Who the heck even asked for this or thought this was a good idea

This is great for Avery and Adelio now that they are friends as adults

I went into CAS to fix Adelio’s active wear outfits and now I’m giving him a mini makeover

Avery and Adelio’s bucket list goals (really like this feature for gameplay and story telling) lol at how different the two are from each other

When the door closed behind her mother, Aspen collapsed onto the floor into tears It wouldn’t be the first time because of her mother, nor would it be the last

Aspen meant every word. She was someone who was hard to forgive, and even harder to forget when wronged. It wasn’t a trait she was proud of, but it often kept her from being walked over by anyone who thought they had the chance “You don’t mean that” “I do, now please leave”

“I am trying my best here to make things right for everyone—” “Twelve years too late. Dad and Etta may have forgiven you and want to play ‘one big happy family’ but as far as I’m concerned, if we never talk again, I’ll fine”

She didn’t know much louder she could say it. Her mother didn’t get to decide when Aspen was ready. A relationship between the two wasn’t on the horizon, and wasn’t happening anytime soon As far as Aspen cared, her mother’s guilt wasn’t hers to carry. It took a lot therapy to figure that one out

“To leave me alone. I don’t forgive you and I don’t want to. Stop trying to make me feel like the bad guy when you’re the one who’s responsible for all of this. You want to be a mother again? Fine. Be one to Etta but leave me out of it. The only thing I need or want from you is space”

“I’m still your mother, Aspen—” “A title you relinquished in your letter to dad. You were the one who left, who stayed away. Not me” “And I’ve apologized over and over. What else do you want me to do?”

She ignored the look of guilt that swept over her mother’s face followed by hurt Aspen was still angry with the woman for leaving, how she chose to return, her inconsistency, and false promises she kept throwing out to evoke some kind of pity Aspen no longer had to give

“Aspen, I’m trying here. It’s been a year—” “When it becomes twelve, maybe I’ll feel like talking given that’s how long you stayed away for,” Aspen replied, not bothering to hide her resentment.

Her therapist said she had abandonment and avoidance issues. Aspen said water was wet. It took them seven more weeks to even broach the subject of her mother (complaining about Etta was easier), and another three for Aspen to let it all out

After her mother left, Aspen buried her emotions and focused on her status as the It Girl every designer wanted on runways and magazines She worked hard to make sure everyone no longer saw her as Rowan Neely’s protege She let the glitz and glamour disguise her pain until it got too much to hide

“For good reason remember,” Aspen replied, annoyed. She wasn’t ready to forgive her mother for what she did to their family, how long she stayed away, and much she tried to act like everyone was okay now that she was back Deep wounds like Aspens wouldn’t be fixed with broken apologies

“You haven’t been returning my calls,” her mother replied. Aspen let out a deep breath to calm herself. She couldn’t deal with her mother, and not right now Keeping her job was the most important thing in front of her now that she was on thin ice with Tzi

Two things Aspen hated: her nosy and loud neighbors and her family showing up to her apartment uninvited. Without a word, she quickly ushered her mother into her apartment, closing the door by prying eyes and ears “What are you doing here?”

When she left the retreat, she let her future work with Akauda carry her through the plane ride. She already had her first draft of questions The pep in her step and excitement was all sucked out of the air when she saw her mother in front of her apartment door

Aspen took Akauda’s advice and initiated some self care for herself on the rest of the evening and next morning. She took the time to network, collect business cards, (realized she needed to make her own), and gain a small footing with her team

“Thanks, Akauda. I’ll start drafting some questions” “After the retreat. Enjoy the drinks, hot tub and warm weather. Let that be your muse” Aspen could certainly do that

Akauda smiled. “With words like that, how can I say no. I’ll be in San My the next few weeks after this book tour is over, let’s put something on the calendar” Aspen almost fell out her chair. She couldn’t believe it, she was actually going to get the chance to interview Akauda. Her idol

“Read a few of your blogs too. Stick around, you got a bright future ahead of you” “That’s really kind, Akauda. Your work has inspired a lot of my writing. I would love to pick your brain sometime, maybe do a piece on you. No pressure or anything, but you’re an inspiration to us black girls”

To hear that her idol knew about her body of work was enough to send her into shock. If Akuada knew her work, there was no telling who else knew. She prayed for the day when she would be known for her writing rather than modeling

Pride swelled in Aspen’s chest. She honestly didn’t think anyone read her blogs; she barely got comments on them, and some days the engagement was pretty low (unlike her Simstagram) Everyone wanted Aspen the model and not Aspen the writer

“I know. I’ve read some of your work. Your writing is good, I can tell you’re still trying to find your voice but it’s cool,” Akuada calmed her. She could see the young girl was becoming defensive “You’ve read my articles?”

