The Bookacy Family Alphabet Adventures, chapter 43

Dear reader, welcome back to the Bookacy family Alphabet Adventures! This is chapter 43 and the
second college chapter of generation D. Last time, we met a familiar face after a rather long break.
Let's get right back to where we left off and see what's up with Komei, shall we?
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Komei Tellerman had heard on the news about Salahuddin Chamcha's capture, and that he was
currently in Alphabetia Jail. Salahuddin had gotten three lifetime sentences to be served one after
another, so as a vampire, Salahuddin would eventually walk, but for the foreseeable future, he'd be in
jail. And with security measures like theirs, Komei found it unlikely that he'd even bother to try and
break out.
Ever since the capture, Komei's life had been rather dull. When helping Salahuddin, he'd had a sense
of purpose. Of course, he still had his job in the Criminal career, and he supposed it was to some
extent fulfilling, but still to him, it was just a job, something to pay the bills. Komei had no family, so in
his free time, he was in principle free to do as he pleased. Mostly, he wasn't really sure what to do, so
he found himself spending a lot of time in Alphabetia's bars, especially the less popular, quiet ones.
More often than not, he found himself in one of the places that Salahuddin had frequented.

One evening, Komei was again sitting at one of his favorite places, the same one where he'd run into
Salahuddin before re-uniting with his old colleague. He was idly toying with his near-empty glass and
wondering whether he should ask the bartender one more before heading home, when he happened
to overhear part of a conversation going on behind him, as two women were leaving the bar.
”... I mean, it's not like she's got much choice. She's got to uphold the family reputation somehow”,
one said to the other.
”Yeah, I get that”, the other replied. ”Aren't they, like, the local Legacy family over at Riverblossom
hills? Because if they are, that's just how it works. You remember my friend Sally? Sally once said to
me...”
Komei didn't get to hear what Sally had said, because the bar door just closed behind the two
women, but what he heard was quite enough. He'd vinced at the word ”Legacy”, and his hands were
shaking slightly. One of those again. He definitely needed another drink.

Over at the local Legacy family's home in Alphabetia, much closer to Komei, it didn't seem like
anything like family reputation was at stake. It was a perfectly normal morning, and the current
heiress, Cho, was enjoying breakfast with her two youngest children, Dorian and Desdemona. The
oldest, Dirk, was currently away in college.
”Dorian, what do you think, it's Saturday and my first day off as a teenager. I wanna go downtown
today, to meet some sims and have some fun. Come with me?” asked Desdemona.
Dorian took a bite from his toaster pastry.
”Sure, that sounds like fun. Mom, can we go?” he checked with Cho.
”Of course, that sounds nice. But not before homework's done, school comes first.”
Dorian sighed a bit, but agreed. ”Fair enough.”

So after breakfast, the two young Bookacies headed back to their shared bedroom and tackled
homework. It was nicer together, and this time, they had a reward waiting for them.
”Whoever is done first gets to drive!” exclaimed Desdemona.
Dorian laughed. ”Deal. Prepare to lose, sister dear.”

It was a close competition.
”I was there first!”
”Nope, not even close!”
And so the friendly bickering continued all the way to the car.

”Alright, alright, you can drive, since you just had your birthday and haven't gotten to yet”, said Dorian
finally. ”But only so we can actually get there. Because really, I won that competition.”
Desdemona grinned and hopped behind the wheel.

After the siblings managed to quit their playful banter at least for the moment, Desdemona drove
them safely to a park downtown. There were some other sims of their age out there, enjoying the
nice, sunny day. Desdemona especially was like a fish in the water getting to know new sims. This,
this was what teenage life really was all about.

While her kids were outside enjoying their day off, Cho had a different kind of pleasure. For a long
time, she had been wishing to change careers, but openings in the Gamer track had been few and
far between. Recently, she'd finally found that position she'd been looking for, and now she was
enjoying the excitement that new challenges in the professional life brought. There was still ambition
left in her, and with her skills and experience, she was able to progress in her new career at a nice
pace.
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Cho has now made it to level 9 of her new career.

Hard work was its own reward, but sometimes work had additional perks. Like the odd looking pinball
machine that Cho had brought home one day. She said it was the newest and the hottest in the field,
and she should know.

Nicholas' pleasures in life were similar to Cho's. After having a long and successful career in Law,
he'd decided to try something new, and was currently exploring the field of Journalism. Like Cho, he
enjoyed the change of pace.

Nicholas too found something rather memorable to bring home. He was becoming a rather esteemed
journalist, and he was awarded a prestigious prize for his finest work. The small trophy that he
brought home wasn't the most important thing of course, but it was nice in itself.

George was, of course, still there too. He enjoyed his usual chores, such as taking care of the
garden. The family had both a maid and a gardener, so there wasn't officially that much for George to
do, but he insisted on taking care of the crops.

He was still regularly going out with count Pao, and that had made him almost nocturnal. He of
course didn't need sleep as such, but he did need to recharge occasionally. It was pretty convenient
that the best way to do that was to use sunlight, as that didn't take away from his time with the count.

As painful as losing the family's long time pet, Chunni, had been, especially for George, time was
finally doing its job, and one of those days, George felt ready for a new bird. Cho and Nicholas
encouraged him, and so George went ahead and chose a bird for the family. He named her Delphine,
and it seemed that the two of them started forging a fast friendship from the start.

With the peaceful lives that the family currently led, the two teenagers had it probably the most
interesting. That's definitely what they thought.

Dorian was still bringing home Daisy Fairchild, fairly frequently even. She was smart and fun to be
with.
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Daisy is a third cousin to the main line, daughter of Cliff and Whitney Fairchild.

