Chapter 16: The Tevellyn House / Button Ranch
Matthew and Dorothy continued to live at their parents’ houses for another year while their ranch was being built. As much as they knew the young couple loved one another, Bridget and Altman still worried that Dorothy wasn’t the best choice for their son, although her willingness to move to Appaloosa Plains helped reassure them. Perhaps they had judged her too harshly because she didn’t get along well with their other children. They didn’t know what Dorothy wanted for her future, but she was committing to a major lifestyle change to support their son’s dreams – maybe Matthew would be happy with her.
Aria’s house would be next, but they weren’t ready to start planning it. For now, she was enjoying exploring her creative passions. As she got older, Aria did less painting and spent more time practicing piano and inventing things. She’d even recruited Ryker to help her make a workbench they could use for their tinkering projects. Aria liked inventing various widgets, while Ryker mostly made himself and Mason new toys.
Ryker and Mason were also avid anglers, like the other Tevellyn children before them. Altman counted himself very lucky to still get so much quality time with his little ones. Even if he was too tired to venture to the Falls, he and the boys could fish in their backyard pond.
Altman was also pleased to see the boys so interested in chess. They were getting very competitive and could even beat him in a game once in awhile! Mason could often be found practicing in the playroom, which was now more often used as Matthew’s office and for Aria and Chase’s jam sessions than it was for the kids’ play time.
Chase’s guitar skills continued to improve, although Aria knew her piano playing was still miles ahead. Chase always said she had a natural talent, but she insisted she just had more time to practice. She didn’t attend school – not to mention that Mr. Harley probably enforced a physical training regimen to prepare Chase for the military. That’s what she assumed, anyway, since he was building muscle.
Aria did have less time to focus on her music in the warmer months, however, since she and her mother did most of the gardening work. She enjoyed it, though. Gardening gave her quiet time to think and spend with Bridget. There was something peaceful about working with the plants – even when Ryker and Mason were noisily running around the yard.
The family celebrated Ryker’s thirteenth birthday that summer. Bridget was thrilled that Rukiya attended the party; she missed seeing her friend more often. Seeing her in the same room as Emery also made her realize neither of them had mentioned anything about how their relationship was going. Bridget hoped that was a good thing – they both seemed happy, so it couldn’t be too bad.
The family’s cheers subsided as smoke rose from the newly extinguished candles. Ryker smiled proudly around the room.
“You might be a teenager now, but your hair is still a mess,” Mason snickered.
“You’ll shut up if you want any cake,” Ryker smirked, picking up a knife.
As he cut the cake, the others resumed their conversations.
“It’s too bad Chase couldn’t make it, Aria, you could have played one of your songs for everyone,” Bridget smiled.
“I forgot Chase plays guitar,” Emery chimed in. “I actually just started learning. We should all hang out sometime and you guys can give me some pointers.”
“Sure,” Aria shrugged. “I think he had a sports game or something today, but I’m sure he’ll be around another weekend.”
“Did you bring your guitar?!” Mason asked excitedly. “Can you play it for us? Can you? Can I get lessons from Chase, too?”
“I did bring it,” Emery laughed. “But Chase isn’t going to give me lessons, I’m learning myself. Maybe when you’re a bit older you can teach yourself a bit, then we can help you.”
Mason sighed. “Well can you at least play me something?”
“I’m not very good, but sure, I can if you want. After our cake.”
As promised, Emery started to strum a simple tune for Mason after they finished eating. Aria watched, too and offered some suggestions for things to practice. While they were distracted, Dorothy quietly got up from her chair and snuck up behind Mason. Everyone was so focused on their conversations that they didn’t notice until it was too late.
Dorothy suddenly shouted, “AHH!!” causing Mason to shriek in surprise.
Dorothy laughed maniacally, delighted with her little stunt, and Ryker couldn’t help but laugh, too. Bridget and Matthew, however, were less amused. Bridget walked over to comfort Mason, while Matthew asked Dorothy not to cause a scene.
“It was just a bit of fun,” Dorothy chuckled. “He’s fine.”
Aria stormed off to avoid making things worse by fighting with Dorothy. Rukiya was standing alone in the kitchen with a concerned look on her face.
“No use getting involved,” Aria sighed. “How are you? It’s been awhile.”
“I’m alright,” Rukiya smiled. “And you? Keeping up with the garden?”
“Yeah,” Aria smiled awkwardly. “It’s a lot of work, but I like it… I wish I had more time for my music though.”
“Oh, do you want a career in music? I’m sure you’d be great – you’re so talented.”
