Tales from the Road

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<> <div class = "chapter_header"> Character Options </div> <> <<set $currently_playing to "bgm">> <<set $ending_points = 0>> What is your name? <<textbox "$name" "">> <<continuelink "Enter">> After a good nights rest, you wake up in your bedroom sometime around 11 or 12. You get up and take a look at the mirror in your bedroom: What is your gender? <<listbox "$gender">> <<option "Male">> <<option "Female">> <<option "Non-Binary" Non-Binary, selected>> <</listbox>> What is your race? <<listbox "$race">> <<option "Wolf">> <<option "Lion">> <<option "Fox">> <<option "Dragon">> <</listbox>> [[Submit|Intro]]

"Looking fine as always" you say to yourself. Your name is $name. You are $gender and you are a $race. Is this correct? [[Yes|Your Bedroom]] [[No|Great Days]]

<<if $sasha_living_room_talked is not true>> <<if visited("Your Bedroom") is 1>> <> <div class = "chapter_header"> Chapter 1 Going Nowhere </div> <> You're standing in your bedroom after having awakened from a good night's rest. Your feet are standing on the plush blue carpet that you're oh-so familiar with. The walls pained in the usual peach color you're accustomed to. Looking around, your room is indeed in the same layout as last night. Your bed is directly behind you as it sits against the corner of the west and north wall, your nightstand standing as it usually does right beside it. All the while your desk awaits your presence from across the room. As far as exits from your bedroom go, you see the door to the [[hallway|Hallway]] in front of you and to the right, with the door to the [[bathroom|Bathroom]] to the east. You might also check out your [[computer over at the desk.|Computer]] <<else>> You're standing in your bedroom as your feet stand on the plush blue carpet that you're oh-so familiar with. The walls pained in the usual peach color you're accustomed to. Looking around, your room is indeed in the same layout as last night. Your bed is directly behind you as it sits against the corner of the west and north wall, your nightstand standing as it usually does right beside it. All the while your desk awaits your presence from across the room. As far as exits from your bedroom go, you see the door to the [[hallway|Hallway]] in front of you and to the right, with the door to the [[bathroom|Bathroom]] to the east. You might also check out your [[computer over at the desk.|Computer]] <</if>> <<elseif $sasha_living_room_talked is true>> <> <div class = "chapter_header"> Chapter 2 The Festival </div> <> The next day you wake up around your usual time of 11 AM. While lying in bed, you roll over towards your night stand, grabbing your phone to see there's a notification stating that the yearly Lake Festival is going on today. You feel like Sasha might have mentioned that last night but you're quiet not sure. Either way it might be worth checking out, you've gone to it every other year you've lived here, so why stop now? <<continuelink "Get out of bed">> You get out of bed and get dressed before evaluating your next action. You see the door to the hallway in front of you, and the door to the bathroom to your east. You could also use your computer. You decide to go towards the [[Hallway]], [[Bathroom]], or use your [[Computer]] <<endif>>

You enter the upstairs hallway of your house. Dated light brown carpet lines the floor, and light blue paint clings to the walls. The door to your bedroom is directly behind you, the door to Sasha's bedroom is to the front left of you, with Jacob's bedroom door being up and to the right. There's also the stairs leading downstairs over to your right. You head towards <<if $festival_completed is not true>>[[Your Bedroom]], <<elseif $festival_completed is true>> [[Your Bedroom,|Player Bedroom]]<<endif>> [[Sasha's Bedroom]], [[Jacob's Bedroom]], [[Downstairs]].

You enter the bathroom; it seems to contain the usual collection of bathroom related items. Just don't do too much digging in the drawers... You showered last night so there's no reason to do so right now. <<return>>

<<if $festival_completed is true and $sasha_post_fest_talk is not true>> You knock on Sasha’s door, hoping to get some input on your road trip itinerary. While Sasha isn’t very well-traveled, you figured it couldn’t hurt to ask her what she thinks about the whole thing. Especially since she spent some years out of state in Oregon before her family moved here. <<continuelink "Sasha answers the door and welcomes you in.">>Sasha answers the door and welcomes you in. [img[https://iforgotmybrain.github.io/img/72.png]] “So, what brings you to me today? Wanna talk about someone or something?” She says with an inquisitive tone. You tell Sasha that you were actually here to talk about something a bit different for once. You go on to state that you wanted to get some input from her on your idea of going on a road trip across the country. <<continuelink "You explain the whole idea to her.">>You explain the whole idea to her. How you plan on bringing a few other people along, as well as where you plan on going. You feel like it would be a good idea to go in a northwesterly direction so you can check out some of the state parks in the northern mountain states. By the time you leave it should be early Summer, so weather shouldn’t be an issue, and the visuals will be a lot more interesting than going straight through the Midwest. “Sounds like you already have a pretty decent idea of what you’re doing. I’m guessing you want some input on where to stop in Oregon, right?” You nod your head; Sasha then thinks for a minute before offering some ideas. “Hmm, it has been some time since I’ve lived there, what's it been, 10 years? I was like 11 or 12 when we moved so yeah, 10 years." "But I can remember a few places that might be worth checking out. Crater Lake is worth a stop, as is Silver Falls. And there’s a bunch of other parks you could check out as well, I’ll write them down for you.” Sasha writes down about 7 places to check out in Oregon. You add them to your list which you’ll sort through later. <<continuelink '"Hey, one thing before you leave."'>>"Hey, one thing before you leave. You said you were going to take a few other people along; do you have anybody in mind yet?" You tell Sasha you haven’t really gotten to that part yet. You want to finalize your travel plans before doing so. “Alright, I was just wondering. I’ll have to think about it and check with work, but I might be interested in tagging along with you if you end up having room. I’ve never really traveled before, but I guess there’s no time like now to give it go.” <<set $sasha_post_fest_talk to true>> <<continuelink "Nodding your head, you tell Sasha that you'll keep her mind.">>Nodding your head, you tell Sasha that you'll keep her mind. You say goodbye and [[head back out to the hallway.|Hallway]] <<elseif $sasha_talked_1 is not true>> You give Sasha’s door a hearty knock, waiting a few seconds before she yells at you to see yourself in. <<continuelink "Opening the door,">>Opening the door, you see Sasha sitting at her desk. Her laptop open, keyboard backlit and screen on what looks to be a web browser. The layout of her bedroom isn’t dissimilar to yours. The only difference being that she has her bed situated to the front of the window rather than over to one of the corners. The similarities end there, though. Your barren room — at least in regards to decorative items, doesn’t hold a candle to hers. With various posters of bands and musicians hung all throughout her room. From classic dad rock to more modern bands you might hear on the radio. The posters, of course, are far from the only music related items in her room. With Sasha having her guitar resting on the side of her dresser with guitar string strung all a bout. She also has an actual rock collection that she keeps in a small china cabinet. She might tell you it’s only for professional purposes, but you know the truth... She's just really interested in collecting rocks for some reason. And who could forget about the most important thing in the room? <<continuelink "Sasha herself!">>Sasha herself! [img[https://iforgotmybrain.github.io/img/72.png]] Sitting at her desk, she turns her head, her blue eyes looking to you as she says <<continuelink '"Hey $name, what\'s going on?"'>>"Hey $name, what's going on?" while you continue to wander into her room, eventually leaning up against the foot of her bed. You tell her you just wanted to check in, see what she’s up to. <<continuelink '"Honestly, not up to much."'>>"Honestly, not up to much. Just going through the daily routine. I haven't been having the greatest time at work but it's not like I can just quit. Pay's too good, not to mention that the job market isn't exactly booming right now." You can understand Sasha's struggle, having dealt with a similar situation yourself in the not so distant past. You offer her your sympathies before turning around to head out the door. <<continuelink '"Oh, by the way,"'>>"Oh, by the way," Sasha says as you're about to step out of her room, "I think Jacob wanted to ask you something. He mentioned some football related thing earlier today when I talked to him." <> <<set $sasha_talked_1 to true>> <> You give Sasha a thumbs up before closing her bedroom door and stepping out into the [[hallway|Hallway]] <<else>> You knock on Sasha's door. Waiting a few seconds yields no response. Seems she's either busy or away right now. <<return>> <<endif>>

You head downstairs and see nothing out of the ordinary. The usual worn wood panels adorn the floor, with a light gray paint covering the walls. The entrance way where you're currently standing connects directly to the living room and the kitchen. There's also the front porch if you wanted to go somewhere. Heading back upstairs is an option as well. After thinking about it, you head to the [[Kitchen]], [[Living Room]], [[Front Porch]], [[Hallway]].

<<if $jacob_bedroom_talked_1 is not true>> You knock on the door but no one answers. Maybe you should come back later. Head back to the [[Hallway]] <<endif>>

<<if $jacob_talked_1 is true>> You enter the kitchen but see nothing of interest. <<return>> <<else>> You enter the kitchen and see that it's about as lackluster as ever. Outdated appliances from the early 00s hum along, running off of shoddy repairs and determination. The linoleum on the floor is even more dated. Wih the peach-like color and styling you can only imagine it was installed sometime in the 80s. You see Jacob standing by the microwave waiting for his lunch to get done cooking. <<if $sasha_talked_1 is true>> Guess you should see what he wanted to talk to you about. <<else>> Suppose you should see what he's been up to. <<endif>> <<linkreplace "Go say hi to Jacob" t8n>>\ As you approach Jacob it's hard to miss his most prominent feature, his antlers. A feature shared amongst all deer like him. He also has a fairly fit build, though you wouldn't be able to tell that with the baggy sweats and jacket he's wearing today. "Hey bud, what's going on?" He says as you walk up to talk to him. <<linkreplace '"Been wanting to talk to you about something."' t8n>>\"Been wanting to talk to you about something." "Dunno if you've been keeping up with the Blues' Head Coach search but it seems like they've narrowed down their choices to two people, Karl Kowalski and Robert Indah. Kowalski is the OC for the Norsemen, not a ton of experience but I feel like his scheme would be a perfect fit for the Blues. And then Indah is the DC for the number one defense in the league on the 99ers. Although you have to wonder how much of that success can be attributed to his coaching versus the insane amount of talent they have on defense." <<linkreplace "Continue listening to Jacob's sports ramblings" t8n>>\ "Anyway, I was wondering who you think the Blues should pick. I'm leaning more towards Kowalski myself but I wouldn't be upset at Indah either." <<set $jacob_talked_1 to true>> [["'Kowalski'"|Kitchen Jacob Kowalski]] [["'Indah'"|Kitchen Jacob Indah]] [["'You know I don\'t follow Sports, Jacob'"|Kitchen Jacob None]] <</linkreplace>>\ <</linkreplace>>\ <</linkreplace>>\ <<endif>>

<<if $sasha_talked_1 && $jacob_talked_1 && $park_completed && $cafe_completed is true && $sasha_living_room_talked is not true>> You return to the living room once again. Looking around, you see Sasha sitting on the couch watching something on the television. You decide to join her and have a seat on one of the chairs adjacent to the center-set couch. It seems Sasha's watching a superhero movie involving some sort of pink titan. [img[https://iforgotmybrain.github.io/img/72.png]] <<continuelink '"You watch this movie yet? Second to last one in the series. Haven\'t got to watch the final one yet but I\'ve heard it\'s fantastic."'>>"You watch this movie yet? Second to last one in the series. Haven't got to watch the final one yet but I've heard it's fantastic." "Actually, do you even like superhero movies? I won’t say anymore about it just in case." <<continuelink "You state your preference for superhero movies, saying that you haven’t really kept up with this specific series of movies since you saw the first one.">>You state your preference for superhero movies, saying that you haven’t really kept up with this specific series movies since you saw the first one. "Oh boy, you are in for a treat if you ever decide to catch up on them. Definitely let me know before you do, I'd love to rewatch them with you." "Anyway, you want something or just here to chat?" [[Just wanna chat for a bit|Sasha Living Room Chat]] [[Actually I wanted to ask you for some advice|Sasha Living Room Purpose Chat]] <<elseif $sasha_living_room_talked is true and $jacob_living_room_talk is not true and $festival_completed is true>> You check out the living room yet again, it would seem Jacob is sitting in a chair watching something on his phone. He sees you as you walk into the living room and gives you a nod. [[You sit on the couch and Jacob asks you a question shortly after.|Jacob Living Room Dialogue]] <<else>> You enter the living room. The same brown carpet from upstairs lines the floors, with the same gray paint from the entrance way covering the walls. As far as activity, you see nothing but empty chairs and a TV entertaining itself. Maybe you should check back later. <<return>> <<endif>>

/* Still need to edit this after Holly text */ You head out the front door and stand on your front porch ready for adventure! You think of the following places to check out: [[Home|Downstairs]] <<if not visited ("Sycamore Park")>> [[Sycamore Park]] <<endif>><<if not visited ("Torie's Cafe")>> [[Torie's Cafe]] <<endif>> <<if $sasha_living_room_talked is true and not visited("Festival Start")>> [[Festival|Festival Start]] <<endif>> <<if $sasha_post_fest_talk is true and $jacob_living_room_talk is true and $chris_pawbook_completed is true and $walk_completed is not true>>[[Go for a walk|Valery Walk]]<<endif>><<if $valery_walk_talked is true and $valery_house_talk is not true>>[[Go to Valery's house|Valery's House]]<<endif>>

You tell Jacob that you think Kowalski would make the best head coach. He lacks experience, but you don't think that will be a huge issue. "Interesting choice, and I'm inclined to agree. I suppose I could see his lack of time coaching as an issue, but the way he runs his offense with the Norsemen is just perfect for this team." The microwave sets off it's familiar beep as it finishes cooking Jacob's lunch. <<continuelink '"Well that was all I wanted to talk about. My lunch is done so I\'ll stop bugging you and be on my way."'>> "Well that was all I wanted to talk about. My lunch is done so I'll stop bugging you and be on my way." You say goodbye to Jacob and head back to the [[entrance way.|Downstairs]]

You state that Indah seems to be the most qualified for the job. Mentioning his many years spent on the 99ers as DC. <<continuelink '"That\'s fair."'>>"That's fair. I definitely feel like he's the safer pick. Though you have to wonder how he'd handle the offensive side of the ball. Not too many great offensive coordinators on the market this year." The microwave sets off it's familiar beep as it finishes cooking Jacob's lunch. <<continuelink '"Well that was all I wanted to talk about. My lunch is done so I\'ll stop bugging you and be on my way."'>> "Well that was all I wanted to talk about. My lunch is done so I'll stop bugging you and be on my way." You say goodbye to Jacob and head back to the [[entrance way.|Downstairs]]

You remind Jacob that you aren't really much for sports. With how often he talks to you about football it seems to escape his mind quite often. <<continuelink '"Shit, that\'s right."'>>"Shit, that's right. Guess I just wasted a whole bunch of your time talking about something you couldn't give a damn about. Sorry about that." The microwave sets off it's familiar beep as it finishes cooking Jacob's lunch. <<continuelink '"Well that was all I wanted to talk about. My lunch is done so I\'ll stop bugging you and be on my way."'>> "Well that was all I wanted to talk about. My lunch is done so I'll stop bugging you and be on my way." You say goodbye to Jacob and head back to the [[entrance way.|Downstairs]]

You catch a ride on the bus and end up at Torie's Cafe, your all-time favorite place to grab lunch Torie's has a very modern aesthetic, with colorful furniture and ample natural lighting giving the place an overall cheery vibe. They’re mainly known for their fantastic wraps, though you find their soups to be delicious as well. <<continuelink "Looking around, you see the line to order.">> Looking around, you see the line to order. It’s a bit after lunch so there isn’t much of a wait. While walking to the line and looking around the restaurant, you spot a familiar face sitting alone at one of the tables — an old friend you haven't talked to in quite some time. They're sitting at a table towards the back and it seems as though they haven't noticed you yet. You could leave the line to go over and say hi to your friend, or you could just stay in line, get your food, and leave. <<choice [[Go say hi to your friend|Cafe Holly]]>> <<choice [[Just stay in line|Cafe Line]]>>

You decide to leave the line to go over and say hi to your friend, <<continuelink "who you now know for sure is Holly.">>who you now know for sure is Holly. [img[https://iforgotmybrain.github.io/img/74.png]] Ah, Holly. A vixen in the most literal sense. She hasn't changed much since you last saw her 5 years ago — her lighter hair color still matching fantastically with her orange fur. Seems her fashion hasn’t changed either. Still dressing as causally as ever with her loose-fitting long sleeve shirt and sweatpants. <<continuelink "You walk up to Holly and exchange greetings before having a seat at her table.">>You walk up to Holly and exchange greetings before having a seat at her table. There’s a lot of catching up to do! You follow each other on social media but of course, that isn’t a replacement for a proper conversation. "Wow, hey $name! It's been a while. 5 years, hasn't it been? Back during that amusement park trip we went on in college." <<continuelink "You nod your head and state that it has, indeed, been 5 years.">>You nod your head and state that it has, indeed, been 5 years. Wasting no time, you fill Holly in on what's been happening since the two of you last met. Detailing your current living situation with Sasha and Jacob, as well as talking about some of the antics you've been up to since the trip. Curious, you ask what Holly’s been up to since you last met. A faint look of disappointment fills her face as she tells you, <<continuelink '"Yeah, so... I dropped out of college."'>> "Yeah, so… I dropped out of college. Right after my 2nd year. Believe it or not it wasn’t because of my grades, I just wasn’t enjoying "the college life". I know that’s a pretty poor reason to drop out... but I just couldn’t see myself doing another 2 years there, ya know? Also might have made a slight mistake when it came to picking my major — I realized pretty quick that marketing was not for me." <<continuelink "It's easy to find yourself sympathizing with Holly, remembering how many times you second-guessed your choice to attend college.">> It's easy to find yourself sympathizing with Holly, remembering how many times you second-guessed your choice to attend college. You ask Holly what she’s doing for work since she dropped out of college, she offers an answer that catches you a bit by surprise, <<continuelink '"I draw art for a living now!"'>> "I draw art for a living now! I was always interested in it, I’m sure you remember some of my drawings from back in high school. I never really thought of it as a legitimate career path, just as a hobby, you know? But I’ve managed to build a decent enough following online that's allowed me to get by with just doing art. And you know, I really enjoy it. I don't have to deal with any bosses, project managers, it's nice." She says with a smile. "What about you though? What have you been doing since graduating college? I know you finished with a couple of internships and a great GPA, those internships lead anywhere?" <<continuelink "You explain that you used to work for Spherion, but eventually quit for a couple different reasons after spending a year there.">> You explain that you used to work for Spherion, but eventually quit for a couple different reasons after spending a year there. Explaining to Holly that you had luckily saved up enough money to live comfortably for around 2 years before quitting that job. You tell her that now you just do some freelance work here and there. It helps keep a steady flow of money coming into your bank account. And with living expenses being split between three people, you really don’t need much money to support your lifestyle. <<continuelink '"Wow, hearing stuff like that almost makes me wish I would have stayed in college."'>> "Wow, hearing stuff like that almost makes me wish I would have stayed in college. I couldn’t imagine having a savings large enough to live on for 2 years. Let alone being able to amass that much money by only working for a year! That's really impressive" Holly says with an impressed smirk. <<continuelink '"Well, anyway $name, it’s been fantastic talking but I’ve got a yoga class coming up in a half-hour so I gotta go."'>> "Well, anyway $name, it’s been fantastic talking but I’ve got a yoga class coming up in a half-hour so I gotta go. Maybe I’ll see you around some other time!" <> <<set $cafe_holly_talked to true>> <<set $cafe_completed to true>> <<set $ending_points += 2>> <> You say goodbye to Holly and decide to [[head home for the day after grabbing your food.|Your Bedroom]]

<<if $park_completed is not true>> You arrive at Sycamore Lakeview Park after a short walk down the street. Despite this park's proximity to your house, you've only ever ventured over here once or twice in the past few years. The park itself is quite nice. The entrance having a large paved path that goes throughout the main front area of the park. Pavillions and shelter houses are abundant throughout this area, and there's even a kid's playground a little further back. The walking paths at the park are nice as well. With one branching off to the east and another to the west. And to top it all off the whole park is located just off the lake which means both paths end up offering some fantastic lake views when you're not surrounded by shady trees. <<continuelink "Though it would seem that today you'll only have enough time to walk the one.">>Though it would seem that today you'll only have enough time to walk the one. The Sun is setting quite fast, and by the time you make it through one path you'll probably have to head back before it gets too dark out. You've been down the path to the east before, so you'll be hanging left this time and taking the west path. Both of the paths are pretty similar in length, though this one happens to be 10 minutes shorter. With no further ado you [[decide to hit the gravel and start your walk.|West Path]] <<elseif $park_completed is true>> You end your walk around 8 PM. As you expected, the Sun has set mostly behind the horizon with the stars and planets starting their nightly appearnace. It's an inbetween of night and day, twilight. Best to make your way [[back home|Your Bedroom]] while this dying day still shines. <</if>>

<<set $path_lake to true>> <<set $park_completed to true>> Heading down the path for 15 minutes brings you upon a familiar sight, the Great Sycamore Lake. Looking out at the horizon you can see the Sun starting to set over the lake. The sky an orange-red hue with the Sun's rays reflecting off the lake. Not wanting to miss such a beautiful scene, You decide to sit down at a bench overlooking the lake, taking a moment to just revel in this fantastic scene. <<continuelink "Continue">> Having a seat on the bench, and with not much else going through your mind, you decide to reflect a bit on the events you've gone through in the last couple of years. The uncertainty that you've dealt with from graduation to now… You've never really had a strong grasp on where you want to be, what you want to do, this is true. But ever since you finished college, this uncertainty has been getting worse and worse. <<continuelink "Perhaps this shouldn't be a surprise.">>Perhaps this shouldn't be a surprise. You've spent quite literally your entire life hitting the books, and then all of a sudden that just stops, and you're expected to completely switch to 'work' mode? It's a drastic change in many ways, even more so for those like you, the ones that wander from thing to thing hoping to find something that sticks. It seemed like a good thing initially. Gradurating from college, that is. Especially since you got a job right of the gate, "This is fantastic!" is what you first thought, "All my hard work is finally paying off. Now I'll be getting paid for my time //and// it'll be less work than college". In retrospect, that wasn't completely untrue. Well, at least the "getting paid for my time" part wasn't. <<continuelink "Less work though… what a silly thought that was.">>Less work though… what a silly thought that was. Perhaps you wouldn't be putting in the same amount of hours as you did in college. But the actual difficulty of work can hardly be measured in just hours alone, as you found out. Strict deadlines and a hostile environment will make anything more stressful then it needs to be. Your naivety lead you down a dead-end, and without even a year under your belt, you quit your first job after graduation. That was almost a year ago at this point, as you recall how you quit in August of that year. And where are you now? A freelance worker hopping from job to job. No idea what you want your life to be. And the only reason you can sustain this empty lifestyle is because you've found an extended family in Sasha and Jacob, who so graciously stick by your side despite the implications on their own careers. <<continuelink "And what ideas and hopes do you have for the future?">>And what ideas and hopes do you have for the future? You have no career ambitions. The only thing you've actually given any thought to is a cross-country road trip. In an attempt to rekindle some kind of longing for life, or perhaps to just get a new view on things. Is it a bad idea? Not necessarily. But it's hard to imagine that such a simple thing could give you this new 'lease on life' that you desire, at least, not on its own. It's a lot to take in, reflections on your life in the past 2 years, that is. Perhaps that's enough for now. Sitting here any longer might lead you to walking these paths by moonlight instead of what little sunlight is left. [[Best to get up and finish walking this path.|Sycamore Park]]

<<set $sasha_living_room_talked to true>> You tell Sasha you just wanted to chat with her for a bit. <<continuelink '"Alright, just like old times."'>> "Alright, just like old times. Man, it's been a while since we've just sat down and talked." "So, what kind of movies do you like? Can’t remember ever talking about movies with you, and I know we haven’t gone to see any together." <<continuelink "You spent the next half hour talking about movies with Sasha,">>You spent the next half hour talking about movies with Sasha, maybe not exactly what you had in mind when you came to talk with her, but it works. <<continuelink "//Sometime later...//">>//Sometime later...// "…And that’s why I think the prequel movies are underrated. I’m telling you that they would have had a better initial release if the audiences' expectations weren’t set sky high." As Sasha finishes her rant on the prequel movies you start to plan your exit. "Anyway, I really enjoyed talking about movies with you. We really need to watch those movies sometime, I know you’ll love them." <<continuelink "You tell Sasha you’re looking forward to watching them with her sometime.">> You tell Sasha you’re looking forward to watching them with her sometime. Now is not that time though, as you say good night and head up to bed. "Alright, see you tomorrow. We’ve really gotta talk more often! I miss just sitting down and talking with you like we did way back when." <<set $ending_points += 2>> You nod your head in agreement with Sasha before getting up and [[walking to your room.|Your Bedroom]]

<<set $sasha_living_room_talked to true>> You tell Sasha you want to ask her for some advice, that you wanted to ask her for help on finding 'purpose'. <<continuelink '"Purpose, huh?"'>>"Purpose, huh? Yeah, that doesn’t surprise me. Figured it wouldn't be long before you got sick of freelance work." “Well, let's make some assumptions. I’m guessing your issue is that you don't really have anything to chase after. The way your work goes now, you basically jump from job to job every month. Hell, I know some months you don't even work. You've got the money to just sit on your ass for a year if you wanted." <<continuelink '"I have a little bit of experience with this myself, which of course makes me an expert on the topic."'>> "I have a little bit of experience with this myself, which of course makes me an expert on the topic. I think we might have talked about this before but whatever. Back when I graduated high school, I was a mess. I had zero idea of what I wanted to do. My parents wanted me to go to college, but I didn’t feel like I would be cut out for it. But I didn’t want to go straight to working either, since in my hometown there was really no viable career path for me. Factory jobs were long gone, and if you needed an entry-level job the only options you had were retail jobs. And those weren't going to take me anywhere." "So, I took a gap year to try and plan my future out. Told myself I’d work part-time while ‘researching’ career paths. Now, you know me, how well do you think that worked out? I put in my 20 hours a week and then pissed off and went partying with my friends or sat at home all day. It was fun for a few months, but your mind wants something to work towards, and this lifestyle was a dead end. Not to mention my parents weren't going to support me for much longer." "I started to feel lost after those few months... I had no long-term goals, no real ambition, I'd say I wasn't too far off from becoming a dead beat. Didn't help that I surrounded myself with people just as lost as I was." <<continuelink "'So what'd you do?'">>'So what'd you do?' "After talking with my parents and a couple of my friends who actually did something after high school, I decided that I’d give college a try. I wasn’t going straight to university though, I’d go to a community college to save money and then transfer to a 4 year if I ended up enjoying it. This wasn’t my ideal path, but my way of doing things kind of turned out to be a disaster, so I said, 'fuck it' and decided to give the more traditional post high school path a go. Ended up liking college quite a bit as you might have guessed given our background. I went in as undecided but found my passion pretty quick, which was studying rocks. How exciting." "What I'm trying to say is, sometimes you have to go outside your comfort zone to find what you want. Just go out there, say 'fuck it' and try some weird shit. You never know what might happen. You could end up finding your 'purpose', or meeting a lifelong friend. If I were you, I’d start trying out new stuff. Maybe pick up a new hobby, meet someone new, volunteer, I don't know, just do //something.//" <<continuelink "'Thanks Sasha.'">>'Thanks Sasha.' “Of course, anything for my best friend. If you wanna talk about something else, you just let me know." <<set $ending_points += 4>> You say good night to Sasha and head up to your [[bedroom for the night.|Your Bedroom]]

You hop on a bus headed to the festival. The Lake Festival, to be exact. You've gone to this event just about every year you've lived here, it's nothing special and you mostly just go out of tradition. While on the bus you sit next to a man with an ‘I heart NY shirt’ on. He’s carrying a sizable backpack, and based off his appearance he seems to be a tourist. The man looks to you and asks if you’re going to Lake Fest. You say yes, and that you’ve gone to it almost every year you’ve lived here. "So you’re a local! I’m Chris.” The Tiger says as <<continuelink "he reaches out to shake your paw.">>he reaches out to shake your paw. You shake the Tiger’s paw and introduce yourself as $name. “Nice to meet you $name. I’m coming through here pretty much solely for Lake Fest. Though I wouldn’t be opposed to checking out some other places if you’ve got any recommendations. My hotel here is booked for the day so I’ve got time.” <<continuelink "You can’t really think of anything else remarkable here.">>You can’t really think of anything else remarkable here. Iridium City is actually quite boring. You offer a few eating recommendations, including Torie's Café, stating that there really isn’t much to do here except check out the local restaurants. <<continuelink '"Yeah, I kind of figured that."'>>"Yeah, I kind of figured that. This is my second time going to this event and I can't say I've seen much else to do around here.” The Tiger says with a friendly tone. "Anyway, I bet you’re probably wondering why someone would come here just for this one event.” You can’t say you were really racking your brain trying to figure that out, <<continuelink "but you’ll humor him.">>but you’ll humor him. “Well, I’m actually on a trip across the country! I do it every year, in some shape or form. Last year I went by train but now I’m doing it by car.” He says with an enthusiastic tone. Clearly he’s quite interested in traveling the country. <<continuelink "You ask Chris for some more details,">>You ask Chris for some more details, you’ve always been fascinated by the idea of traveling the country, but you’ve just never had the time or money to do so. “Well, I start off my trip on the east coast, in New York city as you might’ve guessed by my shirt.” He says while pointing to his 'I heart NY' shirt. "I spend a varying amount of time in each place I stop at. Just depends on what that city has to offer. The end destination changes every year too. Last year I stopped at San Francisco, and this time around I’ll be heading to Seattle." You tell Chris that you’ve been interested in doing something similar, you find the idea of traveling the country and seeing all it has to offer to be exciting! <<continuelink '"If I could offer one tip,"'>>"If I could offer one tip, it's to plan ahead of time and check out what’s going to be going in the towns you’re passing by. Try to find the best possible time to leave so you can maximize the events you can go too." <<continuelink "You thank Chris for the advice.">>You thank Chris for the advice. If you ever do decide to take on such an endeavor, you’ll definitely make sure to have a plan. "Well looks like our stop’s up here. It’s been great talking to you.” He says while extending his paw out for a <<continuelink "farewell shake.">>farewell shake You shake his paw and say goodbye, he offers one last piece of advice before departing. <<continuelink '"Hey, if you ever decide to go for it,"'>>"Hey, if you ever decide to go for it, hit me up on Pawbook. I’ve got a list of my favorite places to stop at it, I’d be glad to share it with you." You thank the Tiger as he goes on his way. You have arrived at the [[festival.|Festival Vendors]]

<<if $festival_completed is not true>> You sit down at your desk and turn on your monitor. Right now the only you can think of doing is [[checking your bank account|Bank]]. [[Log off|Your Bedroom]] <<elseif $festival_completed is true and $chris_pawbook_completed is not true>> You sit down at your desk and turn on the monitor. You could check your [[bank account|Bank]] or send [[Chris a message about your road trip plans|Chris Pawbook]] [[Log off|Player Bedroom]] <<elseif $chris_pawbook_completed is true and $post_fest_day_completed is true and $road_trip_funding_completed is true and $chat_room is not true>> You sit down at your desk and turn on the monitor. With not much going on today you could hit up one of those [[old chat rooms you used to go on.|Computer Chat Room]] [[Log off|Player Bedroom]] <<elseif $chris_pawbook_completed is true and $post_fest_day_completed is true and $road_trip_funding_completed is not true and $chat_room is not true>> You sit down at your desk and turn on the monitor. With not much going on today you could hit up one of those [[old chat rooms you used to go on.|Computer Chat Room]] You also need to figure out your finances for the road trip sometime. You could do that by going to your [[bank's website.|Bank Management]] [[Log off|Player Bedroom]] <<elseif $chris_pawbook_completed is true and $post_fest_day_completed is true and $road_trip_funding_completed is not true and $chat_room is true>> You need to figure out your finances for the road trip sometime. You could do that by going to your [[bank's website.|Bank Management]] [[Log off|Player Bedroom]] <<else>> You can't think of anything to do on your computer right now. <<return>> <<endif>>

You login to your bank account and check your balance. You currently have $1500 in your checking and $8500 in your savings. <<return>>

You arrive at the festival downtown and see crowds of people on the streets. Vendors as far as the eye can see. The day is perfect for a festival, a light overcast keeps temperatures in the sun bearable, and a slight breeze keeps you cool. <<continuelink "You see rows of vendors directly ahead to your north.">> You see rows of vendors directly ahead to your north. Stands for everything from spices to graphic tees. The quaint downtown streets filled with people from every part of the state, and country for that matter. Despite the wide assortment of merchants you don't really see anything that catches your eye. Instead you opt to get some classic fair food from one of the food trucks. <<continuelink "Go grab some food">> You decided to get a beef gyro, a slushy, and a funnel cake. All together this meal cost you $15. Pretty expensive, but you guess it's worth it given the occasion. <<continuelink "After getting your food">> After getting your food you decide to check out one of the events being held today. This specific event is a concert featuring various local bands and musicians. It seems you've come right as the bands are changing. As you see the next act getting setup. You decide look up the next band playing, Lioness Untamed, to see if you'll even like their music. <<continuelink "You put in your ear buds">>You put in your ear buds and listen to one of their songs real quick. Based off of that quick listen they seem to be a lo-fi indie band. Not your favorite kind of music, but the one song you listened to was pretty good, so you'll give them a shot. <<continuelink "As you wait for the band to start their set...">> As you wait for the band to start their set you feel someone tap the back of your shoulder. You turn around and to your surprise you see your friend, Holly. [img[https://iforgotmybrain.github.io/img/74.png]] <<if $cafe_holly_talked is true>> "Didn't think I'd be running into you again so soon. What are you doing out here all by yourself?" <<else>> "I thought it was you, $name! It's been a while, hasn't it?" You were surprised to see Holly, since it had been almost 5 years since you last talked to her. The last time you talked to her in person was during that trip to the local amusement park with her and some other friends. "So, what are you doing out here all by yourself?" <<endif>> You tell Holly that you're just out here fulfilling your yearly tradition of coming to Lake Fest. No one else wanted to tag along so you're out here enjoying it by yourself. <<continuelink '"Alright, that makes sense."'>>"Alright, that makes sense. Not like I can really give you too much shit for being on your own if I am too, huh? I had come here with one of my friends, //but// she ditched me for some guy she just met. Guess that shows how she really feels about me, huh?" You give Holly your condolences about her friend ditching her. Stating that you’ve dealt with similar situations yourself. <<continuelink "You also ask Holly if she knows much about the band about to play.">>You also ask Holly if she knows much about the band about to play. “Not a whole lot. I know they have a more lo-fi sound and that’s about it. With Jessica ditching me I figured I might as well come over and check them out. It’s free, after all.” <<continuelink '“Well,"'>> "Well, I can't say I expected the day to play out like this. But, since we’re both here by ourselves at this point, guess we might as well hang out for a bit and check out this band, yeah?” <<continuelink "It's been a long time since...">> It’s been a long time since you’ve actually hung out and talked with Holly. And you are a bit tired of wandering here alone, so her offer is definitely enticing. You can’t really think of a good reason not to hang out with her, at least until the concert ends. <<continuelink "You tell Holly you’d be fine with hanging out for a bit.">>You tell Holly you’d be fine with hanging out for a bit. <<continuelink '"Alright!"'>> "Alright! I was hoping you'd yes, it's been 5 years since we've hung out after all. We've got a lot of catching up to do." [[The band seems to be starting their set|Festival Holly Concert]], as they go out on stage and introduce themselves.

The band starts playing, they sound about as you expected, with a lo-fi sound reminiscent of Mac Demarco. Not you’re choice of music if you were paying to be here, but //it is// a free concert so you can’t complain too much. Holly doesn't seem overly impressed by the band either, judging by her face. <<continuelink '"Not exactly my idea of good music..."'>>"Not exactly my idea of good music, //but// it is free, and it gives me an excuse to hangout with you for a bit so, guess I'll bear with it." Neither of you seem that intrested in the actual band playing, you're also quite a ways away from the actual stage so the music isn't playing that loudly. Sensing an opportunity, you decide to take this time to get to know Holly a bit better. <<if $cafe_holly_talked is true>> [[Thinking back to the conversation at Torie’s, you decide to ask Holly how she ended up becoming an artist.|Holly Concert Dialogue]] <<else>> It’s been awhile since you talked to Holly, so you decide to ask her what she’s been up to since you last talked almost 5 years ago. <<continuelink '"What I’ve been up to?"'>>"What I’ve been up to?" "Honestly, not a whole lot given the time frame. Probably the biggest change in my life has been career, since I actually ended up dropping out of college at the end of my Sophomore year. Some stuff happened after that, but right now I’m doing art for a living. Pretty big jump going from a marketing major to an artist." [[You tell Holly that is a pretty big jump, you also ask her what exactly lead up to her becoming an artist.|Holly Concert Dialogue]] <<endif>>

//You ask Holly how she ended up becoming an artist.// “Oh boy, where do I start? Hmm… Guess I’ll go over what I did after I dropped out of college. So, I’ve been drawing since… eh, around middle school I’d say. Back then it was just a hobby, of course. Just something to channel my creative ideas, and maybe show off a bit, ~~heh.~~ " "Now, when I went to college I ended up making a social media account dedicated to posting my art, I plugged it a bit, ya know, posted my art on a few forums to try and get a following. Ended up working pretty well since I had 5000 followers by the time I dropped out. At this point though, it was still just a hobby, but I was definitely thinking about the money potential. After I dropped out I got a full-time retail job and just kept working on my art and expanding my following as best I could.” <<continuelink "About what you expected to hear. You ask Holly when she started to see art as an actual career path instead of just a hobby.">> About what you expected to hear. You ask Holly when she started to see art as an actual career path instead of just a hobby. "Ehh, I started taking commissions shortly after leaving college. I felt like at that point I was good enough to justify people spending money on me, basically. It wasn’t a ton of money, just like beer money really. But it was something! And it was first time I’d been paid for doing art, which definitely helped motivate me." "About half a year into my retail job I expanded the amount of commissions I took and also opened up a donation page. At this point, the income from my art was actually starting to rack up. Wasn’t as much as my ‘real job’ but it was enough to pay some of my bills every month. I was really starting to see art as a legitimate career path at this point, it took a lot of time and effort to get to this point though. I’d been working on my art since Middle School and I was just now getting enough of a following to sustain myself.” "From there I just sort of kept expanding my work, I started making merch, I raised the prices of my commissions a bit and set up an account on one of those monthly subscription type of sites. The income from my art eventually took over my retail job’s income. I still ended up working at the retail job for another 2 months just so I could save up some money before I fully committed to art. And now, here I am. I started doing art full-time 9 months ago, and it’s been surprisingly smooth sailing since." <<continuelink "You congratulate Holly on being able to support herself on her art. It takes a lot of effort and determination to achieve something like that.">> You congratulate Holly on being able to support herself on her art. It takes a lot of effort and determination to achieve something like that. "For sure. I definitely got lucky being able to get such a huge following in a fairly short amount of time.” <<if $cafe_holly_talked is true>> "How about you though? What happened with you and your job? Had to be getting some decent money based off the amount you saved up" You explain to Holly how it all started. Initially, it all went pretty well. The job paid exceptionally well, had good benefits, and looked really good on a resume if you ever decided to go somewhere else. About 5 months into the job though you started to notice some of the dysfunction abound. You grew tired of the petty office politics, your ‘superiors’ never really valued your work or your feedback, and the work you were doing just wasn’t very fulfilling. Most workplaces will have elements of all those things, this is true, but here they were overwhelming. You knew you weren’t long for that place and started saving up a decent chunk of your paycheck each month. You put a significant amount into an investment account, as well as some straight into your savings. You stayed for about 7 months after that, and by the time you put in your 2-weeks, you had saved around $40,000 total. Enough to live modestly by yourself for 1 year. Or in your case, more than enough to live with your roommates for 2+ years. <<continuelink '"Wow, that’s just crazy to me…"'>>”Wow, that just crazy to me. Saving 40k in only one year is just insane. That’s almost how much I make in a year. I’m assuming you started your freelance contract work shortly after that, right?” <<continuelink "Yes, you started freelance work shortly after being fired.">> Yes, you started working contracts shortly after being fired. They provided a nice in-flow of cash to help keep you going. “I can totally understand quitting a job because you don’t like the culture, that’s pretty much why I took up art as my career.” Grabbing your phone and checking the time, it seems your conversation with Holly was a bit longer than you thought. You talked for almost an hour, and at this point the band is on their last song. The evening is approaching, with only a few more hours left for the festival. An interesting idea pops into your head, you could ask Holly to tag along with you for the rest of the day here at the festival. Or you could just go your separate ways. You think about it for a while, eventually deciding too: <<choice [[Ask Holly to tag along for the rest of the day.|Holly Festival Hub]]>> <<choice [[Part ways with Holly.|Festival Non-Holly Hub]]>> <<else>> "Now, what have //you// been doing these last 5 years?" You explain that you used to work for Spherion, but eventually quit after only a year at the company. You state that you had luckily saved up enough money to live comfortably for around 2 years before quitting that job. You state that you now do freelance work to help keep the money flowing. <<continuelink '"Interesting, what made you leave Spherion?"'>>”Interesting, what made you leave Spherion?” You explain to Holly how it all started. Initially, it all went pretty well. The job paid exceptionally well, had good benefits, and looked really good on a resume if you ever decided to go somewhere else. About 5 months into the job though you started to notice some of the dysfunction abound. You grew tired of the petty office politics, your ‘superiors’ never really valued your work or your feedback, and the work you were doing just wasn’t very fulfilling. Most workplaces will have elements of all those things, this is true, but here they were overwhelming. You knew you weren’t long for that place and started saving up a decent chunk of your paycheck each month. You put a significant amount into an investment account, as well as some straight into your savings. You stayed for about 7 months after that, and by the time you put in your 2-weeks, you had saved around $40,000 total. Enough to live modestly by yourself for 1 year. Or in your case, more than enough to live with your roommates for 2+ years. <<continuelink '"Wow, that’s just crazy to me…"'>>”Wow, that just crazy to me. Saving 40k in only one year is just insane. That’s almost how much I make in a year. I’m assuming you started your freelance contract work shortly after that, right?” <<continuelink "Yes, you started freelance work shortly after being fired.">> Yes, you started working contracts shortly after being fired. They provided a nice in-flow of cash to help keep you going. “I can totally understand quitting a job because you don’t like the culture, that’s pretty much why I took up art as my career.” Grabbing your phone and looking at the time, it seems your conversation with Holly was a bit longer than you thought. You talked for almost an hour, and at this point the band is on their last song. The evening is approaching, with only a few more hours left for the festival. An interesting idea pops into your head, you could ask Holly to tag along with you for the rest of the day here at the festival. Or you could just go your separate ways. You think about it for a while, eventually deciding too: <<choice [[Ask Holly to tag along for the rest of the day.|Holly Festival Hub]]>> <<choice [[Part ways with Holly.|Festival Non-Holly Hub]]>> <<endif>>

