Welcome back to Lost in Tumultuous Despair! Six done, two to go! Part six of every chapter, like this update right here, will be narrated by Darleen Dreamer as she tells about her experiences here in the asylum challenge.

Let’s start this, shall we?

Being dead for a long time until resurrection is quite a shock for me. I mean, now that I’m alive for the first time in eight years, I can hardly imagine all the changes that have been going on in Pleasantview when I was dead. Now that both Darren and Dirk have moved on shortly before my resurrection, I think it’s also time for me to move on as well. On top of that, I’ve switched my last name from Dreamer back to Matlapin.

However, I didn’t expect myself to be stranded in the middle of nowhere with my companions. I mean, look at what I got myself into! That road trip was meant to relieve me from all that I’ve seen in Pleasantview, but it ended up giving me more stress as I’m hopelessly lost. I bet that was the reason why Coral was being livid right now because of this fiasco.

Listening to this creepy lady here ranting about how she felt forsaken and ejected from her home because she felt out of place due to their lack of understanding made me empathize with her to some extent. I think her name’s Vowduane or something similar. It’s really hard to pronounce that name! I think I’ll just nickname her “Wowza” from now on. That would make my life so much better.

Her rant was quite long, and I didn’t even listen to it carefully. But she eventually stopped, which was quite a relief to me, considering how overly long and boring it is.

“There,” she said. “Now that I have recounted my tale up to this road trip, may I ask about your origins?”

I pondered about the subject for a moment and finally decided to introduce myself to her despite the pain I felt deep inside. “Well,” I said as I tried to keep a calm face, “My name is Darleen Dre-I mean, Matlapin. I come from Pleasantview, where I was also dead for years like you, but for a shorter amount of time. When I was finally resurrected, I realized that my husband had remarried and moved to his new wife’s house, where our son also resided as well. After seeing all this, I decided to move on as well and take this road trip.”

“Well, my dear,” she spoke up enthusiastically, “I presume we were in the same situation before, so perhaps I can empathize with you. You see, I missed the days when SimCity was filled with elegant edifices where we could see magnificent works of art. Nowadays, however, SimCity is now full of debauchery, and the night scene is too obscene to my tastes. Please tell me what you missed back in Pleasantview.”

“Honestly, there was little change in Pleasantview during the time when I was dead, other than the fact that my husband remarried to someone much richer than me. Oh, and my son is a teenager at the time of my resurrection. You know, adolescent.”

“Ah, I see. What age was your son when you died?”

“He was eight. But now he’s sixteen years old, I guess. Anyway, do you have anything else to talk about other than our deaths and such? I’m getting bored of the subject already.”

“Of course we do. But now that we have conversed on the subject of my choosing, what subject would you like to elaborate, then?”

“Well, I want to know about what you like in general. You see, I like childcare, supernatural elements, and adventures, which explains why I took this road trip. What about yours?”

“Oh, I also adore the supernatural! They are quite intriguing, are they not? And I also love art and music because of the sophisticated colors and tunes, which I highly adore.”

“By the way, what’s your favorite food? Mine’s fried eggs coated with soy sauce. They’re delicious and worth the try, in my opinion.”

“My favorite food is roasted goose. They were a meal fit for a king when I was growing up.”

“Mmmm… Roasted goose. Thinking of them just made me hungry. By the way, did you have a job when you were alive? I didn’t have any because I was a housewife while my ex-husband worked as a professional painter.”

“No. I was an adolescent at the time of my death and resurrection. My grandfather owned several factories in SimCity, which…”

“Ahem!” a nearby masculine voice was heard all of a sudden. “May I join you ladies for a moment?”

All of a sudden, some random guy in business clothing approached Wowza and started talking to her as if our interests mattered to him. Ugh! How can that guy be so rude to barge into our conversation and interrupt us like that! Now my conversation with Wowza ended abruptly and we can’t share more about each other as a result. Oh, well. Guess I just have to get inside to se what everybody else was up to.

Once I went inside, however, I heard an awful sound greeting me. That piano is just pure junk to my ears. Now all I did was to cover my ears in here. Oh, the pain!

I later turned around to see both Wowza and that guy who interrupted our conversation going inside the house. Apparently, they too hate the piano music. Perhaps they were thinking the same thing as I was.

A few hours later, that guy who interrupted my conversation with Wowza approached me in a rather apologetic manner. I wonder if he was faking or not. Maybe I should be skeptical of him.

“Hey,” he exclaimed, “I’m sorry for what I did just now. I thought getting involved in your conversation was a great idea, but it turned out to be a mistake. Would you spare a moment with me and just set all that aside? By the way, name’s Buck Grunt if you’re interested.”

“Hmmm…” I muttered. Apologize? For that conversation? That was too trivial for me to think about for much longer, so I should say apology accepted, I guess. “Don’t mention it anymore.”

“Well, that’s great. I guess all’s settled, then.”

Settled? Mostly, but I had to warn him so that he will behave next time.

“Actually,” I said, “That doesn’t mean that you should get away with it completely. You see, you should learn from your past mistakes and try not to repeat them again. Do I make myself clear?”

“Well, of course, ma’am.” he replied. I guess I should introduce myself to him.

