#s2 custom hood

[oceansmotion]

Welcome to Gaudy Shore!

Power, fame, wealth— for decades, Sims have come to Gaudy Shore seeking fortune. On the outside, the glitz and glamour are dazzling, but the dark, seedy underbelly of the city casts a long shadow. Will these families shine bright, or will the shadow swallow them up?

Featuring 12 households, Gaudy Shore sees the return of some much beloved and missed families from Sims 1! Set 25 years in the future, this hood can be played as a companion hood to Pleasantview, or on its own.

Every family has their own storytelling album so make sure to check them out!

Keeping reading to learn about the families in Gaudy Shore!

Returning families:

The Mashuga Family

Content to dance the night away, - every night, for decades, - Frankie and Sylvia Marie have taken a hands-off approach to raising their children. Now that they're in their twilight years, what are their kids willing to do to get what they believe is owed to them?

The Hick-Charming Family

Elden only ever wanted what was best for his family, but somehow got himself involved in shady dealings. Charleigh is young and full of life, but will that get her into trouble with the boys? And will Clarke ever leave her bedroom?

The Jones-Smith Family

The Jones-Smith family has been a pillar of the community for decades, and the death of Chris has sent everyone reeling. Nick has vowed to honor his mother by setting his career aside to focus on his family, but that's easier said than done.

Michelle loves to dance, sing, and drink the night away, especially after the death of Mama Chris. Is her new interest in the town magnate genuine, or just another way to extend the party?

New Families:

The Banks Family

Rich, powerful, beautiful— the Banks family is known throughout town for everything beauty-related. Obsessed with only herself, will Arie uncover her husband's secrets? Lux thinks of himself as a good man, but is he really? Will Benjamin choose to follow his heart or his mind?

The Ramoz Family

Nora has always dreamt of being a famous movie star but has found mild success in the writing and voice acting world. Can that be enough for her, or will she strive for bigger and better things? Julien had his heart broken by his two best friends in the world. Can he ever forgive them? And will Carlos find himself involved in the shady underbelly of Gaudy Shore?

The Ermírio de Moraes Family

Wealthy, powerful, lonely, José has it all… except love. Is he blind to reality, or is this new relationship the real deal?

The Jenkins Family

Naive, sheltered Alyssa has lived her life under the strict thumb of her mother, Miriam. Will she be willing to ruin someone else's life to get the love and affection she's always desperately craved?

The Nelle Family

Quiet and reclusive, only a few Sims in town really know the Nelle family, but it doesn't take a genius to notice that something isn't quite right with them.

The Waltzman Family

Ever the partier, Wesley finally grew up and changed his outlook on life, but this has left him a little over protective of his sister, Wilma. Will he ruin her chances at happiness? And will he find love despite his ties to another?

Heartbroken for years, Wilma has finally gotten over her first love… or has she? She just met Donovan, but will her wandering eye lead her to her family's demise?

Four strangers living under one roof and a fresh divorce. Can Walda and Walter Waltzman get along after their divorce, or will they disrupt the perfect harmony Ines and Fernando Ermírio de Moraes have enjoyed for decades?

______________________________________________________________

Gaudy Shore features 12 playable households, 20 community lots, 3 apartment buildings, and 10 empty houses all built by me , except for Cafe Petit, a lot bin cafe (I like to think of it as a chain). Terrain also made by me. The hood comes with its own unique townies and strays; a few townies even own and work at some of the business around town!

This hood is not CC free but it isn't a lot

CC that I didn't use a lot of and the hood is fine without:

Wire Fencing by Cyclonesue on TSR

Stair Wall Fix by JRW on MTS

Photos & Plaques Hide with Walls Down by Numenor on MTS I used A LOT OF PICTURES taken with the career reward camera and the walls are very cluttered with photos, so I do recommend this mod.

Diagonal 3t2 Bungalow Windows by Nysha on MTS

Natural De Fences by Rosebine on MTS

CEP by Numenor on MTS

CC that will alter the hood significantly:

Bespoke Build Set by Bespoke on MTS

Shiftable Everything by Lamare on MTS

______________________________________________________________

I've been working on this hood on and off for a long time now, and I'm so happy that it's finally finished. It is definitely a labor of love and I hope you enjoy it <3 While Gaudy Shore was originally intended to be a subhood to complement Pleasantview, there are no ties to PV at all and can be played on its own. Please make sure to check out all the story images I included, I had a lot of fun taking them! For those adding the hood as a subhood, José, Michelle, and the Waltzman kids have which apartments they are supposed to be in at the end of their bios. And for the retirement home, I left it as a normal residential lot, but can also be converted into an apartment lot, or you can maybe use dorm doors, or mods to set each apartment to the correct Sim.

I have also gone through every Sim to set their intended names across all languages, so if your game is not in English, the Sims should still have the names I gave them!

Thank you to everyone that helped me along the way and play tested the hood for me, I really appreciate you <3

Download Mainhood || Mediafire Box

Download Subhood || Mediafire Box

If the names got scrambled, you can use this program from MTS to fix them, it's really easy! Can also be used to fix any other neighborhoods that get messed up :)

Please let me know if the subhood version works as intended and does not yeet itself out of the game, test on a testhood!

[loreaspiration]

I've been in a real building mood recently, so here's a little cottage for a swamp witch I built!

[kataraktaa]

What can be better than Strangetown? More Strangetown!

I've been working on this for quite a while...

This is Strangetown DLC! Custom subhoods for our dear desert town.

First I wanted to create subhoods for my strangetown, and it got quirky, strange, and dramatic really quickly. So I couldn't keep it only to myself and share this subhood and next ones when it will be ready. I will keep the usage of CC to minimum, I promise!

I will keep updating on it's development.

[moonlynn]

The first screenshot of Diphylleia, my custom neighborhood for The Sims 2!!! (it's a lame image I know but I still did not managed how to take screenshots of this game)

Now I am testing all community lots and creating the storyline of the city. You guys can check some of the faces from Diphylleia down bellow (activate the CC to know their names):

[dream-simmer]

help a fellow simmer???

