From Sims to Real Life

Welcome to part three of this story. Azra is lonely and hurting inside, for she has lost the love of her life due to a stupid computer crash. She is dedicated and desperate to find HIM again. To find the love of her life.

Thanks everybody! Thanks for reading, rating and commenting. That is what makes writing stories fun! I hope you will have fun with this part.

Thanks Maris, your Azra is a brave girl!

*****

The memory of Cheng was still there. It was all in her head and in her heart. But with days, even months passing, the image slowly faded away. Azra had a hard time picturing and remembering all details like the sparkle in his eyes or the softness of his touch.

She sometimes woke up to his sweet voice, but she couldn’t hear what he was singing, it came from such a distance.

She knew it. If she wanted to have a life for herself, she should get on living it. Staying in the past wouldn’t help her. It was time she took some action. Let professionals do the job looking for him. She had a job, she had friends she had neglected for months. She wasn’t getting any younger. It hurt…, it hurt very much, but she had to go on.

She went by the shop to say her goodbyes once again.
-“I don’t know if I will be back in two days. It might take a little bit longer this time, I have a concert to do”, she told her friend Ho.
– “It would be nice if you could come over and visit though. I will get you front row tickets!”
Azra laughed hysterically. She was not sure where her life would take her now.

She really hadn’t expected her friend Ho Sung Kim from China to actually come over for her concert, but in a way she was happy he had. She could talk about Cheng with him, and he seemed to understand. He said he had no memories of Cheng, but the more Azra told him about Cheng, the more Ho was sort of remembering— sort of…

– “I was pregnant with his baby you know Ho. It all went away…. Have you looked into some of the things I asked you? Did you find a researcher to dig into my story?”

– “Well… as a matter of fact Azra, I DO know someone who maybe could…”

Azra knew she had to go back to China to meet this acquaintance of Ho.
– “He knows his stuff Azra. He’s half Irish, his mom was anyways….  Maybe you know his father? Gao Hong Law? Here’s his card. Go look him up!”
Azra looked at the small business card: Murphy Law, Researcher, Law Enforcement….
“Cute” said Azra. ”Together we will surely win the war.”
Ho was not sure if this was meant to be a joke….

Murphy Law just moved from Hong Kong to the very rural town of Shang Simla. A towns man he was. His grandmother on father’s side was from this small laid back town. As a full licensed fire fighter AND a LSR (Lost Sim Researcher), he needed a break from the hustle and bustle of the big city. A one year sabbatical would be on his resume when he updated it next. Meanwhile he would give some Martial Arts classes in which he excelled.

After the last concert of the five she had to do, Azra was ready to travel to China again. Ho had left the day after opening night and said he would arrange for Murphy and Azra to meet at his place. For Azra it was time to proceed. Time to find answers, and above all, time to go on with her life. As much as she longed for Cheng, she was aware of the fact that she might just never see him again.

It had taken her a long time to go back to China. It was summer now. The air was dry and very hot. But Azra didn’t mind. She was back in her hometown. Here she belonged. But she was here for just a short visit this time. Just to meet up with Murphy Law and head back home again. Work was really busy, especially since her lasts concerts went so well. She planned to be back later the coming fall. It would then be more than a year ago she had lived another life. A life with Cheng in it.

She went over to see Ho, who in turn introduced her to his acquaintance, Murphy Law.

There she stood eye to eye with this Murphy guy. It felt kind of strange…, he reminded her of Cheng in a way. She was so determined to be all business like, and all she could do now was stutter….
– “Mr. Murphy? Eh… sorry… Mr. Law? My name is Azra Romanov. I got your card from Ho… and… I eh…”
– “Call me Murphy or Mr. Law, Miss… Well…, Murphy will do just fine!”

– “OK…. Murphy… is that your real name? I am Azra. Ho might have told you about what I came here for. Did you Ho?”
Ho just nodded.
– “Hmmm…, I heard you are looking for a super dimensional Sim. Not an easy task….

But WAIT!!! Aren’t you Azra Romanov?

I know only of one person by that name…. She’s a big star! Are you HER? Can I have your autograph?

Sorry…, I got carried away there for a bit…. Excuse me Azra, I am sorry. You come up the mountain to see me. I am camping out there. You see…, my friend Ho here, he didn’t have a spare room available. HA…, Ho… don’t look so shocked! I am just kidding! You look me up there will you? We will make a business plan. I need everything…; photos, personal stuff. I need them to work with.”

– “Murphy…, she has nothing of Cheng”, said Ho.
– “Oh…, I guess I have to write a slightly different Business plan now…. Come and see me Miss Romanov…, Azra….

Azra went up the mountain the very next day. This Murphy guy…. He was a bit strange, but also charming and… well…, she didn’t know how to put it, but he was not unpleasant company.