“You don’t have to do that” “It’ll drive Tziporah up the wall and it looks like you have a knack of keeping her on her toes” “I’m not sure that was a compliment” “It was. Tzi’s my best friend and sometimes she can be a lot. She takes her work seriously” “I do too,” Aspen defended herself

I have a long update with Aspen cause I keep getting distracted

Finished with Aspen’s rotation and decided to play Adelio except I have no idea what I’m doing with him

“I had a misunderstanding. I didn’t know your lecture was moved to today. I was really looking forward to it.” She felt even more embarrassed now. She could have learned so much from Akauda, and now she was going to have to hear about it “I’ll share you on the presentation”

Aspen knew how she sounded but “Undertaker Mother” was why she decided to go back and finish school. The chance of meeting her was why Aspen attended the retreat. Akuada was her idol “I’m glad you enjoyed it. I didn’t see you at the workshop this morning, but your name was on the sign-up sheet”

“You’re familiar?” “Of course. Your short story about the Undertaker Mother who can’t save her own son from Triple Threat had me ugly crying. It was incredibly tragic. I’ve reread it like ten times”

“You must be Aspen Neely,” a voice broke her out her focus. She looked up to see a dark skin woman in front of her with a smile on her face “Oh Em Gee. You’re—” “Akuada—“ “Akuada Abudallahi,” Aspen finished for the woman star struck, “you just opened your own independent publishing house”

She came on the trip to make a good impression and all she managed to do was get Tzi pissed at her. The retreat was over tomorrow and if she still had a job by the end of it…well that would be a miracle

Tzi’s words were a stinging slap the face. It was one thing to have her coworkers second guessing and doubting her, but to hear it from her own boss…the dark cloud of insecurity Aspen carried appeared over head again Maybe Tzi was right, she thought herself as she left the room

“You know I keep my phone off when I write. I’m sorry” “I’m getting tired of hearing that from you Aspen” “I know but—“ “You’re not serious about this job so stop wasting mine and everyone else’s time. You’re not cut out for this”

“You missed the Investigating Reporting workshop,” Tzi gritted through her teeth The young girl looked at her confused…that workshop was tomorrow “That’s tomorrow,” Aspen told her “It got moved today because one of today’s speakers didn’t make their plane. I was calling your phone all day”

When Aspen made it back to the resort, she was told to immediately to find Tzi who was not happy. “Where the hell have you been Aspen?” “I was at the coffee shop in town working,” Aspen answered, “then I had lunch.” She shrugged at the last part

An Adelio Sire Martino appreciation post

Loaded into Ade’s household and he looks good

Most importantly, he was a good distraction from San My, or a certain man in San My A cute little flirt was what she needed on this trip, and who was she to say no when a handsome man asked her out to lunch

She let the thoughts of home fade away and focused on Pierce. He was a good conversationalist, liked his job, and apparently was really good baker

Things hadn’t looked up since and only served to get worse with their mother’s return Aspen gave her one too many chances after her return only to have it thrown back in her face, so she decided to wipe her hands clean Etta made nice and now the miserable witch was calling her selfish and spiteful

Things had always been a bit sour between her and Etta. Dad favorited Etta, their mother favorited Aspen Aspen and her mother spoke a language of fashion Etta and their dad didn’t When their mother left, Etta blamed Aspen, and Aspen called Etta every name but a child of Watcher

Aspen didn’t enjoy the idea of Pierce being from Willow Creek. Willow Creek was small and everyone knew each other After her mother’s departure, what remained of their fragile family disintegrated into pieces…mainly the relationship between Aspen and Grim’s Spawn (her older sister)

Pierce was a detective in Willow Creek and was on a solo vacation to Gibbi Point. He had no idea the place was also hosting a writer’s retreat for different newspapers and magazines when he booked his stay

After finishing two drafts for her blog and doing research on the Metro in San My, she met up with Pierce, one of the guests at the retreat. He was attractive and a good distraction

The next morning Aspen decided to explore Gibbi Point to see what it had to offer. There was no hard fast rule about needing to stay on site for work and Aspen needed to really get in the zone without the other journalists around her She found a coffee shop to work out

The night ended with a fireside chat with some of the writers she met in her lectures, but Aspen’s mind was still on Tzi’s rejection by the time she went to bed

Later that evening, she met Pierce, and Aspen was instantly attracted to him (or his tattoos) “You should visit the town. It’s got some cute shops you can visit” “I might…if you’re willing to be my personal tour guide” Pierce smiled. The night was looking to end better than the day begun