“Name’s Darleen Matlapin if you’re interested.”

“Okay, Darleen. I’ll make sure of it.”

“Good. Now, make sure you’re not doing it again.”

Right after our conversation was done, I suddenly felt overwhelmed by the sound of the piano again. Ugh! When will this ever end? And who played it again?

Maybe I should find another room for some peace and quiet. After all, this room feels nice and quiet despite the weird décor. But I guess I can live with it. What if the original inhabitants had some teenage kid like Dirk? That would definitely make sense, especially if said teen was full of angst.

Soon afterwards, I heard someone yelling that it was time for lunch. Well, so be it. I guess I just had to make do with this lunch meat sandwich on the counter. My main pet peeve was that I had to stand up for the duration of the lunch because I took a peek at the dining table and there are only two chairs, and those two were being used. That left me with no choice but to stand up instead.

I finally got the chance to sit down after excruciating hours of standing up on my two legs. Man, this sofa is really comfortable and soft. Even more so when you were watching the TV and had some company at the same time. In my case, his name was Benedick Monty, and he came from Veronaville, where he lived with his extended family, especially his father and sister. But how come he didn’t mention his mother? Was it because she died? If so, I could only imagine the pain Darren and Dirk felt when I was dead.

At the same time, I pondered a bit on whether or not I should let everyone else, including Benedick, know the fact that I was dead. In the end, I decided to let only Wowza know about it. She better not tell it to others, though.

In the meantime, Gah! That piano dirge had become too much for me to bear! What should I do to make it stop?

As I rose from my seat to find a nice place in a room far away from the piano, I was approached by a young teenage girl. That was weird. How could she end up in here.

“Hey, ma’am!” she shouted. “Do you live here? Don’t you know that this place is going to be a golf course?”

Wait, this place is going to be a golf course? That sounds interesting. “Look,” I said, “I don’t live here, so I have no idea that this place is going to be a golf course. Do you understand what I’m saying?”

“Of course. I think I’ll just ask other people around here. Why this house is standing, I have no idea.”

“Me neither, but I guess I’m lucky to find out about this place.”

“Well, off I go.” Afterwards, she entered the fiery room.

As the sun was setting, I guess it was time to take a refreshing bath. My, what a crowd did we have in the bathroom! Time to walk my way to the bathtub.

Before I stepped into the bathtub, I needed to tell these people to get out first. It would be very awkward to take a bath if these people were watching me from here.

The bath was refreshing, but the bathtub became dirty as a result. A little scrubbing should do to keep this thing from getting dirtier.

A nice bowl of mac and cheese is just the kind of food I would want to eat for dinner. I quickly ate it as much as my stomach could handle. The taste of it is so warming that I could wish for more.

Practicing some chess should help me enjoy my time here, especially after a nice dinner of mac and cheese. That should help me think clearly, if that’s possible. The only drawback was that I had to do this alone. It would be fun if someone were to play with me, though.

A few minutes after midnight, Buck walked by and grabbed a chair to sit.

“Mind if I join you?” he asked.

“Sure,” I replied. Finally, some company had arrived. “After all, it’s better to have someone to play chess with or else it won’t be fun at all.”

At first, Buck seemed to be ahead of me because of the moves. He was quite a formidable chess player at first glance.

However, I managed to find a nice opportunity to outsmart him after all. This should be easy for me to win this game.

Playing chess in the middle of the night is so exhausting, but with the beds occupied and the piano being played, there was no way we could sleep comfortably. Even Buck looked as tired as I was. “I’m getting tired,” he finally said as he lifted up his head before it hit the chess set. “Do you mind if we cancel our game?”

“Sure,” I stood up from my seat. “I’m also tired as well, so I won’t mind if we have to cancel our game.”

I was feeling really bored after playing chess. The piano was being played, all the beds were most likely occupied because I haven’t seen the other four around here, and I was too tired to watch the TV or use the sphere. What if I could try closing my eyes and imagine that there was no sound at all, including that piano music.

I tried sleeping on the sofa by imagining that there was no sound at all, but I failed. That blasted piano music proved to be too loud to allow me to dose off. There must be a solution to this ordeal.

Maybe a nice bowl of cereal would make me feel more comfortable. Who knows if I would suddenly wake up hungry? I certainly wouldn’t want that to happen, thank you very much. Let’s eat, shall we?

By the time I was eating my cereal, however, I was so tired that I was desperately trying to sleep. That, along with the piano music stopping suddenly, meant an opportunity to sleep. At least the food was much softer than the table.

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Man, that was quite a slumber! The sound of that piano was really loud enough to wake me up. Even though I felt a bit thankful for that, it was still pretty darn annoying.

After waking up from my “sleep”, I closed my eyes again, but not to try sleeping again, but to think. How long had I been asleep for? Considering the sound of the piano, maybe some of the people who slept on the beds were finally awake. I should take my chances to sleep on a proper bed, then.

But before I went to bed, I had to finish up my cereal. Otherwise, it would be a waste to get rid of it, and I certainly wouldn’t want to eat rotten food. That would be gross.

Finally, a proper bed to sleep on! And it felt comfortable! I was starting to worry what happened to the beds after someone slept on it. But at least the condition was still good enough to be used for sleeping. Now off to replenish my energy by sleeping!

