"What can I do you for in this cold. wet. wintery, night. Johnny?", she purred. John had heard that exact phrase from a much younger girl, at least a dozen times. "Kitty 'Kitten' Gardner, Miss Lucy goes to China, nineteen ninety two, or ninety three?", John inquired. "Ninety three.", sighed the former teen star actress. "Are you my biggest fan, Johnny?". I have four sisters that watched it on repeat back then", John grinned.
"So, cold, wet, wintery night, what's your flavor.", Kitty asked again. "I'm up for anything, what do you like?", John replied, knowing full well by the time that he left, he would probably have drunk at least two or three of each of their specials to try to learn the ingredients. "Secretly, I love storms, and I'm an outdoors kinda gal, so when the weather is mean like this, I like nothing better than Woohoo on the beach.", Kitty responded in her sultry tone
John lifted his hand above the bar, showing his wedding band, "I would love to take you up on that offer, but I've been faithful since high school". Kitty let out a quiet chuckle, "She's a lucky girl, I could try to talk my way out of it by saying that 'Woohoo on the beach' is our romantic cocktail, but hey, you can't blame a girl for trying!"
John picked up the recipe for Woohoo on the beach, Tropic Twister, and Flaming Flotsam, by closing time and had become really good friends with Kitty. Kitty explained that she was possibly the first actress in Bridgeport whose career had taken a dive when she he boobs had had bloomed, and how her mother had basically disowned her because she was no longer getting acting roles. John talked about growing up as one of eight magically mixed race siblings, and how he suspected that his only son had run away from home for the same reason.
After John had walked Kitty to her car at closing, John checked the books at Knightgarden, and made his way home. The newspaper was being delivered as he walked up to the house, so he sat on the front bench and after shaking his head in disbelief at the mornings headlines, scanned the rest of the paper for anything that might be a clue to Edwards whereabouts.
Tamara slipped quietly through the front door. "John, John, thank the maker you are finally home, there's someone in the barn!", Tam whispered. "I was waiting for you, I think it might by Edward as the burglar alarm didn't go off, but I was waiting for you..", she trailed off.
John searched the workshop, then the upstairs area, and was about to inform Tamara that there was no sign of any intruder, when Tamara spotted the culprit.
"Okay, listen up fleabag, if you are going to stay here, there's rules. You have to earn your keep, that means chasing rodents away from the veggie patch, no scratching the furniture, no pooping in the house. Blah, blah, yadda, yadda yah.", the human droned on. "Meow, meow, meeow.", the cat replied. (Between the ears manthing, scratch me between the ears!)
"Oh and your new name is Chloe.", John added.
"John, the paparazzi are out front again!", Tamara complained. "Probably looking for more snaps to spin B.S. headlines with, like this one." John replied, dropping the days paper on the kitchen table in front of Tamara. Tam read the headline, "Celebrity night club owner involved in discreet romance with former teen starlet?", John quickly explained how the barmaid had briefly flirted with him, how he had explained his unavailability, and how they had spent the rest of the night becoming friends and talking about their weird childhoods.
"I don't normally condone violence!", Tam said angrily, "But if that man steps one foot on this property, I'd like you to roll this newspaper up, and beat him soundly with it!"
John had a better idea.
John flung the 'skivvies' spell at the reporter, "Trespassing on private property, what sort of pervert stalker are you?", John yelled loud enough for the neighbors to hear. "I'm calling the police, you sicko!" The paparazzo, feeling a sudden drop in temperature looked down to find himself in his underwear. "Hey, where did my clothes go?", he asked in a confused voice. John smiled, and shrugged, "Don't know what you are talking about.
Emily and Dolly had returned from their travels yesterday and where dropping in later that night with Belisama, Beli Hemlock and Sebastien Striker where getting married tomorrow, before the four friends all left for university, but there was one minor hitch.
"The dress has been handed down from mother to daughter for five generations, but it desperately needs alterations. It would break my mothers heart if I didn't wear it!", wailed Beli.
"Firstly, congratulations to you and Seb.", Tamara handed Belisama a gift, Tamara had watched Seb and Beli grow up from children along side Emily and Dolly.
"Secondly, put the dress on and let me see whats needed.", Tam suggested. Beli excused herself for a moment and changed in the privacy of Tams bedroom. "Oh, it's beautiful!", Tam gushed, when Beli reemerged. "Yeah, except I need at least two boxes of tissues to pad my bra, and a staple gun to hold the straps up!
"Dolly, can you get the sewing machine from the workshop, I'll have this fixed in no time!"
Chloe decided that this bed would do just fine, until her humans made
more appropriate arrangements for one of her status.
Isabelle: "Of all the things I've missed over the last fifteen years, I think I miss my mind the most!"
Edward: "Are you ever serious? Are you ever going to answer the question?"Isabelle: "That's two questions!"
Edward: "Ignore those two, and answer the first one, or I'm not playing anymore."
Isabelle: "Urgh, you are such a grump! Okay, I missed my boyfriend, well boyfriends, well, boys in general"
Edward: "Boyfriends? how many did you have?"
Isabelle: "Its not your turn."
Edward: "Fine, ask me something."
Isabelle: "Do you miss your family"
Edward: "Of course I do, but I've already told you, the longer I stay around people, the more I'm likely to hurt them!"
Isabelle: "Oh, and you are not worried about hurting me?
Edward: "Um, its not your turn, so boyfriends? how many did you have?"
Isabelle: "Twelve, if you want to go all the way back to all the way back to junior school."
Edward: "...."
Isabelle: "And one girlfriend, but it was only kissing, I went all the way with two of the boys though."
Edward: "...."
Isabelle: "So how many girlfriends and, or boyfriends have you had?"
Edward: "Including you?"
Isabelle: "Duh, of course"
Edward: "One."
Isabelle: "...."
Edward: "So what else do you really miss?"
Isabelle "My Dad used to push me on the swing, and I used to watch the stars with my Mum before I lost my sight."
Isabelle "And Chocolate Choc Chip ice cream, Maker do I miss that!"
Isabelle had been listening to Eddy tossing and turning in his sleep for a few minutes, and knew he'd be awake soon. She waited patiently, and knew better than trying to do anything about until he woke up. The last time she had tried, Eddy had freaked out for a full fifteen minutes before she could calm him down.
Shortly Edwards movements and muffled cries ceased and Izzy could hear him climbing down the ladder.
"Nightmares again?", she asked gently. "Yeah", he replied gruffly, "I think I need some air."
"Come here, what you need is to relax"
Authors Note:
To get Dolly and Emily and Belisama to visit was a total nightmare, I threw a house party and invited the three, I gave up after a dozen tries, each time either Dolly or Em would be a no show, or reset on arriving, or just stand on the road where I couldn't reach them with moveobjects. That explains why Dolly and Em don't appear together in the same shot anywhere in the chapter.
If the game had a Nymphomaniac trait, I suspect Izzy would have it... Kitty, the redhead from the first pic, one of the very few times Ive bothered to add a random townie to the Sim-bin for later.. I had actually had some vague story element about John wishing the Knightgarden staff looked and dressed like that, but I rewrote it from another angle because it was (A) a bit too sleazy for John's character, and (B) an opportunity to show his and Tam's faithful reputation.