It’s been a while since my game started having this problem. Whenever I’m trying to create a new hood, the screen goes to “creating hobbies” and then the game exits/crashes and it took some tries until the hood is created fine. Anyone ever heard/known about something to fix this??? I play most with custom, so it’s a problem for me T-T

[neonovember]

Hello! I hope you’ve been doing okay! I saw that you had requests open and I also saw that you take requests for Carmen? If it’s totally okay of course to request for him! I got into the bear a few days ago and my brain has been filled with nothing but thoughts of Carmy. Would it be okay just requesting something that’s just Carmen being worried/concerned about the reader? He just always sees whenever there’s that tiredness to them when it looks like it’s a bad day, that slump in their shoulders that all too much reminds him of him a little sometimes, just bringing them into the office and his eyebrows are furrowed with that look of concern and his eyes the same, maybe unexpectedly just wrapping them in a hug (Your writing is so cute btw!) 💕

to carry and to bear

ask, it will be my infinite quest to fulfill! love this request so much and i loved writing is even more. i'm going to be so annoying when s2 comes out, especially since i love carmen's character so much! thank you for your request anon &lt;3

carmen berzatto x reader

warnings: richie (yes he’s a warning), unresolved anxiety, horrible customers, fainting

word count: 5k (short for me lmao)

a/n: you know i love a character when i'm completing fics in under a day..lets pray this momentum keeps going

Wrapping yourself tight against the chilly wind of the unforgivable Chicago weather, you watch the city coming alive in the early morning as you walk down the concrete sidewalk of the Beef’s city corner.

Merchants and gazebo have begun to set up shop, their bright red vendor stands a stark contrast to the grey haze of the windy city. Corner stores and cafes have begun to uncover their blinds, dusting away the sliver of droplets that had long since evaporated after a heavy downpour the night before.

it’s slow though.

The mass of cars and yellow cabbed taxis haven’t yet filled the gravel roads, and the surging rush of traffic and uncontrollable road rage the beef windows have been accustomed to viewing hasn't filled the air.

The pinch of cold begins to itch against the cracks in your outerwear. Your trusted winter jacket and gloves had been left at the bottom of your laundry basket and instead you were forced to throw on a flimsy polyester jacket that provided absolutely no warmth. 

Your fingers are stuffed into your pocket, trying to hide them from the cold but it is no use. They shake against the freezing air of wind as you push past huddles of men chain smoking and passing coolers of steaming coffee on street corners.

You’re about to go ask for a cup, despite Carmen's disgruntled comments of their huddled group festering near the restaurant. They were a pack of wolves, and whilst Sydney's sandwiches had fended them off for a while, the hole in the Beef’s window was still fresh. Like a cycle, more and more had begun to trickle in from alleyways, leading to customers steering clear from the nearby streets. 

Carmen didn’t even like you walking to work this early, you get it, despite being daylight, Chicago had a way of defying social norms. You had paid some attention to the increase in robbing and attacks that had begun to frequent news reports.

It wouldn't have been a problem, walking was always voluntary for you as you had a perfectly fine working car that would drive you to and from your destination with as little as a rumble from its engine. And yet, that seemingly perfect car decided to break down on you this morning, leading to an overheated engine and a smoke filled hood.

So not only did you have to pay for a towing truck to drag away your car to an auto shop you couldn't afford to afford, but you were late. And you hated being late.

Not to mention your sister had called you late last night, asking to stay for a couple nights after her good for nothing boy-friend you would rather call a child had kicked her out after a fight.

She had rambled for nothing short of 2 hours after you had gotten home from the Beef late last night, and the pull of sleep had begun to weigh on you. The exhaustion and deprivation had written itself in the slug of your limbs and the slump of your shoulders.

You had to come in today, there were no rest days even if the Beef wasn't neck deep in debt and Cicero didn't have you all on a leash. Especially if you wouldn't allow yourself one. You had that in common with Carmen, you frequently ignored your own needs for your craft, the same insatiable passion and need for perfection driving you to exhaustion. 

The familiar chime of the Beefs wooden doors hit your ears, and you shake off the cold of the city streets, the Beef is warm and you're grateful, sighing as the heat of prepped ovens and oiled pans defrosts your face. 

It takes a second before you walk into the busy kitchen when the sound finally reaches you. The screeching sound of Richie's voice bickers with Tina about the next door convenient store being turned into a “pretentious hipster coffee shop that is legally selling dog water to unassuming Chicagoans”.

Dragging on and on about the invasion of gentrification that will soon take out all the good businesses that had been around since his grandfather had come from Sicily. Richie was not from Siciliy. In which Carmen mirrors your thoughts and yells that he is not Italian, and his obsession with the European country has been bordering on creepy.

Ebra is reciting an article about a culinary student that had gone rogue and murdered their entire class, giving pointers on how he himself had to patch up an entire unit of people stabbed by a bent corkscrew. The loud conversations and untethered yelling across the kitchen combines with the malfunctioning arcade that has begun to re-circuit the same sentence for 20 minutes now, digs a deep burrow into your temple.

You stand at the entrance of the kitchen, watching the commotion of early morning prep with a tight grimace, your head begins to vibrate a little, the start of a headache you won’t be relieved from spreading and you have to swallow down the exhaustion that begins to seep in at the sight. 

Sydney brushes past you, greeting you with a hello and one of her charming smiles before muttering about throwing that arcade machine out the back. You giggle and it hurts, but you do it anyway because, fuck, you would help her.

You step into the kitchen, and the crew each turn to greet you good morning as you walk past them into the locker bay stuffing your bag and shoes into the cabinet before quickly changing. 

Your phone reads 7am and you stuff it into the pocket of your hung jacket before slamming the locker shut. Carmen peeks his head around the corner, nodding at you as you put on your non-slip shoes, calling your name when you don't notice, you flinch before peering up and Carmen waves trying to get your attention.

“Mornin’ chef, didn’t think you were coming in” Carmen remarks, raising his eyebrows as he leans his shoulder against the wall. 

“Morning, yeah, sorry about that, uh- shit happened and I had to deal with it all at once. Won;t happen again” You reply, biting back a yawn, before letting your feet fall to the ground.

