Life goes on

Joe and Allyn talked, and both knew the time had come to end their relationship. They had both found love, and it was time to move on. Allyn and Neil stood outside the door to the home she and Joe had shared, Neil there in support of the woman he loved. Allyn was nervous, even though they had ended their relationship on a friendly note, and she needed Neil there for her.


Neil assured Allyn that she could go in, just get her few things, and be done with it, and ready to move on to her life with him.


Allyn had taken her things and left, without a word to either Joe or Samantha. She had already said her goodbyes with Joe. And what did she need to speak to Samantha about? Joe was the only thing they had in common, and Allyn had nothing more than a fading fondness for the man.

Joe wasted no time asking Samantha to move in, and she accepted happily. (She brought in over §10,000 plus a well-stocked inventory. She also brought a lot of friends and was already at the top of her career - Hall of Famer. Jackpot!)


Encouraged, Joe dropped to his knee and asked Samantha to marry him. He had a whole little speech about it being so soon after Allyn had moved out, and so soon after they had met, but he truly felt he had found his soulmate in her, wanting to spend the rest of his life with her, yada yada yada. Samantha found it all very romantic...


and responded with a resounding YES!

It wasn't long before Samantha noticed that she was hungry all.the.time.! She couldn't figure out what was going on.



Every chance they got to be together, this couple was dancing, hugging, talking, playing, you name it.



One winter afternoon, Joe came home from work, shouting with glee!


Not only did he make the right choice regarding a fantastic opportunity, it gave him a fantastic bonus!


And the very next afternoon, Joe had another surprise coming!


Samantha had been finding herself more and more tired all the time, especially as they worked to get some paint and wallpaper on their walls, with the bonus Joe had brought home. Joe offered to make breakfast.


They didn't have a dining room table, but they could sit together on the couch, eating pancakes and talking about anything and everything.


That morning over breakfast, Samantha told Joe, a little hesitantly, that she suspected she was pregnant. She was unsure what his reaction would be, as they weren't yet married, and was so happy to find out that he was thrilled.


Her pregnancy progressed without comment. Never any morning sickness, her energy levels were good, and she hardly had any back pain. Before she knew it, she was in her third trimester.



~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

And now, a funny glitch for your amusement. Joe had stepped over next to the bass while Samantha was playing, and she stepped out into the exact same spot. Is there any question of whether these two will become one? *giggles*

The lightning bolts of change

Allyn was in town, just doing some shopping. She started chatting with a nice young man (not pictured) and it wasn't long before he suggested that she meet a man he knew. Seems he thought they would really get along well. Surprised, but intrigued, she agreed.

When Neil walked in, her heart skipped in her chest. (3 LB)


They talked so easily, it was as if they had known each other forever.


Someone called Joe on the phone, their voice disguised, and proceeded to tell Joe that Allyn had been seen downtown with another man. The fact that they were probably in the process of ending their relationship wasn't public knowledge yet, so whoever was calling thought they were causing problems.

Joe, while surprised that Allyn had been out with someone so soon, wasn't surprised to find that he really didn't have any negative feelings about it.

Allyn couldn't help herself. She had to see Neil again. She came home from work the afternoon after meeting him and called to invite him over. He was as anxious to see her as she was to see him, and hurried right over.

They spent the whole afternoon talking and joking and even flirting.

By the time the sun set, they were both feeling the heart flutters. (No input from me - they did this on their own.)


Joe continued his love of searching the skies, and invested one of his promotion bonuses in a nice high-powered scope that far out-performed the ones he already had.


Downtown one afternoon, Joe was chatting with some friends when he saw her.

She was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. He had to meet her. He excused himself and walked right over and introduced himself.

Samantha Taylor. Even her name was beautiful. He felt those same double-lightning bolts he had felt a few days earlier that had woken him to the thought that maybe someone else was out there. He had a feeling he had just found her. He asked her to dance, an innocent enough gesture, yet, the feel of her in his arms was pure heaven.

Samantha appeared to feel the same way.


Daring to touch her more intimately, Joe caressed her cheek and asked if she would go on a date with him, that very minute.


She agreed, and they went to a quieter location than the club they were in so they could talk more quietly. It didn't take long before they couldn't even keep their hands off each other. (All through ACR, no input from me.)


Yes, it certainly appeared that Samantha had fallen for Joe at first sight.

Joe suggested they have their pictures taken in the souvenir booth nearby, but it seemed that Samantha had other ideas for their use of that privacy curtain.


Joe was in love.



~*~*~*~*~*~*~


For your viewing pleasure, our friend Bryn Bluestone. I think she's Beryl Turquoise's great-aunt or something. ;-)

Trying is not always succeeding

Allyn and Joe continued to grow apart. There wasn't really anything causing it, the attraction between them just seemed to be fading. (They dropped from 2LB to 1LB, and never spin up wants about each other, even on dates.)

Even when they were enjoying the same activity at the same time, they were just in the same vicinity. They weren't doing it together.


One afternoon, Joe was downtown while Allyn was at work and his eyes fell on a woman and he felt as if he'd been struck by lightning, twice. He didn't even go and talk to the woman, but the feeling he experienced made him wonder if there wasn't something, or someone, out there that was a better match for him. And someone else that was better for Allyn than himself.


Later, at home, Joe and Allyn tried to rekindle some passion in their relationship.


But even that didn't seem to do anything for them.


They both agreed that while they loved each other, they might not necessarily be in love with each other anymore. They didn't make any decisions that would make any big changes in their lives yet, they just both knew that change was coming, and probably soon.

But are they happy?

Joe and Allyn went about their lives almost as if nothing had changed. It was almost as if they were strangers living in the same house and sharing the same bed. They talked, but it was never anything meaningful. Even when they would go out together, although they had fun together, the attraction just didn't seem to be there anymore.

(Sorry, I didn't get a picture for some reason!)

One evening, Joe was out at his telescope, as usual, searching for planets. He really enjoyed the activity, and had even discovered a couple of new ones for the Astronomical Society of Sims (ASS). The compensation was minimal but every penny helped. That particular night he was having trouble seeing between the clouds, and suddenly he was caught in a thunder storm. The light was blinding as his telescope was struck by a bolt of lightning, and the pain was almost unbearable. When he could move again, he went inside to take a shower and get some sleep.

He couldn't understand why Allyn was lecturing him, for pity's sake, he had almost died a few minutes earlier. You would think the woman would be grateful her fiancé was still alive!

Allyn decided to go shopping for wedding dresses one afternoon. She kind of hoped that trying on some wedding gowns would inspire her to do some wedding planning, because otherwise, nothing was happening.

She met Lauren, a nice enough girl, she supposed, but they didn't spend much time talking.


She also met Jescinda. She was really nice, and they chatted for quite a while. They made sure to exchange phone numbers, and the two thought they would become good friends someday.


It seemed that chatting with Jescinda had been a good idea.


Trying on wedding dresses:


Meanwhile, Joe came home from work with good news: He had received another promotion! He was almost to the top of his career. He was sure now that he would make it as a Game Designer before much longer.


That summer was filled with lots of thunderstorms, and one afternoon while both Allyn and Joe were away at work, lightning struck one of their telescopes, starting a fire.


Thankfully, the rain put the fire out with no damage.


Before long, the other telescope, up on the porch, also caught fire.


The rain continued though, and the fire on the porch fizzled, its heat dissipating and dying under the warm drops of water.


Would Joe and Allyn's relationship suffer the same fate?


(Do you recognize Lauren and Jescinda?)