Monday 11 April 2011

Exit strategy

Round 30: November 2032 (Spring)
Last updates: Audrey and Hope/Jack and Julia
Next updates: Julia and Hope/Audrey and Jack


Hope Collins and Julia Gray are both 21 and Jack Benton and Audrey Lachance are both 20. (Susannah and Dominic are both 22 and Connor and Sophie are both 19)

Narrated by Audrey Lachance

When I got back from spring break, Jack was pretty happy to see me. He won't admit it but I think he was a little bored with everyone gone.

There was only so much time he could spend at Charlie and Camilla's without feeling like he was intruding. So for the rest of the time, he was stuck in the dorm with Julia.

Jack's not really the grudge-holding type but Julia is, so they still don't get along too well. If it was up to Jack, things would be much more civil between them.

As it stands though, Jack is getting pretty pumped about Julia's graduation. She'll be out of here in a month or so. Our senior year will be a lot more peaceful without her around.

Even though he was so against going on spring break, Jack still listened to me telling him about everything he missed out on.

Well, I didn't tell him I slept with Connor but then, I haven't told many people at all about that.

Hope pesters me about it all the time but as far as she's concerned, I'm still a virgin. If I tell her I'm not, she'll start pressing for details, like what Connor looks like naked or whether he's any good in bed.

I usually try to steer the topic away from Connor and ask her about Malcolm instead. He's been calling her constantly lately, trying to get back together and it's driving her nuts.

That works for a while but then she moves the conversation back to me. I'm a little confused about Connor and our relationship at the moment and I don't really want to discuss it with Hope.

The only person I've talked to about it is Susannah, seeing I'm much closer with her than with Hope. Things didn't end so well with Susannah and the first guy she slept with, so she can sort of understand.

It was nice to have someone to commiserate with, at the very least. I didn't really expect to feel like this after my first time.

It happened while we were away on spring break. We'd been moving towards taking that step for a few months. I felt like if it was going to happen, it was probably going to happen then and it did.

I felt good about it. I thought I was ready and that I wanted it to be with Connor.

Now though, I'm not quite as sure about it any more. I've been doing some pretty heavy duty thinking about the relationship.

The thing that drew me to Connor was that he was so different to other guys. I found him sort of intriguing, the way he always looked like he was in his own world. I still do like that about him.

It's just not a quality I want in a boyfriend. It means he shuts me out a lot of the time and I'm left talking to myself.

It's just so one-sided sometimes. I'm always the one who calls, the one who thinks up places for us to go. I'm definitely the more affectionate one, by a long shot.

Connor just doesn't exhibit a whole lot of interest. I think I just didn't want to see it before, because he's always been that way.

We do have good times together as well. If it was always miserable, I wouldn't have stayed with him as long as I have. But things should be different now; we should feel more strongly about each other or something. That hasn't happened at all.

I was hanging out with Dominic and his girlfriend Leslie the other day and was thinking about how well she fits in with our family. Then I thought about Connor, when he met my parents and it didn't go nearly as well.

And Dominic and Leslie just seem to fit together too. They make sense. It's just so obvious how much they like being with each other.

I'm like a third wheel when I'm out with them but they're so sweet together, it's hard to be annoyed.

I think Leslie might be the one for Dominic. I really hope so anyway.

That's what I want for myself but the only person I'm even close to feeling that way about is Jack. I'm 100% comfortable with him.

No one makes me laugh the way Jack can.

Even when Connor is at his best, his sense of humour is not really one of his strong points.

Physically, I'm more attracted to Jack than I am to Connor. I guess that sounds a little shallow but it's true.

I feel so horrible for even thinking that way about Jack, seeing he's with Sophie. Sometimes I fantasise about them breaking up and then I feel even more horrible.

I've felt like this about Jack for two years now and it's only grown stronger. I've got to the point where it's painful for me to see Jack and Sophie together.

I told Susannah about how I feel about Jack and she told me I really need to break up with Connor.


I know she's right. I'm just really nervous about finally making that break.


Extras:

LOL. Hope wanted to Freestyle for Tips, which is weird because usually only Music & Dance Sims, or Sims who are hard up for cash ever want to do that in my game. I've never noticed them do this gangsta move at the end but I cracked up!

