PART SIX
Prologue: "No Time To Love"
Chapter One: "Changes To The Plan"
Chapter Two: "Party Planning"
Chapter Three: "Double Trouble, Cauldron Bubble"
Chapter Four: "A Sister's Duty"

Previously on 'The Caliente Affairs':
Nina became suspicious of Dina and her so-called 'innocent' kiss with Ed. Nina and Don tried for baby and Cassandra and Darren got engaged. Dirk began to formulate his plan to reveal the 'true' Cassandra to his dad whilst also spending time with his girlfriend's!

Prologue: "No Time For Love"

Daniel Pleasant descends from a rather large family. His Great-Grandparent's founded the town a long time ago and all of his family have lived in Pleasantview since then. Daniel knew nothing was more important than family. He adored his twin-daughter's Lilith & Angela and loved his wife Mary-Sue, who was also proud of her family, but it always seemed to come second to her work now a day's. However, she would always took it upon herself to make sure 'her' town was running just the way she wanted.

This meant regular town-meeting's, greeting the new neighbour's and also, as a friendly gesture to the town, annual parties. This year Mary-Sue had had some personal issues so she left the party planning a little late. She had intended to throw her second ever Halloween Ball as it was October 31st on Saturday.

"Hello! Is that the enquires desk? Yes, I'd like to know if it would be possible to book your reception room for a party, this is Mrs. Pleasant." Mary-Sue always knew a little name dropping couldn't hurt. "You're still booked all this weekend. Well could you please keep on checking to see if it becomes available before Saturday. Do you have my home number? Okay then, goodbye." Mary-Sue had been contacting the same place for a while now but had had no luck in reserving a room for the party. Scanning through the phone-book, she knew she could no longer keep waiting and picked up the phone again,

"Hello, is this City Hall?" The City Hall had been recently opened in town and it was because of this she was hesitant in reserving the hall for a party. All in all she was disappointed with the hall's appearance, it was certainly not as grand as one would expect for a Pleasant Party. Mary-Sue didn't hold her breath as she waited for a reply. "It is? Oh that's certainly nice to hear," Giving up on her dream location, she sighed and made do with what she had. "Would it be possible to reserve the hall for Saturday. Yes, this is Mrs. Pleasant." She realised she had used her surname once again and felt a little sad, given what she and her husband were going through at the moment.

She had booked the hall and also managed to get them to decorate it accordingly for the event. Outside she heard her husband finally getting home from the bar, whilst the girl's were doing their homework, Mary went out to confront him.

"Did you plan on coming home this late?" Mary-Sue said as she stormed up to her husband before he could take a step inside their house.
"Oh really Mary, don't make such a scene. It's not even ten!" Daniel replied.
"I don't give a hoot! When I sit down to dinner I like to be seated with every member of this household, which if you hadn't noticed, includes you!" Mary-Sue shouted a little louder than she intended.

"Of course I notice! Who do you think spends half of their time with the 'members of this household'?" Daniel mimicked, referring to their daughter's, "Me, that's who."
"Well, you could have fooled me."
"Oh please Mary-Sue, when was the last time you greeted the girls' after school and offered to help them with their homework, huh? When was the last time you and I... Did anything together?" Since being promoted again in her job, Mary-Sue had been neglecting her household role as a mother, and after becoming suspicious of her husband and the maid, it was true she had been as cold as ice with Daniel. It was only now that she felt on fire, only with rage instead of passion.
"If you want to spend time with me you have a funny way of showing it." Mary-Sue looked away as Daniel grabbed her.
"I don't want to go out every night, but I do so because if I stay here all I'm given is the silent treatment. Why can't you just leave the past where it belongs and move on?" Daniel gently turned Mary-Sue's face towards his.

"I love you! And you love me, I know that." Daniel said as Mary-Sue sighed,
"Of course I love you Daniel, and I accept the past to be just that, in the past. But it doesn't change the fact the things are different. And as much as I want to... spend 'time' with you, I don't want to just rush into things too quickly. You understand don't you, you'll give me time?"
"I don't know Mary, Maybe I'm tired of waiting. A candle only burns for so long you know." Daniel said as he turned and entered the Pleasant house.