<<set $holly_festival_stayed to true>> <<set $ending_points += 6>> You decide to ask Holly if she wants to tag along for the rest of the day. <<continuelink '"Well,"'>>"Well, I wasn’t initially planning on staying after this concert, but since you’re offering… Sure, I’ll gladly tag along." She says with a smile. <<continuelink "As the band finishes their set you leave the concert and head back towards the main festival area.">>As the band finishes their set you leave the concert and head back towards the main festival area. You could go check out the rest of [[the festival over to the east,|Festival East Path]] or you could go check out the [[festival games over to the north.|Festival Games]]

<<set $holly_festival_stayed to false>> <<set $ending_points -= 4>> You decide to part ways with Holly after the concert. <<continuelink "As the band finishes their set you say goodbye to Holly and head back to the main festival area.">>As the band finishes their set you say goodbye to Holly and head back to the main festival area. There's not much left to do here. The only thing you can think of would be to check out the fireworks display as you head back to the bus stop near the [[entrance|Festival Ending Self]]

You and Holly head towards the many 'fair' games set up at the festival. As you arrive at the games Holly offers a quick remark about them "I used to always bug the hell out of my parents about playing these games. They’d always say ‘no, you’re not playing those games, they’re a rip-off. I could go to the store and buy you whatever toy it is you want for less money than it would take to win one of those games.' Well guess what Dad, it wasn’t about the toy, it was about the experience. I don’t think the supermarket has you throwing a ball into a bowl in order to get a toy, do they?" <<continuelink '"They are terribly unfair though,"'>>"They are terribly unfair though, of course I didn’t really understand that as a kid. I think I’ve won a grand total of once. And that was on the basketball one, pure luck was the reason for that win." As a kid, you had a similar experience to Holly. Though your parents would occasionally give in and let you play a few. As you continue walking you see all the game stands setup. There’s the basketball game, which is rigged by setting the hoop higher than an official one. The ‘throw this ping pong ball into the water’ game. Which is difficult because the ping pong ball is so light it just bounces off everything. And the BB gun game, which has you shooting a fragile paper target with inaccurate an inaccurate BB gun. This whole place is full of shady business practices. <<continuelink "Well, you and Holly came here for a reason,">>Well, you and Holly came here for a reason, might as well play at least one of these games. "I wouldn’t mind playing the one where you try to throw a baseball at a certain speed. It’s up to you though." You could try the baseball one, you also thought about doing the BB gun one. They're all rigged in some way though, so your odds are probably the same no matter which one you have a go at. After discussing it, you and Holly decide to have a go at the: [[Baseball Game|Festival Baseball Game]] [[BB Gun Game|Festival BB Gun Game]]

"Didn’t see much when I went this way before, but who knows maybe something changed." Holly says with a somewhat dismissive tone. <<continuelink "Indeed, the path to the east doesn’t seem to have much going on. You walk past the small stadium where various events have been held throughout the day. None of which interested you. It seems the path just loops around and goes back to where you started.">> Indeed, the path to the east doesn’t seem to have much going on. You walk past the small stadium where various events have been held throughout the day. None of which interested you. It seems the path just loops around and goes back to where you started. <<continuelink '"I might have been interested in the derby, of course, that went on 3 hours ago, so…"'>>"I might have been interested in the derby, of course, that went on 3 hours ago, so…" “Seems like this would be a good time to talk about each other. With how long it's been since we've been able to hang out and talk it's almost like starting over. How about we talk about our hobbies, what do you do for fun?" <<continuelink "You tell Holly about your hobbies...">> You tell Holly about your hobbies, which you find to be pretty uninteresting. Because, well, the truth is, your hobbies are a //bit// basic and boring. You enjoy movies, music, watching TV, and maybe playing video games or watching sports here and there. Among other things. Holly seems to be a bit surprised at you calling your hobbies "basic" and "uninteresting". "Hmm, I mean, I guess those things could be considered 'basic'. I won’t lie about that. That’s not necessarily a bad thing though. In some cases, I’d say it can even be a positive. The only reason those hobbies are considered 'basic' is because of how popular they. And because of that popularity, it can make it easier to find other people that are interested in the same thing as you are. So long as you don’t let those hobbies become the only thing defining you, it’s fine. I guess you could say that's when you become a basic bitch or bastard. You definitely don’t have that problem, though." "Ya know, I like a lot of the same stuff. Music, movies, all that. You already know about my art, and I also enjoy fishing on occasion. Guess you should say I’m pretty ‘basic’ as well." <<continuelink "You also tell Holly…">> You also tell Holly that you like traveling, though you rarely do so due to various reasons. You also mention that you’ve been recently thinking about going on a road trip across the country. She seems pretty surprised by this. "A road trip across the country, huh? Can’t say something like that has ever crossed my mind before, seems like it would be fun though. Has to be a pretty big commitment, right? You’re basically putting the rest of your life on pause for the duration of the trip.” "You’d almost have to be doing contract work like us or have some damn good vacation time. Or have a job with a lot of downtime." Holly says, perhaps suggesting something. <<continuelink "You mention to Holly that..">> You mention to Holly that’s part of the reason you’d never really considered it until recently. There was no way to get that much time off when working at Syperion. <<continuelink '"It’s definitely a cool idea. What made you think of doing that anyway?"'>>"It’s definitely a cool idea. What made you think of doing that anyway?" <<continuelink "You mention Chris, the Tiger you met on the bus. While you’ve given the idea of a road trip a passing thought before, it’s his first-hand account that has really driven your interest as of recent.">> You mention Chris, the Tiger you met on the bus. While you’ve given the idea of a road trip a passing thought before, it’s his first-hand account that has really driven your interest as of recent. "Are you taking advice from some unknown vagabond you met on the bus? Don't know if I would suggest that myself. //But// It’s not like you’re going to make ‘road tripping’ your lifestyle, right?" <<set $festival_walking_path to true>> <<if $festival_games_completed is not true>> "Anyway, looks like we’re almost back where we started. [[Guess we could go check out those games a bit north of here.|Festival Games]] <<else>> "Well, I guess we’ve done about all there is to do. [[It’s getting pretty late so I say we start heading towards the parking lot. Might even be able to see fireworks as we’re walking there.|Festival Ending Holly]] <<endif>>

After checking out everything the festival has to offer, you head back towards the entrance to watch the ending fireworks show. As you walk to the entrance you reflect some more on how the day went. It’s been a long and interesting day. You came expecting to stay for an hour or two and then go home. But after talking to Holly you decided to stay a bit longer. You had some nice discussions with her but it didn’t really go much beyond that. There just wasn’t enough interest to take it any further than a nice chat. Still, you can’t help but feel like maybe you missed out on something. It’s not every day you get to rekindle a faded friendship. <<continuelink "You eventually make it to the entrance close to the bus stop home.">>You eventually make it to the entrance close to the bus stop home. You turn your head towards the festival area to watch the fireworks before catching the next bus home. <<set $holly_romance_festival to false>> <<set $self_festival_ending to true>> <<set $festival_completed to true>> [[After you arrive home you head up to bed for the night.|Your Bedroom Post Festival]]

After checking out everything the festival has to offer, you head back towards the entrance to watch the ending fireworks show. <<continuelink "It’s been a long and interesting day.">>It’s been a long and interesting day. You came here expecting to stay for an hour or two and then go home, but after talking to Holly you decided to stay. You really feel like the relationship between you and her has strengthened today. You got to talk really in-depth with her today, just like you used to. As you're walking to the parking lot with Holly, You turn to her and say: <<choice[[I really enjoyed getting to hang out with you today, it’s been a while since I've had a day this enjoyable.|Festival Holly Ending Romance]]>> <<choice[[I enjoyed my time hanging out with you today, but I feel like there just isn’t enough chemistry between the two of us to make this into a real thing.|Festival Holly Ending No Romance]]>>

"I really enjoyed today too." Holly says as she looks to you and smiles. "This whole day has reminded me a lot of when we, ya know, actually saw each other on a regular basis." You continue walking with Holly to her car, eventually reaching it just as the fireworks start to go off. You both lean on Holly’s car in the parking lot, watching the fireworks as the last bit of sun falls below the horizon, giving way to the stars and planets. <<continuelink "You feel serene,">> You feel serene, this day couldn't have gone any better. Hanging out with a friend at the end of the day, doing some simple shit, it’s nice and relaxing. You wouldn’t trade it for anything. The lightshow ends eventually, as all things do. And now it’s time to head back home. <<continuelink '"Suppose this is today, then."'>> "Suppose this is today, then. It’s been fantastic, really. The festival was alright, but the real highlight was getting to know //you// again." She says with emphasis. <<continuelink '"Hey,"'>> "Hey, if you ever wanna do something like this again, feel free to hit my number up." Holly shows you her number on her phone and you add it to your contacts. "I’ll be seeing you, $name. I’m sure it’ll happen one way or another." You say goodbye to Holly and head back to the bus stop. What a great day. <<set $holly_romance_festival to true>> <<set $festival_completed to true>> [[After you arrive home you head up to bed for the night.|Your Bedroom Post Festival]]

Holly seems to be a bit surprised by this, her face fills with surprise and a bit of disappointment as you tell her this. <<continuelink '"Oh. Alright."'>>"Oh. Alright." "I mean, It has been a long time since we’ve hung out, I guess jumping into something after only hanging out for one day would be a bit rash." <<continuelink'"And, well…"'>>"And, well… I can’t say I felt the same way, but I respect your decision. Guess we can watch these fireworks and then go our separate ways." She’s not saying it outright but based off her less energetic demeanor and more somber face, she seems very disappointed. As you stand by Holly’s car watching the fireworks, you can’t help but feel awkward for completely killing the mood, but you figure it’s better for it to end this way than to keep dragging it out. The fireworks end after about 10 minutes. You and Holly say your goodbyes before you head off to catch the next bus home. <> <<set $holly_romance_festival to false>> <<set $holly_no_romance_festival to true>> <<set $festival_completed to true>> [[After you arrive home you head up to bed for the night.|Your Bedroom Post Festival]] <>

You decide to go with Holly’s first choice and try out the Baseball game. Which has you attempting to throw a baseball at a certain speed in order to win a prize. Walking up to the booth, you pay for 2 shots at throwing the ball. One for each of you. It cost a total of $7. Which is ridiculous, but like Holly said you’re paying for the ‘experience’. You offer Holly the first pitch since this was her first choice. <<continuelink '"Sure, I’ll have a go at it."'>> "Sure, I’ll have a go at it. I actually played softball when I was in middle school so maybe that’ll give me an edge.” <<continuelink "Holly lines up at the target.">>Holly lines up at the target. Her goal is to throw the ball at a speed of 60 MPH. A pretty high target for the average person. It’s made even more difficult with how inaccurate the sensor on the target is. It probably hasn’t been replaced or maintained since the thing was first made. Even if it was, there’s nothing stopping the vendor from making it read a bit slower. She thinks about it for a minute, lining up her throw. She reels back with the ball in her paw, ready to destroy the hell out of that target. She extends her arm and throws the ball at what seems to be a decent speed. The display takes a minute to show the speed, you both wait with mild anticipation, thinking about all the bragging opportunities if one of you were to make it while the other didn’t. <<set $holly_speed to random(50, 65)>> <<continuelink "The display finally shows the speed. Holly threw the ball at a speed of…">>The display finally shows the speed. Holly threw the ball at a speed of $holly_speed. <<if $holly_speed gte 60>> Unbelievable! She actually made it! Quite a feat given all the factors fighting against her. Hopefully you nail it as well, else you’ll never hear the end of it. The clerk tells Holly she can take any of the various stuffed animals they have hanging up, among them are a stuffed German Shepard, a stuffed Tiger, and a stuffed $race. Holly chooses the stuffed $race. <<else>> Holly throws the ball with all her might, but it wasn’t enough, as the speed is short of the 60 mph target. <<endif>> Now it’s your turn up. You’re probably the worst possible person to try this game, as you have no experience with baseball. That is unless you count those little plastic ones you threw around with when you were 4. <<continuelink "Well, you’ve gotta at least make an effort.">>Well, you’ve gotta at least make an effort. You think about the proper form to throw the ball, trying to mimic the cardboard cut-out they have standing by their booth and the way Holly threw the ball. Eventually, you feel like you’ve got the perfect form, you bring your arm back, ready to get back some of the money you wasted on this thing. You throw the ball, you can tell your grip wasn’t quite right, as the ball didn’t seem to have as much oomph as you anticipated. Still, the ball moves at a decent speed, hitting the soft target and letting out an unsatisfying ‘plump’ sound. <<set $player_speed to random(40, 70)>> <<continuelink "The display shows your speed, you threw the ball at a speed of...">>The display shows your speed, you threw the ball at a speed of $player_speed. <> <<if $player_speed gte 60>> You nail the target, reaching the target speed of 60mph. <<else>> You gave it all you got but it just wasn’t enough to hit the target speed. <<endif>> <> <> <<if $player_speed gte 60 and $holly_speed gte 60>> Thankfully you came through and matched Holly, It would seem nobody gained bragging rights today. <<elseif $player_speed lt 60 and $holly_speed gte 60>> It would seem Holly is the victor today, holding bragging rights against you for the foreseeable future. <<elseif $player_speed gte 60 and $holly_speed lt 60>> You emerge victorious today, gaining bragging rights against Holly for the foreseeable future. <<elseif $player_speed lt 60 and $holly_speed lt 60>> It would seem nobody emerged victorious today. Not surprising given the awful chances. At least this way you’re both on even ground as far as bragging rights goes. <<endif>> <> <<set $festival_games_completed to true>> <<if $festival_walking_path is true>> <<continuelink "With the game over and the day winding down,">>With the game over and the day winding down, Holly suggests heading back to the entrance "Well, the day is winding down, suppose we should start heading towards the parking lot. We might be able to see the fireworks on our way out." You head out with Holly towards the [[parking lot.|Festival Ending Holly]] <<elseif $festival_walking_path is not true>> <<continuelink "As the days ends,">> As the day ends, Holly suggests going to check out the rest of the festival before the day ends. "It’s getting pretty late, suppose we should go check out that one path before it’s too late." You head out with Holly towards the [[rest of the festival.|Festival East Path]] <<endif>>

Holly and you decide to check out the BB gun game. This game has you shooting out all of a paper target using an automatic BB gun in the shape of a Tommy Gun. Due to the gun’s incredible inaccuracy and high rate of fire you often end up wasting pellets hitting the same area repeatedly. Which is what makes this game so hard to win. <<continuelink "You pay the vendor enough for 2 turns on the gun,">>You pay the vendor enough for 2 turns on the gun, one for each of you. The total is $12, a ridiculous price. "It might be ridiculous, but remember, you’re paying for the ‘experience’” Holly says in her snarky tone. You decide to play first since it was your idea to check this game out. You line up at the gun. It’s quite beaten up, with most of the paint having chipped away. The gun does have sights on it but they are quite trash, so you’re really just eyeballing it. Not great since the $12 you paid will give you just 300 BB rounds each. Not much considering how fast the gun fires. <<continuelink "Thinking about strategies you could use to beat this game,">>Thinking about strategies you could use to beat this game, you feel the best way to win would be to shoot the outside of the target first. <<continuelink "You take hold of the gun and aim down its rudimentary sights,">>You take hold of the gun and aim down its rudimentary sights, it’s bolted down to a rail which prevents you from aiming the gun with anything resembling decent accuracy. Guess you’ll just have to make do. You start to shoot the target, with each pull of the trigger about 10 BB pellets fly out. An unnecessary amount, no doubt it was made that way in order to reduce your chance of winning. <<continuelink "It starts off pretty well,">>It starts off pretty well, you’ve shot out a decent chunk of the target, with about half of it remaining. It’s getting quite difficult at this point though since there’s less and less of the target to shoot. Instead of being able to essentially aim in the general area of the target to hit something, you've gotta be more careful with your shots. Which is difficult given the gun’s poor movement and sights. <<continuelink "Knocking some more of the target out, you estimate there's about 25% remaining.">>Knocking some more of the target out, you estimate there’s about 25% remaining. But you only have 100 pellets to get the rest of it done. At this point, your shots are missing more than they are hitting. The remaining pieces of the target aren't supported by much, which leads to the paper just giving way to pellets, dealing no damage. You’re just about to completely wipe out the target, you aim the gun perfectly, your finger on the trigger ready to finally win one of these silly games. <<set $pc_win_int to random(30, 100)>> <<if $pc_win_int gte 70>> You push the trigger and the last barrage of BB pellets is unleashed. They hit the last bit of the target perfectly, destroying the last evidence of its existence. Despite all the odds against you, you made it! You won! The vendor begrudgingly tells that you have the pick of any cheaply made stuffed animal in stock. You decide to pick the Dragon, as it seemed to be highest quality one of the bunch. <<else>> You push the trigger, ready to decimate the last of that pain in the ass target, but as you do you hear a clicking noise, and nothing comes out. You’ve run out BB pellets. God damnit! You were this close to winning! You know you would have won if the gun wasn’t such a piece of trash. Oh well, it’s over. Maybe Holly will have some better luck. Which is really all these games are based on. <<endif>> <<continuelink "It’s Holly’s turn now, they say luck favors the Foxes, guess you’ll see.">>It’s Holly’s turn now, they say luck favors the Foxes, guess you’ll see. She lines up at the gun, no doubt thinking the same things you did. "You could have told me this thing was impossible to aim. You’d think this thing was a weapon of mass destruction with how bolted down it is." <<continuelink "She makes good progress at the start,">>She makes good progress at the start, chipping away a similar amount to you. She seems to have slightly better control over the rate of fire than you did. Although Holly seems to be falling into the same issues you did, as she knocks more and more of target off it gets more difficult to actually hit it. Guess this is one of the main obstacles in this game. As the game goes on it plays out very similar to your try. She ends up with about 20% of the target left but struggles to hit the rest due to flimsy target. <<set $holly_win_int to random(40, 100)>> <<if $holly_win_int gte 60>> Holly also ends up at the same point you did towards the end. She’s only got about 3 more trigger pulls before she runs out of ammo. She lines up a shot to knock out the rest of the target, she pulls the trigger, but the pellets just fly past the paper as it gives way. Holly sighs, no doubt frustrated by this tedious game. Holly lines up another shot in attempt to win this damn game. She pulls the trigger and the pellets land right on target, getting rid of the remaining bits of the target. To your surprise, Holly actually managed to pull it off and win! The game vendor begrudgingly offers Holly a choice of any cheaply made stuffed animal they have on display. Among those displayed are a Dragon, a German Shepard, and a $race. Holly picks the $race. A funny coincidence all things considered, but that’s probably all it is, a coincidence. <<else>> Holly’s nearing the end of the game, unfortunately, it seems she isn’t going to make it. There’s a good chunk of the target left, with her gun only having 40 rounds left. She gets a few more bursts off before the gun clicks and runs out of ammo. She made a good effort but it just wasn’t enough. <<endif>> <<if $pc_win_int gte 70 and $holly_win_int gte 60>> It would seem that both of you made out today. It's rare enough for one person to win these games, but two? That's almost unheard of. <<elseif $pc_win_int lt 70 and $holly_win_int gte 60>> It seems the sayings were right, luck does favor the foxes. At least that $12 was not spent in vain. <<elseif $pc_win_int gte 70 and $holly_win_int lt 60>> You are the only one to emerge victorious today, even having won you feel like you wasted your money. <<elseif $pc_win_int lt 70 and $holly_win_int lt 60>> Unsurprisingly, neither of you managed too win today. That's to be expected given how rigged these games are. As Holly would say, at least you 'experienced' the games. <<else>> Error with if statement in FBBGG. <<endif>> <<continuelink "With the game done and over with, you evaluate your next course of action with Holly.">>With the game done and over with, you evaluate your next course of action with Holly. <<if $festival_walking_path is true>> "Eh, the day is getting pretty late, I suppose we should start heading towards the parking lot. We might be able to see the fireworks on our way out." You head with Holly out to the [[parking lot|Festival Ending Holly]] <<else>> "The day's winding down, we should probably check out the rest of the festival before it gets too late." You and Holly head towards the [[little bit of the festival you haven't checked out yet.|Festival East Path]] <<endif>>

<> <div class ="chapter_header"> Chapter 3 Amity </div> <> You wake up the next morning at your usual time of 11 AM. As you lay in your bed your mind goes over the list of things you need to do. You feel like now would be a good time to start working on your road trip plans. You’ve already got a couple of ideas on what to do. You could ask your roommates and see what they have to say about it. You could also look up Chris online and ask him for some advice. <<if $holly_romance_festival is true>> You might also hit up Holly and see what she wants to do about your next date. <<endif>> It seems like a pretty sunny day, maybe you'll go for a walk later today as well, get some fresh air, soak in the sun. But first you should probably [[get out of bed|Player Bedroom]]

<<if $post_fest_day_completed is not true and $walk_completed is not true>> You are standing in your bedroom. You see the [[hallway to the north|Hallway]] and the [[doorway to the bathway|Bathroom]] to the east. You could also use your [[Computer.|Computer]] <<if $holly_text_date_setup is not true or $holly_text_rejection is false>> Or use your [[Smartphone.|Smartphone Holly]] <<endif>> <<elseif $walk_completed is true and $post_fest_day_completed is not true>> You feel a bit sleepy having had a pretty busy day. You decide to go to bed a bit early, since you've finished everything you had planned. [[Go to bed early|Transition]] <<elseif $post_fest_day_completed is true and $road_trip_funding_completed is not true>> You wake up on Saturday feeling the same as ever. It's been about one week since you started making plans for your hastily imagined road trip. Today you're hoping to figure out the financial side of things. <<if $valery_walk_talked is true>> You'd also like to check in on Valery and see how he's doing. <<endif>> You are standing in your bedroom. You see the hallway to the north and the doorway to the bathroom to the east. You decide to go towards the [[Hallway]], [[Bathroom]], or use your [[Computer]]. <<elseif $road_trip_funding_completed is true>> After finishing your financials for the road trip you think of maybe taking a nap. Before you do, you should probably make sure there isn't anything else to do. You decide to go towards the [[Hallway]], [[Bathroom]], or use your [[Computer]] or take a [[Nap.|Second Transition]] <<endif>>

<<if $holly_text_setup is not true and $holly_romance_festival is true and $holly_text_rejection is not true>> You bring out your smartphone and pull up your contacts app, scrolling down until you hit the H column and find “Holly”. You’ve never really been fond of calling people, so you decide to text her instead of calling. The next 20 minutes are spent attempting to write the perfect text, after much deliberation you decide to just keep it simple. You type up a simple greeting and tell Holly who it is that’s texting her, asking her what’s been going on since yesterday. You sent the message and browse social media while you wait for her to reply, after 10 minutes you see a text notification from her. <<continuelink '"Hey $name."'>> "Hey, $name. Haven’t really been doing much. Just chilling in my apartment.” You then spent another 10 minutes thinking of a reply. Various thoughts rush through your mind. You could ask her on another date, or maybe you changed your mind and don’t want to ask her out on another date after all. After giving it a lot of thought, you decide to send a text along the lines of the following: <<choice [["Got any plans next Sunday? I’m feeling like another date."|Holly Text Date]]>> <<choice [["About that next date… I don't think that's something I'm interested in."|Holly Decline Text]]>> <<else>> You can't think of anything to do with your phone right now <<return>> <<endif>>

"Hey, how was Lake Fest yesterday? I was gonna go but just didn’t get around to it.” <<continuelink "You tell Jacob all about your day at Lake Fest.">> You tell Jacob all about your day at Lake Fest. Detailing how you met up with Holly and 'watched' that concert with her. <<if $holly_romance_festival is true>> You tell Jacob you think your whole ordeal with her went pretty, especially considering you got her number at the end of the day. "Hell yeah. I know you’ve mentioned her before a few times but I didn’t know you two had that kind of interest in each other." <<elseif $holly_romance_festival is false>> You tell Jacob you enjoyed hanging out with her but didn’t take any further than that. It was nice hanging out with an old friend but there was a reason the two of you drifted apart. "Yeah, I find that’s often the case myself. If you’re really friends with someone, you’ll find some way to keep in touch with them. The fake ones will just disappear if you aren’t actively seeking them out." <<elseif $self_festival_ending is true>> You tell Jacob you enjoyed watching the concert with her, but weren’t really interested in doing anything else. "That can happen. Last time you talked to her was like 5 years ago, right? You’ve probably both changed a lot since then." <<endif>> “Anyway, you wanted to ask me about something? Guessing that’s why you came down here.” <<continuelink "You tell Jacob that you did, in fact, come to ask about something.">>You tell Jacob that you did, in fact, come to ask about something. And that something is your road trip idea. You give him the general idea you have for the road trip. You state that you plan on bringing around 3-4 people total and hope to travel in a northwesterly direction and end up in Oregon at the end. You’re still working out some of the finer details, but that’s the gist of it. <<continuelink '"Seems like it’ll be fun."'>>"Seems like it'll be fun. I’ve done some traveling in the last few years but nothing like that. Speaking of, I’m guessing that traveling experience is why you’re next question is going to be 'Do you have suggestions on places to check out along the way?' " Jacob says smuggly. "And lucky for you, my friend, I do." "You said you’re hoping to go in a sort of northwestern direction, right? That’ll take you through Indiana, Illinois, and then from there you’d either be going through Iowa or Wisconsin, depending on where you decide to stop. See…" Jacob thinks for a moment. "There’s not much going on in Indiana, Illinois though, you could stop a day or two in Chicago. From there on I can think of a few things you might want to check out, I’ll write ‘em up in text message here and send them to you here in a minute.” <<continuelink "Jacob taps away at his phone and sends you a message">> Jacob taps away at his phone and sends you a message detailing some places you could check out. You add them to your list to be sorted through later. <<continuelink '"So, you’re taking a few other people along, huh?"'>> "So, you’re taking a few other people along, huh? I’d be down to go if you have room. Just let me know a bit beforehand so I can make some arrangements, alright?” <<set $jacob_living_room_talk to true>> You tell Jacob you’ll keep him in mind before saying bye and [[leaving the living room.|Downstairs]]

<<if $chris_pawbook_in_progress is not true>> You open Firefox and look up Chris on Pawbook. You look up the full name he gave you: Chris Feldman. You quickly find him on the first page of results, his profile picturing being him at the Grand Canyon. He seems to be pretty popular given how many "pals" he has on Pawbook. Over 700 of them, in fact. You add to that number and send him a message, you tell him you're interested in getting some suggestions on that road trip you and him were discussing yesterday. <<continuelink "You wait a few minutes and he sends reply.">>You wait a few minutes and he sends reply. "Ayy, I knew you would end up going for it. So what you're plans as far as travel go? Where are you going to end up?" You give him the same details you've told everybody else. You're bringing 3-4 other people and plan on ending the road trip in Oregon. <<continuelink '"Alright,"'>>"Alright, sounds like a plan. Give me an hour or two and I'll get you a list of some places I've checked out along the route you're thinking of taking." You thank Chris for helping you out. Now you just have to wait for his reply. <<set $chris_pawbook_in_progress to true>> Since it'll be awhile until he gets the list, [[you decide to get up and go do something else while waiting.|Player Bedroom]] <<elseif $chris_pawbook_in_progress is true and $chris_pawbook_completed is not true>> You hop back on Pawbook and check your messages. It seems he's finally got his list together. He sent you an entire word document full of places for you to check out. It seems he has at least one thing to check out in each state you might go through. You'll have to go through them all later when you put your final plans together. You sent him a message thanking him again, he replies shortly after and states that he's more than happy to help out a fellow traveler. ''Chris's Road Trip Destinations obtained.'' <<set $chris_pawbook_completed to true>> You save the word document and shut down your computer before [[getting up from your desk.|Player Bedroom]] <<else>> You log on to Pawbook but can't think of anything else to do. <<return>> <<endif>>

After a day of working on your road trip itinerary you decide to get some fresh air and go on a walk around the neighborhood. It’s a beautiful day outside, the temperature is a refreshing 78 and there’s a slight breeze off the lake making this almost a perfect day. Starting off your walk, you go your usual route. The road you take loops around, so it doesn’t really matter which way you take. The walk goes about how you expected, with nothing of note really happening, just the usual affair with you waving to the people you usually see walking a bout. <<continuelink "As you walk around the neighborhood you recall one of the houses near you being put up for rent recently.">>As you walk around the neighborhood you recall one of the houses near you being put up for rent recently. Walking past it, you see that the ‘for rent sign’ has been removed, seems it didn’t last long on the rental market. Not too surprising considering the current market. You were somewhat familiar with the last person that lived there, you wouldn’t have considered yourselves friends, but you talked on occasion. You talked to him right before he left and you remember him mentioning that he was moving west since he got a job offer from one of the big tech companies out there. You’ll have to say hi to whoever moved in there if you see them around them neighborhood. You’re pretty familiar with everybody else in the nearby area so it shouldn’t be too difficult to spot them. <<continuelink "You’re just about done with your walk at this point.">>You’re just about done with your walk at this point. You climb up the hill that eclipses your house, as you reach the top you can see your house right in view. While walking down the hill and towards your house you see someone unfamiliar coming towards you. You assume it to be the new person renting the house near your house. Sensing an opportunity to meet who you assume to be your new neighbor; you think about waving him down and introducing yourself. Although, there’s no guarantee that’s who he really is, and if he ended up just being some random guy, it could end up being a bit awkward. He’s approaching you, meaning you have to make a decision. You decide that it would be best to: <<choice [[Wave him down and say hi.|Valery Walk Dialogue]]>> <<choice [[Just ignore him and go on your way.|Valery Walk No Dialogue]]>>

You say fuck it, and decide to go over and say hi to who you presume to be your new neighbor. You figure that you aren’t really out anything if it ends up just being some guy off the street. You wave him down as you walk towards him. This seems a bit odd in your mind, but if the roles were reversed you probably wouldn’t think too much of it. You walk up to the slimly built Hyena, asking him if he happens to be the new tenant of the nearby house. <<continuelink '"Yes, I am."'>>[img[https://iforgotmybrain.github.io/img/81.png]] "Yes, I am. Just moved in a week ago.” The hyena says in a some what confused tone. Probably surprised that you were able to figure that out. Introducing yourself as $name to the hyena, he replies and says “I’m Valery, nice to meet you $name.” <<continuelink '"I have to say, you have quite the initiative."'>> "I have to say, you have quite the initiative. I think you’re the first neighbor I’ve talked to so far. I’ve seen a few people out but none of them were gutsy enough to walk up and introduce themselves." "Really though, I appreciate it. It’s nice to get to know my neighbors, helps me feel a bit more at ease." <<continuelink "You tell Valery that you’re glad you could make him feel a bit more at ease.">>You tell Valery that you’re glad you could make him feel a bit more at ease. You also tell him that if he needs help with anything he can come down to your place and you’ll be more then glad to help him out. "I’ll be sure to keep that in mind. Hopefully I’ll be seeing you around!" <> <<set $valery_walk_talked to true>> <<set $walk_completed to true>> <> You tell Valery goodbye and [[head back to your house for the day.|Player Bedroom]]

You decide to just keep to yourself and leave him be. It would be a weird going over and bugging a stranger that’s just minding their own business. <> <<set $valery_walk_talked to false>> <<set $walk_completed to true>> <> You continue on your walk with nothing else happening. The walk was pretty uneventful. [[You decide to stay in for the rest of the day.|Player Bedroom]]

You send the text message to Holly. You feel a bit nervous, as is to be expected. Though you’re almost certain she’ll say yes to another date, she gave you her number for a reason. <<continuelink "You wait a few moments until the text notification pops up.">>You wait a few moments until the text notification pops up. You read the text from Holly: “Next Thursday? I think I could do that.” <<continuelink '"About what time were you thinking?"'>>"About what time were you thinking?" <<continuelink "You reply and say that you were thinking of going out Thursday at around 4 or 5 PM.">>You reply and say that you were thinking of going out Thursday at around 4 or 5 PM. <<continuelink '"Sunday at 4 sounds good to me."'>>"Sunday at 4 sounds good to me. Are we just going to go out to eat, or..?" <<continuelink "You reply and state that you were thinking of going out to eat at one at Kit's Tavern.">>You reply and state that you were thinking of going out to eat at one at Kit's Tavern. But that you’re open to going wherever she wants. <<continuelink'"4PM on Sunday at Kit\'s Tavern sounds good to me."'>>"4PM on Thursday at Kit's Tavern sounds good to me." <<continuelink "You reply and tell Holly that it’s a date then.">>You reply and tell Holly that it’s a date then. You tell her you’ll see her then. <<set $holly_text_date_setup to true>> <<if $walk_completed is true>> You put the phone back in your pocket. After such a full day you're pretty sleepy. [[You think you might go to bed a bit early.|Player Bedroom]] <<else>> You put the phone back in your pocket and [[get back to planning your road trip.|Player Bedroom]] <<endif>>

You send the text. Your heart races a bit at the thought of ending this relationship as soon as it started. But it seems like the right decision. She replies shortly after. The text reads: <<continuelink '"I get it."'>> "I get it. It's fine. Appreciate you letting me know." You’re glad Holly seems to have taken it so well. You sent her one final text thanking her for understanding and wishing her all the best. “Of course. Same to you, $name.” <<set $holly_text_date_setup to false>> <<set $holly_text_rejection to true>> <<if $walk_completed is true>> You put the phone back in your pocket. After such a full day you're pretty sleepy. [[You think you might go to bed a bit early.|Player Bedroom]] <<else>> You put the phone back in your pocket and [[get back to planning your road trip.|Player Bedroom]] <<endif>>

It’s about 10 PM now and you’re surprisingly tired, so you decide to go to bed a bit early. Everything you’ve wanted to do today got done, luckily. In the next few days you’ll have to do some more work on your road trip plans. Probably the biggest issue remaining is how you’re going to finance it. <<set $post_fest_day_completed to true>> But for now, you're just going to [[rest|Player Bedroom]]

Going on this road trip is going to be a pretty big expense, the mere $1500 you have in your bank account likely won’t be enough to supply you and your pals throughout the entire road trip. Odds are you’ll have to look into getting some money from your savings and possibly cash-out some of your investments. You figure it’s probably best to take money from your savings first, so you browse to your bank’s website and login to your account. You currently have $1500 in your checking account and $8500 in your savings. $10,000 is a pretty decent amount but you’re still not sure if that’s going to be enough, so you decide to spent some time figuring out a rough estimate of what you expect the trip to cost just based off the cost of lodging, food, and transportation. <<continuelink "Your rough estimates come out to around $8500 total.">>Your rough estimates some out to around $8500 total. That’s a fairly frugal estimate, and only includes the basics. You’d be able to cover those expensive without too much of an issue, but if it ended up being more expensive than that it could get a bit dicey. That’s not to mention the issue that comes from completely draining your bank account. Doing so would likely mean having to either get a normal job again or working on more contracts than usual. You could take out some funds from your investment accounts, although that obviously offers its own set of problems. Mostly long-term problems rather than the short-term nature of draining your bank account. Problems like delaying your planned early retirement. Going this route would prevent any financial issues from arising during the road trip, however. Ultimately it comes down to rather you want to potentially risk your short-term future or certainly harm your long-term future. Do you want to risk problems arising during the road trip in lieu of a better long-term outcome? Or do you want to be certain you’ll have enough funds for the whole trip? It’s your choice… <<choice [[Just go with the funds you have in your bank account.|Bank Funds]]>> <<choice [[Dip into your investment funds to prevent any issues from arising during or immediately after the road trip.|Bank Investments]]>>

<<set $road_trip_funding_completed to true>> <<set $road_trip_funding_cash_out to false>> <<set $money to 10000>> <<set $road_trip_funding_completed to true>> You decide to stick with the money you’ve got and avoid harming your long-term prospects. With the funding for the road trip taken care of, [[you log off the computer.|Player Bedroom]]

<<set $road_trip_funding_completed to true>> <<set $road_trip_funding_cash_out to true>> <<set $money to 20000>> You decide to play it safe and take some extra money form your investment accounts to make sure you have enough. You cash-out one of your investment accounts, which should give you $10,000 extra for the road trip once the transaction is complete. With the funding for the road trip taken care of, [[you log off the computer.|Player Bedroom]]

//You decide to go and see how your new neighbor, Valery, is doing.// It's a quick walk down the street to get to this house. Once you get there you knock on his door as he doesn’t seem to have a doorbell. <<continuelink "Valery answers the door;">>[img[https://iforgotmybrain.github.io/img/81.png]] Valery answers the door; he seems to be a bit surprised by your visit. "Hey, $name. I was wondering if you were really going to come down or not. Unfortunately, you’ve come down at a pretty bad time, as I’ve got work in about half an hour.” <<continuelink '"Maybe we can meet up for lunch or something in a couple of days?"'>>Maybe we can meet up for lunch or something in a couple of days? I’ve got the weekend off and no commitments so I’m pretty much free.” <<continuelink "Going out for lunch doesn’t sound too bad,">>Going out for lunch doesn’t sound too bad, in fact it'd probably be the best way to get to know Valery. //But// you’re not quite sure how you feel about going out for lunch with someone you hardly know. It feels a bit weird to go from barely knowing your neighbor to going out and getting lunch with him. But at the same time you're not going to get to know him any better unless you hang out with him. Ultimately you tell Valery that: <<choice [[You'd love to get lunch with him this weekend|Valery's Home Lunch Confirm]]>> <<choice [[You appreciate the offer, but have to decline.|Valery's Home Lunch Deny]]>>

<<set $valery_house_talk to true>> <<set $valery_date to true>> You tell Valery you would be down for getting lunch sometime this weekend. <<continuelink '"Great! How about The Rat’s Place on Saturday?"'>>"Great! How about The Rat’s Place on Saturday?" You don't have anything going on Saturday, so you tell Valery that would work great. "Awesome. See you Saturday!" You say goodbye to Valery and [[head back home.|Downstairs]]

<<set $valery_house_talk to true>> <<set $valery_date to false>> You tell Valery that you have some other plans for the weekend. Those plans may or may not be just sitting around the house and doing nothing, but he doesn’t need to know that. "Aw, well that’s too bad. Maybe we can get lunch some other time. Well, I better get moving, see you around." You say bye to Valery and [[head home.|Downstairs]]

<<if $valery_date and $holly_text_date_setup is true>> //Many days after getting funds for your road trip on Monday// You wake up on Saturday, the day you're suppose to meet Valery on. These past few days have been spent planning for your road trip as well as relaxing a bit. <<continuelink "You get out of bed and get ready for lunch with Valery later today at 1.">> After getting showered and ready you mess around on your computer to waste some time. You end up leaving for [[The Rat's Place|Valery Rats Lunch]] at around 12:30. <<elseif $valery_date is true and $holly_text_date_setup isnot true>> //Many days after getting funds for your road trip on Monday// You wake up on Saturday, the day you're suppose to meet Valery on. These past few days have been spent planning for your road trip as well as relaxing a bit. <<continuelink "You get out of bed and get ready for lunch with Valery later today at 1.">> After getting showered and ready you mess around on your computer to waste some time. You end up leaving for [[The Rat's Place|Valery Rats Lunch]] at around 12:30. <<elseif $valery_date isnot true and $holly_text_date_setup is true>> //Many days after getting funds for your road trip on Monday// You wake up in your bedroom around 10 AM on Sunday. A bit earlier than you’re used to, but today’s a bit different. You’ve got your date with Holly later today, after all. Best to get up early and get ready for such an occasion. You spend about 40 minutes getting ready. It’s now around 10:40 AM and your date isn’t until 4 PM. Seems you’ve got a fair amount of spare time on your hands. You loaf around for a bit but eventually decide on the perfect thing to do while you wait… Play some Civilization! That game is the closest thing you have to time travel, after all. Now the only other thing you have to decide on is what nation you want to play as, [[that might take a while…|Holly Date Civ]] <<elseif $valery_date isnot true and $holly_text_date_setup isnot true>> //Many days after getting the funds for your road trip, you decide to finally draft the final plans.// [[It’s 10 AM on a late Spring day.|Chapter 3 Road Trip Planning Passengers]] <<else>> This means I missed a possible story path. Not great. Leave me a comment if you get this message so I can investigate. <</if>>