Jack really would rather have some civility between himself and Julia. He rolled up the want to apologise to her this round, which I'm not sure I've seen before. Julia, on the other hand...


But really, could her reputation get any worse than it is?

No. I don't believe it could.

And a glimpse at Jack and Audrey's wants panels. They look like this about 75% of the time.


If I let Jack fulfill a Sophie want, some of the Audrey ones will roll away and he'll roll up some romantic Sophie ones to replace them.,Then the Audrey ones roll back the next time he interacts with her.

Audrey's panel is pretty much all Jack, all the time. She rolls up "Talk to Connor" wants but hasn't rolled a romantic one for him since they slept together.

These two have been flirting and kissing the whole time I've been using this dorm (about four Sim years now, I think) but I had never seen this before! I wasn't even sure it was possible with ACR2! But anyway, I think I'll graduate them with Hope and Julia and let them be playable NPCs. I won't tell you their names yet, because I'll be changing them anyway; one shares a surname with someone else in the hood and the other shares a first name.

Notes:
  • Title is from Exit Strategy by Blueline Medic.
  • Grades: Audrey and Julia have 4.0s, Jack is at 3.7 and Hope at 3.6 More infomation on Hope and Julia in January birthdays. :)
  • So I did pull kind of a fast one on you re: Audrey and Connor! She rolled up the want to woohoo with him near the end of the trip. But she's not particularly close with Elspeth and I couldn't see her confiding in Hope, so there was no real way to work it in. I think it works better this way anyway.
  • When Audrey rolled the woohoo want, I did actually consider whether I really wanted her to go through with it. I'm actually pleased I let her, even though it doesn't look like this relationship is going to last much longer. It seemed to help her realise that Connor isn't really the right guy for her, even though she does like him.

28 comments:

  1. Awww, Audrey! She's breaking my heart! I'm glad she doesn't regret sleeping with Connor at least. It does make sense to me that they would have done it, being away together on the trip like they were. And I can see how she might have held on to that, thinking that maybe it might have brought them closer, and then when it didn't, she had her answer. Poor girl!

    And with all those wants Jack has for Audrey on his panel, I'd love to hear what he has to say about the matter! Those two just make my heart melt! Damn, if only he was available ;)

    (But you knew I'd say that, lol!)

    And Dominic and Leslie are adorable together too! For all he's been through, they better have a stinking happy life together and live until they're 80! :)

    LOL @ Hope!

    ReplyDelete
  2. And LMAO @ Julia too! I have never seen that want on any of my Sims! Too funny!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I love Julia! She's too much! So Audrey and Jack? Maybe. It looks as if they are headed in that direction. I guess we'll see.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Sneaky, sneaky. I had to read that sentence several times and think hard about the spring break trip to realize that it wasn't written in. Then of course I thought about the pregnancy ROS :P Jack and Audrey...I kind of want them to get together, but then again, how awkward would family gatherings be? "Auntie Audrey dated Uncle Charlie and Uncle Jack"

    ReplyDelete
  5. Laura, it wasn't the romantic experience a girl like Audrey probably envisioned but it's helped her realise that Connor's not the guy for her. I think she appreciates that at least (or she will come to, eventually).

    I have a lot I want to say about Jack's side of this as well but I'll save it until next time we hear from him. ;)

    Oh, I hope so! Dominic and Leslie are so sweet together. Still breaks my heart when I think about him and Tessa. :(

    Thanks for reading!

    Riverdale, Julia is fun but I cannot wait to get her out of that dorm! She absolutely hates one of the dormies (even more than she hates Jack) and I lost count of the times she beat her up!

    Audrey and Jack...yeah, well, they've been dancing around this for a while now. They both realise that there's something there between them now. It's just a matter of when/if they act on it.

    Thanks for reading!

    Apple Valley, LOL, yeah, a little sneaky! I felt almost like I was cheating but it really didn't make sense for Audrey and Hope to discuss Connor in too much detail anyway. Hope is mainly in it for the gossip and the juicy details.

    Ha, you and that pregnancy ROS! That won't happen until next round though. Could be Audrey, could be someone else entirely. ;)

    If Charlie had any lingering feelings for Audrey though, that ship has long since sailed! But there could be some weirdness there if she and Jack start dating. But then again, Audrey broke up with Charlie because of Jack. She never said so (I said so though, in the text) but they both knew. So maybe Charlie would see it coming?