Naturally, Daisy was also a frequent guest for meals, as Cho wanted to make sure that the kids and
their guests were well fed. This gave Desdemona the chance to get to know Daisy, and the two of
them got along well.
”Oh, it's not that I don't like other foods, I mean this salad is really great, as is the spaghetti
bolognese that my Mom makes, for example”, explained Daisy, ”It's just that Grilled Cheese is my
absolute favorite. Hands down. I just get this huge craving on it, especially if I don't eat any for a
while.”
”Uh huh, I understand”, replied Desdemona, ”That's very interesting. I wonder if it's the the same for
our cousin Dani.”
”I'd think so yeah. Oh, right, Dani, you're talking about Dani Jalowitz right?”
”Yeah, how so?”
”I know her, we've got biology together at school. We've shared recipes and stuff.”

After the meals though, Desdemona didn't get much of a chance to socialize with Daisy, she was all
Dorian's. That was okay, she understood.

Well, not entirely Dorian's, to be fair. Like Chunni before her, Delphine was apparently becoming quite
the attraction among the family guests.
”Who's a smart bird, who is?”

Of course, it wasn't just guests who adored Delphine. Like with Chunni, George was the closest to
Delphine and took her care to heart, but other family members were often found at the cage, playing
with or talking to her.

All in all, life was quite peaceful in the Bookacy family. Days went on by, as the adults concentrated
on their careers and friends, and they were quite fulfilled with that.
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Cho reached the maximum level in the Gamer career, and with that, completed her second Lifetime
Want. Her third one is now to become Mad Scientist.

Meanwile, the younger generation was getting ready for college. Cho and Nicholas still couldn't get
enough of the peaceful times, remembering the more eventful days, which had also contained a lot of
uncertainty and worry, even heartache. They hoped that their kids might get to enjoy a peaceful time
in their adulthood too. Especially Dirk, who was the heir.

Speaking of Dirk, life was indeed quite peaceful for him too at the moment. Dirk had just started his
second year in Sim State University, and he was enjoying his time there.

He'd joined the family's Greek House and currently shared it with the placeholder who his stepfather
had picked a generation ago, Robin. As per family tradition, Robin was working through college
together with the Legacy kids after her placeholding duties. She was a nice girl and Dirk appreciated
the company. The Greek House was a nice place to spend one's college years too. If Dirk had any
complaints, those had to do with the fact that his siblings were so much younger than him that they
hadn't been able to join him yet.

The weather was nice right then, so Dirk and Robin spent a lot of time outdoors. Robin found
gardening quite relaxing, while Dirk tried out fishing.

He wasn't great at it by any means, but occasionally, he did manage to catch something from the
small pond on the lot. That was already an achievement for a complete newcomer like him.

While things were mostly the same from day to day, even to the point of boredom sometimes, there
were some changes as well.
One day when she'd just come home from class, Robin heard the phone ring.
”Hello?”
…
”Oh, yes, yes, hello Lucy!”
…
”Oh, so you've found a replacement? Tomorrow? Okay, from tomorrow on works fine for us. We're
just glad that it all went so smoothly and you'll be able to take some time off now. I'll be sure to let
Dirk know. What was the name again?”

The next afternoon, Robin was home alone when she saw a fellow student walking by. She was used
to frequent walkbys at the Greek House and often invited them in for company. She was also used to
the fact that the grand majority of them were related to Dirk in one way or another.
”Hi, I don't think we've met. I'm Robin, nice to meet you”, she introduced herself.
”Hi, I'm Dory, nice to meet you too. This must be the Greek House right? I'm one of Dirk's numerous
cousins and decided to come check it out”, said the other girl.
”Yeah, you've come to the right place. Dirk's in class right now, but come on in, I'll show you around.”

When Dirk came home from class, he found two young ladies enjoying the sun and tossing a football
in the front yard.
”Hi Robin, I'm back. And hi, umm, it's Dory, right? I think we met when we were little.”
”Hi Dirk”, replied Dory when Robin caught the ball and they paused the game. ”Yeah, that's me. Now
that we're all in college I decided to come check this place out and maybe actually get to know you a
bit better.”
Dirk smiled. ”That sounds nice. I'll leave you to the game though, I'll see you guys later”, he said and
started heading towards the gate.
”Oh, Dirk?” said Robin, ready to re-start the ballgame. ”I almost forgot. The new maid, Lucy's
replacement, is here.” She gestured towards the cleaning company car. ”I think she's currently in the
kitchen.”
”Alright, thanks Robin. I guess I should go and say hi.”

Dirk headed into the kitchen, and sure enough, he found a young lady there in a maid uniform,
currently scrubbing the counter.
”Hello, miss Langerak?”
The lady turned around and looked slightly startled. ”Hello, sir. Mister Bookacy, I suppose?”
Dirk smiled. ”You can call me Dirk. I'd say that mr. Bookacy is my step-Dad, but I think everyone
except our security droid calls him by his first name too.”
”O-okay, if you wish. We have company rules about addressing clients, you see. I'm Kaylynn.”
”Nice to meet you, Kaylynn. I'm happy that you agreed to come.”
Kaylynn smiled a slightly uncertain smile. ”Thank you. Lucy said nothing but good things, so since I
could use the extra hours, I promised our superior I would come. Lucy of course has more
experience but... I promise I'll do my best.”

Dirk smiled back, trying to be as reassuring as possible. ”Oh, I'm sure you'll do just fine. We're really
grateful for the help. You know, with students around, things can get pretty messy quickly.”
”I'm glad you think so”, Kaylynn replied and smiled with a little more convinction.
Dirk felt relieved. He wasn't usually shy around sims, but something made him feel slightly uncertain
of himself. Definitely, he didn't want to make their new maid feel unwelcome, or give her the idea that
he and his family were overdemanding patrons or that they didn't appreciate the work.
”So... Did Robin show you around the house yet? Do you have many different houses to work per
week?”

