Laura. Wife, mom, author, creative distraction, tired old forest witch. TS4, mostly. Hugs and kisses, drama, swoon. Sims behaving badly. Gameplay notes. // Sometimes Final Fantasy, No Manâs Sky, Minecraft, Cities Skylines. // Saucy sim dramas and gameplay shenanigans at: Postcards From Sierra Nova (TS4), Lakeside Heights (TS2) // @lauraraeamos is my main // Do you like love stories? Do you like complicated relationship dramas? Go here â lauraraeamos.com
Please join me in the madness of my long-running pixel-illustrated-storytelling obsession, spanning various game versions, fifteen years, and 250-something sims. All stories exist in the same world and share the same timeline. These stories are written by an adult for adults. 18+ please.
Between story chapters, there will also be gameplay shenanigans, storytelling babble, sim-tracking dorkery, and rotational TS4 play. Also, occasional quick flings with other favorite games: Paralives, Minecraft, Manor Lords, and Cities Skylines.
@lauraraeamos is my main.
story archive on Blogger
chat on Bsky
current story status:
summer vacation mode activated! âïžđâ±ïž
finally getting my shit together I think
TS4 stories returning soon!
need to catch up on Boxes & Squares before we start again?
âŹïžâŹïž so many more stories under this cut!!! âŹïžâŹïž
Boxes and Squares is an ensemble drama series about a wandering group of misfits trying to live their lives boldly, no matter the consequences. Jordan wants to escape, Maria just wants to love him, Colette wants to crucify him, and Ingrid is just playing games⊠probably. New friends and lovers enter the picture, highlighting the messy and beautiful connections between imperfect people as they search for adventure, love, belonging, forgiveness, and what it means to be home.
content warnings: NSFW as marked, domestic verbal and emotional abuse, death and grief, depression
Wyles family Para legacy, casual gameplay
index
status: ongoing in between TS4 story chapters
about: casual legacy-style Paralives playâlots of gameplay, minimal plotting. Just letting the Paras guide their own lives, for better or worse!
you can never go home, a rotational short story:
story index: Tumblr // Blogger
status: on hold for timeline revisions (still happening though!)
characters: Dallas, Lucy, Delphie, Dakota, Karla, Andre
about: Still reeling from surviving Earthâs first extraterrestrial war, the Deppiesse family embraces the future as they attempt to plant roots somewhere new.
Karla, a new girl in town, gave up more than she could ever explain so she could follow her soulmate home to his hometown. When her arrival lands a little rougher than she expected, she seeks community in some new friends who know what it feels like to be different.
content warnings: the aftermath of war, mild xenophobia
unexpected unlife, a casual gameplay story:
story index: Tumblr
status: totally not abandoned, we will finish this someday! đ
characters: Robert, Cynthia, Justin, Stephanie
about: (casual gameplay/dark humor/drama)
Robert Kim suffered a quick and unexpected death at the age of 54, just as he was looking forward to easing back into an early retirement with the love of his life, in the house they bought down the road from his son and three lovely grandchildren. He wasnât ready for death, but somehow he isnât quite prepared for what to do with this surprise afterlife, either.
content warnings:Â death, grief
real music, a story about love, hate, and music:
story index: index of story links
status: complete as a sims story, continuing in gameplay
characters: Vale, Vicky
about: (music/romance/enemies to lovers)
Vale is a quickly rising electronica star and epic turd, and Vicky is a prickly and stubborn nobody with an ethereal singing voice. They canât stand each other, but they also canât leave each other alone. They want nothing to do with each other, except maybe they might need each other. What do you do with that?
content warnings: NSFW as marked
drown, falling in love at the end of the world:
story index: Blogger only for now
status: complete!
characters: Justin, Stephanie, Keri, Jeremiah
about: (sci-fi/romance/drama)
Earth has been pulled into its first extraterrestrial war. Justin and Stephanie are two childhood friends who begin to see each other in a new light as the world around them falls apart.
