Monday, August 18, 2014

Chapter 3.6- You Didn't, You Couldn't, You Weren't, I Wasn't

            “WHAAAAAAAAATTTTTT??!??!??” Mariah’s screech shook the peace of the slumbering neighborhood. Outside, a sudden rustle of wings signaled she’d even awakened the birds with her pre-dawn cry.



            She’d grabbed a slip from one of the drawers next to her and stuffed it over her head as quickly as she could muttering all the while.
            “I knew it. Bad idea. Such a bad idea,” sliding to sit on the bed edge, back turned on a Roger attempting to put his underwear back on. “What was I thinking? How could I do it? And for it to be followed by… Bad, bad idea. I’m such an idiot.”



            The mattress shifted and she snapped her mouth shut. How could he say something like that? And immediately after… Even that was awful! Two minutes? Maybe? The last time with Andre lasted longer than that! What the hell? She’d gotten barely anything out of it and then that… He’d said that. That! She’d never told anyone that! Ever! Not even her mom! What did he think that had meant? Did he even know? She’d planned on this being something relaxing, nice; she’d tell him later it was supposed to be meaningless. Now… Oh now. Now what?
            Beside her, Roger cleared his throat. She sat stony, silent, seething, wishing she could duct tape his mouth shut before he made things worse.
            “I’m… Im not sorry for saying it,” his low rumble reached her ears and she flinched. “I meant it.”



            “I-I mean it,” he continued. “I really do. I-I-I lo-love you, Mariah.”
            Her only response was to glare at him. Could he make this any worse?
            Roger sighed.
            “I’ve loved you for ages,” his voice nearly disappearing under her glare. “I just… I’ve never been able to tell you since you always seemed so intent on making sure I know you didn’t… you couldn’t-you weren’t-I wasn’t-”



            “So you’ve felt this way for a long time and the time you choose to tell me is right after we have woohoo?” Mariah still couldn’t meet his eye. She sighed. “I just… I haven’t ever thought anything between us could work out. You’re my best friend, Rog.”
            She shook her head, trying to come up with words to convey how she was feeling. His repeated confession had taken some of the fire out of her, but she was still angry. He’d put her on the spot in a way she’d never been before. It wasn’t fair.
            “Sorry,” Roger whispered back.
            “Don’t be,” she answered. “I mean, you were just telling me how you felt right? It’s not like you were admitting that was your first time, too, that those words just slipped out in excitement, that you didnt mean to say it like that.”
            “Ah-uhm,” Roger cleared his throat, again. “Well, you see, actually, that-uhm- technically was my… first… time and believe me that was not the way I had pictured telling... you... that.”



            The *smack* sound echoed in the room, she’d facepalmed so hard.
            “Stupid-stupid-stupid mistake,” with each word she hit herself with her fingertips.
            The mattress sank a little more with Roger’s sigh.
            “No! Not you,” Mariah amended. “Not you, I’m the one who made a stupid mistake. I’m the stupid one. It’s me.”



            “This is all my fault,” she continued, not noticing the annoyance on Roger’s face. “Feeling a little needy, a little lonely too perhaps, I took a gamble. I’m the one who pushed this. And I shouldn’t have. Y’know, I ought to have known that’s how you felt, you should have let me know whenever you figured that out, but I’m the one who put you in a position to blurt it out like-”
            “-Mariah, stop. Please,” Roger cut in. “You’re not helping. At all.”
            “Oh,” she deflated.



            Roger turned, trying to take her hand. “You didn’t force me into anything, okay?”
            But she had turned from him, resisting his pull.
            “I might not have forced it, but I’ve certainly ruined our friendship.”
            “Have you? Really? Ruined is a very strong word.”



            “You haven’t ruined anything for me,” giving up on his attempts at her hand, he laid a hand on her knee. Roger leaned in, hoping she’d hear his words. “You gave me a chance to tell you, to show you, just how much you’ve meant to me for a very long time.
            “According to you I should have told you when I first realized how I felt? You were with Andre then. I didn’t know that at the time, but what would have happened if I’d told you? You would have run off. It would have ended our friendship. I can’t claim to have known that then, but I do now.
            And now? I also know that with what you did, you most likely wouldn’t wholly object to taking what we have now and going a little further.”



