#sims 4 stutter

[earthmoonz]

WIFEY. | EPISODE TEN (10.6) [ACT TWO]

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Though her bones weighed that of lead, sleep came to Lena in conflict. Her mind was electric, furiously battling to knit everything together. She’d been on the backfoot to begin with, but to know that she had wasted so much time as an unwitting pawn in her brother’s machinations filled her with a specific and familiar dread. It was this same dread that had her fixated on a one word text, agonising over her reply. Deep down, Lena knew Max deserved far more than what she could currently give but despite it all, she was willing to try, even if it was at her own expense.

(transcript below):

[PHONE RINGS]

(LENA): Max?

(MAX): I might do something stupid. 

(LENA): [sitting up]…Stupid how?

(MAX): As in really fucking dumb.

(LENA): Max I’m too tired for this, just tell me what’s wrong.

(MAX): [sniffling] Right. Well before I get into it, I should tell you that I am not sorry I blocked you. You really pissed me off that night and I refuse to be treated like a dickhead, but seeing as I’ve unblocked, texted and now called you, I’ve clearly moved on.

(LENA): Max-

(MAX): I’m not finished. Rita’s selling the bar, which is as fucked as it sounds and did you know that Victor Feng thinks San Myshuno is in a state of neglect? What do you think he means by that?

(LENA): I don’t fucking know, but-

(MAX): [low, dangerous] It was them wasn’t it? The fire. Probably a warning?

(LENA): I-I [sighing] I mean it looks that way, yeah.

(MAX): Good. Look, I never thanked you for helping me with all of this. I know you were never quite comfortable with it all, but it was…I’m glad that you did.

(LENA): W-Wait, please don’t do what I think you’re doing.

(MAX): Lena, you don’t have to worry about me! I’m fine. Everything’s gonna be fine.

(LENA): Max!- [Max cuts the call]

*

(LENA): SHIT!

[TXT MSG]

(ROY): I’ve got him. Where do you want him?

[bastardtrait]

it's barrett birthday! he is SO over constantly baking and cooking he just bought himself a blue cake for his birthday. turning 40 doesn't seem all that fun to him tbh.

Barrett: i just watched my moms in law die back to back like damn the idea of ageing got me feeling peculiar.

[matchalovertrait]

Dulce received a more official diagnosis. The psychiatrist says she has dyslexia. Fortunately, Dulce has been doing better in school over the past few years. She is slowly being phased out of special education but will still seek speech therapy and tutoring at school.

Start from the beginning

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[laylaysdelusions]

Sim wife. (Paige bueckers x reader)

Summary: Paige catches you playing sims with a married version of herself 

“Hey!” Paige(your roommate) says as she walks through the door, putting her gym bag down.

“Hi” you muster up the courage to not sound shy.

Everytime the woman speaks you practically fall to your knees, it’s even more unbearable, considering you live with her. She makes your mouth go dry and your cheeks go slightly pink.

“How was your day?” She asks with her classic grin that makes any fangirl swoon. She’s been in an extra good mood recently.

Ever since the two of you moved in together, as close friends, you’ve been head over heels in love with the blonde. She’s never given you the ick in any way it’s like she’s unrealistically perfect.

You suddenly feel her fingers snap in your face to grab your attention, pausing your daydream.

“Good- it was pretty good” you say way too quickly for your liking. You want to seem calm and collected but damn does she makes it difficult.

As she gets closer you get a better look at her.

She’s wearing basketball shorts that hanging off her hips, revealing the top of her boxers. Her hair is in a low slick back bun. Oh, she looks freaking delicious.

“Oh that’s good I’m happy, what made today so good?” It felt like Paige knew she was teasing you, it was almost like she knew that you couldn’t really answer that.

“Well I hung out with Dylan and Maddy in my room for most of the day” you say while smiling, thinking about the memories with your best friends.

To be honest your best friends poked fun at your debilitating crush on Paige often today, and that was a pretty big part of your conversations with them, but Paige doesn’t have to know that of course.

They were given an even bigger opportunity to say something when they saw that you made Paige in the sims 4 and you married her.

‘Aww she’s too cute’ Maddy put her hand on her heart while looking at Dylan.

You had to jerk yourself back into reality.

“Is something wrong, you seem to be daydreaming a lot” Paige asks.

You assure her you’re just fine and even though she doesn’t really believe you she lets it slip past.

“What’s your plans for tonight?”

“Oh well nothing really just video games” you answer as you’re fighting back the urge to just jump in her arms(or make out with her.)

“Actually I was wondering if you wanted to had a movie night with me like old times? a girls night?”

“Sorry Paige I need alone time to unwind, you know how draining Dylan and Maddy can be from time to time” she sighs and rolls eyes at you.

“Why have you so been so introverted around me recently?” She looks at you with a questioning voice

You try to breathe and stay calm. There’s no way you can sit next to her for two hours or longer while still containing your feelings, especially since your ovulating.

“Just a little more reserved nothing to worry about” you say quietly before speed walking to your room.

“Shit..i just made an absolute fool out of myself” you whisper while having a big pout on your face.

While you’re sitting on a self hate train you decide to self soothe by playing with your imaginary world of sims. You pull up your save file and begin playing.

Not long after you heard Paige knock on your door.

“Um hey I got you pizza I thought you might be hungry”

“Thank you” you say with a sheepish smile

“Hey are you playing the sims?” Paige laughs.

Uh oh. You hoped and prayed she wouldn’t notice the sims you made.

“Y-yeah” you mentally facepalm at your stutter.

“I used to play this game with my friends all the time, throw back” Paige says amused.

What you didn’t realize is that Paige found it adorable and she wasn’t judging you whatsoever. She thinks you’re pretty damn cute.

The screen accidentally moves around a your sim self appears.

“Oh gosh is that you?”

You nod.

“She has your facial features and mannerisms down perfectly, are you married in here?” She sounds eager to see save file but you’re not willing to show her considering her name is in there.

“M-mhm” you say not wanting to lie, you want her to like you and that means being honest and likable in everything.

“Can I see?”

“No..”

“Why not?” She looks puzzled but still amused.

“Come on sweetheart just let me see it’s not that serious it’s not like I’m gonna judge a sim” she playfully rolls her eyes.

The pet name didn’t slip past you. Your face flushed and your knees went weak.

Paige’s hand overrides yours on the keyboard and she sees your sim wife.

“Paige bueckers is your sim wife hm?” She says with a smiles and her eyebrows move.

You’re frozen and no words can come out.

“I didn’t know my princess of a roommate had that big of a crush”

“Look- I’m sorry can we pretend this never happened” you say, so embarrassed.

She leans down to your ear and whispers.

“Don’t worry I like you too”

Relief and flustered emotions come over you. Does she really or is she just messing with you?

“Yes, really” Paige says almost as if she could read your mind.

“I see the way you peek down the hallway to get a glimpse of me or how your cheeks are pink when we make eye contact, I’ve been doing the same thing for a while now honey you’re oblivious”.