Chapter One: "Changes To The Plan"

That evening, as Mary-Sue had wished, all the family at down for dinner.
"Can we eat yet?" Angela asked.
"Not just yet, I want to talk first."
"Oh god!" Lilith said, getting ready to leave the table again.
"No! It's nothing bad, I just want to ask who you'll be taking to the Halloween Ball tomorrow. I suppose if you must, you can eat whilst we talk, but for heaven's sake don't talk with your mouth's full." The family began and no-one said a word until Mary-Sue made them. Since she had begun hosting these things, none of the girls could ever have shown up without a date. For a while now they had both been in relationships, so Mary-Sue knew who they were taking anyway, she just liked to keep up the conversation in the house.

"Lilith, I trust that lovely boy Dirk will be escorting you tomorrow."
"Erm, yeah probably. But.." Lilith paused.
"But what?" Mary-Sue said with worry.
"I just don't think I'll be going tomorrow is all." Lilith confessed.
"Not going! Well why-ever not?"
"Yeah, come on Sis! Halloween is the one time of the year you can go out of the house without people looking at you funny." Angela said sarcastically.
"Very funny 'Grungela'" Lilith shot back.
"Angela, Lilith. Please keep the family bickering to a minimum tonight, please. Now Lillith, I think you should come, I'd feel ashamed turning up without you."
"That's funny, it's usually the other way around for me." Angela said again.
"Shut up bee-yotch!" Lillith yelled.
"Lilith!"
"Well she totally is. Anyway, why don't you ask her who's she's taking, as if we already didn't know." Lilith said to her mum.

"Yes well, I do know who's she taking." Mary-Sue knew her daughter had been dating a boy called Dustin. He wasn't exactly a saint but he had a nice personality. However Daniel did not like him one bit.
"Oh! No you don't." Angela added.
"What!" All three of the family replied.
"Did you two break-up?" Daniel asked smiling.
"Daddy!"
"You're not taking Dustin?" Mary-Sue asked.
"Well I can't, he has to work and he told me afterwards he'll be too tired to come."
"I don't think you can call what he does 'work'." Daniel said.
"He gets paid Daddy!"
"So neither of you is bringing dates? Oh dear." Mary-Sue frowned, beginning to panic.
"Mum, we aren't the ones you should worry about. I really don't think half as many people will turn up this time. I mean, a lot's changed since last year." Lilith said.
"It certainly has." Mary-Sue said, casting a glance towards Daniel.

Mary-Sue came out from the bathroom slowly as Daniel looked up from the book he was reading.
"Did I hear you throwing up in their?" He asked.
"I'm afraid you did." She relied as she began to get ready for bed.
"It wasn't on purpose was it?" Daniel queried.
"Daniel! I haven't done that for years, what on earth made you bring that up." Mary-Sue said, referring to a time in her life when she was just starting her job after having the twins' and she began making herself sick so she lost weight.
"Oh nothing, I was just thinking about the past. So, if it's not that then I suppose you're letting this party planning get to you."

"I have to worry, if this party doesn't make a good impression on the new neighbours then what chance do we have of keeping our town one of Sims City's most popular to live in? Oh, that reminds me, is you're sister and her family still coming?" Mary-Sue asked referring to Daniel's sister Jennifer and her husband, John and their daughter, Lucy.
"Yes they are, what about your parent's."
"Tsk, father's being troubled by his back again and mother won't hear of leaving his side." Mary-Sue said, settling into bed.
"Well, you managed to persuade Lil' to come so just relax and most importantly enjoy yourself."
"I will, I will. Are you going to be staying up for much longer?"
"I'm just finishing this chapter and then I'm all yours." Daniel said, letting the common phrase slip out.
"Really! And what do you think I have planned for you." Mary-Sue said laughing.
"Nothing dear, absolutely nothing." Daniel sighed.

Chapter Two: "Party Planning"

It was finally the day of the Halloween Ball, Dirk had been especially looking forward to it because with Lilith not going, he got the chance to take his other good friend Holly. As a costume, he put on an eye-mask to conceal his identity from the other guests!

"So babe, how will I know it's you at the ball?" Dirk said, charming Holly.
"I'll be the most beautiful girl there of course, in a silky red dress." Holly purred.
"Nice, is that the same dress you wore on our first date?"
"Well, I remember you said how much you liked it on me."
"I bet it looks good off you too." Dirk said, getting excited about seeing his close friend once again.
"Oh Dirk!" Holly giggled. Someone else was shouting Dirk too, it was his dad.
"Can you please get off the phone, I need to use it." Darren yelled from upstairs.
"Ok Holly, I gotta go. But I'll see you later." Dirk hung up the phone, not bothering to hear what else Holly might have had to say. He liked her alright, but she wasn't much for having a conversation with. But he knew a great way of keeping her lips busy!

