1.08 Loki's Aside -A- Lessons

Loki arrives in Twinbrook in the heat of summer, but it's humid and the air is still cold from the icy spring. He's not excited and doesn't have any amazing plans, he just wants to be left alone for a while.

Being a family man like he is this is difficult; everyone he cares about is far away and he'll be lonelier than he'd like to admit, but that's also the point. He's going to find out what he's capable of on his own.

He uses his college fund to buy a little place deep in the marsh, where he intends to work in solace and reflection. The neighbors are half a mile away on all sides, and he never needs to mow the lawn because nobody will be looking at it. That, and it's halfway underwater.

Growing up he'd always wanted a large family, and he had fallen for Andrea completely. It was easy to imagine the future with her in it, especially when he didn't realize that people like her existed. His life had been orderly and easy to understand until she upended it and he'd found himself charmed and constantly surprised by her. 

To find out that he was naive and she just hadn't known how to reject him because they were somehow 'such good friends' hurt. A lot. It was going to take time to heal.

He spends weeks in the beginning just getting to know the town but avoiding its people. There are also lots of hot dogs to consume on his scant budget.

Twinbrook has all the charm of an old story with brittle, unthreading pages and he quickly finds that he does not miss the manic bustle of university or the charged tension that surrounded him in his quaint hometown, castled in by mountains on all sides as he had been.

Here there is activity; green, vibrant, and heavy on the air. Everything around him is inescapably alive instead of open and cold. It's the kind of place where a man can become overtaken by the forest and the land without ever seeing another one of his kind.

Just what Loki needs right now.

He did keep his communications equipment and tunes it regularly, providing the occasional show to the locals without really advertising. He's trying to see if he wants to continue with radio, or focus solely on new projects.

He bought a workdesk with the last of his savings to see if he could do more with his life as an inventor. It was the question he had wanted to answer all along, it just had taken him a bit of travel and self-reflection to find out. Who invented the radio...?

(By the way ad revenue is a thing with this item is that a possible job in this challenge? I completely failed at it so maybe it's a moot point)

True bachelor living.

One evening he was out late collecting scrap and happily alone in the quiet when Beverly Castor, one of the locals, served herself a cup of hot cocoa and sat down nearby.

“What's a handsome young man like you doing out at the scrapyard on a Friday night? Don't you have a nice girl to get home to?”

Loki narrows his eyes and sullenly takes a sip of his coffee. “There's no one.” He finally says.

“A bad breakup?” She asks and laughs lightly, it's a musical sound. When Loki doesn't respond immediately she shrugs. "Not to be nosy, but it seems obvious by your reaction. Not that you need to be concerned about me dear, I'm happily tied down already and you will not be able to sway me in your direction!"

“And I'm not going to get all flustered like I'm sure all the girls your age do, not matter how good-looking you are.”

Loki is amused despite himself. For an older woman she was kind of adorable. What was she doing out at the scrapyard, in her homey housewife apron and dress?

She notices that he's staring now. “So, you seem to be out here working on a project. And it's late, which makes you ambitious. What are you doing wasting his time in a little sleepy town like Twinbrook? I hope you're not just running away from something.”

He frowns. “Maybe I am."

"From your girl?" She guesses in a knowing tone.

He huffs out a short breath. "I think I'm done with women for a while.” It's not a difficult thing to admit; he'd spent hours on the road and months traveling, thinking about it, followed by more time living here, mulling it over as he worked.

“Well not all women are the same, dear.” She says with a coy smile. “You're young, if the lady you're having trouble with is young too it's probably just a matter of experience.”

Loki scoffs into his coffee. “Yes, the experience of realizing I meant nothing to her.” He leaves the rest of his thoughts unsaid. He didn't want to talk about this.

“Then it sounds like she was either blind or a complete idiot.” The blond, slightly graying woman comments. “If I wasn't so much older than you, and married, I'd chase you all over this town until you couldn't refuse me anymore.”