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That was quite a nice sleep! I probably overslept because the sun was shining very brightly when I woke up. Maybe it was already afternoon when I woke up.

The first thing I did when I woke up from my sleep was to make the bed. After all, it would look as good as new if it were neatly made.

As soon as I was done, however, I began smelling a foul stench around this room. Man, these people really need to bathe more! If they do that sooner, I wouldn’t have to die of all that smell.

Thank goodness the kitchen didn’t smell as bad as the room just now! There was also one more toaster pastry left on the floor. How lucky I am! I shall eat it to my heart’s delight.

This pastry didn’t tasted very good at all. I guess it was on the floor for all this time, and it was cooked way earlier when I was asleep, so it probably got rotten. What a shame! Cooking something that was supposed to be nice, and it ended up rotten when I was eating it. I better stop eating before I got sick.

After getting rid of that pastry, I carried the large plate along with my dish and headed towards the bathroom to wash them clean. A high standard of sanitation is a total necessity to prevent unnecessary illnesses, so to speak.

All of a sudden, my stomach began feeling very uneasy, as if my bowels were feeling very unusual. I set the dish on the floor to find out. What could that be?

After gently setting the dishes on the floor, I placed my hands on my stomach and felt a tingle that nearly made me vomit. If I hadn’t held my mouth, I would have caused a huge mess around here.

Suddenly, a thought came to me as I held my mouth. Was I sick from the rotten pastry I ate? If so, will this be the end of me again? I really don’t want to die again. That would be agonizingly painful.

I certainly couldn’t let my presumed illness deter me from washing the dishes. Man, good thing I persevered enough to wash them clean.

I’d been seeing people playing the piano horribly, but I should probably give it a try if I could play the best that I could. I may not be a maestro, but it wouldn’t hurt if I give it a try just for the fun of it.

There was, however, a certain problem that prevented me from knowing how I played.

Yes, it was my illness that abruptly interrupted my playing. One second I was playing the piano, the next I ran to the restroom and vomited at the toilet. That felt stressful, painful, and tiring as I threw up anything I had in my stomach. What a waste, especially considering that what I ate had to go down the drain.

However, when I came back to the restroom for the second time, I found out that the toilet was being cleaned by Benedick. Even though it’s nice to see the toilet being cleaned and such, I was literally desperate to throw up in there due to my food poisoning. I seriously can’t wait until he finished cleaning the toilet up.

But all of a sudden, I had a better idea.

Rather than constantly throwing up, I should probably rest on a bed instead if I wanted to recover. With these beds unmade, however, making them properly can make it look fresh and new.

There was absolutely nothing for me to do other than to lie down on the bed in the hopes that I would recover soon.

There were times when I had to use the restroom for more obvious reasons other than to throw up. However, people happen to enjoy crowding in places like this. Man, when will I ever get the privacy I need?

This blonde lady, for instance, happened to enjoy using the toilet whenever I wanted to use it. All I could do during such moments was to wait until she was done.

Sometimes, people took way too long to use the restroom, so I had to eat dinner instead. At least the lunch meat sandwich was nourishing amidst the stink I ended up having. I guess I should take a bath after dinner.

The warm waters of this bathtub was very soothing to my skin despite my illness. I really wished this place was a health resort, so that I would bathe in a hot mineral spring instead of this old bathtub. It would be much better in my opinion.

Speaking of the bathtub, it was rather filthy when I bathed on it. Gross! I should clean it so that it would look as good as new. After all, people like things if they look like that.

Gosh, cleaning the bathtub when you’re sick is sure darn backbreaking work, isn’t it? I really needed a good rest to speed up my recovery. This thing was getting into my nerves, and the only way to relieve it was to relax for a moment.

The sofa was thankfully comfortable enough for me to relax on, but the thought of being sick was just pure… ugh! Definitely not a fun time at all. But I certainly wouldn’t want to be quarantined as much as I didn’t want anyone else to get sick. That would be literal confinement.

Then all of a sudden, I felt something very nauseating.

Ugh, I felt like my very own stomach was being squeezed like a sponge! Worse, my bowels were feeling very weird as well. I felt like throwing up on the floor even if the restroom was vacant.

Not long, Buck approached me with an amiable look on his face. I guess he was up to something.

“I think you should rest on a bed and sleep if you want to recover as quickly as possible,” he said. “It’s not good for a sick person like you to be out at night. Your condition will probably get worse.”

Well, ever since did he start playing the doctor? I doubt he’s one, but I liked his advice.

Gee, I really needed to relax! My blasted illness was making me stiffer and less comfortable at every passing hour. Even worse, it was past midnight already. I should better relax on a bed or something. Sleeping could wait later because I wasn’t feeling very sleepy yet.

As I turned around to walk into the fiery room, my bowels began hurting again.

I felt myself running towards the restroom, where I threw up on the toilet like this had become something of a habit. Ugh! I can’t believe I had to do this due to my food poisoning. I should go relax on a bed as soon as possible.

I managed to relax on an empty bed, but I also needed something to entertain myself as I rest on the bed in the hopes that I recover from my food poisoning. Any book would do nicely for now. So as soon as I grabbed a book from the shelf and started reading it, I found myself highly engrossed by its contents. Apparently, I found something that caught my attention the most.

