Strangetown: Chapter Twenty-Five - part one
Warnings: language, sexual situations
Chapter Twenty-Five
Part One
"Your lunch is getting cold, P.T." Jenny stepped out onto the porch, where her husband was sitting.
"My appetite just isn't there, Jenny."
"You need to eat something."
"Okay. Give me a another minute, and then I'll come in."
Jenny knew what was bothering him. "Look, I know this hasn't been going the way we hoped it would, but that doesn't mean we should give up."
"They've both given me a pretty firm no."
"I know. Why aren't they seeing what we're trying to tell them? It's for their own good."
"Perhaps we should have set them up for this at a younger age."
"Yes, maybe..."
"But you wanted them to have a normal childhood."
He wasn't blaming her, but she understood his meaning. They had done things her way, postponing the inevitable, and trying to keep the dream alive. The dream of the perfect family, with the beautiful lawn, and the white picket fence. She had wanted that for them and she had convinced herself that they could have it, but sooner or later the bubble had to burst. And, clearly, it should have happened sooner.
"Yes, I wanted that, I know. Well, as normal as could be expected." Jenny frowned. "Maybe it was selfish of me, but would it have really made so much of a difference? It was never going to be an easy sell. They live here, in this world, and that's the way they know. It's unavoidable. And it's not like we would have forced them..."
"We shouldn't have to. That's just the way things work."
"Well, yes, but that's not the way it works here."
Jenny thought about her family. The Curiouses were doing this for the aliens, but they were also doing it for themselves. The aliens would live on in the new hybrid species, and so would the Curious family. No matter how bad things got, they had that hope.
The sim species might need to adapt to survive too. Her father always insisted that this might be so. People had considered Glarn Curious an eccentric, but he had always insisted that he was just ahead of his time. She hoped that he has been right about that. She also hoped that he had been wrong about a lot of things, but ultimately, she believed that he had known what he was talking about. He had been right about the aliens. If he was right about everything else, then they were doing the right thing.
They were putting themselves in danger with this plan. Those who distrusted the aliens were growing in numbers, and they couldn't help but feel that trouble was brewing.
Jenny wanted her children to be safe. She wanted them to be happy. It seemed like they would make choices that allowed them to be one, but maybe not the other. How could she tolerate them allowing themselves to fall into harm's way? If they were happy, was it a risk worth taking? Their happiness was very important to her.
She wanted what any mother wants.
To see her children grow up safe and happy.
She had been dreading her elder transition. She could barely conceive of the fact that she was growing so old. Time just slipped by, almost imperceptibly, and now Johnny was a man, and Jill had just left for college. He could remember holding them in her arms as infants. It seemed like it could have happened yesterday.
The had all been together for her transition, and that made it easier to bear. All of her children were under one roof. Everyone was happy, cheering her on. She had no choice but to grow old, so she made a wish, hoped for the best, and then blew out the candles.
After they had finished their cake, P.T. had taken Johnny aside.
"Johnny, I wish you would reconsider."
"I can't. I've told you already, Dad. I want to be with Ophelia. She's "the one". She's the one I want to be with."
"It's not the right thing for you, Johnny. Or for us. You have to consider the bigger picture."
"Dad, please. I've made up my mind." The old alien frowned. "Why can't you just accept my choice? I thought you liked Ophelia."
"I do. She's a very nice girl..."
"But..."
"But she's not like you."
"You married Mom, and she's not an alien, Dad."
"I know that, Johnny, but it's different. I did that to create you. I did it for the same reasons that you should marry another half alien, like yourself."
"But what about Mom? Why did she do it?"
"The same reasons. And other things too. Your mother has her reasons."
"So it wasn't actually about love, like I always assumed? How nice... and here I was, thinking it was some sort of touching example of love winning out over the differences between the two species."
"Johnny, of course it was about love. But love isn't always something you just find. It is something you have to grow."
Johnny sat on the porch and thought about everything his father had said. His thoughts were interrupted by a little girl.
"Why are you sitting out here all alone?"
"I don't know. I just want to, I guess."
"You're weird."
Johnny looked at her.
"No, I'm not. I'm not weird. And it's not nice to call people weird, okay, Jo?"
"Okay, Uncle Johnny."
"I'm not your uncle, I'm your brother."
"Really? But you're so OLD!"
"Yeah, well, it happens, okay? You're going to have to just trust me on this one."