With Kaylynn taking care of the household chores for now, Dirk and Robin concentrated on
entertaining their guest. Dirk made a nice salad for lunch.
”... so yeah, so far it's been interesting”, said Dory. ”I'm fairly sure I want to major in Biology, since I
want to become a doctor, but orientation was still interesting, with all the different majors being
presented and all. I had no idea that some of them even existed!”
Dirk nodded. ”I get what you mean. For me it wasn't entirely clear from the start, so it was really nice
to see all the different options. I'm not sure I would have figured without it that Psychology might suit
me.”
Dory nodded eagerly. ”Exactly. What about you, Robin, what do you study?”
”I'm an Art major”, Robin replied. ”It's something I've always been interested in, so it made a lot of
sense to study it, too.”

After lunch, Dirk challenged his cousin to a game of poker. The family didn't have a table back at
home, but by now he'd gotten some practice and was getting quite good at it.

Dory wasn't the only guest around that evening. Another one of Dirk's second cousins, Daniela,
decided to pay a visit as well. She knew Dirk somewhat better than Dory, as they'd already spent
some time together in college. But this was her first time meeting Robin, in any case.
”Hi, you must be Robin. I'm Daniela, nice to meet you.”
”You too. Yeah, that's me. I'm guessing you're also Dirk's cousin?”
Daniela laughed. ”Well there are some of us running around you could say. Yeah, we're second
cousins.”
”I knew it! Anyway, come on in, I think they're playing poker right now.”

That was a fun night, with lots of poker, chatter and laughter, and discussion about majors too. On
Dirk's part, it was interrupted slightly when his phone rang.
”Hey I'm sorry guys, I gotta take this one, it's my little sister”, he said and got up. ”Hi Desdemona,
what's up?”
He didn't mind the interruption. After all, it was his little sister, and he knew it was pretty hard for her,
him being in college and her still in high school back home. Especially since she knew that soon
Dorian would be ready to join Dirk, and she'd be the only one left home.

Afterwards, the evening went on as before. It was nice, not a party or anything, just hanging out. And
it was nice getting to know Dory and catching up with Daniela. Although there was this one awkward
moment.
”So, are you seeing anyone yet?” asked Daniela, looking very curious.
”I, umm...” It's not that he hadn't expected it to come up sooner or later, he was the heir after all. It's
just, seeing how things had gone for him when he was a teenager, he was feeling a bit nervous about
the whole thing. And perhaps a bit worried that he wasn't dating anyone, mostly because of the heir
thing.
”No, not really. What about you, how are you and Damien doing?” Dirk quickly changed the topic, and
Daniela seemed to settle for that.

The next morning at breakfast, Dirk still felt slightly bothered by it. He tried to act in his usual way, but
Robin was not fooled. ”What's the matter Dirk? You seem quiet.”
”Well...” he started, not sure what to say. He felt a bit embarassed, but then, Robin was a nice girl
and a good friend. He sighed. ”This is kind of stupid, but last night, when I was talking to Daniela...”
he started, and soon found himself telling her the whole story.
Robin was quiet for a bit. ”I don't really know what to tell you. I get it's a lot of pressure to be the heir,
and pressure isn't nice when it comes to romance. And then, as a Family sim you probably want to
find someone, too.”
Dirk nodded. ”Yeah. I wasn't worrying about it too much so far, but this kind of made me nervous.”
”No wonder”, she replied. ”If I were you, I'd probably try to ignore it if I at all could. You can actively
look for someone if you want to, but there's no point forcing it. Ultimately, what happens, happens. If
it makes you feel any better, I don't think you'll need to be alone if you don't want to.”
Dirk nodded slowly. ”Yeah, I guess. Thanks for listening, Robin, that already makes me feel a bit
better.”

So Dirk tried not to worry. Robin was probably right, and things were going to work out just fine in the
end. Unless he was a terrible heir and in the end he'd have to give up the title, maybe Desdemona
would want to do it and... No, none of that! Things were going to be fine. Hopefully.

Robin hoped so too. She wasn't really used to giving romantic advice, so she hoped it'd been
reasonable. In any case, she couldn't do much about it, and was also busy with school.

At least school was going well, that was nice. She was a little younger than Dirk, and just now she
had her finals, which she passed with flying colors and became a Sophomore.

Even though Dirk and Robin were still at the Greek House by themselves, that wouldn't be the case
for terribly much longer.
Dirk was among the oldest of his generation, but this semester his younger cousins in various
degrees were starting to arrive at the college. Among them was his first cousin Dani Jalowitz, Cyrus
and Chris' firstborn. She'd spend her first semester in the dorms and after that, she'd move to the
Greek House. For now, she was a dorm mate to Dory, whom she didn't know very well.
Their first day on campus had been pretty exciting.
”This is so cool, I can't believe we're finally in college, can you?” exclaimed Dory, as they were getting
to know their dorm and each other.
Dani couldn't help but smile. ”Yeah, it's pretty cool alright. We've all heard about it from the older
cousins for ages, now it's finally our turn to find out for ourselves.”

The dorm life was okay. Dani had her own room, and while it was pretty ascetic, it was hers. And her
fellow dorm mates seemed nice. Even the food was alright, although whenever Dani got the chance,
she made her own, because nothing the cafeteria man was able to make was anything compared to
her superior Grilled Cheese.

Dory seemed especially cool. It turned out that she was openly a witch, which was pretty interesting.
Dani wondered whether she was worried about how the other college kids would feel about that, but it
seemed that they were pretty open minded.
Dory explained that the witch thing ran in the family, although not for terribly long. Her grandfather
had been a warlock and had been able to transfer the magic to his daughter and granddaughter. Dani
had known that there was some magic in the extended family, but it was a different thing to meet
someone magical first hand. In the end, Dory wasn't that different from Dani and her other dorm
mates, even if her preferred method of getting to class involved a broomstick.
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Dory is Claire and Trevor Riley's daughter, and hence the granddaughter of Bill and Ira. Bill was of
course the magical grandfather.