“It’s all good,” Carmen replies, nodding, wiping his hand on the white towel hanging on his shoulder that was already smudged with stains.

“Just shoot me a text or call next time, yeah?” Carmen replies 

“Will do chef” You reply, smiling, before peering out to see Sydney carrying a basket of  ingredients

“New recipe?” You ask, nodding towards Sydney, and Carmen nods, running a hand through his curls as he leans forward.

“Well call it trying something. Not yet finished, just needs some minor tweaks here and there” Carmen replies

“I can help Sydney out if you want?” You reply without a second thought.

You already had prep and a marinade you had to make for Cicero’s function he had conveniently told Carmen about the night before, but helping out was second nature to you, it was a part of this family's culture.

Carmen shakes his head, his eyes falling to your slumped shoulder, and the slow but tight blinks you tended to do when you were exhausted.

The second he had peered his head around the corner and saw the slug of your limbs he knew something was up, but he also knew he couldn't force you to relax, you were worse than him, always taking on so much, filling up your cup until it was overflowing.

“No, no, it’s alright, besides, that marinade isn’t going to be easy, I should be asking if you want me to help out” Carmen replies, chuckling, scratching his neck as you curve your mouth into that smile he loves so much. You could be half-dead and he still stares at you like you were the most gorgeous thing he's ever seen.

“I think I’ve got it handled. I remember having to make something similar back at Le Bleu, you just got to get the temperature right or the entire thing gets spoiled. Having more than one person just makes it more confusing. besides, don't you have that meeting with the vendor today?” You reply, and Carmen sighs, nodding

“Yep, hopefully this place looks stable enough to get him to sign, you know I can’t deal with corporate bullshit. Sydney should’ve met up with them, fuck any one other than me” Carmen replies, shaking his head as he fidgets with the hem of his apron.

Despite his numerous accolades, and world renowned talent, he only ever felt at nature in the kitchen. High function parties and elusive dinner bars were things he despised, feeling out of place despite it being thrown in his name.

“Hey, don’t be so hard on yourself, you're the face of this place Carmen, you’ve transformed it, you oughta show them the Beef is the best investment they’ll make. Hell you’re the best investment they can make” You reply, and Carmen ears perk at your reply, smiling fondly at your comment. He didn't deserve your praise, and he hated the way the sound of your lips curving around his name shoots through him.

“Are y'all going to get to work or continue eye fucking?” Richie calls, as he passes by the locker bay, and Carmen immediately shakes his head muttering a fuck you before nodding to you, and heading back to his station. You get up from your seated position on the bench, dusting and ironing out the creases in your apron before mentally going over the things you had to complete before opening.

Prep vegetables, then start the veal stock for Cicero's marinade. You had to complete it early, since it had to be chilled for at least 5 hours, any less and the fat would congeal and turn into a complete mess you didn’t have time to fix.

You walk towards your station, stepping over sauce that had spilled onto the tile floors, this crew was amazing in their craft, but god were they messy. You bump shoulders with Sydney as you begin to grate and cut root vegetables and herbs, you have to force your eyes open, blinking several times before dipping your hand into an ice water bucket and wiping your face with it.

Sydney converses with you, and it wasn't that she was boring, in fact you both frequently spend time even out of the restaurant as friends. But you can’t even try to decipher what she says, just sounds coming out of her mouth that you pack away in order to get your job done. 

Just cut the vegetables, finish the stock, cut the vegetables, finish the stock, you repeat it like a mantra in your head, unaware at Sydney calling your name. She reaches forward, pressing a soft hand to your shoulder to get your attention.

“Hey, did you hear me?” Sydney replies, concern written across her features as she peers at your disoriented state.

“Huh? Sorry, what did you say?” You reply, avoiding her gaze. You feel her penetrate through you, pitying the exhaustion on your face, probably realising you were a shit chef who couldn't even handle a couple responsibilities.

“I was asking if you could grab me some of the sauce I made yesterday from the storage fridge. You alright? You seem a bit..” Sydney starts, before you cut her off quickly

“Just had a long night, didn't get much sleep” You reply, rubbing your eyes with a hand. What has gotten into you? You weren't foreign to a few sleepless nights and a few too many deadlines you had to meet, hell your entire college and culinary life had been exactly that.

“That’ll kill you, you know” Richie butts in, reaching for a crab cake Sydney had prepared before being swatted away with a wooden spoon.

“What?” You ask, already regretting asking Richie to elaborate on what was clearly some elaborated story he had got stored away

“Go without that good old shut eye a few nights too long and you'll start hallucinating shit, not fucking with you you, don’t you know about the Russian sleep experiment-?” Richie rambles

“Ah here we go” Sydney replies, rolling her eyes 

“You think because you went to Paris or whatever prestigious tight ass school you know everything? It’s real, happened right after World War 2, Russians got a bunch of people and just made them not sleep for like months, they starting turning into fuckin' aliens and shit-” Richie continues, ignoring Sydney's sly remarks about Richie's facebook usage.

“Richie c’mon, you know that shits made up” You reply

“Don’t matter, didn’t I tell you about my week long bender during college? Starting seeing my great aunt from the corner of my eye, and I swear she is still there-” Richie replies before getting cut off my Carmen calling his name

“Stop distracting my chefs Cousin” 

You chuckle, shaking your head as Richie mutters about the fall of democracy and wipe your hands across your towel.

“I’ll go get your sauce Syd” You reply, and she smiles in gratitude as you turn towards the storage room. The cold air of the fridge wakes you up a little, and you rest your head against the door of the storage fridge, sighing in frustration. Talking to Richie was exhausting in itself, and when you were already running only fumes and second hand smoke you felt like it took the last bit of energy you had left.

You grab the container of sauce written with “DO NOT TOUCH” on its front, it's wrapped in cling film, with no lid and you're careful not to drop it everywhere. It wasn’t heavy, per se, just filled to the brim and without careful steps it was close to tipping out. You walk out of the storage room carefully, before turning towards your station.

