Wednesday 19 January 2011

Shake it off

Round 30: March 2031 (Autumn)
last update/next update/Malcolm's next update

Malcolm Novak is 21, Hope Collins and Julia Gray are both 20 and Audrey Lachance and Jack Benton are both 19.
(Nathan is 21, Charlie is 19, Connor and Sophie are both 18 and Grace and Everett are both 1)

Narrated by Jack Benton

I'm missing Charlie a lot more than I thought I would. I guess it's natural that I would, seeing this is the first time we've not lived under the same roof but it's weird not having him around all the time.

Camilla got angry at him about wasting time after class and making her late for her own classes, so I go and visit over there more often and keep him out of trouble.

I still can't believe Charlie has two kids now. I figured we'd both have a little while before we had to start worrying about kids.

I'm definitely planning on waiting a long time before I have kids. I'll just stick to doing the uncle thing for now.

Being an uncle is probably more fun than being a father a lot of the time anyway.

My patience for dorm life is wearing a bit thin. Unless you want to hole up in your room the whole time, it's hard to get time to yourself. There always seems to be someone around.

Way too often, that person is Julia. I try to avoid her because I honestly think she's nuts. One day she'll be smiling at me like everything's fine and I'll think that finally, we might be able to move past this.

Then I'll go and talk to her later on and she'll act all weird again.

I feel bad about the way we ended things but it was so long ago now. I wish she'd move on.

Last year, when her boyfriend Nathan was living here, it was a little better. He used to rein her in a lot.

Then again, now that he's not living here, Julia tends to go out more often, to hang out with him. So I see Julia less but the times that I do see her are sometimes way more unpleasant.

Since Nathan moved out, Malcolm has had his dorm room to himself, which is probably a good thing, because he's been spending a lot of time in there.

I don't think he slept a single night in there last year; he was always with Hope in her room. But Hope dumped him just last week.

Hope had big ideas about her and Malcolm moving in together after graduation.

She was really unimpressed when Malcolm told her he didn't want to discuss that until he'd finished med school.

So they had a massive fight...

...which ended with Hope telling Malcolm she wasn't planning to wait around for him for five years.

Malcolm is pretty bummed about the whole thing.

Somehow, I've become his sounding board for whenever he wants to rant about how much of a bitch Hope is.

I don't ever really know what to say to him. I've never liked Hope much but I hate being dragged into other people's drama.

It's near impossible to avoid it here though.

Everyone else seems to love gossiping.

I'd like to move out of here but I don't really want to live entirely on my own. I like my space but I'd get bored living alone. I've tried convincing Sophie to get a place with me next year but she's not so into the idea.

We're different in a lot of ways and Sophie actually really likes living in the dorms. She thrives on being in a bustling place like that and her eyes actually light up when she talks about it. If she wants the dorm experience, who am I to deny her?

Apart from that, Sophie thinks moving in together is too big a step for us right now.

I don't quite see it that way. I mean, we've been together for four years now. But I don't know what to say to make her feel differently, so I guess this is where we're staying for the time being.

But man, I really want out of here. There's also Audrey but I don't think it's a great idea for us to live together at the moment, as much fun as I think we'd have.

The dorm is different but in our own house, alone, in close quarters? I don't know about that.
Lately, I've felt some niggling feelings for Audrey, which I haven't really felt since before I got together with Sophie. We usually just hang out and everything's fine but every now and then, I start thinking things that I really, really shouldn't. At least, not while I'm with Sophie.


And not while Audrey's with Connor.

I never saw that coming but they met through Charlie. Connor asked my brother if it would be alright if he asked Audrey out. Then he did and she said yes.

Charlie says Connor is a decent guy and that he wouldn't have let him ask Audrey out if he wasn't. I've only spoken to him a little. He seems okay, I suppose.

I should feel happy for Audrey. She hasn't really dated anyone since Charlie and that was a long time ago. But when I see her with Connor, all I really feel is jealous.