Obviously, getting into the Greek House was a high priority task on Dani's to-do list. So one autumn
afternoon, she called her cousin and asked him to come over and get initiation over with. He brought
Robin with him, of course.
”Alright”, said Robin, ”now let's see how well you know the school cheer!” Dani almost rolled her eyes
at that, but joined the cheer anyway. This was her initiation, after all. And well, she wouldn't admit it,
but she was actually kind of having fun.

Dirk and Robin hadn't made initiation all that official, really. Most of the time Dani just hung out with
Robin, to get to know her. Dirk she already knew obviously, so she hinted her cousin that there was a
chess board inside, so he could sneak off and do something enjoyable while she and Robin took care
of the initiation.

Of course, she was invited to join the Greek House. There wasn't really a question about it, as it was
the traditional Greek House of the family, and her cousin was already a member. Robin was a nice
girl too, so Dani quite looked forward to moving in.

It was kind of a pity that they'd have to part ways with Dory then, she was a good dormmate, and they
got along well. They also found each other interesting: Dory knew a lot more about the supernatural
than Dani, and on the other hand, Dani could share her knowledge about cooking and Grilled
Cheese. Dory seemed genuinely interested in that.
The extended family had its own Greek House, so Dory would most likely be joining that later on, and
Dani was all set up to move in with Dirk and Robin. But they'd keep in touch, and who knew, they
might even throw a joined party between the two Greek Houses some time!

Dirk was able to press his worries to the back of his mind at least pretty well. He figured Daniela
hadn't meant to make him worried or uncomfortable, she'd rather just been curious, so why should he
let it make him nervous? At least that was what he was able to think most of the time. In the mean
time, he kept himself busy with school and his everyday tasks. That worked pretty well, and he
started to feel more relaxed.

To get his mind off things some more, Dirk decided it was time to throw another party. It'd get him to
spend time with his classmates and hopefully everyone would have a good time. He'd of course invite
his younger siblings, who'd be thrilled to visit the Greek House again. On a whim, he also decided to
invite the new maid, Kaylynn. Somehow, Dirk had gotten the vibe that she could use some company.

So early one evening, the party was on. Both Dorian and Desdemona were of course there, they
were the first of all the guests to reply in the affirmative when Dirk called them and asked if they
wanted to come. Dani wasn't far behind, as a freshman she was obviously of the opinion that she
should be in each and every party on the campus.

A little bit after the party started, Dirk found Kaylynn sitting alone on the couch. She was clearly
nervous, just sitting there quietly, with the party going on around her. No wonder really, thought Dirk
as he sat down. She didn't know anyone at the party. So Dirk was obviously going to be a good host
and keep her company.
”Hi Kaylynn. I'm glad you could make it today.”
Kaylynn smiled slightly. ”Thank you, mr. B... I mean Dirk. It was very nice of you to invite me. I don't
think I've ever seen an actual student party.”
Dirk almost asked if she'd never been to college, then realized it was a bit of stupid question. ”Oh I
see”, he said instead. ”Definitely worth it to see at least one if you can. How do you find it so far?”
”Oh, it seems pretty fun. I'm glad there's not a huge crowd, that might be a bit overwhelming.”
”Yeah, I get what you mean. Well, not all of us cousins are in college yet, so that means that parties
are a bit less crowded, and...”

On the other side of the room, Robin was chatting with Dirk's younger brother.
”So you're the one I need to impress in order to make it into the Greek House?” Dorian joked.
Robin grinned. ”Yeah, pretty much. Though better keep in good terms with Dirk too, as the heir he
does have some say in it too.”
”Heh yeah, I guess so. Speaking of him, I should drag him to do something fun. The party's been
going at least an hour, and all he's done so far is sit on the couch and chat with the cleaning lady.”
Robin glanced at the two, who seemed lost in conversation. She smiled at the briefly, then turned
back to Dorian. ”You know, Dirk might not thank you if you were to bug him right now. But if you want
something fun, I think there's a bowling contest going on outside, wanna go watch?”
Dorian raised a questioning eyebrow at the back of his brother's head, then shrugged and followed
Robin outside.

Robin was right, there was indeed some bowling going on in the back yard. Most of the party guests
were there, either participating or watching. Daniela was a pretty good bowler, and she probably
would have kept the crowd entertained on her own. It wasn't long until Dorian had forgotten about
Dirk and the conversation he'd just had, as he cheered his cousin on.

As for Dirk, he'd just about forgotten that there was a party going on in the first place. After being a
slightly quiet conversation partner early on, Kaylynn had seemed to warm up and relax now, and he
found he quite enjoyed her company. They'd played some pinball together, and after that they just
found themselves hanging out in the lobby.
”... the maid thing isn't my dream job of course, but it pays the bills and I get to help other sims. Many
of them are nice clients too and really appreciate the work I do”, Kaylynn finished. ”But what about
you? You are the heir to a Legacy family. That must be pretty interesting, right?”
Dirk thought about his family for a bit, then laughed slightly. ”I suppose 'interesting' is a word that
could describe it, at least in the past of my family. How much time you've got? Because I think I
should start with my great-great-grandmother, and it could take a while.”
Kaylynn raised an eyebrow. ”Now you got me interested. Don't worry, I'm not in a hurry.”