/* don't forget ending points and date points */ You arrive about 10 minutes before 1 PM, you always like to give yourself some extra time. Seems like Valery hasn’t gotten here yet; you’ll have to wait around a bit and see if he shows up. If not you’ll just head in and get a table. <<continuelink "It takes a couple more minutes...">>It takes a couple more minutes for Valery to finally arrive, as he pulls into the parking lot you exit your car and head towards the entrance of the restaurant, The Rat's Place. The Rat’s Place is situated just off the lake, the building itself is painted in a light blue color, with white accents. The side facing the lake is made almost entirely of glass, offering a spectacular view if you manage to get a seat on that side of the restaurant. As you wait at the entrance of the restaurant for Valery, you read one of the plaques near the seating area. The plaque states that the restaurant is named after a set of critically acclaimed movies, called “The Rat Movies”. It says they were directed by some guy who goes by the name ‘Jerma’. You aren’t sure who that is, but if he has a restaurant named after his work, he must be a pretty popular guy. You have to imagine he’s pretty tall and handsome, with a great sense of humor as well. <<continuelink "As you're reading the plaque Valery enters the restaurant.">>As you're reading the plaque Valery enters the restaurant. [img[https://iforgotmybrain.github.io/img/81.png]] “Hey, How’s it going? This place just lets you pick your own seat, so we can head over here and sit at one of these tables.” You follow Valery to the table, it would seem that the table he picked is on the lakeside of the restaurant, the mostly glass wall lets you as far out as the horizon! “We got pretty lucky, these are some of the best seats here. Most of the time they’re taken.” <<choice [[You’ve been here before?|VDC 1.1]]>> <<choice [[It’s a damn nice view for sure.|VDC 1.2]]>> <<choice [[Not bad, but nothing I haven’t seen 100 times.|VDC 1.3]]>>

<<set $valery_date_points += 2>> "Yup! Quite a few times actually. I might have just moved into the area, but I’ve been traveling up here for quite some time. But that’s a story for another time. We should probably focus on just getting our food and drinks ordered for now." [[Continue|VCP 1]]

<<set $valery_date_points += 2>> "There’s pretty much nothing like it. Like an ocean of freshwater." [[Continue|VCP 1]]

<<set $valery_date_points -= 2>> "Doesn’t make it any less impressive. At least to me, anyway." [[Continue|VCP 1]]

You and Valery sit down at your table and await the waiteress to take your order. "Y'know, this restaurant is probably one of the more unique ones along the lake. At least from what I've seen. Had to have cost a fair bit of money to make this monster of a glass wall. Just think of the engineering they had to do get it to work, you have to make sure the glass is tempered and fairly thick, or else it’ll be destroyed in one hailstorm. "And you've gotta factor in the fact that its probably going to have to be cleaned pretty often..." "Sorry, was starting to go on a bit of tangent there. I’m an engineer so stuff like that kind of makes me geek out a bit." <<choice [[It's cool. I can definitely understand rambling on about stuff you're passionate about|VDC 2.1]]>> <<choice [[How long have you been an engineer?|VDC 2.2]]>> <<choice [[Cool, I get it, you’re an engineer.|VDC 2.3]]>>

"Sure, but I have tendency to take it a bit too far." [[Continue|VCP 2]]

"4 years! That’s how long I’ve been out of college as well. Went to UT and got my bachelor’s degree there. I was actually lucky enough to get a job right out the gate, so yeah, I've been working as an engineer for 4 years." [[Continue|VCP 2]]

"Oh. Uh, sorry if it came off as bragging. Was just trying to explain why I was so interested in that particular wall…" <<set $valery_date_points -=4 >> [[Continue|VCP 2]]

"Anyway, don’t know if you’ve been here before, but the BBQ here is fantastic. I got the pulled pork sandwich last time I was here, and it was perfect." <<continuelink "You tell Valery you appreciate the recommendation. Although ultimately, it’s up to you to decide what you want.">>You tell Valery you appreciate the recommendation. Although ultimately, it’s up to you to decide what you want. The waitress arrives shortly after the two of you sit down, giving you your menus and asking what the two of you want to drink. You order a soft drink and Valery orders iced tea. The waitress seemed to be familiar with Valery, as she remarked how he finally brought someone with him to eat. <<continuelink '"Heh,"'>> "Heh, guess I come here a bit too often if the staff are recognizing me." <<choice [['Coming here by yourself so often is bit sad, don't you think?'|VDC 3.1]]>> <<choice [['Guess it’s a pretty good restaurant if you come here that often.'|VDC 3.2]]>> <<choice [['How often do you actually come here?'|VDC 3.3]]>> <<choice [['I wonder what they think of you, given how often you’re here.'|VDC 3.4]]>>

"Makes me worry a bit about how much time I waste here, I don’t really see it as ‘sad’ though. I mean come on, people have favorite restaurants, they have places they like to go too. There’s nothing wrong with that." <<set $valery_date_points -= 2>> [[Continue|VCP 3]]

"Hah, I think it’s more of the atmosphere that I enjoy here rather than the food. But the food is actually pretty good. I do come here pretty often though, almost every lunch break I either carry-out, or stay here and eat if I have the time" "Since moving here I’ve been pretty lonely. So going to this place and having lunch just sort of me makes feel more… Connected? I guess you could say. Makes me feel less isolated, at least." <<set $valery_date_points += 4>> <<set $ending_points += 2>> [[Continue|VCP 3]]

"Ehh, probably 5 times a week? A decent amount for sure, but it’s not like I spent all my time here. I enjoy the atmosphere and the feeling of familiarity. I also like that it gives me the opportunity to just be around people. I don’t really know anyone else here, so it’s not like I can get together with someone. No significant other, and none of my coworkers really get along with me. So yeah, it can get a bit a lonely. Going here just sort of, helps me feel connected." <<set $valery_date_points += 4>> <<set $ending_points += 2>> [[Continue|VCP 3]]

"The hell are you talking about? Come on dude just because they recognize me doesn’t mean they think I’m some sort of no-life loser." <<if $valery_date_points <= -8>> "Honestly feels like you’re just being a prick for no reason. Come on, if you didn’t want to come you could have just said no. If you keep going after me, I’m out." <<else>> "No need to be a prick about it" <<endif>> <<set $valery_date_points -= 8>> <<set $ending_points -= 6>> [[Continue|VCP 3]]

You and Valery look over the menu, most of the items are seafood or barbecue related. You see a few things that catch your eye, including the ribs and the grilled salmon. You’ve still got time to choose though so you’ll look over the menu some more. "Think I’ll go for something I haven’t had yet, the perch sandwich." <<if $valery_date_points >= 2>> "Y’know something though, looking over this menu gave a thought. Imagine how different society would be if things like ribs were made from actual pig? Obviously that was kind of a thing back in the dark ages, but nowadays we can just make these crazy synthetic ribs out of plants and stuff." "If nothing else, we’d have one fucked up class structure that’s for sure." <<continuelink "You’ve never really given that topic much thought,">>You’ve never really given that topic much thought, though now that Valery brings it up, the entire world would likely be radically different if the eating of sapient species weren’t outlawed back in the 1700s. <<endif>> Well, the waitress should be here anytime to take your order, guess you better decide what you want. Thinking about it, you decide to just pick the grilled salmon. Seafood sounds pretty good right about now. <<continuelink "Sure enough,">>Sure enough, shortly after picking your meal the waitress comes to your table asks’ if you’re ready to order. "I’ll have the perch sandwich" Valery says to waitress. "And I’ll just take the fries that come with it." You tell the waitress you’ll take the grilled salmon. And that you’re fine with the sides that come with it. "Alright I’ll get these order right in, just let me know If you need anything else." The waitress says as she finishes taking your orders. While you wait for your food to arrive, you should have plenty of time to [[get to know Valery a bit better.|VDCQ Base]]

You decide to ask Valery... [[About his fairly unusual name (For a dude).|VDCQ Name]] [[Why he decided to move here.|VCDQ Move]] [[How long he’s been coming to iridium City.|VCDQ City]] [[What his hobbies are.|VCDQ Hobby]] [[Just ignore him until dinner arrives.|VCDQ Bruh]] <<if $valery_question_asked is true>> [[That's enough questions for now|VCP 4]] <<endif>>

You ask Valery about his name, stating that Valery is a fairly unusual name for a guy. <<continuelink "You're right, it's a very different name." >> "You're right, it's a very different name. When I was younger I actually hated it quite a bit, but with time I've started to like it more. Don't know why my parents liked the name Valery so much, I think they told me I was named me after a scientist or something like that. It’s been awhile since I asked them though so I could be misremembering." <<choice [[Well I think it’s a very fitting name for you!|VDCQ Name 1.1]]>> <<choice [[So long as you’re happy with your name I guess that’s all that matters.|VDCQ Name 1.2]]>> <<choice [[If I were you, I’d have probably already changed my name by now.|VDCQ Name 1.3]]>>

You ask Val about why he decided to move to Iridium City. <<continuelink '"Well that’s pretty simple,"'>>"Well that’s pretty simple, I moved here for work. It was a pretty easy choice, I loved the area, and the pay and benefits for the job were good, so I jumped on it." <<choice [[So, where do you work?|VCDQ Move 1.1]]>> <<choice [[What do you love so much about Iridium City? You seem to be quite attached to it.|VCDQ Move 1.2]]>> <<if $valery_date_points <= 4>> <<choice [[Cool, that’s enough. I don’t want to hear your whole life story.|VCDQ Move 1.3]]>> <<else>> <<choice [[Cool story, let's change the subject.|VDCQ Base]]>> <<endif>>

"I’ve been coming up here for around 7 years! Of course, I haven’t lived here until very recent." [[What made you start visiting the city?|VCDQ City 1.1]] [[How do you feel about living in the city so far?|VCDQ City 1.2]] <<if $valery_date_points <= -6>> [[I’m gonna stop you right there. I don’t want to hear your whole story leading up to this day.|VCDQ City 1.3]] <<else>> [[Interesting, but I wanna ask you about something else.|VDCQ Base]] <<endif>>

You ask Val what some of his hobbies are. “My hobbies? Well, I enjoy playing video games quite bit, I’ve also been messing around with the piano recently. I’m not any good at it, but it’s been fun learning. I’m also pretty big into cars.” [[Video games? Have a favorite game or system?|VCDQ Hobby 1.1]] [[How long have you been trying to play the piano?|VCDQ Hobby 1.2]] [[Cars, huh? Do you track?|VCDQ Hobby 1.3]] <<if $valery_date_points <= 4>> [[Could you be any less interesting?|VCDQ Hobby 1.4]] <<else>> [[Cool, let's talk about something else.|VDCQ Base]] <<endif>>

For whatever reason, you decide to just sit in relative silence while you wait for your lunch to arrive. This likely won't lead to you becoming freinds or getting to know Valery very much, but it might lead to lunch ending a little faster. <<set $valery_date_points -= 4>> [[Dinner arrives after about 20 minutes of waiting|VCP 4]]

"I suppose so. The weird looks I get from people when I tell them my name is Valery can be a bit harsh at times, but I can deal with it. People just outright disliking me because of my more feminine name hurts though. Thankfully that hasn’t really been a problem since my high school and middle school years." <<set $valery_date_points += 2>> <<set $ending_points += 2>> <<set $valery_question_asked to true>> [[Ask him another question|VDCQ Base]]

"Can’t change your name until you're 18. And at that point my name was just part of who I was. Besides, at 18 my worst years were behind me. I was done with high school, and middle school was becoming a distant memory. Just didn’t make sense to change my name because a few people I didn't even care about hated it." <<set $valery_date_points -= 2>> <<set $valery_question_asked to true>> [[Ask him another question|VDCQ Base]]

"Aw, thanks. It’s not often I get a compliment on my name. Most people just think it’s weird. Sometimes they’ll come right out and say it, but usually I can just infer what they’re thinking when I tell them my name is Valery." "Weird looks are pretty much all I have to deal with nowadays, thankfully. Back in high school and middle school I’d always get picked on because of my more feminine name… But most of the people I meet now are decent enough to not hate me just because of my name." <<set $valery_date_points += 8>> <<set $ending_points += 4>> <<set $valery_question_asked to true>> [[Ask him another question|VDCQ Base]]

"I actually work for the city! Might not be the most prestigious work, but it’s good enough for me. Plus, it’s really cool having a job where you can make a big impact on the community. You don’t get that at a lot of other places." <<continuelink "You can definitely appreciate Valery’s comments on having satisfying work.">>You can definitely appreciate Valery’s comments on having satisfying work. The mundane and unimpactful nature of your previous job at Spherion was a big reason why you left. <<set $valery_date_points += 2>> <<set $valery_question_asked to true>> [[Ask him another question|VDCQ Base]]

"I just love the whole atmosphere of this place, there's nothing else like it. It can be a bit depressing during the winter when all the tourists and summer people leave, but the liveliness during the other seasons more than makes up for it." <<set $valery_question_asked to true>> [[Ask him another question|VDCQ Base]]

<<if $valery_date_points <= -16>> “Okay, I’ve had it. You’ve been a total asshole this whole time for no damn reason. If you didn’t want to come out for lunch you could have just said no, but instead you come out here and purposely fuck around. I’m finished here, I’m not letting you push me around. Have fun paying for the bill, dick.” <<set $ending_points -= 10>> [[You put $30 on the table for the bill before heading out.|Valery Park Transition 2]] <<else>> <<set $valery_question_asked to true>> "No need to be a dick about it. Could have just changed the subject…" [[Ask him another question|VDCQ Base]] <<endif>>

"The Lake Festival! One of friends was going and asked if I wanted to go. I said sure and ended up loving the festival and the city. Since then I’ve been to just about every lake festival. And I make… well, made, a couple of my own trips every year. Don't really need to make trips here since I moved, right?" <<set $valery_question_asked to true>> [[Ask him another question|VDCQ Base]]

"I’m gonna be honest, it’s been a bit underwhelming. Not the city itself so much, but just… the overall experience. You know how it can be. Before you even get to do something you start making up scenarios in your head about how it's going to be. You plan it all out, think about how great things are going to be. Then you actually get to the real thing and… it just doesn’t go the way you were expecting." [[What exactly hasn't gone to plan?|VCDQ City 2.1]] <<if $valery_date_points <= -6>> <<set $valery_question_asked to true>> [[That’s just how it goes, too bad. Let’s move onto something else.|VDCQ Base]] <<else>> <<set $valery_question_asked to true>> [[I get it. Let’s talk about something else.|VDCQ Base]] <<endif>>

<<if $valery_date_points <= -16>> "It might not be your problem but showing a little kindness wouldn't kill you, asshole. Honestly, you've been a real fucking prick this whole time, but this is probably the most upset I've been over it. I open my heart to you and you just tell me you don't care. If you didn't give a shit about getting to know me you could have just declined to come to lunch. But instead you decide to come here and insult me over and over again. I'm out of here. Enjoy paying for the whole meal, dick." Seems you finally broke Valery. Probably wasn't the best idea to do that. [[You put $30 on the table for the bill before heading out.|Valery Park Transition 2]] <<else>> <<set $valery_question_asked to true>> [["Fine, whatever. Let's talk about something else than."|VDCQ Base]] <<endif>>

"I don’t know If I’d say, “hasn’t gone to plan” it’s more not having expectations met. Mainly, I’ve just been a bit underwhelmed with my social life here. Guess that’s to be expected with moving into a town where you don’t know anybody. Doesn’t really make it any easier though." <<choice [[Well, I guess you've got me now, at least.|VCDQ City 3.1]]>> <<choice [[It can be a hard adjustment, you’ve gotta do your best to put yourself out there and meet new people.|VCDQ City 3.2]]>> <<if $valery_date_points <= -6>> <<choice [[Reality is often disappointing. It’s not my problem so let’s talk about something else.|VCDQ City 3.3]]>> <<else>> <<choice [[Not everything goes to plan. You’ll just have to figure out a way to deal with it.|VCDQ City 3.3]]>> <<endif>>

"I guess I kind of do, in a way." <<if $valery_date_points >= 12>> "You’re right, though. Might seem a bit sad, but you’re the closest thing I have to a friend in this town. I really do appreciate how welcoming you’ve been to me. As you've probably guessed not everyone has been so gun-ho about getting to know me. And with how well I’ve gotten along with you, it’s really helping me feel at home. So thank you, it's been a long time since I've felt this way when hanging out with someone." <<set $valery_heart_to_heart to true>> <<else>> "I do appreciate you saying that, though. I suppose you are the closest thing I’ve got to a friend here." <<endif>> <<continuelink '"Anyway,"'>>"Anyway, that’s enough feely stuff for now let’s talk about something else." <<set $valery_date_points += 4>> <<set $ending_points += 2>> <<set $valery_question_asked to true>> [[Ask him another question|VDCQ Base]]

"I know, and I’ve been trying. It’s the main reason I invited you out to lunch, after all. The hardest part is finding those people. You see someone at work, on the street or wherever, and you don’t know anything about them. You don’t know how they’re going to react when you talk to them. You don’t know if they'll even have any shared interests, we might end up being complete opposites. So it can be scary, to me at least." <<continuelink "You ask Valery if he has tried finding friends in local clubs or groups for hobbies hes interested in,">>You ask Valery if he has tried finding friends in local clubs or groups for hobbies hes interested in. "I’ve definitely thought about it, but I usually end up not checking them out for similar reasons. It’s intimidating going to those meetups when you don’t know anyone. Plus, those groups or clubs probably already have their own cliques set up, and I’d just end up feeling like the odd one out." "Anyway, I think that’s enough time spent talking about my problems. Let’s move on to something less boring." <<set $valery_date_points += 6>> <<set $ending_points += 4>> <<set $valery_question_asked to true>> [[Ask him another question|VDCQ Base]]

<<if $valery_date_points <= -16>> "It might not be your problem but showing a little kindness wouldn't kill you, asshole. Honestly, you've been a real fucking prick this whole time, but this is probably the most upset I've been over it. I open my heart to you and you just tell me you don't care. If you didn't give a shit about getting to know me you could have just declined to come to lunch. But instead you decide to come here and insult me over and over again. I'm out of here. Enjoy paying for the whole meal, dick." Seems you finally broke Valery. Probably wasn't the best idea to do that. You put $30 on the table for the bill before heading out. [[You put $30 on the table for the bill before heading out.|Valery Park Transition 2]] <<else>> "You're right, but it can difficult. Guess I can only do my best." <<set $valery_question_asked to true>> [[Ask him another question|VDCQ Base]] <<endif>>

“Well I mostly play on PC and asking what my favorite game is… that’s a bit of a difficult question. Let’s see… I loved Fallout New Vegas, but Fallout 3 was one of my first introductions to open world games, there’s a lot of nostalgia there. And then you have games I loved as a kid, like Hot Pursuit 2 and Animal Crossing… Damn dude this is a loaded question. I guess I’ll go with Animal Crossing. I’m gonna have to think on this a bit more though…” <<set $valery_date_points += 2>> <<set $valery_question_asked to true>> [[Ask him more about his hobbies|VCDQ Hobby]] [[Ask him another question|VDCQ Base]]

“Only a couple of months. Up until that point I'd never played an instrument before and decided I was finally going to take a swing at it. So far it’s gone pretty well. I’m still a long way off from being what I would consider decent, but I’m improving every month. Maybe someday I’ll be good enough to join a band and quit being an engineer, heh." <<set $valery_date_points += 2>> <<set $valery_question_asked to true>> [[Ask him more about his hobbies|VCDQ Hobby]] [[Ask him another question|VDCQ Base]]

"No, haven’t really thought about doing that. I think the nearest track is like 2 hours away so it’d be a bit out of the way. I mainly just follow stuff online, gawk at any cool cars I see on the street. Stuff like that. Guess that kind of makes me a casual car enthusiast. Oh well." <<set $valery_question_asked to true>> [[Ask him more about his hobbies|VCDQ Hobby]] [[Ask him another question|VDCQ Base]]

<<if $valery_date_points <= -16>> “Okay, I’ve had it. You’ve been a total asshole this whole time for no damn reason. If you didn’t want to come out for lunch you could have just said no, but instead you came here and purposely fucked around with me. I’m finished here, I’m not letting you push me around. Have fun paying for the bill, fucking dick." Seems you finally broke Valery. Probably wasn't the best idea to do that. [[You put $30 on the table for the bill before heading out.|Valery Park Transition 2]] <<else>> "God, could you be anymore of a dick?" <<set $valery_date_points -= 6>> <<set $valery_question_asked to true>> [[Ask him another question|VDCQ Base]] <<endif>>

"Looks like our food is on the way, quick service, as always!" The waitress brings your food out, everything seems to be in order so it's time to dig in! "They have pretty decent portions here for the price. Only thing that\'s really lacking are the side options, but that's a pretty minor compliant all things considered." <<continuelink "You have to agree...">> You have to agree with Valery, for $8 you get two sides and a fairly good grilled salmon. You and Valery spend the next 10 minutes just enjoying the meal, with only a little bit of small talk between the two of you. "Another great lunch at The Rat’s Place. What’d you think, $name?" <<choice [[It was pretty good.|VDC 4.1]]>> <<choice [[Nothing spectacular, it was decent.|VDC 4.2]]>> <<choice [[Definitely not the highlight of the day.|VDC 4.3]]>>

<<if $valery_date_points >= 12>> “Well I’m glad you enjoyed it. We’ll have to come here again some time. Oh, and don’t worry about the bill. I’ve got it covered. If you could just leave the tip, that’d be great.” You take a $5 bill from your wallet and [[put it on the table for the tip.|VCP 5]] <<elseif $valery_date_points > -6>> "I’m glad you enjoyed it, we’ll have to see about getting lunch some other time, maybe." "Here's your part of the bill, $10. I'll get the tip." You hand Val a $10 bill to [[pay for your part of the meal.|VCP 5]] <<else>> "Well, at least we each had a good lunch." "Here's your part of the bill, $10. I'll get the tip." You hand Val a $10 bill to [[pay for your part of the meal.|VCP 5]] <<endif>>

<<if $valery_date_points >= 12>> “Well at least we got to know each other a little better. At least I think we did, anyway.” “Oh, and don’t worry about the bill. I’ve got it covered. If you could just leave the tip, that’d be great.” You take a $5 bill from your wallet and [[put it on the table for the tip.|VCP 5]] <<elseif $valery_date_points > -6>> "Guess that’s a pretty good summary of the whole lunch, huh?" "Here's your part of the bill, $10. I'll get the tip." You hand Val a $10 bill to [[pay for your part of the meal.|VCP 5]] <<else>> "Well, at least something was decent." "Here's your part of the bill, $10. I'll get the tip." You hand Val a $10 bill to [[pay for your part of the meal.|VCP 5]] <<endif>>

<<if $valery_date_points >= 12>> "Well at least our conversations were pretty good, right?" "Oh, and don’t worry about the bill. I’ve got it covered. If you could just leave the tip, that’d be great." You take a $5 bill from your wallet and [[put it on the table for the tip.|VCP 5]] <<elseif $valery_date_points >= -6>> "Hopefully you found our conversations to be a bit better than the food…" "Here's your part of the bill, $10. I'll get the tip." You hand Val a $10 bill to [[pay for your part of the meal.|VCP 5]] <<else>> "Honestly, that’s how I’d describe this whole ordeal." "Here's your part of the bill, $10. I'll get the tip." You hand Val a $10 bill to [[pay for your part of the meal.|VCP 5]] <<endif>>

"Well with the bill taken care of I guess we should start heading out." <<if $valery_date_points >= 8>> <<choice [[I was actually thinking that maybe we could go to the nearby park and just hang out some more.|VDC 5.1]]>> <<choice [[And so we shall. It's been great getting to know you.|VDC 5.2]]>> <<else>> <<choice [[Guess so. It's, uh, been a decent time.|VDC 5.3]]>> <<choice [[Yup. See ya.|VDC 5.3]]>> <<endif>>

You take a moment to think this through before committing, thinking about the ramifications if Valery were to say yes. <<if $holly_text_date_setup is true>> For starters, you have to consider how Holly would react to this. You're probably not going to be able to cancel your date with her on such short notice, meaning you'd have to tell her about this whole situation sometime during the actual date tomorrow. How she would handle you suddenly changing your mind and dating someone else is unknown, but she likely wouldn’t take too kindly to it. <<else>> This would make any future romance options quite difficult, unless you were to break up with Valery later. Though he isn't likely to appreciate being dumped so soon after hooking up with you. <<endif>> After thinking it through, you decide that... <<choice [[You're going to go through with asking Valery to hang out in the park.|VDC 6.1]]>> <<choice [[You've changed your mind and won't get romantically involved with Valery.|VDC 6.2]]>>

"Indeed it has. Might even have to see about getting together for lunch some other time. Until then, take care friend." You say goodbye to Valery and [[head back to your car.|Valery Lunch Transition]]

"It's certainly been a time. Don't know if I'd say it was a decent one. Maybe I'll see you round sometime, maybe not. Until then, take care." You say goodbye to Valery and [[head home.|Valery Lunch Transition]]

You ask Valery if he'd be up to hanging out a bit more at the nearby park. <<if $valery_date_points >= 6>> "I'd love to! Honestly we got along so well today I almost forgot this was suppose to just be a lunch hangout kind of thing. If I'm being honest, it... felt more like a date." You and Val take a short walk over to the [[nearby park.|Metro Park Val Date]] <<else>> "I appreciate your kindness, but I just didn't feel that strong of connection with you. I hope you're still alright with being friends, though. I just don't really feel like we would make a very good couple." You tell Valery that just being friends is alright. Though you were kind of hoping to take it a bit further then that. "Awesome. See you round the neighborhood, friend." You say goodbye to Valery and [[start heading back home.|Valery Lunch Transition]] <<endif>>

You decide to not ask Valery if he's interested in going to the park. "Welp, guess this is goodbye for now. See ya round the neighborhood, friend." You say goodbye to Valery and [[head back home.|Valery Lunch Transition]]

<<if $holly_text_date_setup is true>> Having gotten lunch with Valery taken care, you can divert your full attention to your date with Holly tomorrow. Time to go home and [[get ready for tomorrow.|Holly-Valery Transition]] <<else>> Having gotten lunch with Valery taken care, and with nothing else going on this weekend, you're thinking of maybe working on the final plans for your road trip. Seems like that would be a good thing to do tomorrow. For now though, you're just going to [[go home and relax.|Chapter 3 Road Trip Planning Passengers]] <<endif>>

Walking through the entrance you can see the map of the park and a few fountains. Looking at the map, it would seem that this is more of an urban park as it lacks the expansive walking trails found in some of the more rural parks, like that one near you. While this park might not be as nice for just going on a walk, it seems perfect if you just want to sit down and relax or talk with someone. <<continuelink '"Never been to this park before."'>>"Never been to this park before. I usually go to the one on Gorge street when I wanna go for a quick walk." "So, you wanna just sit down and chill for a bit? Because honestly, that sounds like a better time than walking through this place." You decide to follow Valery’s suggestion and just sit down at a bench and talk for a bit. "Man, it has been a long time since I’ve been able to just sit down with someone and talk about - just whatever really." Valery says as he seems to relax a bit. "You’ve been asking me all these questions, so I think it's my turn to ask you some. Let's start off with a an easy one, what kind of music do you like to listen to?"" <<choice [[Metal and harder rock is usually what I listen too.|MPV 1]]>> <<choice [[Indie rock is my main jam, though I'm not opposed to other genres|MPV 1]]>> <<choice [[Rap and hip-hop is typically what I'll listen to.|MPV 1]]>>

"Alright, not a bad choice. I'm more of an alt-rock guy myself, used to just listen to regular rock but I got kind of bored of it, mainly because mainstream rock hasn't changed that much since the 2000s." "I was actually listening to whatever the top rock song of last year was and I seriously thought I was listening to a song from 2004, It had the same exact sound as a rock song from around 2004. The only thing that gave away the fact it was a song made in 2018 was a lyric in the song mentioning the year 2018. Shame to see such a storied and formerly great genre turn into a boring and stagnant mess." "Alt-rock and indie rock have sort of gone the way I would have expected rock too, lot more experimentation and different sound styles." "But that's enough about music, let's talk more about you. Here's another questions for ya, how long have you lived in Iridium City?" <<continuelink "You tell Valery that you’ve been living here for around 4 years.">>You tell Valery that you’ve been living here for around 4 years. You've lived here through most of college, and then during your childhood your family lived in Sprucetown, which is about 2 hours east from where you live now. "Sprucetown is still by the lake right, right? So you’ve been living in a city by the lake for most of your life. I’ve lived in-state my whole life as well but never by the lake, until recent of course." <<continuelink "You ask Valery where he lived before moving here.">>You ask Valery where he lived before moving here. “Just before moving here? Nagysburg. Lived there for 3 years until recent. Before that I lived in Fulton, which is where I grew up and went to college. Ended up staying there a year after graduating since I got a job at a local company.” <<choice [[How’d your time in Nagysburg and Fulton compare to your time here so far?|MPV 2.1]]>> <<choice [[I’m guessing there was some reason you left those places to come here. Besides the job, of course.|MPV 2.2]]>>

"My time in Nagysburg was pretty similar to here. Main difference is that in Nagysburg I had something resembling a friend group, while here I know you and that’s pretty much it. The job I had in Nagysburg wasn’t that great though. Hardly any paid time off and the insurance was trash. I’ve had it a lot better here in that regard. Fulton’s a bit more complex. I had a great social life there, after all that’s where pretty every friend I made up until graduation lived." <<continuelink '"But I couldn’t help but feel unfulfilled."'>>"But I couldn’t help but feel unfulfilled. I’d lived my whole life there and it was really starting to drag on. You see the same people, drive the same roads to the same place your parents worked at when you were growing up. It got mundane, and honestly a little depressing. Life wasn’t really exciting anymore, I felt like I was just running off a script doing the same thing week after week." "So I started looking for jobs a fair ways away from home. Applied to a bunch of them but of course only a few asked me to interview. The company in Nagysburg ended up offering me the best salary and was in a pretty nice city so I figured that was probably my best bet. Ended up being a pretty nice experience. Got along really well with my coworkers and my neighbors as well, they ended up being part of that friend group I was talking about." <<if $valery_heart_to_heart is true>> "And of course we’ve already talked a bit about my time here so far. Still pretty early into the move so I’m sure things will get better." <<endif>> <<choice [[Seems like you did pretty well in the last time you moved. So I’m sure it’ll end up working out here, too.|MPV 3.1]]>> <<choice [[Well hopefully you don’t run off too soon from here, I’d probably end up missing ya.|MPV 3.2]]>> <<choice [[It’s good to get outside of your comfort zone and explore a bit. You know, I’m actually planning on going on a cross-country road trip here pretty soon.|MPV 3.3]]>>

"Yup. For Nagysburg it was the job. I ended up getting completely burnt out because they gave me shit for time off. Plus, the insurance was basically useless so when I did get burnt out, I couldn’t even afford to go and see a therapist to help me get through it." "And then for Fulton; I just got bored of living there. I’d lived my whole life there and it was really starting to drag on. You see the same people, drive the same roads to the same place your parents worked at when you were growing up. It just got to be too much for me. So I started looking for jobs that were a decent distance away from Fulton. Applied to a bunch of jobs and got a couple of interviews, the company in Nagysburg ended up having the best salary and location." "I jumped on the job offer and moved there shortly after. Ended up being a pretty decent all things considered. I got along really well with my coworkers and even got to know one of my neighbor’s pretty well. That turned out to be a decent group of friends." <<choice [[Seems like you did pretty well in the last time you moved. So I’m sure it’ll end up working out here, too.|MPV 3.1]]>> <<choice [[Well hopefully you don’t run off too soon from here, I’d probably end up missing ya.|MPV 3.2]]>> <<choice [[It’s good to get outside of your comfort zone and explore a bit. You know, I’m actually planning on going on a cross-country road trip here pretty soon.|MPV 3.3]]>>

"I didn’t do terrible in Nagysburg and Fulton I’ll say that. I don’t know if I’d say I did ‘pretty well’ though. After all there’s reason I moved away from those towns. I’ve already explained my issues with Fulton pretty well, but there’s some other stuff that went on during my time in Nagysburg that I didn’t talk much about." <<if $valery_date_points >= 15 and $valery_heart_to_heart is true>> <<continuelink "Valery seems to take a moment to think">>Valery seems to take a moment to think, he sighs before eventually talking again. “We’ve talked about some pretty personal stuff already, so [[I guess it’s alright if I talk to you about those issues."|MPV True Ending 1.1]] <<else>> "And if I’m being honest, I just don’t feel comfortable talking about those issues right now. It’s nothing against you, just a personal thing." "Well... With that said I suppose it's about time to think about heading home. It's getting pretty late. I do have one thing I wanted to talk about first though; which is our relationship. I know the reason we came here was because you were romantically interested in me wanted to ge to know me a bit better, [[and...|Valery Park Ending 1.1]] <<endif>>

<<set $valery_date_points += 6>> <<set $ending_points += 4>> "Hah, I’d probably end up missing you too. Or at least, I'd always be wondering what could have been. Ya know, I kind of ran into that when I moved from Fulton and now Nagysburg. Constantly thinking about how things could have gone if I had stayed instead of moved." "It was a fairly deep-rooted problem for me moving from Fulton to Nagysburg, but I’ve gotten over it now for the most part now. That and the lack of people to talk to were really taking their toll on me." <<choice [[Lack of people to talk too? Wanna talk a bit more about that?|MPV 4.1]]>> <<choice [[That sounds pretty tough, I'm sure you'll get through it.|MPV 4.2]]>>

"A road trip, huh? Didn’t think you’d be the kind of person to go out and do something like that." <<continuelink "You take some time to explain the whole concept to Valery. You tell him what your exact travel plans are and how long you plan on it taking.">>You take some time to explain the whole concept to Valery. You tell him what your exact travel plans are and how long you plan on it taking. "I won’t lie, it sounds really interesting. Be a great way to build our relationship, too. Maybe keep me in mind when you're picking people to go, yeah?" <<continuelink "You tell Val you'll keep him in mind when you start picking your travel mates.">>You tell Val you'll keep him in mind when you start picking your travel mates. "Also, I get what you're saying about moving outside of your comfort zone. When I moved to Nagysburg, I did enjoy being in a new city and experiencing all the new things that had to offer. What really got me down was just the complete lack of people I had to talk to about more serious stuff." <<choice [[A lack of people to talk to? Wanna talk about that a bit more?|MPV 4.1]]>> <<choice [[That's unfortunate. At least you seem to be having better luck with that this time around.|MPV 4.2]]>>

"It’s not anything horrifying, don’t get the wrong idea. But it’s a bit depressing for me to look back on, so I don’t like talking about it too much." "Towards the end of my time in Nagysburg I was in a pretty bad place. I was lonely, and as I might have mentioned, I started getting pretty burnt out on my job because they were practically working me to death." "Now, I know you might be thinking “How could you be lonely? You said you had a pretty solid group of friends, right?” I had friends, yes. But most of those friends weren’t really the kind you’d spill your heart out too. We never talked about anything too serious, mostly just kept it centered around work or our hobbies. That meant I didn’t really have anybody to talk to about more serious stuff. Things like how I was feeling emotionally, my future, job burn out, and numerous other things." <<continuelink '"Back in Fulton"'>>"Back in Fulton I’d have a couple of friends that’d be down for listening to whatever bullshit I wanted to talk about, but that wasn’t the case in Nagysburg." "And of course, I couldn’t afford to see a therapist to help with that issue since my health insurance, which I paid $300 a month for by the way, wouldn’t cover any of the cost for therapy. I would have been paying close to $200 per session to just talk to somebody about my problems. Even with my decent paying job I couldn’t afford that." "I was just keeping all these feelings to myself and it wasn’t working. I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t feel like going to work, I didn’t feel like going out, I just wanted to stay at home and hide." <<choice [[How’d you get out of that emotional pit?|MPV True Ending 2.1]]>> <<choice [[And that’s part of the reason you wanted to move here, right?|MPV True Ending 2.2]]>> <<choice [[I think I’ve heard enough.|MPV True Ending 2.3]]>>

<<if $valery_heart_to_heart is true and $valery_true_ending is not true>> "Honestly, I’d say I’m pretty into you. When we were talking in the restaurant I couldn’t help but feel like I was back in Fulton hanging out with an old friend. It was great. Hell, I'm already thinking about what’s next for us. Better be another date, at least." <<choice [[I was thinking about that as well. I've a got a couple of ideas already in mind.|MPV One Ending 1.1]]>> <<choice [[There’s still plenty of time to figure that out. Since we live in the same neighborhood, I’m sure we’ll be seeing each other quite often.|MPV One Ending 1.2]]>> <<elseif $valery_heart_to_heart is not true and $valery_true_ending is not true and $valery_date_points >= 10>> "The feeling is mutual. I wasn’t sure about taking our relationship any further than friends when we were talking in the restaurant, but when we got here and started talking a bit more in-depth I really started to enjoy my time with you. It’s been great getting to know you, never would have expected coming into this that I’d be leaving with a romantic interest in you." <<choice [[It was a bit of a surprise for me as well. I figured that, at most, we'd part our lunch today as friends|MPV Three Ending 1.1]]>> <<choice [[Yeah, guess you never know.|MPV Three Ending 1.2]]>> <<else>> “I’ll be honest, I like you. But I just don’t know if I can see us being a couple, you know? At least, not right now. I just don’t know you well enough. Maybe we can go on another date sometime, but for now though, no, I don’t feel the same way you seem too. I don’t really see us being any more than friends.” <<choice [[I understand, Valery. I'm a bit disappointed but I respect your decision.|MPV Four Ending 1.1]]>> <<choice [[I'm disappointed Valery. But I get it, it makes sense.|MPV Four Ending 1.2]]>> <<endif>>

<<if $valery_date_points >= 15 and $valery_heart_to_heart is true>> Valery seems to take a moment to think, he sighs before eventually talking again. "We’ve talked about some pretty deep stuff today, so [[I guess it’s alright if I talk to you about it."|MPV True Ending 1.1]] <<else>> "If I’m being honest, I just don’t feel comfortable talking about those issues right now. It’s nothing against you, just a personal thing." "Well, with that said I suppose it's about time to think about heading home. It's getting pretty late. I do have one thing I wanted to talk about first though; which is our relationship. I know the reason we came here was because you were romantically interested in me wanted to get to know me a bit better, [[and...|Valery Park Ending 1.1]] <<endif>>

"Yeah I'm doing my best, sometimes that isn't enough though. I just try to lean on my support group and hope they can help lift me up." "Well, It's getting pretty late. Was there anything you wanted to talk about?" <<continuelink "You tell Valery that you can\'t think of anything you really wanted to talk about right now.">>You tell Valery that you can\'t think of anything you really wanted to talk about right now. "Guess our day is about done here then, should probably head out before the mosquitoes start biting. But before that I do have one thing to talk to you about: our relationship. I know you brought me here because you were romantically interested in me, [[and...|Valery Park Ending 1.1]]

<<set $valery_date_points += 8>> <<set $valery_true_ending to true>> "Honestly? I still haven’t 100% gotten out of that funk. I did start talking to some of my old friends towards the end of time at Nagysburg, which helped. Moving here has helped a bit. Or at least it's made me a bit more optimistic. New place, new opportunities and people." "Of course having too high of expectations can be a dangerous thing too. Like telling yourself that you're going to meet all these awesome people, and then you actually do the thing for real and it's nothing like you imagined. Wouldn't say that exact scenario has happened for me, but I did kind of expect that moving here would help solve some of my problems." <<continuelink '"And then I’ve also been telling myself I have to really make an effort to try and meet new people,"'>>"And then I’ve also been telling myself I have to really make an effort to try and meet new people, like you. That’s helped quite bit too. Even if I don’t end up connecting, I can at least feel good about the fact that I’m trying." "And then I’ve also been telling myself I have to really make an effort to try and meet new people, like you. That’s helped quite bit too. Even if I don’t end up connecting, I can at least feel good about the fact that I’m trying." <<continuelink '"Alright,"'>>"Alright, I don't like to talk my sad shit for too long, makes me too emotional. Let's talk about something a bit more upbeat. "Namely, our relationship. Which is the reason you brought me. You didn't say it outright, but I know you're interested in me, [[why else would you have brought me here?"|MPV Ending Base]]

<<set $valery_date_points += 8>> <<set $valery_true_ending to true>> "Kind of. I moved here because I really enjoyed the city, plus the job offer I got here was a lot less work intensive and had a lot better benefits. Being less stressed about work always helps." "Of course I did go into the move thinking about how well everything could work out for me. Thinking about how I’m going to meet all these awesome people, find my soulmate. So, I guess it was a mix of searching for a more satisfying life plus wanting a better job." <<continuelink '"It’s worked out alright so far."'>> "It’s worked out alright so far. Like I said the job is a lot better than my old one. And I’ve been keeping in contact with some of my old friends which has helped me a bit." "And since I’ve gotten here I’ve been telling myself that I need to be more active in getting to know new people, which has help quite a bit as well. Even if I don’t end up connecting with someone I can at least feel good about the fact that I’m trying." <<continuelink '"Alright,"'>>"Alright, I don't like to talk my sad shit for too long, makes me too emotional. Let's talk about something a bit more upbeat. "Namely, our relationship. Which is the reason you brought me. You didn't say it outright, but I know you're interested in me, [[why else would you have brought me here?"|MPV Ending Base]]

<<set $valery_disaster_ending to true>> <<set $valery_date_end to true>> "Really? You couldn't take 10 minutes out of your life to just listen to what I have to say? Have to say out of all the people I've known, you have one of the most inconsiderate. Unfortunately for me you're also one of the people I liked the most. The key word there being "liked" ""No point in continuing this fake ass date when you can't even spare the time to listen to my story." Valery gets up and walks to us car without even saying goodbye. Seems you really struck a nerve with him. You get up shortly after that and [[head back to your car.|Valery Park Transition 2]]

"Don’t worry, the interest goes both ways. Honestly wasn’t sure if I wanted our relationship to go any further than friends at the start, but after our talks here and at the restaurant, I kind of fell for you. The last time I enjoyed being around someone this much was, uh, let’s just say awhile ago." "I really like you, $name. And I can’t wait to spend even more time with you." <<choice [[Don't get ahead of yourself, we still have some time left here... *lean in towards Valery*|MPV True Ending 1]]>> <<choice [[I feel the same. That said, I’m planning on going on a road trip pretty soon, might be a good opportunity for us to spend some more time together…|MPV True Ending 1.2]]>> <<choice [[Same here, Valery. Although I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t at least a little bit interested in you coming into lunch.|MPV True Ending 1.3]]>>

