Chapter 34 - The Family Grows

Robo offers silent comfort to the family still mourning over Toulouse.

Meanwhile, Gussie takes in hand the whole being-a-dad thing better than Jamie, who has yet to follow up with Max ever since his birthday.

But to Megan, the thought of the empty spot in the house not filled by Toulouse is almost too much to bear. It's just as depressing for her to think about the fact that Dizzy will soon follow.

 

As an adult, she takes things into her own hands, this time without so much as consulting the rest of the family.

Skyler arrives shortly after her phone call and, luckily, the little dog is sweet enough that Megan hopes no one will mind the sneakyness of it all.

It couldn't have come any sooner.

Wheeeeee!

Robo and Skyler seem determined to make the Toft family pet loss 4 out of 4. Silly dogs.

In response, Tiara retreats to paint.

She did so little painting during her life regardless of her artistic leanings. Every day was devoted to music or sleeping with her friends or raising her kids, and now she feels a strong need to make use of her talent before she too leaves the earth.

She might not be an elder yet, but watching her two best pet friends leave this world is a strong reminder of her own mortality.

Why she chooses to immortalize Megan as a fainted woman is something she chooses not to comment on, other than the fact that it will embarrass Megan for years and generations to come, and that's just too funny.

Speaking of not being an elder yet.

Whoa. Whoa, okay, this outfit is not...just...no. Not gonna work. The Superstar ducks her head and hurries home, hoping her fans aren't laughing at her and are indeed cheering for her age up.

Much better!

Tiara applauds both her outfit change and her choice to retire. She's wasted enough of her life desperately trying to advance through the ranks of her career. She's done with that. Now? Now it's time to focus on her family.

 

...especially the ones who decide to do laundry in their lingerie.

"Megan! Put a robe on or something, at least! Geez!"

"But what if Dorian shows up?! I need to seduce him into moving in with me somehow!"

"Just ASK the guy! Why the hell's he gonna turn you down?!"

Megan keeps her mouth shut as she goes back to her watering. She's too prideful to admit that she's too scared for something as simple as that.

Eventually, Melissa is the one who does the dirty duty. She gets a hold of Megan's cell phone and makes a strategic call. "Dorian?"

"...okay, this ain't Megan."

"No, this is her sister. Listen, she's been puttering around the house all day talking about your birthday or whatever and I know she wants to invite you over but-"

"But she's too much of a pussy."

"Yeah, that's it! Look, I may or may not have hidden a cake in the fridge. D'you mind coming over and having a little celebration with us just to get her to shut up?"

He accepts.

In typical Dorian fashion, he doesn't explain why he would rather spend it with the Tofts than with his family at home. Instead, he makes use of the cake there and, once Megan can get over her surprise, she joins in most enthusiastically.

...dang, Dorian.

"So."

"Yeah?"

Megan smiles. "You, uh...you look good."

His chest puffs up a little in pride and Megan pretends she doesn't notice. "Yeah? So do you."

"Yeah?"

He pulls her close with a little smirk, running his hands gently over her hair. "Yeah. Gorgeous."

She gets this feeling that he's waiting for something, but she doesn't know what. She slides her hands onto his hips nervously. "So, umm..."

He waits, quirking a brow.

"...what are your plans?"

"You mean, like, now, as an adult?"

"Yeah."

"Gonna move out, I guess. Find a place to live. I can't be around my folks for another minute."

"Oh..." Megan trails off, biting her bottom lip.

After a long moment of silence, Dorian brushes his thumb against her cheek. "Just say it, you dummy."

"Say what?"

"Ask me to move in."

Her eyes widen. "You wanna move in?!"

"'Bout time!" He pulls her in for a quick kiss.

As if by magic, the rest of the family has disappeared to their separate pursuits. It doesn't take long for Megan to offer to give Dorian a quick tour around her new private bedroom and bathroom.

It takes even less time for them to slip each other's clothes off and slide into the bed.