Darren came downstairs and rushed to the free phone. He dialled his fiance's house and waited for her to answer.

"Hello!" Cassandra said, just getting ready to shower and change into her Halloween costume.

"Hey! You nearly ready?"
"No. Swing by to pick me up in about an hour or so, I've got to phone my dad first."
"Is he going too?"
"He didn't sound to well when he stopped by the other day so I was gonna see if he wanted me to drop off Alex so he doesn't have to stay."
"Okay then, I'll see you around five!"
"Perfect! Love you!" Cassandra said.
"Love you too!" Darren replied.

Cassandra waited for someone at the Caliente house to answer, hoping it wouldn't be Dina.
"Hello?" Mortimer asked.
"Hi dad, it's me!" Cassandra said.

"Oh Hello! To what do I owe this honour of a call?" Mortimer joked.
"Dad! I just saw you the other day, if you're missing me you know I'm always happy to have you and Alex over." Cassandra said, leaving out Mortimer's wife.
"I'm fine, just always happy to hear your voice. How are thing with you and Darren?"
"Wonderful! We're going to the ball tonight, all three of us!" Cassandra added. She had informed her father of the initial icy reception she got from Dirk at the beginning of her relationship with Darren. "That's why I'm phoning actually. Are you going."
"Well I'm just taking the girl's and Alex because Don's working."
"I can't believe you live with my ex-fiance! It's so weird, isn't it weird?" Cassandra asked.
"Not really, I just try and forget the past."
"That sounds like you!" Cassandra said, subtly referring to the disappearance of her mother.
"So why were you calling?" Mortimer asked.

"Well, if you wanted an early night, I don't mind dropping Alex off when the party's over."
"That'd be nice of you. And the girl's too?" Cassandra bit her tongue as she grudgingly agreed.
"Sure dad! As long as it means you don't have to be driving around all day." Mortimer thanked his daughter and they both said goodbye.


"That was Cassandra, she says she and Dirk will drop you, Nina and Alex off after the party's over so I don't have to pick you up." Mortimer told Dina...

"That was nice of her!" Dina said, sitting down with her sister.
"Maybe she wants a clean slate by the time New Year's comes around?" Nina suggested.
"Sure sis, she's going to forgive the woman young enough to be her sister for marrying her dad and moving him out of their house. Oh, and also call it even with the girl who stole her teenage sweetheart away from her... If she wants a clean slate by new year's she's going to have scrub pretty hard!" Dina remarked.
"Well I've never been mean to her." Nina added.
"Oh of course not!"
"She broke it off with Don, remember."
"Yeah, because of his affair with you!"
"Look, I don't want to get into this conversation again. I've got to go get ready now, especially if you plan on hogging the bathroom as long as you did this morning. What were you doing in there anyway?" Nina asked.

Dina hesitated before answering, "Just what I do everyday. Being this beautiful isn't easy work!"
"You spent almost two hours just getting ready? You don't look much different then usual."
"I.. It was a long bath, I needed a nice 'clean slate' to work on." Dina sighed as Nina walked off to get ready for the Halloween Party.

Chapter Three: "Double Trouble, Cauldron Bubble"

Mary-Sue looked at her Halloween setting. It was very elaborate, certainly not what she had imagined from the last time she saw the bare hall. The mayor, who Mary-Sue had spoken too at work, explained that he found community gathering's to be something of a rarity amongst town's these days. With hers, it was a key factor in making Pleasantview so pleasant to live in!

Darren, Cassandra & Dirk thought they were the first family to arrive. However someone else had slipped into the hall already. And Dirk knew exactly who that someone was...

"Do you know who that is?" Cassandra asked Darren as they danced.
"I assume it's Strawberry." Cassandra looked puzzled as Darren laughed.
"Dirk's flavour of the week!" Darren explained.
"Does he really think it's wise to meet up with his 'Flavour of the week' at the party hosted by the mother of his girlfriend?"
"I'm sure whatever Dirk does, he can handle it." Darren reassured Cassandra.
"Okay then! Do you want me to go get you a drink?"
"Only if you promise to leave Alex and his date alone."
"I wasn't even going to go anywhere near them."
"You liar!" Darren laughed.
"It's just, I'm glad to see Alex out with a girl."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing! Just that I'm glad he's not like some of the other teenage boys' in this town!" Cassandra added, leaving Darren knowing exactly who she meant.

Cassandra couldn't help glancing at her brother on his first date. She smiled as she went to get Darren and herself a drink.

