1.1 Rose-Colored Memories

It's amazing how even the simplest of memories become rose-colored when you look back on them.  Or perhaps it's because they're so simple that they develop that sort of fanciful charm.

Danisha Culver grew up in the small town of Riverview with her grandmother.  The small town was boring for her, but Danisha never complained.  Especially not to her grandmother who had been kind enough to raise her.  And there was one worthwhile thing here in Riverview.  That would be her best friend, Nielson Gaul.  They had met in elementary school and become inseparable ever since.  Danisha couldn't count how many days they'd sat on the bench in her grandmother's backyard just talking about anything and everything that came to mind.  They didn't really need to do anything.  Just being in each other's company was more than enough.

Often times they'd talk all day until Danisha got so tired that she would nod off right there on Nielson's shoulder.  The teen never complained.  That was one of the things Danisha liked about him.  Even when she would be grumbling about an assignment or ranting that she was sure the art teacher, Mr. Figg, hated her he'd just smile and nod along.  He never had a bad thing to say about anyone.  He wasn't always cheerful, mind you, but he was never angry and never depressed.  Or, thinking back on it now, perhaps he had simply never allowed Danisha to see him when he was like that.  She wished that she'd taken time in their younger years to ask him about his problems, rather than just constantly focusing on her own.  Ah, the wisdom that comes with age.

Well, as they started getting older something about Nielson's demeanor changed.  Danisha was rather thick, she was willing to admit it now, and hadn't noticed those small changes at first.  The way that he would gaze at her for a second longer than he used to.  The slight color in his cheeks when she'd lean up against him.  The way he avoided contact that had once been so carefree between them.  If she had noticed, it was only to think of how odd Nielson was acting.

It wasn't until he finally did something she couldn't ignore that she realized what it was that was bothering him.  She'd fallen asleep on the bench as usual, but hadn't really managed to sink into a deep sleep.  Normally, Nielson could get up without waking her.  In fact, there had been many days where he'd carried her inside so she wouldn't catch a cold being outside.  But today, when Nielso slipped out from next to her and leaned over her, Danisha started to wake up.  It was a slow waking... that is, until she suddenly felt something warm and soft against her lips.  Then her eyes flew open to find her best friend was kissing her.

Danisha was still a child and didn't know how to react.  Nielson noticed her eyes open and stepped back, blushing furiously now.  Danisha slowly stood up from her bench, not sure how to react.  They'd been friends forever.  Surely Nielson hadn't really meant something like a kiss.  Ah, young innocence.  Looking back on it, it was a fond memory.  But Danisha was sure that Nielson must have felt terribly awkward as her younger self had tried to play it off as a joke.

"Nielson!  What are you doing?  Practicing for Lacy?" she teased, smiling hesitantly at Nielson.

That was probably the first time she saw Nielson looking uncertain.  Almost sad.  But he concealed it before she really got a chance to understand what it was he was feeling.  He'd always been bad at that.  She wished she'd learned how to get him to open up more.  Maybe then... well, sad memories don't have any place in rose-colored reminiscing, do they?

"I'm not interested in Lacy," Nielson said firmly.  He reached out and took Danisha's hands in his before gazing into her eyes.  He didn't let himself waver, and Danisha found herself unable to think of it as a joke any longer.

"Danisha, I love you," Nielson stated matter-of-factly.  "I know we've been friends for a long time.  I couldn't tell you when my feelings changed, only that they did.  And I've been waiting... waiting to see if yours will do the same," he admitted.

The words had been simple yet so romantic.  Just like Nielson himself.  To be honest, Danisha had never taken a moment before then to think of Nielson in a romantic light.  But then, she'd never really thought of anyone that way.  She'd probably been a late bloomer.  But now, as she gazed into Nielson's eyes which were looking so intently into her own her heart melted.

"Well... I can't tell you if they have or haven't," she admitted hesitantly, finding that she was the one blushing now.  It felt like her heart was racing a mile a minute.

"Then maybe... we could try and see...?" Nielson asked nervously.  Danisha couldn't bring herself to say yes so she just nodded in response.  "Then, could I kiss you?" Nielson asked, sending the teenage girl blushing all over again.

"I'm pretty sure you just did," she pointed out, trying to be teasing again.

"I know, but I mean seriously this time," Nielson insisted.  Danisha didn't really know what he meant by 'seriously' but she couldn't turn him down.

"All right.  Just one kiss," she agreed.

Of course, that hadn't just been one kiss.  That had been the first of many kisses.  Nielson and Danisha dated throughout high school.  Nielson was just as thoughtful of a boyfriend as he'd been a friend.  In some cases, not much had changed but in other ways everything had changed.  And, after finding that they were both hopeless romantics, Nielson did every cheesy romantic thing he could come up with, just to see her smile.  And Danisha loved every minute of it.

It wasn't long after graduation that Nielson finally worked up the nerve to ask that oh-so-important question, but to Danisha it had felt like an eternity.  The agony of waiting for him to ask.  Of wondering if he was even going to ask.  It had felt like torture at that time.  Now, those were incredibly fond memories and a reminder of just how much she really had come to love him.

But finally Nielson got down on his knee and asked the question she'd been waiting for.  "Danisha, will you marry me?" he asked.  The ring was small and simple.  He'd been working in the town barbershop which didn't pay much so it was all he could afford, but to Danisha it was the most beautiful ring she'd ever seen.

"Of course I will!" she exclaimed.  And she would have sworn at that moment that she was never going to stop smiling again.

They didn't wait long to get married.  Nielson had never been particularly close to his family and Danisha's grandmother had died shortly after she graduated from high school so the two of them agreed to have a ceremony for just the two of them.  They held it in her grandmother's backyard where they had spent so much of their childhood together.

As they said their vows to each other she saw the way Nielson smiled at her.  He'd never looked happier.  The fact that she could make him so happy was a thrilling feeling.  And in his eyes she saw a lifetime of happiness together.

"I swear that I will love you as long as I live," Danisha whispered after the ceremony was over as Nielson swept her up in his arms.

"And I'll love you for even longer," Nielson replied with a smile as he gazed at her.  This was the start of their beautiful marriage.  Danisha could already picture it.  A lovely home, two children (a boy and a girl, of course), her husband making a successful business of his dream to be a stylist and her as a happy stay at home mother looking after all the ones she loved most.

Now she just needed to convince her new-husband that this perfect dream would best unfold in the nearby city of Bridgeport.  She knew that Nielson was content with his barbershop in this small town, but she knew he was destined for so much more.  She could already see him as the stylist to the stars and had already located a nice starter-apartment in the city where they could save up money to purchase their dream home.

Of course, she never bothered to ask Nielson what he thought of that.  One of yet another long list of regrets she had.

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Welcome to my blog!  I've blogged sims stories before so this isn't my first time but I'm hoping that I've vastly improved since my last attempt with this story.  I also want to apologize for Danisha's coloring.  I wanted to make her unique.  We'll see how long her coloring lasts through this legacy.  Not that I'd be upset of Nielson's coloring came through instead.

This chapter is just a set-up, and I promise I won't ramble like this in future chapters.  I just wanted to get my thoughts down and ask for your opinions/suggestions/general feedback so that I can improve as I go.