content warnings: NSFW as marked, war, alien invasion, adultery, domestic abuse and violence, graphic violence, traumatic childbirth, depression
gameplay families:
Akiyama-McCarthy family gameplay (tag)
index
other games:
minecraft adventures
manor lords
paralives
also loved FFXV so much!
some other fun tags to browse:
sad stories that have no ending // sim storyteller problems // sims being sims // random townies being random // sims are being too real life // sims are funny // sims are crazy
It's not Colette's turn in the stories for a little while, but I stumbled upon these mods and they screamed her name! I had to have them! đ
Both by Wicked Pixell // Hot Mess (trait) // Messy Relationships (gameplay interactions)
There are a lot of choices and I haven't tried them all yet. They mostly seem to function as insults in game, which Colette loves!
He was a little bit offended, but mostly he admires her excellent taste in decor! Now I need to find him a "loves being insulted" trait, and these two can just go off with their disastership.
Hey friends! I bring you, EVEN MORE sleeping overrides!
Give every Sim a more personal way to sleep! This version replaces the EA sleeping position with nine (9) custom sleep poses and adds a preference system so you can choose how each of your Sims sleeps.
Included Sleep Poses
Arm Under Pillow
On Back
On Side, Lay On Arm
Arm Hanging Off Bed
Arm Across Face
Arms Up
Restless
Stretched Out
Death
âšSave a Sleep Preferenceâš
Each Sim can have their own preference, so household members donât need to share the same sleep style.
Select Random if you do not want the Sim permanently assigned to one sleeping pose.
When Random is selected, the mod chooses from the nine poses whenever that Sim goes to sleep. This allows the Sim to sleep differently from one night to the next without requiring you to manually select another preference.
Read more about this mod here! (Free Patreon) Ily :3
Selena only needs one man in her life. His name is Fabio. He has a long, flowing mane, he drinks from the toilet, and he will never ever disappoint her.
This is a good faith offering that I have opened my TS4 game and started picking at a new chapter. I am having fun with the game and not trying to fight with it! These sims are giving me gold, so I'm looking forward to sharing.
But this summer has me worn out and doesn't plan to stop, so I might need a couple weeks longer before it's ready. I might post some reruns in the meantime since it's been so long since we visited Selena. Looking to start new stories around the middle of August.
In other news, my garden is thriving! Finished my pool and been floating in it. And my kiddo brought home a summertime cold from ESY. đ€§
I finished reading Yesteryear, and that shit was bananas! đłđ€đ¶ If you have also read it, I would like someone to talk to.
We watched Hamnet, which destroyed me in such a lovely way! â€ïž But now I want to read Hamlet again, as an adult, because the study of literature is lost on 20-year-olds who are working two jobs while going to uni. đ”âđ« We did 10 plays and a short essay on each of them, all in one semester, and I know I wrote most of those essays at 3am after getting home from my waitressing job, and I don't remember a damn thing. Somehow I got a C in that class. I know Shakespeare professors are notoriously hard, but my essays were garbage, lol!
Wyles family & friends legacy-type Paralives gameplay (index)
Let's just start a little index, tags, and navigation for this thing before we get too far along.
Legacy rules (are made to be broken):
1.) Just have babies, I guess, lol!
2.) Keep the timeline moving.
3.) Don't let it get too deep.
4.) Focus on only one heir per generation? And only short updates for siblings and family friends.
This one will be the hardest for me to follow, because I know Iâll want to give them all stories, but that's always where the timeline dies for me. Itâs really important to keep moving through time before you get bogged down with a dozen households in the rotation, between siblings and cousins and friends and former lovers, and wanting to give them all complex narratives! Been there, done that, and have 350 sims to prove it! đ€Ł
Gen 1: Cassia & Adrian
about: Cassia and Adrian are a vibrant and friendly couple who just moved to Melino. They quickly immerse themselves into the charming little town and make friends effortlessly. But which friends can they trust, and which might become unfortunate adversaries?
gen 1 start // tag // chrono
Adrian: energetic (need to move), taking care of others, fitness (happy exerciser) // elementary school PE teacher // physique 4, mind 4, creativity 3, charisma 4 // life goals: breadwinner â
Cassia: jester, making friends (lingering first impression), jack-of-all-trades (mastery) // part-time museum tour guide // physique 2, mind 2, creativity 1, charisma 3 // life goals: new family â // so many friends [ ]
Isabelle "Izzy": [vibe], [social], technology (science) // elementary school student // physique 1, mind 1
It's not even really a secret or hard to do, I just didn't know how to do it, lol!