There was a hint of indifference in her voice that made Loki laugh in spite of himself. Something about this situation was quickly becoming amusing. “So you're husband doesn't mind that you run all over town doing whatever you want at any time of night? Uh... Mrs-”

“Castor. Call me Beverly.”

“Beverly. I'm Loki Beaker.” He replied.

“Loki. That's a very dangerous sounding name.”

He shrugged. “I'm named after some great uncle on my father's side who died without having any children. I'm pretty sure my name was a bid for his inheritance which is ironic as my family received none of it.”

“Name of the trickster god.” She shook her head and chided, jokingly. “Already trouble from the minute you were born.”

“I guess I was.” He gave in good-naturedly. “So what brings you out here Beverly? Other than hunting for impressionable young men to make your husband jealous with?”

She waived her hand dismissively at the veiled accusation. “Please. He's a complete coward and he trusts me implicitly. If there was anyone I wanted more than him he wouldn't stand in my way.”

Loki looked away for a second, put off by her comments. Were all women this casual in their relationships?

“You don't have to look so disgusted when it's all true.” She continues. “But don't worry I'd never cheat on him, that would be like saying that I wanted to waste the last twenty five years we've had together, building our life here. And that's a part of having a strong relationship: we accept each other's faults. He knows that I have a sharp tongue sometimes and I know that he has no balls. That just means that I have to work a little bit more to make sure I don't upset him. If I love him I owe him that.”

Loki watched her sip her cocoa for a few moments, intrigued. “You know something Beverly? I think I'm glad we met. I wouldn't mind talking with you again sometime.”

She nodded. “In a strictly platonic way. You heart-breaker.”

“I'm not a-”

“All men are.” She interrupted him. “And if you like chess I could use someone to play with sometime.”

“Sure.” He agreed with a small smile. Twinbrook wasn't a bad place at all so far.

So Loki is able to settle in without too much difficulty. He works late into the evenings and sometimes all night and calls his family to keep up during the daytime.

He does make small inventions and sell them at the local consignment shop and has taken up a hobby in photography.

DeAndre Wolfe, local musician, is well known around here. Even Loki has heard of him.

So he gets an interview in while they're both at the store.

Beverly occasionally meets him at the park and they talk about people in town, local gossip and she generally makes him feel as if he's not a total recluse.

They meet for chess once or twice a month, and Loki learns a lot from her.

“Do you think she likes him?” She asks of Dudley Racket and Sophia Carlton, who were flirting behind them. The day was supposed to be a game of chess but became a lesson.

Loki shrugs. “Hard to say. She's acting like she does.”

“Good choice of words. Acting. There's a few things most men don't take into account when a woman is openly flirtatious. What is it that you think she finds attractive about him?”

“His... persistence.” He decides.

“Hmm, possibly. But more likely than that is that she likes the way he makes her feel, which may not mean she'll want to be with him seriously.”

“So you mean there could also be a self-esteem issue.”

Beverly nods. “You catch on quick. People are complicated, and usually when they meet someone and are solely flirtatious without getting to know each other there is something they need from the interaction. They aren't looking to give anything. Do you get my meaning?”

He nearly did. “I feel like I'm starting to. You mean it's not genuine?”

“It might not be. I'm merely saying that after that excitement wears off in the beginning, what will these two have left?”

Loki looks over her shoulder, trying not to be too obvious about it. “A questionable taste in tattoos and and an obnoxious broom of a mustache?”

The woman across from him smiles. “Something like that. If they have things in common that will help them stay together, but if they only got together because there was something they needed and they don't really enjoy each other's company...”

“Then it's doomed to fail.” Loki sighs, this conversation is starting to hit close to home. “If they never really got to know each other...” But it wasn't the same. He and Andrea got along well together, they both worked hard and she was quirky and fun when he was too serious, but he'd always taken those things to be complimentary. He'd liked her personality, so what went wrong?

The couple continue on their date, and Loki mulls over the problem foremost on his mind. “Do you think, between my ex and I, that I just didn't know enough about her? Everything seemed so perfect.”

