1.9 - Explanations

Nicole was shaking. She didn't know whether this was from her hangover or the fact that she'd woken up next to Daniel. She had quickly gotten him out of bed by litteraly dragging him off it, and sending him out of the door, exclaiming that she'd never want to see him again.
And after that she'd started trying to reach Rob.

She had to find him and talk to him before anyone else did - but she had her hesitations. He had lied to her, but as soon as she had become sober, she realised, she'd never let him tell her about it. What if it wasn't about Mary-Sue? What if it was something else. She had to know. This time she wasn't about to let Drunken Nicole believe Daniel before Rob. She wanted to know what was true.
But Rob seemed to be gone - lifted of the face of the earth.
She ended up going to his appartment to see if she could find him

She sighed in relief when his voice came out through the callbox.
Nicole: "Rob... Hey.. It's... me..."
Rob: "Thank god Nicole! Just a second - I'll be down to see you!"
It took him about 2 minutes to take the elevator down and he rushed to her, and took her hands..

Rob: "I'm so sorry! I haven't been able to reach you - You turned your phone off after hanging up on me yesterday, and I have been unavaliable today! I really wanted to explain, but you just hung up!"
Nicole: "I know - It was wrong, but I had heard some rumors, and we'd just clarified that we weren't seeing someone else, so..."
Rob: "You thought that was what i agreed to? I've never cheated on you. In fact I haven't been dating anyone but you in a while. Not since Roberta was born..."
Nicole: "... wait, what?!"
Rob: "Thats what I haven't been telling you. I had a short fling with a girl called Soo-Jin a while back. Out of that came my daughter Roberta. I haven't told you about her, because I didn't want you to judge me - but I thought that Brandi might have told you since Soo-Jin is now dating her son Dustin?"
So that's what Brandi held back at the party. Makes much more sense now.

Nicole: "Oh my... But Daniel told me..."
Rob: "Daniel? Have you been speaking to my boss? Why?"
Nicole hadn't been thinking this through - How much did she want him to know?
Nicole: "Uhmmm.. Well, that would be my secret. When I first came to Legacy Island, I kinda fell for Daniel and I knew he felt the same way - but I ended it as soon as I realised he was married. I didn't want to cause any trouble. But apparently I did - for you"
Rob: "He did start to get really harsh on me when we made it official? But why haven't you told me?"
Nicole: "It's not exactly the kind of thing you just blurt out..."
Rob: "Maybe not - But what did he tell you?"

Nicole decided that it would be best to make a lite version of what happened.
Nicole: "I decided to talk to him, to see why he was so harsh on you. I wanted to rule out that he was harsh on you because of me - He wasn't. He told me that you were cheating on me, with his Mary-Sue, and that was why he didn't want to promote you".
Rob: "That bastard... I knew Mary-Sue was cheating on him, but not with me. She has been sleeping with my roommate Enrique for a while, but I promised not to tell anyone. He probaly followed her, and drew the wrong conclusions. But you... do you still have something for Daniel?"

Nicole smiled and pulled him in an embrace.
Nicole: "No, I'm all in on you!"
Apparently that was something that Rob liked to hear, and he pulled her into the elevator, where he showed her, that he was all in on her as well.

He kissed her and told her goodbye. His daughter was upstairs and even though he wanted her to meet Nicole, he wasn't sure whether it was a very good idea to wake her up from her nap, with a new girlfriend by his side. They decided that it would be a good idea to wait a while. But that didn't throw Nicole off her game, and she left the appartment building to go busk with a smile on her lips.
That smile lasted until she realised. She still had one episode she wanted to bury - but she didn't want anyone to know. Especially not Rob... He would be devistated.

1.8 - Old and new flames

The snow fell thick the next day. Nicole stared at it in disbelief. She couldn't believe it was winter already. The days had blended together since she had started busking, so she didn't notice how close it was to her birthday. She sighed and went to the mailbox where she found something amazing.

Rob had sent her a love letter. A little reminder of how much he loved her. She smiled, and felt a little lump gathering in her stomach. She was meeting with her old crush today, behind his back. But it was for him, she reasoned. But the lump didn't go away. 

Daniel didn't show at noon. So Nicole decided to kill some time. Brandi had taught her some basic bass-notes, which Nicole had quickly picked up on. She had bought a bass to make sure that she didn't forget. 

Daniel finally showed up. Late. She wasn't sure whether to be mad or nervous, but now he was here and she had something to fill him in on.

They went indoors, and before she could manage to speak a word, he started talking.

Daniel: "Before you say anything, I would like to explain myself! Please, just listen for a moment. I know you think I should have told you about Mary-Sue and her being pregnant with Wilfred the moment we met. But I found out about the pregnancy the night we met, after i got home. I know you should at least have known that Mary-Sue exsisted, as well as Lillith and Angela. But I didn't know how, because I liked you. You were the first breath of fresh air i've had for months. And... I still like you!"