“Thanks,” Aria winced. “I’m not sure though… I think I just get more practice than most people… I really like playing and composing, but I don’t know if it’s what I want to do. I think I’d have to move to the city to make it work, and I don’t think I’d like it there.”
Rukiya nodded. “You have lots of time to look into it,” she said. “Maybe you’d surprise yourself and a move would be good.”
“Yeah… I’m sure France will be great for Emery,” Aria replied.
“France?” Rukiya frowned.
“Oh—uh, yeah, she didn’t tell you?” Aria stuttered. “She applied to an art school there.”
“That’s great,” Rukiya smiled half-heartedly. “That’ll be really good for her.”
“You should ask her about it, I’m sure she’d love to tell you more,” Aria tried to reassure her. “I think she’s nervous about being away – not to mention learning Simçais.”
Rukiya’s smile brightened. “I’ll ask her, then,” she said softly. “Thanks, Aria.”
Aria sighed as Rukiya headed towards the living room. In truth, she was grateful that the conversation had shifted to focus on her sister. Aria didn’t want to think about her own future just yet; she had no idea where to start and was busy enough as it was. She’d much rather be gardening, tinkering at her workbench or playing an instrument than planning out where she’d live or what career she wanted to pursue. Her parents didn’t exactly have “careers” – but they still had incomes. Couldn’t the same work for her? She didn’t want to be pushed into a career like Chase’s dad kept pushing him towards joining the military. She wanted to do what she enjoyed. She could figure out the money later. Still, the issue badgered her from the back of her mind for the rest of the season.
She was grateful Chase never wanted to talk about ‘the future’ either. Chase would rant about his dad sometimes, and that was really the only time that they discussed his options. Even then, the conversation would often shift to a future scenario where they were in a band together. It was fun to think about, but neither of them really wanted to move to a big city and struggle through life until they got “discovered” by some record label.
This was one of the reasons Aria knew Chase wanted to talk about something serious when asked if she wanted to walk down to the community garden. It was a beautiful autumn day, so a walk would be nice, but she suspected he was looking for extra privacy rather than extra fresh air.
“You seem nervous,” Chase pointed out when they arrived.
“We’ve always been able to talk about whatever at my place,” Aria explained.
“Yeah…” Chase trailed off.
“Is your dad sending you to military school?” Aria asked, looking at her feet. “If you’re moving away, just tell me. Don’t drag it out, okay?”
“Hey,” Chase said softly, taking her hands in his. “I’m not going anywhere.”
His hands were warm, but not sweaty or anything gross. She’d always wondered if holding his hands would feel gross or weird… but it didn’t. Warmth started rushing to her cheeks and she slowly took her hands back.
“It’s, uh– it’s not something bad,” Chase stammered as he pulled his hands away, too.
‘Is he blushing?’ Aria wondered. It was hard to tell since they’d just walked down the hill and it was warm outside. She tried to remember whether his cheeks were that flushed when they first got there, but she couldn’t. She realized she was staring and started focusing on looking inquisitive, instead.
“Oh? What is it?”
“Well, uh, I know your dad will probably ask you about planning your house, soon, so…” he began, but paused a moment before continuing. “I guess I was thinking we could move in together.”
‘Did he just move closer again?’ Aria wondered. ‘He seems to be standing really close. Maybe it’s just in my head… Ugh, calm down, Aria! Focus!’ she urged herself. He was waiting for her answer.
“You want to live together?” she finally asked.
“Well… yeah, if you’d be cool with that,” Chase said awkwardly. “If my dad’s going to make me join the military, at least it would be bearable if I lived here with my best friend.”
“You really mean that?” Aria smiled.
“Of course I do,” Chase laughed. “Would be a weird joke if I didn’t.”
“Oh, yeah,” Aria tried to laugh it off. “I guess it would.”
“So, you’d be cool with living down by the river, near the base?” Chase reiterated.
“If I’d be living with my best friend,” Aria smiled.
“Cool,” Chase smiled back. “We should definitely have a garage or something for band practice then.”
“Definitely,” Aria agreed. She hoped it wasn’t too obvious that she was still blushing.
Matthew moved out near the end of fall. As they had for Emery, the family gathered outside to say goodbye and wish Matthew luck in his new home. Unlike with Emery, though, this time someone was coming with a moving van. Dorothy had rented one and would drive Matthew down to their new house.
Matthew hugged each of his family members and said his goodbyes while they waited for Dorothy to arrive. Altman had to wipe tears from his eyes despite Aria and Ryker’s best efforts to keep the mood light. A moving van came up the hill as Mason asked for an extra hug.
Dorothy hopped out of the rental van and greeted the Tevellyns, then asked Matthew, “You ready to go? My stuff won’t unpack itself.”