But I am so supremely impressed with how this works, because you can edit/crop/resize the screenshots outside the game first, then import them back into the game to use in photo frames. And the image quality on the wall is excellent, sized up or down, even close up.
(Shade 100% intended at TS4 and its botched family photos! đ)
I am going to have so much fun with this! We had a trick like this in TS2 to put edited screenshot photos in game, and I have missed it so much. It's so cool the feature is just built into Paralives, no tricks needed.
previously: Sofia has an unsatisfying marriage // and a crush
cw: drug abuse kind of?
Before they knew it, the three girls were grown up enough to run from yard to yard between their two neighboring houses, playing as much as they liked as long as their homework was done. Adrian fired up the grill while the ladies chatted on the deck, keeping a close ear tuned to the baby monitor for little Juniper inside.
And this was what they all always wanted, wasn't it? To be neighbors and for their girls to be best friends and to see so much of each other every day?
If only Sofia didnât have such a crush on himâher best friend's husband. It made things awkward, but Sofia was still the only one who knew that. She intended to keep it that way. Adrian was a good dad, a devoted husband, and a good friend. She supposed he wouldnât be crush-worthy if he wasnât all of those things. But because he was all of those things, he didnât deserve to have his home wrecked, or for joyful friend Cassia to have her heart broken, or for dear Izzy and Juniper to have their childhoods ruined. So Sofia vowed that her secret feelings would remain that way.
There was too much at stake here. Too many friendships, and wasn't friendship just as cherished in life as some scandalous romance? Or more.
The men challenged each other to a spirited and friendly push-ups contest.
âOur dads are such meatheads,â the girls laughed.
They were silly together and had so much fun. So nothing terrible happened and the two families enjoyed each other's company most evenings until the fireflies came out.
âI know youâre unhappy,â Jason admitted to Sofia one night soon after.
Sofia hoped he didnât also know the full extent of her unhappiness. She had wondered all these years what the problem was. Was he depressed? Was he gay? Was she ugly? Could he just try? All these years Sofia felt like sheâd done all of the trying for them both.Â
âItâs steroids,â he continued. âThatâs why I was ashamed to go to a doctor about⊠the problem. I know exactly why I have the problem.âÂ
âOh,â she said. She had no idea he was still taking those, and now everything made a lot of sense. She felt all at once betrayed, but also relieved. If the steroids were the problem, then they could also be an easy solution. He could just stop taking them.
If he chose to, that is.Â
âIf I come off them, Iâll lose bulk. Nobody will take me seriously. Iâll never be a celebrity trainer. You donât know how skinny I was. You wouldnât still want me like that. You wouldnât want me if I had to quit training and become some security guard or something.â
âYou arenât giving me enough credit,â Sofia said.
Her husband would still be strong, but wiry and lean and tall.
Oh. He would look like Adrian.Â
But if her husband was more like Adrian, then she wouldnât need to have a crush on Adrian anymore. It all made too much sense. It could be the answer to everything. It could work.Â
A few weeks later, Jason was off his juice. And for the first time in their marriage, they went to bed together properly.
Everything worked. Everything did what it was supposed to do. This would be the answer to everything, Sofia thought.
Please. Please. Please.
gen 1 start // previous // next // index
So many story notes!Â
We needed a bit of storytelling in this one to make sense of everything this game threw at me! Sometimes Paralives is very fateful. There are usually three packs of story cards to choose from, but one night, Sofia was assigned a pack of social cards, and there was only one choice to make!
Okay, yes, one of them does have to do with Adrian, platonically, but two were for her husband and they are very sweet ones!