Beverly shakes her head. “I'm not sure, it could have been anything. Like I said you're young and for all you know she regrets her mistakes too.”

That was as far as Loki was able to understand things for today, so he thanked Bev for the game and said he was going to head back home to work. He had understood Andrea, so what was the point of all this?

Just before their game ended though Jeni Jones-Brown stumbled over, apparently drunk. “D'you guise have th' time, mm totally los' my watch?” She slurrs.

Seeing that they were engrossed in their game she peered over at them, and released a hot, alcoholic breath into Loki's face. “Why're you put'n the rook there, make him go sideways over...” And she pushed her finger into one of Loki's chess pieces.

“Can you watch what you're doing?” He snapped and she swayed backwards in offense.

“Don't hav t'be mean abou' it...”

He sighs again as Beverly smirks. “Checkmate. You shouldn't have let yourself get distracted.”

Loki gives her a little bow and his phone rings while Jeni stumbles away murmuring to herself.

DeAndre and he get along well, so it's starting to feel like he's making friends in this town. Loki wonders how long he's going to be in Twinbrook but for now he's not going to overthink anything.

He gets off the phone and turns on his heel to go back home and nearly walks into a bouquet of flowers.

Jeni Jones-brown, tottering towards him. “Less hang out,” She says with careful enunciation as if she knows how inebriated she is right now. “I'm sorry about the ga-game.”

Beverly left a little while ago or she would be laughing about this, he's sure of it.

“No, thank you.” He says tersely.

“I juss wanna cuddle.” She pouts.

He backs up a step, she looks like she's getting way too close to simply jumping on him. “I don't want to be someone's regretful hookup.” He tells her. “So no offense, but no thanks.”

“I'm not drunkh, I'm tryn'a get laid.” She says slurringly.

Loki remembers his last night at Uni nearly half a year ago now with Mika and shakes his head. He had been hungover and out of his mind and he'd made a mistake. “I'm not even flattered because you won't remember this in the morning.” He tells Jeni softly, almost to himself. “And... I don't want to help you cheat on your boyfriend, or whatever.”

So she does the most logical drunken thing and leans in to kiss him.

“Leave me alone you batshit crazy girl!” He finally yells. Why were all the women his age so infuriating?

“Juss make a blond baby wi' me!” She yells after him as he makes his retreat home.

Things are rocky in the beginning as they would be anywhere, but after the incident Loki goes to the park less and less. He calls friends from home, works on his inventions, and largely just keep to himself.

Eventually he gets up the courage and invites over someone he both cares a lot about, and is terrified of disappointing. His mother, Gundrund.

It's been a long time, and her few gray hairs have become many. As expected, she quizzes him on academics immediately. He gets his ambition from her so it's no surprise when she opens with “I just don't want you to settle in here,” even though he clearly has. “When are you going back to finish your degree?”

“I- I'm doing well as an inventor, it's something I can excel at. I'm still maintaining the radio station I started back in college, I have a license for it and everything.”

She frowns, unimpressed.

“Where's your girlfriend? What happened to Andrea? You don't talk about her anymore.” Her eyes are narrowed, expectantly.

Wistfully he looks away. He has no idea how to answer that without betraying the depth of his emotion to her, but Gundrund is a very shrewd woman and she knows her son well. His silence says everything.

“I was... overconfident.” He says after a minute.

She nods, eyebrows raised. “And if I told you she ran off to Starlight Shores and is living with her cousin?”

He turns his head back to look at her blankly.

“So you did know,” she says approvingly. “Well my son is not a weakling, nor a failure. Spend some time out here earning an income, making a name for yourself and then go get her.” She advised. “Women love a man who is persistent.”

His mind goes back to Jeni from the other night. He's not so sure. “It won't be that easy,” He admits with some difficulty. “She just didn't feel the same way as I do. Did.” He amended.

She folds her arms across her chest, smiling softly. “Then make a pile of money and shove it in her face so she knows what kind of mistake she made in letting you get away.”