Matthew nodded and replied with a cheerful, “Yep,” before giving his family a final wave and following Dorothy to the van.
“Take care, you guys,” he called as he climbed into the passenger seat.
“You too,” Bridget called back. “We’ll see you soon.”
Dorothy drove down the hill and made a right near the boarding house, then a slight left onto Ednamary Way. Their new home was on a spacious lot – the first on the right. Perhaps the large lot was what made the house seem particularly small? Clad in blue siding, the building was tucked into a front corner of the lot. The windows and front door were wooden – oak or maple, Dorothy thought – and well-crafted. Rustic stonework accented the entrance and three small peaks at the front of the roof. Matthew had already planted some vegetables along the front, probably to make up for a lack of time to do proper landscaping. Behind the house was a horse paddock with a stall and open-air hayloft, which looked to have been built using original wood from before the clear out of Appaloosa Plains.
“What do you think?” Matthew asked her with a smile as they got out of the van.
“I think it’s ours,” Dorothy smiled sweetly.
Matthew laughed. “Don’t worry, I’ll keep doing work on it until it’s the ranch of our dreams.”
“Did I insult you in some way?” Dorothy gasped jokingly. “Who’s to say this isn’t already the ranch of my dreams?”
“I’m not sure,” Matthew said with mock thoughtfulness. “Maybe… its entire aesthetic?”
“I like the stonework,” Dorothy smirked.
They laughed, then Matthew put one arm under Dorothy’s shoulder and the other behind her knees, scooping her up to carry her to the front door.
Dorothy kissed him softly. “I’m not worried about it, Matt. This is only the beginning. And you did so much of the work yourself!”
Matthew smiled and let her down so he could open the door. “The future ranch of your dreams, madam,” he said as he pulled the handle. “After you.”
Matthew could tell Dorothy wasn’t impressed by the interior, but he appreciated that she tried to hide it. She was usually very direct; it was rare for her to try to avoid hurting someone’s feelings – even his. She only took a quick glance around before suggesting they unload her things from the van.
Dorothy walked further into the front room towards a work area of some kind. It had a pegboard where some tools were hanging, but no tabletop or storage space, just some sort of large, flat wheel.
“We can just put everything here, next to the—um—what is this?” she asked.
“It’s for your art,” Matthew beamed. “Like, making sculptures and things. I found a company that ships the materials straight to your door, so I’ll show you how to order that.”
“Oh,” Dorothy said simply. “Well, for now let’s get everything out of the van, hm?”
Once they unloaded Dorothy’s things into the front room, Matthew was instructed to bring certain bags to the bedroom and boxes to somewhere they could be stored a bit longer.
“The ensuite isn’t quite finished, so we can store your extra things in there, for now,” Matthew informed her, dutifully carrying boxes away. “Why don’t you have a proper look around while I move these?”
Dorothy nodded hesitantly, hoping she’d be able to find nice things to say about the rest of the house. The sculpting station was to the right of the front door, while a den was on the left. Matthew had already set up bookshelves, a loveseat and a desk with a cheap computer. It felt cozy despite the horrible plastering work on the walls.
Unfortunately, the cheap, uneven plaster continued throughout the house, except in the bathroom, which had beige and light blue tiling. It wasn’t the color scheme she would have chosen, but at least it wasn’t the horrid beige plaster that was everywhere else. ‘How much of this did he do himself?’ she wondered.
The kitchen and dining area was bare, to say the least. There was very little counterspace and the appliances were ugly and cheap. The “dining table” was a flimsy wooden thing Dorothy would have hesitated to buy for an outdoor patio, and the chairs had a cheap thin fabric cushion that looked as though it might be more uncomfortable than a wooden seat.
Dorothy sighed and braced herself to face her fiancé as she headed towards the bedroom door. She knew he’d put a lot of work into building this home for them, but it was a lot rougher than she was expecting.
Matthew turned when she entered the room and opened his arms to offer her a hug.
“I know it’s far from perfect,” he said softly, brushing wisps of hair behind her ears. “I rushed and messed up the plaster, a lot of the materials I used were free or cheap, the kitchen isn’t what I want it to be and our ensuite bathroom is an empty storage room at the moment… but I wanted to finish it quickly so we could move in as soon as possible. And I wanted to save as much money as I could since we have our wedding to think about and I’m not sure how regular our income will be for the first little while.”
Dorothy smiled sympathetically and tightened her arms around his waist.
“It has a lot of potential,” she said. “But the plaster is really awful,” she added with a laugh.
Matthew smiled and kissed her, moving one hand to the back of her neck and the other around her waist. Dorothy kissed him back, slipping her tongue between his lips and one hand under his belt. One thing led to another, and soon they were on the bed, tugging each other’s clothes and slipping under the covers....
