Generation 2, Chapter 4: If you get hurt, I'm not taking the blame

A month had passed since my arrival in Starlight Shores, and in that short month, a lot of things has happened. For one, I've been progressing in my singing career, earning a promotion plus a raise in my stipend. It's not much, but I'm excited about it. The most important change is that Charlie and I have become a couple. The relationship isn't based on love, sadly, more like mutual attraction that will eventually subside. But for now, I'm enjoying the fact that I have a boyfriend to talk to and go on dates with.

"This is nice...," I murmur to Charlie, while wrapped tightly in his embrace. Charlie had the great idea to show me around town more, and so we ended up on the beach, enjoying some alone time together.

"Always a pleasure," he smiles, kissing me on my left cheek.


I smile back at him, and by accident, my gaze falls on my wrist watch.


"Well, crap. I have a sing-a-gram scheduled at ten. I'm sorry, but I've gotta run and prepare."

"Nooo! Come on, just five more minutes!" Charlie tries to pulls me back into a cuddle as I get up. Gently, I pry his fingers free, and seeing that he has lost the battle, Charlie gets up alongside me.

"I hate the fact that people can call you and just summon you to their homes whenever they want. It's really bad if you're in a relationship," Charlie points out, taking my hands in his.

"I know, I know. But that's what I have to do, seeing as I chose it for a career. Will I see you again tonight?" I sigh, trying to look hopeful in the circumstance.

"Um, sadly no. I have a talent-seeking conference to attend. It might bring in more business for Aaron and I," Charlie clears his throat, looking very apologetic. "You should know that I'll make up for it. We can go out tomorrow night, have a nice date at a restaurant, and come back to the beach to watch the sun set."

"You, mister Rapp, are a real classy guy," I chuckle. He passes a quick peck on my lips, and I run off to my car to get ready for my small performance.

The sing-a-gram that I perform is a "Celebration" sing-a-gram, as the person that hired me was celebrating the fact that she completed her homework. Honestly, I don't know if there's something wrong with me or the people in this town - who celebrates and spends money on the fact that someone completed their homework? But I shouldn't complain, it's crazy people like that that bring in the money.

Even though it's supposed to be of fantastic quality, my car breaks down on the way home. Almost throwing a hissy fit, I dump the car near a gas station and ask for someone to tow it in. The walk home is quiet, but all the way home, I feel so awkward, having to wear this ridiculous outfit. As I try to recognize certain buildings and other places, a colorful outfit catches my eye, and I'm immediately able to identify who it is: Aaron.

"Enjoying yourself, huh? What'cha doin' here at this park, all alone?" I wave to Aaron, and he quickly ends his juggling performance.

"It's a little kids park, but there are hardly any kids in this town, so this park is almost always deserted. I come here to practice my skills, so I don't make to many mistakes when I'm on stage," Aaron confesses, putting away his kit.

"So exactly what do you have planned when you're on stage? How do you dazzle the audience?"

"Hmm. That's a good question. Here, I'll show you...," Aaron smiles mysteriously, and stretches, preparing himself for whatever he wants to show me.

"I don't have the experience to use a fire ring yet, BUT, I do have the skill to bend into crazy positions, like so," Aaron huffs, as he contorts into a perfect split with his legs in the air, instead of on the ground.

My eyes nearly bulge out of my head - it's not everyday you get to see an acrobat do such things while hardly breaking a sweat. "You don't have to lose confidence in your performance. You're definitely going to amaze the crowd."

"Well thank ye, miss Kaylin," Aaron says as he stands up, turning on a Southern accent. "Coming from you, that sure means a lot. I thought you'd still be mad after that stupid move I pulled the day I met you."

"Oh, so you remember now?" I scoff. "I thought you were too drunk."

"Not drunk, tipsy," he corrects. "I do remember some of the details. They're vague, but I remember them. I'll probably try to apologize for that for the rest of my life... Which brings me to my next point. Are you available tonight?"

"Uh, um...," I stutter, not sure what to say. His question really caught me off guard, and it sounds as if there are a lot of things implied by that question.

"Oh, it's fine if you're not. I have a gig scheduled tonight at the park, and I was just wondering. Janelle is already coming, and so is Bridget. I was actually thinking she'd bring you along."

"As if," I roll my eyes at the idea. "You obviously don't know my sister well. It just so happens that I am free tonight, so I'll, uh, come by."

"Great, thanks!" he smiles, waves and continues to practice for his gig. A little mystified by my behavior, I shudder, and walk the long way home.

Around 3 PM I finally walk through the door of my apartment, and find that Bridget has already started getting ready for tonight.