"Hell yeah. We'll have to talk some more later about our next date plans." "Well, I guess our day is about done here. It has been a joy talking with you, can't say I expected today to end with us talking about our next date. But I'll take it, Gods know it's been a long time since I've been in a serious relationship." <<if $race is "Wolf" and $gender is "Female">> /* This line is so cheesy. I love it, but I also think it might a bit too cheesy. On the other hand I feel like a game about furries should be willing to embrace this much cheesiness. So It's fucking staying. */ <<choice [[*Give Valery a kiss on the cheek* Life is unpredictable, Valery. Sometimes you have days where life's a bitch. Fortunately for you, today was one where you got kissed by one instead.|MPV One Ending 2.1 Wolf]]>> <<choice [[Never know what you're gonna get when you wake up in the morning. Most of the time the day goes on in its usual mundane fashion. But sometimes you get days like this, and they make dealing with those mundane days worth it|MPV One Ending 2.2]]>> <<else>> <<choice [[*Give Valery a kiss on the cheek* We don't expect a lot of things, Valery. Most of time it's the terrible shit we don't expect, not today, though.|MPV One Ending 2.1]]>> <<choice [[Never know what you're gonna get when you wake up in the morning. Most of the time the day goes on in its usual mundane fashion. But sometimes you get days like this, and they make dealing with those mundane days worth it|MPV One Ending 2.2]]>> <<endif>>

"Yeah, no point in worrying about it too much. Might be going on a few more walks around the neighborhood though." "Well, I guess our day is about done here. It has been a joy talking with you, can't say I expected today to end with us talking about our next date. But I'll take it, Gods know it's been a long time since I've been in a serious relationship." <<if $race is "Wolf" and $gender is "Female">> /* This line is so cheesy. I love it, but I also think it might a bit too cheesy. On the other hand I feel like a game about furries should be willing to embrace this much cheesiness. So It's fucking staying. */ <<choice [[*Give Valery a kiss on the cheek* Life is unpredictable, Valery. Sometimes you have days where life's a bitch. Fortunately for you, today was one where you got kissed by one instead.|MPV One Ending 2.1 Wolf]]>> <<choice [[Never know what you're gonna get when you wake up in the morning. Most of the time the day goes on in its usual mundane fashion. But sometimes you get days like this, and they make dealing with those mundane days worth it|MPV One Ending 2.2]]>> <<else>> <<choice [[*Give Valery a kiss on the cheek* We don't expect a lot of things, Valery. Most of time it's the terrible shit we don't expect, not today, though.|MPV One Ending 2.1]]>> <<choice [[Never know what you're gonna get when you wake up in the morning. Most of the time the day goes on in its usual mundane fashion. But sometimes you get days like this, and they make dealing with those mundane days worth it|MPV One Ending 2.2]]>> <<endif>>

<<set $valery_ending to "ending one kiss">> <<set $valery_date_end to true>> "I'm not one for surprises, but when they're as sweet as this, I can't complain. "I'll have to find a way to one-up you now. Best be on the look out on our next date." "Wow, what a way to end the day. Suppose it's time I take my leave, much to my dismay. I'll be seeing you for sure, $name. If for nothing else but to set up that second date." You say goodbye to Valery and watch as he walks back to his car. You stand up and [[walk back to your car shortly after.|Valery Park Transition 2]]

<<set $valery_ending to "ending one normal">> <<set $valery_date_end to true>> "You're right, $name. That's why I'll be looking forward to our next date so much." "Guess it's about time to take my leave. I'm sure I'll be seeing you. Especially since we still have to set up our second date." You say goodbye to Valery and watch as he walks back to his car. [[You stand up and walk back to your car shortly after.|Valery Park Transition 2]]

<<set $valery_ending to "ending one kiss">> <<set $valery_date_end to true>> "You sly Wolf, I bet you've been waiting all day to use that line. Well it was worth it, because that cheesy as hell line made me like you even more." "What a way to end the day. Suppose I should take my leave now, much to my dismay. I'll be seeing you, $name. If for nothing else but to set up our next date." You say goodbye to Valery and watch as he walks back to his car. You stand up and [[walk back to your car shortly after.|Valery Park Transition 2]]

<<set $valery_ending to "ending two normal">> <<set $valery_date_end to true>> <<set $ending_points += 6>> "Yeah, that sounds pretty interesting. We'll have to talk about it some later. Would be a great way to build our relationship, I think." "Guess we better start heading home, we keep talking any longer and we'll be getting bit by mosquitoes." Valery stands up before resuming the conversation "Come give me a hug before we head back home." <<continuelink "You stand up">> You stand up and share a fairly long hug with Valery. "I'm sure I'll be seeing you around the neighborhood quite a bit now. Might even have to stop down at your house sometime." Valery says with a somewhat suggestive look. "See ya round, $name." You say goodbye to Valery and watch as he heads back towards his car. Today was a good day. You get up shortly after and [[head back to your car.|Valery Park Transition 2]]

<<set $valery_ending to "ending two normal">> <<set $valery_date_end to true>> <<set $ending_points += 6>> "Man, I didn’t think I was that attractive. Guess I just hit the right buttons with you. Cause I know it wasn't my personality that got you hooked, we had barely talked at that point." "Well, it's getting pretty late. Think we've been talking for a little over 5 hours, sure didn't feel like it though. Guess we better think about heading out, stay and keep talking any longer and we'll end up getting devoured by mosquitoes." Valery stands up before continuing to talk "Come here and give me a hug before we head back home." <<continuelink "You stand up">> You stand up and share a fairly long hug with Valery. "I'm sure I'll be seeing you around the neighborhood quite a bit now. Might even have to stop down at your house sometime." Valery says with a somewhat suggestive look. "See ya round, $name." You say goodbye to Valery and watch as he heads back towards his car. Today was a good day. You get up shortly after and [[head back to your car.|Valery Park Transition 2]]

You lean in towards Valery, moving your head towards his and wrapping your arms around his shoulders. Valery also wraps his arms around you, pulling you closer to him. You embrace with Valery and share a passionate kiss. Chills run down your back, and butterflies fill your stomach as you take in the moment. The kiss ends after what seems like 5 minutes, though you know it was much shorter. While still holding you quite close, Valery speaks up. <<if $gender is "Male">> "Would you believe that was my first time kissing a guy? I've considered myself bisexual for a while but never really got romantically involved with a guy. Just couldn't find one that was my type; guess that changed tonight" "We'll just leave it at that for now, I don't go all in on the first date. See you around the neighborhood, $name. We'll have to talk about setting up a second date sometime." Valery says as he winks and walks back to his car. That went about as well as it could have all things considered. Hard to believe that you came into this barely knowing Valery. You also have to say, you feel pretty special about being the first guy Val's kissed, especially considering how picky he seems to be. <<set $valery_ending to "ending two kiss">> <<set $valery_date_end to true>> <<set $ending_points += 8>> [[You sit for a few moments before getting up and heading back to your car.|Valery Park Transition 2]] <<else>> "You're quite the kisser, have to say it took me by surprise. Have to imagine you'll only get better, you'll have plenty of time to practice with me. That'll be it for now though, I don't go all in on the first date." "Well, see you around the neighborhood, $name. We'll have to sit down and talk about setting up our second date sometime." Valery says as he winks and walks back to his car. That went about as well as it could have. Hard to believe that you came into this barely knowing the guy. <<set $valery_ending to "ending two kiss">> <<set $valery_date_end to true>> <<set $ending_points += 8>> You sit for a few moments before getting up and [[heading back to your car.|Valery Park Transition 2]] <<endif>>

"Yeah I that's just how life can be sometimes. Keeps you on your toes, I guess." "Well it's 5 PM now and we've been talking since we got at the restaurant at 1. It's been a great day but I suppose it's about time for us to head home. Can't remember the last I was actually disappointed about having to go home. Now, come here and give me a hug before we leave." <<continuelink "You and Valery both stand up before hugging each other goodbye.">>You and Valery both stand up before hugging each other goodbye. "See ya round, $name. I'm sure I'll see you around the neighborhood. Plus we've still gotta talk about our next date." <<set $valery_ending to "ending three normal">> You say good bye to Valery and watch as he walks to his car. You stand up and [[walk back to your car shortly after.|Valery Park Transition 2]]

<<set $valery_ending to "ending three normal">> <<set $valery_date_end to true>> "You really don't. And if you really think about, it's crazy how circumstantial stuff can be. Like, if I had moved somewhere else in town, I probably never would have met you. And that's just one example. When you really think about it, your life could be dramatically different just based off a few seemingly minor decisions. Like where you decide to work, where you go to college, where you live, etc. Those all affect the kind of people you met, the kind of people your around. I don’t know, it’s just kind of crazy to me." "Anyway, it's 5 PM now and we've been talking since we got at the restaurant at 1. It's been a great day but I suppose it's about time for us to head home. Can't remember the last I was actually disappointed about having to go home. Now, come here and give me a hug before we leave." <<continuelink "You and Valery both stand up before hugging each other goodbye.">>You and Valery both stand up before hugging each other goodbye. "See ya round, $name. I'm sure I'll see you around the neighborhood. Plus we've still gotta talk about our next date." You say good bye to Valery and watch as he walks to his car. You stand up and [[walk back to your car shortly after.|Valery Park Transition 2]]

/* Transistion over the Holly date or next part depending on the choices. Next area not currently implemented */ <<if $holly_text_date_setup is true>> <<switch $valery_ending>> <<case "ending three normal" "ending two normal" "ending one normal">> <<set $valery_dating to true>> While driving home you think about your time spent with Valery. You had a great time with Valery today, although you have to wonder if you really made the right decision. You really like Valery, but getting into a serious relationship with him might not be the best move. After all, you've got a date coming up with Holly, and you don't think she's going to the kind of person to welcome an open relationship... Guess you’ll have to mediate on this a bit, but for now you’ve gotta get ready for your //other// [[date tomorrow.|Holly-Valery Transition]] <<case "ending one kiss" "ending two kiss">> <<set $valery_dating to true>> While driving home you reflect a bit on your time spent with Valery. You certainly had your expectations for today blown away. You never would’ve expected today ending the way it did. That said, you have to wonder if you really made the right choice today. You’ve really fallen for Valery, but you do have prior commitments to Holly. And you were planning on going on your first date with her tomorrow. You doubt either Valery or Holly would appreciate knowing that you went on or set up a date with someone else, rightfully so. And they definitely don’t seem the type to want an open relationship. Well, there’s not much you can do about it right now. You’ll just have to [[get ready for Holly’s date tomorrow|Holly-Valery Transition]] and hope you figure it out. <<case "ending four friends">> <<set $valery_dating to false>> While driving home you reflect a bit on today's events. Your date with Valery didn’t go quite how you expected, but thankfully you were still able to walk away as a friend. Thinking about it some more this was probably for the best, given that you have a date coming up with Holly tomorrow. Getting serious with Valery would make things very complicated. [[So now you can focus on getting ready for Holly tomorrow.|Holly-Valery Transition]] <<case "ending four denied">> <<set $valery_dating to false>> While driving home you reflect a bit on your time spent with Valery. You were hoping to get a bit more involved with Valery but that ended up failing. You could've stayed tried just being friends but that would've been a little awkward, so you decided to just stop hanging out with him. [[At least now you can focus your full attention on getting ready for that date with Holly tomorrow.|Holly-Valery Transition]] <</switch>> <<elseif $holly_text_date_setup is true and $valery_disaster_ending is true>> <<set $valery_dating to false>> While driving home you reflect a bit on your time spent with Valery. You probably could've handled Valery's date just a little bit better, considering you made him storm off. But, no time to dwell on that. You've gotta focus on your next date with Holly, which is [[coming up tomorrow|Holly-Valery Transition]] <<elseif $holly_text_date_setup isnot true>> <<switch $valery_ending>> <<case "ending three normal" "ending two normal" "ending one normal">> <<set $valery_dating to true>> Driving home from the park, you reflect a bit on today's events. All things considered you think today went pretty damn well. You didn't really go into this whole thing with the intent of hooking up with Valery, you just sort of went with the flow of things and it just happened. While you really enjoyed hanging out with Valery today, you are somewhat glad that this whole thing is behind you. Since now you can focus on getting the final plans for your road trip setup. For tonight though, [[you're just going to sit back and relax a bit.|Chapter 3 Road Trip Planning Passengers]] <<case "ending one kiss" "ending two kiss">> <<set $valery_dating to true>> Driving home from the park, you reflect a bit on today's events. You certainly had your expectations for today blown away. You never would’ve expected things to play out the way they did, you just sort of went with the flow and ended up hooking up with Valery. Crazy how fast things can happen. And now with this whole thing taken care of, you can focus your full attention to getting the final plans for your road trip setup. For tonight though, [[you're just going to sit back and relax a bit.|Chapter 3 Road Trip Planning Passengers]] <<case "ending four friends">> <<set $valery_dating to false>> Driving home from the park, you reflect a bit on today's events. Your date with Valery didn’t go quite how you expected, but thankfully you were still able to walk away as a friend. And now with this whole ordeal behind you can you focus on getting the final plans for your road trip setup. Not now though, since tonight [[you're just going to sit back and relax a bit.|Chapter 3 Road Trip Planning Passengers]] <<case "ending four denied">> <<set $valery_dating to false>> Driving home from the park, you reflect a bit on today's events. You were hoping to get a bit more involved with Valery but that ended up failing. You could've stayed tried just being friends but that would've been a little awkward. Best to just go your separate way. And now with this whole ordeal behind you can you focus on getting the final plans for your road trip setup. Not now though, since tonight you're [[you're just going to kick back and relax a bit.|Chapter 3 Road Trip Planning Passengers]] <</switch>> <<endif>>

"I'm glad you took that as well as you did. I know there's some real pieces of work out there that go insane as soon as you tell them you have no interest in them. I'm happy you're not one of them." "I wouldn't say this is a complete denial but... yeah, honestly I just don't see "us" working out. So I guess it kind of is." "Anyway, I suppose we should head home, we've wasted enough time talking here." Valery stands up and extends his paw towards you "I hope we can at least part as friends." <<choice [[*Get up and reach out to shake his paw* Friends it is.|MPV Four Ending 2.1]]>> <<choice [[I respect your choice, but I feel like it would just be awkward for us to keep hanging out.|MPV Four Ending 2.2]]>>

"I'm glad you understand. I thought that maybe I'd see something different in you here, but I didn't. It's not your fault, we just aren't a good match." "Don't get me wrong, I don't hate you or anything. I just... don't really see a serious relationship between the two of us going anywhere." Valery reaches out his paw to you "I hope we can stay friends, though." <<choice [[*Get up and shake his paw* Friends it is.|MPV Four Ending 2.1]]>> <<choice [[Oh, I don't think so. I doubt an ordinary relationship would work out either. Plus it would just be awkward.|MPV Four Ending 2.2]]>>

<<set $valery_ending to "ending four friends">> <<set $valery_date_end to true>> "Valery grabs and shakes your paw 'I'm glad you feel the same, $name. Hopefully I'll still see you round the neighborhood!" You say your goodbyes to Valery and tell him you're happy to have another friend to count on. "Damn straight. You can never have enough real friends. See you later." [[You say bye and head back to your car|Valery Park Transition 2]]

<<set $valery_ending to "ending four denied">> <<set $valery_date_end to true>> <<set $ending_points -= 2>> "I understand completely, we'd probably both have nagging thoughts in the back of our head saying "what if"." "Well suppose that's it. Have a good one, $name." You say goodbye to Valery and [[head back to your car.|Valery Park Transition 2]]

You fire up Firefox and decide to hit up an online chat room. You could take a couple of different approaches but you’re feeling like chatting to some randoms online. You’ve had mixed success in the past with random chats, 80% of the people on there are looking for some dirty shit, 10% are spambots, and the remaining 10% are people actually worth talking to. Back in the day you went on chat rooms like this all the time, they were a way for you to meet new people, maybe make a new online friend. As time went on you started to lose interest in them, and they kind of went out of style. You still have fond memories of spending nights chatting to friends you met on an MMO. But that’s enough reminiscing, <<continuelink "let’s have a look at what these chat room platforms have turned into today.">>let’s have a look at what these chat room platforms have turned into today. You go to your old website of choice, Omegle. You’ve had mixed success with this website, as mentioned before. Your most memorable moment being a chat you had with someone for around 2 hours. Surprisingly that chat involved nothing lewd, just chatting about games, TV shows, life. It was a good time. <<continuelink "Now to see if anything can top that.">>Now to see if anything can top that. The first chat you come across is a bot, and your second, and your third… Almost all of your chats are either people imbued with an insatiable horniess that only be cured by jerking off with random people online, or bots. You go through 20 some chats until <<continuelink "you finally find someone worth talking to:">>you finally find someone worth talking to: "hey"        <<continuelink '"Hello"'>> "Hello" "wyd"        <<continuelink '"Just trying to find someone that isn’t fake or horny"'>>"Just trying to find someone that isn’t fake or horny" "same lol" "horny people are the only people on this site"          <<continuelink '"It’s always been like this, I guess. Lot more bots tho"'>>"It’s always been like this, I guess. Lot more bots tho"          <<continuelink '"honestly don’t see much point in using sites like these when discord is a thing"'>>"honestly don’t see much point in using sites like these when discord is a thing" "trueee. what's your discord?"                      <<continuelink '"PopcornChi#4056"'>>"PopcornChi#4056" "nice i'll add you" The stranger adds you on discord, you send each other some memes for a few minutes before the stranger logs off. It only took wading through dozens of desperate dudes and bots to get a decent person to chat with. And it only lasted for a few minutes. You’re beginning to think that maybe you had rose-tinted glasses when it came to using Omegle. You spent a couple more minutes trying to find a sane person to chat with, it only took going through 10 bots and 15 horny dudes to find <<continuelink "another decent person.">>another decent person. “Yo”         <<continuelink '"Hello"'>>"Hello" “Hyd?”         <<continuelink '"fine. Just trying to find someone worth talking to, ya know."'>>"fine. Just trying to find someone worth talking to, ya know." “100%. At least 95% of the people on here have to be horny dudes.”         <<continuelink '"yeah it’s been a long time since I’ve been on here, since hs at least."'>>"yeah it’s been a long time since I’ve been on here, since hs at least."         <<continuelink '"people have always been horny but the bots are new."'>>"people have always been horny but the bots are new."         <<continuelink '"honestly not sure what the point of sites like this are when discord servers are a thing."'>>"honestly not sure what the point of sites like this are when discord servers are a thing." “I feel that.”         <<continuelink '"so, where you at? I’m in the U.S."'>>"so, where you at? I’m in the U.S." “what?”         <<continuelink '"where are you located? What country do you live in?"'>>"where are you located? What country do you live in?" “oh, Australia.”         <<continuelink '"nice, an Aussie."'>>"nice, an Aussie." “yeah I guess.”         <<continuelink '"you in college or working?"'>>"you in college or working?" “college. on holiday right now”         <<continuelink '"nice nice. So is it fall or winter there?"'>>"nice nice. So is it fall or winter there?"         <<continuelink '"you on fall or winter break"'>>"you on fall or winter break" “yes, it’s fall.”         <<continuelink '"Alright alright. well I’m gonna be on my way. Try to find some more non-horny people to chat with"'>>"Alright alright. well I’m gonna be on my way. Try to find some more non-horny people to chat with" You end the chat with the only other sane person you’ve encountered. They weren’t much for conversation, you’ll say that. But at least they weren’t trying to show you their dick. Having now realized the decrepit state of Omegle you decide to just stop, and vow to never go on that site ever again. <<set $chat_room to true>> [[Log off|Player Bedroom]]

<<set $holly_date_points to 0>> After spending 20 minutes thinking about which nation to play as, you eventually decide on Egypt. The classic wonder hoarders. Not really a viable strategy on the higher difficulties, but you’ll be playing on King so you’re not too worried about their unique ability going to waste. <<continuelink "You start up the game and get to playing.">>You start up the game and get to playing. The early game is fairly boring. You got a decent start and were lucky enough to spawn far away from any warmongers. The main issue you faced was dealing with the AI stealing your city spots. Suppose you’ll have to get payback a little later, once you’ve fortified your military some more. <<continuelink "Midgame is where the fun begins.">>Midgame is where the fun begins. At this point you’ve gathered a respectable amount of wonders, and even managed to jump one of the weaker AI nations, gaining some decent cities. The way the game is currently going leads you towards going for a military victory. With your first target being your strongest immediate neighbor; Ghandi. Best to take care of him before the atomic era rolls in. What follows is a quick and efficient eradication of Ghandi. Your military both outnumbered and out-teched him. It wasn’t even a fair fight, taking on his horsemen and galleys with muskets and frigates. You make quick work of the weaker neighboring nations, and solidify yourself as the number one player, for now. It seems your main contender right now would be Peter the Great, of Russia. His nation rivals yours in pure size, though your military is slightly ahead when it comes to tech. He’ll definitely put up a fight. <<continuelink "You decide to take a quick break and grab some snacks and something to drink.">>You decide to take a quick break and grab some snacks and something to drink. You glance at your smartphone, looking at it in surprise as you see that it’s now around 3:30 PM. Guess this’ll be more than a short break. You do some stretches before doing some final things before the date. You finish up and [[head to your car shortly after.|Holly Date Arrival]]

You wake up in your bedroom around 10 AM. A bit earlier then you’re used to, but today’s a bit different. You've got a date setup with Holly, after all. Best to get up early and get ready for such an occasion. You spend about 40 minutes getting ready. It’s now around 10:40 AM and your date isn’t until 4 PM. Seems you’ve got a fair amount of spare time on your hands. You loaf around for a bit but eventually decide on the perfect thing to do while you wait… Play some Civilization! That game is the closest thing you have to time travel, after all. Now the only other thing you have to decide on is what nation you want to play as, [[that might take a while…|Holly Date Civ]]

<<set $holly_date_points to 0>> After a short drive, you arrive at… //Kit’s Tavern.// Many dismiss Kit’s as a “lower class” establishment. Mainly due to the looks of the building outside; a brick exterior with old signs from the 2000s complete the look of a rustic, almost abandoned building. Located a distance away from the lake, the views outside aren’t anything to write home about either. Still, the service is good and so is the food, so who cares what the building looks like? You look around for Holly’s car, but don’t see it in the parking lot. <<continuelink "Guess you’ll be waiting a few more minutes.">>Guess you’ll be waiting a few more minutes. After those few minutes pass you see Holly pull into the restaurant parking lot and exit her car. You also exit your car and head over to meet her. [img[https://iforgotmybrain.github.io/img/74.png]] "Hey $name. What’s going on?" She says as you walk over to her car to greet her. <<continuelink "You tell her not much since you last met. Just the usual stuff.">>You tell her not much since you last met. Just the usual stuff. "I feel it. Pretty much been the same for me. Stuff like this is a nice break from that monotony. Anyway, let’s head in and get a table before it gets too busy." [[You follow Holly inside the restaurant, luckily there’s no line so you get seated right away.|Holly Date Seating]]

<<cacheaudio "synth_1" "music/Timecrawler 82 - Osaka Lights - 02 - Mt. Fuji.mp3">> <<cacheaudio "synth_2" "music/Timecrawler 82 - Osaka Lights - 03 - Street Dancing.mp3">> <<cacheaudio "synth_3" "music/Nihilore - Best of 2018 - 13 - The Author Never Dies (Instrumental).mp3">> <<cacheaudio "jesse_1" "music/Jesse Spillane - Sky Ship - 12 - Mod.mp3">> <<cacheaudio "jesse_2" "music/Jesse Spillane - The Maddening Parade - 08 - Booth.mp3">> <<cacheaudio "jesse_3" "music/Jesse Spillane - Descent of the Goober Monster - 06 - Untitled.mp3">> <<cacheaudio "jesse_4" "music/Jesse Spillane - The Laundry Cycle - 06 - The Laundry Cycle.mp3">> <<cacheaudio "jesse_5" "music/Jesse Spillane - The Maddening Parade - 06 - Groove Tank.mp3">> <<cacheaudio "lfm_1" "music/Loyalty Freak Music - MINIMAL AMBIENT BOUNCE - 01 - Once more with you.mp3">> <<cacheaudio "lfm_2" "music/Loyalty Freak Music - MINIMAL AMBIENT BOUNCE - 04 - Static Shoes.mp3">> <<cacheaudio "funky_1" "music/Six Umbrellas - Private Ark - 07 - Asset House.mp3">> <<createplaylist "bgm">> <<track "synth_1">> <<track "synth_2">> <<track "synth_3">> <<track "funky_1">> <<track "lfm_1">> <<track "lfm_2">> <<track "jesse_1">> <<track "jesse_2">> <<track "jesse_3">> <<track "jesse_4">> <<track "jesse_5">> <</createplaylist>>

Now would be a good time to ask Holly some questions or talk to her about something you’re interested in. You decide to… [[Ask what her time in college was like|Holly College Question Start]] [[Ask Holly a bit more about her hobbies|Holly Hobbies Question Start]] [[Talk a bit about the road trip|Holly RT Question Start]] [[Ask about her current living situation|Holly Living Question Start]] <<if $holly_college_question_asked is true and $holly_hobby_question_asked is true>> [['That's enough question for now.'|Holly Questions Transition]] <<endif>>

<<if $holly_college_question_asked isnot true>> You ask Holly to provide some more details about her time in college, curious as to how it all went down. “My time in college huh? We’ve already talked about it a bit already, how I dropped out and all that. Yeah, dropping out still disappoints me a bit. Feel like I just wasn’t good enough, wasn’t dedicated or disciplined enough.” “And you know, things were going pretty smooth my freshman year. Probably because I was in intro courses, with basically no major related classes. When I got into those marketing classes, it all went downhill. Hated that shit, which isn’t ideal when marketing is your major.” <<continuelink '"I loved the social experience of college"'>>"I loved the social experience of college, but those marketing classes killed any intention of me actually graduating. I knew right there and then I was not doing 2 years of this bullshit. Nothing could change my mind about that." [[‘The social experience huh? You still talk to some people from college?’|Holly College Question Friends]] [[‘What made you even want to get into marketing?’|Holly College Question Major]] [[‘About what I expected to hear, let me ask you something else.”|Holly Questions Hub]] <<else>> You ask Holly another question about her time in college... [[‘The social experience huh? You still talk to some people from college?’|Holly College Question Friends]] [[‘What made you even want to get into marketing?’|Holly College Question Major]] [[‘About what I expected to hear, let me ask you about something else.”|Holly Questions Hub]] <<endif>>

//'The social experience huh? You still talk to some people from college?'// “Only a few, mainly my roommate I had first year and a couple of people I shared classes with. They all live in and around the area so we’ll go out sometimes, reminisce about the college days. They’ll talk about their junior and senior years and I’ll just sit there like ‘Oh yeah I can totally relate, definitely didn’t drop out my 2nd year’.” “They’re good people though, better than most of my high school friends considering I still talk to them. Can’t say the same for any high school friend that isn’t you.” <<set $holly_college_question_asked to true>> <<set $holly_date_points += 2>> [['Let me ask you something else'|Holly College Question Start]]

//‘What made you even want to get into marketing?’// “There wasn’t really anything that made me want to major in marketing. Just thought it would be an easy major, decent outcomes once I’m out of college. Seemed like the right choice even though I wasn’t interested in it. I would’ve preferred to major in something like theatre or art, but I knew that would’ve been a bad choice considering I was paying my way through.” “I guess in the end, it doesn't even matter since I dropped out. Then again if I had majored in something I enjoyed I might’ve actually graduated, but that would’ve meant more debt… Eh, I think everything’s worked out alright so far, probably would’ve ended up where I am today anyway, just with more debt.” <<set $holly_college_question_asked to true>> <<set $holly_date_points += 2>> [["'You never know though, who's to say you wouldn't catch a lucky break if you majored in theatre or art?'"|Holly College Question Major 2]] [['Let me ask you something else'|Holly College Question Start]]

<<if $holly_hobby_question_asked isnot true>> You ask Holly about her hobbies; she’s talked about them before but not in much detail. “My hobbies? Ah I don’t do anything too interesting, music, movies, stuff like that. Think we talked about that at the festival.” "I also like fishing, don’t do it too often though because it’s hard to find other people that want to go fishing with me. So I usually go fishing with my Dad, he's the one that got me into it when I was little. Used to take me out on a small boat to go fishing on the lake during the summer.” “And of course, you’ve got my art. Don’t draw for fun quite as much as I used to, but I still find time here and there.” [["'What kind of music do you like?'"|Holly Hobbies Question Music]] [["'Does your Dad still take you fishing?'"|Holly Hobbies Question Fishing]] [['How come you don't draw for fun anymore?'|Holly Hobbies Question Art]] [['Cool, let's talk about something else'|Holly Questions Hub]] <<else>> You ask Holly some more questions about her hobbies: [["'What kind of music do you like?'"|Holly Hobbies Question Music]] [["'Does your Dad still take you fishing?'"|Holly Hobbies Question Fishing]] [['How come you don't draw for fun anymore?'|Holly Hobbies Question Art]] [['Let's talk about another topic'|Holly Questions Hub]] <<endif>>

//'What kind of music do you like?'// <<set $holly_hobby_question_asked to true>> “Rock and metal mostly. I like a few modern rock acts, but most of what I listen to his from the 80s and 90s. Guess you couldn't quite call it Dad rock but it's pretty close. Most of the metal I listen to falls broadly under prog or thrash, of course what genre a metal band is considered varies a bit from person to person.” [[Ask another question about her hobbies|Holly Hobbies Question Start]]

<<set $holly_hobby_question_asked to true>> <<set $holly_date_points += 2>> //'Does your Dad still take you fishing?'// “Not so much anymore, he sold his boat years ago to help pay the bills. So if we do go fishing it’s usually either from a dock or in someone else’s boat. Plus, it’s hard to find a time that works for both of us, and I’m honestly not that keen on going back home. I like living on my own, ya know?” “The last time me and him went fishing was about a year and a half ago, went fishing on a boat one of his buddy’s owned. It was a fun time, especially since the guy had this really nice boat, way bigger than what my Dad used to own. Guy is loaded.” [["'Loaded, huh? Who exactly is he?'"|Holly Hobbies Question Fishing Guy]] [[Ask her another question about her hobbies|Holly Hobbies Question Start]]

<<set $holly_hobby_question_asked to true>> //'How come you don’t draw for fun anymore?// “Eh, ya know, when you start doing something as a job it kind of loses some of its magic. Or you get tired of it, burnt out. I haven’t burnt out yet, but I just don’t have the motivation to do art ‘just for fun’ when I know I’m going to be spending days where I’m doing nothing but drawing. It’s like being a taxi driver, you spend all day driving people around, you probably aren’t going to get off work and go for a drive, you just spent all day doing that.” <<continuelink '"I do worry about eventually getting burnt out though"'>> “I do worry about eventually getting burnt out though, I don’t really have a backup plan so I’d be screwed if I just lost all motivation to draw. It’s why I try not to overload myself. Sometimes I’ll even take a break for a week or two if I can afford it.” <<choice [[‘No backup plans? You mean there isn’t anything else you want to do?’|Holly Hobbies Question Art Plans]]>> <<choice [[‘I ended up quitting my job in part because of burn out, so I definitely hear you.’|Holly Hobbies Question Art Spherion]]>> <<choice [['Makes sense, let's talk about something else'|Holly Hobbies Question Start]]>>

<<set $holly_date_points += 4>> //‘No backup plans? You mean there isn’t anything else you want to do?'// “Not anything I could reasonably obtain. I’d love to be a theatre actor but that’s not going to happen at this point. Thought about animation but no, that’s not happening. Marketing didn’t really work out in college so that’s definitely out of the question. Thought about maybe becoming a nurse in high school, would be a nice job, could be out there helping people, making a difference. Kind of lost interest though, plus it would’ve been even more debt than a regular 4-year degree." [["'You losing interest seems to be a pretty regular thing.'"|Holly Hobbies Question Art Plans 2]] [["'Fair enough, let’s talk about something else.'"|Holly Hobbies Question Start]]

<<set $holly_date_points += 2>> <<set $ending_points += 2>> //‘I ended up quitting my job in part because of burn out, so I definitely hear you.’// “That’s right, you mentioned that back at the festival. Got tired of working at Spherion. So now you’re some sort of freelancer, pick your own work, make your own pay, sounds familiar.” “Honestly though for how much you were being paid at Spherion I think I would’ve just dealt with the burnout. Use that money to make yourself happy, spend it on your hobbies, go on vacations. That’s just me though, I wasn’t there so I can’t say how bad it really was.” [[Ask her another question|Holly Hobbies Question Start]]

<> <<set $ending_points += 2>> <<set $holly_date_points += 4>> <<set $holly_question_art_plans_2 to true>> //'You losing interest seems to be a pretty regular thing.'// <> “Agh, that is a common theme isn’t it? Me losing interest in things. Lost interest in marketing and college, lost interest in becoming a nurse, could end up losing interest in doing art… Guess I’m just too indecisive, just don’t know what I want to do.” “It worries me a little bit, like I said. But there’s nothing I can really do about it, I’ll keep riding this art wave until it either dies out or I burn out, and then take it from there.” [[Ask her another question|Holly Hobbies Question Start]]

<<if $holly_question_rt isnot true>> You decide to talk about your planned excursion across the country a bit. “That road trip you were talking about back at the festival? You’re still on about that?” She says in a surprised tone. <<continuelink "You tell Holly that, yes, you are still quite serious about your excursion.">>You tell Holly that, yes, you are still quite serious about your excursion. So serious, in fact, that you’ve already made financial arrangements. “Damn, you’re committed then. Honestly didn’t except you to take that guy on the bus so seriously, figured you were just messing around. Guess I should’ve known better with you.” Her interest piqued, having seen how serious you are about this whole ordeal. The next words out of her mouth are... [[“So, who’re you taking?”|Holly RT Question Who]] [[“When are you heading out?”|Holly RT Question When]] [[“Where do you plan on stopping along the way?”|Holly RT Question Where]] <<else>> The next words out of Holly's mouth are... [[“So, who’re you taking?”|Holly RT Question Who]] [[“When are you heading out?”|Holly RT Question When]] [[“Where do you plan on stopping along the way?”|Holly RT Question Where]] [['"Let\'s talk about something else"'|Holly Questions Hub]] <<endif>>

<> <<set $holly_date_points += 2>> <<set $holly_question_rt to true>> //"So, who're you taking?"// <> You tell Holly that you’re not quite sure who’s coming along yet, but you’re fairly confident you’ll be taking 2 or 3 passengers with you. You specify that both of your roommates have voiced their desires to tag along with you, so you’ll likely be taking both of them. <<switch $valery_ending>> <<case "ending four friends">> And while you won't tell Holly this, there’s also another friend you’ve thought of bringing along. But given recent events you’re not sure if it would be a good idea. “Guess you’d have room for at least one more, than. You know, //I’m available,// not like I have to get off work…” [[Holly gets ready to ask you another question...|Holly RT Question Start]] <<case "ending one normal" "ending two normal" "ending three normal" "ending one kiss" "ending two kiss">> Unbeknownst to Holly, you’ll probably end up deciding rather to take her or Valery along. Of course, that’s if you don’t let her know about your fling with Valery. Once you tell her that she might walk out. “That last slot better go to me, $name. I need a break and getting to spend a few weeks away with you would be a dream come true.” [[Holly gets ready to ask you another question...|Holly RT Question Start]] <<default>> You tell Holly you’ll also give heavy consideration to bringing her along, so along as she wants to. “You better, $name. No reason for me not to go, I get a break from drawing and get to spend time with you, I see no downside.” [[Holly gets ready to ask you another question...|Holly RT Question Start]] <</switch>>

<> <<set $holly_question_rt to true>> //“When are you heading out?”// <> You tell Holly probably sometime in the next 2 – 3 weeks. Depending on how much you get done and how much notice some of your passengers might need. “Making pretty good time, less then 2 months from coming up with the plan and you’re about ready to head off.” [[Holly gets ready to ask you another question|Holly RT Question Start]]

<> <<set $holly_date_points += 2>> <<set $holly_question_rt to true>> //“Where do you plan on stopping along the way?”// <> You say that you’re not quite sure yet, you’ve got a handful of places you want to checkout but nothing’s been set in stone. Where you stop will probably depend on who tags along, since they’ll get a say on where you stop. <<continuelink '"Ohh,"'>>“Ohh, I’d love to stop at one of the national parks. Especially in the northwest region, there’s some real great scenery up there.” You tell Holly you’ll keep that in mind if she ends up tagging along. [[Holly seems like she wants to ask about something else|Holly RT Question Start]]

//Curious if Holly lives on her own or has roommates like you, you ask what her current living situation is.// “Currently? I’m on my own. Live in a one-bedroom apartment about 15-20 minutes east of here. Decent place, pretty much the best I can afford with my current job.” [[‘Currently, huh? You move recently or something?’|Holly Living Question Current]] [[‘Sounds quaint. Let's talk about something else.’|Holly Questions Hub]]

//‘Currently, huh? You move recently or something?’// “A while ago, yeah. Used to live with someone else, but we had some differences, didn’t really work out anymore. Once I started getting more money from my art commissions, I looked into getting my own place; it’s worked out pretty well for me. Sometimes I miss not having a roommate, miss having somebody talk to. But the amount of freedom it’s given me and the amount of stress that’s been lifted is worth the tradeoff.” <<choice [[‘What kind of differences? Just different schedules, not paying rent, not doing their part, or…?’|Holly Living Question Detailed]]>> <<choice [[‘Fair enough. Roommates can be really hit or miss; I’ve been really lucky in that regard with Sasha and Jacob. They’re great friends and great roommates.’|Holly Living Question Roommates]]>>

//‘What kind of differences? Just different schedules, not paying rent, not doing their part, or…?’// <<if $holly_date_points < 8>> <<set $holly_living_question to true>> “Couple different things, personal stuff mostly. I won’t go into it, it’s a whole big thing.” Holly states in a somewhat dismissive tone, seems she just doesn’t want to talk about it. [[You change the subject and ask Holly another question.|Holly Questions Hub]] <<elseif $holly_date_points >= 8>> Holly lets out a sigh before starting to detail the issues. “Ugh, where to begin…" “There were some other more personal reasons, kind of hard to explain it without giving you the full story, so… <<continuelink "here we go.">>here we go." "I drop out of college in 2016, you already know that story. Went from living on-campus to scrambling to find an apartment to rent since I really didn’t want to go back home. As you might imagine, a college drop-out with no job isn’t exactly an appealing tenant for landlords, so my options were very limited.” <<continuelink "'Naturally.'">>'Naturally.' You reply to Holly. “Indeed. One of my options was to room with this person named Alex, I met them in one of the clubs I participated in. They seemed pretty nice, we’d hung out quite a bit before and I felt like we’d get along just fine as roommates.” <<continuelink "'Of course, it didn't end up working out that way, did it?'">>'Of course, it didn't end up working out that way, did it?' “Oh no, of course not. What a foolish thought that was... Just because someone is nice to hang out with doesn't mean they’ll be a good roommate. Hell, it doesn’t even mean they’re a good person, some people are just really charismatic, makes it easy to talk to them, to agree with them. And easy for them to manipulate you. That was Alex.” “My first mistake throughout this whole process was not signing a separate lease. I just moved into the apartment and paid Alex half of the rent and paid a few of the utilities. Nothing was ever signed with the rental agency. Huge mistake, but I was desperate at the time, I didn’t care I just wanted someplace to live.” “I moved in a few weeks after dropping out, figured me and Alex would get along pretty good. Hah, if only.” “I realized as soon as I moved in that Alex was an absolute slob. Clothes were strung everywhere, dishes piling up in the sink, stains all over the carpet and furniture… I knew I was in for a wild ride right there and then. I’m no neat freak but I don’t like living in a disaster area either. I want things to be at least a little neat and organized.” <<continuelink "'I have a feeling it gets worse'">>'I have a feeling it gets worse' “Of course it does, because I don’t get to have nice things.” “At first, I made attempts to clean up the apartment. But It was just too much, for everything I cleaned up there was another thing that Alex made a mess of. It was like picking up after a kid, it was ridiculous.” “But the messiness was only the start, that alone didn’t make me want to move out, no. Rent was cheap, so I just kept my room clean and dealt with it.” <<continuelink '"It was Alex themselves that made me want to get out of there."'>>"It was Alex themselves that made me want to get out of there. It started with Alex stating that I wasn’t paying enough money for my half of the rent, I was paying $300 and he said I needed to be paying $350. This happened after my first month there. I never actually saw the lease myself so I could never confirm what the actual monthly payment for the apartment was. Again, that was a huge mistake." “But I took their word for it, figured I must’ve misheard Alex when I asked how much rent was originally. I trusted that they weren’t trying to screw me over, that was another mistake.” <<continuelink "'I have a feeling I know where this is going…'">>'I have a feeling I know where this is going…' “You’re probably right, wait a minute and we’ll see.” “Anyway, it was only a $50 difference, it’s not like I was paying $300 and Alex was saying I should be paying $500, right? So, it seemed legit. I thought Alex was pretty trustworthy, never had any problems with them up to this point.” “I paid the extra $50, no problem. Did it for 3 months until I found out rent was only $300; like I originally thought. Alex let it slip when we were talking one night, said something about rent only being $600. //Fucking got you,// you liar.” “I’ve been paying this damn rat an extra $50 every month. And they sure weren’t using that extra $50 on rent because I’d come back from work some nights and there would be late payment notices on the door. I paid my half every month to Alex, right on time. There was no reason for them to be missing payments.” <<continuelink "'So they pocketed the extra $50 every month?'">>'So they pocketed the extra $50 every month?' “You could say that, yes. Before this whole thing came up, I had my suspicions that they might’ve have had a thing for cocaine. You hear things, notice things. They had the classic coke nail, sometimes I would find a bit of white powder on the counters, had that classic sniffle. Never caught them doing it though, nor did I ever find any actual concrete evidence.” “Once the late payment notices started showing up I was almost certain that’s what was going on. But I didn’t confront Alex about, didn’t want to get kicked out and left on the street. Keep in mind that this is all happening while I was still working full-time, my art gig wasn’t on nearly the same level as it is now. I just couldn’t afford to live on my own.” <<continuelink "'I'm sure after learning about the rent you let them have it though'">>'I'm sure after learning about the rent you let them have it though' you say with a smirk on your face. “//ohh yes,// that night I let Alex have it. I started yelling at ‘em about missing rent payments to buy more blow, yelled at them for lying to me about the rent, for manipulating me so they could buy more coke. I should’ve just walked out that night, stayed at a friend’s house for the night, or got a hotel. But I didn’t. Because I knew I would never be able to afford an apartment here by myself.” “I stayed for two months after that. I tried to minimize my interactions with Alex as much as I could, basically just gave them my half of the rent and that’s it. I was constantly looking for an opportunity to move out though. But again, I couldn’t afford it. $600 for a one-bedroom apartment is rough when you’re making $11 an hour.” “Thankfully, my art gig was starting to pick up around this time, and that combined with working full-time meant I could just barely afford to move out into my own apartment. Finally, this hell would be over.” <<continuelink "'How bad were those last two months there?'">>'How bad were those last two months there?' “They were rough, I was walking on eggshells when it came to Alex, like I said I avoided them as much as I could and tried to avoid any kind of conflict.” “But it was still stressful. Living with somebody you don’t like is one of the most miserable experiences. Usually, you think of home as being a place to relax, a place to forget about the stresses of work and life. Not when you have someone like Alex living with you. With them, getting home is even more hellish than being at work." "I left after 6 months of staying there, and what a relief that was. Moved into my current apartment and I’ve never been so happy. I’ll never have a roommate ever again, not after Alex." "They manipulated me and took advantage of me, they made my life a living hell for 6 months." <<continuelink "'Wow, what a story.'">>'Wow, what a story. I’ve read some real roommate horror stories online, but I’ve never known someone that actually went through that kind of thing.' “Hey, one of those stories could’ve been mine. I posted about Alex online a couple of times, just needed somewhere to vent.” “But yeah, it really was a horror story. Taught me a real lesson about trusting people though. It doesn’t matter how trustworthy, charismatic or friendly someone seems to be, you can't trust them. There’s a lot of people out there just looking to take advantage of you for their own gain, ya know?” <> <<set $holly_date_points += 10>> <<set $holly_living_detailed to true>> <<set $ending_points += 6>> <> [[“Anyway, that was a long rant. Let’s change up the subject a bit.”|Holly Questions Hub]] <<endif>>