"Hey, Dorian, listen..."

He looks up at her. "Yeah?"

"I just want you to know that I...like, I don't really know what I want out of this yet."

"Ain't surprising."

"What?"

"I mean, look at where you grew up." He glances around the room with a shrug. "No offense to your mom, but she's kind of been the town bicycle for years, ain't she?"

Megan tries to figure out if she should feel offended or not. She settles for 'no.'

"You grew up where monogamy, marriage, shit like that, that ain't ever been a thought. Maybe it's been an option, but it ain't a really big one, not one you're gonna pick for shits and giggles. It's scary."

She touches her head to his with a small sigh, keeping her mouth shut.

Dorian responds by kissing her cheek softly. "I knew that coming into this, Meg. Always knew that. So we're gonna take this at your pace. Cool?"

She nods.

"I want you to know that I ain't goin' nowhere. If I have it my way, I'm gonna be sharing this bed for years to come. I don't care how much of an attitude you get with me. Besides." He snuggles closer. "It's cosy."

They kiss. They touch. They explore. They take their time (right in front of that BIG PICTURE WINDOW THAT ALMA KEEPS FORGETTING TO PUT CURTAINS OVER).

They rein in that tumultuous passion of their teenaged years that would've made this be over in five minutes. And it's beautiful.

Meanwhile.

"What're you painting?"

Tiara smirks but doesn't respond. Operation Embarrassing Wall Of Pictures has begun.

 

The next morning, Dorian is particularly happy. It doesn't take much for the rest of the family to figure out why.

He feels adventurous, in fact. He decides that a tattoo sounds like a great freaking idea right about now.

Quick cameo. YOU GUYS, THIS IS MEGAN'S FATHER. Zac Whitefield, [url=https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4pktggBttMzriNZ0VVTgZ56uDJd3N3ncp6YyxfsXwXwWDmGNnq5qdvP_dGlLN5kaQGZpJxHMn6OCkxLf0rsAKNqzSw5lS2XCg-cBOcFR5vzIFm68gCRvix442kBxkCmNUoapXx2YU6UI/s1600/817.png]what in God's name happened to you?![/url]

This doesn't look good.

OH WATCHER DEFINITELY NOT GOOD.

 

The tattoo is simple. The skull might not seem like the best choice, especially after the romantic night he had with his lover, but it holds true for him.

He neglected to mention to Megan that his parents, both very old when they had him, passed away the night before his birthday, leaving him with his apathetic uncle.

In memorium.

The family that works out together...

Pssh, look at that sassy Melissa face. You're all right, girl. You're all right.

Chapter 33 - Let Them Live On Cake

"Good mornin', Princess."

Tiara never thought those words could sound so lovely in the morning. She stretches with a small smile on her face before peeking up toward Gussie. "Good morning, yourself. Sleep well?"

"Yes ma'am, I reckon I did." He smiles back, the edges of his eyes crinkling playfully, before he takes her hand and tucks his arm around her shoulders, pulling her in close.

She sighs as she rests her head against his forehead, still blinking the tiredness away. "How'd it go with the kids last night?"

Gussie chuckles.

"What?"

"They were fine, Tiara. Don't you be worrying about them. I can handle them."

He rests his hand on her hip as he rolls to face her and gives her a grin. "Y'know, I never thought I'd ever get to experience this in my life, not once."

"Experience what?"

"Waking up beside a girl I actually cared about." His thumb draws dizzying little circles against her skin. "Waking up beside YOU."

Tiara agrees that the two should make up for lost time.

Meanwhile, Megan hurriedly tries to finish her homework before school, as per usual.

"Got a little distracted last night?" Melissa teases.

Megan flashes her a quick glance. "How'd you know?"

Her sister grins unrepentantly, never once looking up from her book. "Because I know the look of a girl in love just as well as anyone."

"C'mon, Mel," Megan mutters, rolling her eyes. "It's not love. I barely know the guy."

Melissa simply hums quietly to herself.

