Chapter Twenty - Sammi meets an enemy, Ewan makes a friend

Whilst Sammi was stretched out on the floor, wallowing in her own self inflicted misery, watching as thunderclouds gathered overhead, a shadow fell across her face and she squinted, looking up.

Standing before her, with arms folded and a wry smile on his face, was a teenage boy, not much older than herself. Instantly she felt her skin bristle and she scrambled to her feet.



"What are you staring at?" she demanded, planting her feet firmly apart, gearing herself up for a fight.

"What do you care," came the retort, "Porcupine."

Sammi felt the blood rush to her face as she felt her temper boiling.

"Don't call me that!" she hissed, pulling her face into a very unflattering pucker.



"I'll call you what I want, it's MY territory here, PORCUPINE!!!"

Instantly, Sammi lunged forward, her fists flying, but TJ was too quick and feinted to the right, as a perfectly formed fist whistled through the air close to his ear.

"Whoa! Steady on there Porcupine, you nearly got me!"



His mocking laughter didn't help Sammi's mood any as she lashed out again. This time he was ready for her and grabbed for her thin waist.



But she was too quick and held him in a headlock.He was amazed at her strength as he struggled with her. By now it had began to rain, hard, and the water trickled down the nape of his neck as they both wrestled.

Snarling and spitting, she was no worse than a wildcat. All her pent-up fury had amassed together in this one singular moment, and she simply let fly....

-------------------------------------------




Ewan skidded to a halt, when he realised he'd gone too far and Sammi was nowhere in sight. Huge tears started rolling down his face and he pooched out his bottom lip.

It was then that a kindly female voice startled him, making him jump.

"Hey there, you look lost."

His head whipped around and his blurry vision fixed on a tall, dark haired woman leaning against a trailer door. Wiping his eyes, he sniffed loudly and nodded.

A tousled haired little boy, Ewan supposed was the same age as himself, peered around from behind her legs, he was carrying a plate with what looked like homemade berry pie.

The smell made Ewan's mouth water and his stomach growl. Oh how he wished he could have some fruit pie. It smelled so delicious.

"Would you like some?" the kind lady offered, "there's plenty here, Ma's just made a big batch of it."

"Who are you talking to Sue?" a gravelly, yet not unkind voice drifted out from within the trailer.

"Oh, a young gentleman," came the reply, followed by a warm smile.

"It had better not be that young 'un that our Timmy hangs around with. Tell him to buzz off!!"

Susan chuckled, wiping her hands on a cloth.

"No, this one's younger....." she said, tipping Ewan a wink, ..... and he's got red hair."

"OOOhhhh, hang on there, I'll be right out. Never had a red haired young man around here before. This I gotta see."

There was a lot of commotion as pots and pans were reorganised, before a tall, thin, grey haired woman peered out of the door.

"Oh my." gasped the old woman, "isn't he a cutie?"

Ewan could feel himself blushing and dropped his gaze shyly, trailing his sneaker in the dirt before him.

"And what's your name young man?"

"Ewan, ma'am."

Ewan, barely whispered his own name as he stood there in complete awe of this family. They were nothing the way he'd imagined trailer folks, with dirty clothing, beer bellies, smelling filthy and swearing a lot. In fact, to Ewan, at that precise moment, they were royalty.




"Ohh, handsome name for a handsome man."

Ewan's blush deepened as he wished the ground to swallow him. He'd never had so many compliments in his young life, and didn't know how to take them.

"Seth!" barked the old woman, making Ewan nearly jump out of his skin, "get your fingers out of my pies! They're supposed to be for the county fair tomorrow."

"Sorry Nan," Seth replied, licking his jam covered fingers, "but I's still hungry."

"There's some pie already cut on the table, go get yourself some."

She turned to Ewan, grinning.

"Oh, and get some for our young guest too."

Ewan's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. He was getting some pie!!!! And he didn't even have to ask!!!!



Susan pulled out a chair and Ewan sat down gingerly, unable to believe that he was made welcome by these kind strangers. Swinging his legs, he waited in anticipation, with fork in hand as Seth trotted out of the trailer, balancing two plates at once.

