Chapter 8.16: At the end arrives...

§HermioneSims§ corner

As a very short introductory comment, to better follow the next scene, please note that Eva (the girl River and Rick adopted a few chapters ago) is already a teen sim now. She's almost unrecognisable from before, so be aware that she's the blue sixamian with the short turquoise hair ;) 

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From Rowan's diary

River: Well, what can I say... Congratulations again!

Iris: You never cease to surprise us, for sure!

Caleb: I'm confused, so are we going to have a little cousin soon?

Eva: Switch on the brain, isn't it obvious?

Iris: Eh eh, you're larger than me now!

Juno: C'mon, you're not large! And then I'm sure you don't have anyone constantly kicking you in the belly, right?

Iris: You mean it's kicking even now?

Juno: A little.

Iris: Can I?

Juno: Sure!

Iris: Wow, that's crazy!

Now those two get along better than ever, and talk to each other about absolutely everything. More than once Juno told me that she's a little sorry for Iris, in her opinion "she is such a cheerful girl, but also so unlucky with guys!”. I don't know exactly what she was referring to, but I'm quite confident I don't really want to know more details than this either.

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Rowan: Did you sleep a little better last night?

Juno: Well, not really... I'm uncomfortable no matter how many times I turn in bend, and every time I fall asleep it wakes me up with a kick, it's not easy...

Juno: After all, being an only child isn't so bad, what do you think?

Rowan: There are pros and cons, I guess.

Juno: I'm saying this because I was thinking that, you see, there are already so many people on this planet, thinking about the environmental footprint and all that… No, I think that just one child will be more than enough, all things considered.

Rowan: (nods)

On the one hand I think she was saying that because this pregnancy is harder than she had anticipated (and even for me it's quite clear why she's feeling this way), but on the other hand I also think that she really believes in the environmental concerns she mentioned. After all, it's not bad to be an only child, that's fine.

Juno: Rather... if you have a moment of time, would you like to take a walk? I'd like to stretch my legs a bit.

Rowan: I still have five minutes of break, so no problem.

Rowan: The air today is even worse than usual.

Juno: Apparently is quite frequent in this area, especially in winter all the smog can accumulate over this bay for days. But you're right, it's so strange to not even see the end of the bridge over there!

Juno: it's New Year's Eve tonight, but maybe we should go out of town. At least to avoid this smog, you know how it is.

Rowan: Um.

Juno: You seem a bit distracted, what's on your mind?

Rowan: I still want to finish writing a legal article and send it before tonight so that it still appears in my December paycheck. But later we can think about New Year's Eve, sure.

Juno: …

Juno: Do you at least have some ideas about where to go?

Rowan: Um… Maybe we could go to Sulani, my cousins mentioned they would go there.

Juno: That doesn't sound bad. Since you're so busy, I'll let you work, I'll try to call them.

Rowan: Uh uh, perfect.

This said, I returned back to my job. I had a lot of ideas for the article I was finishing, and after that I had to check the new information the police sent us about that big money laundering case. And after that, there was the final summary of the clients I worked with this year, and other stuff now I don't even remember. In short, my dear diary, if I want to have some free hours for New Year's Eve, I can't waste any more time, not even to write this.

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Iris: Are you okay, Juno?

Juno: My back is hurting a lot, but it's the norm now...

So we prepared some grilled food according to local traditions and waited for midnight together.

Rick: Were you already swimming, Caleb?

Caleb: Of course!

River: Who can blame him...

We chatted a lot around that table, and then moved to the nearby bar to follow the countdown to midnight on TV.

Everyone: Happy New Year!

Iris: Well, the festive atmosphere in here is always something else! And he thinks you guys needed some time off too, I bet  Rowan is barely sleeping to get his work done!

Juno: That's actually quite accurate, yes.

Rowan: ...

I couldn't argue, and looking back I couldn't help but admit that they weren't really wrong.

River: Rather, I think that the next time we see each other you will have a little baby in your arms. Well, good luck!

Juno: Thank you! I really hope it won't be too hard...

