Generation 02: Chapter 20: I Do

Right after my engagement, I inform all of my friends and family about it.  My sister, Zoe and my friend, Chartreuse (Char for short) are enthusiastic and instantly get together to plan the entire thing.  They even convince my brother, James, to wed us.  I decide not to have a bachelorette party since they're really not my kind of thing.  Mom and Rina bring piles of magazines for dresses and hairstyles.  It's overwhelming in a good way.

Finally, the day has arrived.  I see the venue for the first time and my jaw drops.  It's more beautiful than I had imagined.

Dad walks me down the aisle and whispers to me how proud he is.  When we part, I stand in front of Champ and we smiles at he other.  He looks handsome in his crisp dark suit and his slicked back hair.

When we get to our vows Champ goes first.

"Calla Calida Cohen, every time I see your lovely face, I think back to the first few days I knew you.  You had nearly burned the entire kitchen down.  Fortunately, you persevered and used your smarts to basically learn something that was the complete opposite of what you actually do.  This sounds horrible but I'm glad that you ran away from your job.  I'm glad that your somehow found your way to the Dhavals.  Because if you hadn't, I would never have met you.  I would never have gotten to know your funny, beautiful, and intelligent self.  I'm so glad I go the chance to meet you.  You made this summer great and now I'm extremely pleased to be standing here.  I'm overjoyed to make you my wife and I promise to love and protect you forever."

As he finishes his speech, he slips the ring onto my finger.

Then it's my turn.

"Champagne Cameo Beryle, I fell in love with your humor, your caring nature, and your passion for gardening.  You also helped me out during a very rough patch and I can't thank you enough.  I've never been one of those girls to obsess about boys very much but, as much as I hate to admit it, right when I saw you, I couldn't stop thinking about you.  You're the love of my life and I am proud to make you my husband.  I promise love and protect you forever."

I shakily slip the ring onto his finger.

"I now pronounce you husband and wife.  You may now kiss the bride."

Even though it's my wedding, I still blush when Champ kisses me passionately and everyone in the crowd claps and hoots.

"Congratulations, Mr. Cohen," I say to him.  We had agreed earlier that he would take my name.

Everyone continues to cheer and Mr. Dhaval breaks down crying, which is extremely surprising.  I didn't know he had such a soft spot.

The reception is very small.  Just a few small dishes and some lovely weather.  Champ and I cut the cake and then everyone just mills around.  It's a good get together for all of our friends and family.  The cake is delicious by the way.

My dad awkwardly tries to chat with the Dhavals and I catch up with Char, who I haven't seen for a long time.  I find out that she's actually dating Champ's brother, Azure. If that's not shocking enough, Antares hooks up with my sister, Zoe.  After a whole day of festivities, the wedding is finally over.

"That was an amazing wedding," I exclaim to Champ.  We decided not to go on a honeymoon because funds are a bit low at the moment.  But that's okay.  We live in a beautiful world and that's honeymoon enough.

"It really was," Champ agrees.

Right when we get into the bedroom to go to bed, we both seem to have a mutual decision to try for a baby.  We're practically broke, especially after having the wedding, as small as it was, but we'll find a way.

We always do.

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Wedding Photos

Parents of the bride: Calista and Adam Cohen

James Cohen (brother of the bride)

 Antares Aven (friend of the groom) and Zoe Cohen (sister of the bride)

 Aquamarina Beryle (mother of the bride)

 Azure Beryle (brother of the groom) and Chartreuse Flavius (friend of the bride)

Myrtle and Fir Dhaval (friends of the bride and groom)

 Blanche Blodwen (niece of Myrtle and Fir)

 The bride and groom

Newlyweds

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NOTE

Blogger only allows you to tag a certain number of characters so I could not tag all of the sims that were included in this post.  :(

This is the end of my posting on this blogger blog.  At least for the time being, that is.  I will now be posting my "playing for fun" picture on my tumblr.  Please check it out!  I'm not really sure what's going to happen with it but we'll see!  I have a lot of pictures to post that I took over winter break (That was so long ago!) so that'll be good to start with.

All in all, I just want to thank you for sticking by me while I was on all my breaks.  I hope you enjoyed reading about Calista and Calla and I already said this but I hope you check out my tumblr (see link in the paragraph above).  I love these sims and I don't think I could stop playing with them.  ^_^  

Thanks again!!

Generation 02, Chapter 17: I Said "No Comment!"

The next morning I answer the door and am nearly blown over by the energy of this unexpected guest.

"Hello!  I'm here with The Bridgeport Times.  Are you Calla Cohen?" She asks me wide-eyed.