“Corner!” You yell, twisting around the corner of the kitchen, before you slam straight into a tall body, jerking back and inadvertently spilling the sauce all across the kitchen floor and onto your shoes. You feel it sink into your socks and drip down your apron, eye twitching in frustration as Marcus starts apologising profusely, you ignore him, dropping down to your knees and reaching for paper towels. You start wiping away the sauce, as Marcus drops down to your level and tries to help, you shake our head looking up at him.

“Stop, Marcus, just stop. I can do it” You reply

“But-” Marcus protests

“We don't need two chefs to clean up a one person job, alright? You need to finish prep” You reply, letting the towels soak up the sauce. You grieve for Sydney, not all of it had spilt, but a quarter of a container wasn’t enough to get through the morning rush, let alone the entire day.

You ignore the spilt sauce all over your clothes, you didn’t have time to change now, rushing back to your station before telling Sydney about the spill

“You serious? I thought I could leave early today, got a friend's birthday” Sydney replies, pinching the bridge of her nose.

You instantly feel guilty, you should've been more careful, and now Sydney would have to pay for it.

“Hey, I got it, let me take that new recipe off your plate. That gives you enough time to get to the party?” You reply

Sydney looks up, rising her eyebrows “No, no I couldn’t possibly ask you to” 

“Nonsense, I owe you anyway, remember when I had to leave halfway through the morning to get my sister?” You reply, with a tired smile before Sydney wraps her arms around you, you rub a hand across her back. You can’t really feel her arms around you, it’s like all your senses are delayed, you ignore it as you get back to work, now with another task on your plate.

You finish chopping the vegetables after a short while, usually you were the fastest in the house, but today you lagged behind, finally carrying the vegetables to Carmen who looked at you strange, his eyes staring through you, he swallowed like he was going to say something as you walked away, before stopping and continuing stirring the stock on the stove

By the time the Beef opens, you're still elbow deep in work, you've stayed silent most of the time, waving off Marcus’s apology and instead working, not stopping since you started. You skipped breakfast, and you hadn't gotten a chance to eat, and just when you're about to make yourself something, Richie calls your name from the front counter.

You walk towards the front of the Beef, wiping stains on your apron to look a little presentable to the outside world. Richie stands at the register, flicking a pen in his hand, a look of annoyance on his face.

“What's up?” You ask Richie, as a tall man dressed down in a polo sweater and khakis stares down at you in anger. He’s familiar, someone you had served when Richie had to take his smoke break, and he scrutinises you as you smile at him.

That’s the only way you could communicate with these people, any hint of anger and you’d be written of as angry and unable to control your emotions, you lost your last job because you defended yourself anyway.

“This guy said he came in and you made him something he apparently didn't like, but finished anyway” Richie replies, a knowing look passes between you both and you sigh, you don't have time for this. 

“Morning Sir, May I ask what’s the problem” You ask politely

“You suggested to me a dish from the menu, alright, YOU, not me, so don't go blaming me for this, and look what I got, not only does it have nuts, which i hate, it's spicy. Way too spicy, I want a refund, NOW” The man replies, seething, his yelling catches the attention of other patrons, and Richie begins to reach under the table for a bat.

“Well, you finished it all so I don’t know what you-” You begin before the man cuts you off loudly

“Do you think I give a shift what you think? Huh? Jesus fucking Christ, see you just need to do what I fucking say, not argue. Give me a refund before I get you fired from this shit hole you dumb stupid-” The man yells, loudly before Carmen's booming voice cuts him off

“I wouldn't finish that sentence if I were you” Carmen replies, clenching his jaw in way that told you he was trying to hold back the rage from spilling out

“Who the fuck are you?” The man asks

“I own this shit hole you piece of shit, and if you don't get the fuck out of my restaurant I'm going to break every single bone in your face with my bare hands". 

“Excuse me?”

Carmen laughs, shaking his head before smiling at the man

“I told you”

Carmen drags the man by his collar, throwing him onto the sidewalk and dragging his body to the alleyway, you fear what he is going to do and Richie raises his eyebrows in astonishment.

“Well shit cousin, you ain't a pussy after all” Richie mutters under his breath

You can faintly hear the sound of splitting skin and the crack of bone, before Carmen storms back into the restaurant, eyeing all the patrons who are following his every move.

“Y'all got that? Anyone mess with my people hear and your walk out on a fucking stretcher” Carmen replies still seething with anger, before Richie claps loudly as Carmen walks back behind the desk.

“Call a fucking ambulance” Carmen replies, rolling his eyes at Richie before he walks towards you, the the tension immediately leaving him as he find your safe and away from that man.

“You alright? He didn't hurt you or anything?” Carmen asks in concern, his eyes darting across your body to see any imagined injuries

“It seems you should be asking him that question” You reply, nudging towards the alley of the Bear, chuckling as you shake your head.

“You didn't have to do that you know, iIcould have-” You start

Carmen looks down at you in concern, shaking his head as he places his hand on you shoulder

“Could've what? He was screaming in your face and I wasn't about to let him think that shit was okay, god, how could you not react?” Carmen replies, looking down at you in concern, shaking his head as he places a hand on your shoulder.

“I’m just so busy, I still- Fuck, i still got to get Cicero's marinade in the fridge, and i need to start on Syd’s broth” You mutter pressing your fingertips to your temples.

“What? You’re doing Sydney’s load as well? Hey, you need to sit down a second” Carmen replies, as you begin to walk back towards the kitchen, with Carmen hot on your heels, asking you to stop and turn to him.

You hear him call your name, but the mountain of tasks that were now even later due to that customer had begun to seize your consciousness.

All you could focus on was the dishes you needed to make and the pain in your temples that had begun to spread down, your vision getting fuzzy around the edges as you try and shake yourself awake.

“Dammit, listen to me! Stop cutting fucking vegetables and listen to me” Carmen yells at you for the first time, twisting your body to face him and you spit out in anger

“What?!” 

“What’s gotten into you today?” Carmen replies, yelling

And you don't know why, but that question breaks something in you, and you can't help but let out a short chuckle. Carmen looks down at you in horror, trying to reach for you, to catch you when the inevitable happens and you look at him once before it does.

