Chapter 4 - Aaroc

Welcome back! Aaroc's story will be a two parter. I have not written or played anymore then what is here so the end is as big a mystery to me as it will be to you. Enjoy! And as always, feedback is welcomed.

Journal Entry - What the F was I thinking

No matter how good we are together no woman is worth the hassles I've had to endure in this post apocalypse neighborhood. Perhaps, if I married a man things would have been different but no, I had to be captivated by Zahara's beauty. She's rough around the edges like a man which I love but sweet and sensitive when it comes to those she considers family. Why oh why did I have to be mesmerized by this woman? Even if I wasn't though I probably wouldn't have stood a chance against her. Zahara's a woman that certainly knows how to get what she wants.


The night Zahara invited me to move in with her family was the best and worst night of my life. The best part was the woohoo with Zahara. It was everything I knew it would be. She took charge and satisfied my every desire. I could never ask for a better woohoo partner. The worst part was this meant I was stuck living in a house where boundaries were restricted, it snowed all the time, the mob stopped by once a week for protection money, etc.


That night I learned how my life would be from then on. I was resting comfortably in Zahara's arms when the car pool arrived for my job as a Golf Caddy. I decided not to go and instead stay in her warm arms when all of a sudden she jumped up and told me I needed to go. I looked at her confused and she said if I didn't go to work I'd be fired for sure. I continued staring at her until she said 'Go! What if you can't find another good job to better the neighborhood. Reaching the top of the Slacker career would really help everyone out...as long as one of our children unlock the Law restrictions.' I had heard enough. I didn't know what she was so uptight about but I didn't want to hear another word from her crazy mouth so I left for work.


Maddox, Zahara's sister's son, brought a friend home with him from school one day. To my surprise the kid was part alien. How could alien technology be lost to the neighborhood when there were aliens roaming around it? I know the nuclear disaster destroyed the research that had been done to invent them but why can't half aliens like Maddox's friend recreate them?


While I thought Zahara and her entire family was completely cookoo I still loved her and I knew she wanted to get engaged. I figured since I had agreed to move in I should make a good woman out of her. Besides, her family had a lot of money and that was always a plus to me.

It's hard to have a moments peace in this house. Zahara's sister, Shiloh and her son are always hanging around. I wasn't even able to propose to Zahara in private. Augh!


Did I mention Zahara is nearly twice my age? I don't know what I was thinking when I agreed to move in here. The experience of an older woman perhaps captured my attention. Her days as a young woman are numbered which meant she wanted to have babies right away. I'm certainly not ready to be a dad though. The thought of wasting my hard earned money on rugrats does not appeal to me.


I would have thought with all the money the family has stashed away in the bank they could have afforded a bathtub or at the very least a shower, but no. There's not enough running water to effectively use them so why bother purchasing them. I must admit I'm a rather sloppy person so I don't mind taking sponge bathes from time to time. I would much prefer a shower or bath though.


I should have married a man. At least then he couldn't have babies and I would refuse to adopt using some lame line about it not being right to raise a kid with two fathers instead of the traditional mother and father. Zahara's mom told her she ate a bunch of cheesecake when she was pregnant with Shiloh and her and so now she's convinced herself if she eats a lot of cheesecake too she might have twins. I so hope we don't have twins. One mouth to feed is more then enough for me.


I absolutely refused to eat cheesecake with the rest of the family. I was completely annoyed that Zahara was trying to have twins. I don't even want to have one. They'll suck up all my money and I'm not at all happy about that.


Zahara's sister, Shiloh annoys me to no end. After all these years she still hasn't reach the top of a career so she hasn't provided any benefit to this family or neighborhood yet.

To make matter worse she got herself pregnant by some guy several years ago and never bothered trying to figure out who the father is. Maddox is the result of her bad decision making. He's a good kid, but as any kid he accrues a lot of unneccesary expenses that could have been avoided if Shiloh hadn't been so careless. I suppose she's a descent mother but if you ask me Zahara spends more time with him then her.