Before I can respond, she bombards me with questions.

"Is it true that you chose housekeeping over full partnership at Gainsboro?"

"What kind of advice would you give to other housekeepers?"

"For years women have fought for equality and independence.  Are you tell them to go back to being housewives?"

"Ugh!  No!  Go away!!" I scream and shut the door in her face.

"Calla, what is going on out there?" Myrtle asks cautiously as she and her husband appear at the bottom of the stairs.

"Nothing, just a politician," I lie and quickly leave the seen.  The sound of Fir's voice just brings me back again.

"Blanche!  Come here!  They're looking for a lawyer.  It must be you!"  He calls to his niece.

"OMG!  I cannot believe this is happening.  It must have been that paper I wrote for my torts class. Do I look alright?"  She starts fiddling with her hair.

"What?" Myrtle asks.

"That's what she said," Fir explains.  "She asked me if I knew that I had such a high-flying lawyer in the house."

"That's amazing, Blanche darling."

There's a pause as Blanche continues to fix her hair.  I take this opportunity to speak up.  "Um, Mrs. Dhaval, I should have told you something earlier but..." I get cut off by the racket that is outside the front door.

"Here she is!  Our legal star!" Fir and Myrtle beam at Blanche.

"Not her.  Her!" the reporter states, pointing at me.

"What?  Our housekeeper?  Now why would you want to talk to her?" Myrtle asks, aghast.

"Don't you know that your housekeeper is a top city lawyer at Gainsboro?  She has an I.Q. of over 160 and is the youngest ever partner.  Except she turned down the six-figure partnership to work for you."

I smile sheepishly and Blanche's jaw has dropped.

"You're a lawyer?  You work at Gainsboro?"

"Yep, that's me," I grin.  Then add, "Does anyone want tea?"

Of course, not one is paying any attention to that.

"You're a lawyer?  But I don't understand.  How did you have time to train at the cooking academy and still manage to get a law degree?" Myrtle asks blankly.

Oh God.  Are they really that dense?  "The thing is, I'm not an actual housekeeper.  I lied.  I'm a fraud.  A fake.  I'll... I'll go if you want me to."

"No!  Don't go!  We don't want you to leave.  We love having you here, Calla," Myrtle and Fir both cry out.

"Thank you, both of you.  I'm really grateful."

"'I'm grateful,'" the reporter echos.  "Now could you elaborate on that more?"

"No!  I am not doing an interview.  Please, no comment on everything."

God these people are crazy.  No scratch that.  The WORLD is crazy.  Blanche and the Dhavals are scanning a large newspaper article that one of the reporters hands them.

"You charged §500 an hour and you turned it down?!" Blanche asks as though I'm a lunatic.

"Yes, I enjoy what I do here and I love it.  My life is different in a way I never imagined it could be."

"...in a way I never imagined it to be," repeats the reporter.

"STOP IT!  I told you to get out.  Shoo!  Leave!"  Finally I bolt the door shut but the reporter still hang around, looking through the windows and snapping photos.

Champ comes in chomping on an apple.  "These are really delicious.  Is there some sort of recipe you could make that uses these?  We have a ton from the back."

"Champ, there's something I need to tell you," I begin.

He looks at me after looking out the windows.  "What's going on?  Who is that?"

Myrtle interrupts.  "And who are you?  A rocket scientist?"

"What the hell?  Pardon my language but what the fuck is going on here?"  Champagne asks again.

"I'm... I'm a lawyer," I finally admit.  "I had been meaning to tell you but... I was scared, Champ."

"You're... a lawyer." Champ echoes slowly, then he snarls, "Why would  you lie to me like that?  For God's sake, I thought you had been abused, Calla.  I was extremely worried for you."

"Champ, I didn't mean to not tell you the truth like that.  Please, don't get mad." I beg.

"Why didn't you just tell me?"  He asks more calmly.

"I was going to.  But then I found out that you hate lawyers.  I thought if I told you, you wouldn't like me.  I was going to tell you eventually, but you seemed so happy and I didn't want to ruin your life with my problems.  But now the lawyer part of my life is over.  These people will give up eventually," I gesture to the reporter outside.  "I'm sure of it."

I look Champ in the eye but all I can see is anger and disgust.

Tears start to form.  "I thought that if I told you, you'd treat me like you're treating me now," I confess.  I bit my lip to prevent the tears from falling out but it's no use.

Champ sighs.  "I'm sorry.  You're right.  Come here, darling."  He holds out his hands and I fall into them with relief.

"Trust me, it should die down soon," I assure him again.  "They'll get bored.  I mean, how interesting can one woman be?"

