arkhelios-gameplay

[arkhelios-gameplay]

"You're abandoning me while I'm pregnant!" Ulyssa continued. "You have no moral ground to stand on!"

"I'll pay whatever is necessary if we can take a DNA test to prove it's mine-"

"Forget about it!" Ulyssa snapped. "I want nothing to do with you and your manipulative tactics. Kerstin was right about you."

"Kerstin?"

Ulyssa stormed up the stairs without responding. Tennyson swallowed. I had to do this, he reminded himself. If I hadn't, we would've been forced to have this conversation with a child in the picture. He was no stranger to custody battles and parental back-and-forth blaming, with his father and mother doing the same when he was a child, and Pia doing the same to him with Daria.

It was for the best. In the long run.

#arkhelios #ulyssa durant #tennyson yoxall #sims 2 #the sims 2

[arkhelios-gameplay]

"What?" Tennyson asked, horrified and confused by the sudden accusation. "No, Ulyssa, I haven't manipulated you. What are you talking about?!"

"Oh, please," Ulyssa scoffed, her voice dripping with disdain. "Pulling your sob story on me about how you cheated on Pia because you were too in love with another person."

"I didn't say that!" Tennyson protested.

"Save it, Tennyson," Ulyssa snapped, her eyes blazing with righteous anger. "You leave me all alone all day locked up in here with no food-"

"None of that is true!"

"Shut up!" Ulyssa screamed.

#arkhelios #tennyson yoxall #ulyssa durant #sims 2 #the sims 2

[arkhelios-gameplay]

"I can't believe you'd do this to me," Ulyssa sneered. "Not just to me, but to our innocent child too."

Unable to stop himself, Tennyson scoffed. "We don't even know if it's really mine," he said.

"For the child's sake, I hope it isn't," Ulyssa said. "I would never want my child to grow up with a selfish father like you."

"Well, neither do I," Tennyson admitted. "I know I'm horrible, Ulyssa. You don't need to rub it in. But we can't stay together for the sake of a child. I know that's the wrong decision."

"You know that from experience," Ulyssa spat. "I get portrayed as the homewrecker, but it's you... It's you who manipulated me. I left a stable, healthy relationship for your mess and this is how you repay me."

#arkhelios #ulyssa durant #tennyson yoxall #sims 2 #the sims 2

[arkhelios-gameplay]

Ulyssa slammed her fist in the table. "Not while I'm pregnant!" she yelled.

"Since when has that been a rule?" Tennyson questioned defensively. "You said I didn't communicate properly, but neither have you!"

Ulyssa shook her head and got up from the chair, with surprisingly little effort given her complaints of back pain.

#arkhelios #ulyssa durant #tennyson yoxall #sims 2 #the sims 2

[arkhelios-gameplay]

"By making it think its father is capable of commitment," Ulyssa finished, her eyes flashing with hurt and anger.

Tennyson swallowed. "Ulyssa, I-"

"You cheated on Pia and abandoned her and Daria, now you cheat on me and abandon me and our baby," she said.

Tennyson blinked. "What? You mean last night? I didn't cheat on you, Ulyssa, we agreed we could be with whoever we wanted, you said that was the whole point of poly-"

#arkhelios #ulyssa durant #tennyson yoxall #sims 2 #the sims 2

[arkhelios-gameplay]

Tennyson shook his head. "I didn't come to this decision lightly, Ulyssa," he said. "There are too many... Issues, between us."

"What issues?" Ulyssa questioned, her mind racing trying to figure out what he could be referring to. This couldn't be happening, not now, not when she was pregnant.

"I don't want to be polyamorous," Tennyson said.

"Well, that's fine!" Ulyssa said. "I don't need to be in a polyamorous relationship! That's not something to break up over!"

"I-"

"Why wouldn't you communicate that to me?" she demanded. "I'm fine with monogamy."

"I don't want to be monogamous with you," Tennyson finally said, hoping that'd end her protests. "I don't want to be with you. I don't want to have this baby that you're carrying."