Johnny was still thinking about all of this while he was sitting outside the Cactus Cafe, waiting to meet the new student that he had agreed to show around campus. As if he wasn't already busy enough, he had signed up to be part of the mentoring program that welcomed new students to La Fiesta Tech. He was so caught up in his thoughts, he barely noticed as she approached his table.
"Hi. Sorry I'm late. The lines at the student union were atrocious."
"Don't worry about it." He extended his hand, and she took it. "I'm Johnny Smith."
She sat herself down next to him.
"Yeah, they told me your name, and you're not exactly hard to spot. So I guess you're one of those half alien sims?"
"No, I just like to dye my skin because it looks cool." He said it kindly, and offered a green smile.
She quickly realized that he wasn't really a very intimidating guy, despite his strange looks.
"I'm sorry," he said, "I seem to have forgotten your name. I have a lot on my mind today."
"No problem. I totally understand. It's hard to keep up with all of the new names. I'm Lucy Burb."
"Well, it's nice to meet you, Lucy. That's an interesting accent you have."
"Really? I didn't know I had one. I would have said the same to you. Where are you from?"
"Strangetown."
"Oh." She wondered if she had made a face. "That's... interesting."
"No, it's not. Not really. It's hot and dry, and pretty much always the same." She'd heard otherwise, but she figured that someone who was as green as Johnny might not even blink at such odd happenings. He turned the conversation back to her. "So where are you from, Lucy?"
"Pleasantview."
"Like the soap opera?"
"Oh... that." She rolled her eyes. "Yeah, like the soap opera."
"My friend watches it every day. I think he may have even joined the fan club, even though he denies it. He loves those twins... what are their names..."
"Angela and Lilith."
"Right."
"They're my cousins, you know."
"Really? That's wild. Ripp would completely lose his shit if he were here."
"Maybe I can get him an autograph."
"So you're studying art? I know a girl in that program, and Ripp's brother will be taking art too, so I guess you'll meet him. Have you always been interested in art?"
"Yeah. I thought about literature too, but art won out. That's why I came to this campus."
"Literature, you say? Well, maybe I'll have to pick your brain a little, once we're finished our little tour. I'm trying to convert a novel into a script and it's really giving me grief."
"Yeah, one of my friends tried that once, in high school. It didn't work out." Johnny frowned, and she quickly continued. "Now, that doesn't mean that your's won't. I'll see if I can help you. I know what not to do, at least."
"Sounds like a plan." He started to get up from his chair. "Well, I'm ready when you are. Where do you want to go first?"
"I hear the bar is pretty cool."
"Alright. Just for a quick stop, though. We don't want to tour to get permanently stalled, now, do we?" She laughed, and they continued walking.
"My sister just started university too. I was just helping her to move some of her things into her new apartment."
"Ooh, an apartment? That's fancy. My parents wouldn't spring for it, even though they could easily afford it. Mom wanted to renovate the house instead."
"Yeah, well, we can just barely afford it. Jill is spoiled rotten."
"So she's green too?"
"Actually... no. She's not, oddly enough. She has green hair right now, though. Nearly gave our mother a heart attack too."
"Oh, then I've seen her! The hair is hard to miss. She seems pretty cool."
Johnny shrugged. "Yeah, I guess." That was never a word he would use to describe Jill. His bratty little sister was not cool. In his head, she was still an annoying little girl, complete with pigtails. He wondered what words Jill would use to describe him. Cool wasn't the first one that came to mind.
Across town, Buck was busy getting the apartment in order.
"I can't believe you even brought the fucking fish tank, Buck." Ripp was helping him to move some of his stuff, and they were setting up the tank. "Did you leave anything?"
"Not much." He shot his brother a smile. "And I couldn't very well leave them, could I? Who would feed them?"
"I'm sure the Smiths would have been happy to help."
"Okay, so I just wanted the fish with me. Is that what you wanted to hear?"
"Yup."
"I love the fish."
"They're good fish."
"Okay, let's get this straightened up against the wall before Jill gets here with her stuff."
"You're living with JILL?"
"Ripp, I did tell you that. A couple of times. You need to learn how to pay attention."
"Buck, Buck, Buck... you can't live with Jill! How the fuck are you supposed to get any if you're living with a girl?"
"Ummm..." Buck struggled to stifle a giggle, since the question seemed pretty ridiculous from where he was standing.
"That's like the worst cock block I've ever heard of."
"Well..."
"Chicks are going to think you have a girlfriend, and I guess that might make some of them want to fuck you even more, but -"
"She kinda is my girlfriend."