The smell of cherries was unmistakeable but Ewan delicately dug in his fork and savoured the flavour. He was brought up with table manners after all.

The sugary sweetness melted over his tongue and caressed his throat as he swallowed the first bite. Every now and then, he'd look up and see everyone else seated at the table, or standing around, eating the same pie. It felt so homely and welcoming.

But he soon forgot those table manners as hunger swept over him and he gobbled up every last morsel, careful not to get anything all over his face and clothes.



"Was that good?" Susan asked as she cleared the plates.

Ewan nodded happily, his eyes wide with wonder at this happy little family unit. He wondered if his family would ever be like that. For now, all they seemed to do was to move around, and his sister and mother would argue all the time.

"We have some jelly," Susan offered, watching Ewan staring intently at the jiggling concoction sitting on the table.

Ewan's eyes were like saucers. Never had he seen so much food in his life.

"Hey," said Seth, leaping down from his chair, "wanna go play tag or something?"


Ewan nodded, eager that he'd made a new friend, and slid off his chair.

He'd just started to play tag when suddenly he skidded to a grinding halt, a queasy feeling churned in the pit of his stomach.



The smile slid from his face though, as he went a funny shade of green and promptly vomited up that delicious pie. His poor shrunken stomach wasn't used to rich food or large portions.

Instantly, he started to cry, realising that his top was ruined and he'd embarrassed himself once again, in front of strangers.

"Hey," crooned the old woman, dabbing the excess vomit from his shirt, "it's okay."

Ewan shook his head miserably. After all that hospitality they'd given him, and he'd ruined it by being sick.

But attention was soon diverted when Susan yelled out loudly.

"Timothy!! What the hell happened to you?"




"Nothing Ma," came the grouchy, grumbled reply, as a tall teenager came into view.



From Ewan's point of view, he looked a lot worse off than himself. His tee shirt was caked in mud and he was sporting a black eye and deep scratches.



"Who did you get into a fight with this time Timothy?"

"Nobody Ma, and don't call me Timothy, it's TJ ok?"

His good eye scanned Ewan critically.

"Who's the stray?"

"Timothy, that's not a nice thing to say to our guests. This is Ewan, Ewan this is my oldest son Timothy."

"TJ." he corrected hastily, flinching as his mother reached forward to touch his cheek.

"Whoever it was," she said gravely, "they messed you up pretty badly."

TJ grimaced.

Luckily for him, there were no other witnesses there to see him getting his butt kicked by a girl.

"Come here and give your Ma a big hug why don'tcha?"

"Aww Ma," TJ protested, casting a nervous glance towards a very observant Ewan.

"I'll let you have extra portions of Nan's cherry pie," she winked.




With that, TJ folded himself gingerly into his mother's arms, that feeling of warmth emanating from her.

"Thanks Ma," he said, trying his hardest to smile, "your the best."

Chapter Nineteen - Second Chances

Sammi stood, a look of sheer disbelief pasted on her face. She was prepared to hate the new premises.

And quite rightly so.



Of all the places to stay, this one must be the worst. A shambling trailer park with dirty, rusty, broken vehicles parked up on the grassy verges, some even propped up by bricks, parts missing....


...... and the smell.

It was a mixture of diesel oil, man sweat and cat pee.

She couldn't believe her mother had stooped this low. To have taken over her 'ex' boyfriend's trailer.


Prior to their arrival, they had to stand outside the B&B with all their belongings, waiting for a taxi. Sammi showed her displeasure then, with a scowl she'd perfected just for her mother.

She also couldn't believe how easily little Ewan had been drawn into this new 'adventure' so quickly. Surely he could see the squalid conditions they were going to be living in? And the thin metal walls were definitely going to be a real pain too. Many times she'd overheard the grunts and strains of her mother and her latest 'boyfriend'. With even thinner walls between them, this was going to be torture.