Before your vision begins to blur and the edges begin to burn like a flame, you try and catch yourself, but it’s too late and you fall into Carmen's arms, wrapped up against his chest as you crash.

Carmen gathers you in his arms, his heart breaking beneath his breasts, holding his sweet girl in his arms as the streams of tears dampen his shirt. The rest of the crew watch on in concern, and Carmen shoes them away as he carries your unconscious body to the office.

“What the fuck Cousin?” Richie calls

“Hey, hey, is she alright? What -what happened?” Sydney replies in horror as she watches Carmen carry you from the kitchen. 

“What happened was, ya'll did fuck all when she was practically breaking down trying to finish everyone else's fucking mess. What happened? Are you fucking serious? If i wasn't there, she would’ve fainted into a burning skillet of your fucking vegetables Sydney” Carmen replies, shaking his head, the entire crew goes silent, the only sounds coming from the beeps of ovens and stove tops, and the sizzling of burning food.

Carmen goes quiet, as he assesses your state, there is something unwritten in the way he holds you, and he blinks tight, his face twitching a little as if he had to make sure you were in his arms, the only place he wanted you to be.

“Get back to work” Carmen replies, quietly, a stark contrast to his rage from before, the crew has never seen him like this, his eyes and focus on you, as if he has been seized by this responsibility and dying need to protect you. He can hardly breathe, his arms shaking as he stares down at your sullen and tired face.

“We need-” Marcus starts before Carmen shakes his head

“No, no, enough. Sydney will hold down the fort, this is my responsibility. Get. back to work.” Carmen replies

—-

Carmen wastes no time to gently place your body onto the scuffed office couch, pressing a hand to your head, before reaching for an ice cold container of water, dipping a towel into it before gently pressing it to your forehead.

Carmen shakes his head in anger, he should've seen this coming, he should've noticed from the slump of your shoulder and your one word answers that you were stretching yourself too thin.

Carmen tortures himself as he replays the moments before you fainted into his arms. The way your features twisted into a sob, and the lasts shred of resolve snapped, and you had reached for him, you had reached for him.

You had reached for Carmen when you fell, and something in him broke when he had caught you.

Carmen had been used to his own self-destruction, but as he rested his thumb, rubbing circles and wiping away the tears on your face, he wished himself to change, not just for him, but for you. How could he? How could you be such a poor example to you? This was his own fault, and the reality of that conclusion twists like a knife to his gut.

His sweet girl, his Sunshine, who had thought the needs of this goddamn sandwich shop was more important than her own. You begin to stir in his arms, and the tension and shake of his arms begins to release as you wake up, Carmen eases you into consciousness when you begin to panic.

“Hey hey, I’m right here, you're okay, you're okay” Carmen replies softly, and you squeeze your eyes tightly, trying to understand what had happened and why you felt like your body was filled with lead.

"What, what happened” You reply, looking across the location of the office.

“You fainted, and I carried you to the office because you are not going back into that kitchen” Carmen replies, sitting up from his slumped position.

You stay quiet,  confusion lacing your features as you shake your head. You fainted? How did that even happen? You had never fainted in your entire life.

Carmen peers at you, his eyes dancing across your face as your silence frightens him, he wouldn't even recognise you, your usual bubbly, and incredibly chirpy self was not replaced by someone who was so exhausted they couldn’t stay conscious.

“You gotta talk to me baby girl, please, look at me, you can tell me, you can tell me anything” Carmen replies, softly, caressing your hand with his thumb when it begins to shake.

You look up at him, his expression of worry and concern causing your features to twist,

“I um, I’m just a little tired” You reply, the beginning of tears choking you, causing your words to rush out as  you try to stop yourself but it is fruitless, and Carmen eyebrows kind of pinch, he kind of frowns a little as he looks at you in that way.

It's all it takes before you sob, and sink into the coach. Carmen gathers you once again in his arms, and scoops your legs so that they lay across his thighs, and your head rests against his collarbone.

“I know baby, I know, I’m sorry, Oh honey I am so sorry” Carmen replies, rubbing your back as you let the last of your resolve sink into his chest, the cry of your tears leaving you speechless.

You can’t stop crying, the cup spilling over and making a big whole mess, snot and tears and heartache and exhaustion dirties Carmen's chef whites and you can't help but grip onto him like he is the only thing tethering you to Earth.

You don’t have to tell Carmen then, he knew the second you walked in, and he knows now when you hold him. There's a certain grief Carmen feels when he looks at you and sees himself, and in a way this is for Carmen too.

You sit like this for a while, you and Carmen. Wrapped in his arms as you lay across his lap, long after the tears had run dry, where you are left with hiccups and the soothing touch of Carmen's hand across your back.

It feels like you two are the only people on earth. Everything is Carmen; its all you smell, all you feel against your skin, all you hear as he whispers into you ear. No one dares to step into the office doors, even when an hour ticks by, even when the trickle of customers turns into a downpour and the orders never end, the family knows that you need this, that your health was better than money, or happy customers and fuck all.

Even after you have cried your eyes out, the responsibility of work begins to weigh on your body, you still had so much to do with so little time

“But the marinade, and- and Sydney's” You begin before Carmen cuts you off with a soft squeeze.

“Richie’ll handle it, and if he doesn't Cicero can go fuck himself. You really think I’m going to let that override you right now? Just forget about the kitchen alright, can you do that for me, pretty girl?” Carmen replies

You nod, the burden that had exhausted you to sickness lifted from your shoulders. You look towards the clock and realise the vendors were coming soon to meet with Carmen, something he couldn’t miss.

“The vendors, aren't they-”

“They came in 3 hours early, it's why it took me so long to get to you when that asshole was throwing a fit” Carmen replies, knowing what you were asking for.

You peek at him in question “Well?”

“They signed.” Carmen replies, rolling eyes and smiling at your delighted squeal

“What did I tell you? Carmen Berzatto is more than-” You start before a yawn stretches through you.

“Alright, alright, enough talking from you. When’s the last time you ate?” Carmen asks

You stop and scratch your head, trying to think and you laugh a little when you can’t remember.

“I don't know” You reply

Carmen’s eye twitches, and he smiles down at you before easing you off his thighs and onto the coach. 

“What- what are you doing?” You ask, not even trying to hide the sadness in your voice. You already miss the heat of his chest warm against your cheek.

Carmen smiles softly as he looks down at you, threaded a hand through his head as he wipes down the creases on his apron.

“I’m making you something”

“What? No it’s- it’s okay I’ll eat at family” You reply, reaching a hand out to him

Carmen reaches for your palm, pressing a soft kiss on your the skin of your knuckles before reaching down to kiss the top of your head.

“No you need to eat now, alright? You're going to sleep the rest of the day, and then, and then, you're coming back to my place so I can keep an eye on you. You gonna listen to me or protest?” Carmen replies, eyebrow raised as he crosses his arms. His voice drops down an octane, like it was a command, and you have to bite back the desire floating in your stomach at the way he looks down with his eyes all heavy from above. 

“Okay, alright, whatever you say Chef” You reply with a smile, and Carmen sinks his teeth into his bottom lip when you say it like that.

“Just wait a sec” Carmen replies, and as he is about to leave you call for him again

“What are you even making, half the ingredients are gone” 

“It’s no problem, it’s your recipe anyway” Carmen replies, with a hint of a smile on his face before he leaves the room. It takes you a while, half because you're exhausted and the other half because you're hungry before the realisation hits you that he's made a recipe for you, about you. 

You can't help the smile that stretches across your face, goddamnit Carmen Berzatto, and you say you aren't a romantic.

[lovinggreeniehours]

pen thread music flame and comet? (@snowpuffclovers)

i can finally essay about takaharaa :DDD yayyy

🖋️ pen: say a fact about your self insert, it can be absolutely anything! short or long winded!

(hehehe angst)

when takahara absorbed the magic from the forbidden door, he obtained inhuman powers, among a few other things. one of the 'other things' could be read as somewhat of a curse? because ever since absorbing that magic, people have started to forget him

people he knew well and were close with weren't quite affected, of course. but acquaintances would find that his face, name, and voice have blurred in their memory. if an old classmate hadn't talked to him in a few months, there's a good chance they're right on the cusp of forgetting him altogether

he and solomon made a talisman to give to people that's charmed to help them remember. and to ease takahara's nerves a little. it's hard to go through life everyday having to remind everyone who you are. especially as someone in diavolo's inner circle

but he supposes it helps a bit during investigations, that people do not remember his face. but it keeps him up at night sometimes, wondering if he'll wake up the next morning only to find that his entire family had forgotten him

🧵thread: what would your self insert wear in the source your f/o is from? it can be multiple outfits or just one!

ooooh takahara has a lot of outfits lmao. i have yet to make better refs though 😭 so ill take the time and ramble about it instead im so sorry about how long this is HDDJFFJ

in s1 and 2, takahara's casual outfit is his signature red hoodie, grey pants, red sneakers (very random but important design note: after lesson 6, he always keeps the hood up because he feels like it better protects his neck :) ) it's very unassuming and comfortable, as that's how he hoped to be perceived

god wait that is so strange to say lmao not to tangent but 🥹 wow character development 🥹🥹 "oh no! guy who used to try and fade into the background and avoid attention realizes that he likes attention and has been deprived of it his entire life! he begins to work on himself and become confident so he never has to hide anymore and- oh fuck he's been cursed to be forgotten by everyone" like wow okay 😭

i haven't thought about it much before (just a little hehe) but takahara's wardrobe changes actually kind of do reflect his character huh 🥺 yay. go me im so good at this

his rad uniform is very standard. as i said, bland and unassuming. the most customized thing in there his how he uses the red sash as a scarf (also to cover his neck). as time goes on, the scarf becomes a staple part of his design. and i like it a lot because it's still takahara signature color red (more vibrant than his hoodie though 👀), but unlike the hood, it doesn't quite hide his face. takahara in rad uniform is like. almost foreshadowing for how he feels at home in the devildom. how well he fits in there without even realizing

(extra: in s2, takahara very briefly has a white and blue outfit when he and lucifer visits takahara's family in the human world. it's meant to directly contrast his usual color palette AND emphasize the demeanor change/masking takahara does in his old life as a human compared to how he's grown to be like in the devildom

in s3, takahara's outfit is somewhat similar as s1, but he has a black shirt, red hoodie (it's a slightly brighter red and has a zipper left open this time), and a denim jacket. i don't think about s3 much but ive contemplated whether or not takahara should put down his hood this season

now s4 and onwards is the outfit i usually draw takahara in now :D which is the light brown trench coat, signature scarf, boots, and rad emblem! these are his work clothes essentially. since by this time, he's joined diavolo's inner circle 👍

EXTRA BONUS: his nightbringer outfit, which i do have a reference for hehe. takahara has like a million more outfits for different events, but these show up the most in the main story :)

bonus: do you have a weapon? if so, describe it or show it!

hmmmm i wouldn't call it takahara's weapon exactly, but he had a rapier during nightbringer. which plays a um. somewhat significant role, let's say 😁

🎵music: if you/your self insert had a theme song, what would it be?

THIIIIIIIS!!!! THIS ONEE!!!!!

hate me sometimes - stand atlantic is The takahara song and it has been his theme song since the moment i made him 🙏 amen. i will be talking for actual days if i was told to do lyric analysis about this song so that's all i will say

bonus: an extra song that fits your self insert and your f/o!

if you ask me to lyrically analyze easy to hate - waterparks i might actually kick your door and talk for a million years but just know. that this is THE ARIFER SONG. it is SO their song. and i adore it with my entire being

i viscerally remember when i was first writing up their story and making the playlist and being so stuck because i couldn't find a single song that fit them well enough. AND THEN THIS SONG JUST. RAN ME OVER 😭 all the lyrics about them source trust me

🔥flame: does self insert have an enemy? if so, who is it and why are they so hated? what was a particularly heated moment between you two?