”... so yeah.”, said Dirk as he shuffled the cards. ”The guy is in jail now, and will be for a long time yet,
but the police still suspect that he may have gotten a new sidekick after his son turned his back on
him, and if so, that sim is still out there. I've never seen him myself, only the old picture that was in
the news when he got caught. I was a little kid back then. My Mom met him eye to eye when he tried
to kill her at my uncle's wedding, Nicholas says she still sometimes wakes to nightmares. I can't really
even imagine what that was like, as it's been really peaceful all of my life”, he finished.
Kaylynn had been quiet all the time he told the story, just nodding and saying ”uh-huh”, occasionally
to acknowledge she was listening. When he finished, she continued to be quiet for a longish pause.
”Wow”, she finally said. ”That's quite something. I have some family history too, but... Wow. I'm don't
really even sure what to say.”
”You don't need to say anything”, Dirk replied. ”Just... Thanks for listening. And I... I hope you aren't
going to run away screaming now”, he said, joking but evidently a little worried for real. He'd noticed
Kaylynn's hint at her own family history, but the flash of worry on her face stopped him from asking
more. ”It's really nice spending time with you, Kaylynn.”
Kaylynn smiled. ”No, I'm not running away. And you're nice to be with, too.” For the moment, that was
all he needed to hear.

Outside, the party was going on, even though the host didn't know much about it.
”Hey where's Dirk?” Daniela asked Robin. ”I don't think I've seen him in hours.”
”Well...”, said Robin, not sure what she should or should not say. ”The last I saw him, he seemed to
be having fun. He was keeping company for the new maid, Kaylynn.”
”Ooh”, said Daniela. She wasn't fooled by Robin's tone of voice. From then on, there was a bit of a
rumor going on around the party.

The targets of said rumor were blissfully unaware of it, but rather continued to play poker through
most of the night. Every now and then someone would join them, usually in their swimwear, as the
rest of the party had pretty much turned into a pool party.
”Alright, I'll deal the cards”, said Kaylynn and gestured towards Dirk and Devon, ”and you two are in
charge of teaching Desdemona the rules.”
”Can do. So as you can see, we all have our chips here in front of us. The red ones are...”

All in all, it was a very nice party. And it followed the best college traditions, such as eventually being
broken up by the police for making so much noise. Kaylynn seemed slightly distressed at that point,
but as they walked towards home, Devon reassured her: ”Don't worry, it happens all the time.
Besides, we were just playing music and getting a bit over-excited about a game of poker. Nothing
wrong with that. Really, it's just a sign it was a great party.”

Yet before bed Robin took a dip in the Greek House swimming pool. The water was just of the right
temperature: warm but still refreshing. She thought about Dirk and Kaylynn. She was pretty sure that
there was something there, and clearly she wasn't the only one, she'd heard the beginnings of the
rumors. She was glad that Dirk seemed to be finding someone, but she was slightly worried about the
rumors and how Dirk might react to them if he knew. Things seemed to be going right, but seeing
their recent discussion, hearing about the rumor might be enough to make Dirk lose his nerve.
As she got out of the pool, she decided to just follow the situation from afar, and help Dirk if she
could. At the moment though, there was nothing to do but wait and see.

A few days later, it turned out that maybe Robin needn't have worried that much. Dirk found that he'd
been thinking about Kaylynn almost constantly since the party, and he wasn't oblivious enough to not
know why that might be.
He realized that he needed to do something, but was a little unsure what. Since he'd left for college,
he hadn't really thought about it much, but just then, as they were the most unwelcome, the awkward
memories from his teenage came back, how he didn't exactly have the best of luck in romance. He
wasn't naturally very shy, but at this point, the thought of making a move made him nervous.
He considered talking to Robin again, but something prevented him. He didn't want to seem
completely dependent on her, he realized. He was supposed to be an adult, and he'd try and take
care of this by himself. He brushed the chess pieces off the table and pushed back his chair, reaching
for his cell phone. Well, here goes nothing, he thought and dialed Kaylynn's number.

”So, here we are”, Dirk said, trying to smile. His mouth felt kind of dry, so it wasn't exactly easy.
”Yes, here we are”, said Kaylynn in the same tone. ”So... when you said 'go out', did you mean it, like,
as a date?” she asked. She tried to act confident and casual, but Dirk could tell she was at least a bit
nervous. In some way it felt comforting.
He smiled slightly. ”Well, I'll be honest: I'd like it to be, but it's up to you. Would you like it to be?”
Now she smiled back at him. ”Yes, yes I would.”
Dirk felt a pang of relief. ”Alright, so I suppose a date it is then. Nice to have that out in the open.
So... are you hungry? I hear the food here is pretty good.”

Dirk didn't usually have trouble with talking to anyone. He wasn't the most talkative of guys, but he
was pretty easygoing. And despite feeling butterflies in his stomach, he'd managed to pull off natural
discussion with Kaylynn before. Not today, though. He felt his hands sweat and started worrying that
he might drop his drink if this kept up. Still, it was oddly comforting to see that Kaylynn shared his
sudden discomfort. She seemed to think the same way, as she flashed a tiny nervous smile before
concentrating on her menu.

Fortunately, the food arriving defused the awkwardness in some way. A bit later they were laughing
about it, even.
”It is pretty silly”, Kaylynn said and gave a wide smile. ”Getting things out in the open shouldn't make
things more awkward.”
”Yeah, this was supposed to be the easy part”, Dirk joked.
”Well, it seems to be getting easier now”, said Kaylynn and smiled. It was the most beautiful smile
that Dirk had ever seen.

The conversation stayed mostly light, discussing hobbies and favorite foods. They both agreed that
today's salad was quite delicious, even if their own favorites were something else. They touched upon
Dirk's studies, a natural and easy topic. The awkwardness was gone, but Dirk had to admit that they'd
had deeper conversations before. Maybe this was how it was supposed to be, though, he wasn't
exactly an expert in dating. All the same, it was definitely enjoyable.

It seemed that after the beginning, things progressed quite naturally. It was a very nice day.

If it wasn't apparent before, it was quite apparent now that they were very drawn together, and
enjoyed each other's company.

That day, there were no others. Just the two of them.

”Kaylynn?” Dirk asked quietly.
”Hmm?”
”Would you...” he swallowed, ”would you like to continue the date back at the Greek house, in a bit
more private environment? We've got some nice music and maybe some snacks.”
Kaylynn squeezed his hand. ”I'd love to.”