“So this means..we can be date?”

“Well yeah I was gonna ask you to be my girlfriend, what do you think?”

“Yes!” You say extremely fast.

[lana-llama-in-pajamas]

I'm not her.

part one

disclaimer: this is my attempted at a deepspace fanfic and asking a question, what if we got into the world of these boys? and in the middle of playing so we can only predict certain scenes but we cant fully alter them? I thought this would be a fun brain exercise . also you are you and horribly we are cheating on these poor lads with each other...sooooo have fun! (PS first chapter is a lil rushed cause I'm writing it at like 4 am)

"Isekai'd" is a slang term, particularly popular within the anime and manga fandom, meaning to be transported or reincarnated into another world, often through an unexpected or dramatic event. It's the past tense verb form of "isekai," a Japanese term for a fantasy genre where characters are thrust into a new, unfamiliar world. 

once again at work. I fucking hate this place, this office feels like its straight out of the matrix but ive sadly not met morphias yet. i walk to my desk placing my belongings down. "tablet...water bottle, phone ,pens, notebook..." i check off everything murmuring its name while placing it down on the desk. a large hand holding a match lands on my desk making me look up "Harvey" I smile up at him, Harvey park. was a tall sleek Korean dude. charming tall almost could mistake him for a K-pop idol but he hated that comparison, only outlier is that unlike most in our workspace he choose to be here due to his diploma in computer science. "aren't we boycotting them?" I ask grabbing the cup "my little sister works there, so in a sense I'm fucking with their money by getting stuff for free" he gave a sly smile, I nod in thanks taking a sip "ooh silky" I smile sitting down and powering on my computer "heard you got yelled at for playing a game on your phone" he whispered sitting in front of me setting up his own desk "its nothing serious, it was my break anyway and you know work Karen's" I grumbled remembering "what game?" he asked. I almost choked on my drink. god I cant tell him the truth I'll seem like a creep OR WORSE a femcel. "game? I meant period tracker. I was just checking and she thought it was a game because of the cute characters!" I say with little to no confidence "..." Harvey looked at me not believing it for a second "...y/n...were you playing a naughty game on company time??" he covered his mouth chuckling. I blushed looking away "its not 'naughty' its a dating sim" I whisper ashamed "omg are you serious? what game i wanna know if my lil sis plays it too" Harvey prods more making me heat up in embarrassment even more "love...and um" I stutter before Harvey perked up "deepspace??" he leaned over far too excited " yes" I put my head in my hands over my limit at this point "wooow never thought you the type" he wiggled his eyebrows "ya know people say I'm like Rafeyal , I have no idea what that means but their all pretty so good things I hope" he rambles on as I internally sigh. at least my work friend thinks its more funny than weird. "whos the apple of your eye?" i hear him ask while he starts to type " I don't really have a fave" I say thinking about it "oh how freaky, you want all 5 at once?" I throw an eraser at Harvey making him dodge and laugh "too much? sorry kitten" he says the last part with an exaggerated tone "oh my gawwwwd" I slump in my chair.

hours passed, Harvey and i walked into the parking lot to my car "no but seriously imaging managing a schedule were you have to accommodate 5 men? I'd tear my hair out" he grabbed a tuff of his own hair exaggerating his point "well thankfully its all an app" I rolled my eyes "here she is" i walk to my car "see you harv" I wave but he was still standing there "do you want to hit the barcade that opened up downtown?" he asked quickly making my brain work overtime "uh yeah sure, um meet up there at 8 ?" i ask pulling out my keys "cool see you then" harv finger guns at me before jogging to his car.

we've never been alone together, normally he brings other people...maybe he is and just didn't mention them? i sighed believing the game was giving me more confidence than i should. here i was in a little black dress and thigh high boots, i put on a necklace with a pendant from i game i loved as a kid on it. twirling it in my hand as i drove in bumper to bumper traffic. i sigh turning up the radio, jazz was little unconventional but it relaxed me. i can sometimes imagine slow dancing with them to it, sylus and i would dance to misty by sarah Vaughan, (immensly funny if you listen) cheek to cheek by ella and louis with zayne, la vie en rose for Rafeyal. strangers in the night by frank Sinatra for xavier and funny valentine by chet baker would be for Caleb...

my thoughts broke when i heard a collison.

then?

silence

I couldn't feel anything. I felt...cold?

I could sense someone pulling out of someplace warm to the cold

yelling and cries? faint in the distance, I opened my eyes to see a glow

"ma'am are you there?" I heard but I didn't answer, I was too tired to answer

the screams turned to silence then a soft tune, like it was a room away...sweet perfume and clean linen filled my nostrils

I squinted stretched feeling light and energized, was my workday a dream? I yawned and opened my eyes landing my feet on cold tile "huh?" I whipped my head around seeing a futuristic apartment. it was sleek and magazine like with only meticulous things out of place. i panicked and ran to a door thinking it was the bathroom but nope a closet. running to another slide door i yank it and run in, and run to the large mirror. i gasp clutching now long dark hair, my face was my face but my hair...and my body were different! i stare before collapsing on the floor holding myself "there's no way" i whisper touching my face to check if i can feel. suddenly i hear a sound and cautiously i crawl towards the door avoiding the mirror the sound was so familiar yet distant. it was a phone on the nightstand, it trilled and buzzed as i loomed over it i saw a name 'caleb' i gasped not knowing if i should leave it but instinctively i answer and sit knees to chest on my bed "h-hello?" i manage "hey! pipsqueak i tried calling you last night but no answer" caleb was lively yet disappointed sounding i just started spacing out while listening " still on for grandmas right? i wont let you down , see you there next week love ya" he hung up.

oh dear god. i could feel my heart quicken its pace and my breathing labored, i couldn't handle anything that was happening i heard beeping looking around for the source while shaking led me to my wrist, a hologram emanated showing [[warning. panic attack]] [[contacting akso hospital]] i panicked even more making it repeat the message "no no no no no" i tried to break the hologram with no used as i heard paramedics break in "hello? y/n l/n? please call out if you can hear us" i looked around to hide but lamented "bedroom" i yelled going into a fetus position repeating the words "wake up" in hushed tones as i shook like a chihuahua.

every question i couldn't answer. they shoved a needle in my and wheeled me to a room. i feel hopeless and lost staring at my now manicured hands...no longer having its old imperfections. my moles were all gone only one cute on remained on my face. i looked out the window at a metropolis ive only ever seen through a screen, an Otto bot whirled in front of me startling me "hello! dr.zayne will be here soon to asses the reason for your sudden attack!" it showed his face and my empty report, only showing my name and admittance reason

it goes away after a while and I lay back, I wasn't me anymore...was i dead? was this my last 7 minutes? how did I go? maybe this was real... I pinched myself leaving a mark. I could hear foot steps get closer and there he stood. god he was beautiful, his amber eyes felt cold, his stature was demanding and professional I couldn't help but just gawk like ive never seen a man before. he sat on a chair next to me making us see eye to eye "y/n...are you not doing well? what caused this panic attack?" he asked plainly his brow furrowed at my silence, my staring was probably freaking him out a bit "and your silence? is this panic causing you to go mute?" he asked shifting in his seat. he smelled like mint and Luna rosa by Prada. I wanted to hug him but refrained thinking he was an illusion. I looked to the screens in the room showing trivia and news snippets before seeing one about zayne, i read the date on top then looked down at my hands "id be...like 40 by now.." i murmured making zayne have a more worried look "y/n" I turned to him tears in my eyes "...I love you ...but I wanna go home" I cried, tears flowing down my cheeks and my breathing hitched trying to be quiet. His eyes widened grabbing my arm and pulling me in for a hug.

i cried louder realizing i could feel his warm body and cold hands hold me. i wrapped my arms around his neck, covering his ear from my wails.

this is all a girl like me would've wanted.

and yet all I'm thinking of is my own family. my friends...my old life.