Zahara's stomach got bigger and bigger everyday. I was getting really worried that maybe her mom's cheesecake remedy for twins is real. I so hope that's not the case.


Zahara can sense how miserable I am here. She tries to cheer me up but nothing really works. I feel a deep depression coming on and I'm not sure I'll make it. This is not the kind of life I envisioned for myself. I think under different circumstances Zahara and I could have been happy together but I'll never be happy here.


Eh! Shiloh's been rubbing Zahara's tummy and giving her all sorts of 'advice' on how the birth will feel and what she'll need to do the first few months of our child's life. How annoying! From what I've heard Zahara mostly took care of Maddox through his early years so who is she to be giving out advice.


I am a very playful person but so little around this place brings out that side of me. I tried making a snowman one evening but it just made me even more upset. The thought of only being able to do this and make snow angels outside for the rest of my days is very depressing. I want to run around and catch fireflies at night or just play a good game of kicky bag under the summer sun. This ever lasting snow won't allow that though.


I guess it was inevitable, although I wish it wasn't. Zahara went into labor one evening. She screamed out in pain and we all came running.


She gave birth to Pax, a healthy baby boy. I shrugged and thought at least she only had one. She walked over towards me and handed Pax over. As I looked at the strange baby Zahara started screaming again. Oh, gawd...not another one!


Sure enough she gave birth to a second child, another boy named Jon. As I looked at the second child Zahara had just given birth to I wanted to drop the baby I was holding, scream, run away, never look back, something but I couldn't move. The blood must have disappeared from my face because I didn't snap out of it until Zahara asked if I was alright.


After we got the babies settled into their cribs Zahara and I simaltaneously complained about how awful we both smelled just outside their rooms. It was the first time since I moved in that I really laughed. I didn't want the moment to end but reality hit hard when one of the babies started crying again. I am so not cut out to be a father.

End Entry


Journal Entry - All the kids grow up some

Shiloh started working in the athletic field rather late in life, but she was able to begin as a starter right from the get go and has steadily made her way up to assistant coach. She needs two more promotions before she'll reach Hall of Famer. I wish she would hurry up and accomplish that so Zahara and I can put in a bedroom just for ourselves.


Young Maddox was becoming a teen and could get a job once Shiloh became a Hall of Famer and he maxed out his body skills. The way I see it teenagers that aren't able to attend school should at least have a job.


Maddox wasn't very lucky in finding good teen clothes but at least his shirt and pants kind of match. You'd think with all the money this family has in the bank we could afford descent clothes but clothing supplies are limited so we can't always find nice things.

Maddox is a lot like Zahara, he has high hopes for a family one day. It's such a shame Zahara is too old to get pregnant a second time. Just terrible.


Shiloh tries to prove she's a good mother by helping with our children. That's fine with me. I'd rather not have to change diapers or bother with feeding them anyways.


Maddox is also a big help with the twins, as he should be. The boy has nothing better to do all day so it's good he takes responsibility for something.


Maddox took it upon himself to get the family a pet. He found Moonshine outside late one night purring and couldn't help but bring him inside to feed him. I don't mind pets, they can be fun but I'd rather not waste money where we don't need to.


The boys first birthday came quickly. I was very happy to know they were getting older and closer to being able to care for themselves. I hated having to do everything for them. However, maybe it's better if they stay little forever because as they get older they'll want to buy things...things that are a waste of money, like video games.


Jon inherited my pointy ears.


Pax didn't so we gave him the nicer clothes from the one's we were able to find.


Moonshine got himself into some of Maddox's homework. It was amusing to watch him destroy it.


Another amusing thing that tends to happen in this house is cheating at chess. I'll be sitting at the computer writing a novel when Zahara will convince Maddox something exciting is going on behind him. When he turns around she snatches a couple of his pawns. I can't believe how often he falls for it.


Zahara's a very attentive mother. It's as if she knows beforehand when her children will need to be taken out of their cribs, fed or changed. She is definitely always one step ahead of them. It's a good thing she is because if it was left up to me they'd be stuck in their cribs all day crying about how hungry and dirty they are.