"People are gonna be so jealous of me! You look even more amazing then before." Meadow said as she and Alex danced and talked.
"I could say the same about you!" Alex smiled as he took Meadow's hand. With Meadow's plan, Alex had now found himself becoming even more attracted to Meadow than before. He felt confident enough now to know that any worries he had had before wouldn't interrupt his feeling's for Meadow.

"Oh Alex!" Meadow laughed out loud, "You're such a joker. So who else have you been feeding those phoney lines too?" Alex looked confused as Meadow explained, "The plan! Has it worked, has anyone shown any interest or asked you out?" Alex thought about Meadow's question, but he hadn't received any signs of interest from the opposite sex. His former Goth-friend's had been interested about his new look, but for very different reasons! Alex decided to play with Meadow hoping that she would eventually understand he didn't want her as a fake-girlfriend, but as a real one.
"Well, this one girl asked me out straight away."
"Really! Who, was it Laurie? Aimee?" Meadow asked.
"Well, I can't remember her name, but I'm sure I'll find out when I take her out next week." Meadow stopped smiling and looked at Alex.
"You agreed to go out with her?"
"Yeah, wasn't that the plan?"
"No! The plan was for me to decide whose good enough to date you. I don't want you winding up with some bimbo whose name you can't even remember."

"Oh I remember now." Alex said, pausing.
"Well!" Meadow waited.
"Well what?"
"What's her name god-damn it!" Meadow demanded.
"Oh! Come here." Alex gestured for Meadow to come closer.
"What?" Meadow asked.
"Well, this girl. I really like her, but I don't know if she feels the same about me."
"She asked you out didn't she?"
"She asked me out, but I'm not sure she meant it."
"Well who was it?" Alex signed for Meadow to come even closer.
"It was... you."

Darren and his date were trying their best to keep cool. But as Dirk moved his hand further down Holly's back, he felt a pair of piercing eyes drill into the back of his head.
"Don't look, but that girl behind you is totally checking you out." Dirk froze his hand just as it was about to reach its intended destination.
"She doesn't have red hair does she?"
"Yeah she does!"
"And a spiky collar around her neck?"
"Not that I can see!" Dirk risked a glance, pretending to tie his show lace. He saw Angela, Lilith's twin sister, staring at him and Holly suspiciously.

Standing back up, Dirk formulated a plan to make sure he could spend all the time he wanted with Holly without being seen.
"Do me a favour?"
"Sure!"
"When I go and talk to her over there, you make a dash to the room next-door and go up the stairs. It leads to the roof, I'll meet you there in ten minutes."
"Ok, but I can't be held responsible for what I do to you afterwards for making me wait a whole ten minutes." As Dirk passed Holly he innocently brushed her check and whispered,
"I can't wait!"

Dirk walked towards Angela as she folded her arms in front of her and squinted at him. "Hello Dirk." She said, still squinting.
"What's wrong, you need glasses or something?" Dirk asked, trying to get Angela to face away from the door so she wouldn't see Holly run up to the roof.
"I might do, because I just had trouble believing my eyes. You weren't flirting with that girl over there just a second ago were you?" Dirk acted as if he was walking off, but his plan worked and Angela turned away from Holly to face him. "I asked you a question." Dirk tried not to look as Holly ran off to the roof.

"I can honestly say that I will not be flirting with anyone in this room." Dirk replied, grinning at his deviousness.

"Me!" Meadow replied in a state of shock. Alex looked into her eyes as she stepped back. "But, you said you really liked.."
"I do! I've been feeling this way for a while now, I kind of hoped we could just drop the plan and go together for real." Alex replied.
"You'd want to date me?" Meadow asked smiling.
"If you'd let me." Alex answered. He stepped forward and gently placed his hand on Meadow's shoulder..

...Then, without pausing. He kissed her.

He felt an extreme sensation of pleasure surge through his body as he and Meadow kept on kissing. He felt as if he were floating in the air,. He didn't care he was having his first kiss in front of everyone he knew, in fact, it added to the excitement. No longer did he feel like the shy and out of place Alexander Goth he once knew. Today, he was a man.

"Aw, look at that!" Cassandra said as she saw her brother kissing his girlfriend.
"Hey, that doesn't look like such a bad thing!" Darren joked.
"It doesn't, huh?" Darren smiled and looked at Cassandra.
"Not at all."
"Well, do you want to try it?" Cassandra asked, smiling back.
"Sure, why not!"

Containing themselves no longer, the two love-birds smooched on the sofa.
"I love you Cassandra!" Darren said as he gazed lovingly into his fiance's eyes.
"I love you too!" Cassandra replied.