[cryptiam]

Sims 4 - FNAF CC: Glamrock animatronics + random cc pack!

Happy 10 years FNAF! This is a random collection of props/animatronics I tried to get converted today. No set is complete, but at least you'll have some extra stuff to play around with!

Fair warning: These are high poly-count [LOD0 roughly 10-15k per model] - I tried my best to lower it down, but only so much I can do at my skill level.

FNAF models are especially bad with this because of all the smooth surfaces and endoskeletons. I tried my best to lower it just before the model starts to collapse, but it's still high. I'm not skilled at retopology enough to downscale it past this point though.

Includes:

Glamrock Roxanne Wolf/Roxy Animatronic Deco

Glamrock Freddy Animatronic Deco + No Mic/Idle version (updated from older cc)

Glamrock Chica

Glamrock Montgomery Gator/Monty

Funtime Freddy Animatronic Deco

Funtime Chica Animatronic Deco

Minireena prop (w/eyes)

Helpy prop

Juice Fountain Clowns (2 swatches)

Bucket Bob Prop

No. 1 Fan Prop

Mr. Gumball Prop

Candy Cadet Deco

Mystic Hippo box

(Moved here from old pack) Cupcake deco

CC Info:

Base game compatible

Keyword "FNAF" in search bar

High LOD/polycount [LOD0 roughly 10-15k per model] - no matter what I can't fix this - I'd recommend not using too many of the models at once or play on a lower LOD setting if you're having frame stuttering.

Recommended:

FNAF 1 Animatronic deco:

FNAF SB Decorations:

FNAF Wallpapers/floors:

FNAF Plushies:

Check out the FNAF Masterlist for other creators cc:

Credits:

•Meshes/Textures from Five Nights at Freddy's: Help Wanted/Help Wanted 2/Security Breach.

Models and Assets owned by Scott Cawthon and Steel Wool Studios. This is a fan mod and not being sold.

▼Download | Patreon (free):

