Life of a Sim- Coral's Story
Natural_Highness:
Wow! This is really good. :)
rachel631:
I swear, that ring was burning a hole in my pocket for the longest time. Every time I looked at it it stared back at me accusingly. It was almost like a death sentence hanging over me... no, wait, that's not right... I mean, I wanted to give it to Amin, it was just... well, you know.
It was talking to my friend Tosha that really decided me. She was so much fun to be around... lately she's been my best friend, really, seeing as Carmen's been acting increasingly strangely lately (more than normal, I mean... and her normal is pretty off the rails by anyone else's standards!). She was just so secretive. And when I want to pick Amin up from work a few times, I was so sure she was there, hiding in the bushes. Which is stupid, because even Carmen... well, anyway. I digress.
Tosha and I chatted, and she finally convinced me to just go ahead and do it.
"What's the problem, Coral?" she asked. "At the end of the day, the worst he can say is no."
"But that is the problem, Tosh!"
"Well then" she smiled, "if he's stupid enough to say no, then you're so darn cute I might just marry you myself!"
You've just got to love Tosha, haven't you? That girl is a star.
And this was how I slowly approached the restaurant we'd had our very first real date in, and prepared to sit down. I think the phrase blank terror covers my expression adequately. I waited for Amin. As usual, he was late. He also smelt terrible... he'd clearly not even had a shower after work. He really irritated me at that moment. The man had no sense of poetic license...
All the same, it might just have been the alcohol (I never knew it was possible to drink so much in such a short space of time. It made me feel really funny and witty... yet with the sneaking suspicion that I wasn't....) but I felt ready to propose. Unfortunately, just as I prepared to slur my words out, Amin excused himself to go to the bathroom. I poured the remainder of the bottle of wine down my throat, and managed to corner him on his way back to the table.
"Amin... um... well, you know that we've been going out for some time..."
"Not a very long time. I mean, I suppose it's longer than..."
I could have cheerfully killed him at this moment.
"Well, I was wondering if... well, if..."
Right. No more slurring. Talking. I mean talking. This is time for acshun. Action, I mean. Whatever.
"It's very pretty, Coral, but why?"
"Good grief, Amin... and I thought I was the tipsy one!"
His face changed for a second, and then softened.
"Oh, Coral... I mean..."
Great. Here it comes.
"I'd love to!"
I was so excited, I just couldn't resist a cheer. Then reality hit.
"Are you all right, Coral?"
"Fine darling, fine."
I wasn't fine. In a short space of time, I'd just realised that I had to organise a wedding, sort out writing a will, try and convince Amin to get a better job, and probably pay for most of it out of my wages. All of a sudden, I felt sick.
"I think it's time we went home, love" Amin smiled. "I'll put you to bed."
He stroked my cheek, and all of a sudden I felt a little better about the whole thing. I just hope I'm not sick in the taxi...
rachel631:
The morning after my engagement I woke, unsurprisingly, with the hangover from hell. It was at these times I relied on some of my father’s old machines. I’d had my favorites transported in from my old house. Soon, I was feeling much better.
Unable to eat anything, I turned my mind to my studies.
Reading had always helped me through the toughest of times, and this was no exception. I mean, I had a wedding to plan, and not only that… I had a celebratory party to organize! Now that was going to be lots of fun…
Suddenly, my reverie was interrupted by the ringing of the telephone. Cursing, I moved over to pick it up. It was Carmen, and I wasn’t in the mood.
“Coral! You must listen! It’s very important!”
She sounded breathless, and also somewhat high.
“I found out about Amin! I spoke to some people and…” -here, she paused for the full, dramatic effect- “he’s a follower Coral!”
This was followed by an expectant pause. Like I said, I really wasn’t in the mood.
“Carmen, have you been smoking those special cigarettes of yours again?”
“No! A follower. You know… they’re obsessed by vampires, the life immortal, all that stuff. That’s why he was hanging around the Crypt-O all the time- he wants to be turned. He’s crazy, Coral! They all are! He won’t stop just because he’s marrying you, either. It’s like an obsession for them. He’s only still with you because he hasn’t found someone to turn him yet!”
“Carmen, look” I snapped, a little more harshly than I meant to. “The way you’re talking now, the only crazy one around here is you. I am marrying Amin. Now, you can come to the wedding or boycott it- it’s your choice- but I would very much like you to be there. And I’m sure Amin would too. Now can we stop this ridiculous talk of vampires please? It’s giving me a headache just trying to follow what you’re saying.”
There was a hurt pause.
“You know, Coral, everyone in this town thinks I’m mad.” Well, no surprises there then… “Even Cathleen thinks I’m a bit unhinged. But I thought you would understand. Your father was kidnapped by aliens, for crying out loud! I thought you’d be born into all of this…”
She continued on for a bit, but I didn’t really follow what she was saying. I thought I was hallucinating. My father… how could she have known about his abduction claims? And how could she say it all so casually, like it was fact?