Extras:I took this picture of Jack and Everett and was immediately reminded of this next picture.

David and Camilla, when she was a tiny tot! I wish I had zoomed in a bit more on Everett but I wonder if he actually has Camilla's eyes; from this angle at least, it looks like he might.

Notes:
  • Title is from Shake It Off by Wilco.
  • All of this gang are maintaining 4.0 GPAs, except for Hope, who's now got a 3.8.
  • Hope and Malcolm were sort of a surprise. I never really saw them staying together forever but I wasn't expecting them to split up until after college. But when they arrived on the community when I sent them on a date, they got some weird glitch. I got a pop-up from both of them saying something like "you jerk, how could you stand me up for someone else!". They were also furious with each other and their relationship scores shot right down to around about -75. I had this glitch with Luc and Asha fairly early on but because they're Romance Sims, I could use the "Smooth Talk" interaction to fix the relationship pretty fast. Neither Hope or Malcolm are Romance, so I decided to write it in instead. It was going to happen eventually anyway.
  • When I loaded up, Jack's wants were mostly centred around Charlie, so he's missing his little brother (Charlie is 6 months younger and Jack is adopted, for those who are not aware).
  • His focus changed somewhat as the session went on, as you may have guessed. He rolls romantic wants for Audrey and then it's like he feels guilty and remembers he has a girlfriend and rolls a bunch of romantic wants for Sophie.
  • Audrey is similarly confused. She and Connor started up autonomously (he initiated, I think. I just heard that crush music and went "WHAT?!? WHERE?!?") and she's rolling wants for both Connor and Jack. So the saga continues!

20 comments:

  1. Oh crazy! I never pegged Audrey with Connor but I love that they did it on their own! Gotta love when that happens with ACR. Lots of hook ups here!

    Julia sure looks cute but she is certifiably psycho! Maybe she needs another dumping so she can take her focus off of cutie, Jack.

    That's an odd glitch with Malcolm and Hope. I've had it have that pop up before but I don't think anyone ever dropped that horribly. It's a nice work in for the story though.

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  2. Oh no, not Hope and Malcolm! :( Awww, I didn't see that coming, I kind of liked them together! I don't know if I can see them with other people than each other, lol!

    Oh wow, all the lovin' going around those dorms! I'm also similarly surprised at Audrey and Connor, but they also kind of suit each other. You know, if I wasn't so hopelessly in love with the idea of Audrey with Jack, lol!

    I'm happy to see Jack is picking up on the idea too! :D

    Audrey is just so pretty! And LOL, I keep almost typing Tatiana! She's just a perfect little clone of her mommy!

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  3. Good gracious, your uni kids really make sure to give you lots of drama. I don't know what to say, Jack crushing on Audrey again, poor Sophie :( Conner and Audrey is a bit odd, but who knows...perhaps. I don't mind Hope ditching Malcolm, I don't know why. They didn't seem that well together.

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  4. Connor and Audrey?! LOL, I sound like a teenager. Wow, I didn't see that coming, either! I'm surprised Jack is starting to feel something for Audrey again....but it's so exciting!

    Aww, poor Malcolm! I wonder how it will turn out for them, now that they're single.

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  5. Maisie, no, I never really did either! I think I remember Audrey tried to flirt with him once when they were teens but the action fell out of queue before she was able to. So she might have been thinking about him, at least at one stage.

    Oh, poor Julia...maybe she can be Rebecca's first client once she starts practising psych!

    When the glitch happened to Asha and Luc, I don't think their relationship dropped that much either. Maybe 20 or 30 points. They were furious with each other but other than that, not too much damage. Typical that Hope and Malcolm's glitch would be so explosive!

    Thanks for reading!

    Laura, you know, I'm actually starting to wonder if I can see Hope or Malcolm with anyone else myself! I was trying to mentally match them up with other people just a little while ago and didn't have much success. I actually thought of Malcolm and Lila before realising they're first cousins (Lila has too many damn cousins)! I'll just have to watch them and see what happens.

