Chapter 2.2 – Friends

The discovery of the Sunset Valley’s abandoned mine drives Reid to learn all he can about it’s history. Few people seem to know (or care) about it’s existence and there is very little in the way of records in City Hall or the library.
 chap2_2a
Every once in awhile, he updates David about his discoveries. David listens politely, but he really isn’t all that interested in boring details. He would rather be playing in the old mine shaft and searching for gold.
 chap2_2g
Jan and David forget about it soon enough, and move on to other adventures. Being the kind of kid that leaves no stone unturned, Reid continues to gather the facts. The three of them continue on through their childhood as best friends. But the time comes when Jan, who is the oldest, begins to drift away from the two younger boys. Her attention begins shift to more “mature” friends.
 chap2_2b
That leaves David and Reid on their own. And after Jan leaves, even their friendship seems somewhat distant. Reid spends a lot of time on the computer, in the library, and doing stuff with other geniuses that is way past David’s ability. And while he does go to Reid’s house occasionally to work on assignments they have in common, things just aren’t the same.
 chap2_2c
Julian is there for him, though. David has always admired his father for the little things he does to make him feel better. He likes when his dad helps with homework. Even though he’s not a genius, he helps David in finding the answers for himself through problem solving and critical thinking.
 chap2_2d
David tries to find his place and find that one thing that he can really just run with. Both his parents are natural athletes, but David doesn’t seem to have carried that particular gene. He does a valiant job trying to keep up, but it becomes pretty clear that sports just isn’t his thing. The only time he seems really happy is when he is fishing with Julian.
 chap2_2e
Julian can sense the restlessness in his son. It is the same restlessness he too experienced, that lead to years of isolation and drifting from place to place. He has become painfully aware, over the past few years, that the cabin is a glaring sore spot in his relationship with both his wife and his son. They have lived for years in primitive conditions without even a stove to warm their meals.
 chap2_2i
Julian has become quite good at investing his saved money and the money Bebe earns from selling her paintings. They are earning a steady income from the resulting dividends. His foot is in the door at the theatre, but he needs that one thing to “wow” the board of directors into allowing him a bigger share of the ownership. Should this investment pan out, he can finally move his family up and out of the cabin.
 chap2_2f
There is a particular performer, still very much unknown, whose style is all her own. He knows that it will take only one big break to propel this star into the big times. And if she makes her break at the theater, it would propel Sunset Valley into the spotlight along with her. He arranges the meeting, and is driven by the theater to her home.
 chap2_2h
It has been a very, very long time. And unfortunately, the fireworks are no less spectacular.
In case you’re not sure what’s going on with Julian, here are a couple of posts that provide some historical context.
Chapter 1.3 – Revenge
Chapter 1.7 – Infidelity

6 thoughts on “Chapter 2.2 – Friends

  1. Oh dear!

    I feel like things are about to take a turn for the worse! D:

    Also, in bit of a side-note, exactly how DOES one take a picture of their Sim inside of a vehicle? I’m at a bit of a loss when it comes to this. :\

    Like

  2. I pause the game and fool with the camera until I get a clear view. It is usually a real pain in the rump, but the right shot can really help tell the story.

    Like

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