Terms of Use:

~~~

If you like my cc, consider tipping to my Ko-Fi or supporting me on Patreon! I do this as a hobby and it's very time consuming per cc. I also have commissions usually open if you really want something specific from me! Thx!

[prosennas]

Statement from Max for Red Bull Racing:

So. I’m going to write this once. It might get deleted. But who cares. After 3 days of pre-testing. To fight for a title. Around months of prep for RB20. This is what I get. This was a disgrace for the sim racing community and big brand and driver involved. Big stutters all season. 2 bad upgrades due to Newey leaving you say. But then again team disconnecting. Some got their simrace nights back some (me) don’t. Because of this stupid 4 steward rule. How can you even rely on rules when you can’t even control your own shit team? This is not the first time we do this. I’ve literally been out of podium 4 out of 12 events. You might think after the 1st or 2nd time you learn, but this is just a disaster. The Red Bull Racing organisation should really look at what they want moving forward. Because doing it on this platform is just a clown show. I’m never competing again and that’s all down to your incompetence. I hope many people will follow my lead and we can build something nice somewhere else. Because all of me, team, brand and driver deserve it.

[boringbones]

A brief story about this Sim. I'm playing in Classic Sunset to test and identify improvement points. While doing this, he developed a network of relationships and, every morning, would contact one of his friends by phone to network. He fell in love with the mail carrier, reached level 4 in the music career (and guitar), worked on his skills autonomously, completed opportunities he was invited to autonomously, and led a life of steady progress for two weeks. Although the house interior is empty, he lived long enough to build stories, relationships, and a sense of importance, earning enough points to get free food at restaurants—and he got hooked on fast food. It was the only place he kept going back to eat, again and again. He fished, thrived, and even refused to do some things I directed him to, simply because he didn't want to. This week, we'll be playing live in this neighborhood while we gather more improvement points to make it fabulous for you all.

By the way, it ran like butter, no stuttering, with 8 lots loaded at all times. I'm proud of the result!!

[nikkeisimmer]

Oh My God...inZOI...

"Recommended System Requirements for inZOI (Life simulator from Krafton Games, South Korea)

For those wanting to experience inZOI in all its glory with high frame rates and the most detailed visuals, aim for the following recommended specifications:

CPU: A more powerful processor like the AMD Ryzen 5 3600X or the Intel Core i5-10600K will deliver a smoother performance even in the most demanding scenarios.

RAM: Doubling the minimum requirement, 32 GB of RAM will ensure that your game runs seamlessly and enables extensive multitasking.

Video Card: Upgrading to an AMD Radeon RX 6800 or NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 video card will allow you to enjoy inZOI at higher resolutions and with better graphical fidelity.

Dedicated Video RAM: A hefty 10240 MB will give you the bandwidth needed for ultra-quality textures and prevent any graphical stuttering.

Pixel Shader and Vertex Shader: Remaining at version 5.0, but coupled with more robust hardware, you’ll be able to maximize the game’s visual settings.

OS: Windows 10/11 with the latest updates is again recommended for the best compatibility.

Free Disk Space: A consistent 50 GB of free space is recommended for game files, mods, and updates.

-quoted from https://inzoiresource.com/blogs/22/Minimum-and-Recommended-System-Requirements-for-inZOI

Yeah...that's my wallet finding out I'm going to have to spend at least $4,000.00 to run inZOI decently on my computer. The thing is that you can no longer play these newest games on "integrated graphics chips". You have to get a dedicated card. My wife wants to play Dragon Age 4 (The Veilguard) which is coming out on October 31, 2024. And those games are just as intense on hardware as it is with inZOI.

Minimum and RECOMMENDED requirements for Dragon Age 4 "The Veilguard"

Me, personally... I want to play Cities Skylines 2 and Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 Recommended requirements for those two games. Cities Skylines 2

As for MSFS 2024 (due to come out in 2024?)

It's over and above what is pictured in MSFS2020. Chillblast said that the "recommended specs" for FS2024 is the following:

Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 PC Recommended Requirements

OS: Windows 10

Processor: Intel i5-8400 | AMD Ryzen 5 1500X

Memory: 16 GB RAM

Graphics: NVIDIA GTX 970 | AMD Radeon RX 590

Storage: 150 GB available space

I'm calling HORSESHIT on that right now. I'm saying it's more in the realm of what inZOI and Dragon Age the Veilguard is putting out. You don't get that kind of gaming experience with the specs Chillblast espouses. Especially on the processor and graphics end of things. After all, on the FS forum board, the recommended specs being tossed about just for FS2020 is the following:

Intel i7-12700K CPU

Z690 motherboard

32GB DDR4 3600mhz RAM (upgrades for this on the site are very cheap, but like you said I’ve seen a couple instances where this RAM outperforms most others)

1TB SSD

Nvidia RTX 3080 Ti

Liquid cooled, nice case, 850 watt power supply, etc

Frankly as far as I'm concerned, I'm tempted to go all out and perhaps go so far as investing in:

i9-13900K CPU

64GB RAM DDR4

4TB SSD

NVidia RTX 4090

Z790 GAMING X AX

at least a 1000watt power supply so that I can run peripherals like scanners and other photographic requirements...on top of just my gaming shit.

...at minimum.

I'm sure there will be detractors going, "You don't need that kind of hardware to play Sims 3...or the current games"...well, the main thing in building a system is that you have to shell out for future proofing (as much as technology development allows at any given time) so that you don't have to spend as much money upgrading your computer system on an yearly basis as opposed to once every three to five years and that Sims 3 is not the only game that I play. And the new releases coming out are that graphics-intensive...

I play SWTOR currently and I'm finding that the game stutters especially when there is a lot of people on a server. I want to minimize that so I'm thinking the more RAM I have and the better the video card, I'll get a little less lag out of it and that will help when I'm taking on Imp or Pub forces whichever side I'm playing against at the time. That and maybe improved graphics to the point where it looks semi-realistic. I'm also planning to get Dragon Age 1-3 and then Dragon Age 4 as well. Plus there are a few other graphics intensive games such as Digital Combat Simulator World (DCS: World) as well that are attracting my attention. I may even get into Call of Duty (depending on the feasibility of the user controls.

Mass Effect drives me absolutely friggin' nuts when it comes to controlling my character Shepard - she's a "femShep". I have to key-bind my movement keys to keys that I'm familiar with in order to keep from going bug-frickin' mental. That also messes with the shoot key too. I'll get there someday. In the words of the ever-immortal Maverick Mitchell:

So in a nutshell, these latest games if not forcing people to upgrade to a better class of gaming PC, will find that a lot of people with restrictive budgets may just drop out of the PC market and try to find it on console (if they play console games) no matter how restrictive the console games are in comparison to the PC versions as opposed to spending $4000 on a new gaming system. A standard PS5 is $499.95 CDN as opposed to spending 10X that much trying to set up a PC to be able to play these newer games. Add a couple hundred dollars buying a hard-drive for these consoles will maybe bring that amount to around $600.00 still much cheaper than buying a whole new PC. Dragon Age the Veilguard will only be released for PS5 and PC - No plans in the works for XBOX Series X as far as I know. And for now, inZOI is PC release only (with an intent to release to console later on down the road - though who knows when that will be) Why though am I looking at a new PC on a restrictive budget? Well, it's because I want to play the games in their full graphics and be unrestricted and potentially moddable states. Does it mean I'm going to have to save a lot of money while waiting on a new PC? Yes. Do I have the patience to wait? Yes...I'm in my fifties, I've waited this long...might as well.

🤣

[no-fear-queers]

Here's Something About Me (Updated)

Decided to rework my intro post. The last one was a bit long and some information on that post is a little out of date. Some things have changed, and some haven’t (e.g. I don’t watch Creeped Out as much as I used to).

Anyway, I’m no_fear_queers both on here and on Instagram. If you found me on here and want to check out my Insta be sure to look for the account that has Ellis from Left 4 Dead 2 over a queer flag pfp. (Note: I don’t expect anyone to follow me on here or Instagram. Haven’t expected to get a whole lot of followers on either site since the accounts were made. I’m also pretty sure my Insta page is shadowbanned but that’s not the point.) I’m 22.

I’m transmasculine, ambiamorous and a termcollector. The terms I’m comfortable with being open with on the internet are; queer, angled aroace, ambiamorous, termcollector, transmasculine, and trigender. This would be the part where I say “among other things” but this is the best I can do to not make things too long. My pronouns are he/they/sea/shark/fin/tide. I’m a satanist that’s into Greek and Norse Mythology.

The first name I have given myself is Ellis. Before anyone asks, yes, I named myself after the Left 4 Dead 2 character. In my defense, Ellis has always been my comfort character and to me, it made sense to name myself after him. As for the middle names I gave myself, they're Ryan and Caspian.

Nicknames I’ll accept are Eli, Ray, Cass and Ian. I also want to stress that the nickname “Shrimpy” can only be used by my friends. I only want my friends to call me Shrimpy because; for one thing I cannot confirm that I’ll always be shorter/smaller than the unknown person on the other side of the screen, and for another thing, a friend of mine (I will not be saying any names privacy reasons especially since I don’t know if he changed his name again or not) had given me the nickname Shrimpy (also nicknaming me Shrimp) while he and I were leaving PE because he thought it was easier to remember than my dead name. I also figured that he gave me that nickname because I’m smaller than all my friends. (Given I’m 5’ and somewhere around 101-102 lbs whereas my friends are 5’2”-5’7” and weigh over 101 lbs.) Long story short: If we’re not irl friends, don’t call me shrimpy. Only my friends are allowed to do that.