Loki laughs a bit. “Thanks. I think I needed to hear that.” He says it mostly for her benefit though, he knows her health hasn't been great lately and he wants her to feel like she's helping him. In truth he can't think about anything like seeing Andrea without feeling empty.

His father recently passed away at a young age and it's taken a toll on his mother especially. He wants her to remember him as strong, unfazed, no matter what the truth is.

“Now I want to see all this crap you've been making instead of earning your degree.”

He already has a rotational pull all wrapped up and ready to give her.

“It's an educational toy.” He says uncertainly.

“It's lovely.” She says without opening it, then her voice becomes stern. “And I'm still expecting grand kids, whether Andrea comes back or not. Now, what have you got around here to drink?”

He cracks open a bottle of blended Cherimola Blan & Cranerlet Nuala he'd bought the day before at the consignment shop. “One of the local nectaries makes this, it's called First Crush, it's seasonal-”

“Whatever it's called it's not showing up fast enough.” She quips curtly, heading outside to sit down. It had been a long flight and she was not about to pay the asking price for a two ounce bottle at 10,000 feet in the air where there were plenty of spirits to be imbibed on the ground.

“Sure, ma.” He says, setting the glasses outside and sitting with her.

She spent some time reading the novel she'd brought with her and wasn't up for too much in the way of conversation, but there was something much more precious and intangible she'd injected into his little shack with her visit: the feeling of belonging again.

He doesn't normally have anything to drink, losing control of himself in college once was enough, but today feels like a special occasion.

Gundrund stays for the weekend, they make the most of their time together and catch up on family and town gossip from Aurora Skies (Loki doesn't care for the gossip all that much but he can play along for his mom's sake)

She even gets him a makeover (but he refuses to cut his hair).

She gets one too. Is this really the current style? The stylist insists: bricks are in.

They head out to the summer festival on the last night.

“I'm very glad you came to visit.” He says before they have to head back to the airport.

“That's right you are,” she responds easily. “Can't even visit his own mother....”

“I'm sorry.”

“Don't be sorry, pick up the pieces. I know you think you have a good thing going here, but you had a good thing with Andrea.” She reminds him yet again. “So like I told you when I first got here, once you are able to save more money-”

“I'm not planning on making her get back together with me.” Loki interrupts briskly.

“I just don't want you to end up alone, like I am now.” She says in a quiet, somewhat fragile voice.

It breaks his heart a little, but Loki smiles thankfully at his mother. “I'm glad you came, and thank you for encouraging me. If it will make you feel better, I'll go visit them sometime, will that be alright?”

Gundrund smiles and gives him an uncharacteristically casual thumbs-up.

She flies home that evening and it turns out to be the last time they ever speak in person. But for now, it's a comforting memory.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ah yes, the story of unsolicited advice. You ever notice IRL how many people come straight out of the WOODWORK to 'help' you when you're going through something that their advice might have helped you prevent earlier? The only advice I've ever gotten is that 'hindsight is 20/20 bullcrap and I'm plenty capable of beating myself up for mistakes on my own LOL. Poor Loki (I'ma say that a lot)

So this Twinbrook is NOT the one Andrea/ Meghan grew up in, strictly because I didn't realize that she was from Riverview all along! The marshy place her dad had is actually in Riverview, which I discovered when I tried to see it as Loki lives here now. I'll probably keep the old posts the way they are written, even if Twinbrook is technically wrong for her.

Also when characters say things like 'All men are heartbreakers' and make generalizations, or when Loki 'accused' Dustin of being gay, I'm not saying I as the creator feel any particular way about those subjects. I want to make my characters as believable as possible and I can't go around having everyone with the same opinions etc, because it would be ignoring things people sometimes say in real life and possibly become a more boring story. Just in case it's helpful for anyone to know that. :3 So if, in some future post some sim is on drugs or hates their kids, or has a generally bad attitude, well that might be there so all the good attitudes stand out a little bit better. Nobody's complained or anything, it's just in case.

Thanks for reading!

-The Frog