Gus's butt appreciation picture.

He has a remarkably good figure for someone who ages up today.

His daughter keeps him young.

"Hot damn, how the hell d'you run that fast?!"

"Always figured it was just a secret little talent of mine," Melissa says with a grin. Time with her father in the house means that she's starting to pick up his little idioms, the Southern twang he uses so well, far more than she ever did as a child.

It's just family in the house to celebrate this time around. Tiara's had enough of a mad rush to the cake for the next few weeks.

"Geez, what the heck am I wearing?"

A wardrobe change has him looking much more dashing, and Tiara whistles in appreciation as he comes around the table for another serving of cake.

"Now, I know I don't look as good as I did this morning..."

"Shh." Tiara draws him close and looks into his eyes, still as blue as the ocean. "You're the handsomest man I ever knew, Gussie, and don't you forget it. I wouldn't change a single wrinkle on your face."

Gus is determined to make sure she's not just saying that to make him feel better.

Megan's nervous. Today is her birthday now, and there's a wide world out there waiting for her.

Including a boy that she's got her eye set on making move in with her the first chance she gets.

Yay more cake!

"BLOW OUT THE DAMN CANDLES FASTER NEXT TIME, I'M HUNGRY."

Oh.

MUCH BETTER.

Megan's not sure what's wrong with that chair, but she's got a feeling it's going to collapse under her in a second if she isn't careful.

This family does not approve of hiding one's midriff.

"Mom, thank you for a kickass party."

"You're very welcome."

"I'm gonna go for a run to figure out what the hell I'ma do with my life now. That cool?"

"Go right ahead, sweetie. Do you mind if we start building you a bedroom while you're gone?"

"What?"

"You're gonna get married, aren't you?"

"...going out now."

It's weird. She was teasing Dorian back when she first met him and told him she'd be a freaking bug catcher when she grew up, but as she runs through the neighborhood she realizes that she really has no idea WHAT she wants to do.

She doesn't have any skills or talents to speak of. She's the laziest ass she knows on the planet, and quite proud of it. All she really wants to do is run around outside and look at pretty things and, when she gets bored with that, maybe go feel up her boyfriend.

Before she can follow that train of thought, she nearly runs over a little snake in the grass. "Aw, hell no! You're just sitting there WAITING to bite my ankle. Don't pretend you ain't."

The snake is curiously silent on the issue.

It IS pretty, though. And since she's only got some pocket lint at the moment, she figures she should probably take advantage of the little critter.

She decides to ignore that whole possible-animal-cruelty thing, plucks it up, and runs off to the science center.

Along the way, she sees MORE snakes, MORE bugs, more of a lot of things. By the time she actually gets to the science center, her pockets and her arms are bulging, and she leaves with a cool sum of money to her name.

Hell yes. Kick ass bike follows shortly after.

"I feel funny..."

NOOOOOO.

Toulouse is obnoxiously old now, but everyone gathers together in appropriate sadness anyway.

Grim promises he'll take wonderful care of Toulouse and that he has plenty of treats waiting back home for a little critter like this.

And then the explosion of weeping happens, of course.

Megan remembers she's actually a little afraid of creepy skeleton guys and passes out.

The first grave of many to come in this Legacy. Geez, that's sad.

"Can I get a little cake, maybe?"

------

Generation 3 has officially begun!

Marital Structure: Couple
Number of Children: Two
Primary Income: Collecting
Secondary Income: Job Hopper:
    1: Freelance Photographer (1 Sim Week)
    2: Political (Level 5)
    3: Law Enforcement (Forensics) (Level 5)
    4: Journalism (Level 5)
    5: Architect (Level 5)
    6: Ghost Hunting (Level 5)
    7: Movies (Director) (Level 5)
    8: Angler (1 Sim Week)
    9: Equestrian (Horseman) (Level 5)
    10: Movies (Film Star) (Level 5)
Generation Goal: Living Green
Misc Fun: Tattoo Addict