Aw, this lady wants her marriage to work. So we're going to help her fight for it!Â
It worked. Now theyâre all fixed up! They can get intimate and try for a baby as they should be able to.
further notes:Â
It was *not* easy to get all those paras together in one yard. I wish it was easier to wrangle inactive paras. The girls canât even invite each other over on their phones. So the best I can do is load and reload from house to house, telling the paras to âgo hereâ and get them busy with an action before they can run away. I had in mind an evening cookout, but it was like midnight before I got everyone under control. đ”âđ«
It was not my intention for Sofia to hijack this legacy from my main family, but she had juicier drama, so here we are. But this is not turning into the Cooper legacy. Weâll still give priority to the Wyles kiddos as next generation heirs, as we do. Â
Kind of feels like the end of a chapter here, with the girls in childhood now, with resolutions to some drama and also some momentum to pull us back after a break to play some more. And Iâve been feeling my sims calling, so we'll come back to these guys in a little while. Maybe weâll do back and forth between the two games? As long as Paralives continues to entertain. But I also finally miss my sim babies! So many stories, so little time!!!
I have one more Paralives update to finish off the gameplay I've completed so far, then I think we'll rotate to TS4 for a bit. And, maybe, back and forth like that for as long as both games continue to amuse me.
I also bought the restoration workshop kit while it was on sale. Jordan is excited, but he does not have room for any more junk at either of their microscopic properties, neither of which has a garage or any workshop space. Which can only mean one thing. We need a bigger house! Will he hate the idea? Can Maria convince him? More on that soon, but I have some other gameplay to finish off first before we get to the next story chapter for these guys.
Welcome to Rooted by Nature, a legacy challenge centered around exploration, self-discovery, and the connection between people and the worlds around them.
General Rules
âą Follow the story and goals of each generation as closely as possible.
âą Lifespan and aging settings are completely up to you.
âą Mods, custom content, and gameplay tweaks are allowed unless they directly bypass generation goals.
âą You may use cheats for building and decorating, but avoid using cheats to complete goals, skills, relationships, careers, or aspirations.
âą If a generation requires a specific world, move your heir there when they become a Young Adult unless stated otherwise.
World Requirements đ
Some generations take place in destination or hidden worlds that are not normally residential.
For the best experience, you may need mods that allow Sims to live in vacation worlds or custom worlds.
Recommended examples include:
* Granite Falls (Generation One)
* Selvadorada (Generation Six)
* Any custom fairy-related world used for Generation Seven
If you do not use these mods, feel free to adapt the challenge and visit these worlds regularly instead.
Story First:
This challenge is designed around storytelling rather than strict difficulty.
If a goal becomes impossible due to pack limitations, bugs, or mods, use your best judgment and choose an alternative that fits the generationâs theme.
Also if you have questions, ask away pls!
Most importantly: enjoy the journey and let your Simsâ stories grow naturally âșïž
use the hashtag #rbnlegacy so i can see your legacy and families đž
What is the story behind your story?
What inspired you to start your current story? Was it a single Sim, a gameplay moment, or something completely different?
Join this week's Writers' Wednesday! đ€
Answer the question(s) and share your post using #WritersWednesday!
Short answer is someone died very unexpectedly in gameplay (the ol' death by laughter while hysterical!), but that's not even the story.
The story comes from a chain of butterfly-effect events that were triggered by that death. Robert died two weeks before his son's scheduled wedding, which led Justin & Stephanie to postpone their wedding because of their grief, which led to Jordan having an unexpected two weeks off at the hotel where he worked which was suddenly no longer hosting a huge wedding. So with his newfound freedom he took his boys on a backpacking trip in Canada, which ended up being life-changing inspiring for him, because upon his return, he only wanted to burn down his entire life and run away again. But everyone else in his life needed him to stay. Chaos ensues.
Justin and Stephanie did eventually get their wedding, and it was lovely.
episode: "go get your magnifying glasses!" (year 6, day 7)
Right behind Izzy, we have Sofia and Jason's girls also entering their childhood years. Now, this family is an interesting study in Paralives genetics, because I *do* see a blended mix of features being passed down between the girls. Neither of them are 100% a clone of either parent.