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Indeed, Juno's pregnancy was now coming to an end, and the day of labour also arrived just as predicted by the doctors.

Juno: Oh my, can we hurry up? It huuuurts!

I can't deny it has been scary, Juno was in so much pain... But, according to the doctors, the delivery has actually been quite smooth.

And this is how Gaia was born. To me she already looks like a miniature version of Juno, don't you agree, my dear diary?

We still have a lot of stuff to do, but at that moment more than ever, everything we had worked so hard in those months seemed close, tangible. The next few months will probably be the hardest for us, but that's just another reason to roll up our sleeves and work even harder. Isn't it, my dear diary?

Chapter 8.15: The thirtieth birthday just hits differently

§HermioneSims§ corner

What, 30th birthday? With this small introductory comment, I just want to point out that way more time that it feels like has passed already, that we are already at chapter 15 into this generation, and that Rowan and Juno are uncomfortably close to the end of the "young adults" life stage already. Also, as someone who turned 30 not so long ago, I just want to comment: this topic makes me anxious, argh!

<-- Previous Chapter

From Rowan's diary

Months have passed, we're very close to Winterfest now. The weather has swang a lot in the last few weeks, and it now seems quite sure that the city will soon be hit by a quite remarkable cold wave in the next days. 

So this is what snow looks like... It's a little too cold for my tastes, but on the other hand seeing the whole landscape so covered by the white blanket is very suggestive.

Juno: It's so cold!

Rowan: They say that the cold air has arrived much further south than usual, it's because of an instability of the polar vortex or something like that.

Juno: Yes, even if the snow is so beautiful to watch, that part didn't sound very promising.

Rowan: Yeah.

Juno: Anyway, today it's still Winterfest. So...

This time I knew Juno enough to be sure that she would have brought some gift today, and so I was able to buy something for her in advance. The funny part about presents is that they should be reciprocated, after all.

Juno: Oh, thank you!

Rowan: You're welcome.

While Juno was putting that gift in her pocket, I remembered something else she told me a long time ago: sooner or later she would have wanted to see snow so she could have a snowball fight. Well, there's a lot of snow now, and it can't be that different from throwing water balloons, so…

Rowan: Juno?

Juno: Yes?

Juno: (playful) Ah ah, so you chose war!

Not knowing when we would have another chance to do it again, we played snowballs until we were completely soaked and cold. It doesn't even feel like being in the city at times like that.

But, alas, that wasn't the only commitment planned for the day: Juno and her colleagues had organized a fundraiser special event in the centre, so she and her colleagues were required to be present throughout the afternoon. They were also told to bring their families, and so (after a very needed warm shower) I found myself joining in too.

Juno: I don't get it, why organize such an event outdoors during a snowstorm? They're using a lot of electricity to heat up the place for the guests, but this is just a huge waste!

Rowan: It certainly doesn't seem like an event organized by a company that promotes environmental awareness, that's for sure.

Juno: (sighing) Let's say this is not the best start...

Juno's work that evening may have seemed easy in some ways, she was supposed to explain to some rich guests why it was worth it to finance their project. Yet, I wouldn't have found it easy at all. It's the kind of job that requires to say the right thing at the right moment and in the right way, something she's definitively way better than me at.

Juno: Sirs, even though the place has been heated up, don't you think it's a bit excessive to use the swimming pool, given the weather?

???: Why? The water is very hot, you should try it too!

Juno: ... Anyway, that's not the point. Have you ever heard about...

Rowan: You did great tonight, you should have heard the insults that some of your colleagues received instead.

Juno: Oh.

Rowan: (puzzled) Is something wrong?

Juno: Don't worry, I was just surprised for a moment. I mean, up to now all I heard from people was: "Juno, you look amazing tonight!", I didn't expect to... Ahm, never mind. 

Rowan: Uhm...

Juno: In any case, tonight we needed to raise funds and we succeeded, and that's it. Also, I'm quite tired, can we return back home?

Rowan: Hey, what are you up to?

Juno: (chuckling) Can't you tell? We're trying to make you jealous, aren't we?

