Gen 5 Ch 1: Where Stars Come To Shine

 "Hey, little sis! It's so great to see you!" Emily squealed as she hugged Evelyn tightly. It never took much to get Evelyn excited, and seeing her sister this happy made her practically bounce with joy.

"Emmy! Your house looks adorable!"

"Thanks! It's tiny, especially compared to some of the estates you see around here, but I love it. How are you liking it here so far? Did you see the boardwalk yet?"

"I took a taxi straight to your house from the airport. I didn't see much of anything yet, to be honest!"

"Well, let me formally welcome you to Starlight Shores then," Emily giggled, shaking Evelyn's hand.

After being invited inside, Evelyn was curious to know everything about how her siblings had been settling in so far.

 In an unusually nurturing gesture, they had all gotten some money from their mother to settle into their new lives. Emily had been able to afford a cute little bungalow just across the street from the sea.

Eric had refused to take any money from Dolores, of course. Even Trent had not been able to change his mind. Lucky for Eric, his new wife's parents had more than enough money to help them buy a house by the sea.

However, it would not have been Dolores had the offered money not come as a little message of its own. Esteban, still decidedly the favorite child, received the largest share by far and moved into an impressive villa up in the hills.

 Evelyn had received some money too, but hadn't found a place to stay yet. The housing market in Starlight Shores was tough. Even the tiniest shacks could cost a fortune!

 This was Emily's time to shine! Apparently Eric's plan of getting his sister away from their mother's influence had been thoroughly successful - she had turned away from crime and switched to the other side of the law. She was now a private investigator, helping the local police with intel gathered around town. Emily had her ways of uncovering everything there was to know in Starlight Shores. Finding some suitable real estate for her little sister would be a cinch!

"You know what? See the sights, spend a nice afternoon shopping, and by the time you're done, I'll have a place ready for you!"
Evelyn, stunned speechless by Emily's transformation into this energetic, confident go-getter-type, thanked her older sister with a hug.

As they parted ways, Emily pointed Evelyn towards the boardwalk, which wasn't far from her little bungalow. Starlight Shores might have been huge, but the giant Ferris wheel was impossible to miss, so Evelyn found her way there easily.

Evelyn wondered if she could take a ride on the Ferris wheel, when she noticed that the ticket booth was boarded up.

 She asked a young woman passing by about it. Apparently the Ferris wheel had been out of order since anyone could remember. Basically a glorified streetlight for all it did these days. Evelyn still thought it looked neat. Useless blinking colored lights were better than no lights at all. Karen Kerman, as the woman introduced herself, agreed.

 The two quickly found out that they had a lot in common. Then something else caught Evelyn's eye.

"That's a huge stage!" Evelyn was in awe. "There was nothing like this back in Hidden Springs. Do you guys get many famous performers here?"

"Well, yeah. That's what Starlight Shores is all about, basically! Can't swing a plumbob here without knocking into some famous singer or other," Karen grinned. "Every other Sim in SS is a performer of some kind. It's the place to go if you want to make it big!"

"Wow," Evelyn could not avert her gaze from the stage. "Are you a performer too? How do you get started? Is there some place you sign up, or...?"

"Nah, I just have a boring desk job. To pay the bills, you know? But," Karen sighed dreamily. "Being a celeb... just sounds like the ultimate partying lifestyle, doesn't it?" Evelyn nodded in agreement.
Karen excused herself then, saying that she had to go get ready for a date, but she promised to give Evelyn a call one of these days. "I know all the best clubs and bars around town. We're gonna have a blast!"

 Evelyn had never been shy, so she quickly walked up to an official-looking woman standing close to the mesmerizing stage. Her intuition had been right - the woman turned out to be the proprietor of this venue.

Confident in her singing skills, honed back in Hidden Springs at their local branch of Mick's Master Karaoke, Evelyn asked if she could audition for a singer gig, right there and then. She wanted to perform on that stage so badly.

"I don't care how well you can sing, girl. This is not a skill-based career. You need to build up some renown before anyone will even consider letting you audition."

"So how do I build renown then? I really, really want this!" Evelyn was adamant. She had followed her older siblings to Starlight Shores without much thought and no plans for her own future. Sure, she had always loved to sing, but she had no idea that it could ever be a viable career option. Now that she saw this before her, she knew she would do anything to make it happen. "Please help me out, Ma'am. How can I get started?"

"Well, kid," The woman smiled in a way that reminded Evelyn of her mother. "You start at the bottom, just like everyone else."
Diabolical, that was the word.