Sofia. We will note that Sofia has a smaller up-turned nose and bigger, rounder eyes.
Jason. Noting narrow eyes and a rounder, wider nose.
First up, Nadia. She has her dad's wider nose and her mom's big round eyes. Mom's black hair, and her eye color is pale aqua? Is that how the game blends dark brown and blue?
Next, Reece. She has her dad's narrower eyes and her mom's smaller up-turned nose. Dad's brown hair, and light brown eyes. Reece aged up into glasses, so she will be keeping them.
I'm a little stumped on this game's eye color blending logic, in this family, and with my Wyles girls, too.
Now, if I could just get this game to give me some baby boys! đ€Ł
^ Their budding personalities. Nadia was a bit of a drama queen as a toddler, so I gave her two charisma points and she rolled "good at nothing" randomly. She's gonna be a fun teenager someday. She's gonna be the queen bee diva that has all the friends, while secretly none of her friends like her, lol!
(Just kidding, Nadia, I'm sure you'll grow up to be an absolute sweetheart! đ)
Then Reece was always more cool and collected as a toddler, always shrugging off her sister's dramatics to go read a book quietly by herself. She gets mind/creativity and a talent in art, and I've made a note to give her "good at being alone" when she's old enough for it.
Oh man, please give me active high school by the time these girls and Izzy (and Izzy's yet-to-be-renamed little friend) are old enough for it, because I think their different personalities would be so much fun to play together as teenagers.
Or maybe I'll do a fakey university for them, like I used to do for my TS4 sims before Uni came out.
And after their outfit makeovers:
Because I always had Nadia in blue and Reece in orange, so we'll stick with those favorite colors for them as they're growing up.
episode: "here comes a little Junebug" (year 6, day 5)
It's the middle of the night, husband is asleep, got our laboring robe on. Cassia knows that means it's time to have a baby!
Adrian wakes from his slumber to stand beside his wife dutifully, in his underwear, looking concerned. Cassia is torn between feelings of fondness for him and the overwhelming urge to scream.
In the end, the scream wins. But she does appreciate that her man woke up from his sleep (and stayed awake!) while she labored for their second child. She knows that's better than some husbands do around here.
And we have another sweet little girlie!
(Man, this game likes to give me girls! I'm like 4-0 over here!)
I can already tell this one is going to be a 100% Cassia clone. It seems like, so far, this game makes kids either all one parent or the other with very little blending between. But it is interesting to note the same light brown eyes as her big sister, while neither parent has that color (mom is green and dad is blue).
Aw, and big sissy can hold her, too! đ„°
(Not that I would let my 5-year-old walk around the house with a freshly birthed newborn, but life sims don't need to make that much sense I guess, lol! But what I would really really love, either in Paralives or in TS4, is a kid sitting on the couch to hold their little sibling animation!)
episode: "she has a really great personality" (year 6, day 4)
Happy 5th birthday, Isabelle! Let's see how our very first para bub grows up...
Oh.
Well. You poor poor darling with your father's nose. It looks fine on him. It looks strong and stately and just fine, but to be passed down to a little girl...
Wait, let's just... *enters paramaker* đ«ą
Okay, so I took a peek and it's not so bad. It's really not.
Truly, she grows up with a very distinctive look. Lovely in a unique way. Youâll have to trust me that she does.
But I gave her just a little bit of help with the spacing of her features. Her mouth needed to come up and her profile pulled out. I didn't touch the shape of anything she was born with except to soften her chin just a little. She's almost all her dad, I think, but with her momâs wider face shape and fuller cheeks?
She's gonna grow up great! Sparkling personality! Sharp mind! She's going to be healthy and brilliant and successful and surrounded with friends and, well, perfectly fine-looking. đ«„
episode: "you will always be our first para bub" (year 6)
Isabelle's last days as a toddler, and our last days as a family of three.