There is the occassional moment when I think the boys are cute. One that sticks out the most is when I see Pax sucking on his little hand. It's fun to watch how the simpliest things entertain them.


Under different circumstances I probably would have enjoyed playing with the boys but I never felt up to it. Instead I focused on teaching them important things.

I had reluctantly began accepting how miserable I'd be for the rest of my life and started putting my efforts towards the bigger picture.


Maddox helped teach the boys their toddlers skills too. I feel just as bad for Maddox as I do myself. There's no school for him to go to, no friends for him to hang out with, no job to keep him occupied and worse of all he doesn't have a girlfriend.

Shiloh really should be the most unhappy out of all of us since she'll never have 50 first dates like she wants but I think Maddox and I are far worse off then she'll ever be. While the simple pleasures of life can keep her happy not much can make Maddox or I feel joy.

End Entry


Journal Entry - Zahara and Shiloh become lost to us

I found a new job that I think will benefit our family and the neighborhood more then becoming a Professional Party Guest would. I'm working as an EMT in the medical field. Hopefully, I can help restore running water and finally take a bath.

My dream job is to become a Criminal Mastermind though and if that ever pops up in the paper I'm totally taking it. I cannot stand when the mob shows up on Monday mornings to collect their protection money. If I have anything to say about that I will conquer the underworld and take the mob down.


Shiloh needed one last skill point to get her final promotion to Hall of Famer so she worked on her charisma a little each day after work until she maxed it out. Lets hope she gets promoted soon. I really want Zahara and I to have our own room.


Time finally caught up with Zahara.


As well as Shiloh.


Zahara and Shiloh suddenly seem to be part of some exclusive club only the two of them know about. Neither of them say much to anyone in the family anymore. They mostly keep to each other or themselves.


Shiloh seems to be spending more time with the twins then Zahara is. Getting older must really be hard on her. They both sleep at odd hours and rarely use the bathroom when they should.


I cannot take it anymore. I'm completely losing my mind. Those darn mobsters need to stop coming and taking our money. I decided to try and recoup our loss by begging for money from passer bys. Anyone who walked by looked at me as though I was nuts so needless to say I didn't collect any money. I don't know how much longer I can go on like this.


Thank goodness the boys grew up some more. With Zahara off in la la land I've had to take care of them more and I just don't want to anymore. They're such a pain.


Jon is amazingly neat unlike Zahara or me while Pax is very active just like Zahara. They have many similarities but are unique in their own way. I am so happy they can fend for themselves now. No more dirty diapers, yay!


Maddox is really having about as hard a time in this home as me. He's always throwing tantrums because he's so miserable. Shiloh doesn't pay enough attention to him and he can't do or get anything he wants so you can't blame the poor kid. Him and I will be fine as long as his tantrums don't involve breaking things.


I cannot tell you how many times I've seen Zahara or Shiloh fix the sink by banging a wrench against it only for it to be broken again a few days later. I tried to take the more rashional approach by calmly fixing it, but it still broke a couple days later. I think it's all the sponge bathes we're forced to take. Oh, how I long to take a real bath again.


I know not everyone believes in ghosts and to be honest I didn't necessarily either until I moved in here. Zahara's parents ghost haunt this house nearly every night. I can't count the number of times I've been scared by them. They must have lived very unhappy, unfulfilling lives. Angelina's ghost is more fierce then Brad's. She'll scare anyone while Brad will stick to the adults.


Both of my sons have been scared by her at one point or another.


Despite my complete lack of parenting skills the boys still look up to me. From time to time they'll even welcome me home with a hug after work. It amazes me that they even like me, but I suppose that'll change as they get older. They'll dislike me just as much as our neighbors do probably.


I knew these boys would cost me more money then they're worth. If they don't want a new toy they want a giant video game to play. I don't give in too often but every now and then I do. As much as I hate spending money foolishly I want to try and keep my kids happy. Nobody should have to face the misery I am.


It is taking Shiloh way too long to become a Hall of Famer. I'm beginning to think it'll never happen. Sometimes it feels as if she knows how much I dislike her so she'll try extra hard to make my kids happy. The truth though is I dispise her even more when she does stuff like that.