"What?"
"Jill is sort of like my girlfriend now."
"Sort of?"
"It's complicated."
Ripp could see that it might be, considering that he'd gotten in on a small piece of the Jill action too. Did Buck know that? Buck could see the gears turning in Ripp's head. His brother had the most readable face in the universe.
"Yeah, I know about that."
"Shit, Buck. I wouldn't have done it if I had known."
"No, that was before..."
"Oh." He was obviously very relieved. "Well, good for you, Buck." He smiled. "She's a nice girl."
"She is."
"Fucking hotter than hell too."
Buck smiled. "Yeah."
"Well, as much as I'd like to stick around and chat, I have to go and pick up my guitar from last night."
"How did that go?"
"The same as always. You know..." Buck could imagine it perfectly, since Ripp had shared plenty of stories with him. He imagined that some of them were probably embellished a little, but knowing Ripp, maybe not.
"Jill keeps saying that she wants to go check out a show."
The door flew open and Jill stepped inside.
"Oh." She paused, taken aback.
"Hi, Jill."
"Hi, Ripp."
Ripp quickly turned his attention back to his brother. "Well, I'll see you later, Buck. Try to stay out of trouble, okay?" He chuckled to himself at the how hypocritical the line was. He took another once-over at Jill, who had definitely continued on her trajectory of hotness. "Transition treated you well, I see."
She shrugged. "I guess so."
"I like your hair."
"Thanks."
She watched him leave.
"So, if you keep that in mind, you should be fine."
"Thanks, Lucy. That's very helpful."
A couple of students that Johnny didn't recognize approached their table.
"Hey, Lucy! It is Lucy, right? It's so hard to juggle all of these names..."
"Oh, hi, Bottom." Lucy was sure that she'd never forget Bottom's name. Who the hell named a kid Bottom, anyway?
"We were thinking of ordering some pizza, me and Hal, and we wanted to see if you'd join us?"
"Sure." Lucy turned to Johnny.
"That's okay, you go right ahead. I've kept you here long enough. I'll just stay and pick away at this. As usual." She nodded, then turned back to her new friends.
"Oh, this is Johnny, by the way. He was just giving me a tour of the campus."
"Pleased to meet you, Johnny." Bottom smiled.
"Hi, Bottom." Johnny nodded to her, and then to her friend. "Hal."
"Hello, Johnny."
"You must be from Veronaville, am I right?" Johnny said.
"It's the bloody accent, isn't it?" Bottom said. "It makes me feel like I'm from outer space or something... no offense."
"None taken. I'm not actually from outer space."
"You could have fooled me," Hal said.
Johnny shrugged, and saw them off. As they were leaving, Jayne Doe noticed him from across the room, and headed towards him.
"Johnny Smith!"
"Oh... hi, Jayne."
"Don't sound so excited, Johnny."
"Sorry. I'm just a bit out of it." He indicated his notebook. "I'm working on the script again."
"You're still working on that? Wow. That's dedication. Well, you shouldn't mind if I kidnap you for a little while. For a break" She smiled, expectantly.
"Well, actually..."
"Oh, come on, Johnny! We never get to talk anymore."
"Well, I think you know why..."
"So Ophelia doesn't let you have friends? Come on! I just want to chat with you."
"Okay, but just for a little while. I really should be getting home soon."
"I won't keep you too long."
"Yeah, okay." He got to his feet and they left the library together.
The apartment was empty when Ophelia arrived to meet up with the boys. They were supposed to get groceries together, but there was no sign of Johnny or Ripp, except for the note on the counter. It was Johnny's note, she could tell immediately. The tiny, tightly-formed handwriting gave him away. In perfectly neat lines, it read:
I'll be late. I have to finish up some work on the script. Go ahead without me. I'm sorry.
love,
Johnny
So that was Johnny, but where was Ripp? She remembered that Ripp had played at the Wasteland Lounge the previous night, so he could have dropped by there to pick up his equipment. If he ran into Jaxy or Zoe, he might have stopped to get a drink with them, and then lost track of the time. That sounded like something Ripp would do.
She decided to head over there to see. They desperately needed those groceries, and it was going to be a huge task. The only thing in the fridge at that moment was empty space.
She didn't see Ripp when she entered the bar, so she asked the bartender about him.
"Yeah, he was here. Maybe he went upstairs."
That's where she found him, giggling like a fool at the bubble blower. She frowned.