Dorothy’s initial shock soon wore off, and the bleak conditions of her living situation began to sink in. How could someone make new plaster crack as much as this? Why did he use plaster, anyway – wasn’t drywall faster and easier? Why wasn’t there more space to expand the kitchen? Why was it so difficult to clean the damn stove?!
“Babe?” Matthew’s voice interrupted her ranting train of thought. “You okay? Are the pancakes alright?”
Dorothy blinked and looked up from her breakfast plate. Matthew was sitting across from her, his eyebrows furrowed, his blue eyes shining with concern. They were both still wearing what they slept in: Matthew, a black t-shirt and blue boxer shorts; and Dorothy, a loose-fitting, cropped tank top and shorts both made of soft material that now felt all the more luxurious amidst her new reality of squalor.
“Yes, I’m fine,” she feigned a smile.
As the weather got colder, everything felt more and more bleak. All the leaves abandoned their tree branches… A thin layer of snow covered the ground and the plants, stealing any chance of further harvests and the resulting income… Matthew nested in his ‘office’ writing some silly story or another…
‘What am I doing here?’ Dorothy wondered.
She considered calling her parents and asking for their advice, but she knew they didn’t really care anymore. They’d given up on her long ago. Even while she still lived with them, they almost never spoke.
And Matthew, well… he was always so kind to her. So loving and affectionate… he did make her happy. It was everything else about this place that was difficult for her. She could tell he was trying his best, too. To her surprise, she mostly blamed herself for the mess she now found herself in. She could have been more involved in planning their house. She could tell Matthew how she felt about the state of the place and they could invest a bit more in the house before the wedding. She knew he’d do almost anything to make her happy, so why couldn’t she bring herself to ask? Or at least complain!
‘That damn hopeless romantic has made you soft,’ Dorothy told herself.
So, while Matthew collected his royalty checks and worked on his next novel, Dorothy mostly lazed around the house doing not much of anything, slowly sinking deeper into despair.
‘This is pathetic,’ she thought. ‘This isn’t me.’
Then it clicked. She had been so busy focusing on everything about the house that she didn’t like that she lost sight of what she wanted. She smirked. How could she have forgotten how much joy thinking up mastermind plots used to give her? She would have to bide her time if she wanted to launch any maniacal schemes, though… the town was far too small for that just yet. In the mean time, she’d need another way to make money and build up a ‘cover story’ so that Matthew wouldn’t get suspicious when the time came.
Dorothy walked into the front room and looked at the sculpting station again.
‘The pegboard looks like it could have stored medieval torture devices,’ she mused.
She walked up to it, examining the large block of clay sitting on the station’s wheel. It was about 2 feet tall and maybe 4 feet wide. She thought on it a moment, then picked up the chisel and hammer from the pegboard, and started hacking away.
Meanwhile, Aria and Chase remained less sure of their aspirations. At least now they had a plan: after Chase finished high school and their house was ready, they’d move in together. Aria could focus on her music, composing, and gardening while Chase participated in the air force training program offered at the new base. Chase’s father had not only ensured that Chase applied to the program, but also generously offered to arrange builders for their house after Chase’s acceptance came in.
Until then, they wanted to enjoy their last year of being teenagers. Chase came over often to play music, chess, and just hang out with the three Tevellyn children who still lived there. Unlike Dorothy, Chase made a point to always greet “Mr. and Mrs. Tevellyn” when he first came in – a detail Bridget loved to highlight.
“So polite,” she’d gush. “Such a nice young man, isn’t he, Altman?”
One chilly Saturday, Aria and Chase were playing a new original song Aria had composed. It was taking them a while to get it to sound how she’d imagined in her head since she’d only made sheet music for the piano, but they were getting there.
“I think that was our best yet,” she smiled at him over her shoulder. “Once more?”
Chase chuckled. “Short break?” he asked.
“Sure,” Aria got up from her keyboard and stretched.
“After we get this, do you want to go skating?” Chase asked.
“Like, at the Falls?”
“Yeah,” Chase shrugged. “Might be nice to get outside or whatever.”
Aria gave him a suspicious look. “Okay, sure,” she agreed.
After practicing the song a few more times, Aria and Chase bundled up in their winter gear and set out towards Cinnamon Crest Falls. Fluffy snowflakes drifted through the air, occasionally pushed by a sudden gust of wind. The sun hid behind some clouds, but the thick layer of snow on the ground was reflective enough that it still felt quite bright out.
When they reached the pond, Chase knelt and knocked on the ice.
