𝑰𝒕'𝒔 𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒆, 𝒔𝒘𝒆𝒂𝒓, 𝒔𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒕𝒔 𝒉𝒐𝒏𝒐𝒓 𝒀𝒐𝒖 𝒌𝒏𝒆𝒘 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒃𝒐𝒚, 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒈𝒐𝒕 𝒉𝒆𝒓

Been back for five minutes and I'm already traumatising my heir. Oops 😅 I'm SO excited for what's to come with his story, although part of me feels like I should probably just apologise now tbh 💀💀 Thanks for reading!

So, you see? 𝙋𝙚𝙧𝙛𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙡𝙮 𝙣𝙤𝙧𝙢𝙖𝙡.

It couldn’t last forever. He had to believe that time, and more than a little distance from Chestnut Ridge would solve everything; that one day, he’d step into a new life and finally shake off the shyness and ghosts that had him by the throat. He just had to make it there.

He’d never told anyone what the wraith said; not Elle, not his parents. The word felt like a curse, and it was as though repeating it would make it real somehow, whatever it was. As far as anyone else knew, he was an anxious kid who had the occasional nightmare, and that was how he liked it.

Only one word; the same one, over and over again for years. 𝑰𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒔. Sometimes it was breathed quietly; other times, it was screamed so loudly he was sure it would wake the whole town. It ricocheted around his head constantly, always lurking in his mind and making itself known in quiet moments.

He could squeeze his eyes shut all he wanted, urging himself to believe he was safe, that he was just having a bad dream, but his skin wasn’t lying when the chill of a nearby presence raised all the hairs on his arms, and his ears weren’t betraying him as he heard whispers in his ear.

His mom promised him he’d grow out of it. His dad assured him that he just needed time. Austin used to believe them. It was hard to keep the faith when he spent night after night drenched in ice-cold sweat, his heart slamming against his ribs, living with a very real sense that he wasn’t alone.

Everyone carried secrets with them. He knew that Beau was lying about wanting to go to Foxbury, so he wouldn't disappoint his dads. He knew that Kit and Autumn loved each other, even if they couldn’t admit it. He knew that his nightmares were real. He knew that something had followed him home.

He didn’t need to see a shrink. An exorcist, maybe, but 𝘯𝘰𝘵 a psychiatrist. He knew why they wanted him to; he could hear how crazy he sounded when he tried to explain what was happening, but it wasn’t in his head, and so talking it out wouldn’t help.

It wasn’t that they didn’t care– if anything, they cared too much. The hushed way they asked how he was feeling, their concerned glances when they thought he wasn’t looking, all of it made him feel like some kind of freak, and Watcher help him if they suggested therapy again…

It was easier to tell people that his perpetual tiredness was down to one too many late nights; gaming and scrolling when he should have been sleeping. The sighs and tuts from his parents were annoying, but he knew they were going easy on him, the real reason for his sleepless nights going unsaid.

After all, he might not be any good at talking and making friends, but over the years, he’d become somewhat of an expert at hiding his feelings. Pretending he wasn’t bothered by the budding relationship between his crush and his cousin was no problem. He was used to keeping bigger secrets than that.

Austin figured that there’d be time for flirting with girls eventually; that perhaps he’d wake up and his shyness would have miraculously vanished, like looking out the window to discover the snow had melted overnight after a long, depressing winter. Who could blame him for having a little hope?

A love triangle wasn’t really his sort of thing anyway, especially not if it meant fighting for Jewel’s interest against his effortlessly confident cousin, Beau. Everyone could see how they looked at each other, how they always ended up sat together at lunch, knees bumping under the cafeteria table.

He liked it when she didn’t hide her eyes. The dark brown contacts were cute, but they didn’t make his heart pick up pace like the glowing embers in her real eyes did. And so, he avoided her. Talking was hard enough already; he might actually evaporate from shame if he ever attempted to flirt.

And like any teenage boy with eyes and a pulse, he noticed things. 𝘎𝘪𝘳𝘭𝘴. He noticed the way Maddie’s pointed ears went pink when she was nervous, how Elle’s nose wrinkled when she laughed, and he noticed himself looking for a moment too long at those things sometimes. Mostly, he noticed Jewel.

He had friends, somehow. Too many, in his honest opinion, but they were happy for him to be a quiet spectator to their conversations. That was how Austin liked it. He got to know them pretty well by sitting back and listening to what they said. Even better when he paid attention to what they didn’t.

The only time he liked where he lived was when it rained. It reminded him of vacations in Granite Falls, when the scariest thing he had to worry about was some leaves in a lake. Yes, Austin was always happiest with grey skies, damp hair, and an afternoon scrabbling in the dirt, looking for bugs.

He hated his hometown, but who doesn’t? He’d gotten used to the stares, the shop assistants following him around stores with suspicious frowns. What was so off-putting about his dark, baggy clothes, he couldn’t understand, but anything that went against the norm stood out in Chestnut Ridge.

He liked all the things that teenage boys do. Music. His skateboard. Gaming until dawn turned the sky silver, then gold, then bright, blinding blue. He was never short on time; all of his hobbies fueled by a burgeoning caffeine addiction and the acceptance that he’d rather be anywhere but his bed.

Austin was a 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘧𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘭𝘺 𝘯𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘭 teenage boy.

And Elle, still smiling, still talking, didn't notice a thing.

Austin glanced between them. "What's she saying?" Elle hesitated for a second, then shook her head. "Just being annoying." 𝘐𝘯𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘺. Jinx had already turned her attention back to Austin, watching him with quiet interest now—like she'd just figured something out far earlier than the both of them.

Jinx's gaze flickered between the two of them as they talked. 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘣𝘰𝘺 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘴 𝘢𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘩𝘶𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘴, she said flatly. Elle blinked. "Huh?" 𝘕𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘋𝘰𝘯'𝘵 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘺 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘪𝘵. "You're being weird." 𝘐'𝘮 𝘣𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘣𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘢𝘯𝘵. 𝘐𝘵'𝘴 𝘢 𝘣𝘶𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘯.

Austin listened intently. Not just to her words—to her. The way her eyes lit up. The way she leaned forward when she got excited. To how different she felt lately—brighter, somehow. Like she was finally stepping into herself.

They sat there & let the quiet settle around them. The hum of crickets, the distant bellowing of cattle, the sky growing darker as the sun slipped lower. Elle talked about the class & how Jinx's voice called to her and no one else could hear her. Her hands moved as she spoke, animated, alive.

"She approves," Elle said, hugging her knees. "She hates the name I gave her." "Jinx?" Elle nodded and he smiled, softer this time. "I like it." 𝘖𝘧 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦 𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴. 𝘗𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘥𝘦𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘥.

Jinx watched him for a long moment, then turned her head slightly—permission, in her own way. Austin reached out slowly, letting her sniff his hand first before gently scratching behind her ear. 𝘏𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘺 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘦. Jinx said, voice dry but not displeased.

Jinx flicked an ear. 𝘠𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘦𝘱𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘴. 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘵'𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨. Elle snorted. "She says you're not terrible." "I'll take it," Austin said, smiling faintly, and slowly reached out to pet her. "Can I..?"

They sat together along the fence and Austin's attention was fixed on Jinx. Not nervous—just curious, careful, the way he always was with new things. "She chose you?" He asked. "Yeah," Elle said, grinning. "She said she was waiting for me."

"..Right," he nodded, still getting used to her newfound abilities. Then he noticed the cat. "Oh—" Jinx sat down neatly at Elle's side, posture perfect, gaze sharp and evaluating. "This is Jinx!" Elle said, breathless with excitement. "My familiar. She found me."

Austin startled, dropping the insect he had just picked up, a look of annoyance flashed across his face as it disappeared back into the grass. He looked up and his eyes lit up the second he saw her. "Elle! I didn't—" "I portaled," she said casually, like it was the most normal thing in the world.