            Roger slid off the bed and knelt in front of Mariah, claiming one of her hands as he did so.
            “Mariah, you are my very best friend in the entire world. I’ve watched you struggle, I’ve watched you fall. I’ve watched you beat up on little boys who bullied other kids.
            “I’ve been there when your daughter was born. I’ve made my mother help you with your daughter. I helped you ruin a perfectly good cake for that same little girl. I know you better than anyone else can claim to know you.
            “You claim to be a little needy? A little lonely? You say I’m your best friend? Then let me still be your best friend. Let me help you be a little less lonely. Let me fill that need.
            “Mariah Sixkiller, will you take that next step and be my better half, be more than just my very best friend, and be my...dare I ask? My girlfriend?”



            Blinking at his last word, Mariah finally returned his smile. That stinker.
            “Roger Fox,” she said finally meeting his eye. “When you put it like that, I think, maybe, I could be okay with that.”
            Roger beamed.
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            The next morning Roger accompanied Mariah and Dove to go pick a cake out at the local bakery. The minute he walked back in the door that afternoon (he still had to work, new girlfriend or no) Mariah insisted on lighting the candle for her baby girl.
            Mariah was still walking on clouds and wanted the entire world to be as happy, as secure as she was. She'd never felt as calm as she had that entire day, and yet her excitement over Dove’s birthday bordered on giddiness. She was nearly as excited for that as she had been for Roger to return to her home.
            (Sparkle Spam!)
            (End Sparkle Spam)



            As soon as the cake had been cleared away and gifts duly opened Roger pulled Mariah to a seat for a chat.
            When he’d walked back in that afternoon, Mariah had noticed something about him. He was both more buoyant than and slightly more apprehensive in the way he spoke to her.
            She waited patiently, watching Dove chew on one of her new toys.



            “I got called in by the chief today,” Roger started suddenly.
            Mariah waited, sure that the quiet grin on his face meant the meeting had gone well.
            “Uh, when I first started I had requested a particular position, but they didn’t have any available openings at that time and I was put on a beat with Taylor instead. But one of the guys has requested a transfer out of the program to another city. Usually when you’ve been on a beat they don’t want you to do this job, because someone might recognize you, but I’m in. The chief doesn’t think anyone knows my face well enough for it to be a problem.”



            Mariah smiled indulgently figuring he’d get around to saying just what this new job was eventually. It was cute when he was all excited.
            “Now, I know we just agreed to give having a relationship a try, so the timing is-is really, really awful, but I figure we know each other well enough that it’ll still work out well between us even when I won’t be able to communicate with you for a while.”
            “Wait wait wait,” that was enough for Mariah. No communication? What in PlumbBob’s name was he talking about? “You won’t be able to communicate with me?”



            “Yeah,” he turned. His eyebrows shot up when he saw her face. “The undercover guys don’t really get to call home a ton. It could blow their cover if they got caught keeping up with family and friends.”
            “You’re going undercover?”
            “It’s what I’ve always wanted to do, yeah,” Roger’s brows knitted in concern. “I thought you knew that.”
            “I thought you wanted to be a detective,” Mariah shot back.
            “When I was six.”



            “But,” Mariah struggled with this announcement more than she thought she could have. He would be leaving her? Right after they had made such a big decision? “What about what we’d decided? About giving a romantic relationship a try?”
            “I’ll still be faithful to you,” Roger said softly. “You just won’t hear from me every day. You’re it, Mariah. And I hope you’ll be what keeps me coming back. I’ll be pretty immersed. It’s going to be tough.”



