1.15 Date

Marko is moving up in the education world. He's no longer a high school teacher but a department head, which means better pay and no more lesson plans. Today will be his first day in administration! 

He makes sure to say goodbye to his students though. His reputation as a laid-back but not disengaged teacher has earned him the approval of most of the student body, so he gets sincere congratulations on his promotion. 

Xara is just glad her dad's students aren't in the same classes as her. She always feels weird when people talk about how "chill" "Mr. Winterly" is. 

Paolo seems to feel the same way. 

Little do his former students know, by night "Mr. Winterly" becomes "Marko", the rebel. 

Tonight was prom. The twins seemed to be underwhelmed; Xara is tired sweaty from all the dancing she did and Tulip is hungry- what kind of prom doesn't serve food? 

Paolo, on the other hand, is a bit disoriented. Krista Parrott, a new student, grabbed him for the slow dance and gave him her phone number before he left. 

Did that really happen? I didn't imagine it? he thinks to himself for the hundreth time. It all happened so suddenly- the dance, her putting her number into his phone... 

Meanwhile, Persis goes out fishing. The rain does not deter her and she catches enough fish to fertilize her garden. 

She notices some rare pink fireflies on her way home. Using her empty bait jar, she attempts to catch them. 

A bit harder than it looks. 

It's Saturday morning, but Tulip was asked to present a speech for a competition between the Simlish classes so she's at school. She has an A in Simlish class, but she's determined to win this competition regardless. It's not for the extra credit at this point, but for the principle of the matter. 

Paolo wakes up a bit later and has breakfast. He already sent a text to Krista asking if she'd like to meet at Mick's for a date. He's now resisting the urge to check his phone every few seconds for her response. 

"Hey mom, I'm going to be going out to meet...uh...a girl," he says the last words quickly, "is that ok?"

Persis blinks. "Of course. Have fun." 

He runs to the bathroom to get ready before his mom can ask him any questions. Phew. 

Xara opts to stay at home and read for simlish class. 2 minutes in her phone rings, giving her a much needed reprieve. Reading is tiring! 

"What? Nah, I'm not busy. What's up?" 

Simlish homework will just have to wait... 

Egads, a vanilla! I assumed from her name that Krista was one of the Parrott children, but she's a newspaper delivery girl with the same last name. 

Time for a facial edit and new back story! 

*Ahem* Krista Parrott, one of the many out-of-wedlock children of Kanoa Parrott. Until recently she lived with her mother in Isla Paradiso until a tragic sailing accident which left poor Krista an orphan. Or so she thought until her father, Kanoa Parrott, was tracked down. As it turns out on one of his totally legitimate "business trips" he met Krista's mother, had a fling, and unknowingly left her pregnant. Krista decided to take her father's last name upon moving to Appaloosa Plains to fit in, not realising that most of her half-siblings don't have the last name "Parrott" either. 

*Phew* 

She introduces Pablo to some island songs via karaoke. 

Neither of them are very good at singing, but the important thing is that they're having fun. 

Paolo wants to remember his first date ever, so he suggests they take some pictures. 

"Hey, not bad. Are you sure you don't want a copy?" 

"...what?" 

Paolo smiles nervously, "Uh, never mind, it's fine, I'll keep them." 

She stares at him questioningly. I must have zoned out again... ugh, Krista internally bemoans her absent-mindedness. She's never been to Mick's before and got distracted by her new surroundings. 

She hurriedly covers up her mistake by grabbing his hands. 

"This was really nice, Paolo. But I need to get home soon," she says regretfully. She hasn't been able to make many friends since moving here, but Paolo has been very kind and attentive to her. And she won't deny that she finds him cute, too. But curfew is curfew, and even with her relatives' flagrant disrespect for the law, they still expect her to be home on time. 

She stares into his eyes, trying to figure out the exact name for the shade of blue that they are. Dark, but not navy blue dark... hmm. 

Paolo takes this as a sign that she wants a kiss and wets his lips nervously. Here goes nothing... 

Krista freezes as his lips brush against hers, completely caught off guard. 

Paolo pulls back. "Sorry, was that ok? I should've asked, I'm sorry," he apologizes. 

Krista shakes her head and lets out a nervous giggle. "It was nice, I just wasn't expecting it..." 

"Do you want to go on another date sometime?" Paolo asks. He means for it to come out casually, but his voice cracks on the word "date", betraying his nervousness. 

Krista nods vigorously. "I'd love that!" 

She gives him a peck on the cheek and takes a deep breath before starting her walk home. She thinks she'll like it here.