Dear diary,

This day is indeed the saddest day in my life. I have lost Steve to pneumonia, and I have barely enough strength to recover from my grief. Perhaps there’s a way to bring him back so that we can get back to the good old days again. Gerald, on the other hand, was completely hesitant on doing this together, saying that doing so risks involving Oscar and Janet. I know I also don’t want to lose them as well, but think of the benefits over the risks. We’ll be a family once more if we proceed to do this thing. So that means that I’ll have to undertake this thing myself.

Love,

Bertha Wilson

Wow! That was a really captivating read. Perhaps there was some sort of evidence hidden somewhere in there that might prove useful later on regarding this place. Who knows? Maybe I should tell the others about it. I was intrigued at this mystery.

On the other hand, maybe turning a few more pages for more information wouldn’t hurt much.

Dear diary,

This is an exciting moment! I just encountered this guy when I was shopping. He gave me this phone that can contact Death itself, and then pay it some money. That way, I can get Steve back, and it will be back to the good old days! Gerald and the kids were totally surprised when they saw this, even if Gerald was initially skeptical. I really can’t wait the next day when I have the time to do this. This should be exciting.

Love,

Bertha Wilson

That wasn’t any book at all. That was the diary of a woman who previously inhabited this house ages ago with her family! I better tell this to others as soon as possible! That would give them insight in regards to this house and what might be wrong with it.

But first and foremost, I needed to do something real quick.

Yup, that’s right! I had to throw up on the toilet again. This was a painful and repetitive ordeal for me, especially so if the toilet was filthy from my barf. I best get well as soon as possible.

If I kept throwing up, I would surely die gradually from lack of comfort. Even worse, that meant that the food I ate ages ago had ended up in the drain. What a waste! I even got hungry as a result of several throw-ups.

Well, all that throwing up ended up making me tired. And a this point, I yawned. Must be a sure sign that I should go to bed. Perhaps I could get the rest I needed badly.

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Unfortunately, I didn’t sleep much due to my stomach hurting again. Must be my illness that was preventing me from having a good night’s sleep. This is just irritating. When can I ever get well again.

Ugh, that’s it! Throwing up was quite an ordeal for me that I should do something to relieve my pain. What should I do?

Rather than going to bed again, I went to the kitchen to find something to eat. Luckily, I found a bowl of cereal on the counter. Perhaps I should grab a bowl and eat so that I would feel full again. All that throwing up certainly got rid of anything I ate for the past few hours.

As I set my bowl on the table, the guy right in front of me suddenly spoke up. “Hi. Would you mind if you introduce yourself? Name’s Hal Capp, by the way.”

“Hi,” I replied. “My name’s Darleen Matlapin. Do you happen to notice anything interesting about this house?”

“Anything about the house? If you don’t count the redhead chick, then no. Why did you ask?”

“Well,” I cried. By the way, why did she mention some redhead chick around this house? “I read a book on the shelf when I was relaxing on the bed, and I probably found something interesting about the house’s history. Must be something that has to do with what has become of this place. By the way, did you mention a redhead chick?”

“Yup.”

“Does she live here?”

“No. She’s part of the road trip, and I think she blurted out something that revealed to me that she might actually be an old lady.”

“Wow, that’s interesting! I think I should just go back to bed as soon as possible. See you later.”

Thinking about some weird redhead lady in our midst in regards to her age was very thoughtful, but I seriously needed to sleep in order to recover from my food poisoning. What a stressful day I had.

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I probably overslept this time because it was already afternoon when I woke up. Man, I better not sleep very late again! But with all these people jostling for someplace to sleep and the piano being played constantly, it was really hard for me to find a place to sleep. This time, I better take a nice bath. Who knows if I could get better from it?

That was quite a nice bath as usual, but one thing I noticed was that my bowels weren’t aching anymore. This meant that my illness had been cured! Maybe it was from the rest I took, the bath just now, or both.

However, there was actually very little time for me to rejoice because I knew there was something wrong again that I really needed to do.

Yeah, I felt my stomach grumbling, which meant that I had to go eat something as soon as possible. After all, getting cured from illness only to die of starvation shortly afterwards was quite a humiliating death.

As I entered the kitchen, I opened one of the fridges and found some cans of Milkis in them. Awesome! Definitely something I should try to sate that appetite. Time to serve them so that other people can drink them.

A sip from the can will always quench my thirst. Gosh, I missed drinking these kind of stuff!

After drinking that stuff, a little ride on the sphere shouldn’t hurt. After all, I’m all healthy and no longer sick from food poisoning.

Well, wasn’t this a thrilling experience of a lifetime? I could just ride into one of these contraptions and imagine myself turning around like I’m flying. Better get one once I get out of this place alive if I ever could.

A few minutes later, I felt the sphere itself making some weird noise different from the one it usually makes. I’d better brace myself.

If there was one thing I hated about the sphere, it would be the part when I got thrown out of it. That weird noise it cause was actually a signal to show that it was starting to move so violently that I ended up getting thrown out of it. That made me dizzy for a while, but other than that it was no harm done.