//‘Fair enough. Roommates can be really hit or miss; I’ve been really lucky in that regard with Sasha and Jacob. They’re great friends and great roommates.’// “Yeah and with there being three of you, rent has got to be pretty cheap. That’s a big advantage of having roommates.” <<set $holly_living_question to true>> [[“Anyway, that’s enough about apartments and rent, let’s talk about something else.”|Holly Questions Hub]]

You've spent quite a bit of time talking to Holly, at least an hour. Despite that it seems your food still isn’t ready, seems the service here is quite slow today. “If I see our waitress I’ll ask her what’s taking so long” Holly says. <<continuelink "Sure enough she flags down the waitress and politely but firmly askes why it's taking so long for the food to arrive">>Sure enough she flags down the waitress and politely but firmly askes why it's taking so long for the food to arrive. “We had a bit of an accident in the kitchen, some plates got dropped on their way out so we had to remake them. Shouldn’t be much longer.” The waitress states before quickly leaving the table. <<continuelink '"Guess that’s understandable, not like I’m in a hurry to leave, right?"'>>"Guess that’s understandable, not like I’m in a hurry to leave, right? It also gives me some more time to talk." <<if $holly_date_points <= 4>> "I'm gonna be upfront with you, no beating around the bush. I have been a little underwhelmed today. I was hoping to recapture that feeling we had at the festival and I don’t know about you, but I’m just not feeling it." “I’m not going to storm off or anything, I mean it hasn’t been unpleasant, it’s just been a bit… boring? I guess.” “We’ll talk about it a bit more after dinner, but it’s something to think about.” [[Shortly after Holly says that, your food finally arrives, only took them 45 minutes|Holly Date Food]] <<elseif $holly_date_points <= 8>> "You know, I’m glad I decided to give you my phone number before we left the festival. Else I wouldn’t have been able to go on this fantastic date with you. I’ll admit that I was a little worried it wasn’t going to work out, we hadn’t seen each other in how many years, maybe our thing at the festival was just a fluke, but hey, guess I was wrong.” <<continuelink '"The circumstances of us meeting is pretty crazy when you think about through."'>>"The circumstances of us meeting is pretty crazy when you think about through. High school friends hook up after 5 years of not see each other, //2 hours away from their hometown.// What are the odds of that happening?” <<continuelink '"Anyway, just wanted to get that off my chest."'>> “Anyway, just wanted to get that off my chest. Crazy how what seems to be an insignificant choice, such as choosing to go to that festival, ended up having such a big impact on my life. Makes me wonder what other opportunities I might’ve missed.” [[After Holly details her thoughts about meeting up with you after 5 years, your food finally seems to be arriving. Took them long enough.|Holly Date Food]] <<elseif $holly_date_points >= 10 and $cafe_holly_talked is true>> "Let me tell you, when you came up and talked to me back at Torie’s I never would’ve thought we’d end up here, dating. I mean, we got along well in high school, and I… might’ve had a crush on you, for a little bit, but I got over it. Or at least I thought I did.” “But we never dated, we never really talked about it. We were just really good friends, ya know? We had great chemistry, but still, just friends. We went through love interests, dated different people, eventually went off to different universities.” <<continuelink '"And after all those different relationships, all that time, we meet up again at some lame festival and it just… clicks."'>> "And after all those different relationships, all that time, we meet up again at some lame festival and it just… clicks. It took that many years for us to really… click with each other this way." “I’m not superstitious or even that religious, but you have to think about it… It’s almost like we’re drawn to each other, you know? Call it whatever you want, chance, destiny, some outside force controlling us, it’s like we were meant to meet that day, for all of this to happen.” “I don’t know, maybe I’m just talking crazy, but it’s something to think about. High school friends hook up after 5 years of not see each other, //2 hours away from their hometown,// what the odds of that happening?” <<continuelink '"Anyway, just wanted to get that off my chest."'>> “Anyway, just wanted to get that off my chest. Crazy how what seems to be an insignificant choice, such as choosing to go to that festival, ended up having such a big impact on my life. Makes me wonder what other opportunities I might’ve missed.” [[After Holly details her thoughts about meeting up with you after 5 years, your food finally seems to be arriving, took them long enough|Holly Date Food]] <<elseif $holly_date_points >= 10 and $cafe_holly_talked is not true>> “You know, when I saw you at the festival, I never would’ve thought we’d end up here, dating. I mean, we got along well in high school, and I… might’ve had a crush on you, for a little bit, but I got over it. Or at least I thought I did." “But we never dated, we never really talked about it. We were just really good friends, ya know? We had great chemistry, but still, just friends. We went through love interests, dated different people, eventually went off to different universities.” <<continuelink '"And after all those different relationships, all that time, we meet up again at some lame festival and it just… clicks."'>>"And after all those different relationships, all that time, we meet up again at some lame festival and it just… clicks. It took that many years for us to really… click with each other this way.” “I’m not superstitious or even that religious, but you have to think about it… It’s almost like we’re drawn to each other, you know? Call it whatever you want, chance, destiny, some outside force controlling us, it’s like we were meant to meet that day, for all of this to happen.” “I don’t know, maybe I’m just talking crazy, but it’s something to think about. High school friends hook up after 5 years of not seeing each other, //2 hours away from their hometown,// what are the odds of that happening?” <<continuelink '"Anyway, just wanted to get that off my chest."'>> “Anyway, just wanted to get that off my chest. Crazy how what seems like an insignificant choice, such as choosing to go to that festival, ended up having such a big impact on my life. Makes me wonder what other opportunities I might’ve missed.” [[After Holly details her thoughts about meeting up with you after 5 years, your food finally seems to be arriving, took them long enough.|Holly Date Food]] <<else>> You shouldn't see this, must mean I messed up the variables, or you're a cheater. Post it in a comment and I'll look into it. <<endif>>

You and Holly finish your meals after about 15 minutes, the two of you chit-chat a bit but eventually decide it's about time to head out. <<if $holly_date_points <= 4>> "Seems we've spent a little over an hour here, feels like it was longer. Weird." [["Anyway, I think we need to reevaluate our next steps."|Holly Date Bad Ending]] <<elseif $holly_date_points <= 8>> "Look at that, we've spent almost 2 hours here. Sure doesn't feel like it, does it?" “Ah that’s such a cheesy thing to say, feels like something my Dad would say. But it’s true, can’t believe we’ve been here for nearly 2 whole hours.” [["So, what do you say? Think today went pretty good?"|Holly Normal Ending]] <<elseif $holly_date_points >= 10>> "Look at that, we've spent over 2 hours here. Sure doesn't feel like it, does it?" “Ah, that’s such a cheesy saying. Feels like something my Dad would say. But it’s true, can’t believe we’ve been here for over 2 whole hours.” [["So, what do you say? Today live up to your expectations?"|Holly Good Ending]] <<endif>>

//"Seems we've spent a little over an hour here, feels like it was longer. Weird."// "Anyway, $name, I think we need to reevaluate our next steps. I mentioned it a bit ago but I wasn’t really feeling this date like I did the first one back at the festival. I… was a little afraid of this back when I gave you my number. I felt like maybe we were taking things a little too fast; going from seeing you for the first time in 5 years to basically dating, when we never really had any sort of romantic history. Seemed like maybe we didn’t get a good chance to really reconnect with each other, see if dating is something that would actually work out. Just sort of went with the flow I guess.” <<continuelink '"Now I’m feeling like I was right in assuming that."'>> "Now I’m feeling like I was right in assuming that. It just felt like we weren’t connecting today in the way I was expecting. Sitting down for lunch with you today felt more like getting a quick bite to eat with a friend. It was alright, got to talk a bit, but that’s about it. It didn’t feel like a date, you know?” “So, I think I’m going to call it here. I don’t think this is going to workout. I think we’re best off just being friends, like we were before.” “It’s not really either of our fault, we just didn’t connect romantically, and that’s okay. We’ve been friends for how long already, we’ll just keep being friends. If that’s what you want, of course.” <<choice [['I felt the same way, Holly. It’ll definitely be best for both of us if we just stay friends.'|Holly Date Bad Ending Friends]]>> <<choice [['I understand what you mean but I don’t know if I can even see us being friends anymore, it’s just been too long.'|Holly Date Bad Ending Cutoff]]>>

//'I felt the same way, Holly. It’ll definitely be best for both of us if we just stay friends.'// <> <<set $holly_date_ending to "bad ending friends">> <<set $holly_date_completed to true>> <<set $ending_points += 2>> <> “I knew you’d understand, $name. Even though our relationship didn’t go anywhere at least we got to know each other a bit better through these two little dates. Maybe we can get lunch some other time, talk about what’s been going on, stuff like that.” "But for now, we’ve already got the bill taken care of, <<continuelink '"guess we can just head out."'>>guess we can just head out." You and Holly get up from the table and head outside, getting ready to say your goodbyes. “Well, today didn’t go quite how I expected but I think it worked out alright.” Holly says before walking over to you to give you a goodbye hug. <<continuelink "You hug Holly goodbye">> You hug Holly goodbye and tell her you’ll be in touch, you don’t plan on going another 5 years before seeing her again. “Better not be another 5 years! No excuses now, you’ve got my phone number and we only live 20 minutes away.” Holly says as she walks off, waving to you as she walks to her car. [[You walk and head back to your car as well|Holly Date Transition]]

//'I understand what you mean but I don’t know if I can even see us being friends anymore, it’s just been too long.'// <> <<set $holly_date_ending to "bad ending cutoff">> <<set $holly_date_completed to true>> <<set $ending_points -= 4>> <> "I get it, 100%. It's been half a decade since we last talked, we've changed a lot since then. We're in completely different stages of our life now, honestly might as well be two completely different people." “Well, I suppose I’ll take my leave now. Bills already been taken care of, so… See ya. Best of luck on your road trip and on your freelance work.” You thank Holly for the words of encouragement and wave goodbye before [[getting up and heading back to your car|Holly Date Transition]]

<<switch $holly_date_ending>> <<case "bad ending friends">> You arrive home after a 15-minute drive from Kit’s Tavern. Spending the rest of the night completing your Civ playthrough and planning the road trip. With the date taken care of you can focus your full attention to your road trip planning. After finishing your Civ playthrough [[you go to bed at around 1 AM.|Chapter 3 Road Trip Planning Passengers]] Tomorrow it’s time to start working on the final plans for the road trip. <<case "bad ending cutoff">> You arrive home after a 15-minute drive from Kit’s Tavern. Spending the rest of the night completing your Civ playthrough and planning the road trip. With the date taken care of you can focus your full attention to your road trip planning. And with Holly out of the picture that means no one less person to worry about bringing. After finishing your Civ playthrough [[you go to bed at around 1 AM.|Chapter 3 Road Trip Planning Passengers]] Tomorrow it’s time to start working on the final plans for the road trip. <<case "cheat ending">> You drive home and arrive after a 15-minute drive. Still reeling from the consequences of your date today, you spent the rest of the night just relaxing in your room. After a few hours of browsing your phone while lying in bed, you put the phone down and go to bed at a fairly early time of 10 PM. You just want this day to be over with already. As you close your eyes and try to fall asleep you think about maybe working on the final plans for the road trip tomorrow. Perhaps that’ll help keep your mind off of what happened today. [[For now though, it’s time to rest.|Chapter 3 Road Trip Planning Passengers]] <<case "normal ending" "good ending normal">> After getting in your car and driving home you decide to take the rest of the night and just relax bit. You had a pretty busy and exciting evening, some time to chill should be nice. Spending the rest of the night messing around on your phone, you decide to go to bed a bit early, at 10 PM. While lying in bed trying to fall asleep, you think about maybe working out the final plans for your road trip tomorrow. Not like you’ll have anything else to do. [[For now though, it’s time to rest.|Chapter 3 Road Trip Planning Passengers]] <<case "true ending">> A fantastic time is now at an end. You get into your car shortly after Holly and drive home for the night, coming away from your date with Holly feeling a little bit better about yourself. And with a lot more ideas running through your head. Most are related to Holly, but as you exit your car and head into the house you think about possibly drafting your final plans for the road trip tomorrow. There’s not much else on your schedule with Holly’s date out of the way, so you see no reason not to. But that’s tomorrow, tonight you think you’ll just kick back and relax a bit, maybe reflect a bit on where your relationship with Holly is going. That’ll probably keep you distracted for a bit. [[And before you know it, it’ll be morning.|Chapter 3 Road Trip Planning Passengers]] <</switch>>

//"So, what do you say, $name? Think today went pretty good?"// You tell Holly that today was indeed pretty good. You got know a bit more about her hobbies, about her time in college. Overall it was a pretty nice date, you think. “I think it went pretty well too, couple things we didn’t really get into but it isn’t a huge deal. Maybe we’ll get into 'em some other time. Maybe on another date? Or just hanging out, whatever suits you.” <<continuelink '"That said,"'>>"That said, I think it’s about time we leave this place. Bill’s already taken care of, I’m ready to take off if you are." <> <<switch $valery_ending>> <<case "ending two kiss" "ending one kiss" "ending two normal" "ending one normal" "ending three normal">> A sudden thought enters your mind, you never told Holly about what happened with Valery yesterday. Perhaps you should tell her about it, it likely won't go over well, but the sooner you tell her about it the better. <<choice [['There's one thing I think you should know before we leave.'|Holly Cheat Ending]]>> <</switch>> <> [['Sure thing, let's get out of here|Holly Normal Ending Leaving]]

//"So, what do you say, $name? Today live up to your exceptations?"// You tell Holly that your expectations were more than met. You got to know a lot more about her, and learned a bit more about what went on during that 5 year gap of not seeing her. <<if $holly_living_detailed is true>> “We did go pretty deep into those details, didn’t we? Talked about the whole Alex story, that was probably the most eventful thing that went on in those 5 years. I don’t know if anything else can really compare to that!” “Ah, but there’s a couple things, we’ll have to talk about them sometime. Maybe on a date, just hanging out, whatever. Maybe even talk about it on that road trip. <<else>> “Yeah we talked about that 5 year time gap a bit, couple things we didn’t really get into but it isn’t a huge deal. Maybe we’ll get into it some other time. Maybe on another date? Or just hanging out, whatever suits you.” <<endif>> "That said, I think it’s about time we leave this date. Bill’s already taken care of, I’m ready to take off if you are." <> <<switch $valery_ending>> <<case "ending two kiss" "ending one kiss" "ending two normal" "ending one normal" "ending three normal">> A sudden thought enters your mind, you never told Holly about what happened with Valery yesterday. Perhaps you should tell her about it, it likely won't go over well, but the sooner you tell her about it the better. <<choice [['There's one thing I think you should know before we leave.'|Holly Cheat Ending]]>> <</switch>> <> <<if $holly_living_detailed isnot true>> <<choice [['Yup, let's get out of here.'|Holly Good Ending Normal]]>> <<endif>> <<if $holly_living_detailed is true>> <<choice[['I'm ready, let's get out of here.'|Holly Ending True]]>> <<endif>>

<<set $holly_date_ending to "cheat ending">> <<set $holly_date_completed to true>> <<set $ending_points -= 12>> //'There's one thing I think you should know before we leave.'// "Really, what would that be?" You knew getting romantically involved with Valery while dating Holly would be a mistake, you’ve gotten yourself into a right mess. For Holly’s sake, you’ve decided to be upfront with her about the current situation. She’ll probably end up leaving you, but she doesn’t deserve to be thrown through a loop, you’re just going to be honest with her. <<continuelink "You go on to tell Holly that you might’ve messed up yesterday.">>You go on to tell Holly that you might’ve messed up yesterday. You tell her about Valery and how what seemed to be an innocent day out for lunch with a friend turned into a relationship. She seems to think you’re joking at first, her face is one of surprise and amusement. <<continuelink "You stay quiet for a few moments.">>You stay quiet for a few moments. For Holly, it slowly starts to sink in that you’re not joking… You’re serious. <<continuelink '"You’re not kidding, are you?"'>>"You’re not kidding, are you? You hooked up with some random guy you found wandering the streets of your neighborhood. And went out with them one day before our date... Seriously? And you’re just now telling me this?" “Wow, I… thought I had you figured better than that. I always saw you as a really loyal person, someone I could trust.” Holly is visibly upset at this revolution, her face is red, with her paw covering her mouth <<continuelink "she removes it for a moment to talk to you again.">>she removes it for a moment to talk to you again. “I’m… going to leave now. The less time I spent around you the better it’ll be for both of us.” She says with visible distress in her voice, you doubt you’ll be hearing from her ever again. You sit at the table thinking over your decisions for a moment. [[Eventually, you get get up from the table and go back to your car.|Holly Date Transition]]

<> <<set $ending_points += 6>> <<set $holly_date_ending to "good ending normal">> <<set $holly_date_completed to true>> <> //'Yup, let's get out of here.'// You and Holly get up from the table and head out to the parking lot. You stop shortly after getting outside to say your goodbyes to Holly. "Such a shame to say goodbye. We should set something else up soon, another date, that road trip you're always talking about, I don't care. Just something." You agree with Holly, given how soon you plan on leaving for the road trip that'll likely be your best bet. <<continuelink "As you get ready to depart you walk over to Holly and give her a hug.">>As you get ready to depart you walk over to Holly and give her a hug. The two of you take in the moment, for a couple of seconds, the world stands still. As you leave Holly's warm embrace, she sneaks in a quick kiss on your cheek. "I'll see ya later, maybe we can get together a bit sooner next time, this was a bit //too long// to wait." Holly says before walking away and heaidng back to her car. [[You head back to your car shortly after as well|Holly Date Transition]]

<> <<set $ending_points += 8>> <<set $holly_date_ending to "true ending">> <<set $holly_date_completed to true>> <> //'I'm ready, let's get out of here.'// You and Holly get up from the table and head out to the parking lot. You both stop shortly after leaving the building, getting ready to say your goodbyes. "Oh wow, Sun's already starting to set. Didn't think we'd end up being here this long. Guess it all worked out in the end, dinner taking so long to arrive gave us some more time to talk." "Today's been pretty nice, glad we got to talk about my time living with Alex. That whole situation has been weighing on my mind a lot recently. I never really got to talk about it, you know? I was too embarrassed to mention it to anyone because I felt like they would think less of me. I knew you'd understand though, you've always been my go-to person when it comes to talking about this kind of stuff, and I really appreciate that." <<continuelink '"Well that’s enough delaying I guess."'>>"Well that’s enough delaying I guess. It doesn’t matter how much I talk we’re still going to have to leave eventually." Holly says with a somewhat disappointed tone to her voice. You walk over to hug Holly before saying goodbye like you usually do. The two of you embrace for a few seconds, your arms wrapped around each other, just enjoying the moment. As you leave her embrace, Holly sneaks in a kiss on your cheek. You both blush, with Holly slyly remarking “Maybe next time we’ll go a bit further than that, maybe.”. You’re not quite sure what to think of that, but your heart is racing like you just ran a marathon, and your stomach is in more knots than, well, you know. <<continuelink '"Hopefully I’ll be seeing you soon, $name."'>>"Hopefully I’ll be seeing you soon, $name. I expect to hear from you about that road trip, if I don’t there’s going to be trouble." She states with a joking, yet somewhat serious tone. Holly walks back to her car after saying goodbye, you take a second to regain your composure before [[heading back to your car as well|Holly Date Transition]]

//'Sure thing, let's get out of here'// You and Holly get up from the table and head out to the parking lot. You stop shortly after getting outside to say your goodbyes to Holly. "We should set something else up soon, another date, that road trip you're always talking about, I don't care. Just something. Not like I'm that busy, you say the time and a location and I can be there." You agree with Holly, the road trip will likely be your best bet when it comes to spending time with Holly, given how soon you plan on leaving. <<continuelink "As you get ready to depart you walk over to Holly and give her a hug.">>As you get ready to depart you walk over to Holly and give her a hug. The two of you take in the moment, for a couple of seconds, the world stands still. As you leave Holly's warm embrace, she sneaks in a quick kiss on your cheek. "I'll see ya later, like I said, let's set something else up soon." Holly says before walking away and heaidng back to her car. <<set $holly_date_ending to "normal ending">> <<set $holly_date_completed to true>> <<set $ending_points +=4>> [[You head back to your car shortly after as well|Holly Date Transition]]

<<link "Skip Song">><<set $controls to true>><<script>>setup.audioControls(); <</script>><</link>>

You decide to just do your own thing and order some food. The line moves quick and before you know it’s your turn to order. You order your usual combo; a tuna wrap with a bag of chips and a drink. Not a bad deal for $4! <<continuelink "Look for a table to sit at">> You sit down at a table after grabbing your food, nothing much happens while eating. The friend you saw leaves soon after you get your food, having seemingly no idea you were here. <> <<set $cafe_no_holly to true>> <<set $cafe_completed to true>> <<set $ending_points -= 4>> <> You finish up your meal and throw your trash away before hopping on the bus to go [[back home for the day.|Your Bedroom]]

//You follow Holly inside the restaurant, luckily there’s no line so you get seated right away.// The interior of Kit's sticks with the rough, rustic theme of the outside. The same brick dons the walls and is dimly lit by old fashioned lights. The floor is old wood paneling, a lighter color than what you would normally see today. Probably worn down from the years of foot traffic. You get seated at a typical booth made for two. Nothing too fancy or out of the ordinary. <<continuelink "The waitress hands you the menus">>The waitress hands you the menus and takes your drinks. “So, you been here before? Any recommendations?” Holly askes you. <<continuelink "You tell her that you recommend any of their burgers.">>You tell Holly that you recommend any of their burgers. They’re the best you can find in town. "Good to know. Probably be what I end up getting. It has been a while since I’ve had a good burger." “Actually it’s been awhile since I’ve gone out to eat at all, think the last time was.. eh.. a month ago, maybe? Just haven’t had the opportunity, ya know?” You continue to look over the menu and decide to go with a classic cheeseburger. Can’t go wrong with that! “Yeah, think I’ll get a burger, not really feeling anything else on here.” <<continuelink "The waitress arrives a few minutes after you decide on what to eat">>The waitress arrives a few minutes after you decide on what to eat, you order the cheeseburger and Holly orders a mushroom burger. “Thank you kindly! Let me know if you need anything else” the waitress says before leaving the table. “Alright. Well, we’ve already talked quite a bit already back at that festival. Feel like we’ve got up to speed pretty well for not seeing each other in, what was it… 5 years? Guess that just speaks to our chemistry.” “I have been wondering one thing… What made you end up here in Iridium City? Besides the job offer from Spherion, of course. That was a nice job, but let’s be honest, in your field jobs like that aren’t exactly hard to come by.” <<continuelink "You tell Holly that,">>You tell Holly that you've actually been living in Iridium City since before the Spherion job. You, Sasha, and Jacob have been renting an apartment here since junior year of college. The three of you all got jobs in the metro area after graduating which meant nobody had to move. “So one of the reasons you took that Spherion job was to try to keep things as simple as possible, I feel it. I myself came here for the cheap cost of living here, can’t exactly afford to pay $700 minimum on rent like in some other cities when you’re working a minimum wage job.” “Was also a nice change from living in rural areas my whole life, still on the lake but the demographics and feel here are just a //bit// different from my college town and our hometown, as I’m sure you’ve noticed.” <<continuelink '"Speaking of our old hometown"'>>“Speaking of our old hometown, have you run into anyone else from High School recently? It’s been ages since I’ve talked to Joel or Amy. I remember we used to hangout all the time, just the 4 of us. Tried to get into all the same classes, we’d walk home after school. And then we went on that trip to King’s Point when you and I were Sophomores in College. That was around the last time I talked to them.” <<continuelink "You tell Holly that, nope, you haven’t seen anyone from High School since moving out here.">>You tell Holly that, nope, you haven’t seen anyone from High School since moving out here. Holly’s actually the only person from your hometown you’ve run into since moving out here. Probably not a huge surprise considering how small your hometown is. And truth be told the only people you’d actually care to run into again would be Joel and Amy, like Holly said. "Guess that’s not too surprising, depressing as it is most of our graduating class probably hasn’t even left Sprucetown. Our high school was not exactly the best at preparing people for college, nor is our hometown known for being that well developed. Think most people just went straight from high school to working somewhere in town, not that there’s anything wrong with that. It’s just that some of them probably went straight to work so they could support a certain habit, not because they saw it as their best option." “It’s none of my business though, just find it sad to see people throw away their futures like that. Seems like such a waste of talent.” [[“Anyway, let’s try and move to a more upbeat topic. You got any questions for me?”|Holly Questions Hub]]

It’s 10 AM on a late Spring day. Overcast fills the skies as a light wind off the lake keeps things chilly. The trees are full of leaves and the grass is the greenest it will be all year. You’ve just gotten dressed for the day and plan on finishing the plans for your road trip. Time to sit down at your desk and get to work. Having previously figured out the financial side of things, your final steps now are to choose who’s coming along and where you’re stopping. In that order. <<continuelink "At minimum you’ll be having Sasha and Jacob tag along. ">> At minimum you’ll be having Sasha and Jacob tag along. They both seemed pretty interested in coming along, plus it’ll be nice to just hang out and talk with them. It’s been a minute since the three of you have had time to do that. <<continuelink "Now you just have to figure out what you’re going to do with the final passenger spot.">>Now you just have to figure out what you’re going to do with the final passenger spot. <<switch $holly_date_ending>> <<case "good ending normal" or "true ending" or "normal ending">> <<if $valery_dating is true>> You have a bit of a complicated situation given that you’re simultaneously dating Holly and Valery. Perhaps not the best idea, you think. You can’t keep this going on forever, and now another chance presents itself to break it off with one of them. You could bring either Holly or Valery along, and break up with whoever you decide against. Of course, you could also just ignore this whole situation and go with just Sasha and Jacob, who knows how that’ll play out though. You sit at your desk a moment thinking it over, going over all the possibilities. You eventually come to a decision; you are: <<choice [[Just going with Sasha and Jacob.|Chapter 3 Road Trip Planning Default]]>> <<choice [[Bringing Holly along|Chapter 3 Road Trip Planning Holly]]>> <<choice [[Bringing Valery along|Chapter 3 Road Trip Planning Valery]]>> <<elseif $valery_dating is not true>> You think about maybe bringing along Holly, given what she said during the date you feel like she would really like to come along. But of course, you could always ditch her and go with just Sasha and Jacob. You doubt she’ll be very appreciative of you leaving her out, might even go as far as breaking up with you. But ultimately, it is your call. You sit at your desk a moment thinking it over, going over all the possibilities. You eventually come to a decision; you are: <<choice [[Just going with Sasha and Jacob.|Chapter 3 Road Trip Planning Default]]>> <<choice [[Bringing Holly along|Chapter 3 Road Trip Planning Holly]]>> <<endif>> <<default>> <<if $valery_dating is true>> You think about maybe asking Valery to be your final passenger. He seemed somewhat interested in trekking across the country with you. You wouldn’t say he was enthusiastic about it, but if you asked him to tag along, he’d probably say yes. You sit at your desk a moment thinking it over, going over all the possibilities. You eventually come to a decision; you are: <<choice [[Just going with Sasha and Jacob.|Chapter 3 Road Trip Planning Default]]>> <<choice [[Bringing Valery along|Chapter 3 Road Trip Planning Valery]]>> <<else>> You sit at your desk a moment thinking it over, going over all the possibilities. You eventually come to a decision; you are: <<choice [[Just going with Sasha and Jacob.|Chapter 3 Road Trip Planning Default]]>> <<endif>> <</switch>>

<<set $holly_road_trip to true>> <<set $holly_dating to true>> You decide to bring along Holly. You see no reason why you shouldn’t, she was obviously interested in joining you yesterday, plus it’ll be a good test for your relationship. Now, for the final step; ==freedom.== [[figuring out where you want to stop.|Chapter 3 Road Trip Stops]]

<<set $valery_road_trip to true>> You decide to bring Valery along for the road trip, if he accepts, of course. He wasn’t overly enthused about coming along but you think the alure of spending a week with you will be enough to sway him. Now, for the final step; ==freedom.== [[figuring out where you want to stop.|Chapter 3 Road Trip Stops]]

<<set $default_road_trip to true>> You decide to just have Sasha and Jacob tag along, no reason to bring anyone else along, you feel. <> <<if $holly_dating is true and $valery_dating is true>> <<set $ending_points -= 16>> <<set $true_ending to false>> <<set $cheater to true>> <<endif>> <> Now, for the final step; ==freedom.== [[figuring out where you want to stop.|Chapter 3 Road Trip Stops]]

Given that you’re only going to be gone for around a week you’ll have to limit the places you’re visiting, around 5 or 6 places should be a good amount. <<continuelink "You bring up the list you’ve written from suggestions given by Chris, Jacob, and Sasha.">>You bring up the list you’ve written from suggestions given by Chris, Jacob, and Sasha. Looking through the list you’ve complied you think your first stop will be Chicago. It’s pretty much the only major city you’ll be driving through, and you can get there in around 5 hours. Meaning you could check it out for the day and then be back on the road that night. It should be a nice first stop. <<continuelink "Combing through the mass amounts of information,">>Combing through the mass amounts of information, you think you’ve found a second place to check out; Devil’s Lake State Park up In Wisconsin. You don’t know about staying the whole day there, but looking at the pictures online there seems to be some nice scenery you could check out. It’s right off the highway too, so it should be easy to just drop in and check it out along the way. <<continuelink "The third stop was one you came up with yourself; the Mall of America in Minneapolis.">>The third stop was one you came up with yourself; the Mall of America in Minneapolis. Again, maybe not a place you want to stay the whole day at, but it’s worth checking out while you’re driving through. Everyone will probably need a break by the time you get to Minneapolis as well. It could be a good opportunity to rest up before heading into some of the more rural areas. <<continuelink "The fourth stop you came up with is Yellowstone.">>The fourth stop you came up with is Yellowstone. Jacob’s been there before and highly recommended checking it out. The only downside to visiting Yellowstone is the extra few hours it takes to drive there, but you feel like it’ll be worth it. It should also be a good time to just take a day off from driving and relax. You’ll have been on the road for around 2-3 days at that point so some time to check out Yellowstone should do everyone good. You feel like this will be the real highlight of the trip. <<continuelink "And now, the fifth and final stop.">>And now, the fifth and final stop. Based on what Sasha recommended, you feel like there’s two really good choices here. One would be the Japanese Gardens in the downtown area of Portland, and the other would be the Multnomah Falls. You also considered a ski resort but given that it’s late Spring, that doesn’t seem like the best idea. Both options are solid final destinations, they’d both be a great way to wrap up almost a weeks’ worth of travel and sightseeing. Ultimately, after a few minutes of thinking, you decide that your final stop on this road trip will be... <<choice [[The Japanese Gardens|Chapter 3 Road Trip Final Stop Gardens]]>> <<choice [[Multnomah Falls|Chapter 3 Road Trip Final Stop Falls]]>>

<<set $final_stop to "gardens">> A great choice. Though you couldn’t really go wrong with either, you feel. Now with that out of the way, you just have to hit up your passengers and let them know of your plans. Jacob and Sasha might need some extra time to get off work so it could still be a few weeks before you officially kick off your road trip. Still, what an exciting time! Now to just let your passengers know what's going on and it'll simply be a matter of waiting. [[Waiting for around 2 weeks until...|Chapter 4 Start]]

<<set $final_stop to "falls">> A great choice. Though you couldn’t really go wrong with either, you feel. Now with that out of the way, you just have to hit up your passengers and let them know of your plans. Jacob and Sasha might need some extra time to get off work so it could still be a few weeks before you officially kick off your road trip. Still, what an exciting time! Now to just let your passengers know what's going on and it'll simply be a matter of waiting. [[Waiting for around 2 weeks until...|Chapter 4 Start]]

//'Loaded, huh? Who exactly is he?'// "His name's Christopher Homme. based off what he’s said, I guess he got rich off real estate in the 80s and 90s. I’ve looked online to try and find some more info on him, but there’s really not much there.” “Seems a bit suspect to me personally, his whole demeanor was kind of setting off alarm bells in my head while I was talking to him.” “But, my Dad seems to trust him. Guess the two of them met at some sort of fishing competition a long time ago. Or at least that’s what my Dad told me.” [[''He seems suspect? What do you mean?''|Holly Hobbies Question Fishing Guy Suspect]] [[''Sounds interesting, but let’s talk about something else.''|Holly Hobbies Question Start]]

//‘He seems suspect? What do you mean?’// “It’s hard to describe it, but like I said, there was just something off about him. It just seemed like he was hiding something - to me at least.” <<continuelink '"Not to mention the lack of info about him online. If he really did get rich off of real estate, don’t you think there’d be more records online, more information about the properties he’s owned?"'>>"Not to mention the lack of info about him online. If he really did get rich off of real estate, don’t you think there’d be more records online, more information about the properties he’s owned?" <<continuelink '"And just between us,"'>>"And just between us, being in the ‘real estate’ business is a pretty common cover for laundering money. Be it drug money or some white-collar kind of stuff." "I’m not accusing him of anything, I’m just saying he seems a bit shady. Could be there’s more to him and his wealth than you’d expect." [["'I think you might be reaching a bit.'"|Holly Hobbies Question Fishing Guy Reaching]] [["'Seems like you’ve looked into this quite a bit. Guess I won’t be surprised if I see his name in the news for money laundering.'"|Holly Hobbies Question Fishing Guy News]]

<<set $holly_date_points += 2>> //'I think you might be reaching a bit.'// "I could be, maybe I am just grasping at straws. But to me, something doesn't add up. Maybe it isn't money laundering, maybe it isn't even anything significant, but it could be..." [["Anyway, let's talk about something else. Enough about this old rich guy."|Holly Hobbies Question Start]]

//‘Seems like you’ve looked into this quite a bit. Guess I won’t be surprised if I see his name in the news for money laundering.’// "Assuming he eventually gets caught, I won't be surprised either. He's an older guy though, figure if he was going to get caught it would've happened by now." "But who knows, not like there's an age limit on crime. Guess we'll just have to keep our eyes peeled." <<set $holly_date_points += 4>> [[Ask Holly another question about her hobbies|Holly Hobbies Question Start]]

//'You never know though, who's to say you wouldn't catch a lucky break if you majored in theatre or art?'// “I guess that’s one way to look at it. But I don’t really like to dwell on the things I could’ve done, I would rather focus on the now and the future.” <<continuelink '"I get what you\'re saying though;"'>> "I get what you’re saying though; I probably should’ve just majored in something I actually liked because who the hell knows what’ll happen. Maybe I stand out and meet someone in the right networks and get a decent job right out of college. Or maybe I just fade into the background, not really accomplishing much but still graduating with 50k in debt with no job to show for it." "That’s how I kind of saw it at the time. I figured just dropping out was the safest move, at the very least it meant I wouldn’t have 50k in student loans. Which would be a financial disaster for someone that’d likely be working minimum wage." <<continuelink '"Like I said, I think I made the right decision."'>> "Like I said, I think I made the right decision. Could I be doing better if I hadn’t dropped out? Of course, you can always do better. Could I also be doing a whole lot worse if I had stayed in? Absolutely. I could be making the same kind of money I am now but with an extra $320 coming out of my bank account every month." [["'When you explain it like that, I get it. Definitely best to go with the safe option when so much money is on the line. But that's enough about your time in college, let's talk about something else.'"|Holly Questions Hub]] [["'I mean, I get why you did it. But personally, I'd still go for the path with a higher risk and higher reward. Anyway, let's talk about something else.'"|Holly Questions Hub]]

<> <div class="chapter_header"> Chapter 4 On The Road to Chicago </div> <> The clock ticks to 7:00 AM. Your alarm rings, awakening you from a deep slumber. Begrudgingly, you grab your phone and turn off the alarm instead of muting it for another five minutes. Knowing that today you can’t afford to loaf around for an hour in bed before getting up. <<continuelink "Shortly after turning off the alarm, you arise from your dormant state">>Shortly after turning off the alarm, you arise from your dormant state, sitting on the side of the bed while you rethink rather you made the right decision to start the road trip this early. Alas, there’s nothing you can do now. The only option is to move forward with your plans, regardless of how much you regret making them right now. Mustering all your energy, you manage to get out of bed at record time. Having only spent 5 minutes lying in bed before rising to your feet, quite impressive. Before heading into the bathroom and getting showered, <<continuelink"you open your curtains and let in the guiding light of the brilliant sun.">>you open your curtains and let in the guiding light of the brilliant sun. Or, at least that’s what you were hoping for. In reality it’s another cloudy, rainy spring day. Having opened your curtains to disappointment, <<continuelink "you head to the bathroom and get the shower ready.">>you head to the bathroom and get the shower ready. The shower goes about as expected. Nothing out of the ordinary, just a regular shower. And now after getting prepped and dressed, you’re finally ready to set things into motion. First things first, you grab the suitcases you loaded up last night and [[bring them downstairs.|Chapter 4 Downstairs]] After all, wearing the same clothes for a week doesn’t seem like a very advisable choice.

<<if $sasha_C4_start is not true>> Bringing your luggage downstairs, you look to the living room and see Jacob sitting on the couch watching TV. Seems like he’s already packed and ready to go, ahead of even you. While Jacob might be up and at ‘em, Sasha is nowhere to be seen. Your hope is that she’s just getting ready, and that her habit of forgetting to set her alarm hasn’t doomed your road trip to a late start. Not knowing for sure, you figure you should probably go knock on her door and see rather she’s up or not. <<elseif $sasha_C4_start is true and $jacob_c4_lr is not true>> While you wait for Sasha to get her stuff packed, you might try talking to Jacob in the living room. <<elseif $sasha_C4_start is true and $jacob_c4_lr is true>> You can't think of much else to do around the house while waiting for Sasha to get packed up. It might be a good idea to just <<continuelink "relax a bit while you wait.">>relax a bit while you wait. With nothing else to do around the house, you decide to just [[chill and wait for Sasha to get her things around.|Chapter 4 Road Trip Transition]] <</if>> You are standing in the downstairs foyer. The usual worn wood panels adorn the floor, with a light gray paint covering the walls. The foyer connects directly to the kitchen and living room. You could also head upstairs to the hallway. You decide to go to the: [[Kitchen]], [[Living Room|Chapter 4 Living Room]], [[Hallway|Chapter 4 Hallway]].