Ulyssa felt a surge of desperation welling up inside her, threatening to consume her whole. How could Tennyson do this to her? How could he do this to their baby?

Tennyson's gaze softened, but his resolve remained firm. "I'm sorry, Ulyssa," he murmured, his voice heavy with regret. "But I really do think it's time for us to go our separate ways. Better to do it now than after the baby is born and confuse it by-"

#arkhelios #tennyson yoxall #ulyssa durant #sims 2 #the sims 2

[arkhelios-gameplay]

Ulyssa's breath caught in her throat, a sharp pang of disbelief shooting through her chest. "End things?" she repeated, her voice barely above a whisper. "B-but... Why? I thought... I thought we were happy together." It wasn't wholly true, of course. He had not been the best, most supportive partner, as Kerstin had pointed out to her. But that didn't mean they had to break up. She was pregnant with their baby for Watcher's sakes!

#arkhelios #ulyssa durant #sims 2 #the sims 2

[arkhelios-gameplay]

Ulyssa turned to him, her eyes wide with surprise. "What is it, Tenny? You seem... Troubled."

He took a deep breath, steeling himself for what was to come. "I... I think we need to end things between us. Now."

#arkhelios #ulyssa durant #tennyson yoxall #sims 2 #the sims 2

[arkhelios-gameplay]

"My back hurts," Ulyssa complained. "Why do you never massage me?"

Tennyson nearly dropped his protein shake. "I've massaged you every time you've asked me to," he protested.

Ulyssa didn't reply, instead opting to drink her juice. Loudly. Each sip seemed to grind Tennyson's gears even more. He felt as if everything he had repressed was bubbling to the surface all at once. His heart hammered in his chest as he mustered the courage to speak the words he had to say.

"Ulyssa," he began, his voice trembling ever so slightly. "We need to talk."

#arkhelios #tennyson yoxall #ulyssa durant #sims 2 #the sims 2

[arkhelios-gameplay]

"Tenny! Give me some juice!"

Tennyson tensed. For once, Ulyssa had decided to wake up early. And it had to be on today, of all days. He swallowed the anxiety in his throat and took a juice can out of the fridge.

#arkhelios #tennyson yoxall #sims 2 #the sims 2

[arkhelios-gameplay]

"Oh, before you go and I forget to mention it - Julia called and asked if you need some more toys for Daria."

Pia smiled. "That's always appreciated," she said. "Kalle's old toys, I assume?"

Pelle nodded. "Julia always kept them, just in case," he explained. "She was always hopeful for more children, despite..." His voice trailed off, a flicker of sadness passing over his features.

"Despite how things turned out with Kalle," Pia finished softly.

"That wasn't her fault," Pelle interjected defensively.

Pia decided against arguing him on that point. It was a futile discussion. Pelle didn’t talk about his family often, but he was protective of them, despite their flaws.

Not that Pia's own family was any better. Although, she wasn't protective of them. Not anymore. She had as good as abandoned her mother after finding out about her... indiscretions with Tennyson. A shiver went down her spine at the thought. With family like that, who needed rivals?

#arkhelios #pia rivales #pelle nykvist #sims 2 #the sims 2

[arkhelios-gameplay]

Pia regarded Pelle with a mixture of curiosity and concern, her gaze lingering on him in search of more profound insight. Yet, as the silence stretched, it became apparent that no deeper explanation would be forthcoming. With a resigned sigh, she shifted the direction of the conversation. “How is Jorah doing?” she asked instead.

Pelle's smile, though warm, seemed slightly strained. “Good, as far as I know,” he said. “He’s been busy studying.”

“Having a professor girlfriend helps, I imagine,” Pia remarked, pressing her lips together in a tight line as she tried to gauge Pelle’s reaction to her statement.

Pelle chuckled, but his laughter didn't quite reach its usual warmth. “I believe she’s been distracting him more than she’s been helping him,” he said, still smiling, but there was unmistakably a shadow in his eyes, quick and fleeting but notable.

Pia bit her lip. Her cousin had always been kind and optimistic. She always wondered how much strength it took him to keep that veneer up, considering what she knew of his family. She pretended to look at the time. "I should really get to work," she said in an urgent tone. "Mr. Vanderseaux is probably getting bombarded with phone calls already."