Personality/Mental health wise, I’m an autistic introvert with ADHD, social anxiety and depression. I don’t really like talking to people, especially since talking feels weird. It doesn’t help that sometimes I stutter and sometimes I don’t make sense. It’s something that I found difficult about being social, and on top of that, I’ll either cross a boundary without realizing it or I’ll misinterpret something that the other person is saying. (Can safely say that I’m one of those people that needs the other person to be more specific when talking to me about anything, and I also need the other person to express their boundaries when it comes to certain topics.) Now, putting aside the fact that I’m socially inept, I can confidently say that I’ll be 2 years SH-free on August 3rd 2024.

My interests include: watching YouTube, writing, playing video games, sharks, alligators, greek and Norse mythology, horror movies, drawing, and horror games

My favourite YouTubers are: Markiplier, LaurenZSide, tuv, morbidforfun, iHasCupQuake, Mr. Nightmare, Life of Luxury, Luxury Dark

My favourite book series are: Keeper of the Lost Cities, The Unwanteds and Percy Jackson

My favourite video games are: Left 4 Dead, Left 4 Dead 2, Skyrim, Cooking Champions, Terraria, Minecraft, Animal Crossing New Horizons, The Sims 3, The Sims 4, Stardew Valley, Battleblock Theater, and Sons of the Forest

My favourite colours are: Black, Red, Grey, Blue, Purple and Green

My favourite shows are: Bob’s Burgers, NCIS, Bones, Criminal Minds, 9-1-1, Supernatural, Futurama, A Series of Unfortunate Events, Kitchen Nightmares, Hell’s Kitchen, Hotel Hell, Psych, Invader Zim, Dark Shadows (yes, I’m referring to the original 1960s TV series), Mayans MC, Mama Named Me Shariff, King of the Hill, Mr. Pickles and Master Chef

My favourite movies are: The Bob’s Burgers Movie, Renfield, Demoric, Smile and The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Books of Blood, Marrowbone, A Quiet Place and Swindle

My favourite bands/artists are: Bad Omens, The Rolling Stones, OOMPH!, Angerfist, 3Oh!3, Simon Curtis, Adam Lambert, Sub Urban, Missio, Ghost, and Behemoth (This list also includes tuv but it’s already enough that I grouped him with my favourite YouTubers)

My favourite animals are a four-way tie between alligators, whale sharks, zebra sharks and leopard sharks

And lastly, my favourite holiday is Halloween

Okay, since this came out to be longer than I originally wanted it to be, that’s all the information I’m giving you.

DNI if you:

Are transphobic

Are bi/panphobic

Are Ace/aro/aphobic

Are proshipper/pro incest

Are a zoophile (furries are okay, people who think it’s okay to have shmecks with animals are not)

Are anti-abortion/pro-life

Support trump

Think xenogenders and neopronouns aren’t valid

Think that non-binary people aren’t real

Disrespect people that use it/its pronouns

Think that the US is a “Christian nation” (spoiler alert, no it’s not, it’s just where you’re FREE to be Christian--for the love of everything unholy do NOT tell me or anyone else to “repent”, your religion prohibits YOU, not us.)

Are a TERF

Think neopronouns are too confusing

Think xenogenders are too confusing (I don’t understand them myself but I’m not being an ass about it)

Think microlabels are too confusing or useless

Think words like “girl”, “bro”, and “dude” are gender neutral

Are racist

Are ableist

[thesims4blogger]

The Sims 4: Official Laundry List (July 9th, 2024)

Earlier this week, EA released a new Laundry List for the next game update for The Sims 4. If you don’t know the term, that’s a list of bug fixes that will come on a patch.

Laundry lists are usually shared one week before the update comes to both versions of the game (PC/Mac and consoles), but the release date has not been confirmed.

It is also unknown if the patch will bring anything new to the game. Maybe this is when players will get one of the two free updates promised on the latest roadmap. And it may or may not included the long promised new hairstyle made in collaboration with Dark and Lovely.

Read the full blog post, with all the bug fixes, below.

Sul Sul Simmers!

Welcome to this month’s Laundry List, where we share the top community concerns we’re currently investigating and aim to resolve in an upcoming patch.

To stay on track with the goal stated in our previous Laundry List, the team continues to dedicate their time to prioritizing more fixes to include in each update.  This is our second release in this series, with the next scheduled for roughly 2 months from now. This time, we are tackling over 60 issues to make for a better gameplay experience.

As always, the list below is just a top list, and there are more topics that we saw reported by players that are not listed here but may still be in the process of being solved. Some topics can be tricky and require an extended investigation on our end, so even though we are actively reviewing, it’s not a guarantee that we’ll have an immediate fix for it in the upcoming patch.

This list is primarily generated by leveraging the player reports via Answers HQ. Thank you to everyone who continues to help our work of improving the user experience via their reports.

Here’s the list of community concerns we’re investigating for the game update this month:

Console :

(Base Game) Reduced processing lag occuring a few minutes after launching the game that resulted in stuttering Sims.

(For Rent) [PS/XB] You can now enter ‘Rent per day’ amount with a controller.

(For Rent) Change floor up/down can now use the d-pad instead of bumpers on Residential Rental display in world select view.

Gallery

[DX11] Placing a lot from the Gallery will no longer display building lot screen with an incorrect overlay effect.

Base Game:

Sims will no longer receive a “Break-Up“ want when they have a High Romantic Relationship with that sim.

[DX11] Now able to switch windows in Fullscreen mode using Alt+Tab.

When a Sim changes path without stopping (canceling & changing their route) they will no longer teleport to their final destination.

Toddlers will receive Top Notch and Happy reward traits after achieving required skills.

Stair Railings will no longer disappear when one tile is placed next to one tile room.

When leaving CAS, the makeup sliders will stop reverting to their default settings and will remain how they were set.

When two Sims are on a date, other NPCs on the lot will stop trying to join a conversation; causing awkward conversations.

Fixed many cases of Fingernails warping when worn with certain outfits.

Fixed many cases of Fingernails getting warped when applied to female physical frame for male sim and vice versa.

Enchanting and Flirty Interactions are not available if not correctly aligned with gender preferences. Previously, they were incorrectly appearing regardless of preference.

All ‘Mega Double Doors’ swatches now include Transparent Glass.

“Make a Move” interaction is now available between Married Sims created from CAS.

Toenail option for toddler is no longer is missing in the Accessories menu.

Hair texture no longer changes when ‘yfTop_SDX021BinderRacerback’ tank top is applied to a female sim.

Can now place large curved walls on large curved platforms.

Cellar stair trim will no longer extrude down to the basement floor when the basement floor is removed.

Stair drop wall will no longer disappear when in ‘walls cutaway view’ mode.

The Knowledge of a Sim’s Sexual Orientation and their Sim Profile will now remove outdated information when that Sim changes their Sexual Orientation in CAS.

Upon learning a Sim’s woohoo interest and opening their Sim Profile, the Sim Profile will no longer say “No One“ when the sim has a woohoo interest in Men/Women.

When multitasking two books being read, the Sim will no longer skip the first book. Now they will read it, put it away, and then go for the second book.

Teen Sims will no longer feel jealous around a previous teen romantic partner who has aged up.

“Skinny dip with…“ interaction is no longer available on pools when no other sims are nearby.

Sims will now kneel instead of sitting cross-legged when wearing one of several CAS costumes to prevent strange visual stretching.

Bust the Dust

Sims will no longer get multiple Dust System negative buffs at the same time.

Cats & Dogs

Sim clothes will no longer remain on when entering Sim tattoo mode in CAS after using Pet Paint Mode on coat colors or patterns.

Cottage Living

Foxes will no longer appear in Manage Households looking like creepy rag dolls.

Finchwick Fair submissions will now properly return to sim’s inventory or to their household inventory after the fair is over. 

Dine Out

Sims no longer get stuck when a running restaurant venue is replaced with another restaurant from the Gallery.

Special NPCs (like Michael Bell) are no longer available to be hired for restaurants, because they will show up inconsistently or not at all.

NPCs will now leave the restaurant after completing the eating of a grand meal and will no longer wait untill restaurant is closed.

Equipping ‘ymTop_GP03Vest_SolidBlackBlue‘ outfit no longer causes round grooves to appear in the middle of all the fingers.

Sims will drink their drinks and eat their food autonomously when both are ordered at a restaurant. Previously they would only drink.

Discover University

Professors will no longer run away when attempting to take them on a date.

For Rent

The name of the residential rental lot will stop reverting back to its default name.

Rent amount should display consistently based on the unit size and amenities.

Tenant Relationships now appear in the Business filter tab within the Relationship Panel.

Get Famous

Color and texture will no longer change on the pockets and coat lining when pairing any tall boots with ymBody_EP06CoatLong.

Get Together

Interactions will finish and fully complete when using the Get Together closet to Woohoo/Try for Baby interaction.

“Make Out With…“ will also work in this closet.

Growing Together

Haughty Herringbone Tile, Floor, and Wall have appropriate swatches.

High School Years

Teen Sims can now Sneak Out to a College Party to complete their aspiration goal by using the “Ask About College Parties“ phone interaction with other Teens and then “Sneak Out“ through an openable window.

When wavy ombre hair is applied, a gray shadow will no longer appear in the sim’s eyeballs