Sighing heavily, and for dramatic measure, Sammi flopped to the floor, staring intently at the clouds. Tessa and Ewan completely ignored her, as they stood together, playing pretend, Ewan's tiny little feet planted firmly on his mommy's feet, swinging wildly and giggling with joy.

'Oh how fortunate we all are,' Tessa thought to herself, as she joined in the innocent laughter of her young son, 'to be a whole family unit.'

After their 'slanging' match outside the B&B, Sammi had been completely silent in the taxi ride over here, occasionally throwing icy glares at her mother, but mostly staring darkly out of the taxi window.

But Tessa knew that eventually, the food would start to run out, and there were the bills to pay. Rick had been meticulous about all of that. However, it all fell by the wayside when he landed in prison. Hence the reason behind Tessa taking over the trailer for a short while.

Sammi hated Rick on sight. There was just something seedy and dangerous about him.
She hoped that their stay in his trailer would be a temporary measure until they found somewhere else.

She dreaded the day he'd be released.

Tessa glanced at her watch, frowned, then ruffled Ewan's copper hair.

"I'm sorry sweetie," she said, kissing him, "mommy's going to have to go now."

"To go see him?" came the tart reply.

Tessa sighed, it was obvious she wasn't able to get through to her head-strong, rebellious teenage daughter.

"No," she said slowly, "to go find myself a part time job."

Sammi snorted.

Tessa bit her tongue, holding back her usual impulsive reply. She knew only too well that Sammi was baiting her into having yet another argument. But this time Tessa wasn't rising to it.



She leaned down and gave Ewan a big hug.

"I won't be long, honey," she crooned in his ear, "just keep an eye on your big sister for me, will ya? There's a good boy. I heard that there's a job going nearby, so I'm going to see if I can get in there."

With that, she vanished around the corner, leaving Ewan and Sammi alone.




Sammi groaned and rolled her eyes, lost in her own thoughts as she continued to watch the clouds scudding by, and listening to the screeching of a flock of birds as they flew overhead.

Ewan simply shrugged and started chasing fireflies.

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The smell of percolating coffee was over powering, as it mingled with the smell of fried breakfasts.

'The Coffee Pot' had come a long way from the greasy spoon existence out of the back of a beaten up trailer. With the onset of construction sites and new houses popping up all over Cloverdale and surrounding areas, sustenance was greatly needed to keep the workers happy and well fed. And so 'The Coffee Pot' was born, the brainchild of the extremely enterprising young lady who took a risk and it paid off.



Now, standing majestically, in it's own landscaped grounds, it was a testament to the hard work put in by the owner and proprietor, Miranda Kensington. She graduated from college, Magna Cum Laude, two years ago and set up her small business from the money she'd been saving.
Even sacrificing her own dream of becoming a Hall of Famer, just to make sure that all the workers were happy and satisfied from her delicious meals.

She could quite easily have been a Fortune Sim, wanting the best of everything, never satisfied with whatever she had. But, she chose Popularity, as she loved the cheery atmosphere that surrounded the builders and constructions workers. Their bawdy sense of humour and tales of their families.

But cooked meals and coffee cups were the last thing on Miranda's mind as she stood, arms folded, scowling at her twin brother Daryl.

"Oh please sis," he pleaded, "let me help out. I'll make it worth your while."

She shook her head. She'd put far too much into this little business to see it crumble before her.
Daryl had always been a slacker. Relying heavily on Miranda to get him through school, and college.

He was devastated when she graduated a year early, leaving him struggling along with his term papers and assignments.



"No Dal," she said firmly, "you'd mess up all the orders."

Daryl was crestfallen and it showed plainly on his face.




"You're not going to give me a chance, are you," he whined, plumping out his bottom lip.

"Nope, and that's final," came the reply.

"But you're run off your feet all the time," he protested, "I've seen you falling asleep on the settee many evenings, totally exhausted."

He jutted out his chin, normally a cute gesture to win the hearts of many damsels, but Miranda was adamant. There was no way he was going to win her over at all.

"No, Dal, my word is final. Besides, I've already advertised for an assistant to help me out. Hopefully the right candidate will come along and take up some of the slack."

