All the Good Girls go to Heaven

[ratchie]

Thank you. I'd been planning that scene since I began writing the story, and was very happy to finally write it.

As to the people speculating about Mae's parentage... You know more than you think you do. 

I have an idea about who Mae's parents are but I am not going to voice them in this thread.

Rachel

[alex51299]

I have an idea about who Mae's parents are but I am not going to voice them in this thread.

Rachel

Since Cayden might not be one of them, same here.

[loveSims]

I love your story! Just when I think it can't get better it did. Can't wait to read more.

[ApplesApplesApples]

Chapter 13

I sat reading a book one evening when I heard someone running across the bridge. Bindi burst through the door, carrying my newspaper, her eyes widened to their utmost capacity, her breathing close to hyperventilation.



"Leah, you'll... never believe what happened!" she gasped.

"Are you okay?" I asked, because she seemed terrified.

"I'm fine, it's just that my... dress has got coffee all... over it and I need one for the reception because it's starting in an hour!"

"The reception? Bindi, are you getting married?" I felt a smile work my stiff face muscles.

"Yes, I..." said Bindi, confused. "I thought you knew. I left you a message on your answering machine two weeks ago. Cayden told me you were busy with college and your new job and everything and that's why you hadn't answered... I was afraid maybe you were mad at me!"

"Cayden? When did you talk to him?" I hadn't heard anything from him for over five months. I didn't even know if he still lived in town.

"Yes, I..." said Bindi again. She gave a nervous little giggle. "I'm marrying him."

I blinked. Then I closed my book, set it on the couch beside me, and walked around to the window, the same one Cayden had looked out of and seen Milo and me talking.

"Leah? Are you all right?" asked Bindi.

"Yes," I said. My voice came out faint and high.

"I know you and Cayden were close when you were younger. That's why I thought maybe you were mad at me and didn't answer my message. But it's okay, right? You're not angry at me?"

The day after Cayden left I'd disconnected the phone and hadn't reconnected it since. It had made it much harder for people to reach me, which suited me just fine. On the other hand, it made me find out about things like this in a completely undesirable manner. I would have preferred to hear it over the phone, where I could let loose my reaction and no one would see.

"Of course I'm not angry," I said, forcing myself to turn and look at her. I didn't know what I was. "You need a dress for the reception?"

"Yes, it's tonight! I don't have anything to wear. So I was wondering... you always had such nice clothes. Would you lend me something?" She handed me my newspaper. "This was outside. I guess you forgot to get it."

"Thank you," I said, taking it automatically and putting it on an end table. In fact I remembered stepping on it several times going in and out of the house. I felt no inclination to find out what was going on in the outside world. "I'll see if I have something upstairs."

We went to my room. I hadn't worn any of my dresses in ages. I thought something from when I was a teenager would be better for Bindi, because anything I could wear now would fall off of her. I looked through my drawers for something suitable.



"Is this okay?" I asked, holding up a purple knee-length dress.

"I don't know. Is it? I've never been very good at clothes."

"Try it on. You can use my bathroom."

When she closed the door I sat on my loveseat, trying to make sense of everything. "Bindi... how did this whole thing happen? You and Cayden?"

"Well, it started while you were in college," said Bindi from the bathroom, her voice carrying a slight echo. "A week or so before you came back. I was at a beach party and I ran into him. I said 'Cayden! Remember me?'

"'Vaguely. You're Aliyah's friend, right?'

"'Yeah. Have you heard anything from her? I haven't seen her since she came back last summer.'



"'Then you've seen her more recently than I have.' He nodded and started to walk away.

"'Hey, Cayden, remember that time at Aliyah's house when Gigi and Vanessa were insulting you, I meant to...'

"'It doesn't matter. That was a long time ago. Have a nice time at the party.' He started to leave again.

"'Wait, Cayden, don't go,' I said. 'I wanted to tell you sorry about your mother. I heard she was in a mental clinic.'

"That seemed to make him sad. 'Who told you about that?'

"'I've heard it around town from several people.'