<<if $jacob_c4_lr is not true>> You enter the living room and sit in one of the chairs adjacent to where Jacob is. <<continuelink "He strikes up a conversation after you sit down.">>He strikes up a conversation after you sit down. "Hey bud, what’s up? Ready to finally kick this thing off? I know I am. Been looking forward to this thing since you first mentioned it to me." "I’ve already got my stuff packed up. Just waiting for our other passenger to get ready before I load everything in the car." "How are you feeling about it, $name? Ready to be on the road for a whole week?" [["'Ready as I’ll ever be. I’m the one that came up with this whole idea, after all.'"|C4 LR D1]] [["'I’m ready. Not going to lie though, kind of wish I’d have decided to start this whole thing a bit later in the day. Not a big fan of getting up this early.'"|C4 LR D2]] [["'Set and ready to go. Not like I’ve got much of a choice if I wasn’t.'"|C4 LR D3]] <<else>> You enter the living room and check it out once again. Jacob seems to be watching something on his phone and isn't really interested in talking. With nothing to do here, you decide to head back to the [[foyer.|Chapter 4 Downstairs]] <</if>>

You enter the hallway of your house. Dated light brown carpet lines the floor, and light blue paint clings to the walls. You see your bedroom to the south, Sasha's bedroom to the southwest, the stairs leading down to the east, and Jacob's bedroom to the northeast. You decide to head towards [[Jacob's Bedroom,|Chapter 4 Jacob's Bedroom]] [[Sasha's Bedroom,|Chapter 4 Sasha's Bedroom]] [[Your Bedroom,|Chapter 4 Player Bedroom]] [[The Stairs|Chapter 4 Downstairs]]

You knock on Jacob’s door but he doesn’t answer. Makes sense considering he’s sitting downstairs in the living room. It would be quite weird if he were in two places at the same time. Knowing that there’s no point in standing at Jacob’s bedroom door, you turn around and look at the rest of the [[hallway|Chapter 4 Hallway]]

<<if $sasha_C4_start is not true>> You <<continuelink "knock on Sasha’s bedroom door">>knock on Sasha’s bedroom door, hoping to figure out why she's taking so long to get ready. <<continuelink"...">>... A few seconds pass, nothing. <<continuelink"...">>... A couple more seconds pass, still, not a peep. Not a great sign. <<continuelink "You knock on her door again">>You knock on her door again, this time with greater force. Hoping that if she is asleep, the pounding on the door will wake her up. Seconds after knocking on the door yet again, <<continuelink "you hear the sound of a door opening from within the room.">>you hear the sound of a door opening from within the room. “Hold on! I’ll be there in a minute.” You hear Sasha yell from within her room. A few moments pass and <<continuelink "Sasha eventually unlocks and opens the door.">>Sasha eventually unlocks and opens the door. Judging by her wet hair you’d guess she was just in the shower. “Sorry about that, was just getting ready. You said we weren’t leaving until 9 so I was taking my time.” [["'No worries. Was just making sure you didn’t forget to set your alarm.'"|C4 SB D1]] [["'We might not be leaving until 9 but it doesn’t hurt to be efficient with your time. Jacob and I are already up, packed, and have our luggage ready to load up.'"|C4 SB D2]] <<else>> You knock on Sasha's door but she doesn't answer. Probably still getting things packed up and ready. Knowing that standing right by her door won't make her pack faster, [[you step back into the hallway.|Chapter 4 Hallway]] <</if>>

You enter your room and <<continuelink "double-check to make sure you packed everything.">>double-check to make sure you packed everything. Yup, you got everything. You head back to the [[hallway shortly after.|Chapter 4 Hallway]]

<<set $sasha_C4_start to true>> //'No worries. Was just making sure you didn’t forget to set your alarm.'// "Nope, alarm went off right on time. I was just taking my time getting up and getting showered." "I’ll be down with my stuff once I get it all packed up. Got most of the packing done last night but there's a few things I’ve still gotta grab." <<continuelink "You tell Sasha it’s fine so long as she’s ready to go by 9">>You tell Sasha it’s fine so long as she’s ready to go by 9 "Yup. Should be good to go way before that so no worries." You give Sasha a thumbs up before closing the door and [[stepping back into the hallway.|Chapter 4 Hallway]]

//'We might not be leaving until 9 but it doesn’t hurt to be efficient with your time. Jacob and I are already up, packed, and have our luggage ready to load up.'// "Okay? And? It’s 8 AM right now. I’ve got plenty of time to finish up here, it’s not like I just woke up and hopped in the shower." "And you standing here holding me up isn’t helping. If you don’t mind I’ll be getting back to packing my things up." Sasha says before <<continuelink "closing the door in your face.">>closing the door in your face. Perhaps you could've handled that a bit better. Being nice to people tends to go a long way. [[ With nothing else to do here, you walk away from Sasha’s door and step back into the hallway.|Chapter 4 Hallway]] <<set $sasha_C4_start to true>> <<set $ending_points -= 2>>

"Right, right. Be kind of discouraging to get cold feet at this point. And expensive." "Anyway, if I don’t see Sasha bringing her luggage down, let me know. Once she’s all loaded up I’ll get our stuff put in the car." You give Jacob a nod before getting up from the chair and [[walking back to the entranceway.|Chapter 4 Downstairs]] <<set $jacob_c4_lr to true>>

"Pfft, this is nothing. Maybe you’ve forgotten but most people get up around this time. You don’t typically see people getting out of bed at 11 like you." "Besides, what do you think we’ll be doing on the road? We’ll be up and ready to go by 9 on most days, I’d wager." "Anyway, if I don’t see Sasha bringing her luggage down, let me know. Once she’s all loaded up I’ll get our stuff put in the car." You give Jacob a nod before getting up from the chair and [[walking back to the entranceway.|Chapter 4 Downstairs]] <<set $jacob_c4_lr to true>>

"Right. We’ve kind of set aside a whole week of our lives for this. Getting cold feet now would be… not great to say the least." "Don’t know why you’d get cold feet though, this whole operation was your idea, after all." "Anyway, if I don’t see Sasha bringing her luggage down, let me know. Once she’s all loaded up I’ll get our stuff put in the car." <<set $jacob_c4_lr to true>> You give Jacob a nod before getting up from the chair and [[walking back to the entranceway.|Chapter 4 Downstairs]]

//Some time later// As you exit the kitchen in tow with a snack, Sasha comes bumbling down the stairs. "Sorry about the wait, I’m ready now though. Just took me a bit of extra time." "Probably should’ve done more packing yesterday but hey, we’re still on schedule, so I guess it worked out." Sasha says as she shrugs her shoulders slightly. <<continuelink "Fair enough, you think to yourself.">>Fair enough, you think to yourself. Now to just get the luggage loaded up into the car and you’ll be ready to take off. <<continuelink "Yelling at Jacob from across the room, you tell him that he can load up the luggage whenever he’s ready.">> Yelling at Jacob from across the room, you tell him that he can load up the luggage whenever he’s ready. "Got it. I’ll get to it here in a minute." He states. [[A few Jacobian minutes later...|Chapter 4 Road Trip Transition 2]]

//A few Jacobian minutes later...// "Alright, think that’s it. Luggage all loaded up, everybody’s ready, time to get on the road." <<if $holly_road_trip is true>> <<continuelink "'Aren’t you forgetting something, Jacob?'">>//'Aren’t you forgetting something, Jacob?'// Jacob stops to think for a moment, his eyes squinting as he stares off into the distance. <<continuelink '"OHH, right..."'>>"OHH, right, we’ve still gotta pick up Holly before we get out of town. Yeah, kind of forgot about that, whoops." "Well, we’re still ready to hit the road. Just, we’ll be going to her apartment, not towards Chicago." Nodding your head, you wait for Sasha to lock up the house before getting in the car and heading towards your [[last passenger’s house.|Chapter 4 Pick Up Holly]] <<elseif $valery_road_trip is true>> <<continuelink "'Aren’t you forgetting something, Jacob?'">>//'Aren’t you forgetting something, Jacob?'// Jacob stops to think for a moment, his eyes squinting as he stares off into the distance. <<continuelink '"OHH, right..."'>>"OHH, right, we’ve still gotta pick up Valery before we get out of town. Yeah, kind of forgot about that, whoops." "Well, we’re still ready to hit the road. Just, we’ll be going to his house, not towards Chicago." Nodding your head, you wait for Sasha to lock up the house before getting in the car and heading towards your [[last passenger’s house.|Chapter 4 Pick Up Valery]] <<else>> <<continuelink"'Just about ready. Who's going to start off as the driver?'">>//'Just about ready. Who's going to start off as the driver?'// "Why, I am, of course! I'll take us all the way to Chicago and then we can argue over who gets to take over from there." "It'll probably be you, just a fair warning. You know Sasha's not fond of driving for long durations." Nodding your head, you wait for Sasha to lock up the house before [[getting in the car and finally kicking off your long awaited road trip.|Chapter 4 RT Chicago Dialogue 1]] <</if>>

/* Bit wordy? */ A jaunt across town brings you to Holly’s apartment complex in one of the more affluent areas of town. It’s a fairly typical apartment for these parts, about 4 stores tall, 6 or 7 units across. Just looking around you can tell it’s an upper-class place. As a fenced-in pool area can be seen off to the side of the apartment building, with fancy landscaping throughout the area. After staking the place out, <<continuelink "you send Holly a text telling her you’re waiting outside in the parking lot for her.">>You send Holly a text telling her you’re waiting outside in the parking lot for her. She responds promptly and states she’ll be down in a minute. Within a few minutes, you see Holly exiting her apartment complex, luggage in tow. Being the fantastic person you are, <<continuelink"you get out of the car to help her load up her bags.">>you get out of the car to help her load up her bags. [img[https://iforgotmybrain.github.io/img/74.png]] "Hey $name. Looks like the car's pretty packed so it’ll probably be best if you load these up for me. Don’t wanna mess up that mountain of bags you’ve got going on." Holly says while looking at the trunk of the car. <<continuelink "You grab her bags and load them delicately into the car">>You grab her bags and load them delicately into the car, making sure not to mess up the Jenga tower of luggage Jacob set up. Holly offers a few remarks on the car while you load up the luggage "Not too bad of a car, $name. Must be one of your roommate's because this isn't the sedan you drove to our date a while back. This is some SUV crossover kind of thing. I like it though, lots of space in the back, looks like a newer car, has kind of generic styling but that's the case with most cars today. Could definitely do worse for a weeklong trip." After successfully loading up the luggage, you and Holly both open the rear doors and get into the car. <<continuelink "You have a seat on the plush, fake leather upholstery of the car.">>You have a seat on the plush, fake leather upholstery of the car. Holly sits beside you in the driver's side rear seat. As soon as you make it into the car, <<continuelink "Jacob starts his typical introduction routine.">>Jacob starts his typical introduction routine. "Hey, there she is! Holly, right? I’m Jacob. Nice to finally meet the person my roommate’s been talking about all these years." "The lady up here in the front seat is Sasha, our other roommate. And of course, the person sitting across from you is $name. But you //probably// already knew that. If not, I guess they're going around using fake names again." Jacob states in a joking yet enthusiastic tone. "Nice to meet you, Holly." Sasha says as she leans her head towards the backseat. "What an introduction. Nice to meet you two, too. And hey, $name has said a few things about you people as well." <<continuelink'"All good things, I’m sure."'>>"All good things, I’m sure. We’re the perfect roommates, I can’t think of a single thing they could complain about" Jacob exclaims while smirking. "Oh, I could think of a few things, Jacob. But we won’t go there right now." "Right Sasha, I’m sure you could. Anyway, enough introductions. Let’s get moving towards Chicago" Jacob mutters before [[backing the car out of the driveway and hitting the road.|Chapter 4 RT Chicago Dialogue 1]]

A short drive down the street brings you to Valery’s house. Getting out of the car and <<continuelink "knocking on his door offers you the grace of his presence.">>knocking on his door offers you the grace of his presence. [img[https://iforgotmybrain.github.io/img/81.png]] "Oh, hi $name! I was just getting ready to bring my bags outside for when you guys got here. What great timing." "I don’t have too much stuff, just this suitcase and my backpack. Would you mind grabbing the suitcase and loading it up in the car? I’d do it myself, but you probably have everything all packed into the car like so. It’ll just be easier if you do it so I don’t mess everything up." 'sure thing' you tell Valery before <<continuelink "grabbing his suitcase and carefully adding it to the Jenga tower of luggage Jacob created earlier.">>grabbing his suitcase and carefully adding it to the Jenga tower of luggage Jacob created earlier. While loading up his luggage, Valery offers a quick remark regarding the car "Not a bad set of wheels we're riding in. Looks like a 8th gen VSC, started making that gen in 2014. Looks like every other SUV on the road but I heard they're pretty nice inside from this one review I watched online. Lots of room in the back, pretty quiet, should be nice for our road trip." "We’re sitting in the back I’m guessing. Cool. I’ll sit on the left you get the right seat, right?" Opening the rear car doors, <<continuelink "you and Valery step into the car and have a seat on the plush, fake leather upholstery of your car.">>you and Valery step into the car and have a seat on the plush, fake leather upholstery of your car. <<continuelink "As soon as you make it into the car, Jacob starts his typical introduction routine.">>As soon as you make it into the car, Jacob starts his typical introduction routine. "Yoo, there he is. Valery, right? I’m Jacob. Nice to finally meet the guy my roommate keeps talking about." "The dog up here in the passenger seat is Sasha, our other roommate. And of course, the person beside you is $name. Don’t know if they told you that or not. Never know with them, they like to go around using fake names sometimes." Jacob states in a joking yet enthusiastic tone. "Nice to meet you, Valery." Sasha says as she leans her head back towards the backseat. <<continuelink '"Wow, what an introduction."'>>"Wow, what an introduction. Nice to meet you two as well. $name has mentioned the couple of you a few times before.” Valery exclaims, somewhat taken back by Jacob’s very upfront introduction. "And it was all good things, I’m sure. Just like with you, I don’t think $name has ever uttered a negative word after saying your name." "Anyway enough introductions let’s get moving towards Chicago" Jacob mutters before [[backing the car out of the driveway and hitting the road.|Chapter 4 RT Chicago Dialogue 1]]

A short drive through town brings you and the gang onto the interstate heading west. There's little traffic and the scenary outside of the car is the same boring plains you've grown accustomed to. If you aren't looking out at farmland, you're looking at some sort of forested area. You definitely won't miss this scenary once you're out of the Midwest. <<if $valery_road_trip is true>> <<continuelink "A few miles away from Iridium City and after around 15 minutes on the road, Sasha strikes up a conversation with Valery.">>A few miles out from Iridium City and after around 15 minutes on the road, Sasha strikes up a conversation with Valery. "So, have you ever been to Chicago, Valery?" <<continuelink '"Yes! I actually went there to visit a friend a few years back."'>>"Yes! I actually went there to visit a friend a few years back. Stayed for around a week, it was a pretty good time." "Ohh, are you going to pay them a visit while we're traveling through? I know Jacob's visiting some family while me and $name check some things out. If you're not you could always tag along with us." Sasha askes Valery with excitement <<continuelink '"Paying them a visit is my plan."'>>"Paying them a visit is my plan. After $name got the plans for this trip all finalized, I asked my friend if they would be available to hang out a bit on the day we were stopping by. They were able to take a vacation day; so we'll probably just chill and catch up a little bit." "Sounds like fun! Nothing better than being able to catch up with an old friend." <<continuelink "Jacob joins the conversation, talking about his travels to Chicago:">> Jacob joins the conversation, talking about his travels to Chicago: "I've been to Chicago a few times as well, Valery. Like Sasha said, I've got some family there. Pretty much did the same thing as you, hit 'em up when $name finished their planning. Said 'Hey, I'm gonna be stopping in Chicago on this date, you gonna be available?'" [[With Jacob having joined the conversation, you decide to do the same by asking some questions.|Chapter 4 RT CD 1 Valery]] <<elseif $holly_road_trip is true>> <<continuelink "A few miles away from Iridium City and after around 15 minutes on the road, Sasha strikes up a conversation with Holly.">>A few miles out from Iridium City and after around 15 minutes on the road, Sasha strikes up a conversation with Holly. "So, have you ever been to Chicago, Holly?" "I have, actually. Went there back in my freshman year of college to visit a friend who was going to UIC. It was a good time, stayed for the weekend and got to check out a handful of things with them. Definitely a fond memory." <<continuelink '"Any plans to meet up with that friend while were in Chicago? Assuming they still live there, of course."'>>"Any plans to meet up with that friend while were in Chicago? Assuming they still live there, of course." "Yeah I talked to them about it before we started this whole road trip. They still live in Chicago, working at Boeing, I think. Plan is to meet up with them for lunch during their break, chat, catch up, all that jazz." "Sounds good. I was going to say, if you had no plans you could always tag along with me and $name while we check out some of the touristy stuff in Chicago. But no, that sounds nice. Hope you have a good time." Jacob decides to put in his 2 cents regarding Chicago. <<continuelink '"You know I\'ve been to Chicago a few times myself, Holly."'>>"You know I've been to Chicago a few times myself, Holly. Have some family that live there. It's a pretty nice city, honestly. Gets a really bad rep in media but they tend to only show the bad side of the city. It's is a lot more than just what they show in TV shows or the news. Feel like that's the case with most cities." [[With Jacob joining the conversation, you decide to do the same by asking some questions.|Chapter 4 RT Chicago Dialogue Holly]] <<else>> A few miles out from Iridium City and after around 15 minutes on the road, <<continuelink "Jacob decides to start up a conversation regarding Chicago.">>Jacob decides to start up a conversation regarding Chicago. "This'll be my 5th time heading to Chi-town, all 5 times being a visit to my family that live there. Ever been, Sasha? Don't recall you mentioning a trip to Chicago before." <<continuelink '"Can\'t say I have."'>>"Can't say I have. I mean, you know I don’t like traveling, Jacob. Bit of a silly question." "Yeah but I was thinking maybe your family would've went there when you were a kid. I guess you really haven't gotten out much. What, you've basically lived in either Oregon or our current state your whole life, right?" "You got it. Lived in Oregon until I was 12, then my family moved to this wonderful state in the fantastic city of Pitseleh. I've done practically no traveling outside of that. Definitely not like you or $name." "Speaking of which," Jacob interrupts "you been to Chicago before, $name? I'm guessing no since you wanted to stop there on this grandiose road trip." <<continuelink "'Nope, this\'ll be my first time making a stop there.'">>'Nope, this'll be my first time making a stop there.' "Alright, so you and Sasha will be out exploring the city for the first time, nice. Should be a pretty fun time, love to join you but, kind of got that whole thing I set up with my family members that live there, so…" <<continuelink "'What family do you have in Chicago, Jacob?'">>'What family do you have in Chicago, Jacob?' "Cousin and an Aunt. Cousin is 6 years older than me, he's got his own family and stuff going on. He's also got his life together a bit more than me—because I don't see any path 6 years in the future where I'm married or anything like that." "Plan is to stop at my Aunt's house, have supper, sit around and chat about stuff for a bit with her, my uncle, and my cousin. Typical family get together stuff. Nothing too crazy. Be nice to see everybody, though." A few bits of back and forth later and the conversation eventually dies down a bit. <<continuelink "You decide to put in your earbuds and listen to some music to break up the silence.">>You decide to put in your earbuds and listen to some music to break up the silence. Eventually, you start to zone out a bit. The monotony of seeing the same flat plains is luring you to sleep, with your music drowning out the dialogue in the background. Before you know it, [[you’ve started to doze off, head laying back on the car seat headrest.|Chapter 4 RT CD 2]] <</if>>

//'How long have you known this friend in Chicago, Valery?'// "Well, he's a childhood friend, so quite a while. Met him when I was 10, which makes it 15 years." "Last time I saw him in-person was around 3 years ago, in the summer leading up to my senior year in college. So I'm really looking forward to seeing him again, probably be the last time for a while unless he comes to visit me." <<return "Ask another question.">>

//'Have you never been to Chicago, Sasha?'// "I haven't! I told you, I don't travel much. Just not my thing—plus I'm not a big fan of long drives. Err, typically not a fan of long drives. This road trip is kind of an exception to that." "I mean, I lived in Oregon until I was 12, and then my family moved to this great state and settled in the fantastic city of Pitseleh. That's really the only traveling I've done unless you count me going to college and moving to Iridium City." "I think it's going to be exciting to check out Chicago for the day though. Go out, check some local landmarks out, head back to the car at whatever time we decide upon once we get there. Sounds like a good time." <<return "Ask another question">>

//'Hey, what family do you have in Chicago, Jacob?'// "Cousin and an Aunt. Cousin is 6 years older than me, he's got his own family and stuff going on. He's also got his life together a bit more than me—because I don't see any path 6 years in the future where I'm married or anything like that." "Plan is to stop at my Aunt's house, have supper, sit around and chat about stuff for a bit with her, my uncle, and my cousin. Typical family get together stuff. Nothing too crazy. Be nice to see everybody, though." <<return "Ask another question">>

After asking some questions things seem to die down a bit. With Jacob and Sasha occasionally asking <<if $valery_road_trip is true>> Valery <<elseif $holly_road_trip is true>> Holly <</if>> a question here and there while you listen to music and look out the window. Eventually, you start to zone out a bit. The monotony of seeing the same flat plains is luring you to sleep, with your music drowning out the dialogue in the background. Before you know it, [[you’ve started to doze off, head laying back on the car seat headrest.|Chapter 4 RT CD 2]] /* I could add some dream stuff here if I wanted. Would have to be solid content and not filler tho */

"Ohh, let's see… I've been to Niagra Falls, Tampa, Miami, New York, and even made a trip up to Toronto one time." "See, you probably remember my trip to Tampa since I went there when I was in high school. All the other places I went to during or after college." <<return "Ask another question.">>

//'Are you planning on driving at all during this road trip, Sasha?'// "I //probably// will at some point. Maybe after we leave that park in Wisconsin I'll drive a bit. Once we get closer to Minneapolis though, somebody else is going to have to take over. I'm not ready to deal with congested city traffic, no way." Jacob offers some input on Sasha driving "It does take a while to get comfortable with driving. You've never really driven anywhere, have you? And I don't mean that as a slight before you say something. I just know when we were in college you didn't even have a car, Sasha. You took the bus or walked everywhere. And now you basically just drive around town and that's it." "No, I haven't. My experience learning to drive probably has something to do with all of this but that's a whole other can of worms to open. For now we'll just leave it at; I don't like driving because I'm not used to it." <<return "Ask another question.">>

//An undetermined amount of time later...// You're suddenly awakened from your nap by the startling sound of the car’s tires hitting the rumble strips. /* (Could add SFX here) */ <<continuelink "Looking around, you can see Jacob’s face showing a slight surprise before he interjects:">>Looking around, you can see Jacob’s face showing a slight surprise before he interjects: "Man… Only an hour and a half into this road trip and I’m already starting to feel sleepy. Traveling how many hours by car is dangerous enough without having to deal with fatigue." Jacob says with a slightly lethargic tone. Seems you've been napping for around an hour. Conisdering you'd only been on the road for half an hour when you fell asleep. "Didn’t your uncle actually get into a car crash from something like that? Driving too long, wasn’t it? I don’t remember the exact story you told me but I think it was something along those lines" Sasha remarks, her memory having been stoked by Jacob’s remark. <<if $holly_road_trip or $valery_road_trip is true>> "Yeah, it was something like that. Hell, that was a while ago, wasn’t it? 3 years ago, maybe? Might as well tell the whole story over again. ‘Sides, our new friend in the back probably has no idea what we’re talking about." <<else>> "Yeah, something like that. Hell, that was a while ago now that I think about it. 3 years, I think. Screw it, I'll just tell the story over again." <</if>> /* Transition could be better */ <<continuelink '"So, my uncle Kevin did a lot of traveling for work."'>>"So, my uncle Kevin did a lot of traveling for work. He was a manager for a handful of malls around the area so having to travel 3 hours or so a day wasn’t too abnormal for him." " 'Long as the traffic wasn’t too bad he didn’t really mind being on the road for that long 'a time. Remember him saying he actually found it kind of relaxing." <<continuelink '"About 3 years ago he was having a really busy day."'>>"About 3 years ago he was having a really busy day. Had to travel to 3 different malls in his 12 hour shift, with it taking him about 2 hours of driving to get to each one. It was an early day for him too, as he had to get up at 5 AM that day." "Usually he starts work at around 7 or 8 so this was really early for him. Driving sleep deprived, yeah that's not the best idea. Not like he had much of a choice though." <<continuelink '"So he gets up at 5 AM, gets ready, all that stuff."'>>"So he gets up at 5 AM, gets ready, all that stuff. Gets on the road and starts traveling to his first stop, a shopping mall in one of the neighboring states which was around 3 hours away for him. Gets out of town and on to the interstate, makes it about half way to the mall before he starts feeling sleepy." "Knowing this he made a quick stop at Dunkin' to get some coffee before continuing, in hopes that the caffeine would wake him up. Which, of course, it didn’t. The man consumed coffee day in and day out, after a certain point your body starts becoming immune to the effects of caffeine. You’re not going to get the same boost of energy you used to." <<continuelink '"There’s also the issue of having to consume copious amounts of an upper to do your job but I digress."'>>"There’s also the issue of having to consume copious amounts of an upper to do your job but I digress. Caffeine didn’t work, he’s still finding himself with heavy eyes behind the wheel." "About an hour out from the mall he loses his focus for just a split second and finds himself about to rear-end a semi-truck. His decision-making being impaired from drowsiness, he swerves over to the left lane instead of braking…" <<continuelink '"…Swerving over to a left lane which had a truck occupying it right beside him."'>>"…Swerving over to a left lane which had a truck occupying it beside him. He crashed right into it. The truck got tipped on to its side and his car rolled over a handful of times before stopping near the shoulder of the road." "He survived, thankfully. But he was still in the hospital for over a week, and now his back is all screwed up because of the accident." "Guess that’s the story of how my Uncle got into an accident because of driving while sleepy. Not the most riveting tale but I guess it’s appropriate for our current situation." <<continuelink "'Does your Uncle still drive?' You ask Jacob.">>'Does your Uncle still drive?' You ask Jacob. "He does but he quit that job right after the accident. Said he valued his health over his career." <<continuelink "'What happened to the driver of the truck?'">>'What happened to the driver of the truck?' "He was a little bruised up, didn’t have be taken to the hospital or anything. His truck was probably totaled though." "You know I’ve never been in an accident myself but I can see why it messes up your back so much. Going from 60-0 in a matter of milliseconds isn’t exactly great for your body." "I was in one when I first got my license. Wasn’t anything major thankfully, just a fender bender in like a 25 zone. I can’t really speak to the 60-0 thing.” Sasha details. "Also, all this talk about car crashes has me a bit nervous. We better not be jinxing ourselves here." <<continuelink '"Do you really believe in that superstitious stuff, Sasha?"'>>"Do you really believe in that superstitious stuff, Sasha? What’s next, are you going to ask us to buy your essential oils? Tell us how we can be our own boss selling some placebo vitamins?" Jacob jokingly jabs toward Sasha <<continuelink '"Oh please Jacob, it’s just a saying."'>>"Oh please Jacob, it’s just a saying. And no, I’m not. I don’t quite feel like selling my soul to those pyramid schemes. Not like I’d need the extra money anyway." <<continuelink '"Right, right. I know being a Geologist pays well."'>>"Right, right. I know being a Geologist pays well. It’s such an in-demand market so naturally it would." He says with a smirk on his face "No more ‘in-demand’ than someone with an environmental science degree. None of us are making huge amounts of money here. Why do you think we all still live with each other despite being out of college?" "Because we all love each other? Nah, fair retort and a fair point. But someone amongst us used to be making bank before they quit. Just throwing that out there. Still love you, $name." [["'Hey now, we can all be comrades in poverty. No need to attack me. On the topic of our living situation though—and I've been thinking about this for a minute... Don't you think we kind of live in a commune kind of situation? Just think about it...'"|Chapter 4 RT CD 3]]

//'Hey now, we can all be comrades in poverty. No need to attack me. On the topic of our living situation though—and I've been thinking about this for a minute... Don't you think we kind of live in a commune kind of situation? Just think about it...'// "$name, no we don't. We share expenses and chores, that doesn’t mean we live in a commune." <<continuelink "You counter Sasha’s claim, exclaiming that it’s the 'we' that matters the most. It’s 'our' apartment, 'our' expenses.">>You counter Sasha’s claim, exclaiming that it’s the 'we' that matters the most. It’s 'our' apartment, 'our' expenses. "Okay then this is 'our' road trip because we're sharing some of the expenses. We’re on a commune road trip, whatever the hell that is." <<continuelink '"What\'s the definition of a \'commune\' anyway?"'>>"What’s the definition of a 'commune' anyway? I’m sure it’s not what you’re trying to make it sound like." <<if $valery_road_trip is true>> <<continuelink '"Ohh, let me look it up real quick."'>>"Ohh, let me look it up real quick." Valery says with excitement. "Finally, I can contribute to this conversation." He says under his breath with a much softer tone. He taps away at his phone for a moment before reading the textbook definition of a commune "Oh man Sasha, you won’t like this. It states that a commune is 'a group of people living together and sharing possessions and responsibilities.'" Your face lights up with a smirk as Valery proves your point right. Sasha sits silent for a moment before barking out her response. <<continuelink '"Okay but we’re still not a commune."'>>"Okay but we’re still not a commune. Maybe our living situation has commune characteristics but it’s not a damn commune, $name." <<continuelink "'It’s not. But it could be, Sasha. What’s stopping us?'">>//'It’s not. But it could be, Sasha. What’s stopping us?'// "Our careers and better judgement, perhaps? Why would we start a commune? It doesn’t make sense, $name. This whole conversation doesn’t make sense!" You laugh at Sasha’s remark, she does have a point- <<continuelink '"So, going to interject again real quick"'>>"So, going to interject again real quick, but, uh… wouldn’t a commune have to include more than just 3 or 4 people to be really considered a commune? I don’t know, just seems like when you hear of a commune it’s more like dozens of people, not just 3 or 4." Valery joins the conversation again, this time providing ammunition for Sasha’s side of the argument. "I appreciate the support Valery but I think I’m just going to drop this discussion. It’s just getting too silly for me." Sasha speaks with a bemused expression on her face. <<continuelink"'Hmm… How about a shared living space with commune characteristic? I’d take that over calling our living situation a commune.'">>//'Hmm… How about a shared living space with commune characteristic? I’d take that over calling our living situation a commune.'// "Well you take it because that’s all you’re going to get. It’s a shared living space. If that constitutes a commune than I guess most college students are living in a commune." Jacob interrupts the conversation, now you've got everyone in the car talking: "See, now //this// is why I was so excited for this road trip. I missed having these back and forth conversations. We’ve all been too busy to just chill and relax with each other like in college." "The two of you just spent 20 minutes arguing about rather or not renting an apartment with someone else is considered a commune. This is exactly the type of silly shit we used to talk about late at night in college, I love it." "Those nights where we'd be hanging out at 1 AM on the union's second floor lobby just talking about whatever popped into our mind. Oh man, I miss those days." <<continuelink '"Of course you wouldn’t know about that, sorry Valery."'>>"Of course you wouldn’t know about that, sorry Valery. Kind of forget that you just joined this misfit group a few hours ago." Jacob says while looking at Valery through the mirror. "No worries. I get the gist of it. Obviously you don’t have these kinds of arguments without knowing someone really well." <<continuelink "'Hey, I’m sure by the end of this trip you’ll all be best buds with Val. It’ll be like he was always part of the group.'">>//'Hey, I’m sure by the end of this trip you’ll all be best buds with Val. It’ll be like he was always part of the group.'// "I wouldn’t doubt that, actually. He already fits in pretty well. Add a couple days of forced social interaction with him and like you said, we’ll be best buds." Jacob responds with a somewhat snarky tone. The conversation eventually dwindles down shortly after. Being around 2 hours away from Chicago, you decide to spend the rest of your time reading through "American Gods". A befitting book, all things considered. [[Many page turns later...|Chapter 4 RT CD 4]] <<elseif $holly_road_trip is true>> "Here, I’ll Google that for you Sasha and end this argument right here, right now." Holly inerjects before grabbing her phone. <<continuelink "She taps away at her phone for a moment before reading the textbook definition:">>She taps away at her phone for a moment before reading the textbook definition: "Here we go… just a warning, I don’t think you’re going to like this, Sasha. It says that a commune is 'a group of people living together and sharing possessions and responsibilities.'" <<continuelink "Your face lights up after hearing Holly prove your point right.">>Your face lights up after hearing Holly prove your point right. Meanwhile Sasha sits silent for a moment before barking out her response. "Okay but we’re still not a commune. Maybe our living situation has commune characteristics but it’s not a damn commune, $name" <<continuelink "'It’s not. //But// it could be, Sasha. What’s stopping us?'">>'It’s not. //But// it could be, Sasha. What’s stopping us?' "Our careers and better judgement, perhaps? Why would we start a commune? It doesn’t make sense, $name. This whole conversation doesn’t make sense!" You laugh at Sasha’s remark. She does have a point- <<continuelink '"Okay, so, just a thought I had."'>>"Okay, so, just a thought I had. But, wouldn’t a commune typically be bigger than just 3 or 4 people? I mean, I’m no expert on communes but whenever you hear of a commune there’s usually dozens of people in it. Not just 3 or 4." Holly interjects to provide some more information to consider, this time backing up Sasha’s side of the argument. "Okay so there’s support for both sides of this argument. Thank you, Holly. But I think I’ll just drop this discussion because it keeps getting sillier and sillier. " Sasha speaks with a bemused expression on her face. <<continuelink"'Hmm… How about a shared living space with commune characteristic? I’d take that over calling our living situation a commune.'">>//'Hmm… How about a shared living space with commune characteristic? I’d take that over calling our living situation a commune.'// "Well you better take it because that’s all you’re going to get. It’s a shared living space. If that constitutes a commune than I guess most college students are living in a commune." Jacob interrupts the conversation, now you've got everyone in the car talking: "See, now //this// is why I was so excited for this road trip. I missed having these back and forth conversations. We’ve all been too busy to just chill and relax with each other like in college." "The two of you just spent 20 minutes arguing about rather or not renting an apartment with someone else is considered a commune. This is exactly the type of silly shit we used to talk about late at night in college, I love it." "Those nights where we'd be hanging out at 1 AM on The Union's second floor lobby just talking about whatever popped into our mind. Oh man, I miss those days." <<continuelink '"Of course you wouldn’t know about that, sorry Holly."'>>Of course you wouldn’t know about that, sorry Holly. Kind of forget that you just joined this misfit group recently." Jacob says while looking at Holly through the mirror. "Oh, I don’t think I need to be a long-term member of this group to get the gist of it. Back in high school me and $name used to talk about stuff like this all the time, I get it." <<continuelink"'Yes! I remember most of those conversations too. You get my humor just like these two do.'">>//'Yes! I remember most of those conversations too. You get my humor and antics just like these two do.'// "I can see that. They have that same love for absurdity that you do. Which makes me think we'll probably all be best buds at the end of this whole thing." "Hey, I wouldn’t doubt that. You've known $name for... 7, 8 years? If he's still hanging out with you after that much time you must be alright." Jacob responds with a somewhat snarky tone. "I’d say the same for you and Sasha. $name has been living with you guys since college—can’t be all that bad, right?" "Maybe. Or maybe they just have a high tolerance for bullshit. Could be either/or, right, Sasha?" "Whatever you say, Jacob." The conversation eventually dwindles down shortly after. Being around 2 hours away from Chicago, you decide to spend the rest of your time reading through "American Gods". A befitting book considering your current situation. [[Many page turns later...|Chapter 4 RT CD 4]] <<else>> "Know what? I'll look it up right now and settle this argument." Sasha grabs her phone and starts looking up the definintion of a commune. A couple of minutes later and she reads out the definition with a disappointed look on her face "It says here that a commune is 'a group of people living together and sharing possessions and responsibilities.'" Your face lights up with a smirk as Sasha accidentally proves your point right. She sits silent for a moment before barking out her response. "Okay but we’re still not a commune. Maybe our living situation has commune characteristics but it’s not a damn commune, $name." <<continuelink "'It’s not. //But it could be,// Sasha. What’s stopping us?'">>'It’s not. //But it could be,// Sasha. What’s stopping us?' "Our careers and better judgement, perhaps? Why would we start a commune? It doesn’t make sense, $name. This whole conversation doesn’t make sense!" You laugh at Sasha’s remark, she does have a point- Jacob interjects with his point of view as you're talking: "So, just a thought. But wouldn’t a commune have to include more than just us 3 to really be considered a commune? Think about it, when you hear of a commune it usually includes dozens of people, not just 3." "I appreciate the support Jacob but I think I’m just going to drop this discussion. It’s just getting too silly for me." Sasha speaks with a bemused expression on her face. <<continuelink"'Hmm… How about a shared living space with commune characteristic? I’d take that over calling our living situation a commune.'">>'Hmm… How about a shared living space with commune characteristic? I’d take that over calling our living situation a commune.' "Well you take it because that’s all you’re going to get. It’s a shared living space. If that constitutes a commune than I guess most college students are living in a commune." <<continuelink "Jacob gives his thoughts on the conversation yet again:">>Jacob gives his thoughts on the conversation yet again: "See, now //this// is why I was so excited for this road trip. I missed having these back and forth conversations. We’ve all been too busy to just chill and relax with each other like in college." "The two of you just spent 20 minutes arguing about rather or not renting an apartment with someone is considered a commune. That’s exactly the type of silly shit we used to talk about late at night in college, I love it." <<continuelink '"Those nights where we\'d be hanging out at 1 AM on The Union\'s second floor lobby just talking about whatever popped into our mind. Oh man, I miss those days."'>> "Those nights where we'd be hanging out at 1 AM on The Union's second floor lobby just talking about whatever popped into our mind. Oh man, I miss those days." Sasha speaks up and adds to the now nostalgia filled dialogue: "Remember that time we talked for an hour about our celebrity crushes? Or the time we spent 2 hours ranking the character's in the first 6 parts of JoJo?" "Yes! And I still think Joseph is an S tier character. I can't believe you two voted to put him in B tier, you absolute idiots." <<continuelink "'That was a fun night. Maybe if we have some free time later on in we can redo that tier list, do all 8 parts, perhaps?'">>'That was a fun night. Maybe if we have some free time later on in we can redo that tier list, do all 8 parts, perhaps?' "Maybe. But if you and Sasha are just going to put Joseph in B tier again you can count me the hell out. You can't disrespect the best JoJo like that." The conversation dwindles down shortly after. Being around 2 hours away from Chicago, you decide to spend the rest of your time reading through "American Gods". A fitting book considering your current situation, you feel. [[Many page turns later...|Chapter 4 RT CD 4]] <<endif>>

//Many page turns later...// You get about halfway through your book before you see the first sights of the Chicago skyline. The Sears Tower standing tall over the city with Lake Michigan a short distance away over to the east of the city. It seems the rainy weather that was inhabiting your home state isn't affecting Chicago. Instead it's partly cloudy out, with no rain in sight. "Oh yeah, there's that Chicago skyline again. The city looks great from a distance. 'Course, having a Great Lake right beside it will help." /* Still don't like this */ "So. Game planning time. We've already got our travel arrangements sorted out, right? We park at the parking garage near the Polk stop, I take the L to the Jefferson Park area, <<if $valery_road_trip is true>>Valery gets picked up by the friend they're visiting, and $name and Sasha go and do whatever the hell they want. <<elseif $holly_road_trip is true>> Holly gets picked up by the friend they're visiting, and $name and Sasha go and do whatever the hell they want. <<else>> and you two will be out sightseeing. <</if>> We should all be back around 5-ish, and it'll be around 12 by the time we get to the parking garage. Pretty decent chunk of time. Any objections? Issues? Did I miss anything, $name?" <<continuelink "'No, you covered everything. We're good to go.'">>'No, you covered everything. We're good to go.' "Alright, game plan set, everyone's ready. Just a little bit longer and we'll be moving." A 10-mile, 30-minute drive later and you eventually arrive at the parking garage on Polk street. [[And so starts your and Sasha's excursion into Chicago, the very first stop on your grand tour of a road trip.|Chapter 4 Chicago Start]]

//With Jacob having joined the conversation, you decide to do the same by asking some questions.// [["'How long have you known this friend in Chicago, Valery?'"|RT CD VV]] [["'Have you never been to Chicago, Sasha?'"|RT CD VS]] [["'Hey, what family do you have in Chicago, Jacob?'"|RT CD VJ]] [['Enough questions for now' You think to yourself|Chapter 4 RT CD 2 Transition]]

//With Jacob joining the conversation, you decide to do the same by asking some questions.// [["'What other places have you traveled to, Holly?'"|RT CD HH]] [["'Are you planning on driving at all during this road trip, Sasha?'"|RT CD HS]] [["'Hey, what family do you have in Chicago, Jacob?'"|RT CD VJ]] [['Enough questions for now' You think to yourself.|Chapter 4 RT CD 2 Transition]]

Jacob turns the key to off, grabbing his phone from it's holder before opening the door of the car and getting out. <<continuelink "After getting out of the car he lets out a long stretch:">>After getting out of the car he lets out a long stretch: "Ohh yeah, feels good to stand up and stretch after that long drive. I feel like a new man now." <<if $valery_road_trip is true>> Valery follows suit shortly after, getting out of the car and stretching before grabbing his backpack from the floor of the car. <<elseif $holly_road_trip is true>> Holly follows suit shortly after. Getting out of the car and stretching before grabbing her purse from the floor of the car. <</if>> <<continuelink '"Suppose we should follow their lead and get out as well, $name."'>>"Suppose we should follow their lead and get out as well, $name." You and Sasha get out and stretch your legs a bit. After everybody's had an opportunity to loosen up, discussions on where everyone's heading begins. "Okay, everybody's still good, right? Know where you're going and all that? Know the time we should be back here by?" Jacob says to the group. <<continuelink "You nod your head">>You nod your head, Sasha <<if $valery_road_trip is true>> and Valery also nod their heads <<elseif $holly_road_trip is true>> and Holly also nod their heads. <<else>> nods her head as well. <</if>> "Great. I'm going to go hop on the L and head to the stop my cousin's picking me up at. I'll see you all in around…" He takes a moment to check the time on his phone "…5 hours! I was pretty accurate with my time estimate, it's almost 12 right on the dot." <<continuelink "You say 'see ya later' to Jacob as he walks towards the elevator in the parking garage.">>You say 'see ya later' to Jacob as he walks towards the elevator in the parking garage. <<if $valery_road_trip is true>> "My friend should be waiting to pick me up a few block from here, guess I should get going as well. See ya in a bit, $name." You say your goodbyes to Valery for the time being before conversing with Sasha about your sightseeing plans. <<elseif $holly_road_trip is true>> "My friend is waiting just outside for me, I should probably get going as well. See you in a little bit, $name." You say your goodbyes to Holly for the time being before conversing with Sasha about your sightseeing plans. <<else>> With Jacob gone you start discussing sightseeing plans with Sasha. <</if>> <<if $race is "Wolf">> "And then there were two. The two canines are all that remain, loyal to the end, of course." <<else>> "And then there were two. The two amigos, or the one amiga and one amigo. Silly Spanish and it's lack of a gender neutrality. Everything has to have a gender, even the damn refrigerator." <</if>> <<continuelink '"Anyway, I don’t have much knowledge about Chicago so honestly, I think it’d be best if you lead the way."'>>"Anyway, I don’t have much knowledge about Chicago so honestly, I think it’d be best if you lead the way. Not the best with directions and all that anyway." Fair enough, you think. You’re not overly familiar with the Chicago area either but you've done more research on the area than Sasha has. First step: get to downtown Chicago. This means getting Chicago's light rail system, often called the L. You and Sasha walk to the nearest L station on Polk street and [[take the next train head to North Wells Street,|Chicago Start]] which should bring you right outside of "The Loop" of Chicago.