Rowan: (a bit amused) I see...

I let the joke linger for a bit longer, before returning serious and commenting:

Rowan: Can we talk?

Rowan: You seemed a little worried at the fundraiser. Are you all right?

Juno: Oh. Well, it's nothing to worry about. I have just a bit more thoughts in my head than usual, that's it. 

Rowan: Did something happen?

Juno: Well... I remembered that my birthday will be soon, and that this time I'll turn 30. I mean, that's a quite big threshold, we're no longer that young, right?

Rowan: …

Juno: And it also makes me think that, when a few years ago I imagined myself as a thirty-year-old, I always saw myself with a good job, in a house of our own, and maybe even with children, who knows... Now I have you, I have a quite decent job, but... But I feel terribly late with everything else. I'm starting to think I'm being left behind, that at this rate we'll never get there, that's what.

I thought about it for a moment before answering, but the only thing I could say was:

Rowan: I think we're on the same boat, then.

Juno: ...

Rowan: (thoughtfully) Perhaps, if this is the case, we should start discussing it seriously, to decide how we should move from here on.

Juno: (gathering courage) Yes, for sure none of these things would come true if we just stayed here and waited.

So, just like we did when we decided to get married, we talked for I don't know how long, trying to dissect the issue in all its facets.

Juno: So, would you like to have children?

Rowan: Honestly, I always had the impression that all the children I ever met disliked me... But I always thought that I would become a parent, sooner or later. What about you?

Juno: I find them very funny instead, I think I'd have fun being a mom.

Rowan: I see.

Objectively, we would have preferred to start by focusing on finding a bigger house to buy, so that we no longer would have to worry about rent and we'd have plenty of space, and only then take into consideration the idea of having kids. Unfortunately, however, house prices here in Sim City are truly prohibitive, and if we waited to be able to buy and renovate a house we would risk waiting for way too long. Thus...

Juno: (determined) So it's decided. We'll start looking for a child now, and in the meantime we'll try to get the money together for a bigger house as quickly as we can.

Rowan: It's decided, yes.

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About six months later

Juno: This movie is so sad!

We were actually quite lucky, because it wasn't long before Juno realized she was pregnant. She started to suspect that it may have been the case when, suddenly, every single movie she watched made her cry her eyes out, and the test confirmed it soon later.

The news made us extremely happy, but we were also very aware of all the work we still had to do. Juno always tried to work practically as much as before, but she also had to look after her health. It was immediately clear to me how her pregnancy made her tired much quicker than usual, not to mention the nausea and everything else. In short, if there was anyone who had to work harder to save some money for the child we were about to have and for our future home, that was me.

So I started publishing my legal essays and doing some evening jobs, which, added to my normal job, soon filled my days (and a good chunk of my nights too). It was very tiring, but it also felt like I was doing the right thing too. 

Rowan: Are you okay?

Juno: Well, all in all, yes. But this belly is starting to weigh quite a bit...

Rowan: Maybe you could ask to work from home a little more often, or something like that.

Juno: Ahm, maybe I'll think about it, at some point. But for now I'm doing well-enough, don't worry. Rather, didn't you say you wanted to go to the office earlier today?

Rowan: Yes, in fact I was about to go out. My boss said there may be some new papers about that money laundering case to analyse.

Juno: I see.

Responsibilities, projects, and everything else make me remember some things my parents told me when I was a kid. I admit that I understand them much better now, for sure.

We set a big goal, that's clear to everyone. But I'm not the kind of person who is scared of rolling up his sleeves and work harder, nor is Juno. Actually, my dissatisfaction at work was probably making me slow down more than I should, but having a new and close objective clear in mind definitively is helping me find again the motivation I was lacking. It's time to give my best and show what I'm capable of, and for sure it's not time to hold back. Don't you agree, my dear diary?

Next chapter -->

Chapter 8.14: Bureaucratic choices

 <-- Previous chapter

From Rowan's diary, a few months after the last entry

It's been quite a while since when we moved here to Sim City, and I don't have many changes to report in these last few months. We are trying to move on, focusing on our jobs, the city life, and sometimes also joining the few manifestations organised by the rare local environmentalists. 