"That many clients?" he asked.

"Well, the only law firms in town are theirs, Hogan, and the Durants," Pia said. "I imagine they're as swamped as we are. Especially when you consider that Arkhelios and all our neighboring islands are technically seceded from SimCity, but also not an independent nation..." She sighed and rubbed her temples.

#arkhelios #pia rivales #pelle nykvist #sims 2 #the sims 2

[arkhelios-gameplay]

“What?!” Pia had assumed he left for work early that morning since she had not encountered him while preparing Daria for daycare. Now it dawned on her that he was most likely still in his room during that time.

“I’ve applied for six new jobs,” Pelle said. “They all have better pay and working hours. I’ve listed out all the pros and cons of each of the positions I was offered, weighing out the opportunity cost of each, compared to the others-” he stopped himself as he noticed Pia was looking at him with pure horror on her face.

“But why?” she questioned.

Pelle shrugged. “It was inconvenient,” he said. “Plus, I get too complacent if I don't have anything new to get excited about. If work isn't challenging me, then it's the wrong place.”

It was hard for Pia to protest against that. Sure, his Bachelor's degree in Art wasn't as impressive, as, say, her degree in Mathematics, but he could do much better than the convenience store he had been working in.

She was, truthfully, growing tired of working as a law firm receptionist as well, but they would be promoting her any day now, surely.

#arkhelios #pia rivales #pelle nykvist #sigurd nykvist #sims 2 #the sims 2

[arkhelios-gameplay]

When Pia got back to her shared house with Pelle, she was surprised to discover him in the kitchen, petting his dog, with the laptop open.

“Aren’t you at work?” she asked.

“No, I quit,” Pelle replied nonchalantly.

#arkhelios #pelle nykvist #pia rivales #sims 2 #the sims 2

[arkhelios-gameplay]

It had taken some time, but he had successfully dropped his daughter off at daycare.

#arkhelios #valerie bateman-bellamy #penny selene #aegon maricourt #cordelia durant #uhyx vybirlbh #maegelle maricourt #daria rivales #arwen traver #sims 2 #the sims 2

[arkhelios-gameplay]

Then she stopped in her steps. "Roman?"

"In the flesh," he mumbled, snuggling his daughter in a desperate attempt to get her to stop her tantrum.

Pia paused, and Roman could see the gears in her head turning. They hadn't seen each other since college. Which wasn't unusual, given the fact that Pia had always been Abe's friend, not Roman's. That friendship had been very controversial given the Helios-Rivales rivalry. It had horrified Elaine Helios almost as much as Roman's relationship to Abe had. "It's good to see you," she finally said.

"Good to see you too," Roman said, trying to remember how to do small talk. "How's... Uh..." Tennyson, he had been about to say, then remembered his conversation with Ulyssa.

"Pelle is fine," Pia said, smiling.

"Pelle?" Roman asked in horror. "You're dating your cousin?"

"What? No!" Pia said, equally horrified. "I thought you meant- I'm living with him. For now."

"Oh."

To Roman's surprise, Valerie stopped screaming. She was still weeping, but it was much quieter. He would've been relieved, if not for the awkward pause between him and Pia.

"I... Uh..." Pia stammered.

"Are you ready to go play with the other kids now?" Roman asked Valerie instead. Valerie nodded back to him.

Pia gave him a small smile. "I'll leave before Daria changes her mind about being here," she said. "I'll see you around, Roman."

"See you."

#arkhelios #roman bellamy #pia rivales #valerie bateman-bellamy #sims 2 #the sims 2

[arkhelios-gameplay]

Not wanting to leave his child screaming and crying, Roman desperately tried to console Valerie.

"One of those days, huh?" Pia asked as she walked past. "I know the feeling."

Roman swallowed. "This doesn't usually happen," he replied, hoping it was the truth.

#arkhelios #roman bellamy #pia rivales #valerie bateman-bellamy #daria rivales #penny selene #sims 2 #the sims 2