Angel

Angel Go is 24; Matthew Langerak is 23; Sophie Langerak is 4

March 2030

Angel didn’t know how she got her name, but she wondered if her long-absent mother had known that she’d need a guardian angel looking over her. If that had been the plan, it was certainly working so far.

It wasn’t that her life had been easy, in many ways it had been the opposite. From growing up in a children’s home after she and her sister had been abandoned by their mother at an early age, to her first serious boyfriend falling for her best friend, to her rough start at the city university, then the loneliness of transferring to a different college far from everyone she knew for the first time in her life.

None of those things were good, and yet if even one of them hadn't happened, she wouldn't be where she was now. 

Graduated from college, with a nice little house in Richmond, engaged to a man who loved her, and with an adorable little stepdaughter as well. 

Sophie hadn’t been abandoned in the same way that Angel and Tosha had, but she still needed someone to take the place of an absentee mother, and Angel was more than happy to do so.



Angel had never lived in Richmond. Matthew had grown up here, and the main reason he’d come back was for Sophie. She had lived with Matthew's parents while he was in college, but he'd always intended to care for her himself. 

It was all the more important that he do so now, as his father had already turned down his dream CEO position in Brooklyn Heights twice so that Matthew could spend as much time as possible with his daughter between his college commitments. If he didn’t take it now that Matthew had graduated, he doubted he’d be offered it again. 

It was a lot of change for a little girl. Matthew and Angel had moved in with his parents for a while, gradually taking over caring for her before moving into their own little home.

Their street was a small cul-de-sac, with a playground at the end and small houses with young families.



Now that it was spring, Angel and Sophie visited the playground most days. Sophie never seemed to get tired of it, and it was a good opportunity for Angel to meet some of their neighbours. 

And to have some fun herself.

One of the first things Matthew did when they got their own place was get a dog. He'd wanted one since he was a kid, but his parents didn't agree. He came home from the shelter with one of the strangest looking puppies Angel had ever seen.

No one seemed to be able to agree on what breed - or breeds -  the puppy was, and Angel could only hope he didn't grow into anything too big or noisy. Sophie named him Mr Boots.

One big advantage of living in Richmond was that Meadow and Jamie lived just a few streets away. 

Meadow was like a second sister to Angel, and it was great to be able to see more of each other again. 

Both women were pleased to see that Jamie and Matthew got along well...

Sophie and Harrison were becoming firm friends. They’d grow up together just as Angel and Meadow had.

 

As for Angel's actual sister, Tosha had initially been less than pleased with the changes in her little sister's life. She couldn’t quite believe that Angel had gotten into a serious relationship, never mind getting engaged, without Tosha approving of - or even meeting - her partner. 

It wasn’t that Angel and Matthew’s relationship had progressed particularly quickly...

...it had just all happened at SSU, miles away from Tosha.



Tosha barely gave them time to move into their house before she came out to meet Matthew. He spent the first part of the day away, to give Angel and Tosha some time to themselves. 

Tosha's girlfriend Vivien did the same, managing to sneak a few encouraging words to Angel before going to visit her sister until later in the day.

Fortunately - after the initial interrogation - Tosha seemed to get along well with Matthew

..and even better with Sophie.

Matthew had put aside his dreams of professional sport, and taken a job teaching athletics at the local high school. He still kept in shape, and hoped that he'd be able to go back to playing in some way in the future.

Angel stayed home with Sophie. They discovered that she had a knack for repairing and even improving all sorts of things in their home. 

She started doing odd jobs for neighbours, and they started insisting on paying her. The extra income would be useful, until she could get a job when Sophie started school.

They were planning a summer wedding, in the little church near the edge of town. 

Angel had always imagined having a church wedding. Neither she or Matthew were particularly religious, but she didn’t really disbelieve either. In any case, she figured her guardian angel would like the idea of her being married in a church. She owed them that much, at least.

__________

Yes, Matthew is Sam's Matthew - like I said, a lot has changed around here! As for where Sam is, we'll catch up on her in a future update.

Angel is working in the self-employer repairman career from Nraas. These careers and the ones that are part of the game are great as you can do as much or as little work as you wish - there are no set hours and progression is based on how much you earn.

Brooklyn Heights is my 'moved away' hood for sims I'm unlikely to play again. In story, I imagine its a 4 or 5 hour drive from Richmond (or a short flight, although its mostly business travelers who do that). It's the state or district capital and much larger than Redwood city, which is why a lot of people move there - more opportunities, the head offices of a lot of business are there, etc. If you are serious about your career, that's often the place to be.

In TS2, I hated having a moved away hood because of the way sims stayed in unmoving limbo between play sessions. I felt like I was abandoning them. In TS3, I use NRAAS Traveler and Story Progression, and open up the settings in Brooklyn Heights so the sims can do just about anything they want. I drop in once or twice every sim-year and see how they're getting on. SP will generate events (relationship and career changes, marriages, break-ups, births, etc) that appear to have happened in your absence, so it really does feel like they are getting on with their lives. 

I know the pictures on this update have gone strange, with some centered and some to the side - I remember this happening before. I also remember finding a solution, although I have no clue now what it was. Will keep experimenting, although I'm just going to have to let some posts go with them like this, or I'll never get anything up here again.