Aria giggled, “It’s been below freezing for days, I’m sure the ice is thick enough.”
“Just checking.”
“Uh huh,” Aria smirked.
They put on their skates and stood up, but both hesitated to get on the ice.
Aria turned to Chase. “Why are we doing this?” she asked.
“It’ll be fun,” he smiled and reached a hand to her cheek. “You warm enough?” he asked softly.
She put her gloved hand on his. Her words were stuck in her throat, so she just smiled and nodded. ‘Is this a date?’ she wondered.
Chase lowered his hand and looked back at the ice. “Let’s go then,” he said cheerfully.
He moved onto the frozen pond and started gliding around. Aria hesitantly followed.
“I can’t remember the last time I went skating,” she told him.
“It’ll come back to you. Just take it slow.”
The longer they skated around, the more Aria noticed herself smiling. ‘This is kind of fun,’ she thought.
“Are you a natural at everything you try, Tevellyn?” Chase quipped.
“You know I’m not,” Aria retorted.
Chase glided up to her. “You’re having fun, though, right?”
Aria smiled and nodded. “Yeah. Getting pretty cold, though.”
“Yeah, it’ll be dark soon,” Chase agreed. “You want to head back?”
“Sure,” Aria shrugged.
Chase started to skate around her, but Aria reached out, took one of his hands and stopped him.
“Hey—” she began softly.
“You okay?” he asked, holding her other gloved hand as well.
“Why did you want to come out here today?” she asked timidly.
“What do you mean?” he smiled brightly. “It was fun, right?”
Aria shrugged again. “Yeah… I guess I just wondered if there was another reason.”
Chase let go of her hands and ruffled her curly hair. “Dunno’ what you mean, Tevellyn,” he said, skating to the edge of the pond.
Aria sighed, then followed him to take off her skates. ‘So it wasn’t a date,’ she concluded. ‘That’s good, I guess. We’re friends. I don’t want us to mess things up.’
Aria didn’t have to spend as much energy on her housing plans as Emery and Matthew had thanks to the help of Chase’s dad. As a result, she spent much of the spring teaching Ryker the ins and outs of the garden.
Now that Ryker was older and less interested in playing, Mason was left to entertain himself more. Besides playing chess, Mason spent time fishing, painting and exercising during the day, and reading and using his father’s telescope in the evenings. At first he did a lot of whining for attention, but eventually he began to enjoy learning and exploring things more freely on his own.
Aria’s nineteenth birthday approached as the weather cooled down again and the snow began to fall. The weather may have changed, but frustratingly, Chase’s mixed signals had not. Aria struggled to figure out whether Chase was interested in being more than friends or not. To be fair, she was unsure of where she herself stood on that issue. But she thought it would be important to figure out before they moved in together.
Chase arrived at the Tevellyn house a few hours before Aria’s party was scheduled to begin. Aria welcomed him and they sat on the couch, where Chase caught her up on his life the past couple weeks. He was finished school now; he’d successfully used his extra half-year to boost his grades up to his father’s standards. His enrollment in the air force training program had been formally completed and he’d start in the summer cohort. He planned to commute from his parents’ place until the house was done. Unfortunately, regarding the house, there had been some delays. Chase hoped to help things along by helping out the building crew from time to time when things picked up in the spring.
Aria loved when Chase got rambling. It didn’t happen very often – they were both rather quiet and laid-back people – but when he was in a particularly good mood and had something to say, sometimes he’d talk at length. When he’d get so caught up talking about how something worked or what he’d been up to lately that he scarcely took a breath, she knew it was a sign that he was very comfortable with her.
“Wow, listen to me going on and on,” Chase laughed. “Today’s supposed to be about you!”
“No, that’s okay, I like listening to you,” Aria smiled.
“Yeah, yeah,” Chase dismissed her response. “Let’s get a photo then see if your mom wants any help getting things ready for the party.”
Emery, Matthew and Dorothy arrived as scheduled. As per tradition, the family had some fun dancing before gathering around for the cake.
As Aria blew out her candles, she wished for clarity in her relationship with Chase. They were great friends, but she felt like deeper feelings lingered below the surface. Maybe she couldn’t know how Chase felt, but she resolved to start thinking more about her own feelings and what she wanted from their relationship.
Author’s Notes:
Simçais is my Sim world version of French, a play on Français in the same spirit of ‘Simlish’ as the Sim world equivalent of English.
In my original challenge gameplay, Matthew and Dorothy got married and Dorothy moved into the Tevellyn household prior to the couple moving out on their own to the ranch. For storytelling purposes, I moved them out in this chapter, and they’ll get married in a future chapter.
Button Ranch:
