36. SUMMER CAMP

Summer vacation has begun. Ollie can’t wait to go to camp. In the meantime, she helps Laura out a bit with the baby.

By the way, Antonia is a Happy Spitter and Little Babbler.

Laura loves being a mom. She’s definitely better at it than at exercising. Maybe she shouldn’t try that again, as a clumsy Sim.

When Ollie was leaving the house to head to camp, a little scene played out in front of the house next door. Rom and Cristian were clearly cheering little Lizzy on as she reached another milestone. But Lizzy was wondering—who is that guy playing the guitar? That’s not her third daddy, right?

Bas: Have fun, Ollie. And be careful!

Olimpia: I will, Dad!

Camp Director: Welcome to Point Gibbi! There’s something here for everyone! Because the most important thing is to have fun! What do you say, kids??

Olimpia liked the concept. Everyone did.

Almost everyone. Carmen Benitez didn’t look thrilled about her mom’s idea of sending her to camp.

(For the record, I didn’t send Carmen there—I decided there was enough drama already. Apparently the game thought otherwise.)

The first activity on today’s schedule was canoeing. The kids eagerly grabbed their paddles. Except for Carmen xD

Ollie, on the other hand, didn’t even look back. She paddled farther than she should have and was already heading toward the opposite shore.

But soon someone caught up with her.

Elena: You’re fast! Hey, I remember you! You’re the one who had an imaginary friend. Do you still have it?

Olimpia: Umm… no, not anymore.

Elena: Muy bien! Wanna race?

Olimpia: Sure!

Elena: See that tower? We race to it. Last one’s a stinky old herring!

Olimpia: I won!

Elena: Well… you’re really good, en serio.

Olimpia: What even is that?

Elena: The Old Firewatch Tower. Supposedly the ghost of the last guard watches over it.

Olimpia: What happened to him?

Elena: Nadie lo sabe. No one knows. One day he just disappeared…

The girls got along. This time. 

Elena: This is my brother, Diego. Diego, this is Olimpia. Be nice to her, vale? She’s cool.

Diego: I’m always nice. Come on, let’s go to the campfire. Julian’s already lighting it and he’ll bring marshmallows any minute.

Julian is Elena and Diego’s half-brother and a camp counselor. Elena and Diego are children of Mónica López and… Orange Bailey-Moon. Julian is Orange’s son from a previous relationship. For clarity: Mónica and Orange are no longer together.

The first day was very exciting and gave Ollie a lot of satisfaction. Not to mention, she may have found a new friend.

 

Right after breakfast, archery was scheduled.

Elena: Pero no quiero… I’d rather go to the water.

Julian: Water activities will be later.

Elena: Por favor, Julian, be a good brother.

Julian: Fine, but we’re going to the water later. For now, no one will supervise you there, so come up with another activity.

So Olimpia went to shoot arrows, while the twins played hide-and-seek. While counting, Diego secretly peeked at Olimpia.

Camp Director: You shouldn’t do that, you might hurt someone.

Olimpia: I wanted to hit a bird.

Director: Oh no, that’s not allowed. They’re protected.

Olimpia: Then at least a tree?

Director: No.

Olimpia: So I’m only supposed to shoot the target?

Director: That’s right.

Olimpia: Booooring…

Nothing like a tasty smoothie in the middle of the day.

Olimpia is having a great time with the López siblings.

Olimpia: Ready or not, here I come!

She quickly found Diego hiding under the bed, but it wasn’t easy to find Elena.

Olimpia: How did you even fit into that toy box?!

Elena: It was a bit tight, but I managed. Aguanté. I bet you’re not that tough.

Olimpia: Challenge accepted.

The first challenge was eating spoiled food.

Olimpia: I don’t feel good now… BUUURP!!!

Elena: Oh wow, you really did it! ¡Madre mía!

Julian: What are you kids eating? Shoo—go outside…

The second challenge was enduring the heat while wearing warm clothes and be close to death. Ollie handled that too!

All in all, she’s completed 6 formative moments so far, including 4 during this camp (Had an Evil Best Imaginary Friend, Center of Attention, Getaway Champion, Explorer Extraordinaire, Danger Kid, Action Packed Childhood).

Elena: You’re pretty good! ¡Nada mal! I didn’t think you’d pull it off! Can you also fight? Diego and I are always fighting. Come on, I’ll show you.

That evening, Ollie had a chance to show off her skills.

Carmen: One more day and this torture is over!!! ¡Por fin!

Olimpia: Then call your mommy, we don’t need a wimp like you here.

Carmen: Why are you always so mean to me??? ¡Te odio! AAAA!!!

Julian and Diego were cheering for Ollie and were impressed xD

Ollie: I already told you—don’t start if you can’t win.

From that moment on, Ollie and Carmen are officially enemies.

Elena: You were great today.

Olimpia: You too, haha! Can I ask you something? Where did that burn on your neck come from?

Elena: Ah, that… When Diego and I were little, there was a fire at our house. We don’t remember anything. Our older brother Carlos saved us. But our sister, Luz, didn’t make it out in time.

Olimpia: Did she…?

Elena: Yes. She died back then.

Olimpia: That’s awful… I’m so sorry…

Elena: It’s been a long time. Please, let’s not talk about it.

Olimpia: Okay…

Olimpia didn’t bring it up again, but the conversation reminded her of the fire she herself had started, and of everything she could have lost.

The next day they went to admire the geyser. A perfect opportunity for a few photos.

Camp came to an end. The result: a few knocked-out teeth, new friends and enemies, and tons of great fun. In short—success!

Now Ollie had people to invite to her birthday party. Unfortunately, Wren couldn’t make it, so it was good that Elena and Diego were there.

The cake was prepared by the "Littlbowbub" bakery.

Happy Birthday, Ollie! You look just like your mom, with slight differences. The eyes do most of the work, they also look like they’re wearing makeup, which makes Ollie seem a bit older, despite my efforts to make her look like a freshly minted teenager.

Anyway, Bas—your daughter is a teenager now. Tough times ahead for you.

Ollie rolled the trait Country Kid. I haven’t played with this trait yet; it’s more focused on Tomarang, so we’ll see how it works out in my gameplay.

After camp, Ollie also gained the trait Rooted Wanderer, and Pack Animal from completing aspiration. Overall, that’s a pretty interesting set of traits for a teenager.

I gave her the Live Fast aspiration. I hesitated about Drama Llama, but the description of Live Fast fits Ollie better.

And finally, a few new photos for the wall from the birthday party.

*Most of portraits poses used today were created by talented Simmerianne93.

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