Zahara is slowly losing her mind, supposedly much like her father had done as an elder. One day when the kids were at school and Shiloh and I were at work Zahara started a kitchen fire. Maddox said he heard some commotion upstairs and when he went to check it out he saw the counter on fire and Zahara panicking a few feet away.


The stove had already burned to the ground but Maddox tried to save the counter. He battled the flames for quite awhile.


During the entire process Zahara stood in the back freaking out. Maddox later confessed that he felt like smacking her, but the urgency to put out the fire prevented that.


Although, he tried very hard Maddox was not able to save the counter. He did manage to stop the fire though. It upset me to know we'd have to spend money to replace those items. Zahara should have been more careful.


While my wife was falling apart Shiloh finally proved herself useful for something by becoming a Hall of Famer. Once she joined the hall of fame from the “Mutant League Football” arena, she was able to invent new training techniques to overcome the muscle degeneration set in by the disaster. This has proved to be a huge help because now we can finally move some rooms and objects around.

End Entry


Journal Entry - Reorganizing couldn't even prevent it

With the new strength our family felt we decided to redo each floor. The basement which use to hold only a double bed now has two single beds and a small bathroom. The two bathrooms we use to have wouldn't cut it for six sims.


The main floor has been completely changed from a kitchen to a junk room. The three urns in the room led us to put objects that we don't really use that much on it. It's utterly disgusting how much money we waste on objects we don't even use. It sickens me to know my precious money is being spent frivolously.


The second floor hosts our kitchen, another bathroom and a few other regularly used objects. There is only one urn on this floor so we're hoping the fridge keeps Brad's ghost happy.


The third floor has two bedrooms and one bathroom. We're hoping the ghosts of Brad, Angelina and the family pets will leave us alone up here while we sleep.


Before leaving in the morning for work the boys like to tell me about the bizarre things their mothers did the day before while I was gone. Everyday seems to bring a new and interesting story for them to tell. Maddox likes to talk about how his mother left the omlettes on the stove one day just to turn around and wet herself. It's sad to watch Zahara and Shiloh's minds deteriorating.

The woman I fell in love with re-emerged from time to time. It was moments like those that I felt the slightest glimpse of happiness, but before long she'd lose it again, leaving me to resent ever meeting her.


That night while I was sleeping in my new room Zahara was up and about. I had no idea what she was doing but she had refused to come to bed so I went to bed alone. Little did I know Angelina's ghost was haunting the second floor where Zahara was sponge bathing. Angelina's ghost must have scared her because I heard her scream. I slowly started to get up when I heard a second scream, but this time it didn't come from Zahara.


Shiloh had screamed as well. She was on the first floor where one of the family's pets was haunting the floor. I first rushed to where I heard Zahara scream.


I was too late though. All I saw was the grim reaper disappearing into the night, leaving behind Zahara's urn. I wanted to scream, cry, throw something but then I remembered Shiloh had screamed too.


As I rushed down the stairs to the first floor I saw her urn next to a puddle of pee she must have left after getting scared. I stood there stunned. Both my wife and her twin sister died on the same night in the same terrible way. I couldn't believe the irony of the situation. Our family finally could move things around to better accommodate the ghosts wandering around at night only to have the first deaths of fright by ghosts that very same evening. I suppose the one comfort of this terrible situation is at least Shiloh and Zahara will be together in the after life like they always were when they were alive.


How will the family survive a double death in one night? Will they die themselves of fright by ghosts now that the ghost head count has gone up by two? Will Aaroc manage to raise the boys well without Zahara's help? Will Aaroc stay in the medical career or switch to a life of crime?

I was terrified Shiloh wouldn't reach the top of her career before being killed by a ghost (I knew unless I got control of the elders they'd probably die that way hence moving in moonshine). When she turned into an elder she was only one level away from reaching Hall of Famer and she had a high performance level at work so I knew if she could avoid being killed by a ghost she'd probably get promoted. It took two days of work as an elder but she did it. Whew!