“Wha… what did you say about my father?”
“Just that he was kidnap…”
“But… how do you know about his studies? His claims? You couldn’t have met him! It’s impossible!”
“Oh, Coral” she sounded genuinely sad. “I didn’t realize you never knew… I’m so sorry. Look, I have to go now, but we’ll speak later, OK?”
With that, she hung up on me, and I was left alone with my thoughts. I was really shaken, I won’t deny it. I didn’t want to go back… to think about these things… and I didn’t want to be alone. So I picked up the telephone again, and decided to invite Amin around to celebrate our engagement instead.
Good old Amin. I could always rely on him to cheer me up. Marriage to him is going to be fantastic, no matter what Carmen thinks. I mean, what does she really know about me? Nothing. That whole alien thing was just a lucky guess…
I decided to take Amin with me to look at the various places we could get married, in order to make myself feel better. This was going to be my special day, and it had to be just perfect.
As I looked up at the wedding arch, I imagined myself saying “I do”… it sent shivers down my spine. I looked around to see if Amin felt the same, only to glimpse him playing with some stray animal. Ugh… even worse… it was a BAT!
“Amin! What are you doing? Don’t you know they carry rabies?”
He hardly seemed to hear me, so I walked over and grabbed his arm.
“I like bats” he said, absent mindedly. “Did you know, they’re a protected species? It seems such a shame that they’re dying out…”
“Fascinating, I’m sure” I said, hotly. “But you haven’t told me what you think about this place for our wedding yet.”
“Oh… uh… right… well, it’s really nice, but… you see, I owe these people some money, and… well… wouldn’t it be romantic to have it at home?”
“Your place or mine?”
“Yes… well… my place… you see, I have this little problem with my rent…”
Once more, I wanted to scream.
The thing is, though… Amin always had a way of making things right.
I could never stay angry with him for long. So, with this said, I moved to organize the wedding at my place.
rachel631:
When I woke up the next morning, Amin was missing from bed. Instead there was a note with a single rose, telling me that he had to go into work for a stock take. Which was a bit strange, really, as they don’t normally do stock takes at night in the petrol station where he works… but never mind. He told me he’s got a new boss, so it’s all change.
After dressing, I went to check my mailbox, to see if the wedding catalogue I’d ordered had arrived. It hadn’t, of course (next day delivery- pah!), but there was something else there. It was written on blue paper with a neat, flowing hand which I recognized as Carmen’s. Frowning, I took it inside and started to read. What I saw was this:
Dear Coral,
I’m so sorry about what happened yesterday. I didn’t mean to upset you, and the last thing I wanted was to strain our friendship. I don’t know what I should say to make it up to you, but I know I want to be honest with you. I wasn’t lying when I talked to you about Amin, but I can see that you have your heart set on marrying him. Who knows? It may work out for you. I hope it does. Either way, you should know that I’m your friend, and I have your back.
Now, about your father. I don’t know what he told you about where you came from, and I don’t know if it’s my job to tell you. But I think that maybe you should know where I’m getting my information from.
Coral, I never met your father, but I did know his work. I wasn’t sure if it was the same Professor Smith, so I never said anything before, but from what you told me last night I think it was. He was a world expert on UFOs. He even claimed to have been abducted. Now, it’s not something that people like to talk about, but people who have been abducted often come back with… well, an extra visitor onboard, if you know what I mean. Most of them never carry to term… there’s never been a case recorded of a live birth, but some people speculate that there have been some babies born and their parents have hidden them… retired from public life and all that. There’s even been a bit of research done into what those children would look like. There are pictures… and they look a lot like you.
I know your father was a recluse. He published all his work online, and retired from the university where he used to teach mathematics. He lived off savings. More than that, I don’t know.
I can’t make you believe me, but I do want to be your friend. And not just because I have some sort of morbid fascination with aliens, either. I like you. I have fun with you, even if you do think I’m crazy- who doesn’t, right? Anyway, call me when you’re free, OK? I’d love to go out sometime.
See you soon (I hope),
Carmen x
Of course, I called her. And she came right over. I’ve really missed her… even if she is a little crazy, at least she’s genuine. And then there’s the matter of what she told me about my father. Which fits in perfectly with what I know about him. I still don’t know what to think about that. I’m not stupid. I know there’s not really a medical condition which makes your skin green and your ears pointy. But I just don’t know if I’m ready to accept that I’m a half-alien. I mean, that’s a lot to take in.
Anyway, we didn’t discuss all if that. Instead we went bowling and got some food. We chatted for ages, and she didn’t act crazy once. Even when I discussed my wedding plans, she was fine with it, and full of helpful suggestions.
Basically, I had a great day out, and a lot of fun. We were like small children! I felt really blessed. I have some really fantastic friends, and a great partner. What else could a girl possibly want from life? Well, a fantastic wedding, and to live happily ever after, of course… but I’m going to get that soon enough! I am one lucky, lucky girl.
Medagic:
This is really good so far!
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