"But think of the savings you'll have if you employ me."

She groaned. He wasn't going to give up at all. She sighed, rubbing her temples, the beginnings of a headache gnawing at her.

"Look, why don't you go and find yourself a job? Please.... Anything to get you out from under my feet. Besides, it's almost lunch time and I've got to get the sandwiches ready. There are a lot of hungry guys out there you know."

Daryl pouted, before stomping up the stairs.

"And don't you be playing games on that computer either!" Miranda called after him.

He waggled his head and grumbled under his breath.

"Yes Mom," he muttered.

"I heard that!"



Miranda was in the middle of cling wrapping a plate of sandwiches, when the doorbell rang.
She answered it to find a scrawny, scantily clad, red-headed woman standing there.

"Can I help you?"

She honestly didn't want this woman anywhere inside the house at all. Her first impression of this heavily made up woman wasn't good at all. But she swallowed her pride anyway, just to give this stranger the benefit of the doubt.

"I'm here about the job," Tessa replied roughly, half expecting this pretty young lady to turn her away.

"Why don't you come in and we can discuss it upstairs?"

Miranda stepped back reluctantly, allowing this crude woman into her premises.

"I'll show you the way."

Unfortunately, at that moment, people started to filter into the coffee house, making themselves feel at home. So a private interview was out of the question.

Miranda motioned to the settee.

"Why don't you take a seat?"



Tessa marvelled at the 'old fashioned' styling throughout this building. And was pleasantly surprised to see it continued in the tiny apartment upstairs. It reminded her of her grandma's place. A real 'home away from home', with the smell of homemade jams and pickling.



"Listen," interrupted Tessa eagerly, "I know I'm not much to look at, but I'm a good, hard worker. I have two kids, a boy and a girl, and I need the money to get food and clothes for them."



"Besides," she continued, "I think I'll be able to bring a bit of 'sunshine' into this job. I'm no fair weather worker, that's for sure."



Miranda was shocked at her frankness and soon forgot her carefully planned speech.



Daryl, who had been sitting in the corner reading, let his jaw hang open at the sight of this woman. It soon gave way to a wicked grin, as he evaluated the situation.
If his sister was to employ this woman, life at 'The Coffee Pot' would never be the same.

The interview was very brief, due to the first batch of workers starting to filter through the doors. But Miranda decided to give Tessa a chance and hired her.




Tessa couldn't thank her enough.

"You have to understand," Miranda explained, "the cafe really gets busy all through the day, with more and more customers filtering in."

"I can do that," Tessa smiled, "I'm used to being busy."


"There's also a lot of food preparation, along with cleaning the tables and stuff."

Tessa nodded eagerly.

"And you'll have to wear an apron had have your hair tied back."

"Hey, no problem."


"So, when do I start?" Tessa asked eagerly.

"Um,"

Already the cafe was starting to fill up with hungry customers, and she'd already fallen behind with the orders.

"Er, how about now?"

She made her way hurriedly down the stairs to make a start on the sandwiches.
"That's great!" Tessa yelled down the stairs, You won't be sorry!" her voice cracking with excitement.



Miranda only hoped that that would be true.

Chapter Eighteen - Major Decision Time

Kenya Valdin was more than prepared for her domesticated lifestyle.
After all, she was the wife of Sim City's most outstanding, and long running Mayor....
...Raven.

She had to keep up appearances at all costs.
But that didn't stop her from dreaming.




And the biggest dream she had, was to be an Oceanographer.
To travel beneath the sea, study the marine life and experience danger beyond her wildest imagination.




She sighed heavily as she scooped up Kyle in her arms.
Already, the smell of his recently filled diaper, made her eyes water.

But, she'd made a promise to Raven, and married herself to this humdrum life of hers.




Little Skye, she couldn't help noticing, had withdrawn deeper into her own shell, sitting with her head down, studying hard.

Kenya shook her head and wondered if Raven had indeed made the right decision after all.
She recalled how quickly Raven had dashed out of the door earlier that morning, without a single kiss goodbye, leaving her in charge of everything.