However, today definitively drifted away from our usual routine,  because it is again that period of the year when Juno starts to receive letters over letters from the Sim City town hall and the New Sixam consulate about the expiration of her work visa.

Every time this requires a ton of paperwork to be filled, and clearly it causes her a lot of stress too. Not the best situation, so to speak. 

Juno: (annoyed) It will take me ages to fill out all that stuff, again, and then I will need to take a few days off to deliver them to the offices they want, and anyway I already know that I'll have to go back and forth at least three times because this or that document will surely be missing, bah...

Rowan: …

I listened to her without being able to say much, I couldn't help but feel a little guilty. After all, I have Sim City citizenship, if just we...

Well, I saw this occurring way too many times already. I kept telling myself it was still way too soon to address that option, but this consideration sounds less and less convincing as time passes. Actually, it may be about time to talk about it.

Rowan: (a little hesitant) Juno, have you ever considered that, well…

Juno: Considered what?

I think she understood what I meant by looking at my face, I felt embarrassed like I hadn't felt in a while.

Juno: W-wait a second, don't you mean to say that you think we should get married?

Rowan: I'm honestly not sure… But I think it's at least an option it's worth considering.

The idea seemed to make her nervous too, we had never seriously talked about it before. But, all in all, she seemed to agree with what I had just said, because she nodded before answering:

Juno: … Yes, you're probably right. Let's talk about it.

And so we did, all evening. There were so many aspects to take into consideration.

In some ways we didn't expect that such a step could cause a dramatic change in our lives, we had been living together for some time now and neither of us imagined that this could change anytime soon. The main advantage would have been for Juno, who would have been able to gain a local passport and forget about the visa paperwork. On the other hand, however, getting married is a social affair of a certain importance: are we considering a large ceremony with reception, guests and everything, or just a document signed in the town hall certifying the union would be enough?

Juno: (nostalgic) I always dreamt about it as a child, I imagined myself in a beautiful dress like one of those cartoons princesses and a handsome prince at my side... I suspect you didn't think about it at all instead, or am I wrong?

Rowan: No, it never crossed my mind.

Juno: I see...

Rowan: (pragmatic) So would you prefer to organise a big wedding?

Juno: Ahm, I'm not that sure, actually. As a child I wouldn't have hesitated to answer you, but now... Maybe I've become a little more realistic, and I realize that life isn't like the cartoons I watched as a child. I mean, to have a memorable wedding you need a lot of money, which we don't, and then I would have to involve my parents, honestly I think they would just ruin the day...

Rowan: ...

Juno: Not to mention the fact that those ceremonies are always full of plastic balloons, very expensive clothes that people only wear once, and very elaborate dishes with a scarily bad ecological footprint... No, I don't think I could ignore any of those things.

We talked about it for a while, with sincerity and rationality. Maybe people would expect such choices to be dictated by romance and feelings, but I don't think I could have addressed it in any other way.

By the time we reached the end of the dinner, every possible perspective had been taken into consideration, and we both seemed convinced in saying:

Juno: Let's get married, then. But at the town hall!

So we booked a date at the town hall and got married a couple of weeks later, without many frills or celebrations.

To share the event at least with those close to us, we decided to offer a dinner to my family in New Sixam. For a moment we also thought about inviting Juno's parents, but then we thought it wiser to only notify them via email instead. Juno's plan is to avoid them as much as possible, and I definitely agree with herchoice.

Helios: So, is there any particular reason why you decided to invite all the family to this nice dinner?

Rowan: (in one breath) Juno and I decided to get married, we signed the papers this afternoon in Sim City.

Iris: (shocked) You what!? Are you serious?

Iris had said it while staring at me with a stunned expression, as if to say: "What have you done with my cousin, this is not the Rowan I know!" In response, Juno, who was sitting right next to her, responded by simply pointing to the ring on her finger, cheerfully.

Iris: Okay, I admit that I wasn't expecting this at all…

River: Wow! Congratulations then!