"You know the gig is only at 5, right?"

"I do," she shrugs, then pauses. "Well, crap, he invited you? There goes my chance of wooing him!"

"Like you ever had a chance," I laugh, walking to my room to pick out an outfit for the night.

At 4:36 PM, both Bridget and I stand in front of the mirror, making sure our makeup isn't messed up.

"Remember, don't chat to the guy too much. I have to have a shot at him first - if he proves to not be my type, then you can have him."

"I'm not having your left overs, Bridget," I stare at her reflection in the mirror. "And anyways, I already have a boyfriend, so I'm not interested in anyone else, thank you."

Arriving ten minutes early, us girls get a preview of the show, as Aaron is still busy practicing some of his moves. Janelle and Bridget move to the side, giggling and gossiping over how hot Aaron is when he's wearing his leotard. I awkwardly stand by, trying not to listen to their conversation.

"If you get hurt," I say, moving closer to where Aaron is practicing," I'm not taking the blame. You should be careful with those juggles."

"I'm always careful. But thanks for worrying about me. When the cops ask me who drove a knife through my head, I'll be sure not to implicate you."

"Good," I chuckle. "I don't need the bad publicity."

Aaron excuses himself from our conversation, and moves up to the stage, looking nervous as he does so. This performance is so much bigger than a SimFest, where he had previously performed in, because this is a solo act.

"Ladies and gentleman, thank you for blessing me with your presence and attending my performance tonight. I'm really thankful that you came, seeing as I enjoy wowing my audience. And now, I will kick start tonight with a quick acrobatic movement."

Without so much as blinking an eye, Aaron does a back flip, not even using his arms to support him. 

"When I was much much younger than I am now, I wished that I was a bird and I could fly. Of course, I'm not a bird, nor am I magician who can levitate off the ground. So that was something that makes me feel like I can fly," Aaron confesses to the audience. "My other inspiration is Genie's. They're mystical creatures, who can float off the ground. That's pretty much how they move around all the time. But I'm also not a genie, obviously. The closest I can get to being a genie is this." Aaron slowly contorts his body into a back flip while on the ground, and pushes his body so it comes upright. With a little more effort than usual, he removes one of his arms as support, balancing himself off of only one arm. This causes many gasps from the audience, as well as a huge applause.

The rest of the show follows almost the same pattern, yet he keeps dazzling the audience. I wonder what his secret it, and I'm about to ask him, when he walks off backstage, possibly for a change of clothes.

Not being in the mood to walk all the way home (again), I scrounge up the courage to ask Bridget for a ride. Before I even manage to get close to her, Janelle ushers me to the side, a huge grin shining on her face.

"So, I was thinking of asking Eragon, or if you prefer, Aaron, for his autograph. Do you think I may walk backstage to get one? That won't be too bold of me?"

"Nope, not at all," I shrug, "and besides, you practically know the guy already. There shouldn't be anything awkward about it."

Still keeping her goofy grin, Janelle confidently strides off in search of Aaron.

A couple of seconds later, a high toned scream comes from backstage, and I rush towards the sound.

"Oh... Oh my god. Somebody HELP!" Janelle keeps screaming.

"What's going on?" I ask, coming to a stop beside her.

"Oh, Kaylin, thank goodness... Aaron... H-he's just lying there. I don't know if he's alright!"

"Jesus!" Janelle gasps yet again. "Look! There's a guy that's running away... He's got real funny hair." As Janelle points out the culprit, she's quick enough to snap a photo of the mysterious man.

With sad eyes I look away from the man with the funny green hair, and back to Aaron that is lying on the ground, motionless.

"Janelle, you have a phone here right?" I ask my friend, barely able to keep my voice from breaking. "Please call an ambulance. And the police."

Janelle immediately whips out her phone, and types out the emergency numbers with jittery fingers. As she talks on the phone, I move closer to Aaron, checking if he still has a pulse. Across his face, there are some nasty bruises, but other than that, he should live.

Tears roll over my cheek, and I remember my earlier words.

If you get hurt, I'm not taking the blame.

So who should get the blame? And why did someone want to hurt Aaron?

~♥~

Hi there, to all my lovely readers! Thanks for reading this chapter, and sorry this is so short. 

PS: To those who have seen on Facebook, I've added default replacement eyes to my game, and if you're wondering why you haven't seen them yet, it's because I have a few chapters' pictures that were already taken before I added them (like seriously, this chapter was done two days after I got Showtime, and that was QUITE a while ago). In the next post, you will see them.

:)