So the date continued in the Greek House. Robin was away in class, so the two of them had the
house to themselves. There was some dancing, with romantic music quietly in the background and
pleasant conversation on the side.

Soon enough, there was less talking, and more kissing. It was becoming more and more clear that
one thing would soon lead to another, and both were looking forward to it.

And it didn't disappoint.
”That was lovely”, said Dirk quietly, squeezing Kaylynn's hand. She didn't say anything, just smiled at
him.

”How are you feeling?”
”Right now, pretty amazing.”

The date had been a roaring success, and both Dirk and Kaylynn agreed that there would definitely
be more in the future. For now, Kaylynn stayed over, to play some poker.

It wasn't entirely sure whether there was more poker or kissing, however.

As Kaylynn left the Greek House that day, she left a bouquet of roses on the front step. At the same
time, she was feeling both ecstatic and terrified. It had been a long time since she'd trusted anyone
like she was beginning to trust Dirk. It was scary, but she was determined to see this through. She
wouldn't run.

Life continued mostly the same way as before. Dirk got to notice that word got around fast that he
was dating Kaylynn Langerak. He'd thought that it'd bother him, but suddenly he mostly felt relaxed
and even relieved. At least it was about something that was making him happy, and he was clearly
being spared the effort of telling sims himself. Others were clearly happy for him, for them, and he felt
that one of his worries was melting away as days and weeks passed. He could concentrate on being
happy and on his everyday chores.

Robin was of course the first to know, and she was very supportive and happy for the couple. She
wasn't worried about her own prospects like Dirk had been, but as a fellow Family sim she could
understand how stressful it could be. Especially for someone like Dirk, she thought. But at least right
now things seemed to be pretty great.

As for Robin's own life, right now it was enough to concentrate on her studies. It was important to do
the courses as well as she could, it'd be useful later on in life.

And this was the Greek House after all; whenever she wanted to have some fun, there was almost
certainly someone else around for the company and entertainment. Life was good.

Before they knew it, it was time for the final exams again. Dirk had studied hard, so it was no surprise
that he managed excellent grades. He couldn't believe he was halfway through sophomore year
already.

Dirk being halfway through sophomore year also meant that Dani was halfway through her freshman
year, so it was time for her to move in, as they'd agreed.
”Hi cousin, it's so good to be here”, said Dani as she hugged Dirk in front of the house.
”Hi Dani. Welcome to the Bookacy family Greek House Greek House!” Dirk said, grinning. ”Finally, it's
so awesome to have you here! The house really is too big for just two sims. Come on in, I'll help you
carry your things. There's plenty of space so you'll get to pick where you want to sleep.”

After picking a room and arranging her things the way she wanted them, Dani was in the mood for
dinner, so she offered to cook.
”This is delicious, Dani, thank you”, said Robin.
”No problem”, beamed Dani. ”A lot of sims like my Grilled Cheese, and I do think it's pretty good.
Although I have to warn you, most others seem to get sick of the same dish pretty quickly, while I
could never get enough of Grilled Cheese.”
Robin grinned. ”Well that might explain why Dirk was so eager to get started on that term paper right
away?”
Dani laughed. ”Well I don't think I've stuffed that much Grilled Cheese down his throat yet, but it
might be a factor. On the other hand, it could be just Dirk, you know he's weird that way.”

The conversation seemed to flow, and the two young ladies noticed that they liked each other. They
were sure that they'd enjoy living together.
”Me?” said Robin, ”Well I'm a Family sim, so I'd really like to have a family of my own one day, but I'm
trying to take it easy. Seeing how pressured your cousin seemed at some point has convinced me
that it makes no sense to rush or force things. So far I haven't found who'd be right for me, but in the
mean time, I'm trying to enjoy whatever life brings me.”
”Oh yeah”, said Dani. ”To be honest, I wouldn't want to be in Dirk's shoes, with the heir thing and all.
Oh!” she exclaimed, ”I heard that he's now dating someone, but I haven't met her. Do you know
anything more about that?” she pried.
”Oh yes I do!” said Robin in a conspirational tone. It wasn't really a secret, but still, it was gossip-
worthy, and both Robin and Dani enjoyed a good gossip.

Upstairs, the target of their gossip was blissfully unaware that he was being gossipped about. Not
that it would have bothered him anymore at this stage. Dirk really was working on his term paper, and
to his satisfation, he managed to finish it that evening. Like Dani had said, he was weird that way.

Dani quickly settled in to the Greek House. It was more comfortable than the dorm for sure, and there
was also always company and entertainment available. So really, not bad.

Life was pretty stable for Dirk and Robin as well. If something had changed from before, it was that
there were more visitors around. The Greek House was a natural place to visit for the younger
cousins as they got to know their environment in Sim State University.

Kaylynn was of course a frequent guest, and this way, she got to meet many of Dirk's cousins. Dirk
noticed that she was perhaps a bit quiet in company, but tried to make an effort to get to know his
friends and relatives. He could understand that, lots of sims were on the reserved side, and while he
wasn't exactly shy himself, he could understand the stress that meeting lots of new sims could cause.
He tried to help her where he could, and hoped Kaylynn would feel somewhat comfortable with the
usual crowd in a while.

It turned out that Dani was of great help there. She seemed to notice Kaylynn's uncertainty too, and
did her best to make her feel at ease.
”Hi, you must be Kaylynn! I've heard a lot of nice things about you from Dirk, but it's great to finally
meet you in person. I'm Dani by the way, Dirk's cousin who just moved in here”, Dani said and smiled
brightly.
Kaylynn smiled back, looking slightly nervous. ”Yes, that's me. It's always nice to meet some of Dirk's
family, everyone seems very nice.”
”I'd like to say we are. Well, to be fair, I don't have a lot of Nice Points myself, but don't worry, I don't
bite”, Dani joked. ”It must be a little overwhelming though, with all this family around.”
”A little bit”, Kaylynn admitted. ”And with Dirk being the heir, I keep thinking that maybe his relatives
are expecting someone a little more...” she didn't seem to know how to describe it, and her voice
trailed away.
”Don't worry about that, Kaylynn. I already like you, and I think you'll fit right in”, assured Dani.

