cherry blossom girl, part 1 (prom 2088)

May 2088. 

seniors: Delphie Deppiesse, Dakota Deppiesse, Austin Turner, Desmond Banks 

juniors: Ryanne Phoenix, Malia Kapule, Sam Harris, Shannon Brett

chaperones: Violet & Orion Deppiesse 

—

“Hey, check this out. Doesn’t it rock so hard?”

Dakota’s fingers fluttered across the fretboard in a movement so quick and delicate, it was astonishing how she made that instrument scream. The sound that came out was heavy and abrasive. To be honest, Shannon’s style was probably more Katy Perry than Metallica. But she did like Dakota.

postcards from the land of wanting

April & May 2088. 

*warnings: briefly NSFW* 

#1: the fountain of desperately reclaimed youth

Pamela Collins is making forty look divine. As much as she dreaded this big day, it turns out there was no need to worry at all. Her butt is still firm, her breasts are still high, and her smile lines are light and cheerful. At the gym, she still draws a crowd of men—married men, single men, co-workers, teenagers.

But don’t worry, she’s not screwing any of these men.

Carly & Kyle: the wedding

May 2088. Carly Cook is 33, Kyle Kowalski is 31.

previously: Carly & Kyle got engaged

Carly is an old character whose story existed across three game versions and several blogs, much of it even off-camera. I know there are parts of her story that I can’t find on any of the blogs now—maybe they were in drafts of things I never got around to posting? Like the ending of her relationship with Joe. Or that she and Kyle were breaking up, then they were suddenly back together and getting engaged. There was some in between, I’m sure, but I can’t find it now, lol! 

Well, she’s here now and she’s finally getting married! 

superstar

May 2088. Vale Akiyama is 27, Vicky Garth is 23, Patrick Nova is 37, Raine is 9.

previously: Vale and Vicky make some big moves together // packing up // and celebrate nephew Abe's 1st birthday.

Music lessons, because: 

“I already wrote you a love song,” she said. 

“But I want another one,” he said.

the truth, for once

April 2088. Gwen Palmer is 35. Andreas Tsoukalos is 33.

previously: terrible love // but Gwen miscarried

warnings: miscarriage

You can have everything you deserve if you work hard enough, if you fight for it. The career, the man, the family. Just be smart enough, fierce enough, dedicated enough, sexy enough, and you can have it all.

Except that it’s not true. 

Gwen must have known it wasn’t true or realistic, especially for everyone else. Maybe, deep down, she even knew it wasn’t true for herself. But who cared as long as she was winning? For a long time, she thought she could bend the universe to her will. For a long time, she actually did. 

what you deserve (SNU & DAC, spring 2088)

Sierra Nova University and Dresden Arts College

Spring, 2088

*** warnings: abortion vs. pro-lifers


It was weird, Melissa now realized, how little she actually worried about the possibility of this happening. Melissa was a good girl, mostly. Daydreamy and whimsical, sure, but always headed in the right direction. She didn’t sleep around that much. She took her birth control pills. She asked her partners to wear condoms, too. And still?

It seemed wrong. It seemed unfair. It seemed like her pills had a manufacturing error or an incompatibility with some rogue herbal tea. It seemed like it should be absolutely anything but the biggest mistake of her life. 

Because, oops? Just like that? Oops, there went her plans. Like, oops, she dropped her phone in the toilet. That’s an oops. This was more than an oops. 

postcards from your next major crisis

February & March 2088.

*** content warnings: miscarriage, blood

#1: Cora Lawrence is doing just fine, thank you very much


Her life is complete, Cora tells herself. She doesn’t need a man. Especially not one like Luis-Fucking-Talbot. She is twenty-seven years old. Her biological clock is set to silent mode and folded away in her sock drawer. She owns prime real estate in downtown Sierra Nova and an investment portfolio that would impress most people twice her age. She buys fancy coffee and drinks it in silence after doing an hour of yoga at sunrise. This is going to be an incredible day, and Luis Fucking Talbot can go screw half his college campus if he wants to. Cora is filling her cup with zen, and it tastes just fine.

He probably has loads of STDs anyway.