Daniel: "I was about to ask you out for coffee, to really start dating you. I was about to tell you about my family and how I was ready to go all in on you. And then you vanished from the face of my part of the island... Your message on Simdating, really gave me hope - and then you were gone again. I knew someone must've told you, and that I'd blown my chance. That's also why i fled when I met you that day at the park with Wilfred in the stroller... I didn't know what to say"

Daniel: "And then I realised you were seeing Rob. The little smirky nobody from work - and I just got mad! You know he was due to a promotion the day you made it official that you were going steady? I just had to do something. He couldn't get it all! I'm not proud of it, and I know it was wrong. But..."

Nicole: "You had no right to do that! You HAVE no right to be doing this! Confessing that you are doing all this. Rob is the only DECENT guy on this whole freaking ISLAND! You are only a FALLING star... I don't even know what to say to you except, that you need to get over yourself....."

Daniel: "...... He's cheating on you! You knew that? With Mary-Sue! Try asking your little perfectly DECENT loverboy about that!"

Nicole: "Go home Daniel!! Grow up and go home! And stop spreading lies!"

Daniel left shortly after that and Nicole found herself calling Rob.

Nicole: "Rob? It's Nicole. I have to ask you something - Will you promise to answer it?"

Rob: "Hey sweetie? Something wrong? Of course I will."

Nicole: "Have you been lying to me?"

Rob: "Nicole? Where is this coming from?"

Nicole: "Just... just answer" 

Nicole could feel the tears coming up.

Rob: "... Yes... But..."

Nicole: "No buts..."

She cut off the conversation and found tears streaming down her face... 

What had she callen Rob; The only decent guy on this Island...? That was apparently a lie too.. What had she left to believe. She dragged herself up from the floor and went to the only place she felt like could mend her broken heart right now.

What the hell had she done...
_________________
Dra-dra-dra-draaaama :D
By the way - Daniel and Mary-Sue makes perfect little children. Look at Wilfred: He's adorable!

1.7 - Trust your gut.

Nicole found herself on another bubble of happiness. The last one had been punctured, so she was determined to make this one last.

The next day she went to Brandi's costume party. This was the first time she had actually visited her best friend on Legacy Island, so she was excited to see how she lived. 

The place was a shack out in the outskirts. She knew Brandi didn't have much, but she hadn't expected to see something that was nearly falling apart. But however she felt about Brandis house, she put that aside and dressed up as a hotdog, and went to talk to Brandi the Bunny.

Brandi spoke about her and Skip's relationship and Nicole let slip that she'd asked Rob to go steady. There was a brief hesitation in Brandis movement before she threw out her arms and congratulated Nicole on the good news. Nicole decided that whatever Brandi was thinking about, she didn't want to know - at least not yet. If Brandi thought it wasn't important to tell her right away, how bad could it be? She trusted Brandi to watch her back. 

Later she met Rob in the mall. Here she got to think about, that she didn't even know everything about him yet. 

So she started pumping him for informations. She wanted to know everything there was to know. And he gladly told her everything. She hadn't thought of telling him about her most delicate secrets yet - but she figured that if they were going to be a thing - He would know eventually.

But she did figure out something about him, that she didn't know how to handle. 

They were talking about his work.

Rob: "So, my boss has been going on my nerves lately... He makes me do more laps than the others and even though I work twice as hard as my co-worker, he ended up with the promotion. I swear he's holding some kind of grudge against me, except I do not know for what!"

Nicole: "That's terrible! But... laps?"

Rob: "Yeah, I'm employed in professional sports - except I do not know how professional my boss is going to let me be!"

The clock rang for Nicole, the same moment he mentioned professional sports. Daniel. They'd talked about it the evening they met, except she hadn't expected him to be so high in the hierachy.

Nicole: "But... What kind of grudge can he possibly have against you?"

Rob: "I don't know - but even though his last name implies it, he's not so Pleasant at all.. Maybe you know Daniel Pleasant?"

She did - but she wasn't about to let that snake out of the bag just yet. 

He was scheduled to go to work a while later - so he kissed her goodbye, and went. And she went into the bookstore.

She didn't know why she called Daniel - but she felt like she had to. She had to figure out if Daniel in fact was holding a grudge, or he just didn't like Rob (which she didn't believe)

"I need to talk to you... Do you have time?" Nicole didn't know how to ask, but she figured she would find out along the way. 

Daniels voice was full of suprise and recognition; "Not today - I'm at work."

"Tomorrow? It's important" Nicole asked.

"Yes. I have something to discuss with you aswell" He replied. "Your house, noon?"

She confirmed and cut him off, still not sure why she was meeting him.  

1.6 - Young love.

The party was a swimwear party - apparently only for the two of them, as they were the only ones. That would be if you didn't count the two babies, Roxanne and Franklin who were lying on the grass next to their little "party". As Nicole slowly realised that the "party" was only an excuse for her to come, so Don Lorathio could flirt with her, she quickly abandoned the premises and went home, cursing her bad judgement of character.