Already, one of the dogs had made a beeline to the expensive settee and was taking extreme delight in shredding the upholstery to bits.

Kenya sighed once more, even deeper than before. Thinking about the cost of recovering that settee. Admittedly, there was a fair bit of money left over after the sale of their old house. It more than covered the cost of the purchase of this home and the new furnishings.

But she couldn't help counting the pennies all the time. As her husband himself added once....

"You never know what's around the corner."

That was so true, even now.




She was in the process of potty training Kyle, when she heard the front door slam.
Luckily he'd just finished, so she hastily changed him and let him wander off.

Tentatively she peered into the hallway, just in time to see Raven, standing there, he looked tired and weary. His shoulders slumped slightly and that majestic posture he always maintained, had all but vanished.

"Raven?" asked Kenya tentatively, "what are you doing home so early? Was the grand opening cancelled?"

He shook his head, a wan smile crept over his thin lips.




"I've been thinking," he said, after a long pause.

Kenya held her breath, not knowing what was going to come out of her husband's mouth.
Surely not another move? They'd only just arrived here.

"Actually, I've been thinking a lot recently ....... about us ..... my job ...... everything."

He stepped forward and wrapped his arms around her, enclosing her thin body into a romantic hug. Kenya was startled at first, but soon melted against his chest, delight radiating from her.



"I love you," he whispered in her ear.

It was the first time, from as far back as she could remember, that he'd uttered those words. And they sounded magical.

She pulled away, grinning.

"But why did you come home so early?" she asked, "surely not to declare your love to your wife? You could have easily picked up the phone and called me...... or at least waited until you got home."

"Ah, but then I'd have been so snowed under with bureaucratic mumbo jumbo, that I'd have completely forgotten all about you."

Kenya smiled, basking in Raven's sudden warmth. But there was still something niggling underneath.

Something he wasn't telling her.

Raven shuffled nervously, looking down at his shiny new shoes and twiddling with his Mayoral lapel ribbon.


There was a long, uncomfortable pause. He swallowed hard, before turning away with his back to her.

It was then that he dropped the bombshell. It was quietly spoken, but Kenya's trained ears picked up everything.

"I've decided to quit as Mayor." he whispered, unable to meet her gaze.

Kenya stood, shell-shocked, unable to comprehend her husband's speech.

"I understand if you're mad at me," he said, finally, "after all, I dragged you all here, pulled everyone from family and friends. And now this. I just want your opinion, that's all."

A lump came to Kenya's throat as she realised for the first time, Raven was asking her advice and support in his decisions. Something that he never, in all their married life, had ever even crossed his mind. He was so used to taking the lead, deciding everything without her.

But it was on his journey back home, and a few words he remembered from his step mother Imani, that made him realise just how precious Kenya was to him.

He remembered the scene quite clearly. Imani had hauled him reluctantly into her garden, to tend to the weeds. He admitted to not having a green thumb, but followed her anyway, just to keep the peace.

Two hours later and his hands covered in thistle scratches and nettle stings, they were sat together, drinking hot chocolate and having his cuts soothed with antiseptic. It was then that Imani spoke.

"I know you're not my true son," she began, Raven groaned, knowing what was to follow. It was always a well rehearsed speech for Imani. "but I'll always love you as my own."

He nodded slowly, wincing as she dabbed his palm with cotton wool.

"but that's not the reason why I want to talk to you."

His ears pricked up. This was most unusual.

"I can't help but notice lately, how you've been avoiding Kenya and the children. Is there a reason?"

"I'm only working to keep a roof over their heads," he protested.

She nodded.

"That may be so," she replied, "but there are much more important things in life too. And working all those long hours, you're not seeing them. Skye's beginning to drift away from you. And Kyle's first impressions of you are just a man who pats him on the head on a morning when he wakes up. And kisses him on the head when he's sleeping."

Raven could only nod dumbly. He hadn't realised all of this, he'd been so busy working.

"And as for Kenya."

His head snapped up.

"She's a full blooded woman, who needs love and affection. If you continue to ignore her, she's going to stray. Do you want that to happen?"