my enemy is lucifer. i hate him because he exists and for a heated moment there was- (is shot)

um. serious answer idk 😔 like to be very frank takahara hasnt hated anyone more than lucifer HDSHHSG like seriously 😭 he's not. an emotional guy. there are people that annoy him or people that inconvenience him but they don't really matter to him i think. he just calls annoying people worms,,,

and like the question is so funny to me, you can't say HEATED MOMENT and ENEMY around takahara 😭 that's the fucking enemies to lovers guy 😭😭

☄️comet: what was a moment where your self insert really shined? this can be a badass moment, a moment where you felt important to the overall lore, or just a really cool and important moment!

takahara mattering to the plot? 😭 lmao since when /j

i think the first things that came to mind are all instances of takahara trying to protect his siblings (the grimoire incident in lesson 6, distracting lucifer so they can sneak up to the attic unnoticed, all the times he steps in front of them when he senses danger) 🤔 hm. yeah i genuinely find it hard to find a very specific moment where he "shines", as the question put it. it's just that a lot of his more important moments involve his relationships with others

the only moment i think he really has for himself is absorbing magic from the forbidden door but god that is so trauma heavy i don't know if im allowed to call that badass lmaoo 😭

maybe, i'll consider that bit in nightbringer when lucifer loses control in cocytus so takahara (no longer powerless) gets to magic fistfight him :) HDDHFSGH

[stormvanari]

A cloaked figure approaches a stall tucked away in the market. Eda, the owner of the stall, leaned her arm upon recognizing her next customer, “Big fan of my human treasures, aren’t ya?”

The cloaked figure didn’t respond: they stared down at the contents of today’s stock.

Their head stopped and pointed at a slingshot. “You want that?” Eda smirked. The cloaked figure nodded, and lend her a few snails on their palm. In exchange, she handed her customer the slingshot, “All yours to keep!”

A sky-blue serpentine tail emerged from behind the figure, and it wagged furiously. Eda chuckled, “Say, who are you, if you don’t mind?”

The figure’s tail froze. They snapped their head at every direction, as if someone was watching them. Eda crossed her arms, “I won’t force you, but you’ve been frequently visiting—“

“Darian.”

“Darian?” Eda clarified. The cloaked figure took off their hood to reveal a witch whose hair is tied into a long ponytail via a gear ornament. Darian also wore long fingerless gloves fastened by straps across the wrist. What strikes Eda the most is her customer’s hair: the curls awfully remind her of that annoying excuse of a coven head. Additionally, the mirror earring on his left ear doesn’t help either. Darian quivered at Eda’s forming scowl, “I-Is something the matter?”

“Not really: you just remind me of someone....”

“I‘m sorry.” The witch put his hood back on, “I could use another concealment stone the next time I come back, or not return—“

“So you’re on the run? I knew it.”

Remaining silent, Darian stood still. The longer Eda stared at him, the bigger his anxiety grows. The witch clutched his slingshot on his chest.

The Owl Lady’s eyes swept the area around the two,* “Since those goons aren’t here right now, you up for Criminal 101?”

“Criminal 101?”

“I’m not called the most powerful witch on the Boiling Isles for nothing.” Eda winked. Darian reached for a pouch attached on his belt, “Those goons you say...the Emperor’s Coven...they’re not going to be here any moment now, right?”

“Doesn’t look like it. The street’s been quiet since the last several minutes.” Eda toyed with a slinky, “But I can offer tips for free, in case you ever encounter them yourself.”

Her glare returned, “Unless you’re associated with Adrian Graye, it comes with a price.”

Darian gulped.

Eda’s toothy smile returned, “But I’m happy to help a criminal like you!”

The outlaw breathed out dramatically and tuned in for Eda’s tip. “So, whenever you want to start a heist...”

_________________________________________

Context: Darian and Eda had a brief “friendship” before S2 hit. It’s quoted because they barely interact outside of human treasures, since the basilisk-in-disguise is constantly on the run from the Emperor’s Coven. So it makes him a regular to the stall. In fact, Darian was secretive enough to not tell Eda of his true identity as a basilisk, nor Adrian Graye being his biological twin. Belos instilled the fear that all basilisks are dangerous (AHEM, it’s mostly false because Vee, and possibly others, is the complete opposite of that, and the basilisk treatment during the experiments was horrible), so Darian wasn’t confident enough to open up his true identity to anyone.

Until post-canon, when he took the Illusion Chair (equivalent to the Illusion Coven Head in terms of political power) of the Titan’s Council, especially to Loopy who Darian grew close to as a sibling.

[alpinloch]

Arctica BACC Resources

Copying over this post in preperation to delete @arcticasims blog as I’ve decided posting the challenge is too much work 😅

Once I’ve throughly playtested my custom defaults, I’ll upload them and link them here in case anyone else wants to play with my specific fantasy setting.

S1 (White One): I Can Sing a Rainbow Milk, defaulted by me

S2 (Human & Elf): Honey Skinblend with Freckles Elaaden, defaulted by me

S3 (Human & Elf): Honey Skinblend S3

S4 (Human & Elf): I Can Sing a Rainbow Seal, defaulted by me

Alien (Nightling): Creatures of the Otherworlds Impulse Spots, defaulted by me

Mannequin (Salamander): Creatures of the Otherworlds Salarian Swirls, defaulted by me

! If anyone knows of a mod that enables mannequin skin for random (aka townie generation) please let me know about it

Supernatural Overlays: Zombie Overlay, Dead Silence (Vampire), Kosmik Servo Default, Wolf Pack Grey, Held by the Roots (Plantsim), Aladdin Genie Neena Blue, Evil Witch & Good Witch

Default Eyes: Alien (White One & Nightling), Nanotech & Superliminal (Blues, Elf), Whisper Sectoral Defaults (Brown, Human), Heavenly Eyes Default Green (Human), Inner Light Fantasy Red (Grey, defaulted by me, Salamander)

Elf & Alien Face Archetype Defaults & Many of Elf-Eared Replacement Faces & Some of Penny Lane (Human Eared Faces)

Non-defaults: Alik Sims, Lunacress

Many default hair and objects are sourced from the Object Default Database and CAS Default Database

SC4 Terrain: Main Hood is Chestnut Peak

[nonsensical-pixels]

Country Charm: Cottage Living Hood Deco Conversions, Part 1!