Benchmark Seating Icon displays pink when viewing the pink swatch.

Horse Ranch

The three descriptions of features for Chestnut Ridge are now included at World Select.

Improving Horse locomotion at 2x or 3x speed to look better and stick better to routing paths.

Foals turn around instead of going backwards now which fixes several visual glitches when interacting with objects and routing.

Horses should no longer occasionally overshoot the end of their paths when running and taking several tiny steps before coming to a stop.

Horse will slow down when routing through gates and no longer hit locomotion lags.

Horse will no longer teleport to their end destination when routing backwards in 2x or 3x speed.

Journey to Batuu

Fingernails no longer clip through the Journey to Batuu full-body outfit gloves.

My Wedding Stories

Cakes at a wedding will contain a reminder tip that only the Sim who plans the event can select the wedding cake.

“Call off the Wedding” is available on both the Sim and the wedding arch while performing the vows interactions– it’s not too late to call it off!

Sims with a low hunger motive will not eat the wedding cake until instructed to do so.

Sims not from Tartossa can travel there to marry at the Town Hall.

Sims will not sit on the floor from “Please Take Your Seats” if there aren’t enough chairs. They will continue to stand now.

Occult Packs

Occult rank status for non-household occult sims can now be seen in the SIm Profile.

Linked Form occults will properly apply CAS across forms using the apply all button.

Urban Homage Kit

Assets ‘ymBottom_SP50Track_SolidBlack’ & ‘ymBottom_SP50Denim_AcidBlue’ are now correctly tagged as masculine.

Riviera Retreat Kit

‘Essence of Bergamot’ Planter no longer has an unexpected transparency.

Seasons

‘Ain’t That A Slate Toilet’ now has the appropriate two-tone swatch color.

Sims can use an indoor pool in freezing conditions. Outside temperature doesn’t affect inside pools, and all interactions on the pool are available and will no longer appear grayed out. Outside pools can be used by user-directed interactions but not Sims will not autonomously interact with them.

Toddler Stuff

Toddler full body outfits now match the swatch without grainy textures.

Werewolves

A few nose rings were not intersecting properly with some noses. That has been fixed.

Sweater ‘ymTop_GP12SweaterDecal’ arm no longer distorts for male sims at low LOD.

Sweater ‘ymTop_GP12SweaterDecal’ arm will no longer distort for male sims.

Our team is dedicated to continuing to tackle concerns that affect your ability to enjoy the game, so please continue to report any issues you experience via Answers HQ. This remains our primary source for information to troubleshoot player experiences, and any and all details are helpful for our team. As with every patch, please remember to remove any external game mods and custom content if you are experiencing issues, as they may conflict with the updates.

Thank you once more for working with us to continue to improve on the experience of our Simmers, and for making this game the best it can be.

We’ll catch you in the next Laundry List – Happy Simming!

[freezerbnuuy]

Act 5:19- Iron Talon (Page 5)

LORE | CHARACTERS | ABOUT / WARNINGS | CHAPTERS

← PREVIOUS | BEGINNING | NEXT →

CONTENT WARNING: death, murder, blood

SPOILER WARNING: Huge spoilers! block 'divided sims 4 story spoilers' tag if you don't want spoilers whilst scrolling.

Valravn

The ire in his aura is almost overpowering. This is not just any old grudge. This is one that has simmered in his mind for many, many years, one he could not act on due to what he swore to as a physician.

It was an Annorin staple to have opponents or enemies of the family killed by other circumstances so that they could keep their own hands clean of any accusation. Even those who knew the Annorins had a hand in it were too scared to say anything. 

"I am no longer a physician, Valravn. Let me do this myself - it's what he deserves."

Volpe's panicked stare reminds me of that of a rabbit or a fish once they realise their place in the food chain. I can imagine someone like Volpe never saw a downfall quite like this. I once witnessed a territorial battle between a gryphon and a dragon, two powerful individuals at the top of the hierarchy. This reminds me of that day.

Owen - take it easy. You'll kill the both of you if you overdo it.

I don't know if he can hear me. The surge of emotions fills my chest with a kind of dread. 

The Fulguris spell crackles at the end of the wand, and magical energy stutters all around him. This is the longest I've seen him hold a spell since we met, especially one so powerful.

I doubt that much of this is within his own control. Magic influences emotion, emotion influences magic, and the result is explosive.

Volpe's body convulses as the lightning strikes him. His veins are struck deep red and black almost like lightning strikes themselves. His skin burns, and his clothes begin to melt. The energy of the spell is fierce. I can feel Owen's ire and euphoria as if they were my own. Heightened magic can make one feel almost like a deity, I recall Jonah once saying.

When he finally gives in, he lunges forward with a loud wince of pain. I try to speak with him, but he doesn't respond. Volpe's body is reduced to naught but a charred, forgettable husk, and the aura of deific pride radiates from my master like harsh sunlight.

The young girl is gone, but Elijah, Owen's younger brother, remains. Owen tells me he's a rather emotional fellow, but he stays kneeling on the ground, seemingly level-headed.

"Elijah - are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Valravn. Thank you for helping my brother - from the bottom of my heart. Please, take care of him."

"You have my word, Elijah."

I wonder why Eli stayed. Did he want to protect Owen, I wonder?

Owen staggers and turns to the crowd, blood trickling from his eyes, mouth and nose, and his eyes completely white.

"To any of you who side against magic, know that your fates will be the same as his if you continue the way you are! There will be no mercy for anyone else who tries to do harm to a witch!

You will never take the life of another spellcaster!"

The fearful crowd disperse. If this isn't a warning to any budding witchfinder, then I don't know what will be. All I know is that today we set the stage of history, but it is too early to celebrate.

This stage of history will be marked with struggle, hatred and bloodshed before it is ever marked with celebration, safety and happiness.

I help Owen to climb onto my back. In his overconfident state, he has absolutely no fear of flying nor any excitement. I was hoping our first flight would be a time of joy, but I suppose there's time for that once we have taken back what's ours.

The fresh air against my feathers is freeing and nostalgic, but seeing Henford so different each time I have a new master is always a little jarring.

"Owen, you need to listen me. You need to calm down. You've overdone yourself again."

Hopefully the crisp winter air will clear his mind a little. The cold wind against my feathers makes me think of old times, an apex predator surveying the river for fish. It sometimes saddens me that those days are long over. I try to keep to a reasonably-low height so that I don't make Owen feel even more nauseous than he will when we get back.

"It is almost like my childhood and teenage dreams combined...Eduardo is dead, and I am flying on the back of a gryphon!"

Simmering amongst the hubris is a little spark of childhood joy.

I try to distract him from his darker thoughts to bring him down from the overcharge.

"Isn't it beautiful to a human to see the world from this angle?" I ask him.

His reply in my mind is completely broken-up, but I get the sense that it's a wondrous sight.

"You needn't talk if you don't have the energy. For now, enjoy the view - see the world in a way only a gryphon can."

[netscapenavigator-official]

Native macOS Version

Pros:

Machine runs silently and with very little heat

Also consumes much less electricity (Like 40-60W)

No graphical glitches or weird stutters

Slightly shorter loading screens

Cons:

I have to redownload the Origin Patcher from Anadius every time Origin Updates

I also have to redownload the Patcher every time a new pack drops

I have to deal with Origin (and eventually the EA app when it releases)

For some reason, on the Mac version only, CAS dragging and rotating results in the cursor drifting to the right, making it difficult to make small changes.

Cracked Windows Version

Pros:

I don’t have to deal with Origin (or the EA app)

Using @anadius2’s Updater, I can get new DLCs and Updates with the click of a button

CAS cursor and rotation does what I want it to.

It’s MUCH easier to toggle DLC’s with Anadius’s DLC Toggler

Cons:

Computer Runs Louder and Hotter (The M1 iMac has two laptop blowers, so don’t think it’s like desktop tower levels of sound. Just a slightly irritating “sshhhhhhh.”)

Also draws more electricity (Like 80W)

Mirrors and Reflections are extremely broken. I either have to turn them off or deal with weird spasming shapes every time I see one.

Potential for weird and unexplained glitches and crashes.

Slightly longer loading screens

[naturally-dazed]

the fact that formerly notoriously buggy game, cyberpunk, runs amazing for me with path tracing on but formerly a mobile game sims 4 stutters consistently always makes sense to someone right

[cryptiam]

Sims 4 - FNAF 2 CC: Toy & Withered Animatronics (deco):

[New + old cc (now updated too) - please completely remove the old outdated cc, the updated ones have new file names.]

This is the last major FNAF thing I personally make outside commission work.

Fair warning: These are high poly-count [LOD0 roughly 10-15k per model] - I tried my best to lower it down, but only so much I can do at my skill level.

Includes:

Toy Freddy animatronic deco

Toy Bonnie

Toy Chica

Toy Chica (without beak)

Mangle

Balloon Boy (re-release/update)

Marionette/The Puppet (re-release/updated to fit inside without error)

Withered Chica (re-release/updated)

Withered Bonnie

Withered Freddy

Withered Foxy

CC Info:

Base game compatible

Keyword "FNAF" in search bar

High LOD/polycount [LOD0 roughly 10-15k per model] - no matter what I can't fix this - I'd recommend not using too many of the models at once or play on a lower LOD setting if you're having frame stuttering.

Credits:

•Meshes/Textures from Five Nights at Freddy's: Help Wanted.

Models and Assets owned by Scott Cawthon and Steel Wool Studios. This is a fan mod and not being sold.

•Toy Freddy recolor/color correction by Xoffly

▼Download | Patreon (free):

Terms of Use:

~~~

If you like my cc, consider tipping to my Ko-Fi or supporting me on Patreon! I do this as a hobby and it's very time consuming per cc. I also have commissions usually open if you really want something specific from me! Thx!

[anon-apple]

Hot Soup and Soft Bread 4

Table of Contents and Synopsis <- Chapter 3 Read chapter on wordpress

Chapter 4: Chocomonts IV

The following day after midnight, Zhou Cunqu didn’t see Zhong Qiuyan waiting for him outside the door. He looked for Qiuyan as he walked around the dimly lit corridor but still couldn’t find him. Cunqu stood at the top of the staircase and looked down; he wanted to try heading down alone. He stood for a long time, staring at the large “Amiability makes you rich” sign on the fourth floor.

He didn’t know if Qiuyan was scared off by his words last night, but he didn’t show up for the entire day. Cunqu hesitated a bit longer, but ultimately, he was too scared to head down. He sighed heavily towards himself, then turned around back home.

When it was almost 2 am, someone repeatedly pressed the doorbell of Liu Xiaoying’s apartment. Xiaoying was awoken by the noise and got up to answer the door. When she opened the door, she saw Qiuyan leaning against the doorframe panting for breath. He stuttered: “Hey, it’s … It’s me.”

Xiaoying loudly cursed “You! Of course, it’s you. Do you know what time it is right now!?”

Qiuyan lightly patted Xiaoying’s cast, saying: “I left something here. I need to get it.”

Xiaoying complained as she switched on the living room lights, asking: “What did you forget? I haven’t seen any of your things.”

Qiuyan pushed her as he said: “Liu Xiaoying you should head back to bed. This is not worth holding up your beauty sleep.”

Xiaoying yawned heavily, then scolded Qiuyan a few more times before returning to her room.

Qiuyan stalled in the living room for half a minute, then quietly opened the door to Cunqu’s room. Cunqu was sitting on his bed playing with the little nightlight. Qiuyan abruptly kneeled down on his books and said: “Ge, I forgot that I start the night shift in June. I now work from 6 pm to 1 am. And I couldn’t leave midway to tell you. Sorry ge, I bought you ten boxes of Chocomonts as an apology.”

Qiuyan dumped the boxes out of the plastic bag. Cunqu frowned as he said: “Get up, from my books.”

Qiuyan loudly responded with a “Yessir” and immediately stood up.

He opened a box of Chocomonts and handed it to Cunqu. Cunqu took a piece out and put it in his mouth. Qiuyan also ate a piece. He moved to sit beside Cunqu and said: “I’ll come to find you at 2 am from now on.”

Cunqu originally wanted to tell him to forget it, since it would be too tiring for Qiuyan. But Qiuyan dug out a cellphone from his pocket and shoved it toward Cunqu. With a Chocomont biscuit still in his mouth, he said: “This is my old phone. The SIM card is new, and the only contact is me. No one else knows this number. Now if you want to contact me, you can use this to call me. And if not, then no worries. I’m just worried I won’t have a way to contact you if I need to.”

Cunqu lowered his head and tapped the phone screen. The screen lit up; the wallpaper was a photo of Zhong Qiuyan and his parents. Father Zhong was very thin, and Qiu Xue Mei was very chubby. The ten-year-old Qiuyan sat happily between the two with a wide grin stretched across his face. Qiuyan was a bit embarrassed as he said: “This is my mom and dad. They grow flowers and fruits in the countryside. The two of them are both well.”

