Never Get Tired, 2008

Havar, fall, 2008

Jorge and Jolie are 41, Grace Elise is 13, Ashlee is 10, Esther is 6, Chase and Amyra are 5

Money was tight around the Dawson house and besides the children were neglecting poor Puggles.  He was beginning to act out as a result, doing things like chewing the furniture or eating slippers.

Jolie didn't want to sell him, but it was a solution that solved two problems at once. Besides, Gavin was a nice man and Puggles would be going to a good family. He was recently married and had two new stepsons and they were expecting two more children.


"Twins! I couldn't believe it. I mean, our first pregnancy and we're having twins. Cameron is worried of course, but she worries about everything. Twins! They're not that bad right?"

Jolie smiled. "I have twins and my husband is a twin as well. They're not as bad as you think, but they are a lot to handle."


"Thanks again for the dog. Cameron will love the fact that he's already trained."


Jolie watched as Puggles happily followed the man and she tried not to cry.

"Puggles will be happier," Jorge explained to the children. "At his new home he has loving children who will play with him."


"We love him," Chase mumbled.

"I know, but Puggles didn't feel as loved. Remember what we said, Puggles needs time and attention and that means play time and cuddles and bath times and clean water and a filled pet dish. Did Puggles have all of that?"

The children silently ate. They didn't want to admit it, but their father was right. Puggles would whine for attention, but they would ignore him in favor of their friends or toys. It was the truth, but it still hurt.


---
"We'll be back, Grace Elise is in charge." Jorge said locking the door behind them.

Grace Elise didn't mind watching her siblings, they were easy enough. Amyra was practicing her reading and Esther had a project to research. Chase and Ashlee were looking for butterflies for their project. All she had to do was make lunch for the family.

"Why are you nervous?" Jorge asked as they entered the fairground. "You know that you're the best baker there is. Why else would companies approach you to create a line of custom wedding cakes?"

Jolie knew that her husband was right. She felt her nervousness melt away as he smiled at her in the crowd.

She said hello to the other contestants and waited silently as the judge carefully sampled each dish.

"That wasn't that bad, was it?"

"No, it wasn't," Jolie agreed as they waited for their spicy Mayan coffee. She slowly sipped her cup before turning to her husband.

"What is it?" he asked, seeing the look on her face. "You won the contest, you should be happy."


"I know, but..." she dug in her pocket and handed him the soiled letter and the old photo.

A community director needs family values, obviously you have none. Step out or this photo will be published.

"Wow..."

"It's not the first one, I got a letter like this before we moved to the plains...before you knew..."

"You can't let some sim bully you into dropping out."

"Yes, I can." Jolie said nodding. "Our children know how to read, I don't want them to know that, nor do I want the rest of the community to know that."

"So you're dropping out of the race."

Jolie nodded. "It's best, I have the new line of wedding cakes to focus on as well as my furniture designs, not to mention the restaurant."

"Alright," Jorge nodded. He wanted to punch a sim in the face right now. The community director position was all his wife talked about and she was doing well in the polls. Now she would need to drop out because of the past. "I made us a reservation at Green Patina Café, we have to leave now if we want to be on time."

After a brief stop at the house to change and kiss the younger children goodnight, the couple walked silently to Green Patina Café each lost in their own thoughts.

"You look beautiful," Jorge whispered as they looked over the menu.

"Thank you,"

"We'll have the rosemary roasted lamb with sprouts and two glasses of your vintage sparkling nectar."

"Sparkling nectar, really?" Jolie whispered as the glasses arrived.

"To new opportunities," Jorge said, taking control of the situation.

Jolie smiled as she realized what he was trying to do. Instead of looking at the letter as a lost chance, she would view it as a new opportunity to focus on other things in her life.

"To new opportunities," she echoed.

"You're an amazing husband, you know that right?"

"So I've been told, but I never get tired of hearing it."

"And I never get tired of saying it."
---
Jolie Dawson is dropping out of the race. For those that voted for her, please recast your votes.

To revisit the other candidates and their speeches, click here.

Also

Jorge discovers the truth about Jolie and Grex

The first letter here