Hello everyone! I took a break from Tumblr for awhile to obsess over Stardew Valley (among others!), but I'm back now! To celebrate my return, have a couple of hood decor conversions from The Sims 4: Cottage Living!

These have been sitting in my downloads folder for ages. I just completely forgot they existed until I loaded up my test hood. Oops!

These are the Double Decker Bus (1.4k polys) and the Tractor (4k polys) from the Cottage Living expansion pack. The tractor is standalone whereas the double-decker bus has both a green and red version (all pictured!). I have plans to convert more stuff, so consider this part 1...?

Download - SFS | MF

credits: ea/maxis for the original meshes and textures

[jawusa]

Tutorial: How to Create Custom Service NPCs

Just a quick little tutorial for neighborhood creators who would like to fully customize their neighborhoods! ^^

By the end of this tutorial, you should be able to do things like these!

For this tutorial, you'll need: * SimPE 0.75_69 * Alt Sim Surgery * Christianlov's Gussy Up plugin (you can find it in this archive) OR InSimenator (which has the Temporal Adjustor which you can use to fix the sims' appearances)

Click here to read the tutorial! I hope you found this tutorial helpful and let me know if it worked for you! Good luck! <3

P.S. This is precisely how I customized the NPCs in my neighborhoods projects as well, including Sedona, Quadington University and Aileen Landing. :)

[loreaspiration]

I wanted to take a little break from the Summerdreams for a little, so I spent some time decorating my custom hood, Daffodale.

[kataraktaa]

Even more photos of the first part of Strangetown DLC: Shopping District

!!!!!

I'm still stuck on the name, though.

Working right now tirelessly on building the secondhand shop of good old Jim Papers.

[pixeldolly]

Neighbourhood Trees Default Replacements - Gingko, Walnut, Redbud

These were a huge headache for what they are, but I’m sick of fiddling with them - defaults for the gingko, walnut and redbud trees. Honeywell @ MTS already made some, but they were still too low-res for my tastes (especially next to Criquette’s linden trees) so I made my own using her packages as a base and stock textures of various trees.

DOWNLOAD: SFS | Mediafire

The meshes are super-low poly - they’re not even proper 3D objects, but rather several intersected planes - so they’ll never look amazing, but I think it’s an improvement on the vanilla ones. 

Textures are 512 - 1024 pixels in size, depending on the type. Taller textures are 1024 px in length, square ones 512x512, which is twice the size of Honeywell’s and x16 (!!) bigger than Maxis. 

Additional credit: Criquette for the bark texture/trunk alpha I used on 2 of them. 

I’m still working on the tree clumps and the hedgerow, but I can’t seem to get them to look halfway decent no matter what I do. 😑

[jesaea]

♡♡♡

[saralynnx]

Hello hello! For the sims 2 ask game, how about questions 3, 9, 12, 16, and 21? I hope that’s not too many!

I finally have a chance to sit down at my computer and answer these, thank you!

3. Do you remember the first family you made in the sims? What happened in that save? I do definitely remember! As it was my first time really playing, I had the amazing Prima guide next to me and went with what they suggested for a starter family: a male and female who start out as roommates, then progress to love and marriage, then children. It was pretty easy for me to handle the two adults but once the lady got pregnant it got so hard for me to keep their needs up and I got frustrated lol. She did have the baby, and after that I don't remember how much longer I played the family before I gave up on them. I don't really remember why I stopped playing them; it was either because I was frustrated by the 'challenge' or I just got bored and moved on to another family lol.

9. Do you have a simself? Have you ever played them? Yes, I have had many simselves, the first one being when I was 18 and first starting out playing TS2. My naive little 18 year old self made her a Romance sim, because I had always wanted to find true love and companionship in someone else, and that's what I figured Romance sims were all about. Imagine my shock and horror when I realized what Romance sims really wanted. I was like, abort, abort! This is not what I want for myself! LOL

12. Do you have any unpopular opinions about the game? If so, what are they? Honestly I have no idea if any of my opinions are popular or not, so I will try to think of the most 'controversial' I guess? Uhmmm, I know Circe and Loki are kinda popular within the fandom and I just...don't really care for them too much? Them and the Grunts are my least favorite households in Strangetown (and possibly out of all the premades) to play. They both just kinda bore me for some reason, and I've never really connected with either family at all.

16. Who is your favorite created sim? Okay, I feel so alien for admitting this, but, I've created so many sims in my time of playing this game, and I've loved all of them pretty equally, but I've never become especially or overly attached to any one sim that I've created. It kind of bothers me because I see other simmers with their favorite sims that they carry over and over into different saves (@frauhupfner and her sim Hendrik come to mind) and I WISH I had that kind of bond with my sims. Maybe/hopefully someday? But to at least kind of answer the question, I'm particularly fond of my asylum sims right now. I'm especially rooting for Toothache; she's so ugly that she is adorable to me?? Lol.

21. What is your favorite thing about the game? Why do you choose to play The Sims 2, and not 1, 3, or 4? My favorite thing about this game is neighborhood creation/customization, and having complete control over it and every single sim in the neighborhood at all times. I'm not the biggest or best creator of hoods and lots, (although I've been getting into both a lot more lately and I've really enjoyed it) but I really enjoy playing hoods that other simmers have created and shared, and I love seeing everyone's hood creations and gameplay here on tumblr. As for why I play S2 over 1, 3, and 4, it's basically for the same reason that I listed as my favorite thing about the game. I love love love watching a hood expand and progress by complete player control, NOT by the game engine itself. Family play is my absolute favorite way to play, so being able to play and control multiple families in one hood is very appealing to me. I very very rarely play one single family, so story progression is just not as appealing to me. Also, as all of us diehard TS2 simmers know, the depth that TS2 has compared to TS3 and TS4 is unparalleled. And as for S2 over S1, again, simply family play. I love to play and expand families and neighborhoods over time, and that's just not possible with S1 due to no aging.

Again, thank you so, so much for the ask, I LOVE answering questions about my favorite game! :)