#19: Date Night, Part 2

Derek wasn't even upset that Kelly had included Alice in their first date.

Especially once he saw Kelly.

 

'She may be the most beautiful girl I've ever seen,' Derek thought.

"Come on, Alice," he hollered.  "Let's get going to Oasis Springs!"

The trio arrived at the Solar Flare Lounge,

and took seats at the bar.

"Hey, Robin!," Alice greeted the bartender she'd met on her first (sad) night in Willow Creek at the Blue Velvet Lounge.  "You work here, too?"

"Yeah," Robin answered.  "In this lousy economy, when work comes up anywhere, you gotta take it."

"Soooo," Alice exhaled slowly, "are you saying that, once my initial two weeks of living in Willow Creek are completed, I won't be able to get a job?"

"No, not saying that at all," Robin said.  "You do really seem to know something about mixology, and you're good-looking and people seem to like you, so you could probably get something.  You might have to start at the bottom, though."

"That's okay!," Alice said brightly.  "And, if you need to take a break tonight, Robin, I'd be happy to fill in for you just for the experience."

Robin, clearly already in the weeds, said, "I may just take you up on that!"

Meanwhile, Derek was doing his NASA best to flirt with Kelly in a classy way.

"You are, simply, the loveliest young lady I've ever seen," he said sincerely.

Kelly certainly liked the attention, but was very shy, so spent a fair amount of time Discussing Fine Cuisine with Alice.

_______________

Meanwhile, Dude, Bill, and Regina had gone to Magnolia Blossom Park.

"I'm just going to set up right here, guys," Dude announced, and started playing Latin songs.

Once Dude had started drawing a crowd, Bill asked Regina, "Hey, do you want to go collect stuff?"

"Sure thing!," Regina said enthusiastically.

They walked about a hundred feet away.

"It's okay, " Bill said, encouraging Regina.  "Just stick your hand right in there!"

Regina took a deep breath, and went ahead.

 

"Wow--I caught a frog!," Regina shrieked, excited.

The two dug and collected for a while,

then Bill grilled some hot dogs so they could eat dinner by the lake.

_______________

Meanwhile, back at the Utopia House:

 "So, 'Mother'," Peter teased, "what would you like to do while 'the kids' are all out for the evening?"

"Just what we're doing," Lou said, returning to her latest mobile app.

#18: Date Night, Part 1

Lou finished her first Mobile App, and took a break to talk to Peter.  Kelly and Derek were playing chess, and Regina was cleaning the kitchen.

"Kelly," Derek said, looking her straight in the eye, "would you allow me to escort you out for the evening tonight?  While out fishing, I heard about a club in Oasis Springs that might be fun."

 

Kelly was surprised, but delighted.  "I'd love to--you're going to wear a shirt, right?"

 

"Sure thing, little lady!," exclaimed Derek.

Interested in--and supportive of--Derek's overture to Kelly, Bill contemplated asking out Regina, who (like him) loved the outdoors.  'Maybe we could go to the Park together, and fish and collect stuff.'

But he was foreclosed by Dude, who suddenly stopped practicing and said, "Hey, guys, I thought I'd go to the Park and try playing for tips.  Anybody else want to come with me?"

Bill hesitated a moment, just long enough for Regina to chirp, "I'm in!  That sounds like fun!!!"

"Yeah, I'm in, too," added Bill, walking away and trying to look casual.  "Hey, there might be some good Collectibles there!"

 "How about you, Lou?," Bill asked.

 

"Sorry, no," she replied.  "I've got another mobile app to work on."

"Me either," said Peter over his shoulder.  "I'm on a streak with masterpieces, and don't want to break my concentration.

 

"Alice, you up?," asked Dude.

"Yes, I just got up," Alice responded, sounding confused.

 

"No," Dude laughed, "I mean, a bunch of us are going to the Park--do you want to come with us?"

"Actually," Alice answered--to everyone's surprise--"I thought I'd go back to the Blue Velvet Nightclub tonight, and see if they'll let me tend bar for a while.  Even if I can't get paid, at least I'd get some experience."

"Then why don't you come with Derek and me?," offered Kelly.  "We're going to a nightclub in Oasis Springs--maybe you can practice there!"

#17: The Bills Come Due

On Monday morning, Peter--by now a Level 8 painter--created his first masterpiece,

which he sold for $1,408.

Alice practiced making Butternut Gnocchi,

and Bill had to repair the kitchen sink for the 4th time in 6 days.

"Wow, we're rich!," Alice exulted, looking over Lou's shoulder and seeing the $16,132 in funds that the household had accumulated in the first week.

"You forget, Alice," Lou replied, "that we still have the first week's bills to pay, and we don't even know what they are yet."

(It was true--Alice DID forget about such things as bills.)

The bills came in soon thereafter.

"Well, I have good news, and bad news--which do you want first?," Lou asked, obviously distressed.

"The bad news," said Peter, working nearby on another painting.

"The good news!," exclaimed Alice.

 

"Well, the BAD news," Lou said, "is that our bills are $6,697."

"For what???," Peter demanded, exasperated.

"It's based on the asset value of this house," Lou responded.  "Which we of course don't own.  And it's a good thing you've sold all the paintings you've created, because if you had held some of them, we'd be paying taxes on the value of those, too."

"That's freakin' ridiculous," Peter fumed.

"Soooooo, what's the good news?", Regina asked, tentatively, fearing Lou's crankiness.

"The good news," Lou sighed, "is that we have not only enough money to pay it, but also enough to pay NEXT week's bill--after paying the $6,697 current bill, we'll still have $9,935 left.  Which is more than next week's bill will be, as long as we don't buy anything for the house, or hang on to any paintings or woodworking projects or collectibles."

"So," Bill asked, while working on yet another dining table, "maybe we can afford to take it easy a bit?"

Derek piped up, "Maybe take a night off?"

"I don't see why not," Lou answered.

Having finished breakfast, Derek went over to talk to Bill.  "I wonder if we could swap a few of our responsibilities," Derek said.  "I'd like to spend a little less time fishing, and a little more time working out and improving my logic skill.  I'll need both for NASA."

Bill smiled.  "Sure, but I'm more interested in knowing what you're planning to do with your big 'night off'!," Bill teased.

"Well," Derek confided quietly, "I was honestly thinking of asking Kelly if she wanted to go out with me."

"Kelly, really?," Bill asked (though he wasn't at all surprised).  "I think ALL these girls are great!"

"Yes, but," Derek said, very seriously, "Lou is brilliant, but she seems to be annoyed at one thing or another all the time.  Regina's a gem, but I just don't think we're perfect for each other.  And Alice is, well, Alice...."  His voice trailed off.

"But KELLY, well, now," Derek continued, "that's the kind of girl a guy could marry!"

____________

Note from the author:

This is the day that Goal #1 ("Pay the household's first week of bills") and Goal #2 ("Have enough household funds in reserve to pay the same amount next week") of the Utopia House Challenge have been satisfied.  (Rules are the first post in this blog.)  So, the reward is that the player (me) gets to direct social interactions, and that the characters (Derek et al.) get to go to community lots.