When she went to work the next day, she thought to try out busking in front of the theatre and ironically enough, she met Don again. He told her, that he had a nice time the day before, and gave her a bunch of purple roses. She smiled awkwardly and accepted, but then slowly walked away to start playing - She wasn't about to get on that wagon. 

And as she kept playing, builing up a small audience. She realised from the greetings in the crowd, that Cassandra Lorathio was amongst her listeners too. 

 But as if things weren't wierd with his wife in the crowd, Don decided to sweettalk Nina Caliente, whom Nicole had met at the Summer Festival with Brandi a couple of nights before. So she shook her head, and began playing "A Love Since Forgotten", as a tribute to the fact that Cassandra seemed to ignore her husband in a hot embrace, right next to her. Their relationship was certainly something Nicole didn't understand - and didn't want to end in the middle of. She checked Don of her "potential lovers-list" at that very moment.

Still fresh on her "potental lovers"-list, was Rob. She met him on the sidewalk a couple of days later. Still having their first date fresh in memory, she was absolutely thrilled to see him again.

 She even collected the nerve to ask him, whether he was seeing anyone at the moment. Which he wasn't. She was thrilled to hear this. Hopefully she'd found a decent guy this time!

 So she hugged him. It was a little more than a friendly hug - but she couldn't resist. And she decided to invite him over for lunch. Which he quickly accepted.

Lunch was grilled Cheese, which Rob seemed to enjoy. He almost didn't hear her asking about what he thought of the adjusments she made to the house. Instead he complimented the grilled cheese. So she never found out what he thought of the blue roses on the walls. 

 They retreated to the living room, where Nicole learned a little more of Rob. She thought he was a little neurotic, but again - his charming eyes and pearl white smile quickly made up for that.

 So without thinking, she leaned in and kissed him.

Which he gladly returned.

 Which lead to something else....

... something lovely and delicate. 

Afterwards she felt lifted and beautiful. She'd forgotten how much love can do to a girl's self-confidence.
So she asked him to go steady - which he instantly accepted. 
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I'm not good with the lovey dovey stuff.. But I am trying, hoping that this doesn't go all twilight, with the gazing in each others eyes. (;

1.5 - Busking

Nicole's busking idea was good in theory. Not so much in reality. You see that Legacy Island apparently didn't get so much out, so often she found herself playing alone for hours.

When she decided to busk for a while before meeting with Rob for coffee, she didn't earn a dime. And it wasn't her lucky day for her mental state either, because when she went out of the park, to go on her date, she ran into, no other than Daniel, with a stroller.

This was the first she'd seen of Daniel where he was in context with his family. They'd never talked and she'd gotten the information about his family from others. So his cheeks went just as red as his hair, when he saw her. He just waved awkwardly and hurried down the street with little Wilfred in the stroller. She knew the name from Darleen, who had let it slip during one of their conversations.
She shook her head, and felt a lump in her throat. But she had a date to go to, so she caught a cab.

 Rob was just as perfect in reality as he had been the night before. They chatted and laughed, and she found that she was enjoying herself. On top of that was he blindingly stunning in  her opinion and he actually exclaimed at one point; "I don't care what everyone else says, I think you're hot!"

So when he left for work and she went to the mall, she felt like this was going to be a good thing. She smiled, while she bought herself some new stuff and went out to the pool in hope that she could busk for some cash. 

 But the shopkeeper from the café in the mall shooed her away. This apparently wasn't a place for her to try her new profession. So as an apology, she went in and bought a plate of hotwings.

 When she sat down and ate, she examined her money. This was about to get critical, so she should really start earning some money soon. But she didn't feel like interviewing for a 9am-5pm job, so she was determined that the busking idea should work - one way or another.
As she sat, eating her food and wondering how she should manage, the other guest who had been sitting with her computer for a while, took her phone and called someone. Nicole was about to choke on her food when she heard the conversation.
"Hey Daniel? This is Mary-Sue. Hey! Ehm, I'll be a little late from work today, would you mind picking up Wilfred from the daycare? Really! Thank you so much, Love! I'll see you for dinner! Bye"
Nicole looked up and saw the Perfectly Pleasant wife sitting at the next table. She decided to eat fast and get the hell out of there.
So she went to the train station to busk for a while.

While she stood there, she wondered; Why would Mary-Sue tell Daniel she was late from work, when she was obviously on her computer at the mall? Were there more to this story, than she was told by the Dreamers? When she didn't earn anything and the rain started pouring, she quit the job for the day, and decided to get home. She thought too much to be able to concentrate anyways.

 When she got home she got a telephone call from Rob, telling her he had had a nice time, and would love to see her again. "So would I", she answered, and after a few minutes, his break was up, so he hung up and went back to work.

She hardly put down the phone, before she got another call. Don Lorathio called her to invite her to a party. He'd heard so much of her, and she was the only one showing up for his Simfest performance, so he would like to get to know her better. And confused as she was, she forgot to say no, to a swimsuit party at his house.

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Yes... She is stupid... And yes... This is a mess. And yes, I'm having SO much fun writing it!