Sibling rivalry at its finest.
It's all well and good to win at darts or rack up the most conquests.
But what it really comes down to in the game of life is who will break down first and wash those effing dishes!


In media res.




Valentine was doing his best to pacify Daytona but there was
another woman in his life who was having none of it.




The nerve!!
The NERVE!!! *ghostly wail*



Angel went to warn her baby boy.
But Rhett was oblivious.



Valentine didn't think it was a laughing matter when he came to find him.
He'd done his best to calm Daytona down but he knew she didn't storm over
this way for nothing. And it wasn't hard to guess what this fool's been up to. Don't he
know you don't shit where you lay and you don't lay where you earn your pay.

Maybe he did, he insisted it wasn't him. But hell, what did that signify?
Not a damn thing, that's what.



Goldie felt the tension and then she heard Pop raise his voice.
He wasn't yelling but he was warning Rhett.
She ran out of there so upset. She hated to see Pop mad
or Rhett (or Candy) in trouble. Hated it!
(And they always were, even though they were grown-up.)




When Goldie got upstairs and dried her tears she realised
she was overreacting. But she didn't understand why.

Aww, somebody's "becoming a woman". Might be time for a sisterly chat.




Junior's here, eh? Well, Valentine was going for his jog but it didn't look like the kid minded
being left on Candy's hands. He's not one of those overprotective fathers, can't be with Candy.
Found that out the hard way. And Junior's a good guy, despite his upbringing. Only so much
trouble to get into in Widespot anyway, so let the girl have her fun where she can get it.

Goldie was late getting down that morning but Pop would never leave without her. This
was how you did father-daughter bonding. No paparazzi, nobody pressing charges...




*Really, Candy?
It's a risky game you're playing.
And all for THIS?*




But fireworks! See, fireworks!

*Ooo..kay*



Goldie got quite the education growing up in this household.

She wasn't eligible for the kind of competing Candy and Rhett did,
though, so when she caved and cleared the dishes nobody "lost".
In fact, everybody won. Until the next mealtime.



Junior didn't go home. There was nothing for him to do at home.
Good thing Rhett wasn't over-scrupulous about his big sister.



In fact, he had no tact at all.



Goldie found herself thinking about Junior. And Candy.
She liked him all right but she didn't think Candy did.
So why was he her new boyfriend?



It was on her mind so much that she ended up talking to Rhett about it.



"Looky here, kiddo. Stuff happens, right? We're stuck in this small little nothing town and there's not
always enough action to go around. Sometimes you have to take what you can get. Sometimes there's
bound to be, y'know, overlap. All I can tell you is keep your own l'il mitts offa Junior and anybody else
you see comin' in & outta here cuz there's another side to big sis that you don't wanna mess around with.
You should stick to boys your own age, anyways. We've had enough of that kinda trouble."

Turned out Rhett was a wealth of information!




Daytona called to make amends.


Valentine invited her on over.

She didn't fire Rhett after all, although she had been tempted.
Sorely tempted, she reminded him.
It was good enough for Valentine that she didn't, Rhett needs the income.
He didn't know what she was gonna do about her own son. Probably best to let it alone.





Goldie wished she could be more like her sister. Not in every way, maybe, but in a lot of 'em.
She's so fun! That's why people like her so much, especially boys. They don't notice Goldie.

*True but can't imagine why, she is the cutest thing! And the shy dancing animation...I died.
Hadn't seen it in forever and it's even more adorable than the child sim's bounce & sway dance.*

There was no one else around, not even Pop or Rhett but she still felt shy moving her body.
It took a while but eventually she got into it with Candy there urging her on.



Pop was always hovering whenever he caught her napping downstairs
so Candy took to lounging around in her own room these days.



What the hell?!?



Oh crap.



When her favourite outfit got too tight to squeeze into Candy had to
find some comfy clothes. Pregnant. Like...pregnant. Shit.



This is bad. Really, really bad. She hadn't believed she was pregnant for a second and now look at her!
Oddly enough, the one person she wanted most to talk to her was her baby sister. Not for advice or anything.
That's crazy. The one thing this family has done right is keeping Goldie naive. But that's why she says such
great things, like getting excited about a "brand new person" who's gonna be all hers, plus have a cousin
the same age to play with but it's even better because this one will get to grow up here with them.