    Thanks for reading!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Wow, I've never had any of my sims be a sleazy slimeball!

    I didn't in the beginning but now I kind of want to see Jack and Sophie last together.

    And the thing Audrey said about Leslie being Dominic's one made me really sad because I remembered Tessa and it's weird he's REALLY moving on...

    ReplyDelete
  7. lol, I have never seen the bad reputation want before!

    I started to think I had completely missed something in the spring break post before I realized that this was new info we were getting. I think how you handled it works though. It's not realistic for Elspeth to know something that Audrey's keeping a secret (unless she was listening at the door, lol!).

    I'm also very curious to find out what Jack's thinking these days with all those Audrey wants. I don't want to see Sophie and Connor get hurt, but Jack and Audrey shouldn't stay with them if their hearts aren't really into those relationships.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Flit, oh, you should try it! Julia's such a joy to have around, lol!

    Well, Jack and Sophie have been together a long time. It's been almost six years now, so that's longer than a lot of high school sweethearts. If they do break up, they've had a good run. Jack's feelings are obviously changing but we haven't heard about Sophie's opinion on the matter. I know it but haven't let you guys in on it yet. ;)

    It is sad (doubly so for me, because I played Jace and Magdalena last night) but Dominic is still very young. This is healthy for him, to have someone new to be happy with.

    Thanks for reading!

    Shana, Elspeth's not the type to listen at the door, lol. Hope probably is. She's only 18 but she's a little more mature than Hope is at 21. So Audrey got to keep her secret and only discuss it with someone she trusted. She trusts Jack but there are feelings there which make discussing Connor in that light inadvisable.

    Audrey admitted to herself that she had feelings for Connor two years ago and Jack admitted it (again, only to himself) even earlier than that. This is the first round where both Audrey and Jack seem to have lost interest in their partners though. So up until now at least, the relationships with Sophie and Connor have been genuine. We'll see what happens next round.

    Thanks for reading!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Oh, Connor. I have such a soft spot in my heart for him, even though he's an aloof sort, LOL. I wonder how this break-up will impact him?

    But Audrey and Jack....that's been years in the making. It's like it's kinda inevitable, you know? Even if they don't work out, it feels like they have to try, maybe just get it out of their system. I've always loved the Audrey-Jack saga. :)

    ReplyDelete
  10. Oh, Audrey and Jack. You know I have the everlasting hope that these two will get together at some point! Audrey and Connor have always been an odd couple so it's not a real shock that she's thinking about leaving him. If only Jack was available. Breaking up a six-year relationship isn't easy to do, even if he has lost interest in Shophie. It'll be interesting to hear her side as well.

    Hope cracks me up because she reminds me of a friend I have. If she thinks there's something she should know then she won't give up until she finds out what it is. I'm glad Audrey got to keep her secret.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Audrey and Jack would be a great couple!! I hope it works out for her, sad for Sophie though if it did. I like Sophie too.

    Poor Connor, can't seem to keep a girl at all. Maybe he should work on being more social to his girlfriends, might help a little. I like Connor as well, I just don't think he fits Audrey well.

    Julia can't graduate fast enough! The only other sim of mine to have that want is Bryn (Lewis/Dean's mom), she was more into affairs than all out crazy though! Julia is such a fun girl to watch and read, but I feel for those that end up in her path of wrath!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Rachel, I do have a soft spot for Connor as well. As much as he's not the right guy for Audrey, she's not suited to him either. He probably sees her as a little clingy, when she's just very affectionate and needs someone who will reciprocate.

    I'm glad, because it certainly has been a saga! They've been very confused Sims for so long but I think they may have decided what they want now. How that can happen is the question at the moment.

    Thanks for reading!

    Sari, well, you're not alone there! Audrey and Connor were always something of a mismatch but I was glad to finally figure out how they might have got together in the first place.

    Jack is in a more difficult position than Audrey here. Six years is a long time and he is still interested in Sophie...at least while she's in the same room as him. Audrey and Connor don't even have that any more. So we'll see what Jack does next round. I'm not being coy there, I really don't know!

    Oh, I think we all have a friend who's kind of like Hope! My sister is kind of that way too. But anyway, Audrey's good at keeping secrets.

    Thanks for reading!

    Maisie, I think Audrey and Jack could be a great couple as well. I'm not sure how Sophie would react if Jack broke up with her or what he would say to her. That's why I'm kind of glad I don't have to write that right away, lol.

    Connor does need to work a little on his social skills, if he wants to keep a girlfriend. He can't be so insular. He probably needs someone who'll give him a kick in the ass when he's being like that, rather than just getting hurt and taking it personally like Audrey does.

    Thankfully, that was Julia's final year, to the relief of probably all of her dorm mates except Hope (who'll be rooming with her anyway). Bryn wanted a bad reputation as well? Ah, that's interesting. I hadn't really thought about what else might prompt that want. Julia doesn't cheat; she just really likes to beat people up, apparently. She got Jack a few times too. And he lost as well, because for such a fit-looking guy, he doesn't have too many body points!

    Thanks for reading!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Oh dear. It looks like a lot of heartbreak might just go down. It would be great if everyone could get what they want without any hurt but how realistic is that? Unless there's some sort of major plot twist? Dum dum duuum!! I wonder what's going to happen.

    Is Julia a mean sim? That's the only reason that I could think of for that want to roll up. It's funny. I love when the game can surprise us after all these years.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Audrey really needs to break things with Connor. I always thought they were a very strange couple. Her and Jack though, perfect! It's about time she started liking him back though! ;) he's liked her for forever.
    And lol, I've never seen the bad rep want!
    Great update! :)

    ReplyDelete
  15. Choco, that would be nice but it rarely happens that way, does it? As for plot twists, we'll see. I have a few ideas of how this might all go down but a couple are either not really in character or might not work for various other reasons. I'm still nutting it all out.

    Ah, yes, Julia is absolutely a mean Sim, with only one nice point. I have a ton of mean Sims though and still, I've never seen that want before now! I don't know if any of my mean Sims have started quite as many fights as she has though, lol!

    Thanks for reading!

    coolkat2, Audrey does need to break up with Connor and she definitely knows that. She's just nervous about it.

    True, Jack has liked Audrey for a long, long time but these feelings are new for Audrey. I've been hoping she'd see the awesomeness that is Jack for a while now. Pity she couldn't do it while he was single!

    Thanks for reading!

    ReplyDelete
  16. I know I never was a huge fan of Audrey and Connor, but it's kind of sad that they can't make it work... Susannah's right though, if Audrey feels that strongly about Jack it might be best if she breaks up with Connor.
    I wonder what will happen between her and Jack. I mean I really like him with Sophie a lot, they make a cute pair, but I would love to see him with Audrey as well, ... I can't wait to read more about these two.

    I love those 2 dormies!! I haven't had ACR long enough in my game for something like this to happen, but I'm looking forward to the day that it eventually will happen :)

    ReplyDelete
  17. LOL on her beating up Jack! He does look fit! I think it's his neck being short, makes him look beefy! Poor guy, getting beat up by a girl. :(

    I think it's just a lot of people hating you, however you get there. Bryn was really unpopular, I figure at one point (when she lived in the trailers) she decided F-this, I'm just gonna be bad.

    Julia's just crazy. And I absolutely LOVE reading about her, and her rampages! I'm glad he isn't leaving anytime soon! I hope she sticks around, though I can't see who she could marry...

    ReplyDelete
  18. Tanja, it is a little sad but it's better to break it off now that Audrey has realised it's not working, rather than trying to prolong the relationship for years and years. And you know...she's having all these feelings stirred up for Jack now, so there's that as well.

    As I think I said above, there are a few different ways Jack and Sophie could go and I'm weighing them up in my head, to see which one makes the most sense.

    I put a picture up of the dormies, all made over, at N99. ;) I probably won't update the playable NPCs thread until I finish the round, but it will be added to that eventually as well.

    Thanks for reading!

    Maisie, no, not too great for the ego, being beaten up by a girl! Jack's not the only one though. When I still had them in the uni hood, there was a guy in that dorm who she used to beat up all the time as well. When I moved the dorm to the new subhood, he was smart enough not to move back in!

    "Eff this, I'm going to bad!" Too funny! I don't know what Julia's thought process is, like ever. She's just nutty. We'll see if she sticks around. You don't see her marrying Nathan, LOL? She'll always pop up in Hope's updates, if not.