            Roger turned wistful eyes on Dove giving Mariah a chance to study him.
            At long last she sighed deeply, drawing his attention back to her.
            “I’ll call the first chance I get,” he said. “I promise. And when I get a chance to visit, I’ll be here before you know it.”
            “Really?” she questioned, eyes narrowed. “Because I’ve seen cop shows. Those guys always hook up with the floozy to save her from the bad decisions she’s made. They forsake their friends and loved ones who are only concerned that the floozy really is a floozy and not the angel the cop thinks she is inside. I’ve seen that episode like ten times now. It must be true.



            Roger grinned, a wicked gleam in his eye.
            “Are you sure you want me to answer that?”
            Mariah smirked. “I’m no floozy. And I’ve only made one bad decision. Ever. If that. And Im certainly no angel,” She shot back, laughing.
            “I’ll come back to you.”
            “How long before we see you again?”
            “A few months,” he replied.



            “Just don’t forget about us,” Mariah begged as he pulled her close.
            “I could never forget about the two of you.”
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<3 Roger. After all these years, he finally got the girl. :D If it wasn't totally clear, the chapter opens roughly half an hour after the last chapter left off.
My toddlers usually come out looking alright at best. Generally their faces are flat and their features indistinct to the point they all look the same. This is the first time I can finally understand the “Toddlerz iz adorbz!” craze with Sims3. Dove is a darling little toddler and I have a lot more spam pics I refrained from posting here. Instead, they are on the bloopers blog with a few other new posts to show that Dove did exist as a larva and a few other goings on during the interval between her birth and now. However, I couldn’t resist using the sparkle shots here. As Im sure you have all noticed, I love the birthday sparkle shots.

Tuesday, August 12, 2014

Downloads- Poses- Surprise, Darling!


These are modified versions of the poses from the last chapter. I ditched the bowl and spoon in favor of a sweet surprise.

There are 9 11 total poses. One pose for a single sim and 4 5 sets of poses for a couple. (ETA: One of these days, I'll take a leaf out of my newly minted Kindergarteners book and learn how to count! *facepalm. Sorry for the mistake folks.)
kissy1 and 1a are awfully similar, but the difference is certainly there. These poses were made for Mariah and Roger and their respective build types and the Meshed clothing they are wearing. These poses may have clipping or floating hands when you use them on your sims. They snap together and require the latest version of CMo's Pose Player (updated August 2013.)

As usual there are two versions. One that is poselisted for those that use the poselist, and one that is not for those who prefer the Pose by Name function. Both include the above images with Pose Codes. CHOOSE ONLY ONE.

Download:
Surprise, Darling! Not Poselisted

Surprise, Darling! Poselisted

Huge Thanks! to all my readers for waiting out a very long, very busy summer. You're all so awesome! Also, Much Thanks to Misty for testing a few of these when the clipping issues threatened to make me need my inhaler. You're the best! Thank you to Gemma for making me laugh while illness made life kinda yucky. Love you! 

TOU- Do NOT reupload anywhere else or claim as your own. Do NOT link to these poses through AdFly or any other site you profit off of. 

Did you use it on your site? In your story? Leave a link and I'll leave a comment back on your site! Did you modify it so your simmies looked super awesome in them? I wanna see! Leave a link and I'll leave some love!

You're all beautiful! I love you!

Friday, August 1, 2014

Chapter 3.5- The One That Bakes


            “I thought you wanted to bake Dove a cake for her birthday?” Roger’s eyes gleamed at Mariah’s weak fumblings in her kitchen.
            “And I thought you’d promised to help me,” She shot back, irritably. “What now?”
            “Well, if you cram any more baking soda into that measuring spoon you’re going to get birthday brownies for your daughter instead of a cake,” he grinned.



            Mariah’s eyes darted between the cookbook in front of her and the measuring spoon in her hand.
            “It says two teaspoons, this should be the second one,” she huffed.
            “Yes, but you’ve made them heaping-”
            “-And?



            And that means you’re adding more than a teaspoon. You’ve got to level them off- where’s that knife I made you get out?”
            “I'm not eating a steak, I'm baking a cake. I put it back!”
            “Get it back out!”
            “Why?”



