploring the tree’s roots, she discovered an opening. 

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    It was just big enough for her to squeeze through.  Before long she found herself in a beautiful glade. 
It was unlike anything she had ever seen before.  New plants started sprouting around her.  Finally, a
cherry tree spouted.  She waited and waited for it to grow.  She was hoping to harvest some cherries or
at least take a cutting but she ended up leaving empty handed.

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    Friday afternoon, before Gabriella’s shift at the restaurant, Gabriella threw another House Party.  She
invited Jared, her co-workers, Dina Caliente and Adalynn Blum, and her housemates.  They all seemed to
enjoy the tiered cake that she made.  Her cooking skill and gourmet cooking skill were improving quickly. 

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    That night, Gabriella and Adalynn became Best Friends.  The House Party was a Gold Medal success!

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    Darwin wrapped up the week with a few successes of his own.  On Saturday, he caught his first
Angelfish and early Sunday morning, he caught Stephany and they WooHooed for the first time!

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    Darwin slept comfortably in the bed alongside Stephany while she dreamed about how bright all of her
tomorrows would be with Darwin by her side.

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[FrancescaFiori]

Aww! I love Stephany and Darwin together. I love their bedroom, too! Perfect for a gardener and a fisherman.

[Caterina]

Questions for Grim


    Just before noon on Sunday, Grim came to take Stephany.  It was her time.  Her final moments were
spent among her beloved plants.

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    Gabriella seemed unaffected by Stephany’s passing.  Her mind was elsewhere.  She was trying to
remember all of the questions she had for grim.

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    Maaike and Devan were there to witness the reaping.  Darwin was not at home.  He was fishing.  He
would be spared the sadness that came from witnessing death.

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    Grim flew into the air and swung his scythe. 

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    Stephany’s soul was torn from her body and rose into Grim’s clutches.

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    “So, this is what ‘Soul Reaping’ looks like.”, Gabriella thought.  She asked Grim about his career.  She
was curious about how it all worked.  What was the tablet for?  How did he know who to reap and when
their time was up?  Grim’s response to her questions was “Let me know if you are interested in our
customer referral program.”  What was that supposed to mean?  Did he think I wanted him to take
someone out for me?

    Gabriella had one more question for Grim.  She explained who she was and why she was here in this
time.  “By any chance would you know why Bjorn Bjergsen, whom my great-grandmother knew when
 she was a young adult living in the Prehistoric Era, is still alive and young?”, she asked. 

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    Grim did know the answer.  He and the other Grim’s were always in play regardless of the watcher’s
intentions.  The watchers are very powerful but they had no control over the reapers.  Once an instance
of the world is created, a watcher could make many changes.  Bjorn Bjergsen is what we call a ‘Townie’. 
He and his family are always ‘Currently in World’ when a new world is created.  All ‘Townies’ are created
exactly the same way, every time, in each new instance of the world.  So, unless the watcher intercedes
and removes them from the world, you can expect them to be around.

    Gabriella was fascinated by Grim and in wonder over all of the knowledge and power he possessed. 
She enjoyed their conversation.  Her eyes followed him as he flew up and off to his next reaping.

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[Joria]

So many questions for Grim to answer!  Love how you did that.  I was sad to see Stephany go but at least she had had some special moments of love in her life.

[FrancescaFiori]

Oh, Stephany! Gone so soon! I suppose her death did provide a convenient meeting between Gabriella and Grim, though. Nice that Devin didn't have to witness it.