"How do you feel about going out today, huh?" Elias nuzzles his son.
He'll take Azuma's giggling as a "yes".
Tatum leaves the warehouse with her small investment payout. Her mother insisted she invest her daycare income into some local businesses and use the profit for the house or for Azuma. They both ignore whatever shady things happen in the warehouse.
I should stop at the diner before I go home, Tatum's stomach growls ravenously. Her phone vibrates. Maybe it's the consignment store? She pulls it out. She raises her eyebrows, confused. An unknown number, sending her a screenshot.
I'm sorry about this, but if it were me, I would want to know... A screenshot showing a text conversation between the mystery person and Elias's phone number follows. Tatum's stomach flips as she reads through the string of one-sided flirty messages, from Elias's side. Suggestions to meet at the bar... to "look at another tattoo of his"...the picture that follows makes her sick.
She wanted to sit in the park and process this, but Elias's coincidental trip there makes that impossible.
"Babe, what's wrong?" Elias sees tension on her face, "...that time of the month, or something?"
"You! How could you!?" his comment shatters whatever will she was using to hold herself together, "You sent photos- of-of... to another woman!" she hisses at him, near tears.
"Babe!" Elias's face turns red.
"That wasn't me! Someone must be lying to you!" Elias tries to cover for himself.
"That picture had your tattoo in it!" she yells, not caring who hears her.
Tatum is done with Elias's excuses.
"I need some time. To think about things. Don't talk to me."
***
Elias goes to the tattoo parlor. His intention is to ask Tiffanie what the hell she was thinking, sending their private conversation to his girlfriend, but seeing her emotionless stare robs him of his confidence.
He makes up some crap about wanting a second tattoo.
Her expression says, really? are you that dumb? But she's not allowed to turn away customers...
SIGH.
She facepalms as Elias buttons his shirt closed. He got Tatum's name tattooed over a cartoon heart on his chest. Why? Why do they always want a permanent marker of their doomed relationships on their bodies? Tiffanie is tortured by these questions.
While he's at it, he gets a makeover. Either Tatum will see he's willing to change... or he'll look better for after she dumps him. He's sure of it!
Tatum smiles tearfully at her younger half-sister. Little Francine here was born only days ago.
"I wish we were meeting under better circumstances," she confides. She wasn't sure where else to go and ended up here, at Dot and Erich's house.
She comes inside from the deck, now better composed, to put Francine to bed.
Dot sighs. She doesn't have the same energy that she used to. Taking care of a newborn, which was tiring before, now absolutely depletes her energy.
She's going to stay awake, though. Her eldest daughter needs here.
"The house is so nice," Tatum compliments.
Dot smiles. Tatum always goes straight for nice things to say when she wants to talk about something. "I like it here too. Now tell me...how are you doing?"
Her smile disappears. "I still can't believe it. I'm in shock. We were having problems before... but I never thought this would happen."
Dot nods grimly. "It was the same for me..."
Tatum looks at her questioningly. Dot sighs. "Your father...Justin... the reason we broke up was because he was cheating on me. With two women. Simultaneously," she can't keep the bitterness out of her voice. It was years ago, but sometimes the pain and betrayal just feel so fresh.
"Oh my- that's awful! Two? How did you get through that?"
Dot's expression becomes melancholic and distant. "It took a long time. My knee jerk reaction was to break up- in the long run, the best decision, honestly- but in the short term...it just hurt so much. I wondered why I wasn't enough... if I'd done something wrong..."
She clears her throat, "But in the end, I realised it wasn't anything I did. The problem was with him."
Tatum digests this information. "What if I wasn't enough, mom? I was working all the time...maybe he felt lonely..."
"Oh sweetie..." Dot hugs Tatum tightly, "He should've said something. Talked about it. Cheating is not the answer."
Tatum wipes tears from her eyes, then takes a step back.
"I feel so stupid... and Azuma! He'll be old enough to talk soon! What do I do if he starts asking questions about his dad not being there?"
"You tell him that you and Elias didn't work out. When he's old enough to understand...well, you'll have to decide if you'll tell him the whole truth, then."
Tatum sighs miserably. Dot's heart breaks for her. "You don't have to think of all that now... just process this pain, Tatum. Decisions can come later."
Though she smiles, Dot can see that there's no happiness behind it.
"You always know what to say... what to do... thanks, mom."
Dot pats her shoulder. "Any time for you, Tater-Tot."
Her childhood nickname brings some light into Tatum's face. "Oh, plumbob, it's so late! I'm sorry for keeping you up so late, you must be exhausted," Tatum begins apologising.
"I'm tired...but nothing some sleep won't cure. You can stay here tonight, if you don't want to go home."
Tatum shakes her head. "Elias might be a lying cheat," just saying the words brings the tears back. Tatum pauses to wipe them away, "But I just left him alone with Azuma. I need to go back..."
She quickly hugs her mother. "Thanks again, mom. I love you."
"I love you too, sweetie. Cycle safely," Dot bids her farewell.
Dot frowns after Tatum leaves. How could someone be so horrible, much less to the mother of their child? She'll never understand.
Elias hears Tatum lock up her bike, come inside, and close their bedroom door. The faint sound of crying follows not long after.
He stares at Azuma, frozen in place as he listens to Tatum's tears.
I made a mistake. I know that. Why does she have to rub it in?
Azuma cannot answer his father's questions.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AN: Tidal wave... of drama.
Originally, this arc was going to be longer, with multiple affairs, and Tatum forgiving Elias each time until she just can't deal with it anymore... But she autonomously accused Elias of cheating and it caused their relationship value to drop to almost zero, so I decided to just let their relationship die. Sims seem very unforgiving of affairs, which makes sense given their very short lifespan and the EA attraction system considering flirtatious interactions with other sims to merit the angry reactions of every single sim in the same room.
Bonus pic of Francine as a young adult! She has Dot's hair, skin, and eye colour. Everything else is Erich.
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