The Smallwood Family Legacy Generation Two: A Sims 4 Story

Chapter Twenty Four: Growing Up Is Hard To Do.

Teenagers are a handful at the best of times, I had one already and his brother would soon be joining him. But I was lucky with Chester, he was a good kid. My older sister on the other hand wasn't so lucky with Noah. After telling him she was pregnant again, he gave her a hard time about it, saying it was disgusting and that she and Damian were old and icky. Kids!

His siblings had recently aged up too, four teens for Raven to contend with! Joseph had the Vatore genes, I saw so much of my father in him.

Jonah was a combination of Meade and Vatore, he like Joseph, was pretty laid back about getting a little brother or sister.

And beautiful Justine reminded me so much of her Auntie Tabatha, she was so pretty! She was excited about the prospect of another girl around the house, and she was into babies so that would help when the little one arrived.

Noah on the other hand, well I had a stern talk with him. He always took it from his Uncle Landy! He headed home still not thrilled about his mother having a baby, but he was going to try and be a bit nicer.

Raven and Damian were over the moon, it meant five kids in the house but they were still excited to become parents again.

Matthew Meade was born into a divided family. Jonah had sided with Noah, and Joseph and Justine were on board with their parents. Hopefully things would change when this little cracker melted their hearts...

...and melt them he did! Matthew was a delight and a very good baby. Raven vowed he was the last, but with her anything was possible!

Noah found himself outnumbered when Joseph fell in love with his fellow bespectacled brother and Jonah followed suit. Yes the triplets all fought over him like he was a stuffed toy while Noah despaired.

Dad discovered that the bird feeder was a dangerous device, while he was filling it early that morning the birdies decided to dive bomb him and give him a hard time. But he still carried on filling it up to the brim for them, he was a cool dude!

Hazel nut was bonding very well with this mysterious scarecrow, talking away and making jokes. I scolded Jess for starting this whole thing but she merely smiled and said "Landon kids need imagination, there is no harm in it! She'll grow out of it some day!" Yeah, some day, in the meantime the whole neighbourhood could see her talking to a bag of straw!

That evening, after I returned from work, Jude was making the case for zombie movies while dad attempted to give the T.V. another chance.

Jess was glued to said T.V. while Monica and dad were shushing me and Jude as Chester joined in with his brother. Both my boys were tag teaming against me, saying that there were slow zombies and fast zombies and I shouldn't just judge one zombie...what?

Chester was quoting Wikipedia to me while Jude still tried to make them sound less lame. Dad called over to the boys, "Your silly knife chefs are about to start!"
"Aww grandpa we are so over that show!" Jude scoffed as Chester chuckled.
"Yeah grandpa, get with the program!"

"You mean this one?" Dad replied flatly, he really didn't get sarcasm sometimes!
"I never really understood what you found so interesting in the first place!" Monica lamented as the show got underway and my boys continued to bombard me with the zombies good speech.

Dad had given up and disappeared, while Jess and Monica discussed the stupidity of this show my sons loved so much, or used to love.

It was true that Chester was older, he no longer enjoyed the things he once did when he was a child. It made me a little sad, everyone was growing up or moving on. Why did things have to change? I hated change!

Mum was still obsessed with Halloween and insisted on adding more decorations. She wanted to make it special before she and dad moved out.

Dad just picked up his violin and drowned her out. She was babbling away about pumpkins and all sorts as he played a melancholy tune.

"Caleb help me here, orange or black?" Dad kept on playing and I couldn't help but laugh. Until she focused on me. "Landy help your mother!" Uh-oh!

Mum had also set up pumpkin carving for the kids. Something that they really enjoyed, even "all grown up" Chester.

"Mine is better than yours!" Jude sang mockingly to his big brother.
"Is not, yours sucks balls!" Chester retorted.

"Both of yours suck balls, mine is clearly the superior pumpkin!" Hazel pitched in, I called language to her and she merely smiled and headed back upstairs.

"Well mine kept sliding around so his face is squinty! Can I start over?" Monica whined. I thought hers was really artistic, she needed to be more confident in herself.

Chester asked me if we could withdraw dad's offer on the house in Newcrest so that he and mum would stay longer. I wanted my parents to stay but that seemed a little too sneaky.

I did scold my son on his underhand idea, but secretly I was considering it myself. My god what was I thinking? Mum and dad were so excited and they loved that house. No, I had to stop being so selfish and let them live their lives.