"He sighed. 'So they're gossiping about her? That's just great.'

"'I didn't gossip about her,' I said. 'I know what it's like to have gossip about your mom.' We didn't say anything for a moment and it was kind of awkward. Then I said, 'Leah told me you'd gone to college. What are you doing back in town?'

"He seemed to take a moment to figure out who 'Leah' was. 'I finished and got a job with a law firm, in computer security.'"

I bit my lip at that point in Bindi's story. So Cayden had fed her the same lie as he had me. He didn't think I'd tell Bindi the truth?

"I said 'That's great!'" continued Bindi from inside the bathroom, oblivious. "'I've got your old job. At the grocery store, remember? My little brother's in elementary school now, and he seems to need new clothes and shoes every other week, so...'

"'How did you know I used to work at a grocery store?'

"'Well,' I said, a little bit embarrassed. 'I always noticed you.'

"'Really?' he said, and he smiled. He's got the sweetest smile, Leah.



"'I was always afraid to come talk to you. I wanted to, though.'

"'Okay. You're talking to me now. What did you want to say?'

"'Well, it's nothing in particular. I just wanted to talk to you and get to know you better. You've always been kind of... interesting.'

"'Hmm,' he said. 'You've always been pretty interesting to me, too. I've especially always wanted to do this.' And then he kissed me!"



I picked at the loveseat's upholstery. "That's nice. So this was while I was still in college?"

"Yeah, about seven months ago. Then one month ago we were out at the beach again..."

"So after that you started dating?"

"Well, after the party I thought for a while he'd forgotten about me, but about three months later he came to my house and invited me out for dinner. We went out every weekend. He couldn't go out during the week because he had his job. But we've been going out for at least four months now. So we were at the beach, laughing and having fun, and he just put his arm over my shoulders and whispered in my ear, 'Marry me, Bindi.' I never thought I'd hear those words, Leah. And he wanted to get married right away. He didn't want to wait. So the wedding's in one week."

"Are you done in there?" I asked, a bit more gruffly than I'd meant to.

"I'm having trouble with these straps."

I went in to help her. Then to get a good view of her I told her to come out into the hallway. I backed up to get the full image.

"You're beautiful, Bindi," I said.



"You think so?"

"Why don't you let me do something with your hair?"

"No, that's okay. The reception's starting in about half an hour. Besides I think that if you try to move my hair it'll crack." She giggled nervously again and patted her hair. "Hey, Leah. I've been meaning to ask you this, but I was afraid you were mad at me so I didn't. Do you want to be my bridesmaid?"

Could I watch Cayden get married to someone else? Of course I could. It didn't matter anyway, did it? "Of course I do, Bindi."

She hugged me. "Thank you! Thank you, thank you! I'm so happy! Cayden's the sweetest, best man in the world. I never thought I could be so happy." I felt a few tears slip down my back.



"But do you really think you know Cayden well enough?" I looked at her face, making sure she listened to me. "You've only known him a short time."

"I know Cayden. I know everything about him."

"Are you sure? About this job of his, for example?"

"Yes, of course I am! I met all the lawyers and everything at the wedding shower. They told me Cayden was the best employee they'd ever had. They said he quit for a while near the beginning but came right back after a while, and he caught a cracker on his first day back. I don't know what a cracker is, but they said it was a hard thing to catch them. Leah, this is like a dream. I never thought anyone would ever pick me. All my life I've been everyone's last choice."

"You met the lawyers he worked for? Are you sure they were lawyers?"

"Yes!" she said. She seemed puzzled. "What's the matter, Leah? You're not angry, are you? Cayden told me you and he weren't together anymore, that you hadn't been for a while."

"No, we haven't. It's just that Cayden's been known to lie, and I don't want you to get into something without knowing everything beforehand."

"Don't worry. My grandfather was just like you, shocked because it was so fast. So he investigated Cayden. He found out all about his job and his college and everything. My grandfather didn't want to let me go to just anyone. If my grandfather thinks he's good for me, that's a big deal."

"Okay." I patted her shoulder. "You're going to be late for the reception."

