"Latricia is engaged." Nina Caliente said watching one of her older sister's perfectly trimmed eyebrows shoot upwards. The two of them were seated at the bistro downtown on of their weekly lunches. It was a tradition for them ever since they both retired and settled down a bit from their previous busy schedules.
"Engaged to whom?" Her sister asked.
"That Kerry boy, the one she had been dating in school." Nina answered taking a sip of wine.
Before replying Nina took another sip of wine, a more generous one this time. Truth was she didn't approve. And not because the boy was a policeman or anything like that. Nina didn't approve of marriage in general, and her daughter was so young… What did she really know about life? Nina planned for her to have a music career, she was talented and pretty. Marriage and kids could ruin all that… Nina herself had never been married and she had a great life. She came close once, with her oldest daughter's father Dave, they even lived together for a time, big mistake. Yet back then she was young and stupid too… And she could not share any of this with her older sister who had just tied the knot, for the second time with a young waitress or whatever it was Justine did….
"I wish her all the best." She said once she had lowered her glass. Dina smiled in amusement. Her older sister could always read people well, you learn that in politics Nina guessed.
"I guess marriage is not for everyone." Nina said hoping to switch the ball in her sister's court. "How is your lovely bride doing?" Dina smiled a bright smile people usually do when they talk about the ones they love, or at the very least enjoy sharing a bed with. Nina herself wasn't sure if she even believed in what people passed on as love….
"That doesn't get boring? Even in your life stage?" Dina asked couriously.
"Well surely you want something more, at times at least?" Nina snorted.
"What more is there? Life is too short to chase after imagined things… " She didn't want to say it. She didn't want to offend her recently married, love-sick sister… Yet she couldn't help it. "You would sooner see a unicorn then find 'true love'." When her sister said nothing Nina just went on. "You just married for the second time. Your first marriage fell apart because you slept with someone else. Please don't tell me you believe in 'the one'…" Her sister just looked away and when she turned back there was something in her eyes, something Nina didn't see there ever before, a kind of sorrow and vulnerability so disconnected from how she perceived her older sister.
"I am not sure what I believe in. " She said quietly. "Feeling are tricky I guess… And as we grow old our memories play tricks on us… " She sighed looking out in the distance again. Once she turned back her face had resumed its usual coldness.
"A loan? Where is that coming from?" Nina asked surprised.
"I hear rumors that you are in debt… You are working on something with the school and I also saw your nudes in a magazine…." At this Nina actually laughed.
"Fine then, I guess you wouldn't mind taking the check?" Dina said pushing it towards her sister. Their eyes met and they both smiled.
After Nina's two older daughters Rosie and Latricia left home it is just her and her teenage son Branden, Bran and her living together. Nina is a mostly retired musician and composer who even in her elder days loves to party and go out with guys, both younger and older, she makes no difference.
Her son Branden is a quiet and good boy especially close to his older sister Latricia. He is an honor roll student who also works part time at the local supermarket. He is desperately in love with Nan Prentiss and although they are officially dating now their relationship is not the most solid one.
Following the link above you can find all the previously published stories about Nina and Bran also featuring both Rosie and Latricia.
All three of the last round chapters were told from Bran's POV and focused on his troubled relationship with his girlfriend Nan. We learn that even though she and Bran were dating Nan went to the spring dance with Aenys Targeryen. On the end of the year dance she does however go with Bran but when he catches them talking jealousy takes the best of both of the boys and they get into a fight. Nan decides to stop talking to Bran and it takes the whole summer and the intervention of her older sister Maja, Aenys' best friend for things to go back to normal between them…. On top of everything Bran's mother's newest fling is Aegon Targeryen, Aenys' father….
This round I plan to focus more on Nina and her still very turbulent life. First chapter we would get to see her reaction to her younger daughter Latricia's engagement and it would also feature an appearance by her sister Dina. The second chapter would focus on her relationship with her son Branden and after that I figure we would touch on Nina's always complicated love life.
To all my dear readers and followers I wish you all a very happy New Year! May all your wishes come true and may you have an even better year than the one behind us.
Still I hope you have found something worthy and interesting on here, and maybe on my other blog Stories in Clay which I try to update at least a bit more regularly than this one. For all of you who did I want to say thank you! I appreciate every one of your likes and comments and hope to receive more in the future!
As for this years stats it was not a better year than 2016, which is probably because of a smaller number of new posts, something I really aim to fix in 2018.
The most visited post was: The Grieving Husband which was the fifth and final post of the Prentiss story for the seventh round. The Prentiss story line for this round was my favorite to write for this last round since it dealt with some heavier subjects like loss, sorrow, death but also ended on a note of optimism and hope for a new love.
It all started with an unplanned meteor strike that killed a bunch of my sims and it really hit me hard as a player as well since like most of us, I assume, I get really attached to all my sims and it is hard to see them go, especially "before their time". I was really at the crossroads there but I chose to save the game and keep in the story which is what shaped the Prentiss story the most since Rita Prentiss and her teenage daughter Lena were among the dead. From there the whole story of how that big and closely knit family is battling to deal with everything and stay together evolved… You can find that story and all the Prentiss stories here.
What I have planned for this year?
Well for this blog I have not planned very much ahead, or started writing anything yet… I hope to do so in the days to come, my main goal is to write more, and publish stories closer together than last year.
I hope you are enjoying all of my stories, or at least some of them, if you have any suggestions, criticism or overall comments I would like very much to hear them!
Once more thank you for reading! Have a great 2018 everyone!