The pumpkins looked awesome out in the front garden, mum was almost crying, maybe she didn't really want to go? Who was I kidding? Of course she did, and if she could live next door I'm sure she would! Shame all the houses in Forgotten Hollow were taken!

Chester started being interested in Ratty again. He was getting old and it was important that they bonded before he was no more. Chester was becoming very responsible which reassured me no end. 

The way he cared for Ratty and his siblings, I had no worries about this boy...

...unless he sought a career in singing, then the world would be doomed!

Yes Chester Smallwood, karaoke enthusiast, was convinced he was smashing it outta the park, his words not mine!

His brother and sister had other ideas though, thank god! "Chessy you suck, my ears are bleeding man!" Jude groaned and covered his delicate little round ears.

"Don't ever do this in public Ches, we still have to live around here!" Hazel pitched in. But he was undeterred, he continued to murder every classic song known to man!

With her leaving us soon, I thought it would be a good idea to get some vampire training in with my mum. She and dad were pretty high up with their skills and I was lagging behind, what with work and family and trying to pretend I wasn't a vampire!

Something my little Judey didn't have to ever worry about, he and his younger sisters were all human. It was only Chester that was inflicted with the curse of eternal life and elongated fangs.

We had a couple more days until Jude became a teenager and things were looking good so far. He was nurturing, sweet and loving. Yeah he and Chester were not gonna be a problem for me!

Except when Buzz or any of the other dogs came out of their graves, I had to explain that this was a normal thing. But when Uncle Vivaan appeared one night, they hid in their rooms. Well one of them might be heir some day, how would they cope then?

Chester was enjoying school and also enjoying not having to be at the same school as his siblings. He said it was fun, school was fun? I was wrong, I did have something to worry about with this one...I kid! 

Jude and Monica were giving dad the zombie talk, he was open to their opinions but agreed to disagree. I mean zombies? No such thing!

He promised Jude that he would sit down and at least watch a zombie movie, see what all the fuss was about. It seemed Mon was happy to talk about zombies, just not see them in the flesh...pun intended!

"So what is the point of a zombie?" Dad asked, he genuinely wanted to understand my son's obsession with this particular kind of undead.
"Well they eat brains!" Jude shrugged. To which dad mumbled,
"That's it?" 

"Well, they have no feelings so you can't make them angry. All they wanna do is stalk you and tear off your flesh. There is no reasoning with a zombie! That's what makes them so deadly, their mission shall never be compromised." He had a sound argument, and dad kinda knew it.

And of course he had to go and involve me, great! "Landon, where do you sit in the zombie debate?" Thanks dad! When are you moving out again?
"Well, I don't! Because they're not real?"
"Daddy take that back!" Monica gasped. Oh great I'd done it now!

"That's a terrible thing to say Landon shame on you!" My dad scolded me with a little smirk. Well fatty, you need to get on the treadmill stat, stop mocking me!

I watched Jude tease his mother, I looked at my son in awe. Yes he was a little tearaway, but he was cute with it, that little gap toothed smile and those freckles. He knew how to melt a heart.

I wanted him to stay a child forever. Was that selfish? You bet, but I remember my mother wanting me to stay a toddler forever so there's that.

I concentrated on a mean workout to take my mind off of things. Like my parents leaving for Newcrest and my kids getting older...

...Jess getting older! As I watched her explain the curfew to Jude, I thought about turning her. We'd discussed it once and she was not keen at all. But how was I gonna live knowing that she would grow old and I wouldn't? It had happened to Abi and Charley and Vivvy and Alex, and it was sad to see. Did I really want to go through that? It wasn't my decision though, it was Jessica's!

I checked in on my children that night, Monica was being a mini Jess and drawing away to her heart's content.

Hazel was checking out the curfew board and writing a strongly worded letter explaining why 11pm was far too early.

And my two boys were grilling their grandfather on why he had to leave. "Because this is your home now and your Gamma and I need our space!"
"For what?" Jude gave him a puzzled look.
"Never you mind!" He snapped.

Chester asked him if he was fed up with them, and I could see that hurt his feelings. "No, don't you ever think that! Gamma and I love you more than anything in the world! But we have had our story, we need to let the younger generation have theirs!"

"But Grandpa, we'll miss you!" Chester choked back a sob, yeah you and me both kiddo.
"I know, look here comes Gamma, we can all have a nice chat about it. How does that sound?"