    Thanks for reading!

    ReplyDelete
  19. Awww Audrey... I feel sad for her, even if she is making the right decision.

    I've never had the bad reputation want either - so funny, I might prompt some of my grouchy sims to start a few more arguments, just to see if I can trigger it, lol.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Blackcat, Audrey is in a tough spot. Breaking up with Connor is still going to be hard, even though she knows she doesn't want to be in a relationship with him.

    I'd be interested to see if any of your Sims roll up the bad rep want! I've had Sims with reps in the red before (though never so far into the red!) but this was the first time I've had this want.

    Thanks for reading!

    ReplyDelete
  21. Awww, Connor will be so heartbroken! I guess it had to happen, but still, I have also a soft spot for him. I hope he'll find his Miss Right.
    But those two ones seem to be made for each other. *sigh* Can't wait to see how it will turn!

    ReplyDelete
  22. Sandy, Connor probably will be upset, as much as he won't show it or admit it to anyone, including Audrey. I'm sure he'll find the right girl for him eventually. ;)

    Audrey and Jack though...this has been building for a long time and they're not going to let me ignore it for much longer, I don't think! They want to give it a shot, so we'll see what happens next time.

    Thanks for reading!

    ReplyDelete
  23. Great update! I'm late to the party again so I'll pretty much ditto what everyone has already said. I'm glad Audrey was able to keep her secret, too, and was able to share when and with whom she wanted. I'm sad that it took sex for her to realize that she and Connor aren't made for each other, but sometimes, that's exactly what you need lol. I can't wait to see who Connor ends up with later on in life.

    I can't wait to see what's going to happen with Audrey and Jack. I just love how they keep gravitating towards each other. It's fate! Let it happen! You really have me wondering how Sophie feels about all this. I hope she doesn't get hurt in the end, either, because I love her to death. But it just seems... wrong.. if Jack and Audrey don't get together at all. Even if it doesn't last, at least they'd know.

    LOL I've already said at N99 that Julia cracks me up. I've never had a sim like her but it'd be really interesting and fun to have someone like her around to watch the drama unfold!

    ReplyDelete
  24. Danielle, well, it was definitely quite a sudden revelation that Audrey had, even though the signs were there along. I think eventually, she and Connor will both be happier apart.

    Oh, I know, it does seem that way, doesn't it? The Audrey and Jack thing has been going for a long time and even when she was with Charlie, it was always Jack who seemed more into her. I keep thinking back to this picture of them when they were kids!

    http://www.sullivansims.com/benton/saidsadly1024.jpg

    Julia is fun but frustrating as well. Sometimes I'm trying to shoot a scene and there's Julia beating up a cheerleader in the background, lol!

    Thanks for reading!

    ReplyDelete
  25. I want to see Jack and Audrey together. I totally ship them! And I never use that word, but it fits, lol.

    Plus man, would they probably have some gorgeous kids! (Wow, did that sound creepy in a sim player breeder kind of way?)

    ReplyDelete
  26. Lunar, LOL, I don't really use the word "ship" in that way either but that's what you guys have definitely been doing with Jack and Audrey! It does look like they want to move in that direction but Jack will have to break it off with Sophie, if that's what he wants.

    But oooh, Jack and Audrey babies! Those two even have the potential to produce a redhead, as well. I do love red hair, lol! Hmmm...if you were being creepy, I think I am now officially creepier!

    Thanks for reading!

    ReplyDelete
  27. I don’t remember where I left off in my original read through of your blog, but I know I read enough to know how these relationships resolve. I won’t discuss that here because I don’t want to spoil future readers. I just wanted to comment that the more I read about Connor, the more he sounds like he is possibly on the high functioning end of the autism spectrum. He doesn’t seem to read social clues very well. I see a lot of my husband and me in Connor and Audrey. And yet, I am also a huge Jack and Audrey shipper. I’m just a sucker for those childhood romances, because let’s face it, they’ve been in love practically since the womb.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yeah, I could see that for Connor! It wasn't how I was intentionally writing him or how I plan to go with him in the future but he definitely has some traits in common with some people on the spectrum.

      I have a photo of Audrey and Jack from when they were about 8 and you could swear they look like they have a crush on each other even then. So I totally agree about their long-running thing!

      Thanks for reading and commenting!

      Delete