Shortly after the incident with the giant sphere, I was approached by Benedick. What did he want anyway?

“If there’s some way to tell the future, that would be great,” he said. “I mean, we could assure our hopes that we’ll survive this ordeal together.”

“Actually, it wouldn’t be as fascinating as it would be,” I replied. Well, knowing what the future holds may sound nice, but I personally find it less comforting, especially if what we discovered is bad. “In fact, what if we’re revealed to die instead of getting saved? That would make us paranoid.”

“Ever heard of free will? That’s what help us make our own decisions and destinies. In fact, many historical events involve some sort of free will.”

Upon hearing this, I shook my head and chuckled. “Look, the way the world works isn’t as simple as that. It’s true that we have our own free will, but it works with fate to lead us into the future we deserve in the end. After all, history has always reminded us that people’s actions, motives, and decisions have affected the world around us. So, even if we have our own mind and determine what we do, there’s still a greater power that affects the outcome in the end.”

“Speaking of which,” he said, “Do you have anything about this house?”

“I read this book while I was resting on a bed. It’s a diary of the previous owner of this house. As I read it, I was quickly hooked at the details the author wrote about her life. I would want to read more, but I was sick with food poisoning, so I ran to the restroom to throw up afterwards.”

“Well, that’s absolutely great! After all, it might contribute to any efforts to investigate this house as we wait for rescue.”

Wait a second. He was doing an investigation? Sounded cool to me. Maybe I should join. “That does sound nice. Have you made any progress so far?”

“Not a lot, actually. The room with fiery wallpaper got me thinking about it in the first place.”

“Now that sounds weird to me. After all, what if the people who lived in there were actual punks? That’s got to be something, right?”

“Maybe,” At some point, he began to act like he was shivering. Was he acting this up or what? “Say, do you think it’s chilly in here?”

“Are you acting this up?” I frowned and shook my head. “You look like you do.”

“Yeah. I was just making a joke about the fiery room I talked about just now.”

“Okay, fine. I’m off to go somewhere.”

Well, that conversation took longer than I expected. I was rather fortunate that Benedick didn’t ask me about my death and resurrection. At least I finally got the chance to eat some mac and cheese for dinner. How satisfying, regardless of whether or not there’s someone eating with you.

Shortly afterwards, I heard a chair being pulled backwards. Sounds like someone’s eating with me.

It turned out that I was right, as a red-haired lady sat on the chair in front of me and ate her mac and cheese in a rather sloppy fashion. I was assuming she was the one Hal mentioned. I guess I should talk to her.

“Excuse me?” I called. She immediately stopped eating and placed her bowl on the table. That was easy.

As soon as she stared at me, I began introducing myself. “You know, we haven’t properly introduced each other yet, so how about we do it now? Hi, my name’s Darleen Matlapin and I’m from Pleasantview.”

“My name’s Coral Oldie and I’m also from Pleasantview. Say, how come I haven’t seen you before?”

“Well,” Man, this is very hard for me to say. Should I tell her about my former death or not? Maybe not. I better keep it private. “I was actually… ummm… Let’s just say that I was out of town when you were around.”

“Ooooo…” This sounded like a mystery to me. “What had you been up to?”

Crap! I better get out of this real quick! “I would say that I’m out somewhere that didn’t matter much to me. I guess I better use the restroom.”

“Okay. Suits me just fine.”

As I entered the restroom, a worrying thought struck me. What would they react if they ever find out that I was once dead but got resurrected. Wowza already knew, but she better keep it a secret. I surely couldn’t cover it forever, but what should I do to deal with that?

Before I could think of that, I should try distracting myself from such thoughts, such as mopping the floor. That way, it would relieve me from my worries in the short run.

Even if it was past midnight by now, I still didn’t feel very sleepy. Yet I felt hungry, so a bowl of mac and cheese would do for the time being. There could be worse fates, though.

A few minutes later, I heard someone setting a bowl on the table and pulling a chair to sit down. I looked up and saw a stranger in a brown hoodie with a bowl of mac and cheese on his side of the table. I guess he was hungry for all this time. Maybe I should introduce myself to him and ask him who he is. I was rather curious as to who he is.

“Ahem!” I cleared my throat. “Can you tell me who you are? My name’s Darleen Matlapin, if you don’t mind.”

The guy looked towards me once I finished my sentence. “Oh,” he said as he picked up his fork, “My name’s Joe Carr and I’m here just to look around the place. Honestly, I came here because there’s nothing else in this area other than this place. Well, I heard that you and your companions got lost and found this place.”

“You’re right. We did discover this place a few days ago after being abandoned by the driver,” It was quite nice to talk to someone who knew that we don’t live here, but how did he know this in the first place? “By the way, how do you know all that?”

“Some blonde chick named Jill Smith told me all of that when we were chatting in the living room. Do you know her by any chance?”

So that blonde lady in blue is called Jill Smith, then? “I actually don’t know her, but I know she’s with me on the road trip. It’s just that we don’t know each other yet.”

“Well, I think I better get going. Not only is it very late at night, but I kinda need a bath as well.”

Joe was totally right about having to take a bath. Boy, he did stink! Sounds like he should've stayed a little longer to take a bath in here, but I guess he was in an urgent position, so who am I to stop him?