Also, momma's belly popped because I was grinding to get to Isabelle's birthday! đ
Then Isabelle made a little friend at the beach, who must be about her age since his game portrait is still toddler-aged. He must have had a recent birthday. But I'm not sure if we can keep him because he's named Adrien, almost the same as her dad, but with an "e". And I have a very ornery rule that no two of my pixels can share a name. That's very important, folks! It messes up my blogging systems, you know? đ€Ł
If she insists on befriending this boy, we might have to rename him.
episode: "the grass is always greener..." (year 5)
previously: the Wyles family is ready for baby #2 // Sofia and Jason have bedroom troubles
With Isabelle's childhood years fast approaching, Cassia and Adrian are ready to start trying for another baby. Unfortunately, things aren't going as easy this time around. Try as they might, month after month after month, that test comes back negative.
As they reach the six month mark, they wonder if it's time to see a professional about this little hiccup. Cassia hears that Sofia saw a fertility doctor a couple years back, although she never said exactly why. It obviously worked out well for them, as they now have two beautiful little girls.
Not quite time to despair, Adrian springs into action with his research, clicking away on his phone before Cassia has even finished flushing the toilet. Surely there is more they can try. She could lie down and elevate her hips after intercourse? He could eat walnuts and take cool showers? Does any of that really work? And maybe they're trying too often. "It's better to try two or three times a week. Not every day. So the swimmers can be stronger and more potent."
Cassia didn't have the heart to be disappointed again, but they agreed to try for one more month.
They never really found out which of all those things they tried finally did the trick. (Or if it was that their watcher bumped up their fertility chances from 30% to 50%, because I was starting to worry it might be a bug... I mean, even at 30%, they tried like ten times and it had me worried for a minute!)
They suspect it was the face clipping that finally worked. Duh, everybody knows you can't make a para baby without face clipping cuddles! Magic tricks. Phew!
With all the stress of conception in the rearview mirror now, Cassia could return some of her energy to other things in her life, like neglected friendships.
She and Sofia had been planning to get the girls all together for a toddler playdate ever since they bought the house next door. It took some back and forth (literally, loading and reloading each household to get all of these paras in the same spot at the same time), but they finally found a time that worked for them all. They can't wait for their girls to become best friends. Maybe they'll even take down the fence between their yards so they can all see a lot more of each other!
Cassia also has some happy news to share with her friend. "I'm pregnant! Finally. Oh, it was the worst! Such an ordeal! We had to do it so many times. It took like six months!"
"That must have been so hard for you," Sofia said, biting back a surprising wave of envy. Oh, to have a man who could rise to the occasion over and over again for six whole months⊠No, Jason still could not, and Sofia was beginning to feel hungry.
That night while Sofia slept, she was offered an interesting choice of story cards, one of which was overwhelming and terrible. She should reject the idea. We don't need that level of drama in our cozy Paralives gameplay, do we?... She's your friend, Sofia. They are your neighbors. Be happy for them. Don't, don't, don't fantasize about your friend's exceptionally virile husband.
(Of course, we clicked yes!, because we are sluts for that drama! đ )
Or at least, if you must embrace these perverse feelings, then don't slink by their house the next morning in your underwear hoping he might peek out the window and witness those tempting curves and develop a crush back...
We whispered, "drama," and Sofia said, "How high?"
Adrian didn't see anything, by the way. Cassia wore him out and he's kind of tired, to be honest. Now that they're expecting, he doesn't want to think about sex of any sort for at least another month!
So inside the Wyles home, secrets are still secrets. Maybe they should stay that way, but that will be up to Sofia in the end. For now, we'll just enjoy a celebratory happy dance and announce to Isabelle that she's going to be a big sister.
episode: âmeet Julienâ Because we have to play some of these townies or else the whole town will die since there's no neighborhood progression yet in this game⊠(year 4)
I chose Julien to play for two reasons. One, he is a serious para and I find serious paras amusing. Two, I like his house. Thatâs a big deal in this game because some of these build layouts are very annoying to spend time in. Julien's home is well designed and pleasant to spend time in, so he wins.