Despite my belief, I must be pretty interesting because the reporter does not go away.  Other reporters come too, but they're not as persistent as the fairy.  I walk past the front door the later that morning and notice that she is still standing out there.  I bend down to sneak past the door so she doesn't see me.  So far so good, I think as I reach the kitchen.  I begin to get ready on the morning drinks.

"Calla, you're awake!  Fir, make her a cup of coffee."

"No, really Mrs. Dhaval.  I'm still your housekeeper.  I can make the coffee."

"Nonsense, you're our guest.  Blanche, get some toast ready for Calla."

"Mrs. Dhaval," I recite her name firmly.  "I told you that I'm your housekeeper and I want you treating me no different than before.  Please."

"Oh, alright...." she shrugs.

"Calla, you're in every newspaper in the entire country," Blanche reveals as Fir scrolls through articles presumably about me on his phone.

"Oh I'm not surprised.  Now if you'll excuse me, I have my household duties to complete," I dismiss myself without looking at a single paper.

The doorbell rings but I ignore it.

"Calla!!  You have another guest," Myrtle informs me.

I let out a groan and walk to the entry.  Standing in front of me is the immaculate, obviously out-of-place Blake Nero.

"Blake," I murmur.

"Wow, you weren't lying," he notes, gesturing to my housekeeper outfit.

"Nope, I wasn't. Do I ever lie?" I ask sweetly.

I lead him into the kitchen where I begin to prepare lunch for today.

"I have a job offer for you.  I think you should look into it."

"No, I'm happy as a housekeeper, thank you very much.  You really don't need to help me."

"You haven't even looked at it.  Here."  He shoves his phone in my direction.  I glance at it and then return to the meal.

"I'm not interested.  I'd rather you not help me.  I'm happy here."

"Calla, you have a fucking law degree.  You shouldn't be throwing away your brain just to be some... domestic.

"Excuse me, but I have a job to do so if you're just going to keep criticizing me on what I do, please leave."

He sighs, pulls up his sleeves, and speaks.  "Then I'll help.  What do we do?"
I can't help but laugh at the hilarity of the situation and the confusion and... fear on his face.

"Alright, if you want, please help me carry out these dishes,"I instruct him and we walk out into the dining room."

"Calla," Blake tells me after we've served lunch. "Do you understand what your leaving has done to Gainsboro?  They're going berserk.  The company looks bad to the press and they'd pay big money just to see you walk back into your office."

"I'm not interest.  I already told you."  Why is he still here?

"They'll pay big money," he continues.  "You could retired in fewer than five years. Then you could go back to... this.  You've earned your partnership, you should use it," he adds.

The conversation is now over.  That night, I think about Blake's words as the tumble around in my brain.  Then I make my decision and call Blake, who comes straight to the Dhaval's house once I tell him my decision.

I say farewell to the Dhavals before going to pack and Mrs. Dhaval gives me my uniform as a farewell gift to remember them by.  I really have no use for it but the sentiment is nice.

Blake arrives after I've said good bye.  He stops at the restroom and I catch Champ before he leaves for the night.

"Champ, I'm going to go back.  I'm going to be a lawyer again.  I'm trained to be a lawyer.  A fellow colleague of mine was able to convince me.  He... he made me realize that I'm a lawyer and that is what I am meant to be.  And, in a few years, I'll be able to retire and come out here and live with you."

My plan sounds convincing, until I see the look on his face.

Generation 02, Chapter 14: But It's Not My Birthday

NOTE

Finally!  These are new photos that I took in December over my winter break so they are much more recent than the ones in the previous posts (which I took back in March and April).  O_O

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Oh my God, what was I so worried for?  She's a baby.  Still in law school for Pete's sake.  I quickly rip off the glasses and set them back into my room.

Then I head downstairs towards the kitchen to start my daily tasks.  I find Champ behind the stairs and his face lights up when he sees me.

After we kiss, Champ asks, "Has Myrtle been giving you stupid instructions?  She's been bombarding with rules about what I can and can't do.  I can't mow the lawn between the hours of nine and 6 and I have to tip-toe on the gravel because her work is so 'important.'  My work is important!"

"Hopefully she'll be leaving soon," I say unconvincingly.  We kiss again but are interrupted.

"Calla?!  Where are you?!  I need you to come up here and unpack my suitcase immediately!"  Blanche's irritating voice screeches her first of many demands.