"Thank you!" She hugged me again and ran down the stairs and out the door.

I pulled out my phone and dialed Cayden's number. It told me it had been disconnected. I threw myself on the couch in frustration, grinding my palms into my forehead, trying to sort everything out in my head. Had Cayden really gone back to work for his old employers? Had he really turned his life around?

And if he did, said a little self-pitying part of me, why didn't he come back to me?

I was Bindi's only bridesmaid, so I was allowed to pick out my own dress. I went by Bindi's house two days before the wedding to show it to her, also partly hoping to get a glimpse of Cayden and maybe even talk to him for a moment. But the house was empty. I figured they'd gone out, and decided to go back later.

That evening Milo dropped by to visit. He'd come every now and then, just to chat and try to persuade me to go back to school. He didn't seem to think my "relaxed" method of college was going to get me anywhere.

"You're a smart girl, Aliyah. Whatever's happened, you can't let it get in the way of your future."

Always the future. I just smiled and drank the last sip of coffee. "I'm going to finish college eventually."

"Yeah, eventually. If you take this long to get your undergraduate degree, how long is it going to take if you want to do a masters or a PhD?"

"What I'm doing isn't going to be forever. Just for now, just to take a break. Maybe next semester I'll start back full-time."

"You're never going to be an astronaut like this."

I laughed. "You're so pessimistic. I bet you'd picked your major in first grade."

His eyes widened innocently. "I'm just trying to make sure you don't throw your life away, Aliyah."

"I'm going to get some more coffee." I stood up and went into the kitchen. The espresso machine was running and I almost didn't hear my cell phone ringing. "Hello?"

"Hello, Leah?"

"Bindi! Where are you? I need you to okay my bridesmaid dress." I turned off the machine so I could hear her better. There was noise on her end of the line, too.

"Don't get angry, Leah. I'm not in the country."

I laughed. "What?"

"We're on a little tropical island in the Caribbean. It's the most beautiful place in the world. You wouldn't believe it. We just got here, and we're staying for a few weeks."

"You're postponing the wedding?"

"No. Oh, don't get mad, Leah, but it was so romantic and impulsive when he asked me that I had to say yes. We eloped."



"No wedding?" I said quietly. She didn't hear me.

"We were talking about all the arrangements. I mentioned your bridesmaid dress which you were bringing over later today and then I remembered that I needed a touch-up on the hem of mine, because when I was trying it out the other day I stepped on it, and also that I needed to go to the baker's to pick out the final cake design, because every time I think of my dress I remember the wedding cake, since we'd decided to make them with matching designs, and then I remembered that I had to pick up Zach's tailored ring-bearer suit. He interrupted me and said it was too much trouble and it distracted us from the real focus of our marriage, which was our love. And then he suggested this and I agreed. We just jumped on a plane leaving that very day and arrived just an hour or so ago. Our cabin is so lovely. Right next to the sea. Tomorrow we're going to go swim with the dolphins."

"But you're already married?"

"We got married in a quick little beach-side ceremony. Since everything seemed to have started there. Except this beach is so completely different from the one back home. The water's turquoise! Really, it looks like a sea of gems instead of water."

"That's great, Bindi." I steadied myself on the counter because I'd started to shake all over. "I hope you enjoy your vacation. I'm sorry I couldn't be there for your wedding."

"Thank you so much for being such a good friend, Leah. I'm going to miss you."

"Me too. Have fun." I hung up even though I heard her saying something else.

When I thought I was steady I tried to get the espresso machine running again, but instead I knocked the mug over onto the floor. Milo came running.

"Are you okay?" he asked. "Did you get burnt?"

I shook my head. I could barely stand straight. Milo guided me back into the living room and sat me on the couch.

"Aliyah, what's the matter?"

"I'm dead," I said, looking at my shaking hands.

"You're pale. Do you feel like you're going to faint?"

"No. I'm fine." As the shakes subsided the tears began. I desperately needed something to bring me back, to ground me, to comfort me. I took Milo's face in my hands and kissed him. He kissed me back.
Thank you for reading!