"Phi!" He jumped to his feet when he saw her, stumbling a little. He was grinning from ear to ear. "Hi!"
Then he realized that she wasn't happy to see him. "Oh shit. I was supposed to - shit. Fuck. I'm sorry, Phi."
"Don't you have any self control, Ripp?"
His bubble blowing partners laughed at him, and one of them made a snide comment at his expense: "Who's that? Your wife or your mom?" They all started to crack up, but he ignored them. His attention was only on Ophelia.
"I'm sorry. I said I was sorry."
"You can't just do these things over and over again and then just expect to apologize it away, Ripp." She frowned, and he felt his heart sink. He had never intended to upset her. "This is so frustrating. Johnny's busy, and you're just a mess. We were supposed to get the groceries."
"I can still do it."
"In this state?"
"I'm not that bad." She rolled her eyes, since his were very red.
"This is hopeless. We need to get a lot of things."
"I'm so sorry, Phi. I'll go do it all by myself, if you want."
"No. We can both do it."
She sighed and looked down at the bubble blower. "So what's so great about that stuff, anyway? That makes you prefer it to doing the things that you're supposed to do?"
"I don't know. It's just nice... it's fun. You can just forget about everything."
"Obviously."
"I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking. I don't prefer it to being with you... not at all. I'd much rather be with you." They said nothing for a minute.
"Can I try it?"
"What?"
"I want to try it. To see what all the fuss is about."
"Really? Err, I don't know, Phi..."
"I'm not a child, Ripp."
"Well, no, but... well, okay. If you really want to, then be my guest."
So she did.
Ophelia coughed violently after the first puff, but soon got the hang of it, and looked like she’d been blowing bubbles all her life.
"Too bad Johnny isn't here. He's missing out on a good time."
"Johnny'd never do this," Ripp said.
She laughed. "No. He'd lecture me, and tell you what a baaaaad influence you are."
"Ooooh. Are we going to get in trouble?" Ripp mockingly looked over his shoulder for an imaginary Johnny.
"Screw Johnny."
Ripp fell back to the floor with laughter. "What did you say?"
"Screw him."
"Well, maybe I would, if he ever put out!"
"You're terrible!" She laughed so hard, that she ended up snorting like a pig.
"Careful, Phi. You're shooting snot all over me."
"Oh, shit! I am? I'm sorry."
"It's okay. I needed a shower anyway." He ran his hands over his face as if he was rubbing it in and washing his face with it.
"You're soooo gross!"
"You love it."
"I can't believe you've never been up here before," Jayne said.
"I didn't even know it existed. I mean, I've seen it, but I didn't really know if there was anything to it."
"Yeah, it's an observation tower. They have a really great telescope up there. And you can see the whole campus. It's such a great view. You're going to love it."
They climbed the stairs to the top of the tower.
"Have you ever worked one of these?"
"Yes, of course I have."
"Well, I don't know... you might not have."
"My uncles have like two or three of them, just like this."
"Wow. That's a bit excessive."
"They're a bit excessive... in some ways, anyway." He thought about his uncles. "In other ways, they're really not."
Jayne placed her hand on the telescope. "My father has one of these too. He really likes to look up at the stars. He finds it inspiring."
"I can see that."
"He's a still little shaken up by the latest pregnancy, though."
"Yeah, that's so crazy. When is he due?"
"Pretty soon."
"So, that's not really normal, right? That abduction? That's what Stella said..."
"Yeah, she said that some of the pollinators are getting a little desperate. There seems to have been some disagreement about their strategy, and some of the P.T.s have decided to just go off and do things their own way. There are some rumours... some bad things are happening. This is serious stuff, you know, Johnny."
"Yes, I've been told."
"Well, are you listening? Does it mean anything to you?" Her eyes shifted, and she grew more serious. "It means something to me, and I wasn't even raised by an alien father, like you were." Johnny was quiet, and Jayne could see that he clearly wasn't going to entertain a lecture from her. She looked back at the telescope. "Well, since we're here, we may as well wait a couple of minutes, and take a look, don't you think? It's nearly dark."
"Yeah, I suppose we should." Johnny turned and wandered across the platform.
"They're going to wonder where I am." He looked across campus to his apartment in the distance.
"This won't take very long, Johnny. It'll be dark in a minute. You can go home right after we have a little look. It won't be that late."
"I wonder if they got the groceries..."
Continue reading Chapter Twenty-Five (part one)...