Speaking of taking a bath, I ended up taking one shortly afterwards. Boy, all that time spent around here made me feel so weary that even a sleep couldn’t help at all. At least a bath would suit me well.

What could be a nice thing to do after taking a bath? A meal, of course. This cereal I just prepared was quite satisfying even if I didn’t have any company. Oh, well. At least this was an opportunity to eat by myself in peace and quiet. Oh, and I had to mention that I prepared a large bowl of cereal just in case there would be anyone who would want to eat it. After all, I’m not a cruel person.

That meal was satisfying to my body, but I felt extremely sleepy by this point that I headed towards the bedroom to find any spare beds I could sleep on. Fortunately, there was one, so I immediately hopped onto it. I knew I should’ve thanked the person who gave me this bed to sleep on, but I felt so tired that perhaps I should thank her later.

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The first thing I did when I woke up was to grab a toaster pastry in the kitchen and eat it on the dining table. It was quite a nice meal even if I would appreciate it if there were more diverse choices available.

A few minutes later, I was joined by Coral. Here’s hoping she won’t ask me about my origins. That would be too private for me to answer.

“Hello again,” she greeted with an enthusiastic voice. “How are you doing today? Sorry that my enthusiasm is rather high right now, but I happen to express that sometimes.”

That was a bit of a relief to hear that she was just greeting me. But who knows what the conversation would lead to? The only person who knows I was dead for a time was Wowza, but that’s because I was a bit rash when we first got here. I guess she can be the only one in here that gets to know my true origins.

“Well, first of all, I’m alright. No need to be overly enthusiastic. Second of all, do you have anything exciting to say? Judging by the enthusiasm you just expressed, I’m assuming you do.”

“I…” she muttered after a somewhat long pause, “Just felt a tad bit too upbeat at the moment. Must be because I woke up not long ago.”

“Ah, I see,” All of a sudden, I smelled something rather stinky nearby. Must be my plate, so I should probably go now. “Well, I think I better go now. Not only has my dish gone smelly, but I also need a bath right now. See you later.”

Gee, all that enthusiasm without any purpose was a waste of energy. Definitely something I wouldn’t do at all. Oh, well. Time for a nice bath. That bathtub must be waiting for me.

That bath was nice, but the tap ended up spraying water everywhere. In fact, it even created a puddle of water nearby. Better mop it in case someone might slip and fall down.

Phew! All that mopping was really hard work. I honestly doubt both Darren and Dirk enjoy mopping, especially when they didn’t have me around to take care of the house.

On second thought, maybe another little ride on the sphere would help me enjoy some stuff around here. All that mopping was no fun, but a ride on this sphere sure is a lot of fun despite its violent shakes.

Like last time, the sphere was shaking violently, and I managed to get out of it alive. This time, however, I threw up as a result of that nauseating experience. I guess I must take a break from this contraption for now. Who knows when will I ever get back to riding it. I hope I would, though.

All that vomit from my mouth even touched my hands. Gross! At least there’s a sink in the restroom so that I could wash my hands clean. This better be quick.

Half a minute later, I spotted a blonde lady in blue. This must be Jill Smith. Perhaps I should chat with her just to know each other better. Anyway, I called her name as I cleaned the sink. She turned towards my direction upon the sound of my voice. I guess I should see what’s up.

As we walked out into the living room, I began to open my mouth to start the conversation.

“I guess we haven’t introduced ourselves properly,” I said. “Maybe this should be the time to do it now. Hi, my name’s Darleen Matlapin and I come from Peasantview. I’m assuming you’re Jill Smith, right?”

“How did you know my name in the first place?” she asked. “I tried talking to you during the day we first got here, but you were busy eating. Maybe this should be a good opportunity. Oh, and I come from Strangetown.”

So she tried to talk to me during the first day we got here? I should’ve known better. “Some guy named Joe Carr told me. My apologies for not responding to you earlier, but I was rather hungry that I didn’t pay attention to you.”

“Say, have you ever tried playing the piano here? I tried it, and it was absolutely fantastic.”

“I tried playing it for a while, but I had to stop because I wasn’t feeling well at that time.”

“That certainly doesn’t sound nice at all. And speaking of something unpleasant, that Joe Carr guy you told me about was a bit of a pest around this house, don’t you agree?”

The thought of her not liking Joe Carr surprised me a bit. After all, I had no problems talking to him just now, so why did she badmouth him? “Why don’t you really like Joe at all? He’s been behaving mildly towards me earlier today.”

Well, that was quite a weird conversation I had. As I was cleaning the toilet, I began thinking how I should solve the issue. Maybe I should ask Joe about this issue. Maybe I could get the answers I wanted.

As I grabbed a bowl of mac and cheese to eat, I noticed that Joe also joined me into the conversation. Time to talk to him about what Jill said about him, then.

“May I talk to you something for a while?” I asked.

“Sure,” he replied.

“Jill Smith told me that she doesn’t like you because of your behavior, so I want to ask you what was going on with both of you.”

“I have no idea what was going on with her, to be honest. She just poked at me and threatened to break my knuckles when I was on the way to the kitchen. Man, that chick is really nuts.”