That seemed to help at least to some extent, and Dirk was grateful to Dani for making things easier.
Kaylynn was a wonderful girl, and Dirk felt more attached to her every day. It seemed that she felt the
same way, but he couldn't help but wonder, as something seemed to be holding her back, bothering
her. Was it something about him? Or his family? She'd assured him that she was alright with the
family history, as scary as it was, but maybe she only said so to... well, to assure him, and it wasn't
really what she meant. But why would she have done that?
Dirk found himself worrying too much again, so he tried to engage himself in his daily tasks to
alleviate it. It would all sort itself out, he told himself.

There were certainly enough tasks for Dirk to lose himself into: it was fall and it seemed that it every
place was full of leaves, and the greenhouse garden needed attention before the winter too. Dirk was
happy to have both Robin and Dani to help him.

Dani and Robin were also good company, to help Dirk distract himself whenever he wasn't with
Kaylynn. Life in the Greek House seemed more fun now that there were three of them.

In the end, however, Dirk decided that enough was enough, he wouldn't continue to worry by himself,
and instead, he'd do what kids usually do when in need: call a parent.
”Hi Dad, it's me. How's it going?”
…
”Oh, you know, the usual. Schoolwork and stuff, hanging out with Dani and Robin.”
…
”... you know me too well. Yeah, there's kind of something bothering me. No, no, nothing serious, kind
of stupid actually. I was wondering if you'd like to come over one of these days?”
…
”That sounds good, I can get something to eat too. Thanks, Dad, see you then.”

The next day, Robin went to greet Professor Eric Dallas on the lawn.
”Hi, you must be Robin. I'm Eric, Dirk's father. Nice to meet you”, said Eric and smiled.
”You too! Yeah, that's me. I live with Dirk and his cousin Dani.”
Eric nodded. ”Yes, he's mentioned you several times, and I think his mother did too after she'd left
college.”
”Yeah, we didn't meet in person, but...” Robin stopped mid-sentence, realizing she was about to
mention Nicholas.
Eric realized the same, and smiled. ”Oh don't worry, there's nothing delicate here, we're in good
terms with Nicholas and Cho, and those are times long past”, he assured her. ”Anyway, I think my
son is expecting me?”
Robin looked relieved. ”Oh, okay, that's nice. And yeah, he's in the living room.”

Eric found his son at the chess board, working on his moves.
”Hello Dirk”, he said as he sat down. ”At the chess board again I see.”
”Hi Dad, thanks for coming. Yeah, I suppose it's to be expected. I've just always found chess
somehow... relaxing.”
Eric nodded. He remembered that already as a little boy, Dirk had liked chess. Perhaps the relaxing
nature that Dirk had observed was at least partly because it required so much concentration if one
was serious about it: it was hard to worry about something else at the same time, Eric pondered.

”So”, he said as Dirk re-arranged the pieces on the board for a new game, ”as nice it is to enjoy a
game of chess with you, I got the impression that you didn't invite me over for that.” Even with the
amount of concentration that chess required, he assumed that having a conversation at the same
time would be easier for Dirk than dragging him on the couch and trying to get him to talk about what
was on his mind without anything to distract him.
Dirk flashed an embarassed grin. ”Yeah, chess is nice, but I did have something else in mind.” After a
bit of consideration, he moved a piece. ”This is really kind of embarassing. I felt that I should be able
to take care of this on my own, and it's really a stupid little thing, but... I guess I could use some
fatherly advice.”
”Uh-huh. And 'fatherly' instead of 'motherly', because you didn't want to let the whole household
know”, said Eric, smiling.
”Well yeah. Mom doesn't cause scenes, not usually at least, but... it'd be hard to keep the whole
house from knowing, and that'd be weird.” He was quiet for a moment, and Eric just waited. ”You see,
there's this girl.”

Eric couldn't help but smile. ”Can't say that I'm surprised. Well, what is it? You're not sure how to
approach her?”
”No no, that was no problem. We're actually together, we met last semester. Her name is Kaylynn,
and she's great, she's awesome. I've... I've been thinking about introducing her to you, and to Mom
and Nicholas too. It's just that...” Dirk paused, seemingly pondering about his next move, but it was
clear that he was actually trying to find the words he needed.
He started again. ”It's just that, sometimes I get this feeling that something's bothering her. Like...
Like, she looks like she'd want to say something, but then doesn't. And I don't know what to do.”
Eric nodded, waited for Dirk to continue.
”I can't help it, I keep wondering if it's because she's not sure about us. If it's something about me
that's bothering her, and she can't bring herself to tell me. I told her about our family history and
everything, and it seemed to be fine with her, but maybe... Maybe she's having second thoughts or
something.”

”Well, to be honest, without knowing anything more than you do, it's hard to say what this is about”,
Eric started. ”It's true that it could be about your relationship, there's nothing that would clearly say
otherwise. But really, at this stage, I don't think she has much to have second thoughts about. I
assume that you haven't yet mentioned engagement or marriage, and won't for a while yet if you
haven't yet introduced her at home even. So she has plenty of time to decide if she's that serious
about it. Also, I know some shier sims might worry about woohoo, but judging by your tone I'd say
that's not an issue either.”
Dirk blushed slightly. ”You're right, it's not.”
”It's possible that she's worried about your family background, wondering if she's in danger, but if she
hasn't said anything to that effect, and seemed perfectly calm when you told her, I don't think that's
likely. All in all, if things seem to be great, I'd say that in all likelihood they are great. It could be that
you're just imagining that something's worrying her, but if you're not, I'd think it's likelier that whatever
it is is about her and not you. Maybe there's something that she hasn't yet told you about herself, and
she's worried what you might think of it. Or she might have some issue that has nothing to do with
your relationship, and she'd like to tell you or ask for your help, but she hasn't found the courage to
do so.”
Dirk nodded quietly. He hadn't thought of it that way.