The sun was just beginning to dip, painting the sky in soft oranges and pink hues. In the distance, she spotted Austin near the fence, crouched low, focused on something in the grass. Bugs, she assumed. She smiled immediately. "Hey!"

Elle portaled just beyond the fence line of Riverstone Ranch, boots landing softly in the dirt. Jinx followed, tail flicking once as she took in her surroundings. 𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘚𝘮𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘤𝘬 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘱𝘰𝘰𝘳 𝘥𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴. Elle rolled her eyes. "Be nice." 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘮𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘯𝘪𝘤𝘦. 𝘎𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘴, 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯.

Austin's had it too good for too long. Today's the day we finally get his story started for real... Spoilers without context 👁️👄👁️

It only took me almost three years, but I finally have a family tree to share! This might help if you're new or having a hard time keeping track of my excessively big and complicated families 😅 app.thesimstree.com/public/tree/...

Public Community Pool for Oasis Springs as part of the savefile I'm building up 💾

I've had Josie as my pfp for so long this feels a little strange, but it was time for gen two to shine!

So, that happened 😅 Autumn wasn't hanging around for someone to spoil the moment this time 😂 This is the final part of this arc! Autumn's had enough drama for a spare; it's time we checked in on Austin. I'm sure he's been enjoying the peace, but that's coming to an end 👹 Back in a couple of weeks!

Cade linked his fingers with Autumn’s once more, pulling her towards him until she was against his chest. When his lips were almost on hers, he paused. Autumn could hear the smirk even if she couldn’t see it. “So is this a date?” “Yeah. This one’s a date,” she murmured, her lips finding his again.

It was only for a second, and then she came to her senses, jumping away as if his kiss had scorched her. Cade was frozen. “Why’d you do that?” “Just felt like it,” Autumn muttered. “Sorry, I–” “Not the kiss,” he laughed, realising how his question must have sounded. “Why’d you stop?”

His words hit her square in the chest. A tiny gesture that showed he really did care for her; he didn’t see her as some prize to be won. He wanted to make her laugh, make her happy. Before she knew it, she’d closed the gap between them, taking his face in her hands as her lips brushed against his.

Reluctantly, they left their table, hands still intertwined, their shared confession wrapped around them like a blanket. Over the noise of the music, Autumn could hear a faint tune from Cade’s pocket. “Is someone callin’ you?” “Nah, I set an alarm so I could make sure you weren’t late back.”

Autumn had never seen this side of Cade; vulnerability in place of his usual cockiness. She reached across the table and squeezed his hand. “I know how that feels. Trust me.” Cade squeezed back, his eyes looking brighter than Autumn had ever seen them. He groaned, then said, “We should go.”

He sighed like he was releasing a breath he’d held for years. “I know she’s got it rough figuring out her magic, but…” “They're so worried ‘bout how she’s handlin’ it, they forget ‘bout you.” “You just gotta live with this fucked up secret, scared of getting close to anyone in case they find out.”

“Nope,” Cade said. Autumn heard a bitter edge to his chuckle. “It only runs through the women in the family.” “So you get to be the one keepin’ the secret and havin’ none of the fun.” “Yeah,” Cade breathed, his voice all but inaudible over the pounding speakers. “Exactly.” “I get it,” she nodded.

A surprised chuckle escaped Cade. “That was 𝘩𝘪𝘮?! I remember that… Mom had this huge talk with Maddie about how she was never allowed to take a mortal to the Realm, and how she didn’t wanna get in trouble like Elle.” “What about you? Are you…” she trailed off, her question hanging between them.

“In The Realm?” Autumn asked bluntly, and Cade choked. When he could breathe, he looked petrified. “How d’you… Are you… like her?” “No. Lucky guess. I saw her ears, and she’s Elle’s cousin… She took my brother there once and it messed him up. He’s still freaked out, like, six years later.”

Cade didn’t seem to care. His face fell as he thought about how to answer. “They’re not around much. Dad works crazy hours, and he’s always travelling. Mom mostly spends time with Maddie,” he hesitated, and Autumn could tell he was choosing his words carefully. “She has a lot of private lessons.”