"Eurgh, grab me a bucket!" Dirk said from across the room.
"What's wrong? I thought you loved kissing!" Angela joked.
"It's different when you're watching it.. Kind of makes me queasy."
"So I guess you won't be greeting Lilith with a big smooch when she comes later on." Dirk's mouth fell open.
"Lilith's coming! She told me.."
"Mummy made her come after work, which means you've got around half-an-hour to wrap up whatever you were doing with.. Hey, where'd she go." Dirk smiled as he began to lie.
"My friend had to leave, which is a shame because I know she would have just loved to meet you. Oh and by the way, whatever you think you saw, it was just two friends saying goodbye, is that okay?"

"Hey! It's no bother to me, you can do whatever you want."
"Well I think I'll just go outside and wait for Lilith." Dirk said as he walked off the roof to break the bad news to Holly.

Chapter Four: "A Sister's Duty"

Mary-Sue peered outside as she saw her husband's sister and her family get out of a Taxi.
"Looks like I'll have to greet them, where has Daniel gotten to?" She asked herself.

Jennifer Pleasant was an outgoing young woman who fell in love with John Burb as a teenager. Unfortunately her life changed when she found out she was pregnant on her eighteenth birthday. She told John they would have to marry as her father would not allow her to raise a child out of wedlock. They got married in a rushed but glamorous ceremony and everyone assumed Jennifer fell pregnant the same night. After the wedding the couple left Pleasantview & Jennifer began to resent John for getting her pregnant. Feeling as though she was far away enough from the judging eyes of her family, she planned to break-up with John but on the same day she gave birth to Lucy & seeing how much her husband loved their daughter, her heart changed. They moved back to Pleasantview & Jennifer began training to be a nurse.

"Hello Lucy! My that's a pretty dress you're wearing." Mary Sue said to the little girl.
"I wanted to come as a kitty like mummy but daddy said if I came in my dress instead he'd give me a bag full of chocolate!"

"So, have you come with a date?"
"Eurgh, boys are gross." Lucy replied as Mary-Sue laughed and thought about how she would change when she grew-up.
"She's not really at the 'boy phase' quiet yet." John said.
"You give her time, she'll be getting a boyfriend the minute she turns thirteen!" Mary-Sue laughed.
"Well let's hope I can manage to come up with a way to keep her mind off boy's for at least, oh I don't know, ten more years!"
"It's not possible!" Mary-Sue kept on laughing.

"Well, I may have something in mind, but this is mostly just between you and me." John said pointing to himself. He leaned in and whispered, "I'm going to cut Lucy's hair really short and dress her up as a boy." Mary-Sue looked horrified as John could keep his composure no longer and burst out laughing. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding!" Mary-Sue smiled but never quite got John's extreme sense of humour. "No, I'm thinking that if we have another baby, Lucy will either be too jealous to even think about boyfriend's or become so besotted with a baby-sister that she spends all her time with little Joanne!" John said, revealing to Mary-Sue just how far ahead in life he had planned. She smiled but wondered if Jennifer felt the same way as he did.

Finally managing to sit down, Nina decided it was time to chat with her sister more about her kiss with Ed.
"You seen Cassandra?" Dina asked.
"Yeah I know!" Nina replied.
"Well it makes sense if you think about it. She picks out the most revealing outfit to wear for the party in an attempt to, I don't know, make us jealous or something." Dina replied, confused about Cassandra's plans.
"Are you jealous?"
"Of her!? God no, just I'm saying I suppose that's what she's thinking."
"Maybe she's just thinking 'I'm not going to let what Dina and Nina think bother my night out with my fiance'." Nina suggested.

"And it shouldn't, let's change the subject.. How cute was Alexander and his girlfriend?" Dina giggled as Nina smiled.
"Oh I know, they just look adorable. I wonder if I was that cute as a teenager too."
"I don't really think you appreciate just how much freedom you have when you're a teenager." Dina replied.
"I know I didn't!" Nina said.
"Well you're making up for lost time now, stealing someone's fiance away from them is certainly the type of behaviour you'd expect from a teenager!" Dina laughed.
"Erm, Ouch! Anyway, you can talk. There isn't something you want to tell me, is there?" Nina asked.

"Tell you what?" Dina replied with a query.
"I.. Found something of yours in the bathroom." Nina paused.
"You found what?" Dina asked confused.

"Dina, I found the pregnancy test."

Dina looked away from Nina as she sighed an prepared to tell all to her sister...

TO BE CONTINUED