    Audrey and Connor were a surprise to me, for sure. I don't know if I've seen Connor make a move on anyone before, including Elspeth while they were dating! I am still hoping Audrey and Jack will get it together one day. ;) I'm wary about them getting together too soon though, especially seeing Audrey is so inexperienced.

    Yes, Audrey and Tatiana are so alike! Dominic is Tatiana all over as well, but you know...he's a boy! ;)

    Thanks for reading!

    Apple Valley, my uni kids can always be trusted to bring the drama! I both look forward to and dread playing them for that reason, lol!

    I'll have to see what happens with this Jack/Sophie/Audrey thing. I don't think I've known a Sim to be this hung up on someone before!

    Thanks for reading!

    Rachel, lol, reading about teenagers must put you in that frame of mind!

    I'm happy to let Connor and Audrey play this thing out and see where it goes but yeah...I'm kind of excited about seeing some mutual interest (finally!) between Jack and Audrey.

    Not sure what's in store for Malcolm and Hope. I do know that Emil will probably be thrilled they've broken up though!

    Thanks for reading!

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  6. Hope and Malcolm! NO!!!! I thought they would last longer than this. Oh, well, crap happens. I like how it was raining too. It just fits.

    You college kids are all mixed up, huh? But this is the time for more self discovery, so I can't wait to see what happenes next.

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  7. Great update. I am always amazed at seeing college updates because mine tend to be so boring. It seems as though your sims do more than mine in college. I am scheduled to play some sims in college in my upcoming round. I hope that it will not be as torturous as it has been in the past.

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  8. Riverdale, heh, a lot of Hope and Malcolm fans! We'll see what happens, I guess. I was actually annoyed with the rain, because it was mucking up my continuity, lol. I should learnt o let that go though. In real life, sometimes it does rain briefly and then stop and then start again.

    My college kids always seem to be mixed up. But it's fun!

    Thanks for reading!

    Bernz1977, thank you! I used to find uni a little boring, pre-Sullivan. But once I started this hood, I started to really enjoy it. It was like a switch. For me, it was starting to pay more attention to the Sims and their individual personalities. I honestly didn't do much of that before.

    Thanks for reading!

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  9. Jack in his pajamas, wow o_O

    and I just can't imagine Malcom as a doctor, does he even have one point in neatness?

    regards
    Astrid

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  10. That dorm is a hotbed of relationships. And I can so relate to Jack about being dragged into other people's dramas, not my thing, either!
    That is cool that the relationships wants keep flip flopping, makes things interesting! Jack and Audrey, might be a good combo!

    And can I say I love the "Teenagers From Outer Space" poster, Did you make it yourself?
    I love making posters/signs etc!

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  11. Astrid, when Jack wandered out of his dorm in his PJs, I thought "man, how is Audrey supposed to control herself with that walking around the building?!?"

    Heh, Malcolm has a whole two neat points! Based on their handwriting, I don't think neatness is a required trait for doctors!

    Thanks for reading!

    Drew, it certainly is, some relationships which took me by surprise as well!

    When I started adding traits, "private" was the first one I thought of for Jack. He's not interested in other people's personal lives and keeps his mouth shut about his own, even when it would probably be easier to speak up.

    Ah, no, I didn't make that poster! I've made several posters but that one, I think I picked up from GOS. It came in a pack with a ton of other B-grade movie posters.

    Thanks for reading!

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  12. Lots of surprises here! I didn't see Hope and Malcolm breaking up and I definitely didn't see Audrey and Connor getting together. He aged up nicely though.

    Jack is just so yummy. I still harbor a hope that someday he and Audrey will end up together and get married and have a bunch of beautiful babies.

    Jack's pajama pants look nice, mind if I ask WCIF them?

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  13. Sari, Hope and Malcolm kind of broke themselves up, so it was a surprise to me too! Ditto Audrey and Connor, though I should have expected that one. I remember her trying to flirt with him when they were teenagers.