Just a few hours later, Emily had managed to fulfill her promise to her little sister. Starlight Shores had seen a recent influx of high-rise buildings and while most of the apartments were sold before even being built, there was one left that was within Evelyn's budget.

Emily had outdone herself! Evelyn loved her new place, as well as the furniture it came with. The location of the building was great, too. It was in the middle of town, within walking distance from several restaurants, which was just what Evelyn's grumbling stomach needed this evening.

Flying V's Coffeehouse down the street seemed like as good a place as any to quickly grab a bite to eat. As hungry as she was, when she saw a small stage behind the diner, she had to check it out. Maybe this was a place she would be allowed to perform?

She was pulled out of her daydreaming when she noticed a handsome man staring at her.

"Yeah, it's me," he said with a confident smirk.

"E-excuse me?"

"Finnegan Sawyer. You were wondering if I'm really him," he continued, unperturbed by her confusion. "This dim lighting here is nothing like the bright stage lights, I know. It's difficult to tell for some people." He ran his hand through some artfully arranged strands of hair and raised his chin, presumably to better display his face. "But it's your lucky night, babe. I really am Finnegan Sawyer, Local Phenomenon. What do you want me to sign for you?"

"Uhm, I'm sorry, but I don't..."

The man's face fell when he realized that Evelyn had no idea who Finnegan Sawyer, Local Phenomenon was. Evelyn was suddenly embarrassed about her ignorance.

"I'm not from Starlight Shores," she sounded sincerely apologetic. "I just moved here from Hidden Springs and... well... It's a small town, and we didn't get much news of celebrities there."

His face lit up again in a well-practiced, dazzling smile.
"Well, babe, color me impressed. You don't look like a small town girl." His gaze wandered lower, giving her an appraising once-over. "Nice dress. You look just like one of the local girls."

Evelyn blushed at that. A real celebrity complimenting her? This was insane!
"So, you're one of Starlight Shores famous performers?" For some reason, she was determined to make a good impression on this guy.

"A singer," he said, quirking up one side of his mouth and giving her a little wink.

"That's amazing! I'd love to be a singer, too! Do you think you could give me some pointers?"

"Sure, babe. I'll show you the ropes. But first, I'm going to take you out to dinner. I'm starving."

Finnegan was happy to tell Evelyn about his career and she lapped up every word he said, taking it as invaluable insight into becoming a successful singer. He just had a way with words and his not-so-subtle flirtations made her giddy. A real celebrity taking an interest in her?!

Even when it turned out that Finnegan's idea of 'taking her out to dinner' meant sharing a basket of fries and splitting the bill halfway, Evelyn was still mesmerized by his charisma.

"Anyway, babe, I've gotta run. Come see my show this weekend. You'll love it."

 Still giddy and reeling from the day's events, Evelyn just barely managed to fall asleep before the sun rose.

 The next morning, she was up bright and early despite a lack of sleep. She had a new apartment, a new car and a new job! This was so exciting!

As the boardwalk's proprietor had promised, Evelyn started her career as a singer at the very bottom. She drove back and forth through the city traffic all day, delivering melodic greetings to Sims around town. And yes, the uniform was mandatory, the proprietor had informed her, smirking.

Her first job was delivering a Sing-A-Gram to Javed Meir - who turned out to be Emily's new boyfriend. It didn't take Evelyn long to figure out that Emily had tried to do her little sister a favor by providing one of her first jobs.

"I hope you don't mind," Emily smiled apologetically. "I know you can stand on your own two legs, but I couldn't resist giving you some business!"

"That's super sweet of you, Emmy! Thanks!" Evelyn beamed. "Javed, huh? He's a real cutie. And he was very nice! I'm glad you found such a great guy!"

"Aw, thanks, Evie! I'm sure you'll find someone soon too."

"Well, actually..." Evelyn bit her lip and grinned up at her sister.

"What?! Who?" Emily grabbed Evelyn's shoulders. "Oh my plumbob, you're blushing! Come on, tell me!"

Evelyn could not wipe the wide grin off her face when she finally answered her excited sister.
"It's Finnegan Sawyer, the singer."

Emily's reaction was not at all what Evelyn had expected.





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Notes:

This is Starlight Shores Revisited by crimsonium! It's pretty cool, except for some routing issues. Down the road I'll do some editing of my own to it.

Moving four siblings to a new town together with a very lame explanation... again! I just can't let my spares go. I love seeing those SP notifications about how they are living out their lives!

Man, I wish the Showtime careers were actually skill-based. And compatible with LN bands. Wouldn't that be the coolest thing?