Hi! You've reached the end of chapter 4 and thus the current end of Tales from the Road. The next chapter, chapter 5, will have you and Jacob exploring a state park in Wisconsin. I don't expect chapter 5 to be quite as long as chapter 4 was. Mainly because there won't be as much to do in the state park. I've actually already written one scene for chapter 5 and it is a quite a hard hitter, imo. Gonna be taking on some more serious topics as the story progresses and this scene will definitely show that. As per usual I recommend hitting the back button in the top left corner of the sidebar and saving on the page you were on last. Once/if I release the next update you //should// be able to load that save and continue without any problems. If you want, you can also export your save data to a separate file to make sure your saves don’t get deleted by clearing your browser data. Since saves are stored on your browser. Also, thanks for playing! If you enjoyed the game, feel free to leave a rating on the [[Itch.io page.|https://iforgotmybrain.itch.io/tales-from-the-road]] There should be an option to leave a star rating with an optional comment in the top right corner of that page. You can also follow [[my itch.io account|https://iforgotmybrain.itch.io/]] to get notified when I update the game or when I post a devlog. Or even [[follow my Twitter account|https://twitter.com/iforgotmybrain]] to get a peek at what I might be working on for Tales, or to just see what silly stuff might be on my mind. One last thing. If you liked the art, consider checking out the person that made it, [[Kasscabel.|https://twitter.com/_kasscabel]] I know she has open commissions [[here|https://www.fiverr.com/kasscabel]] if that’s something you’d be interested in. Same with the music, there’s too many artists to list here but I’ve got a full list of them on the [[main itch.io page.|https://iforgotmybrain.itch.io/tales-from-the-road]] Maybe check them out as well. That is all for now. Cheers, and thanks again for playing to the (current) end!

<> <<if $money < 10000>> <<if $road_trip_funding_cash_out is true>> <<set $money to 20000>> <<else>> <<set $money to 10000>> <</if>> <</if>> <> After a short and uneventful train ride, you and Sasha have arrived at “The Loop”, or just downtown Chicago. After a quick exit from The L station you find yourselves standing on North Wells street. A whole world of opportunity awaits you. A whole world of opportunity that you’ll only have the day to experience. You are standing on North Wells Street in downtown Chicago near the Washington/Wells L stop. Thinking over the various places to stop, you decide that your first destination will be... [[The Sears Tower|Sears Tower Start]] [[Millennium Park|Millennium Park Start]] [[The Museum of Science and Industry|Museum Start]]

“The Sears Tower? Sure, why not? Pretty quintessential Chicago. You mention the city that’s probably the first thing someone thinks of,” Sasha says in response to your decision “You’ve got the maps app setup on your phone so lead the way, $name.” <<continuelink "A short walk later and you arrive at entrance of the towering Sears Tower.">>A short walk later and you arrive at entrance of the towering Sears Tower. Or rather, the Willis Tower, as it’s named now. Although nobody actually calls it that. “When did they even change the name to the Willis Tower? Around the time Sears started going under, I’m guessing?” “Funny, some bougie broker company bought the naming rights and nobody even cares. We’re still calling it by the name of a defunct retail store. That’s gotta piss off the Willis Company.” That is a bit of an entertaining thought. Perhaps not everything can be forced to change with the exchange of cash, not yet anyway. [[“Let’s head in, shall we?|Sears Tower Lobby]] Check out this observation deck everyone talks about.”

“Millennium Park? Sure. No idea what that is but lead the way, fearless leader.” It’s a short walk to Millennium Park, about 20 minutes on your feet. The walk over is uneventful for the most part, but about 3/4 of the way there you gaze your eyes upon an… interesting banner which has been plastered to the side of a 12 story Chicago building. <<continuelink "Looking down an alley way and peering up,">>Looking down an alley way and peering up, you can see a banner that’s about 4 stories high. There’s text on both the top and bottom of the banner, typed in some sort of blocky, red font. And in the middle is a stallion dressed in neon green cowboy attire. Complete with cowboy boots and fake leather chaps. The top of the banner reads, “The Census Cowboy”, with the bottom reading “Wrangling Census forms all across Chicago! Find out how to complete your Census today at censuscowboywrangleschicago.gov” “That’s uh, one way to get people to fill out the Census, I guess,” Sasha says with a surprising look on her face. “I have to wonder… how many out of touch old people did this ‘Census Cowboy’ idea go through? I can just imagine some city board member going, ‘Our city's census participation is awful. We need to motivate people to fill it out, does anyone have any ideas?’. “And then some gray muzzle across the table from him goes, ‘I know just what we need to do. You know how companies and sports teams have mascots to draw in customers and fans? Well, we need to do that, but for the Census. Everybody loves mascots!’ and then every board member got up from their seat and clapped.” Chuckling under her breath, Sasha continues, “I’m sure the drafting of what the mascot should be and look like was a whole other conversation.” <<continuelink"‘An equally silly one no doubt.’">>‘An equally silly one no doubt.’ “Oh //for sure,//” she says with emphasis on the last two words, “I mean, I think they meant well with this uh, ‘Census Cowboy’ but I just don’t think it’s going to have the effect they’re looking for.” “Ah, it gave us some joy at least. I’m sure it’s given quite a few people some laughs as well.” <<continuelink "‘Hey, we should take a picture to show Jacob later,’ you suggest.">>‘Hey, we should take a picture to show Jacob later,’ you suggest. “We totally should, $name! Here I’ll grab one real quick before we get back on track.” Sasha says before taking a quick picture of the ‘Census Cowboy’ banner. “This might just end up being the highlight of this stop. What a sight.” “So, shall we continue on, my faithful companion?” ‘We shall, Sasha. On wards to Millennium Park.’ It doesn’t take all of 10 minutes for you and Sasha to make your way to the Millennium Park. Crossing the road from East Washington Street and stepping foot on [[the land of Millennium Park.|Millennium Park Entrance]]

"The museum? Sure thing, $name. Just lead the way." The Museum of Science and Industry is about a 40 minute walk away. Which means using the means of //public transit// will be required to arrive there within a timely manner. Heading to the nearest bus stop, you and Sasha get on the next bus headed to the Museum of Science and Industry. An uneventful 20 minute bus ride later and you [[arrive.|Museum Start 2]]

Stepping into the Sears Tower with Sasha you’re greeted with a grand lobby of sorts. Various fast food restaurants can be seen to the right at a food court, and an escalator taking you up to the next level is over to the front and left. The lobby itself has a modern, yet gothic aesthetic to it. Black metal beams clash with clear windows. Fake plants adorn the lower ceilings with a white tile floor contrasting against the prominent appearance of black throughout this lobby. Even the railings are painted black in here. Perhaps the designers for this lobby took the well-known ‘Stones song a bit too seriously. Evaluating your next steps, you decide to… [[Head up to the next lobby level on the escalator.|Sears Tower Second Floor]]

You head up to the second level of the building which offers a similar aesthetic to that of the first. There does seem to be a food court across the way, as well as yet another escalator that’ll take you to the third and final level of this lobby. You decide to… [[Head back down to the first level.|Sears Tower Lobby]] [[Head up to the third level of the lobby.|Sears Tower Third Floor]] <> <<if $Sears_FC is not true>> [[Check out the nearby food court.|Sears Tower Food Court]] <</if>> <>

Taking the final escalator to the third level brings you to a scene that is very similar to the previous two. The main differences being the lack of a food court up here. Instead you get a long hallway leading to a booth where you can pay to enter the observation tower. Looking around you decide the best course of action is… [[Checking out the observation tower|Observation Tower Start]] [[Heading back down to the second level|Sears Tower Second Floor]]

Hearing your stomach rumble you think now could be an opportune time to grab something to eat. You mention this to Sasha, looking over to your left and asking her if she'd be interested in grabbing something to eat before heading to the observation deck. "Sure, I'm a tad hungry myself. Not a bad idea to get something to eat before continuing our adventure." Having gotten Sasha's agreement, both of you walk over to the nearby food court and start the great debate of where to eat. <<continuelink"'6 different places to pick from… I was hoping they would've kept it simple, but no, guess we'll be spending 10 minutes deciding where to eat.'">>'6 different places to pick from… I was hoping they would've kept it simple, but no, guess we'll be spending 10 minutes deciding where to eat.' You think to yourself after seeing the many selections the Sears Tower food court offers. Sasha turns her head towards you, "So, what were you thinking? We've got a handful of choices – burgers, coffee, chicken. What do you want? Give me some feedback so we can decide." You hear Sasha, but you don't turn your head. Looking onward to the food court; you know that when it comes to picking a place to eat, you'll never be able to win. The other person will always have some specific restaurant in mind, but for some reason, they will never actually mention that restaurant out loud. So you'll be left playing a guessing game until you finally figure out where they want to eat. There's no point in going back and forth here, you're just going to tell Sasha which fast food joint you want to eat at. In hopes of ending the shenanigans right here, and right now. 'Sasha, I think we should eat at… [[….’Miss Moovelous’ Burger Stand'|FC Burger]] [[…’Taco Gato.'|FC Taco]] [[….Charlie’s Crazy Chicken'|FC Chicken]]

Well, no time like the present to check out the observation deck. You and Sasha walk over to the ticket booth to procure your admission into the upper level of the tower. The slender rabbit working the booth asks, “How many people you need tickets for?” <<continuelink"‘Two,’ you reply.">>‘Two,’ you reply. “Okay, with tax that will be… $52. If you want you can get all day access for an extra $50. Can come back here at night if you want, have to say, the city does look quite stunning with the Sun down,” the cashier says, trying to upsell you on a fancier ticket. <<continuelink"‘We’ll just take the regular tickets, please,’ you tell the rabbit before handing them your credit card.">>‘We’ll just take the regular tickets, please,’ you tell the rabbit before handing them your credit card. “Alright, fair enough. Just let me swipe this real quick… And you’re good to go. Here’s your tickets. Have a nice day.” <<set $money -= 52>> You thank the rabbit and grab your tickets. $52 has been deducted from your bank account. Having acquired your admission to the observation deck - or rather, the “Skydeck”, as it seems to be properly called, you and Sasha head towards the elevator. Which is down a hall over to the right of the ticket booth. Walking down the hall, you can see it’s littered with historical and current photos of the tower. Behind the photos is a blue colored wall, a change from the black that dominated the lobby area. Your feet standing on white tiles as you continue marching towards the elevator. Among the photos is a handful of plaques providing some written history of the Sears Tower. Plaques that neither you or Sasha are interested in. Reading is for nerds, after all. And if there’s one thing you and Sasha most certainly aren’t, it’s nerds. “They sure put a lot of effort into something 99% of people won’t even look at,” Sasha says, commenting on the informational plaques as she walks beside you. The two of you dawning closer and closer to the elevator. <<continuelink "Approaching the elevator,">>Approaching the elevator, you see a man standing right beside the doors. A tall panther with striking blue eyes dressed in a uniform representing the “Willis” Tower stands at the ready, just waiting for patrons to hand him their tickets. Walking towards him, <<continuelink "you grab the tickets from your pocket and hand them to him.">>you grab the tickets from your pocket and hand them to him. He rips the stubs and hands you back the rest of the ticket before hitting the elevator button and telling you to, “Enjoy the Skydeck.” Offering the panther a quick thanks, you wait patiently for the elevator to arrive from it’s one-hundred and three floor descent. Many minutes of waiting later and the elevator finally makes its way to the third floor. [[Now for the ascent.|Observation Tower Lobby]]

"Mmm, been a while since I went to a fast food burger place, so sure, that sounds good." Wait, did you just hear… an agreement? An agreement on where to eat? An agreement on where to eat that didn't involve any arguing? You can hardly believe it. Sasha agreed to eat at the first fast food joint you suggested. What a remarkable turn of events! You turn your head to Sasha, who’s still standing over to your left, uttering the words 'Alright, cool. Shall we get in line?' before extending your arm forward and offering Sasha to lead the way. [["We shall. Onwards, toward our feast."|FC Dialogue]]

"Yeah, that sounds pretty good. Always down for some tacos." Wait, did you just hear… an agreement? An agreement on where to eat? An agreement on where to eat that didn't involve any arguing? You can hardly believe it. Sasha agreed to eat at the first fast food joint you suggested. What a remarkable turn of events! You turn your head to Sasha, who’s still standing over to your left, uttering the words 'Alright, cool. Shall we get in line?' before extending your arm forward and offering Sasha to lead the way. [["We shall. Onwards, toward our feast."|FC Dialogue]]

"Hmm, that does sound good… sure, chicken's fine." Wait, did you just hear… an agreement? An agreement on where to eat? An agreement on where to eat that didn't involve any arguing? You can hardly believe it. Sasha agreed to eat at the first fast food joint you suggested. What a remarkable turn of events! You turn your head to Sasha, who’s still standing over to your left, uttering the words 'Alright, cool. Shall we get in line?' before extending your arm forward and offering Sasha to lead the way. [["We shall. Onwards, toward our feast."|FC Dialogue]]

A short wait in line and the both of you emerge from the store front, bags of food and drinks in-hand. Suggesting a place to sit, you point towards a table near to the left of where you are and ask Sasha if that would work. "Of course, it's a place to sit and eat lunch, so long as we aren't sitting on the floor I'm not going to complain," she says with a bepuzzled look on her face. You and Sasha walk over to the table, pulling out the no-back, wooden chairs and having seat before placing your food and drink on the small black table now in front of you. Sasha, sitting across from you, remarks on the design of the chairs, "This is a quirky design choice for dining chairs and a table. Reminds me of those chairs they put in Olscamp Hall our Junior year. The ones no one ever used because they were basically just a wooden circle on some stilts." She's not wrong. Though you feel these chairs have a slight edge to the one’s that were in Olscamp. These chairs at least have some 'ergonomic' contours, making them more comfortable to sit on than the flat chairs in Olscamp. With everything on the table, the food opening commences. Packets of sauce are torn open, food wrappers ripped, and straw paper rolled into little balls. <<continuelink "Once everything is sorted and unpacked Sasha brings up another college memory,">>Once everything is sorted and unpacked Sasha brings up another college memory, "This is just like how we met, $name. The two of us sitting in a food court on the worst chairs imaginable." "Now that I’m thinking of it… what dining hall did we even meet in? Wasn't it the old East Hall dining building? I think it was because it had that weird beige tile and the red paint. Smelt like a flooded basement too, feel like that's the main reason they tore it down our senior year." <<continuelink "'And it had the bathrooms that locked from the inside, too. They were pretty popular with certain demographics to say the least.'">>'And it had the bathrooms that locked from the inside, too. They were pretty popular with certain demographics to say the least.' "Oh yeah. Everything from hotboxing to sex in the bathrooms. Feel like maybe that contributed to the building being torn down as well." "Of course I just heard about that stuff from friends. You know how it is." <<continuelink "'I can believe you with the latter, not sure about the former.'">>'I can believe you with the latter, not sure about the former.' "Ahh, I've never enjoyed smoking, be it weed or tobacco. Tried cigarettes in my down time between high school and college and hated 'em. They smell dreadful and destroy your fur. No way I'm going to ruin this beautiful mane of fur I have by smoking," she says while pointing to herself. "And weed, well, I told you about my first-time smoking it. Not a great experience. It just makes me anxious; I don't see the appeal." "Also, yeah, an ace has no desire to bang in the bathrooms, go figure,” Sasha says while shrugging her shoulders, drink in-hand. <<continuelink "'Anyway,' you stop and have a drink before continuing, 'that was far from the only building with that flooded basement smell. You think they could've used our tuition money to fix the leaky roofs all the old buildings had.'">>'Anyway,' you stop and have a drink before continuing, 'that was far from the only building with that flooded basement smell. You think they could've used our tuition money to fix the leaky roofs all the old buildings had.' "Hmph I wish. It feels like every time we went into Olscamp another roof panel was leaking. And that was far from the worst building. Poor fine art kids had a glorified hut as their building, full of mold, buckets picking up water down every hall. It was bad," she says before taking a break to take a bite from her meal. "And you sure could tell which majors and programs the university prioritized. Business kids got a brand-new building because they didn't like the 30-year old palace they had. Meanwhile the Geology department was stuck with 70-year old Orton Hall and its non-functioning air conditioning." <<continuelink "'Don't forget Pickens' Hall. 50-year old dorms with no A/C and that horrible green carpet from the 90s.'">>'Don't forget Pickens' Hall. 50-year old dorms with no A/C and that horrible green carpet from the 90s.' "Oh god don't remind me of that disaster of interior design. The carpet looked like damn golf turf! And it had that horrible metal furniture as well… glad I never had to live there." Munching and talking away you find that your meal is dawning towards an end. The only thing left to finish being your drink, which is just a couple sips away from being empty. Sasha seems to be done as well, the slurping from her now empty drink making that apparent. "Shall we leave the scene, $name? Continue our quest to scour the land of Chicago?" <<set $Sears_FC to true>> 'I think we shall, Sasha,' you reply. Grabbing your trash, tossing into the trash bins before heading to the [[2nd floor of the Sears Tower|Sears Tower Second Floor]] with Sasha.

After a surprisingly lengthy travel and wait time, you’ve finally arrived at the Skydeck. Looking around it would seem this whole area is a square loop of sorts. No matter what way you go you’ll end up right back here. The whole area is quite similar in aesthetic to the hallway you just came from. The walls facing towards the building are painted the same dark blue color as the hallway, though the floor is a gray carpet instead of being white tile. And of course the walls facing out are nothing but glass, offering a full view of the windy city. Your next course of action will be moving… <> <<if $tower_completed is not true>> [[North towards the glass ledge|OBT North]] <</if>> <> [[To the west section of the observation deck|OBT West]] [[Over to the east side of the observation deck|OBT East]] [[Into the elevator|OBT Exit]]

//Author's note: Sorry about this, I hate doing author's notes. But I feel like I should mention that I'm not very happy with this scene. I feel like I could've done this topic a lot more justice and put out something a bit more refined. Alas, this scene has gone through 4 rewrites up to this point so I'm just saying 'screw it' and leaving it as is. Sorry if it's bad or "cringe". Maybe someday I'll come back and rewrite it a 5th time. - Jack// To the north is “the ledge”. As the name suggests this is a glass ledge that extends past the Sears Tower, allowing people to seemingly defy gravity and look straight down at what’s below. Without falling, of course Walking over to the line for one of the ledges, you’re surprised to see that it’s fairly short. With only 3 groups in front of you. Sasha, standing to your left, comments on this, saying, “It’s our lucky day, $name. Checking out a major tourist attraction and there’s hardly a line? What luck! Of course it probably helps that we came here during a weekday. Doubt this line would be short during a Saturday or Sunday.” “Have you ever done something like this? Go up in a skyscraper or whatever?” Sasha says, turning her head to look at you [[‘Only one other time, in New York. Went up in the Empire State and they had an observation deck for tourists that was similar to this.’|OBT North 1]]

Heading towards the westerly section of the Skydeck offers a setting that, surprise surprise, is quite identical to what you’ve already seen. The scenery remains the same with the only thing differing being the people over in this section. Looking around you can see a family of 4 standing by the glass. The two young kids in the family pressing their faces against the glass to try and see down. Sitting on one of the benches you can also see a group of 3 friends looking at something on their phones. Probably pictures they’ve taken throughout the day. With not much on offer here, you decide to take your next course of action. Heading towards… [[The southern section of the Skydeck|OBT South]] [[The northern section where you started.|Observation Tower Lobby]]

Walking over to the east side of the Skydeck you can see a set of benches against the inner wall, with a set of chairs closer to the glass windows. You also see a few sets of in-place metal binoculars facing the windows that are oh-so popular at vantage points such as this. <<if $robert_talked is not true>> Sitting in one of the chairs adjacent to the windows is a slim kangaroo, he’s dressed in beige chino pants with a polo shirt and seems to be motioning for you to walk over to him. <</if>> Thinking it through, you decide to head… [[Back towards the elevator|Observation Tower Lobby]] <> <<if $robert_talked is not true>> [[Towards the kangaroo waving you down|OBT East Robert]] <</if>> <> [[Further to the east bring you to the back of the Skydeck|OBT South]]

<<if $tower_completed is not true>> “Uh, $name, we just got here. Why would we leave already? We haven’t even got to check out the ledges yet. Let’s go check that out and go from there,” Sasha says, commenting on your decision to head back towards the elevator. Snapping out of it, you agree with Sasha and [[decide on your next course of action...|Observation Tower Lobby]] <<else>> "Ready to head out, $name?" [['Yep, think we've seen just about everything there is to see. Let's move on to the next thing'|OBT North Transfer]] [['Actually, let me check out one more thing real quick'|Observation Tower Lobby]] <</if>>

Walking further towards the south of this “Skydeck” offers scenery that is as expected. It looks essentially the same as the other areas you’ve been to. The only thing differing from the past areas being a mural on the south wall, showcasing the Chicago skyline. Looking around you can see an elderly man sitting on one of the benches that are abundant here. You also see who you assume to be his equally elderly wife reading one of the informational plaques on the wall. With nothing else to speak of here, you decide to move on to… [[The east section of the Skydeck|OBT East]] [[The west section of the Skydeck|OBT West]]

The man sitting in the chair seems quite interested in talking with you, deciding to oblige him, you walk over to where he’s sitting. It doesn’t take him long to get straight to the point. “Center Street Cafe, huh? Isn’t that place on Koligan’s Island?” he says while pointing to your shirt. <<continuelink "‘Yes,’ you reply, before asking him how he knows that.">>‘Yes,’ you reply, before asking him how he knows that. “Ah, well, I’ve been there a couple times myself. Pretty popular tourist destination, yeah? Just like this here Sears Tower. I’m assuming that’s why you two are here, tourists and all that.” “Tourists… I suppose we are, yes. And what are you?” Sasha says to the kangaroo. “Me? I live here in Chicago. And I’m just checking this place out, do it every month, bit of a routine at this point.” “Bleh, nothing much changes here so I don’t know why I even bother. Turns out nothing much changes at a popular tourist stop. Surprising, right?” “Anyway, I’m Robert. Nice to meet you two.” He says while extending his paw out to you for a shake. <<continuelink "You shake his paw and introduce yourself as ‘$name’.">> You shake his paw and introduce yourself as ‘$name’. He follows suit with a pawshake to Sasha, Sasha looking sideways towards you while doing so. “So, you two live out of state, I’m assuming? Given the shirt and all, feel like that would be the most logical conclusion here.” Nodding your head to indicate that you are, in fact, from of out state, you look towards Sasha with a puzzled look. Unsure if you should give this person the full explanation as to why you decided to come here. Sasha gives you a face that you can only interpret as “Whatever you do, do //not// make this interaction longer than it needs to be.” <<continuelink "Taking the hint, you tell Robert that you and Sasha are just stopping by Chicago for a few days, seeing the sights, checking out some pizza places, the usual stuff.">>Taking the hint, you tell Robert that you and Sasha are just stopping by Chicago for a few days, seeing the sights, checking out some pizza places, the usual stuff. “No kidding?” he says in a surprised tone that you can obviously tell is fake. “Hell, I could show you guys around if you want. Know all the good places to stop, best restaurants, all that shit you tourists love. ‘Course I wouldn’t take a day or two out of my life just to guide you and your girlfriend all around town out of the kindness of my own heart. Man’s gotta make a living, gotta have some cash for that of service, right?” <<continuelink "‘And there it is,’ you think to yourself.">>‘And there it is,’ you think to yourself. The point you were waiting for, the attempt to coerce some silly tourist out of their money in exchange for some half-assed tour of the city. Not only that, but looking over to Sasha, you get the feeling she isn’t too pleased by this man calling her your girlfriend. [[‘No thanks. We’re good. Already have a whole list of places we want to check out, we’re good, really.’|OBT East Robert 1]] [[‘I know what you’re getting at. I’m not going to hate on the hustle but I’m not interested.’|OBT East Robert 2]] [[‘Hmm, no, I don’t think so. I know what you’re about and I’m not buying. Not like I’d to want give away my money to someone like you anyway.’|OBT East Robert 3]]

//‘No thanks. We’re good. Already have a whole list of places we want to check out.’// “Yeah you say that now but we’ll see how you’re feeling later today when you’re wandering the streets on your own. It’s all right, we all make mistakes. Here’s a card, change your mind just call me, we can work something out,” the kangaroo says before handing you a beige card with his full name and phone number on it. It reads: “Robert Fowl” Phone Number: 773-289-1003 “Keep me in mind, man. I’m available.” He says before leaving the area, heading over towards the elevator from what you can tell. <<set $robert_talked to true>> “What a character,” Sasha states as she shakes her head, continuing shortly after, “I knew we were in for something interesting when he waved you over. I was expecting either incomprehensible ramblings or an attempt to sell us something. I think we got a bit of both.” “And what was up with him thinking we were dating? Always makes me mad when people assume shit like that. Just because two people are hanging out doesn’t mean they’re dating!” <<continuelink "‘Just the way it is. Societal constructs and all that. I could talk about it all day but I think we have some more interesting things to do instead,’ you say while hinting towards checking out the ledge.">>‘Just the way it is. Societal constructs and all that. I could talk about it all day but I think we have some more interesting things to do instead,’ you say while hinting towards checking out the ledge. “You’re right. Maybe we can talk about it in the car sometime with Jacob. No reason to waste our time thinking about it here,” she says [[as you both step back from the chair.|OBT East]]

//‘I know what you’re getting at. I’m not going to hate on the hustle but we’re not interested.’// “Alright, suit yourselves. I get it. If you change your mind though, hit me up here,” the kangaroo says as he hands you beige card with his full name and phone number on it. It reads: “Robert Fowl” Phone Number: 773-289-1003 “Just send me a call, tell me where you’re at and I’ll be there.” He says before leaving the area, heading towards the elevator from what you can tell. <<set $robert_talked to true>> “What a character,” Sasha states as she shakes her head, continuing shortly after, “I knew we were in for something interesting when he waved you over. I was expecting either incomprehensible ramblings or an attempt to sell us something. I think we got a bit of both.” “And what was up with him thinking we were dating? Always makes me mad when people assume shit like that. Just because two people are hanging out doesn’t mean they’re dating!” <<continuelink "‘Just the way it is. Societal constructs and all that. I could talk about it all day but I think we have some more interesting things to do instead,’ you say while hinting towards checking out the ledge.">>‘Just the way it is. Societal constructs and all that. I could talk about it all day but I think we have some more interesting things to do instead,’ you say while hinting towards checking out the ledge. “You’re right. Maybe we can talk about it in the car sometime with Jacob. No reason to waste our time thinking about it here,” she says [[as you both step back from the chair.|OBT East]]

//‘Hmm, no, I don’t think so. I know what you’re about and we’re not buying. Not like I’d want to give away my money to someone like you anyway.’// “Yeah, of course you know what I’m about. Whatever. I can tell you’re not going to be worth my time so I’m out of here. You and your girlfriend have fun,” he says before pushing you out of the way and heading over to the elevator. <<set $robert_talked to true>> “What a character,” Sasha states as she shakes her head, continuing shortly after, “I knew we were in for something interesting when he waved you over. I was expecting either incomprehensible ramblings or an attempt to sell us something. I think we got a bit of both.” “And what was up with him thinking we were dating? Always makes me mad when people assume shit like that. Just because two people are hanging out doesn’t mean they’re dating!” <<continuelink "‘Just the way it is. Societal constructs and all that. I could talk about it all day but I think we have some more interesting things to do instead,’ you say while hinting towards checking out the ledge.">>‘Just the way it is. Societal constructs and all that. I could talk about it all day but I think we have some more interesting things to do instead,’ you say while hinting towards checking out the ledge. “You’re right. Maybe we can talk about it in the car sometime with Jacob. No reason to waste our time thinking about it here,” she says [[as you both step back from the chair.|OBT East]]

Right outside of the park’s entrance is a sign detailing “Today’s Public Event”. It would seem today they’re continuing their “Summer Music Events”, whatever that might mean. “Sounds nice but odds are it won’t be going on until later this evening. We’ll be gone by then.” Sasha’s probably right. Still, there should be plenty of stuff to see and do here. This is one of Chicago’s most popular tourist stops, after all. Standing at the entrance there’s only one thing to do, and that’s [[enter the park.|Millennium Park Hub]]

You’re standing proud at the entrance of Chicago’s Millennium Park. In front of you is a sprawling metallic entertainment building of sorts. You can only assume that’s the pavilion you remember reading about online. Today it should be hosting a series of movies until the concert starts later in the evening. [[Something to check out,|MPC North]] perhaps. To your right is a [[pathway that takes you to the illustrious bean.|MPC East]] Or “Cloud Gate” if you were to be proper. Though much like the “Willis” Tower, no one actually calls it that. And to your left is [[a temporary art installation of some sort.|MPC West]] You can’t really make out what it’s supposed to be but you suppose you could walk over that way and check it out.

Walking to your east brings you closer towards the metal bean. Right now you’re standing at a rest point of sorts, with picnic tables under umbrellas dotted ‘bout the whole area. People are having lunch, taking a break from sightseeing, or perhaps just spending some of their free time here. You could [[walk over to the bean,|MPC Bean]] or you could [[continue straight on this path and see where it takes you.|MPC East 2]] You could also [[backtrack to the entrance of the park.|Millennium Park Hub]]

<<if $art_critic_talked is not true>> Walking down the path to your left brings you closer to the art installment, giving you a better view of what it actually is. Getting a closeup look, it seems to be some sort of wavy, metal sculpture. There’s white metal streams about 4 inches wide surrounding some sort of silver sphere in the middle. The metal streams seem to all be connected to this sphere at the center of the art piece. You’re still a fair distance away from the pavilion area that the art installation is located at. [[You could walk a bit closer and take a closer look.|MPC West 2]] [[You could also head back to the park’s entrance.|Millennium Park Hub]] <<else>> "We've already seen everything there is to see down this path. No point in going back to look at that silly art sphere thing." You agree with Sasha, [[heading back to the entrance of the park|Millennium Park Hub]] to work out your next steps. <</if>>

Walking straight ahead brings you to the central pavilion. The pavilion where all manner of performances are put on from live music to orchestras to movies. As is the case today, they’re showing various movies. The theme today, at least according to a post you read online earlier, is super hero movies. A favorite of Sasha’s. <<continuelink "‘Hey Sasha, they’re showing super hero movies at the pavilion, any interest in checking that out?’">>‘Hey Sasha, they’re showing super hero movies at the pavilion, any interest in checking that out?’ You remark to her, as she seems to be unaware of the movie showings. “$name, you’ve known me long enough… you should know you don’t even need to ask me that question. It’s more a matter of; do you want to go watch super hero movies at the pavilion?” “Be honest. I won’t be hurt if you say no, I’ve probably already seen the movie 3 times anyway.” [[‘Sure. We’ve been meaning to catch a movie together anyway. This seems like a good excuse.’|MPC North 1]] <<continuelink"‘Ehh, maybe later. I wanna check out some other things out first.’">>‘Ehh, maybe later. I wanna check out some other things out first.’ “Alright, that’s fine. I’m sure they’ll still be playing movies by the time we get done checking out whatever the other things are” [[Head back to the entrance of the park|Millennium Park Hub]]

<<if $MPC_bean is not true>> You and Sasha have a quick walk over to the metal bean. As the nickname heavily suggests, this is a shiny, metal sculpture that closely resembles a bean. The left and right of the bean lifts it off the ground while the middle of it curves up, allowing people to stand underneath it like a shelter house. “Out of all the things they could’ve built and put here, why a bean? I mean, what’s the back story to this bean? Was it supposed to look like a bean from conception? Or was it an accident like the bust of that soccer player they messed up?” “I’m not hating on the bean but it just seems so odd to me. Typical art, I guess. At least there’s no mistaking what this //actually// looks like.” <<continuelink "‘You say that but I bet whoever designed this sculpture intended for it to represent something entirely different from what we’re seeing.’">>‘You say that but I bet whoever designed this sculpture intended for it to represent something entirely different from what we’re seeing.’ “I know that. Again, typical art. What can I say?” Sasha says while shrugging her shoulders. You have to agree with Sasha, the decision to make a giant metal bean is quite odd. But given the amount of people gathered around it, you’d say it was far from a //bad// decision. Perhaps artists and designers know more about what attracts people than the average person. “Let’s go touch it, $name. Touch the beans, you could say.” <<continuelink "‘Touch the beans? Sasha, I was expecting you to go a different direction with that.’">>‘Touch the beans? Sasha, I was expecting you to go a different direction with that.’ “I’m minding my best behavior today, so consider yourself lucky,” she says while giving you a //wink.// Chuckling, you walk with Sasha, moving closer towards the bean. It’s polished metal surface glistening in the sun like an old chrome bumper. Up close you can clearly see all the scratches the bean has accumulated over its many years of withstanding the harsh Chicago seasons. It doesn’t look unlike a silver car abound with swirl marks. Huddles of people are gathered underneath the beans arched middle; anywhere there’s shade, there’s someone standing. The chatter from everyone filling your attentive ears, camera shutters go off, and kids run around the sculpture giggling and yelling all the while. <<continuelink "Amongst the chaos, Sasha, standing to your left, offers some more remarks,">>Amongst the chaos, Sasha, standing to your left, offers some more remarks, “I have to say, it looks exactly the same to me up close. Still a bean and that’s all I can see it as.” “As something of an artist myself, I’ve never really understood the kind of mind frame these designers have. I don’t mean that as a slight I just mean I’m not smart enough to wrap my head around it.” “Not so much with the physical design of whatever it is they’re making, it’s the meanings they put into them,” she says while holding her chin with her paw, “I can’t work my brain like they do and see this giant metallic object as anything but a huge shiny bean.” “I mean, I don’t make sculptures or paint but I do make music. It’s a different field of art and all that but it’s considered an art nevertheless. I suppose the mindset for creating music and the mindset for creating sculptures such as this are just too different. It’s like two different fields of science, almost. Obviously, as someone very well-versed in the matter of rocks I’m not going to understand biological processes on the same level as a biologist.” “But at the same time the basic principles of science don’t change too dramatically from field to field. As we share the same basic ideas of how the scientific process works. Much like how a musician and an artist, such as the person who created this bean, share the same basic principles of how art comes to be. It just that the process, both design and thought-wise, can differ.” “Regardless of how well I understand the artists intent I still respect the effort. All these people huddled around this metal bean, suppose the artist did something right even if I can’t grasp it.” <<continuelink "‘Didn’t you actually try to get into art once upon a time, Sasha?’">>‘Didn’t you actually try to get into art once upon a time, Sasha?’ you remark, memory being sparked by Sasha’s monologue on art. “I sure did. Back in high school, for like 4 months until I gave up because I utterly sucked,” she chuckles. “I really wanted it to work, I really wanted to draw. But I wasn’t improving, I wasn’t having fun, and after 4 months of still drawing like a 4th grader, I had had enough.” “Maybe if I had stuck with it and improved I’d be drawing shit instead of playing the acoustic guitar. Who knows,” she says while shrugging her shoulders. <<continuelink "‘Wouldn’t have made that big of difference would it?’">>‘Wouldn’t have made that big of difference would it?’ “No, a hobby is a hobby. I just play acoustic for fun, it’s not like I’m making money. If I were an artist I’d probably be doing the same thing. Just drawing for fun, not money. I’ve got rocks to make me money instead, woo,” she ends with an unenthusiastic tone. “Art talk said and done, are you done here? Seen all you need to?” <<continuelink "‘I think so, Sasha.’">>‘I think so, Sasha.’" “Let’s move on then. Go on and discover landmarks that others already have, like an old years’ explorer…” <<set $MPC_bean to true>> [[You and Sasha return back to the east path.|MPC East]] <<else>> "$name, we just checked out the bean. I don't think we really need to go and see it again, do we?" Sasha remarks as you suggest checking out the bean. She has a point, there isn't really much point in going to look it over again. Best to go and [[check out some other area.|MPC East]] <</if>>

Walking further down this path doesn’t yield much in the way of new scenery. The only thing here is a handful of benches sat behind a stone half-wall. Above the benches is a handful of flowers and plants, of similar variety to those in the flower pots found throughout the whole park. Over to your right is the end of the park and the beginning of Michigan Ave. This is a more subdued area of the park. Having gotten away from Millennium Park’s two biggest attractions, the Bean and the Bandshell. Most of the people here are just sitting down at one of the many seating options, relaxing. One person is sitting on a granite bench, writing something in his notebook. You can see the strokes of the gray felines paw, and the movement of his yellow eyes as he moves from line to line. Occasionally taking breaks to think something through. Another person can be seen enjoying some ice cream with their friend at one of the picnic tables. That’s about all there is to speak of here. Just people going about their lives. “Nice change of pace from the busyness of the last area. Shame there isn’t much to do here except sit,” Sasha remarks. <<continuelink"‘Any interest in doing that?’">>‘Any interest in doing that?' “In just sitting and relaxing? No, maybe if we had more time. But I feel like we should probably be using our time here in Chicago a bit more wisely.” You nod your head in agreement with Sasha. Since there’s nothing else to do here, you might as well [[head back towards the bean.|MPC East]]

Taking a 2 minute walk over to the art pavilion yields you the full, glorious view of the metal stream sphere art thing. The art pavilion itself is of decent size. Not like the pavilions you would see at a park back home, but more like the kind of place a big flea market vendor would be set up in. A big tent, basically. And being a tent, it’s quite stuffy temperature-wise as the windy Chicago breeze isn’t able to move the air around in this enclosed space. Sasha, standing to your left and looking at the work of art, offers up her input, “Interesting… So abstract, what could it possibly mean? Hmm, let me ponder the meaning for a moment…” she says while putting her paw up to her chin. <<continuelink'"Alright, moment’s up,"'>>"Alright, moment’s up," she states as she puts her paw down almost as quick as she put it up, “I have no idea. Art has never been my thing and pieces like this are why. What //this// is supposed to be is almost completely subjective. There’s no concrete answer to what it should represent and I don’t like that.” “That’s why I stick to music. There’s not a whole lot of meaning to decipher when it comes to guitar chords. Lyrics? Sure, but usually the lyrical meaning in a song isn’t as abstract as a sculpture like this. If someone’s singing a lyric that goes “I can't prepare for death anymore than I already have”, there’s not a whole lot of second guessing to do there.” She smiles and laughs a bit before stopping herself. <<continuelink "You respond, saying, ‘That’s so typical of you, Sasha. Must be why you have no art hanging in your bedroom. Just posters of bands you like.’">>You respond, saying, ‘That’s so typical of you, Sasha. Must be why you have no art hanging in your bedroom. Just posters of bands you like.’ //“Perhaps.// My bedroom’s decorated like a freshman’s dorm room and I’m perfectly fine with that,” she says with a smirk on her face. You’re not quite sure what this sculpture is supposed to represent either. You’re not as disinterested as Sasha is but discerning meaning from something as abstract as this is quite the challenge. <<continuelink '“Hey, $name. Peep the guy standing over there?"'>>“Hey, $name. Peep the guy standing over there? The gray looking wolf? What do you think of him?” Looking over to your right, about 10 feet away you can see an older wolf, likely in his 60s, staring intently at the piece of art. Pondering its meaning, if you were to guess. He’s wearing a dark vest of sorts with a button up shirt underneath. His square glasses sitting half way on his nose while he holds his chin with his left hand. His curly hair is a salt and pepper color, black mixed with gray much like his coat of fur. “He seems pretty interested in this… art thing. Might be an art critic or something. Maybe we should go ask him about it, see what he says since we’re lost.” “Chicago does have quite the art community. You never know, $name. He could be some famous art critic. I really think we should go over and talk to him,” Sasha states, pushing you to go over and say hi to the gray wolf. [[‘Oh hell, why not? We’re not out anything.’|MPC Art Critic]] [[‘Sasha, no. We’re not going over and bugging a guy that’s just minding his own business.’|MPC Art Critic No]]

//‘Oh hell, why not? We’re not out anything.’// You and Sasha agree and decide to go and interrogate the posh looking wolf. Walking over you give a wave of your paw to him before saying “Hey”. “Hello there. Tourists, I’m guessing by the attire? What is it you need help with?” the wolf speaks with an undeniably posh tone. [[‘You seem like you’re pretty into this… art. Me and my friend over here are a bit lost at what it’s suppose to represent, so we were wondering if maybe you could lend us some insight.’|MPC Art Critic 1]] [[‘Well, we were wondering what you think this art piece is about. I mean, there’s just so many possibilities, me and my friend here couldn’t narrow it down. And you seem real interested in it so we figured maybe you’d have some insight.’|MPC Art Critic 2]] [[‘We’re not really getting this whole art thing. The thing we’re looking at right now? Doesn’t make any sense to us. But you seem real intrigued by this… thing. So maybe you could provide us some of your insight on this… work of art.’|MPC Art Critic 3]]

//‘Sasha, no. We’re not going over and bugging a guy that’s just minding his own business.’// Hearing your response, Sasha rolls her eyes, letting out a quick “Damn it,” before continuing, “$name, you’re no fun. Who knows who that guy was? We could’ve asked him the meaning of this art piece, got his autograph if he ended up being famous. But instead we’re just going to walk away and act like we never saw him.” As a retort, you respond that ‘We’re not even that big into art, Sasha. What else would we have asked him? Besides, the poor guy is probably just here on his own time. We don’t need to go and bug him.’ “All right. Fine. Whatever you think is best. [[Let’s go check something else out|Millennium Park Hub]] if we’re not going to bother the art guy.” <<set $art_critic_talked to true>> <<set $art_critic_no to true>>