    *sigh* I know, I love Jack! We'll see what happens with him and Audrey. I'm sure they would make extremely cute babies though. ;)

    I'll check Jack's PJs in game for you. I thought they might have come from MTS but it doesn't look like it. :\

    Thanks for reading!

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  14. Great update! Yay! More Grace and Everett! Jack definitely seems like the "cool uncle" type. That is so crazy that Julia is STILL psycho over the breakup LOL. Girl needs to get a grip. He needs to get far, far away from her. Get a restraining order or something LOL.

    I'm kinda shocked, but not really, about Hope and Malcolm's breakup (very weird about the glitch, though, and glad you were able to work it in). I was surprised when they got together anyway, since he's so scruffy and she's so... not. But they have pretty conflicting plans, apparently. I'm really curious to see who they end up with next. Like you and everyone else, I can't see who else they'd be with.

    Uh, what? Audrey and Connor?! I ditto everyone else who was shocked about them hooking up on their own. Where'd that come from?! LOL I really love the little love triangles that seem to always involve Audrey. I like how all the pics you got of her and Jack together show how lovingly she looks at him. Stop denying your love you 2! But if Jack does go for Audrey one day, I hope he doesn't turn Sophie into a psycho bitch, too. She's too cute and sweet looking for that.

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  15. Danielle, heh, couldn't resist! Grace and Everett are so adorable and Jack is loving his new uncle status. Charlie and Camilla's place is a good spot for him to escape from Crazy Julia for a while as well!

    I just don't know about Hope and Malcolm. They kind of broke themselves up but I'm starting to wish they hadn't! I might let them date other people for a while and see where their wants go. I'm not opposed to letting them get back together. They'd been together since they were 16 and 17, so a break might not be a bad thing for them anyway.

    Audrey is certainly a popular girl, isn't she? You can hardly blame the boys for pining after her, because she's so pretty and sweet. There was actually only one shot this update of her looking lovingly at Jack but there were a few last time as well but yeah...she always looks like that at him. She's got a little sparkle in her eye.

    Jack and Audrey have both admitted to themselves that there are feelings between them that go beyond friendship. For this to go further though, they'll have to admit it to each other. ;) If they ever do, I don't think we need to worry about Sophie turning into a psycho bitch! Sophie's sweet in personality as well as looks. ;)

    Thanks for reading!

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  16. Sari, oops, forgot to say that I checked in game and Jack's pyjama pants are from Sims2Sisters at TSR. There are 9 other textures.

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  17. I keep wondering about Audrey and Jack, they look so good togeher, but I like Sophie and Jack together too ....
    I would have never though of Connor and Audrye together, so it really was surprise, but I do like them together :)
    I would have never though that Hope and Malcolm would break up, at least not this soon - an update full of unexpected things :D

    Awe, Jack and Everett! Too cute!

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  18. Tanja, I do like Sophie and Jack together as well but I am really in love with the idea of Audrey and Jack as well.

    Audrey and Connor was a shock! I don't know how long they'll last but they seem quite fond of each other for now.

    Unexpected things for you and me! ;) I wasn't planning on Hope/Malcolm or Audrey/Connor when I sat down to play. I love when my Sims surprise me.

    Thanks for reading!

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  19. Oh this is perfect. Jack is still so damn cute. That picture of him walking out the bathroom without his top and the girl staring at him, lol! yeah I would too if Jack were walking around without his shirt.

    And I was very concerned that I'd missed the update where Hope and Malcolm broke up. Nice way to write that glitch in.

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  20. Lunar, I just realised how much shirtless Jack there is in this update! I totally forgot about the pictures of him in bed with Sophie. But yeah, totally distracting for the female inhabitants of the dorm (and there's a gay dormie walking around, so he's probably enjoying the show as well).

    I think I will probably deal with the Hope/Malcolm thing a little more when I do Anna and Emil's update. Because it was a glitch, it kind of came out of nowhere!

    Thanks for reading!

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