Even Goldie knew better than to expect Candy to get married.



Eventually Candy fell asleep on her bed and Goldie got a chance to finish her homework.



She wasn't 100% sure it was as good a thing as she was trying to believe.
Candy was the best sister, far as Goldie was concerned. But what kind of mother would she be?



Goldie was the best sister, to tell the truth.
She went downstairs and made Candy's favourite, rice & beans.
(She learned a little bit about cooking from Mary.)



Candy woke up in her sister's bed.
Not the strangest place by a long shot that she's ever found herself waking up.


~


Welcome to The Dugout

It was Daytona's persistence that really motivated Valentine to set up shop. She smoothed
the way for him with the paperwork and even punched up the ad copy to put in the papers
for the nearest town over. It's a long shot (and too flowery by far) but he's grateful.
So it's fitting that she, along with her son, was the first to come see it when she wrote this:

Widespot's very own legend, Hall of Famer Valentine Hart, invites fans and friends alike to meet him
at The Dugout. Have a drink, relax, get your picture taken with a sports giant, here at The Dugout!
                                                                                          (1020 Midway Lane, right off Hway 13.5)



Hamilton's OTH is sports, so he just had to come along.

"I'm going for a lounge vibe around here but I've already got some
ideas in mind for expanding. You play much ball yourself?"

Hamilton laughed, he was sure enough just a spectator, but he was tickled
pink at the chance to get to know the great Valentine Hart better, in his own
element, more or less, and not because he was Mama's new beau, either.

He had a ball from a championship game that his dad actually
left behind and he wanted Valentine to autograph it.

Valentine was always happy to oblige a fan.

And Daytona's son was a good ally to have.
He really hoped Rhett was telling the truth and he'd kept his hands off the man's wife.



Junior and Penny wandered in later (not together, he'd made sure of that).
Penny made a beeline for the bar when she saw him standing down here.
That's his grandchild in there. There's actually no alcohol here to serve yet (Daytona pushed through
the permit but he didn't have a connection with a supplier) but did Penny know that?

'Course! She just wanted to talk. Besides, she remembered studying the effects of fetal alcohol syndrome
in high school and she figured that Rhett's and her baby already had enough strikes against it.


Valentine didn't get a chance for a man to Mann with Junior.

But he caught up to Candy at home later, he figured it was about time they had a Hart to Hart.
"Anything you want to tell me Candy? I would hope you don't take your old man for that big a fool.
I said you were pregnant and now look. Clear as day isn't it?"



"Don't worry about it, Pop. It'll all be taken care of, no worries."

He couldn't be so blasé, "Junior's a Rich Man(n), sure enough, but he's not
his own Man(n), not yet. He's still real young and it's his ornery old father who
doles out the dollars in that house. You're entitled but we might be in for a fight."

"Don't worry about it," she repeated.

As open as she seemed, nobody could ever pry into Candy's secrets.




This new body was really cramping her style.



Could be worse.
It's got Pop off her back, at least about gettin' a j-o-b.
And if things work out right this new body will be
the key to her never needing one.



Candy was only getting bigger and bigger by the week.
But otherwise being preggo wasn't too much inconvenience.
She didn't have any of that morning sickness people talk
about and sleeping was already one of her favourite
hobbies so her daily routine hasn't changed in any way.




Autonomous cleaning. She brought a whole mug to the dishwasher.
Must be nesting.



Candy met up with Junior at the Makeout Spot.
She hadn't seen him much since this happened.



But, hey, she's still got her urges.


Candy didn't mind an audience but, for some reason, Junior was being a prude.

They walked across town and right smack into some more of the Land brood.



That little one, Delta or whatever, ran right up to him and hugged him
and started running her mouth. Like, what the hell was that about?



Candy had a feeling like she shouldn't be here, like she was trespassing.
But what the hell. Might as well pick up some food while Junior's busy
out there in deep conversation with some damn children.




Mary hadn't come around since she made her announcement
and Valentine hadn't sought her out, not that he ever had to.

Mary was almost as nervous about what she had to say this time
around as last time and he wasn't being half so encouraging.



Valentine couldn't be happy about having a child who'd be younger than
the grandchildren he was about to get. This wasn't what he intended.