            “Remind me why you wanted to do this again?” He rubbed the back of his neck with a palm. He had tried to talk her into doing her usual and going to the bakery to buy a cake. Mariah hadnt listened.
            “Because I’m a mom and I’m going to bake my daughter a cake. Moms do that. Don’t they?”



            Roger had to stifle a grin. This wasn’t the time to find humor in her confusion as to what the definition of ‘parent’ might be. Some of the incidents when he’d received her panicked calls had caused mirth at his home. Others had required dragging his own mom out of bed and across town to try and assure Mariah that Dove wasn’t dying. Mariah had been mortified once shed calmed down enough to realize Sally was there.
            “Yes, Moms bake. Sometimes. And not all of them. It’s perfectly alright to be one of the moms who goes to a bakery. If I recall, the store bought cakes were usually considered far cooler than the lopsided homemade ones.”
            “Oh. Well, I’m going to be the one that bakes.”
            “This time.”



            Mariah looked up sharply.
            “Again, aren’t you supposed to be helping?”
            “Oh, I am,” grinned Roger. “Which reminds me- Don’t! put the milk into the flour yet. You need to mix all of the dry ingredients well first, then add the wet- werent you the one who was so good in science?”



            “Biology, physics, astronomy, yes,” she said, putting the milk back down carefully. “The logical sciences. Baking may be science, but it’s chemistry. Strange, unpredictable chemistry that I never really got.”
            “I thought it was a B that you never really got.”
            “Youre the one who who got all the Bs so there were none left for me,” Mariah eyed him over the rim of the measuring cup. He’d refused to just go away at her request. Make that numerous requests. And she’d finally given up trying to force him out of her life.



            Not that she could complain about him being there. He was amazing with Dove. Amazing! The moment Roger would walk into a room, Dove would beam, cooing and laughing, anything to get him to come and pick her up. When he gave in, as he always did, she’d grab fistfuls of his hair, pulling his head nearer hers so she could give him slobbery kisses before laying her head against his chest, snuggling deep into his arms.



            The more he came, the more Mariah envied her daughter and the freedom she had to find such security, such warmth, in Roger’s embrace. There were nights she felt lonely, longing for someone else to be there and let her know it would come out alright. Not just any someone would do though. She wanted her best friend there, close to her, beside her, around her-



            Roger’s laughter shattered her moment as she began to feel the chill of milk seeping into the soles of her shoes.
            “Oh, PlumbBob!” Mariah cried, grabbing for paper towels. “Stop laughing!”
            “You’ve got to pay attention! I thought Dove had been sleeping through the nights lately?”
            “I’m not tired,” she grumped. “I just… got lost in a thought.”



            “Well, it’s not catastrophic. You don’t have to start over or anything just because you were daydreaming,” Roger attempted to soothe her, amusement still dancing on his face.
            “Whatever,” mumbled Mariah, pouring some of the milk back into the carton. She couldn’t do that too much. She’d made her bed and she’d lie in it without a fuss.



            “So what else did your mom teach you in the kitchen?”
            “She taught me to make this really amazing vegetable and fish dish that she learned from your mom. She learned it from time she spent on an island somewhere.”
            Mariah's hands froze as she wiped them on her apron. So much for not focusing on him right now. Her mom had cooked? And not burnt the food in the process? Shed been on an island? Shed traveled? Shared exotic recipes?
            “Wow.”



            “Yeah,” Roger looked down, his face pained. “Uhm, Mom even found some pictures she’d taken of your mom, and with her, uhm, when they took a trip to Lucky Palms one time. She’d-uh-shed love to show them to you I’m sure, tell you more about her- the real her, I mean.”
            “I-I dunno,” shaking her head, Mariah picked her spoon up and dragged it through the uncooperative ingredients in the bowl. “Yknow? She... She kind of... wasnt... Mariah sighed deeply, rolling her eyes as she struggled for words. She wasn't my mom then. She was someone else. It would be kinda like looking at pictures of a long lost twin sister of my mom and that would just be weird. Mom wasnt the best, but it wont do any good going back and looking at what could have been. So thanks, but no thanks.”