I was rather shocked at what he said about Joe. To be honest, Jill would definitely be furious if she heard those words. There must be some way to counteract those words, but what should I say?

After a few seconds of thinking, however, I finally had an idea on what to say. This better work. “I don’t think I would say that out loud if I were you. What if she could hear those words? You’ll be in even more trouble.”

“What do you mean that I’ll be in even more trouble? That chick’s already more trouble than it’s worth.”

“Look, if I were you, I would think twice whenever I want to say that kind of stuff out loud. It’s just way too attention-grabbing in my opinion, if you get what I mean.”

“Whatever. I wanna head out home right now. I think I have stayed here enough.”

“See you later.”

Shortly afterwards, Hal walked towards me as if he had something important to discuss with me. “Mind if I talk to you on whatever topic we wanna talk about?” he asked.

“Sure thing,” I answered. I could definitely use a little chat. What’s more refreshing is that we go outdoors for some fresh air as a break from the rather stale air in this house. “How about we step outside for now. We need some fresh air around here, don’t you think?”

“Okay, then.”

As we stepped outside, we felt the chill of the night air around us. However, it felt refreshing to some degree. I was assuming that spending a few days inside a house with no air conditioning has made us long for the nice fresh air outside.

We stopped at the sidewalk because we didn’t want to hurt ourselves by getting run over by a vehicle, if there ever will be one. And then Hal started to speak. “Do you remember that TV show about the two arguing sisters?”

“What about it? I haven’t heard of it for a long time,” To be honest, being dead for quite some time means that I ended up forgetting what happened when I was still alive. However, I suddenly remembered what he was talking about. “Wait, isn’t that about those two constantly bickering to each other the whole time?”

“On one episode, the good sister got a nice birthday present from the bad sister, but when she opened it up, it turned out to be a box of tissue!”

Once Hal finished his sentence, both of us giggled. Man, I better watch what I had missed from that show.

Being out in the wilderness, however, was not a funny matter. It was time for me to get inside. Who knows what kind of creepiness would be found in the wild?

Also, how about another ride at the sphere, huh? Man, these things sure feel addictive but fun nonetheless. Wish I could afford to buy one of these things, especially if I ever get out of this place alive.

As always, I felt myself going back to my senses whenever this thing shakes violently. It seems that I must use this thing less in case I get injured.

Maybe I should just eat a tasty meal of macaroni and cheese after taking a nice, warm bath to soothe my injuries. Thank goodness no one tried to burn this place down so far! I would have dreaded what this place would end up like if a fire ever broke out here during our “stay”.

Wowza here had been eating her meal of macaroni and cheese before I came here with mine. Her face looked unusually calm and confident as she ate. Maybe she was actually pretending to be like that due to whatever traumatic experiences she faced so far in this nuthouse. I should talk to her so that she might feel better. Also, I should tell her not to tell everyone else about our former deaths.

“Miss Tricou,” I finally said, “You seem unusually calm and confident as you eat your meal, and that made me wonder what’s going on with you lately. Also, can you keep a secret for both of us? I don’t want to be rude; in fact, I just want to help you out. After all, that’s what friends are for, right?”

“Indeed, Miss Matlapin,” her voice sounded a bit low. “I am currently feeling drowsy, but it shall not be a more problematic burden. Rest assured that I can stand this. And what secret do you speak of?”

“The secret I’m telling you is about our former deaths. I mean, people would think we’re freaks or something if they know we used to be dead. Also, you look and sound like you really need help. Can I help with you on anything?”

She closed her eyes for a while, perhaps trying to think what to say. I’ll give her time, then.

“My current concerns for the moment could be taken care of in earnest,” she finally said while closing her eyes, “so preoccupy not about my current situation. In addition to that, safeguarding our secrets regarding our deaths is a brilliant idea.”

“Well, are you sure about that?”

“I… I…”

“I am actually not well in the slightest bit!” she sobbed loudly. “I would appreciate a silent, solitary place to retire, but the music of the piano kept preventing me from finding a suitable place. Even worse still, all the beds in the sleeping quarters were occupied. I apologize for concealing the truth about me because I felt I could take care of myself, but I faced the horrible reality that everything is beyond my control.”

Seeing Wowza here crying about her grievances made me pity her. Even worse, whoever was playing the piano wouldn’t stop, which prevented any of us from sleeping on the sofa. It seems that sleep itself has become a luxury we could ever ream of ever since we came here.

“Don’t worry,” I cried as I grabbed our bowls to be cleaned. “I’ll take care of this once I’m done cleaning up these bowls, so try relieving yourself by drinking a few cups of coffee. Oh, and remember our secrets.”

“Thank… you for… your help,” she replied softly in between sobs as she got up and headed towards the kitchen. “You are a trustworthy friend, and I admire your generosity. In return, I shall do my best to safeguard our secrets.”

Now that I finished washing the bowls, I noticed that the piano music had just stopped. I must muster up any energy I had left and confront whoever was playing it. It turned out to be Coral. How predictable.

“Coral,” I said in a stern voice, “We need to talk right now.”

“Sure,” she replied. “Go ahead.”