The conversation went on, and Dirk and Eric finished their game of chess. They went to sit on the
coach, as Robin and Dani politely stayed out of earshot.
”... so I guess it could be that she's worried about something that's about her rather than us. It's
seemed that she's a little shy and hasn't maybe been able to open up that much about herself. It
makes sense”, Dirk finished. It was a huge relief to get this off his chest.
”Well I'm glad I at least got you to stop thinking about new ways on how it could be something that's
wrong with you”, said Eric. ”But really, this is all just guesswork. If you feel like something's bothering
her, there's really only one way to find out. Ask her. Do it gently, don't pressure her in any way, but
make sure she knows that if she wants to talk about it, you're willing to listen. That's the only way,
which I'm sure you knew before you called me.”
”Well, yeah”, said Dirk and smiled a little. He'd known, but it still felt better to have talked to his father
about it.
”And by the way, I'd very much like to meet your girlfriend.”

Talking to Eric made Dirk feel better, and he decided to talk to Kaylynn about what was on her mind,
but he didn't want to pressure her into talking. So for the time being, he didn't bring it up, trying to
give her space to do it herself if she wished. He just tried to show her that he enjoyed her company,
that he cared and that she could trust him, with anything.
Dirk wasn't sure, but it seemed that maybe Kaylynn acted a little more relaxed with time, even with
the other members of the Greek House. She still sometimes looked worried, but whatever it was,
perhaps it wasn't a pressing matter.

Feeling encouraged, he decided that since his father already knew and everything, it would maybe be
time for Kaylynn to meet at least him. So one time, Dirk invited Kaylynn over to spend some time at
the Greek House, and while the others were concentrated on a game of poker, he pulled her aside.
”Kaylynn, you're really important to me. My Dad's coming over a bit later today, so I was thinking it'd
be nice if the two of you met. What do you think?” he asked.
Kaylynn looked uncertain for a little moment, then smiled. ”That sounds nice. I just hope your father
approves.”
Dirk squeezed her hand. ”There's nothing for him to disapprove. I'm sure you'll come along great.”

And so Kaylynn had met Dirk's father. Eric was easy to come along with, and he wouldn't have been
able to act as an intimidating father figure had he wanted to. And of course, as he knew his son's
worries, he made sure to act as friendly as possible.
Kaylynn seemed a nice young lady, and Eric wholeheartedly approved of her. He was happy to see
that his son had found someone who was making him happy.

Eric stayed for dinner – Dani cooked, how else – and he found himself engaged in a lively discussion
about college life. He almost felt young again, being surrounded by all these young sims with all their
lives ahead. Of course, as a townie Eric wasn't exactly getting older himself, but these youngsters
made him feel different, and it was a good feeling. Perhaps he should come over more often, if his
son would have him.

Speaking of ”the youngsters”, Dirk wasn't the only one with romance in his life. Dani had been with
her boyfriend Duncan ever since teenage, and college hadn't changed anything. Duncan aspired
Family, and while at first one might think he wouldn't have much in common with someone so
intensely into Grilled Cheese, well, it seemed that one would be wrong.
The two of them were nearly inseparable, and Duncan was indeed often seen at the Greek House.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Duncan Custer is the second-youngest of Corinna and Weldon Custer's four children, and a third
cousin to the main line.

Well, perhaps there was something that college had changed about their relationship. In any case,
both Dani and Duncan agreed that if there had been a change, it had been a good one.

Regardless of romance, life in the Greek House had its responsibilities, and of course, studying was
needed too. This was not a time to take it easy, as the finals once again approached. Dirk had been
worried before, but by now he'd come to see that he had what it took to make it in the exams. He just
needed to hone his skills and be well prepared.

On the actual day, having had a good night of sleep was very important, and a nice meal could help
too, he'd come to notice.

Dani was feeling confident to begin with. There should be nothing in the exam that she wasn't well
prepared for, and she was pretty good at winging it, too, if that was needed.

Both of them were right. They were well prepared, and soon enough, they had passed with flying
colors, making two sets of parents very proud once again.
Whether they believed it or not, their year at college was now done. Now, Dani was a sophomore and
Dirk a junior. How the time flies.

Komei grabbed the fresh drink in front of him. Again with the Legacy families. In his past, he'd seen
his fair share of those, but wherever he went, it seemed they couldn't be avoided.
Sure, the two women had talked about someone in Riverblossom Hills, but it seemed that whatever
the town, the story was the same. That certainly seemed to be the case for the Legacy family in
Alphabetia, from what Salahuddin had told him. Other sims didn't matter much when it came to
Legacies, no, it was all about ”family reputation” and ”prestige”, and whatever was in the way of that,
was to be gotten rid of. Townies, playables, none of them could stand a chance against Legacy
families.

But not this time. Komei was sick of being shoved into a corner, sick of being taken advantage of.
This time he wouldn't take whatever the local family would let him have, this time he wouldn't let them
walk over his friends. This time would be different. Enough was enough.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Dear reader, this is where I leave you for this chapter. Plot is again, perhaps a bit slowly, entering the
picture and I have to say I'm enjoying that. It seems that these days it's an enormous undertaking to
get a full chapter played, shot and written, but once again, I managed after an extended break. I
repeat what I seem to say all the time: we're still here.
I hope you've enjoyed the chapter. I don't think I should make any big promises about next time, but I
do hope you'll join us when the time comes. Until then, happy simming!

The Bookacy Family Alphabet Adventures, chapter 43

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The Bookacy Family Alphabet Adventures, chapter 43