            Suddenly, her confusion overcame her and the bowl demanded to be put down, its weight too much for the moment. Instead, she poured over the cookbook as if to check something.


            “You asked what else mom taught me,” Roger’s voice burst through her thoughts. “Did you know that I can sew?”
            Mariah’s head shot up, disbelief dawning through the clouds.



            “Really! I told you she was desperate for a girl. So she taught me to sew. It comes in handy with the uniforms sometimes, let me tell you. I could also make you a lovely ruffled nightgown.”
            Guffawing, Mariah shook her head. “As long as she didn’t put your hair in bows.”
            “Actually… Oh PlumbBob,” a dull flush crept up his cheeks as he turned his gaze to the ceiling in embarrassment. “I swore I’d never tell anyone about those pictures. My brothers don’t even know, thank the Maker.”
            “Spill it, guuuurrrrrl!”



            Still grimacing, Roger sighed. “Mom and Dad agreed that after me there would be no more. But Mom had gotten a few little girl dresses and stuff before JJ was born, just in case. When I turned out to have boy parts she decided to give them away. The dresses, not the... the... m-my boy- yeeeeaaah. But before she got rid of the dresses she put me in them- bows and all- and took pictures.”
            “You have got to show them to me!” Mariah’s eyes were wide with glee.
            “No, and stop that! Mix it smoothly! You’re going to have horrible pockets of dry batter and air bubbles galore if you keep on attempting to stir it like that.”



            “I am mixing it smoothly! A rotating figure eight, just like you said.”
            “With your elbow, with your elbow! Not your wrist. And it should be done gently, like you’re folding it all together. Not attempting to beat it to death-Oh! just come here!”



            In an instant he was behind her, enveloping her, breath hot on her neck and Mariah’s heartbeat galloped away.
            “See? You kind of turn the spoon as you go around, gently in and out of the batter,” his words tickled the little hairs on the back of her neck. Her cheeks burned white hot. “You try.”
            For an instant Mariah was afraid he’d withdraw, but he didn’t when the spoon pushed willy nilly into the mix again. Seeing her still pathetic attempts he took her hand once more.



            “Ok, more practice then,” Roger chuckled softly.
            It was more than she could handle and she relaxed against his chest, pressing her cheek nearer his, allowing her eyes to drift closed. There were no problems. There was nothing to worry about. He was here and would take care of it, take care of her.



            Feeling the missed beat in his stirring she pressed back a little more turning her head, hoping she’d find his lips with hers. Only she didn’t. Opening her eyes she saw the confusion, the hesitation on his face, oh so close to her own. But she didn’t care, she could explain later, and instead pressed forward.
            For a blinding moment his face lit up as the bowl crashed down. He sighed against her and the world dissolved.


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Who needs an Author's Note when I can write you a novel instead? :P Apologies for the length.

            I got the bit where Sally put Roger in unused, "Wishful" baby girl dresses and bows from a cousin who did it to her son, much to his continuing chagrin. She pulls those pictures out all.the.time. to embarrass him. It's awesome.
            After that... well. There ya go. That's why I was excited. 'Bout damn time IMO. Gave me the warm fuzzies writing it just because I've drawn it out for way too long, but... rolls, story. Y'all get it. And it still doesn't mean Roger has said anything important yet either. Perhaps this will give him the confidence he needs to spit it out. We'll see.
            Apologies for my lazy photo editing. Apologies for the next unseemly length of time between this and the next chapter. Apologies on all the unread chapters of wonderful stories I'm now quite behind on. Things will slow down a smidgen after this weekend and I might have a little bit more time to myself. Oh. And Apologies for the length of time it might possibly take me to get to comments this time around. I'll have houseguests requiring my attention for the next few days. Posting this is how I'm unwinding between scrubbing. More Apologies for the above not being quite up to scratch, but I'm afraid if I sat on it any longer it would never be released. Sorry. :(


            One more, because there were two possible kisses and this one didn't make it but I'll be darned if it never sees the light of day because I love my Rogriah.