Cunqu’s finger dragged this way and that across the screen without saying anything. After some time, he suddenly asked out of curiosity: “And you, this year, how old are you?”

Qiuyan held the box of biscuits and happily replied: “Ge, I’m 27. Today’s my 27th birthday.”

--

After Qiuyan left, Cunqu still held the phone in his hands. The light of the phone screen was harsh in the dark room. To him, this type of light had already become unfamiliar and bizarre. Cunqu placed it on the nightstand. After a while, he grabbed it again and opened the home page. The apps on the page had been almost completely removed, and the contacts only contained Qiuyan’s phone number. Qiuyan had given himself the contact name “Your smart assistant”[1] followed with a heart emoji.

Cunqu opened up messages, hesitated for a bit, then slowly sent a Hello?

Almost immediately, Qiuyan replied with Ge!!! You sent me a text!!! You’re amazing!!

Cunqu stared at the screen cluttered with exclamation marks. He didn’t know why, but he was suddenly reminded of a puppy wagging his tail as it ran wildly after him. His text notifications kept ringing every three seconds: You haven’t slept yet? Ge, what are you doing now? I just got back to my apartment and parked my car downstairs. I’ve reached the third floor. Now I’m on the fifth floor…

Cunqu hadn’t typed in two years. He slowly, with difficulty, sent a single message amidst Qiuyan’s dense bombardment of messages: Happy birthday.

Qiuyan directly called him. Cunqu hadn’t heard the sound of a ringtone in a very long time. The sound hadn’t changed -- monotonous, impersonal, repetitive. Cunqu hesitated for a bit before unwillingly answering the call. Qiuyan said extremely happily: “Thanks ge! Shit... Ah, I didn’t mean to say that to you, I accidentally kicked the door just now. Shit, it hurts, I want to cry a little. But it’s my birthday today, I can’t cry…”

Cunqu, holding the phone, couldn’t help but start laughing.

--

Before heading to work that day, Qiuyan accompanied Xiaoying to get her plaster cast removed. The weather was sweltering that day. They leaned against the side of the hospital’s flower bed, each with a popsicle in their mouth. Qiuyan asked Xiaoying: “You’re not gonna collapse again after eating this popsicle, right?”

Xiaoying refuted: “I took my medicine! I really did take my medicine. And after eating this medicine I need to supplement an adequate amount of sugar.”

Qiuyan shrugged.

Xiaoying wiped her mouth with a napkin and said: “For the sake of living a few more years, I haven’t let my guard down for a moment.”

She gazed at the people going in and out of the hospital’s main lobby and continued talking: “I was the one that picked out the name ‘Zhou Cunqu.’ At that time my thoughts were, wouldn’t it be great if my grandson could have a rather fun and interesting life[2]? He did well in his studies from an early age, and people slowly expected more out of him. Nowadays I think back and wonder… back then, did I also contribute to the harm…”

Qiuyan didn’t say anything for a bit. Then he said: “Liu Xiaoying, your popsicle dripped onto your pants.”

Liu Xiaoying, a seventy-nine years old, rich in life experience, excellent educator with students all over the world, enacted one of the few times she’s used profanities in her life: “Fuck! This old woman just made this pair of pants!!”

Qiuyan drove Xiaoying home. The “double yolk egg” grandpas were sitting downstairs playing Go. Qiuyan followed her upstairs to mooch a meal for lunch. Xiaoying remarked that Zhou Cunqu now ate three meals a day. Sometimes he’d be able to have all three meals with her in the dining room, sometimes he wouldn’t be able to. But regardless, at least he’s eating properly.

When he headed inside, Cunqu was leaning against the fridge having a glass of water. His hair was a bit messy; it looked like he had just gotten out of bed. Qiuyan passed him a large box of popsicles, reaching right over Xiaoying’s head. “Liu Xiaoying and I picked this from the popsicle wholesale store, you want to try it?”

Cunqu shook his head. Qiuyan joked, “What if I tried making Chocomonts into a popsicle?”

Cunqu walked around them holding his glass of water and headed back to his room. Xiaoying angrily complained: “Go and store the popsicles away, don’t put them on the top of my head.”

After getting off his night shift later that day, Cunqu rushed back home to take a shower and then drove quickly to Qin Qin Homeland. This time, before he even headed upstairs, he spotted Cunqu watching him from the window of the fifth-floor corridor. Qiuyan waved at him.

Qiuyan led Cunqu along the path away from Building No.3’s exit and towards the entrance gates of the residential community[3]. The elderly population was high in this community, so there was not a single person walking about at this hour. Cunqu was relatively relaxed by the time they reached their destination. Qiuyan handed him a box of Chocomonts as a reward.

They sat on the swings of the community’s exercise area. Cunqu closed his eyes; the temperature of the wind was already starting to feel warm, even at this hour. Qiuyan reached over and brushed away the hair that fluttered onto his cheeks. He remembered earlier Xiaoying had said on the car ride back home: “Although Zhou Cunqu looks like this now, back then it was like he couldn’t fail no matter what he did.” Xiaoying fell silent for a rather long time, then turned her head towards Qiuyan and continued: “I know you’re helping him. For the sake of this old lady, could you please keep helping him?”

On the first day that Cunqu stepped outside, Xiaoying’s eyes had reddened as she stood pressed against her bedroom door. She then squatted down in the doorway and cried so hard that she couldn’t get up. Later, when she visited her old friend Teacher Zhuang[4] at the care facility, she helped her comb the little hair she had left as she said: “Old Zhuang… In the past year, I have resonated more and more with the saying ‘Old roots wither, and fallen leaves sway.’ I believe that one can sense when one’s destiny is coming to a close. But I’m afraid… I can’t let go…”

She peeked out from her bedroom window and saw Qiuyan and Cunqu sitting on the swings. Qiuyan propelled himself higher and higher on the swings, acting like a kindergartener losing himself in play. When he tried to stop he almost fell off, giving Cunqu quite a scare.

Xiaoying clicked her tongue. Cunqu furrowed his eyebrows. The two said at the same time: “Idiot…” -> Chapter 5

Footnotes 

[1]Same term as what’s used for AI assistants like Alexa, Siri, etc.  [2] Zhou Cunqu’s first name has the characters 存(Cun) which means to save up/ to accumulate and 趣(qu), which means interest/interesting.  [3] I don’t know if I ever explained this, but instead of “neighborhoods”, it’s more common in Chinese cities to have these residential complexes called 小区 (literally “little district”). Basically it’s a cluster of condo buildings (varying in number) that are part of the same residential “district” with common facilities shared by all residents and usually a gate with a guard posted 24/7  [4] Xiaoying’s long-time friend/coworker who used to live downstairs in the same building but her dementia worsened so she had to be sent to this care facility/sanatorium.