"There you are!  I don't want to have to call you all the time.  I'll be working 24/7 and I have no time to be wasting on your.  Do you have a cell?  I'll text you.  Oh, and I'll need all my clothes washed, ironed, and folded.  And be careful with some of my outfits.  Some are very delicate and I do not want them ruined.  Also, bring me a snack.  I'm allergic to nuts and I'm lactose intolerant so don't bring anything like that.  I'll be in my room, you can find me there.  But please, don't try to bother me.  I know you probably don't understand, but my work is very hard.  Just do those things for me, pronto."

"Yes, ma'am," I mutter.

"Good," she nods, and walks out of the room.

"Bitch," I glower as I go to grab her suitcase and heave it down the stairs.  What does she have in here?  A body?  If this keeps up, I'm definitely going to have a word with Myrtle.

By the next day I've just about had it.  I can't do any of my normal duties because I'm constantly running up and down the stairs obeying Blanche's every command.  Finally, Blanche is taking a "beauty rest" and I take the time to first rest my own self a bit and then have a get with Myrtle about her insane niece.

"I'm sorry, Mrs. Dhaval, but Blanche is constantly asking me for things and it's keeping me from my regular household tasks."

"Well, she is a very talented young woman.  It's not easy getting into her law school.  She had to beat millions of other applicants just to get a spot."

"Um, that's great.  So could you just tell her to let down her demands a bit?  Just so I can get other chores done?"

"I suppose," she drifts off.  "Hey, for dinner later tonight, we're having a small gathering.  Perhaps you could serve some drinks there?"

"Sure, no problem."

"And could you change your outfit to something more formal?  That uniform isn't the most appealing...."

"Sure," I say flatly.  She chose the damn thing.  Who in their right mind would ever choose to wear this as an actual outfit.

Champ?  Where are you?  I haven't seen you all day?  I text, but he doesn't reply.  That's really odd.

It's nearly dinner time and I slip on a nicer outfit and some high-heels and start to walk down the stairs towards the kitchen to get some beverages started.

"There you are," Champ grins as he wraps his strong arms around me and kiss me.  He rubs his face against my hair and breathes in deeply.  Meanwhile, I'm squirming and trying to escape.

"Champ, seriously, I need to go get drinks ready.  Please let me go."  I stop trying to get out of his grip because it's obvious he has a complete physical advantage over me.

"No no no, come outside with me first.  I have something to show you."

"Really?  Now?" I whine.

"Yes, now close your eyes...."

He leads me to the backyard and when he releases his hands I gasp.

In front of my are Mr. and Mrs. Dhaval, Antares, Rina, and Blanche.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" They all shout in unison.

I'm utterly shocked.

"Thank you, but it's not actually-"

"Aw, she's trying to deny it.  Don't worry, we didn't put your actual age on the balloons," Myrtle informs me.

I pretty much give up trying after that.  As I continue to gaze around, I realize that it doesn't matter that my birthday was over a month ago.  They threw a birthday party for me and it's one of the best I've had since I was little.

"How... how did you find out?"

"Your friend Ms. Flavius told us a few days ago," Myrtle explains.

Chartreuse?  How did she get this number?  Oh right, I called her last week from the Dhaval's phone instead of my cell.  She must have saved the number.  She always knew that my birthdays had never been half-decent since I started working for Gainsboro.  

"Thank you guys so much.  This is one of the best birthday parties I've ever had."

Rina steps up towards me and hands me a gift.  It consists of a few pans and an apron.

"Why does she need those?  Doesn't she already have all the equipment she needs?" Myrtle asks suspiciously.

I smile knowingly at Rina and Rina says, "I took a chance," which leaves Myrtle as puzzled as ever.

Mr. Dhaval gives me a present from he and Myrtle.

"Now this isn't a raise, but it's just a small bonus," he explains, handing me an envelope with what I assume to be a check.  I thank him and then Blanche hands me a mini basket of lotions, which I know has been sitting in the Dhaval's cupboard since before she came.

Antares hands me a card.  "Champ and I were wondering if you'd like to help work at the bar sometime.  We'd love the help."

"I'd love to, Antares.  That'd be an honor."

He smiles shyly as Champ comes over to give me a gift.  It's small enough to fit in the palm of my hand.

I open it to discover a beautiful hand-carved heart pendant necklace.  Champ gestures for me to turn around and he puts the necklace around my neck.

"It's gorgeous," I gasp.

We embrace and kiss.  Realizing that we're still in front of people, we pull away but he keeps his arms wrapped around me.

"Would you like to go grab a drink?" Champ asks.

"I'm not sure..." I drift my attention towards Myrtle.

"Oh don't worry about it.  We'll put the dishes away," she assures me.  And then you can deal with them tomorrow," she hastens to say.

I manage not to frown as I thank her for being "so kind," and then Champ, Antares, and I walk down to the bar and have ourselves a few nice drinks.