Mum arrived having just baked Jude's birthday cake and sat down with Hazel in tow. "We will always be there for you all Chessy. You can visit and we can visit! It's not like we're going to Selvadorado or anything like that. We will just be a few miles away in Newcrest. No biggie!" It was hilarious when mum tried to be cool and modern, it was so out of her Edwardian comfort zone!

Mum set up the candles as Jude was arguing with Jess over why he should stay a child forever. Hazel said "I'll blow them out then!" as mum replied with a,
"You certainly will not young lady, Judey must age, it is the way of things!" Vivvy had come over to visit and she was laughing away to herself.
"Man I've missed this!" She shook her head and smiled at our mother.

Yeah Jude wasn't thrilled about growing up! "Have you seen Chester? He's a big bean pole! I don't wanna be a bean pole!" He whined, but no one was taking the bait and those candles weren't going to go out themselves...well...you know what I mean!

Finally he gave in and blew those candles out, "I wish for muskels!" Whatever that meant, as long as he was happy I didn't mind!

Jude grew up to be a true Vatore! He was very like me when I was a teen. The serial romantic thing really got me worried, but it was early days. I didn't have to concern myself with his hormones for a while...

...or maybe...

...yeah I spoke too soon!

We were often surprised by the gnomes who liked to pop up in different locations from time to time. Hazel stayed well away from them after her encounter on Thankful Day!

Yeah she was content to converse with her grandfather over everything and anything...no zombies thank god! She was the sensible one!

Something I had always associated my dad with, sensibility! Except I think the boys were rubbing off on him! "So Hazel, the most dangerous thing about a zombie is it has no feelings therefore there is no reasoning with it! All it wants is flesh and brains!" Oh em gee!

Monica was doing really well at school, I mean really well. Gone was the tearaway toddler and in her place was a studious and arty young girl who loved computer games. She no longer followed me around, which I was a little sad about, and she no longer asked me weird and wonderful questions, which I was not so sad about!

I wasn't quite sure what was going on in the dining room that evening, until I heard my mother raise her voice sternly at my father, "She needs to learn Caleb! She needs to know about us, her father and her brother, so she can understand our ways!"
"She is far too young...and human!" My dad argued back.


"I don't mind Grandpa!" Hazel piped up, I had no idea that my silly mother wanted to teach my human daughter all about vampires.

"No Hazel, it is not on! Trixie put the damn book away!" My mother sighed, nodded and put it away. She was acting weird lately, like she didn't know what to do and was winging it. I guess she'd never left me and the kids before, this was pretty new to her.

The curfew board continued to be a topic, now that I understood its purpose I was getting frustrated with my children's attitude towards it. Yeah I was a hypocrite!

Halloween was almost over, the house my dad put an offer on still wasn't biting. It looked like we were going to have them a little longer...what a shame! (Yipee)

Jude returned home from his first day of school looking sad. He hid in the bathroom for a good while and wouldn't talk to anyone.

Then he went upstairs into my office, where he ran on the treadmill for a little while. I could hear him muttering away about not being big enough.

He was in there for hours. It reminded me of when I wanted to impress Leah, I struggled with that gym equipment just to make her like me. Was that was this was all about? A girl? Nah, he'd only just aged up.

He was showing off before and after pictures to me as his older brother appeared and said "Judey you looked fine before, don't listen to them please!" Them? Time for some investigation, if Jude wasn't gonna tell me...

...I thought a little bonding time with Chester might help me out. He still had a very close relationship with Jude, maybe he could tell me why his brother was so obsessed with being strong.

"Dad, if I do tell you, you have to promise not to say anything to him. Please?"
"Okay son, just tell me what's going on!" Chester sighed and explained that there were a couple of boys from Jude's childhood who had grown up around the same time and were making his life difficult, calling him puny Jude and stick insect Smallwood.

I broke my promise to Chester, Jude needed a friendly word from his dad. He wasn't too happy with his brother, less happy with me, but he needed to know that we were always there for him, me and his mother. He eventually let me in and we had a heart to heart, I gave him my advice, something I expected Caleb Vatore would say.

I told him to face up to the bullies, not with his fists, but with his brain! Outsmart those lugheads! I only wish that was all I had to cope with regarding my second born...

 First week of high school, and Jude looked over at the lockers where a pretty blonde girl stood, and a few feet away from her a myriad of pretty girls! Jude had discovered something life changing and confusing. Something that had him feeling all sorts of feelings, one that he'd never felt before and kind of liked...

...yes Jude had discovered how alluring teenage girls really were! And this was the start, for me as a father, of something very troubling indeed!

To Be Continued...