//‘You seem like you’re pretty into this… art. Me and my friend over here are a bit lost at what it’s suppose to represent so we were wondering if maybe you could lend us some insight.’// “I see… The appreciation of art is, perhaps, more of skill than it is an actual appreciation. Meaning, even if I were to explain this magnificent work of art you might still lack the necessary worldliness to fully comprehend it’s true significance.” “That said, I shall provide a brief excerpt of what I believe this piece of art is supposed to represent. Though I do not expect you to see it the same way I do. I have been at work in the field of art for longer than the two of you have been alive, I am sure,” the wolf says with a raised eyebrow. Pointing to the sphere, he continues, “To my trained eye and mind, this work of art represents a soul under attack. The swirling bands surrounding the inner sphere represent an attack on ones soul, with the bands of course being attackers and the sphere the soul,” he says, all the while pointing out the various features of the sphere. “What is attacking the soul, you might ask? That is where the subjectivity of art comes in. Every person will see the soul’s attackers in a different light. For some the swirling bands might represent soul crushing nature of bureaucracy. One’s humanity being stripped away by an external force,” the gray wolf says with his right hand raised in a fist as he holds it up by his chest. Swinging his focus away from the art piece, he turns to you and Sasha, “For another it could be seen as a self-destruction of the soul. Perhaps an addiction to something. Self-loathing. It is up to the viewer of the art to decide.” “The artist of this piece, of course, likely has their own interpretation. I take great care to avoid an artists interpretation of their own work until I have formulated my own opinion. So I cannot comment on how the artist sees this piece.” “Has that helped you at all? I did my best to sum it up as simply as I could,” the wolf says, his left arm behind his back and his right holding his chin. [[‘Surprisingly, yes. I think I understand it a little better now. But… who are you exactly? How do you know this much about art?’|MPC Critic 4]] [[‘I’ll be upfront with you, I have no idea what the hell you just said. But you sure seemed to know what you’re talking about. Who are you, exactly?’|MPC Critic 4]]

//‘Well, we were wondering what you think this art piece is about. I mean, there’s just so many possibilities, me and my friend here couldn’t narrow it down. And you seem real interested in it so we figured maybe you’d have some insight.’// “Certainly. Yes, I have some very strong insight. And I’m more than willing to share some of it.” “That said, I shall provide a brief excerpt of what I believe this piece of art is supposed to represent. Though I do not expect you to see it the same way I do. I have been at work in the field of art for longer than the two of you have been alive, I am sure,” the wolf says with a raised eyebrow. Pointing to the sphere, he continues, “To my trained eye and mind, this work of art represents a soul under attack. The swirling bands surrounding the inner sphere represent an attack on ones soul, with the bands of course being attackers and the sphere the soul,” he says, all the while pointing out the various features of the sphere. “What is attacking the soul, you might ask? That is where the subjectivity of art comes in. Every person will see the soul’s attackers in a different light. For some the swirling bands might represent soul crushing nature of bureaucracy. One’s humanity being stripped away by an external force,” the gray wolf says with his right hand raised in a fist as he holds it up by his chest. Swinging his focus away from the art piece, he turns to you and Sasha, “For another it could be seen as a self-destruction of the soul. Perhaps an addiction to something. Self-loathing. It is up to the viewer of the art to decide.” “The artist of this piece, of course, likely has their own interpretation. I take great care to avoid an artists interpretation of their own work until I have formulated my own opinion. So I cannot comment on how the artist sees this piece.” “Has that helped you at all? I did my best to sum it up as simply as I could,” the wolf says, his left arm behind his back and his right holding his chin. [[‘Surprisingly, yes. I think I understand it a little better now. But… who are you exactly? How do you know this much about art?’|MPC Critic 4]] [[‘I’ll be upfront with you, I have no idea what the hell you just said. But you sure seemed to know what you’re talking about. Who are you, exactly?’|MPC Critic 4]]

//‘We’re not really getting this whole art thing. The thing we’re looking at right now? Doesn’t make any sense to us. But you seem real intrigued by this… thing. So maybe you could provide us some of your insight on this… work of art.’// “Well if you’re not getting the… ‘art thing’ on your own I have great doubts that I will be able to assist you. The appreciation of art is more of skill than it is an actual appreciation. Meaning, you likely lack the necessary worldliness to fully comprehend this works true significance.” “That said, I shall provide a brief excerpt of what I believe this piece of art is supposed to represent. Though I do not expect you to see it the same way I do. I have been at work in the field of art for longer than the two of you have been alive, I am sure,” the wolf says with a raised eyebrow. Pointing to the sphere, he continues, “To my trained eye and mind, this work of art represents a soul under attack. The swirling bands surrounding the inner sphere represent an attack on ones soul, with the bands of course being attackers and the sphere the soul,” he says, all the while pointing out the various features of the sphere. “What is attacking the soul, you might ask? That is where the subjectivity of art comes in. Every person will see the soul’s attackers in a different light. For some the swirling bands might represent soul crushing nature of bureaucracy. One’s humanity being stripped away by an external force,” the gray wolf says with his right hand raised in a fist as he holds it up by his chest. Swinging his focus away from the art piece, he turns to you and Sasha, “For another it could be seen as a self-destruction of the soul. Perhaps an addiction to something. Self-loathing. It is up to the viewer of the art to decide.” “The artist of this piece, of course, likely has their own interpretation. I take great care to avoid an artists interpretation of their own work until I have formulated my own opinion. So I cannot comment on how the artist sees this piece.” “Has that helped you at all? I did my best to sum it up as simply as I could,” the wolf says, his left arm behind his back and his right holding his chin. [[‘Surprisingly, yes. I think I understand it a little better now. But… who are you exactly? How do you know this much about art?’|MPC Critic 4]] [[‘I’ll be upfront with you, I have no idea what the hell you just said. But you sure seemed to know what you’re talking about. Who are you, exactly?’|MPC Critic 4]]

//'Who are you, exactly?’// “Why, my name is Daniel. Daniel Haddix. And as I told you a few minutes ago, I am an art critic. It has been my job for over 35 years to go and judge pieces of art. To discern their meaning and beauty. That is why, of course, I have so much knowledge when it comes to this subject. I would hope you’re the same way with whatever your professions might be.” Sasha joins the conversation, “An art critic, huh? How well known of an art critic are you, Daniel?” “I am very well respected, shall we say that? I am far from a national name but you’ll be hard pressed to find a soul in Chicago’s art community that has not at least heard of me.” “Now, are there any other questions you two might have for me? Or are we finished here?” <<continuelink"‘No, you’ve answered our question quite nicely. I think we’ll be going.’">>‘No, you’ve answered our question quite nicely. I think we’ll be going.’ “I see. Well, all the best.” Daniel says as he turns his head back to the sphere and continues his pondering. <<set $art_critic_talked to true>> [[You and Sasha walk back to the path you came from and examine your next steps.|Millennium Park Hub]]

Getting off the bus, you and Sasha step foot on the grounds of the Museum of Science and Industry. A grand building built from stone — if it weren’t for all the landscaping and abundant space you’d think you were standing in front of a building in D.C. Right outside of the entrance, on the road the bus just brought you from, is a long line of yellow taxi cabs just waiting for tourists. “Taxis are such a rip from a value stand point. Public transit is so much cheaper, even if it is a bit slower and uh… rowdier.” The actual entrance to the building is over to the right of where you are. Apparently you don’t enter from the front of the building but instead go to a small off-shoot entrance. “Shall we enter the museum, $name? After you.” Sasha extends her arm, offering for you to lead the way. You take the lead and [[enter the museum from the clearly marked entrance over to the right of the main building.|Museum Vendor]]

A short hallway painted in a beige and green color scheme eventually brings way to the main entrance of Chicago’s Museum of Science and Industry. A lobby of sorts with an escalator taking you up to the museum is directly in front of you, with a line of 20 ticket vendors over to your right. “Oh, this is a paid place? Little surprised honestly, usually museums like this are free to enter.” You’re a bit surprised as well, seems this is no Smithsonian. It’s fine though, you’re more than happy to support the preservation and education of “science” and “industry”. <<continuelink "Walking over to the row of ticket vendors you’re greeted with a modestly long line.">>Walking over to the row of ticket vendors you’re greeted with a modestly long line. Nothing crazy but you’ll be definitely be hanging around for a few minutes. “First line we’ve had to wait in, hopefully it’ll be the only one we have to wait in.” <<continuelink "‘Impatient, Sasha?’">>‘Impatient, Sasha?’ “Eh just a bit. You know we only have so long to check everything out, $name. I don’t want to spend all our time waiting in lines, right?” You nod your head in agreement, she has a fair point. It takes only a moments worth of waiting to finally make it to a ticket vendor. You walk up to the vendor and get greeted by a brutish looking gator, probably about 6 feet 7 inches, or 200 cm, if you were to guess. Seeing a gator this far north is quite rare. Typically gators and the like tend to stay towards the southern parts of the country due to the warm weather and high humidity. Northern winters aren’t exactly kind to them, to say the least. Scaly skin and arid, cold conditions don’t mix very well. <<continuelink "‘Hey,’ you say to the gator, ‘I’ll take two tickets, one for me and one for my friend here,’ you say, pointing to Sasha.">>‘Hey,’ you say to the gator, ‘I’ll take two tickets, one for me and one for my friend here,’ you say, pointing to Sasha. “Sure thing pal. Two tickets will be… $51.26.” <<set $money -= 51>> You hand the gator your credit card which he swipes before handing back to you, ‘Thank you very much, here’s your two tickets. Have a good day,’ he says, handing you two rectangular pieces of paper. With a quick <<continuelink"‘Thanks’">>‘Thanks’, you leave the line and head with Sasha over to the escalators you saw previously. “Can you imagine what that guy has to do to keep his scales from cracking during the winter, $name? He probably spends more money on beauty products than I do,” Sasha remarks. <<continuelink "‘And that’s saying something!’">>‘And that’s saying something!’ “I know! I wonder why he’d put himself through that? Family reasons? College?” <<continuelink "‘No one knows except him. Maybe he just lives up here during the spring or summer.’">>‘No one knows except him. Maybe he just lives up here during the spring or summer.’ “That could be. Definitely would make the most sense” “Anyway, you got the tickets. Awesome. Shall we head up the escalator?” ‘We shall,’ you reply. A short walk and a ride on the stairs brings you up to the [[main lobby.|Museum Lobby]]

<<if $museum_completed is not true>> Stepping into the main lobby you’re greeted by a rotunda of sorts. A single level, round building that branches off to three different sections. It’s painted in a color similar to that of the hallway you came from. It’s a mix of beige and green colors. With the floor tile being white, as is typical. The exhibits and showcases of the museum are held in these three different sections. They go chronologically, from the industrial revolution, to the 20th century, to modern times. Talking it over with Sasha, you decide it only makes sense to tackle them in this same order. Which means checking out the [[industrial revolution section first.|IR Section]] <<elseif $MPC_completed is true and $tower_completed is true>> Heading back to the main lobby of the museum, you and Sasha ponder your next steps. Taking your phone out of your pocket and looking at the time you realize that it’s already 4 PM, only a half an hour before you’re supposed to meet up back at the parking garage. Mentioning this to Sasha, you tell her that it would seem the trip to the museum is going to have to be cut short. Les you end up being late. She raises her eyebrows, “Oh, good catch $name! I haven’t even looked at the clock all day. Yeah we should definitely head back, don’t wanna keep anyone waiting” Coming to an agreement, you and Sasha head out of the museum, grabbing the next bus to downtown Chicago. Coming to an agreement, you and Sasha head out of the museum, grabbing the next bus to downtown Chicago. Eventually taking a train [[back to the stop you began at.|Chapter 4 Ending]] <<else>> Heading back to the main lobby of the museum, you and Sasha ponder your next steps. Taking your phone out of your pocket and looking at the time you realize that it’s already 2 PM. Giving you only around 2 more hours to check out the rest of Chicago. While you haven’t seen all the museum has to offer, it’d probably be best to leave here early and check out the other things that Chicago has to offer. Mentioning this to Sasha, you tell her that it would seem the trip to the museum is going to have to be cut short. Or else you risk not being to able to check out your other stops in Chicago. “Honestly $name, I’m fine that. I wasn’t really feeling this museum anyway. Aside from that whole conundrum you had, of course,” she says with a smile. Having gotten an agreement, you and Sasha head out of the museum, grabbing the next bus to… <> <<if $tower_completed is not true>> [[The Sears Tower|Sears Tower Museum Start]] <</if>> <<if $MPC_completed is not true>> [[Millennium Park|Millennium Park Museum Start]] <</if>> <> <</if>>

As the name suggests, this section of the museum covers the industrial revolution. Makes sense, considering there wouldn’t be much of an “industry” without it. It has exhibits detailing the rapid technological advances in the mid 18th century to the mid 19th century. From the first steam-driven engines to the first steam locomotive. Walking through the industrial revolution section, <<continuelink "your eyes wander">>your eyes wander, staring at one of the exhibits in the distance trying to discern what it is. Staring so intensely, in fact, that you don’t see a small group of people directly in front of you. What happens next can only be described as a ''real'' (if not small) tragedy. A family of 4, a Mom and a Dad with two younger kids, bumped into by a wandering 20-something whose mind is as blank as the walls in their bedroom. The Dad gets the brunt of the damage; but as you walk into him you start a chain reaction where the Dad bumps into the Mom, the Mom bumps into the kid, and so on. Nobody falls, but the hurt is real. The Dad, an average height Labrador wearing salmon shorts and a polo shirt, looks to you with a disapproving face that makes you red with embarrassment. Or, would make you red with embarrassment, if it weren’t for all the fur. Regardless, you can feel your face get warm, your heart race and breathing intensify as you scramble to <<continuelink "//apologize.//">>//apologize.// ‘Ope! I’m so sorry sir, I didn’t even see you and your family! I’m so sorry!’ you reply, giving profuse apologizes to the very disrupted family. Sasha, who was walking over to your left, managed to avoid running into the same family despite also being preoccupied. Now she’s standing back, holding back laughter as she watches you handle this peculiar situation. <<continuelink "The Labrador sighs under his breath,">>The Labrador sighs under his breath, shaking his head before he utters, “Kids these days! Always so self-absorbed! Never looking out for anyone else! The shame!” “You’re a lawsuit waiting to happen! Watch where you’re going next time before you end up //really// hurting somebody!” he exclaims, your embarrassment skyrocketing as the pompous jerk escalates a simple bump into something more resembling an angry disagreement. <<continuelink "‘Yes sir, I understand. I’ll be more careful next time, sorry about all of this!’ you reply, trying to deescalate the situation and go on your way.">>‘Yes sir, I understand. I’ll be more careful next time, sorry about all of this!’ you reply, trying to deescalate the situation and go on your way. “You better, son. Next person you crash into might not be as understanding as I am. Like I said, a lawsuit waiting to happen!” The Labrador exclaims yet again. “Honey, it’s fine, nobody got hurt. This gentleman just bumbled into us. He apologized, let’s just let him go on his way.” The Labrador's wife, who is also a Labrador, speaks up, joining in trying to deescalate the situation. <<continuelink "The Dad sighs,">>The Dad sighs, “Fine. Go on your way, son. We’re done here,” he says with bated breath. His wife putting her arm on his shoulder as they walk away from the scene of the crime. Seeing that the family has left, Sasha walks over to you from a few feet away. Her right hand over her mouth as she tries to stop herself from laughing. <<continuelink '"I am so sorry $name, but that was hilarious."'>>“I am so sorry $name, but that was hilarious. Terrible, but hilarious,” she says, her voice cracking as she holds back her laughter. “I’m not even laughing at you, don’t worry. I’m laughing with you, and laughing at the fact that you ran into what is quite possibly the worst group of people. A rich, suburban family of dogs on vacation,” she laughs. “Oh man, I’ve been there. Not on your end but on the family’s end. Reminds me of my own family, for better or worse. Probably worse.” You and Sasha continue your walk through the museum while conversing. Sasha standing to your left as she continues to talk, “Oh, let me tell you, dogs are the absolute worst. And I say that as a dog. A dog who grew up in a dog family, surrounded by other families of dogs and other posh animal types.” <<if $race is "Wolf">> <<continuelink "‘As a wolf I feel like I’m missing out on something. I know we’re closely related by genetics, Sasha, but obviously you’ve had a different experience growing up.’">>‘As a wolf I feel like I’m missing out on something. I know we’re closely related by genetics, Sasha, but obviously you’ve had a different experience growing up.’ “Yeah, I mean, there’s definitely posh, rich wolves. But they tend to act different than the rich dogs, you know? That’s probably the difference. Dogs just have that stereotype. They have that snobby, ‘I’m better than you’ kind of attitude.” <</if>> <<continuelink "‘So that family reminds you of yours?’">>‘So that family reminds you of yours?’ “Yeah, all the way down to the way they’re dressed and the way they were acting. Dressed preppy with a bad attitude, so typical.” Sasha says, continuing to walk along side you as the two of you check out the museum. <<continuelink "‘That doesn’t sound like you at all, Sasha. I mean, you’re wearing jeans from a thrift store today, and a band t-shirt you got from a concert 3 years ago. That’s far from fancy.’">>‘That doesn’t sound like you at all, Sasha. I mean, you’re wearing jeans from a thrift store today, and a band t-shirt you got from a concert 3 years ago. That’s far from fancy.’ “Doesn’t sound like me //now//, $name. It’s mostly my family, Dad, Mom, some of my siblings, that are like that anyway. And some of the other dogs, of course. As you just saw.” <<continuelink "‘You came from some money, didn’t you Sasha? I tend to forget about that.’">>‘You came from some money, didn’t you Sasha? I tend to forget about that.’ “I sure did. Dad is a a lawyer and my Mom is an accountant, that’s some serious money. Serious advantage growing up, too.” <<continuelink"‘No kidding. Didn’t you get to go to a private school and everything?’">>‘No kidding. Didn’t you get to go to a private school and everything?’ “Yup, Sycamore Academy. Cost my parents somewhere in the ballpark of $8,000 a year for me to go there. Drop in the bucket for them, of course. Even though that’s more than what my college tuition was.” “And of course that doesn’t include any extracurriculars I was involved with, or the private tutors they hired.” Sasha continues to talk about her childhood as the two of you walk through the Industrial Revolution section of the museum. Not paying much attention to the exhibits, mostly just paying attention to each other. <<continuelink"‘What do you think about all that? Growing up privileged?’">>‘What do you think about all that? Growing up privileged?’ “I’m mixed on it honestly. There’s no doubt my family’s money gave me an advantage in academics over most kids, and growing up in a well off, stable household helped a tremendous amount as well. And I really appreciate that, I recognize that I had opportunities most kids never would. But at the same I think it might have made me… lazy, in a way.” “Let’s get real, $name. I didn’t work for anything from like 7 - 19. Nothing. I breezed through school and any stuff I did outside of there was easy peezy shit that I did just to spruce up my college applications. When I turned 16 my parents even bought me a brand new car for Christ’s sake. Like I said I understand and appreciate the environment I was brought up in but Jesus, I was the definition of a lazy, spoiled rich kid in my teen years.” <<continuelink "//'Was, Sasha?//'">>//'Was, Sasha?'// Rolling her eyes, Sasha responds, “$name, please, you said yourself just a bit ago that I don’t act ‘rich’. Try harder.” “But yes, //was.// Remember how I went to community college to save myself money? While my parents had loads of money? Yeah… my parents did not like the fact I took a gap year. They straight up told me my senior year of high school that if I didn’t go straight to college after I graduated, that they would //not// be paying for it.” “They also wanted me to go a top 50 university but uh, I wasn’t so inclined to do that.” “Obviously I took that gap year anyway. Didn’t do much for me financially but it did help me realize a few things about myself, some of my weaknesses, things I could improve on. Made me realize, hey, maybe I should try to be a little more careful, pay better attention to the stuff that’s going on around me." [['So...'|Sasha Museum Dialogue]]

//'So...'// [[‘Do you hold any resentment towards your parents for not helping you out with college?’|Sasha Museum Dialogue 1]] [[‘Did your parents come from wealth or not?’|Sasha Museum Dialogue 2]] [[‘If you could go back, would you still choose to take that gap year or would you go straight to college?’|Sasha Museum Dialogue 3]] [[‘Did you find out about being ace during your gap year as well?’|Sasha Museum Dialogue 4]] <<if $MPC_completed is true>> [[‘Perhaps this plays into your ‘luck’ that I wast talking about earlier.’|Sasha Museum Dialogue MPC]] <</if>> <<continuelink "‘Looks like we’re getting close to the end of this section, Sasha.’ The exit for this section looming ahead, bringing you back to the rotunda you started at.">>‘Looks like we’re getting close to the end of this section, Sasha,' You say as you see the exit for this section looming ahead, bringing you back to the rotunda you started at. <<set $museum_completed to true>> “It would seem so. Well, guess we can [[evaluate our next steps, then?”|Museum Lobby]]

//‘Do you hold any resentment towards your parents for not helping you out with college?’// “A little bit, if I’m being honest. I know they don’t owe me anything but them trying to force me to go to college right after I graduated left a bit of a bad taste in my mouth. I mean, I’m still very much on speaking terms with them, it’s just that talking about college or my career is bit touchy,” She says while shaking her right hand back and forth in a rocking motion. [[Ask her something else|Sasha Museum Dialogue]]

//‘Did your parents come from wealth or not?’// “Eh, they grew up more middle class than anything. They certainly didn’t have it rough but they weren’t as rich as they are now.” “They certainly didn’t come from nothing, no matter what they might tell you. People who “come from nothing” certainly don’t get their entire education paid for by their parents. Nor do they get their first job out of college from knowing a family friend in some company,” she says, shaking her head back and forth slightly in disapproval. [[Ask her something else|Sasha Museum Dialogue]]

//‘If you could go back, would you still choose to take that gap year or would you go straight to college?’// “I’m not one for looking back, but, since you asked… I probably would’ve still took the gap year. I didn’t end up in that much debt coming out of college, as you know, so I don’t think them paying for the whole thing is that big of a deal. It’s more the gesture of it that upset me.” “My parents basically said, ‘Yeah, we’ll support you. But only if you do exactly what we want you to, otherwise we’re going to throw a fit and refuse to help you out at all.’ Jeez, thanks Mom and Dad, really feeling the love,” she says in a sarcastic tone. “Plus, despite my laziness during that gap year, I do think it allowed me to think about and explore some things that I wouldn’t have been able to otherwise. Mostly related to my future and career. And it kept me from becoming the same kind of ugly that my parents are, the kind of ugly you just saw, which is also nice.” [[Ask her about something else|Sasha Museum Dialogue]]

//‘Did you find out about being ace during your gap year as well?’// “Kind of? I didn’t really come to terms with my sexuality until my 2nd year in college. But I was starting to question things around that time. Started to realize that sexual attraction is, in fact, not an uncommon emotion for most people. And that most people aren’t repulsed by the thought of sex. That sure was something.” [[Ask her something else|Sasha Museum Dialogue]]

‘Perhaps this plays into your ‘luck’ that I wast talking about earlier.’ “Ehh, maybe. The way you were talking about it though, I think it’s more me and my motivation than it is my upbringing or luck.” “But maybe that’s the canine in me talking. Hard to say. You could be right, $name. Or at least half-right.” [[Ask her about something else|Sasha Museum Dialogue]]

Walking over to the fairly large grass field surrounding the entertainment pavilion, you and Sasha stakeout a place to sit among the fairly large crowd. “Shame we didn’t come prepared for this. Guess we’ll be roughing it by just sitting on the grass. Admiring all the smart people with their lawn chairs and blankets to sit on.” It takes about all of 4 minutes to find a spot on the field to settle down on. Both you and Sasha are now sitting on the grass field, looking at the theater screen while you wait for the trailers to finish playing. “Remember our talk back home? Guess I got my wish of watching a movie with you.” <<continuelink "‘Big surprise. You seem to always get your way.’">>‘Big surprise. You seem to always get your way.’ She seems a bit taken back by this comment, replying back, “Hmm? What makes you say that, $name?” <<continuelink "‘That story, you messed everything up, everything. But you still ended up succeeding in the end. That wasted year ended up being insignificant because you just got your shit together all of the sudden.’">>‘That story, you messed everything up, everything. But you still ended up succeeding in the end. That wasted year ended up being insignificant because you just got your shit together all of the sudden.’ “Yes, I’m aware of how lucky I was. Said that myself. Should have ended up in a dead-end job like most of my friends did.” “Difference between me and my friends was, I persevered. I still continued to try and better myself even when my previous plans failed. My friends? They were content with the life they had. I wasn’t.” “That was the difference. I don’t know if you can really call that luck, actually. I think it was more a matter of willpower than it was some hand of fate.” <<continuelink "‘Maybe. I don’t know, it just seems like you always end up getting your way. Like you always succeed at whatever you’re doing.’">>‘Maybe. I don’t know, it just seems like you always end up getting your way. Like you always succeed at whatever you’re doing.’ “It’s motivation, $name. Motivation to achieve my goals, to better myself, to learn something new. We talked about this whole thing in that conversation, don’t you remember?” her face showing a confused look. <<continuelink "‘You’re right. I… don’t really know where I was going with that thought. Probably should have just kept it to myself.’">>‘You’re right. I… don’t really know where I was going with that thought. Probably should have just kept it to myself.’ “Don’t worry about it. With you bringing that conversation up though... I have to wonder, did you take my advice to heart?” <<continuelink "‘Kind of. Maybe not in the way you were expecting.’">>‘Kind of. Maybe not in the way you were expecting.’ “The road trip, right? You didn’t mention it directly, but I just had this gut feeling that our talk had something to do with this whole thing.” “Hell of a thing to choose. Not quite what I had in mind when I told you do change something up in your life. I was expecting, I don’t know, a new hobby, getting back into the dating scene, not… this.” <<if $holly_dating is true or $valery_dating is true>> “I mean, you are dating again, almost forgot. But I figured you’d stop at that. Obviously that wasn’t the case if we’re sitting on the grass in a Chicago park, is it?” <</if>> “But who I am to judge your actions? You do what you feel is best for yourself and I’ll be there to support you. If that means traveling across the country in a car, so be it. I know you’d do the same for me, $name,” Sasha says while putting her arm on your shoulder. Smiling, you thank Sasha for the support. Giving you some reassurance that you didn’t know you were in need of. “Of course. We can’t just drop each other at the first sign of trouble now, can we?” she says, taking her arm off of your shoulder. “Now that said, the movie’s about to start so how about we focus on that?” Nodding your head, you turn your eyes towards the projector screen, watching the opening credits of the movie. [[Some time later|MPC End]]

Hopping off the L train, you're standing in front of the parking garage where this expedition began. Jacob’s car parked somewhere on the 6th floor of this 10 floor building. With nothing left to do, you and Sasha make your way back to the car, usure if Jacob <<if $holly_dating is true or $valery_dating is true>>and co.<</if>> will be there or not. You have a spare key to the car so Sasha and you'll be able to get into the car regardless. An uneventful trek to the 6th floor of the dingy concrete parking garage. Walking to Jacob’s car shows you that, unsurprisingly, Jacob did not make it back on time. Oh well, he should show up soon enough. Bus was probably just running late or something, you think. <<if $holly_dating is true or $valery_dating is true>> Indeed, someone arrives to the car about 10 minutes after you and Sasha. Though it’s not the person you were expecting, as you see <<if $holly_dating is true>> Holly’s <<elseif $valery_dating is true>> Valery's <</if>> face as they open the door and take their seat across from you. <</if>> <<if $holly_dating is true>> “Jacob’s running a bit late, huh? Good thing you guys had a backup plan to get in, else we’d be waiting out in this dungeon of a parking garage.” <<elseif $valery_dating is true>> “Hey $name. Jacob’s a bit behind schedule, I’m guessing. Kind of easy to tell, it being a quarter past 5, and him not being in the driver’s seat. Good thinking to have a spare key in case something like this happened.” <</if>> Some small talk is shared while you wait for Jacob to arrive. Finally, at 5:45, <<continuelink "you look out the window to see him approaching the car.">>you look out the window to see him approaching the car. Opening the front driver’s door, Jacob enters the car and promptly apologizes for his lateness, “Well, 45 minutes late. Not great, not terrible. Sorry about that.” “Some notice would’ve been nice, Jacob. We have phones after all,” Sasha says. “I know, I know. I missed my train by like 2 minutes and had to wait 20 minutes for the next one, it’s my bad. I just kind of panicked and forgot that, you know, texting was thing. Won’t happen again, probably.” “Now, that said, what are we going to do about driving? Am I gonna keep us going? Someone else wanna tag in? I don’t really care we just have to sort this out real quick,” Jacob states. Sasha seems to have no intention of taking over in the middle of downtown Chicago.. You’re indifferent, certainly not an ideal place to drive but if you have to - “Know what? Don’t worry about it. I’ll drive for a bit longer, consider it compensation for my lateness. We’ll sort out the next driver when we stop next.” [[With that sorted out by Jacob, it seems it's time to hit the road. Or, you would be hitting the road. If this were the next chapter. Which it isn't.|Temp Ending]]

//Some time later// The movie plays out as you expected. It was a typical superhero movie, nothing special but it was a decent way to spent an hour and a half. Plus it made Sasha happy, which is a bonus. “Nice movie, huh $name? Glad I finally got to sit down and watch something with you, we’ll have to catch some more when we get back, it’ll be a great time.” “Now, what’s our next plan of action? You’ve got the itinerary so you tell me.” <<set $MPC_completed to true>> With Millennium Park taken care of, your next stop is… <> <<if $tower_completed is not true>> [[The Sears Tower|Sears Tower Start]] <</if>> <<if $museum_completed is not true>> [[The Museum of Science and Industry|Museum Start]] <</if>> <> <<if $tower_completed is true and $museum_completed is true>> <<continuelink "'Well, it seems we've done everything on the list. We're done, Sasha.'">>'Well, it seems we've done everything on the list. We're done, Sasha.' "Already!? It feels like we just started!" Sasha takes moment to look at the time on her phone, "4:30 PM... yeah I guess you're right. We've been at this longer than I thought." [["Well, we better make our way back to the car. Lead the way."|Chapter 4 Ending]] <</if>>

Double-click this passage to edit it.

“The Sears Tower? Sure, why not? Pretty quintessential Chicago. You mention the city that’s probably the first thing someone thinks of,” Sasha says. “You’ve got the maps app setup on your phone so lead the way, $name.” You and Sasha hop on the next bus heading towards the Sears Tower. It takes about 40 minutes to finally get there, but other than that the ride was uneventful. Stepping off the bus you’re greeted by the presence of the towering Sears Tower. Or rather, the Willis Tower, as it’s named now. Although nobody actually calls it that. [[“Let’s head in, shall we?|Sears Tower Lobby]] Check out this observation deck everyone talks about.”

You and Sasha hop on the next bus headed to the Millennium Park. An uneventful ride eventually brings you to the park entrance off of East Washington Street. About 30 minutes away from where the Sears Tower is. There's only one thing to do, and that's [[enter the park|Millennium Park Hub]]

//‘Only one other time, in New York. Went up in the Empire State and they had an observation deck for tourists that was similar to this.’// “Ohh. I’d love to go see New York sometime. When did you go there? I’m assuming sometime when you were younger.” <<continuelink "‘Yeah, it was a while ago. Went with my family back when I was around 11? 12? Some age around there.’">>‘Yeah, it was a while ago. Went with my family back when I was around 11? 12? Some age around there.’ “Interesting! Surprised you never mentioned that before.” “What about living in one of these cities, though? I mean like, these huge cities. Dallas, L.A, any place like that. They’re nice to visit but I don’t know. Could you see yourself living here?” [[‘Maybe in the right situation, right job offer, who knows. But I don’t think I’d move to a big city just unprovoked, for no reason.’|OBT North 3.1]]

//‘Maybe in the right situation, right job offer, who knows. But I don’t think I’d move to a big city just unprovoked, for no reason.’// “Yeah, I could see that.” Sasha says, pausing for a moment before speaking up again, “Honestly, just up and moving to any place without a solid reason is asking for trouble. Especially so when you’re moving to a place with such a high cost of living like a big city.” “You say ‘the right job offer’ though… What, are you still up for going back to the traditional workforce? Thought you gave that up when you quit Spherion.” Sasha says, giving you a slight jab on the shoulder while doing so. <<continuelink "'I don't know, Sasha... I can't recall ever saying I'll never work a traditional job again, but-' you let out an audible sigh 'it’s hard to tell what the future holds.'">>'I don't know what I want, Sasha. I can't recall ever saying I'll never work a traditional job again, but-' you let out an audible sigh 'it’s hard to tell what the future holds.' "Yeah… especially someone in your place. Lots of uncertainty in the life of a freelance worker. I know we’ve talked about it before but… you wanna take a minute, get some stuff off your chest before we do this ledge thing?" <<continuelink "'I don't know, Sasha. I feel like I shouldn't have brought it up. Just forget about it.'">>'I don't know, Sasha. I feel like I shouldn't have brought it up. Just forget about it.' "Are you sure? It's really no problem. We can just get back in line when we're done talking.” [["'I mean, I guess we can talk about it for a minute. If you insist...'"|OBT North Talk Start]]

You and Sasha exit the line and head over to one of the lonely benches secluded over in the westerly section of the Skydeck. Sitting down, you and Sasha continue where you left off, "So you don't know what the hell you're doing, huh? Well, I'd say welcome to the club but it's pretty obvious you're hurting a bit more than most of us." <<continuelink"'I don't know if I'd say that. Maybe just not coping with it as well as most people do'">>'I don't know if I'd say that. Maybe just not coping with it as well as most people do' "Okay. That's another way to say it. But I mean, what aren't you coping with? Explain it, if you don't mind." <<continuelink"'I don't know where to start, Sasha. Haven't we already talked about this anyway?'">>'I don't know where to start, Sasha. Haven't we already talked about this anyway?' "We sure have! And we'll continue to talk about it until you feel better." <<continuelink"'You're really not going to let this go, are you?'">>'You're really not going to let this go, are you?' "What do you think? Let's get back on topic. What are you uncertain about? Your career? Friends? Relationships?" <<continuelink"'Just… my future, I guess. I've always been so uncertain of what I'm doing for, honestly, almost as long as I can remember.'">>'Just… my future, I guess. I've always been so uncertain of what I'm doing for, honestly, almost as long as I can remember.' 'I feel like I wander from thing to thing, hoping to find something that I connect with. Something that'll make me happy. Trying to find my reason to live.' "I mean, how far does this go back? Are we talking high school, college, what?" <<continuelink "‘High school, I guess? Probably sophomore year. I don’t know, Sasha. It all just sort of blends together after a while.’">>‘High school, I guess? Probably sophomore year. I don’t know, Sasha. It all just sort of blends together after a while.’ “Oh $name. What have you gotten yourself into?” Sasha says with a sigh. <<continuelink "‘I don’t have that same killer instinct to better myself, I’ve never felt it and I don’t think I ever will.’">>I don’t have that same killer instinct to better myself, I’ve never felt it and I don’t think I ever will.’ “What are you talking about?” <<continuelink "‘Ambition, the desire to improve, to achieve a set goal, whatever you want to call it.’">>‘Ambition, the desire to improve, to achieve a set goal, whatever you want to call it.’ “No, no I get that. I mean, what are you talking about? What are you saying? No ambition? $name, you and I both know that’s not true and this whole trip you planned is proof of that.” “You’re a lost soul, $name. Your educational path, your short career… you never did any of those things for yourself, did you? You did what was expected of you, what others wanted you to do, moreover, what society expected you do to.” “Am I right? I think I finally figured you out.” Sasha says, awaiting your response. Taking a moment to reflect as you face towards the ground, you respond: [[‘You’re right, Sasha.’|OBT North Talk 1]] [[‘What makes you so certain in your assumption, Sasha?’|OBT North Talk 2]]

//‘You’re right, Sasha.’// “And why do you think that is, $name? What’s driven you go to through all these things?” <<continuelink "‘It all loops back to: I had no idea what else to do. Going to college after high school seemed like the only logical option. And of course once you get into college the only logical path forward seems like getting a job in your field, anything else is a waste of time, so to say.’">>‘It all loops back to: I had no idea what else to do. Going to college after high school seemed like the only logical option. And of course once you get into college the only logical path forward seems like getting a job in your field, anything else is a waste of time, so to say.’ “And society, or perhaps capitalism, rather, just keeps expecting you to work towards something, doesn’t it?” Sasha interjects, “Inherent to the nature of it, to constantly be working, “on the grind”, doing something productive or else you feel like an impostor.” “I know, I dealt with something similar during my gap year. Felt like I wasn’t doing enough by only working part-time, that I wasn’t involved in enough “productive work” during my free time.” What she’s saying makes sense. Perhaps she’s on to something, you think. <<continuelink "‘And why is that, Sasha? What is making us feel this way specifically?’">>‘And why do you think that is, Sasha? What is making us feel this way specifically?’ “I think it’s simple, $name. Capitalism is driven by profit and exploited labor. So obviously the corporations that stand to gain from the worker’s labor seek to have us constantly working, working us to drive their profits. At this point it’s simply ingrained into our culture to be constantly on the grind. People look down upon you if you aren’t always trying to make a buck.” Sasha takes a quick break before continuing. “For example, are you interested in a hobby that won’t make you money? People will tell you it’s a waste of time because self-improvement and personal enjoyment isn’t a valid enough reason to do something. Not constantly trying to climb the corporate hierarchy? Boss man will tell you that you’re ‘under preforming’ or ‘not living up to the standards of the company’. I think you have some personal experience with that, don’t you?” Sasha says as she raises her eyebrows. “Of course this all loops together because any money you get from work will end up right back in the hands of the corporations you work for. Money to the landlord for rent, car loans, bills, groceries at the supermarket. It’s why they want you to be constantly working and making money, so you can spend more of it, and feed back into their system even more. “And most of all, it’s to keep you from thinking about the system you’re in. To keep you from questioning the status quo. If you’re being worked to death night and day, you don’t have time to sit down and think about how the system actually works.” “But see, you have had time to think about this kind of thing. I think that’s what’s lead you to your current predicament. I’m not saying it’s the sole reason you’re lost, but I think we’ve all been conditioned to constantly be striving to climb some sort of hierarchy. To buy into the capitalist system. And when you’re not doing that, you start questioning how things work. Rather all the work you do even matters.” she states, pointing her index finger at you. “Perhaps this is just one part of your overarching issue, hard to say. But it’s some food for thought, $name." <<continuelink "Maybe Sasha is right, this whole… thing. Could be playing into your motivational issues. At the very least it’s something to meditate on.">>Maybe Sasha is right, this whole… thing. Could be playing into your motivational issues. At the very least it’s something to meditate on. “You good now? Ready to move on with our windy city sightseeing?” Sasha asks you before standing up. You nod your head and get up with her before heading [[back to the ledge.|OBT North End]]

//‘What makes you so certain in your observation, Sasha?’// “You mean besides all the years I’ve spent around you? You’ve never been overly ambitious or gun-ho about college, your job, or anything like that. When we were in college you hardly gave a damn about the actual classes. And when you told me you got that job at Spherion? Well, you certainly didn’t seem thrilled about it.” “So, it’s observation I’ve made, simple as that. I think it’s an accurate one, though. What do you say?” [[‘Maybe you’re right, Sasha’|OBT North Talk 1]]

<<set $tower_completed to true>> Finishing your talk with Sasha, you head back over towards the glass ledge. Having to wait in a line similar to before, it doesn’t take all of 5 minutes to get to the front of the line. You and Sasha step out of line and over to the ledge. Both of you stepping onto the compact compartment of glass residing over the towering skyscraper. Looking down, you see the hundreds of windows dotted on the side of the Sears Tower. Directly below you is a sidewalk full of people, from this high up, they’re as indiscernible as a colony of ants. The illusion of this ledge gives you a a sense of vertigo; you become lightheaded and feel an unsettling “drop” in your stomach. As if your body expects you to fall through the glass floor and plunge hundreds of feet to the ground. It all seems a bit much for Sasha, who after looking down decides to step off the ledge and back onto solid ground. You spend a few more seconds standing on the ledge, taking the sights in <<continuelink "before following in Sasha’s footsteps.">>before following in Sasha’s footsteps. “Well, that’s one thing to check off the bucket list. What’d you think, $name?” <<continuelink "‘Like I expected. Interesting but nothing that crazy.'">>‘Like I expected. Interesting but nothing that crazy.' “Yeah, it’s about what I expected too. Glad I did it but whew, made me feel like I was about to hit the drop on a roller coaster. Didn’t appreciate that.” “Anyway, are we done here or is there something else you wanted to check out?” [[‘I think we’re ready to move on to the next thing.’|OBT North Transfer]] <<continuelink"‘Hold on, there’s still some stuff I wanna check out.’">>‘Hold on, there’s still some stuff I wanna check out.’ [[“Sure, I’m right behind you.”|Observation Tower Lobby]]

<<if $MPC_completed is true and $museum_completed is true>> Having now finished all three of the places on your itinerary, it seems your day in Chicago is at an end. It being around 4:30 PM right now, that should give you just enough time to get back to the parking garage to meet up with Jacob. You mention this to Sasha, who nods her head before saying, [[“Alright, lead the way back.”|Chapter 4 Ending]] <<else>> “Awesome, and that would be…?” Checking the itinerary, you decide the next stop is… <> <<if $MPC_completed is not true>> [[MIllennium Park|Millennium Park Start]] <</if>> <> <> <<if $museum_completed is not true>> [[The Museum of Science and Industry|Museum Start]] <</if>> <> <</if>>