First mission for any new para in my game is to meet some new people. Serious paras have a hard time making friends and lovers in this game, so it will be a challenge for Julien. After many attempts that I did not take pictures of, he finally met Rebecca and their connection was fantastic! You have to understand, that these nerdy jokes DO NOT fly. So whenever one does, I'm like, soulmates???
I know it doesn't look like they're having a deep and fascinating conversation, but they really are. (Conversation multitasking coming soon, I hope!)Â
But Rebecca is aromantic. That's not programmed into the game, yet, but she has a pride flag hanging in her bedroom (and reflected in her outfit color choices), and somehow my game wants to reflect that identity for her, too, because just none of his flirts land with her. None of them. Even though their friendship is so effortless and amusing.Â
She's like, âI really like hanging out with you, my dude, but you have to stop flirting with me!âÂ
That's kind of a bummer for Julien, because he hardly gets along with anyone in this town.
But this doesnât have to be a bad thing! Rebecca has an idea. She brings over one of her roommates, Monica, and sets them up on a date. Monica is a serious para, too, and Rebecca just knows they're going to hit it off with all those nerdy jokes and dorky science flirts.
And they do!
"Cool," Rebecca says, tapping on her phone idly. "Now I'm gonna go get lost so y'all can continue your flirting without me."
A little side note: some of these townie paras have pride flags hanging in their homes. Like Rebecca does. This is Julien's office with his nerdy decor and a pansexual (???) flag hanging above his desk. (? Because itâs not quite the right colors for the pansexual flag, but itâs labeled as such, and him being pansexual suits my story, so let it be so!)
This is relevant because, Monica is a canon trans woman in this game. She has a trans flag hanging above her bed in their apartment, and the colors reflected in her outfits, and her default settings in game don't allow for her to get pregnant. Julien is totally cool with that, because he thinks she's gorgeous and their chemistry is bubbling already! He can't wait to get to know her better!
First date, he takes her to the museum. She shows up in pajamas. He says, "I didn't even notice those were pajamas. It's the pearls. It elevates the whole outfit."
Second date, he invites her over to watch the news. You might think that sounds like a totally lame date idea, but for two serious paras who don't have conversation multitasking animations yet, you'll have to trust me that they're really having an absolutely riveting time.
But what really made the difference for Monica is when Julien tipped her off about a job opening at a local restaurant for a new chef. He read it in the newspaper one morning and instantly thought of her. As a foodie para, that meant the world to her! Monica had been searching for a big break in the culinary field, and it was so touching that he remembered.
She put in an application and got the job! She could hardly contain her excitement when they met at the beach for their third date. She knew all the restaurants in town, and she excitedly ranked them for him on which ones were the best for a first date, and how they might visit sometime together. Â
âBut this is our third date?â
âIf youâre lucky, I might give you a lucky fourth first date.â
âIf youâd like to hear it, I have plans for our fifth, sixth, and twentieth first dates, too.â
âYes,â she says. âIâd like to hear them.âÂ
Julien was happily shocked. That line never worked on anyone! They must be soulmates!
Asking her to come home with him that night was a bit of a long shot. The logical part of his brain told him not to risk it and to share some nerdy science jokes with her instead. But you can't always wait for perfect chances in life. He had a feeling about this one, and so did she. It was a beautiful night for them both.
Their relationship bloomed quickly, and after about a year of dating (or like, four more gameplay daysâtime moves fast on this lifespan and while rotating households!), Julien asked Monica to move in with him.
She said yes! Honestly, she couldn't wait to move out of this apartment. Rebecca's macabre sense of decor was a little unnerving sometimes. But they both owed gloomy Rebecca their deepest gratitude for not wanting to flirt with Julien and instead bringing them together. Someday, Rebecca could be maid of honor at their wedding. (Or, since this game doesnât have formal weddings, they will invite her to stand beside them while they elope.)
They haven't brought up the topic of marriage yet, but both of them are on the same page about wanting to adopt a baby together soon.
Paralives relationships move painfully slowly sometimes, but Julien and Monica thrived at the fastest pace any of my paras have so far. They are charming together, and they've earned their little place in the rotation.