[MoonsAreBlue]

Oh my gosh! I can't believe he married Bindi! Cayden must still have feelings for Aliyah, though. I bet he eloped because he didn't want her to see him getting married to someone else, right? Man, and just when I thought things couldn't get more complicated, Aliyah and Milo! I absolutely love this story!!

[alex51299]

How do you kwep on topping yourself?! anyway, my suapicians are going on as planned.

[forever_mone]

Wow, just wow! I love this story, so many twists and turns.

[Katluvr]

I just caught up on the last 4 chapters and this story just takes my breath away!  Every time I think I have things figured out you throw in a new twist.  You've also managed to do something that is really hard, you made Cayden a sympathetic villain.  He's not a good guy, but something about him keeps me wishing that everything would work out for him and Aliyah.

[MoMoll]

The plot thickens!

[loveSims]

All I can say is amazing update wow! Can't wait for more.

[ApplesApplesApples]

Chapter 14

The next few months were some of the most peaceful of my life. Milo and I understood what the other needed, and at first behaved as though the kiss had never happened. But we saw each other nearly every day, at my house or around town. One day Milo suggested getting an apartment so that he wouldn't have to travel so far to come see me.

"Why don't you just move in with me?" I asked.

"Okay," he said.

And that was it. We never made any declaration of love, because we both knew that would be an exaggeration and an insult to our intelligence. We weren't in love. But we decided we would be boyfriend and girlfriend, because we felt comfortable with that.

Milo had finished his graduate degree in computer programming and started his own little company designing software. He worked from home most days, which suited us both fine. He gave me a job in the marketing area of the company. I'd taken several classes in college, and although I wasn't an expert by any means, it helped with paying the bills and getting rid of the debts. Most of the time my job involved being the means of communication between the different employees of the company, who refused to come see each other in person. When Milo's company got a real marketing assistant he convinced me to go back to college full-time.

"I can support us both with my job now," he said. "You finish your education."

So I did. I continued at the same school half an hour away, so I could still live at home. Milo helped me with my coursework sometimes, just like he used to when we went to school together. He and I had a special connection which I enjoyed; it brought a reduced amount of pleasure but almost no pain. We could talk easily and about normal subjects. It made me feel like a real, mature adult.



Bindi and Cayden didn't come back on the planned date. She called me sometime after their projected arrival to tell me they were taking a tour of Europe.

"It's so beautiful you wouldn't believe it, Leah. All the little villages and old castles. I love Rome! It's the most wonderful city in the world. We went to see the Parthenon. Or maybe it's the Pantheon. I'm not sure."

"Bindi, where does Cayden get the money for all this?" I asked warily.

"From his job! He got a big promotion again and decided to take us on an extended vacation to celebrate. He has to work sometimes from his computer, but I go exploring while he's busy, and then we go out to dinner together. You'd never believe the food!"

I'd never gone to Europe before. My parents hadn't been much for travelling. Our vacations took us around our area of the country, but never farther than that. I congratulated Bindi and said I hoped the rest of their vacation would be just as nice. When I hung up I lay on the couch for several hours, imagining what it would be like if Cayden had married me and taken me to Europe instead. Just months on end in which we could enjoy the tourist attractions and each other. Nothing but us two.

Milo came in to ask me if I felt okay. I decided to tell him part of the truth.

"Bindi called to tell me all about her and Cayden's vacation in Europe. And we're stuck here."

He smiled. "You're jealous? You don't have to be. I can't take time off this month, but next month I'll let all the employees take two whole weeks. Most of them work weekends, and they deserve a break. We can go anywhere you want."

"Let's go to Peru."

He seemed surprised. "Peru? Why do you want to go there?"

"Machu Picchu is one of the most impressive sights in the whole world. You'd like it."

"Okay, if that's where you want to go."

In the end our vacation was postponed another two months. Cayden and Bindi had returned from Europe by then, but I didn't get a chance to go visit them before we left.