It was a beautiful evening, everyone said to have enjoyed it a lot. Above all, Iris and Juno spoke really a lot. I never would have guessed it, Iris is quite unpredictable sometimes, but apparently they get along pretty well.

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A few weeks later, Rowan's office

Boss: Miller, the police just brought in the papers for a complaint against unknown, apparently it's about a case of money laundering or some other instance of fraud. Can you study those papers, and see what we could make out of them?

Rowan: Sure.

Well, studying a pile of papers is probably more interesting than dealing with the clients in person, I thought. Also because this seems like a quite big and important case, the amount of money described in these papers is definitively remarkable. And the case itself is a nice change from our usual practice, as for once we're supposed to defend the City itself from a real fraud, instead of defending our usual undefendable clients. 

However, I can't really understand what the police expect from us. From what I read, they haven't really located the subjects involved, nor the methods they employed to conceal that money. How are we supposed to proceed, under these circumstances?

I guess that this case will take a long time, at least until the police manage to individuate some possible culprits and more evidence we can use to proceed.

This said, I had to put that pile of papers aside and return back to my other cases. Even if those are way more boring than this case, at least there is some actual work to be done in there. 

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End of the autumn, Sim City

Juno: The view here at the port is so beautiful! Of course, the sea is not like that of Sulani and there still is way too much smog, but it has its charm!

Rowan: Yes, it certainly stands out from the rest of the city.

Juno: Do you think that's a house? I mean, does anyone live there?

Rowan: It actually seems empty to me, maybe it's for sale.

Juno: Then it will surely be crazily expensive, what a shame... But with a couple of small renovations, I'm sure it would completely change the panorama of the entire port!

Rowan: (nods)

It's a quite strange building, I think it originally was one of the warehouses of the old port. It has a nice view over the sea, though, and it doesn't overlook a large busy road like our current apartment. If I were to buy a house here in Sim City, I would certainly take it into consideration.

Rowan: Rather, do you still plan to go see that festival downtown? What was it called again...

Juno: “GeekCon”, or something like that, they say it's full of nerdy things. I don't know what it's like, but everyone at work speaks highly of it.

Rowan: I see. Well, it's ten minutes away by bike, it would be easy to take a look, I guess.

For better or for worse, the city was like this, people could always participate in various events like that. Personally, I've only ever thought of computers as work tools, but it may be fun to see something different for once.

Juno: For all the orbits, this place is so bright it looks like day!

Rowan: Is that a rocket?

Juno: It resembles the ones we had back in high school in New Sixam, haven't you ever seen one?

Rowan: No, in Sulani we were taught how to spot sharks in the sea quickly though.

Juno: I see. It makes sense!

Juno: For sure all this uses so much electricity… But is it really necessary?

Rowan: No, I don't think so.

Juno: Seeing these things sometimes you almost think that the robots weren't entirely wrong with their narrative.

Rowan: Yup, definitively...

Juno: Honestly, lately I'm often wondering whether I'm really doing everything I can to make my contribution... Even at work, in theory, my company aims to help our clients invest their money wisely and become more eco-friendly, but I'm still just working on the fundraising section… What about you, instead?

Rowan: Bah, I'd rather don't think too much about it either.

In short, even if I'm very slowly starting to build some fame in my sector, my job still remains a major source of frustration. A very different situation from the one I dreamed of when I was younger, when I wanted to make a difference by condemning those who polluted. And it's not like we are managing to be any more incisive in our free time, the rare environmentalist associations in this city are a joke, and we can't really do much on our own.

Juno: Rather... Did you have any idea about dinner?

Rowan: Not really. What's still in the freezer, again?

By the end of the day, we always try to remain true to our ideals, but we are so small in comparison with this big cities, and there are so many changes that need to be made to make it difficult to know where to start from. And that's usually when our routine takes over, and we just move on to the next day.

Sometimes I feel like I'm going in circles and losing sight of the things that matter, that's what. But, in the moments when I actually reflect on the matter, I can't help but ask myself: what direction is my life taking? Was moving to this big city the right choice for us?

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