Then suddenly she said, "Do you love me?"
That was unexpected but Valentine was never thrown off by that question.
"Of course," he said, patting her arm and pulling her closer. And he meant it.

"Oh, I'm so sorry! I'm sorry Valentine, I'm sorry."
She jumped up and buried her face in her hands.

"Hush now. What's all this for?"



"I lost the baby," she whispered and the torrent started pouring forth.

He was ashamed of himself for the relief that he felt.

"Come on now, don't get so worked up," he said, "You're going to make yourself sick.

She looked up into his face, that's what her mama always used to say.
It stopped up her tears right quick to hear it from him.

"That's better. Let's dry those tears. It wasn't meant to be, that's
all, but it's going to be okay, Mary. I swear to you it'll all be okay."



Valentine noticed Candy come in when he was with Mary. So as soon
as he got her squared away it was time to tackle the bigger problem.

"You look like somethin's up. What's up, Pop?"

"What's up is that you look like you're ready to pop and you still haven't told
me what your plans are. I haven't seen Junior around in weeks, is he tryna
back out of his responsibility? You want me to have a talk with him?"

"Pop please."

"I'm serious, Candy. Did you talk to him? He's gonna have to Mann up and
take some responsibility for this," he said, waving a hand at her and her belly.

"You're one to talk."

"Watch your mouth. Whatever I do I take responsibility for. That's how it works in this family."

"I'm sorry, Pop, but that's a load of crap. I'm a girl so I got no choice but to have everybody all
up in my business when I look like this. But what about Rhett? You give him the same speech?
Or is it only me and Goldie who gotta worry about shaming the family?"

He was about to turn to leave, talking to her was like talking to bricks sometimes. But was
she talking about the Hot Tub Dome Scandal? Because she knew whose fault that was...His.
It was his fault because he didn't protect her from herself when she was too young to know any
better and he was too busy setting the bad example. But he made sure nobody would ever know.*

"I don't know who you been talking to but that's not the way we do things around here and you know it.
Your mother and I never believed in shame. What you kids do is what you do. When there's
consequences we deal with them. That includes making sure your baby, and Rhett's, get what they
need from both their parents because it took 2 to make 'em. I'll have a talk with the boy if you won't"

"Pop, I said I don't want to you botherin' Junior. Not right now. He is not your friend right
now and he's stupid enough that you might find out some things you ain't ready to hear."

"Candy. You're a grown woman. Anything you do..."

"I wasn't talkin' about me."


~




Rhett had been avoiding Penny.
But today he wasn't.
He's the one who asked her to meet him at their spot.
(He missed her.)




Rhett thought it was hilarious that Goldie would ask Candy that!

She's only curious. After their chat Goldie realised there was so much she didn't know.
Not just about life and that stuff but about their family! She was too young to know much
about the Hot Tub Dome Scandal and no one would've told her the truth anyway. But
now with the baby coming she's kinda extra curious about her sister Candy.



Oh yeah, Penny's here.




She had to grab her own bowl but, at least, his sisters were always nice to her.




For the most part.

"You guys are gonna have the funniest-lookin' baby.
But mine's gonna run it a close second, I bet."



Penny decided to get out of there. She didn't want to spend the night, not that
he asked. She's about to be part of this family whether he likes it or not.
Why was he always such a jerk when there were other people around?

He's really just feeling guilty. Somehow spending time with Penny always made him feel so guilty.

Just look at him, autonomously clearing the dishes away. He must be heart-sick!


But nothing like conscience troubles him for long.

Rhett always has sweet dreams.




*Here's the thing: Angel married a professional athlete so she knew what she was getting into and a sex scandal would hardly be enough on its own to tarnish his reputation. For politicians, yes. Athletes and entertainers, not at all. But given that Candy was a jailbait romance sim in that oversexed atmosphere it's easy to see how things could have gone horribly wrong. Hot tubs, fisticuffs, charges pressed, and trust between teammates shattered beyond repair. Valentine took the hit, the sleight of hand misdirection for the press was surprisingly easy because he wasn't innocent, and they were able to keep her name well out of it. He retired shortly thereafter and they moved to Widespot where a restless Candy has taken up an arguably more dangerous game. But she's grown now so she'd better know what she's doing.