Raven rolled this memory around his head, all the way back home.
He was used to making snap decisions all the time. After all, it was his job. Nerves weren't an issue at all, he had to keep a cool professional head about him.



But standing there, in the hallway, the distant sounds of Kyle playing his xylophone in the summer room.



And the dogs playing in the kitchen, his nerves were jangling with worry and fear.

The pause was long, deliberate, as Kenya stood, weighing up the pros and cons.
This was an unusual situation she'd been put in. Unusual and unfamiliar territory.
She had the chance to change things, make her own decisions.

Chewing on the inside of her lip, she looked at Raven. He could see her inner turmoil, but waited patiently.

"Of course I'll go ahead with whatever you want to do," she breathed, hoping that was the right answer.

"You will?" came the reply.



She nodded. And he swept her up into an almost bone crushing hug. Clearly delighted that Kenya was with him 100% of the way.



He didn't dare tell her that the reason why he wanted to quit, was because he was booed at the grand opening, by one of the bystanders. And it made him realise that his popularity was beginning to wane.

He also realised that things were going to be a little tight, as he would be starting from the bottom rung again and working his way back to the top.

But this time......

...... things were going to be a little different......

Chapter Seventeen - Lean Times

Jerome was starting to struggle with the mounting bills. That family 'donation' was dwindling fast and his 'dream job', elusive as ever. He didn't dare ask for more money from his family. It would have meant proving them all right.

He wasn't cut out to live independently. But he had to prove to them that he could. There was no way he was going back to the homestead with his tail tucked neatly between his legs.

He had to admit, sitting daydreaming and chasing bugs soon lost it's sheen and the cupboards were beginning to look bare. His lean muscular body becoming leaner as time went on.

Trouble was, he didn't have the heart in him to stick at anything. As soon as he started a project, he soon lost interest in it.



Buying the robot crafting machine had been a bad move. He thrilled at the idea of turning little cranks and beating out small sheets of metal. But it was a '5' minute wonder, destined to sit in the corner gathering dust.

Besides, there was only so much time you could spend, playing with a toy robot before boredom set in.


His stomach rumbled aggressively as he tried to watch the huge wide screen tv.

Even the sound of a passing wolf, hawking up the remainder of it's dinner on his lawn, didn't distract him this time.



Gone was the prophecy of the old gypsy woman, as harsh reality took precedence instead.

Sighing heavily, he decided once and for all. It was time to get a roomie in.
Posting an ad in the local paper was a mighty struggle, as it took a sizeable chunk out of his depleting budget, but he was hopeful that some good would come from it.



Luckily, posting an ad online wasn't quite as expensive as he soon found out.

Days passed without a single reply. The only sign of life outside, were a few wandering wolves that decided his driveway was a playground.



He became despondent. If nobody replied, then he'd be forced to sell some of his most treasured possessions.


Then one day, it happened. Just as he was lighting the last of the wood he'd collected from one of his 'wanderings', he heard an unfamiliar sound.
The sound of approaching footsteps. Peering out of the window, he saw a pensive looking young man, hovering at the front gate, a newspaper in his hand.



At first glance, Nathan Summers looked lost, then bemused. As if this house shouldn't really be here, at the bottom of this secluded lane. He also looked pretty much confused too, staring up at the neat looking house with it's perfectly manicured gardens and swept pavements.


Surely this house wasn't owned by a man? It was far too neat. It was from a storybook really, with smoke coming from the chimney.

He half expected Hansel & Gretel to come skipping out of the front door.

Perhaps the owner was gay? It was obviously far too tidy otherwise. Not that Nathan was bothered really. All he was interested in, was a roof over his head and food on the table.
After all, he wasn't intending to stay indoors all the time.....

.... he had a busy social life to keep up.

Obviously he hadn't realised that Jerome had had too much time on his hands and kept a tight ship. Also, Jerome's family has a history of being in the military, and that kinda rubbed off on him and his attention to detail.


With a tentative step, he rapped lightly on the door and entered......