Our vacation lasted a little over three weeks, because once we were there Milo didn't want to go back. I can still picture him lifting his arms to the beautiful azure sky and shouting: "Let's stay here forever!" which earned him several amused glances from passersby. He got in trouble several times for adventuring into parts of the ruins he wasn't supposed to go to. I enjoyed myself, too, taking long hikes up to peaks where the oxygen came into my lungs with difficulty, looking down at the wonderful sights beneath me. We made friends, saw everything we could, and had the time of our lives.

Finally Milo had to return to work. I decided to take a few summer courses, encouraged by him, since I'd lost so much time before. When I finally got around to visiting Bindi and Cayden they'd been married for almost a year. And I might not have gone to see them at all if Bindi hadn't called and asked me to.

I pulled up in front of her old house. I could see they'd done some renovations, but it looked much the same as it had when Bindi lived there with her grandfather and brother.



I parked and went to knock at the door. For a moment nobody answered. Then the door opened and Bindi peered out, much in the manner of a frightened rabbit.

"Oh, Leah," she said in an unnaturally high voice. "I was starting to think you wouldn't come."

"Sorry. I needed to finish up some studying. I've got an exam tomorrow."

"Come in," she said, opening the door just barely wide enough for me to get through. "You've always been so smart, Leah. Going to college and everything, even though you lost your parents."

"Um, thanks," I said, looking around. It all looked much cleaner than when I'd been there last, several years ago. "Where is everyone? I was looking forward to seeing little Zach. He must be seven or eight by now, right?"

Bindi gave a hysterical giggle that didn't seem to end. I watched her worriedly, wondering if I should call an ambulance to carry off to the mental ward. But she managed to stop herself, holding herself up on a counter. "Zach's gone."

"What? Where?"

"He went to boarding school last week. He won't be here again until the summer."

"Oh, that's nice. He seems a bit young to go, but I guess it's your choice..."

She gave a little shriek of laughter and covered her mouth to stifle it. "My choice?" She chortled as she headed over to the couch, steadying herself on whatever piece of furniture was in her reach. "That's funny. You were always so funny, Leah."

I sat down across from her in an armchair. "Bindi, what's the matter? You seem...?"

"Crazy?" she said. "I'm fine." She crossed her legs, placed her hands on her knees, and stared off into the distance. "Just fine."



"How was your trip in Europe?" I asked.

"Good. We had a lot of fun. I heard you went to Peru." She didn't look at me, seemingly very interested in a scene off to her right. She started jiggling her foot in a very distracting way.

"Yeah. It was great. Milo loved it."

"Good! I was so happy when I heard you and Milo were together. When am I going to meet him? Are you going to get married?"

"We haven't talked about it."

"Good. I mean, I guess it's good. You're taking it slowly. Slowly is good. It's better than rushing things, right? Because if you rush things you don't do them well, like cleaning the house. Right? You'll miss little spots of dirt if you go too quickly, and then you make people angry."

I leaned forward. "Bindi, you've got to tell me what's wrong."

"Wrong?" She looked at me. "No, nothing's wrong! It's just that sometimes I think I'll go crazy locked inside the house all day with no one to visit me. I wish you'd come earlier."

"I'm sorry. I've been busy..." I realized it was a lame excuse. "Sorry. Didn't you have that job at the grocery store?"

"We decided it wasn't necessary anymore."

"But what about other things? Maybe you could join a club. You could come over to my house, meet Milo. That way you'd get out of the house more."

"I can't go to your house. I don't have a car."

"You could walk. Or I could pick you up."

She shook her head and looked away again, sighing. "He doesn't like me visiting you."

"He? Cayden? Who cares what he wants? If you want, you can come."

"He doesn't want me to be your friend anymore. He says you're too good for me. He says I'm not good enough to be your friend, and I should leave you alone because you're busy with more important things."

I felt fury rising inside of me. "Bindi... you know that's not true. How can you let him tell you things like that?"

"He's right." She shrugged.

"No, he's not. It's not acceptable that he says things like that to you. You're married. You're supposed to take care of each other. You can't let him tell you what to do or make any decisions for you."