“Coral,” I scolded her in the sternest tone possible, “I appreciate the melodic music you’ve played in here, but you should know that other people in here need a good night’s sleep. With all that noise you’ve been generating through the piano, it’s virtually impossible for us to even sleep on the sofa when all the beds are taken. I mean, look at poor Miss Tricou over there! She’s been crying just now because she has no place to sleep. And it’s all because of you playing the piano, which prevents any of us from sleeping. So stop playing the piano all night so that people here can actually sleep, got it?”

Coral bowed her head down with a look of shame on her face. It looks like my scolding had succeeded, or so it seems. I still couldn’t trust her expression, though. I mean, she might continue her bad habit of playing the piano all night long.

“I’m sorry for the disturbance I’ve cause for the night,” she muttered softly. “It’s just that I absolutely love playing the piano that I even can’t focus on what’s going on around be as I play.”

“Well,” I exclaimed as I raised my hands up, “You should play the piano only at daytime, when people are awake. That’s when you can play. Got it?”

“Yes, I do.” “Good. Next time, don’t do this again.”

Lecturing an irresponsible person like Coral took a bit of effort for me, so I tried to relieve myself by entering the fiery room, where I noticed Miss Tricou sleeping like a rock. That was good news, considering her desperate need for sleep and all but couldn’t do so due to lack of space and such. In that case, I should also be finding a bed to sleep on.

Ah, this double bed was so comfortable that I could just sleep on it for the rest of the night despite the fact that it was already past midnight. Oh, well. At least it felt very comfortable, and that’s the most important thing.

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Wow! That must be quite a nice sleep! I mean, just by looking at how brightly the sun was shining outside and I could tell that I had slept throughout the entire morning. That meant that I missed out on everything that had happened at that time. Not that it was a huge loss for me, but I felt like I better sleep as early as possible next time.

I was soon approached by a rather irritated Jill. She looked like she just got frustrated about something.

“Ugh!” She held her nose. “Have you ever noticed how stale the living room air is? It feels like that ever since we got here. I was initially neutral about it until right now, when it finally got into my nerves. We should’ve brought in air freshener with us when we first came here.”

“It sure is,” I giggled a bit. Maybe the main cause of her frustrations was the lack of air conditioners in this house. Personally, I don’t mind seeing none in here. “By the way, the main reason is because there’s no air conditioner at all. I mean, every single one of the rooms lack one.”

“How could this be?!” she shouted. “Every room needs one, just like the houses in Strangetown!”

“Look, this isn’t Strangetown. I mean, look around us. There’s grass, so I’m assuming this place isn’t as hot and dry as Strangetown. You better get used to it from now on.”

“But still, what happens if the weather is excruciatingly hot or cold? That’s one good reason why this house needs something like an air conditioner.”

This had gotten so ridiculous to the point that I should say loud and clear on what I just said. The way she talked to me was too much for me to go further as well. Not to mention that I also wanted to eat lunch thanks to my stomach grumbling loudly.

“Can you just acknowledge the fact that things are different in here compared to where we come from originally? I don’t want to hear any more of your complaints about this house. What’s said is said. End of story.”

Talking to Jill was like hitting a nail to metal, but boy was I glad that the conversation had finally ended. I should just use up my time by eating a lunch meat sandwich. However, I felt very uncomfortable seeing Coral in the kitchen. I ended up ignoring her by turning my back on her, though.

Unfortunately, ignoring her didn’t work for me. Instead, she sat right in front of me. On the bright side, that was right when I just finished my sandwich. How fortunate of me! I could use this as an opportunity to ignore her by walking away and wash my dish.

Washing that plate was hard work, but I finally did it. The ride on the sphere shortly afterwards was so fun that I finally stopped worrying about that blasted dishwashing.

Well, except for the part where I got thrown off. My poor head! I wished I could improve my take on this through some form of method.

Gee, this house was really boring, with very little to do except go through a horrendous routine of doing the same stuff over and over again. Even worse, not only did that pest Coral knew about my previous death, but who knows if she would tell this to other people. Not to mention that her antics around the house were annoying to watch.

I later realized that I should just take a bath because I wasn’t wearing my ordinary clothes. In fact, I also smelled a rather foul stench that could come from none other than me. That bath was really relaxing, but another thought struck my mind: Maybe I should just play chess for the rest of the evening so that I won’t attract unnecessary attention to myself.

Well, this game of chess, which was actually a practice was quite fun as well as beneficial to my brain. It helped me concentrate further and further on the moves that I might as well be the next chess champion. Obviously, that was a bit of a joke, but it still needed a special place in my meandering mind. That way, I won’t have to think about all that I saw in Pleasantview before I rode on this bus. Nor do I have to worry about any unwanted stalkers (especially Coral) from trying to know about my temporary death and eventual resurrection.

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The chess practice was so engrossing that I nearly didn’t want to stop playing even when my stomach grumbled. However, I ended up letting go because I definitely didn’t want to starve to death in this place before rescue comes. I felt very anxious for that thing to happen someday to all of us.

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Author’s Note: Writing a premade that was originally dead at the start of the game is hard work, given the circumstances of the storyline and the need of a backstory. I’m definitely going further with the backstories in later updates, though.

Oh, and have a picture of Darleen’s face being zoomed in so close by the camera.

Anyway, Happy Simming!