All of a sudden she burst into tears. "I miss Zach and my grandfather, Leah!"

I went to sit next to her and hugged her. "Did Cayden send them away?"

"He paid for Zach's boarding school, and for my grandfather's retirement home. But Zach didn't want to go, and I didn't want him to go, either. Now I can almost never visit my grandfather and I won't see Zach until next summer. I miss them so much." She buried her face in my shoulder.

I tried to suppress the tremors of fury in order to soothe her. "Shh, it's okay. I'll have a talk with Cayden."

"Don't make him angry," sobbed Bindi.

"Has he ever hurt you, Bindi?" I asked.

"No. We just fight all the time, and he always wins. That's supposed to be n-normal, right? All couples fight. You and Milo fight sometimes, don't you?"

"Sometimes," I said, although I couldn't remember any conversation we'd had that had been harsher than a discussion. "But you can't let him win all the time. Does he know that you want Zach and your grandfather back? Maybe he'd let them come back if you talked to him and told him how much you miss them."

"But I can't argue with him, Leah. He says he pays for everything and it should be his choice."

"That's because he made you quit your job!"

"He gets so angry. He won't listen to me."



"Make him listen to you, then," I said.

But I spent over an hour trying to coax some bravery into her and was unsuccessful. I knew Bindi had never been strong-willed, but this was different. It was like she was broken.

I drove back home, hardly noticing the road or anything around me. I stormed inside and paced the downstairs like a madwoman. Milo came to see what was the matter with me.

"Aliyah, stop," he said when I didn't answer. "Stop. Sit down and tell me what's wrong."

"It's Cayden. He's been treating Bindi horribly." I told him everything Bindi had told me.

"Maybe you haven't got the whole story."

I glared at him. "What? He did it by accident? Aliens possessed his body and made him do it?"

"Some people can be mean without realizing it. He sounds like a gruff kind of man. Maybe he really was trying to help Zach by giving him a better education and her grandfather by making him more comfortable. Bindi's always been fragile, you said it yourself. Maybe they just got in a fight once and he said some bad things without meaning to, and she took them to heart."

"So it's her fault?"

"I never said that. I'm just saying, don't go crazy. Maybe there's an explanation. If he did it with the intention of hurting her, like you seem to think, of course it's horrible. But you were friends with Cayden when you were younger, weren't you? What makes you think he'd be so bad? Could you please stop, Aliyah?"

"I can't stop! I can't be still for a moment, because I'll burst. I need to talk to Cayden."

"Yes, that sounds like a good idea. Talk to him, and maybe you can let him know how sad he's made her, and he'll understand and try to change it. You don't have to think the worst of him before you even know the whole story."

"You don't have to act like everyone's a saint! There are bad people in the world, you know? Criminals, bullies, vindictive people who hold a grudge their whole life for the most stupid things..."

Milo grabbed my shoulders. "Calm down."

I threw his hands off my shoulders. "I can't calm down! You don't understand! You can just sit there in cold blood and think things over, but I can't! I have actual emotions!" I stormed up the stairs.

"That might get in the way when you're an astronaut," he called up after me. He didn't seem angry at all, which made it worse. "Sometimes you have to think about things instead of jumping in to attack."

"Urgh!" I said and slammed the door to my room.
Thank you for reading, and for all of your wonderful comments.

[alex51299]

Cayden is so mean! Poor Bindi. 

[MoonsAreBlue]

I feel bad for Bindi, but Milo may have a point. It could be that Cayden is trying to make their lives better. But deep down, I think Aliyah is right scne she knows him best.

[forever_mone]

Aww poor Bindi! I feel so sorry for her, not being strong enough to fight against a tough guy like Cayden. Milo may have a point, but I don't know if it's valid since he is also telling Bindi not to be friends with Aliyah. When he tells her that, he sounds way too controlling.

Great Update, by the way! Super excited for more!

[Teacup Chihuahua]

Oh My,Apples such a lot has happened in your story since the last time I read it   (My internet has been down since Sunday ) Your writing just goes from strength to  strength WOW