– “I hope you don’t mind me bringing my tent up here too” said Azra.
“It was just too long a hike to get here. If we want to talk some business I better stay, otherwise I will have to leave in half an hour to be back home before dark.”

After she set up camp right next to Murphy’s they sat down to have a bite to eat and talk about Cheng. Murphy wanted all details, well…, most of them . Just the relevant ones.

– “I am not sure Azra…. It sort of doesn’t sound like our dimension. It is like it is in another time and place, one that got lost during the crash you told me about. Is this ‘Fred person’ capable of resurrecting NPC Sims?”

– “Oh Murphy…, I don’t know. I know I have to do this and live my life as my creator has planned.”

– “You can go your own way Azra. You have free will. That’s very important. You should do the things that make you happy. If it is Cheng who makes you happy, you will have to find a way getting him back. If it’s the feeling you had, maybe you should try finding this feeling again.

YOU…! You are the most important thing here Azra. Not what creators want. You have your free will. Use it. Find the way to happiness. If I can, I will help you find it.”

– “D..Do you think so? I never thought of it that way….

Murphy…, that was very sweet of you to say…. Thank you.”

Fred…, was this supposed to happen? I don’t really care for all these unexpected twists and turns!

Just wait and see Azra….

To be continued…

This is Azra’s story. She is very upset with me for not saving the game in which she met the love of her life Cheng Wang Liang. He disappeared along with the played game that crashed to desktop. Will she ever find him again? Here is chapter two. I hope you will enjoy reading about Azra and her friends as much as I enjoyed playing with them.

A big thanks goes out to all CC creators and my friend Haagje for creating Azra.

*****

While Fred worked on her computer, Azra just sat around the house feeling miserable. Cheng wasn’t even listed in her phone anymore. She also found out she was not pregnant. All Azra wanted was for Fred to hurry with fixing her computer and deal with the crashing issues causing the mess SHE was in now! She kept dreaming of returning to China to once again meet Cheng. And that day couldn’t arrive soon enough!

Finally, after a week, she got a green light…. YES! Time to go back and visit her heart throb once more. Did he have memories of her? Did they have to start all over again? Azra didn’t know, but her heart was beating rapidly as she got in the taxi driving her to the airport.
Shang Simla was still there, untouched by the big crash…

She was in for a nasty surprise.
Strange people now lived in Cheng’s house. A lovely family, but they had never heard of Cheng Wang Liang, they were very sorry and kept on apologizing for something they couldn’t help either.

Well… if you ever hear of him dear sir, please, please give me a call. It is very important that I speak with him.

Although the town still looked the same, there were a lot of new people. No one ever heard of Cheng Wang Liang. Azra was desperate.

Some of the guests at the resort were talking about her already. ‘Now THAT must have been a wonderful guy this Cheng Wang Liang… I tell you! I wonder why he stood her up…’

“You ignorant NPC tourists…! BAH! Probably the first time for you guys to be abroad huh? You two should be ashamed of yourselves. Well maybe you can’t help it… being just NPC’s with no direction in your life.  Anyway if you ever run into someone by the name of Cheng Wang Liang, be sure to tell me all about it.”

It was time for Azra to do some thorough research. She looked in every little corner of Shang Simla but still no luck.

She found a few people she knew from her previous visits before the big crash, but after talking to them the case became more gloom with every minute.
– “No…, Cheng Wang Liang you say? I have never even heard of him, have you dear?
..uh-uh…no, that name doesn’t ring a bell… So sorry Azra…”

Time for a total mind reset. Azra rang Ai Pei. Surely her old sparring partner and friend would remember him?

– “Oooff… Cheng Wang….OOOFF… ahhh… wait…, I think… hmmm…, didn’t he live here some time ago, or was it in another dimension? Did he live down the street with two of his best friends? I think I met him in one of my meditation sessions. There was something with incense and the dragons den… or did I just dream that?

So Azra went there…
… to find absolutely nothing…

“Ai…. There was nothing…, nobody…, no clues no signs…. What am I supposed to do now?”
– “Go to the house Azra…, the house …. And… Argg… AHHH…. I… URGG….” There was a strange noise on the other side of the line, followed by a loud THUMP…! – “Ai?…AI!!! Are you all right???”
Nothing more…; Ai had just died. The only person who could help her in her quest.

Azra did what Ai had told her to do. She went to the house. The house was the only thing still there to remind her of her happy days, which now seemed to be existent in only her dreams and in another dimension. She picked up Ai’s remains from the mausoleum to give her good friend a proper burial. Ai was the closest thing to family she had. Giving him a last resting place in her backyard felt right.

‘I will be here to watch over you Azra, I haven’t seen Cheng on the other side, so he must be alive somewhere! Good luck on your quest my dear friend!’

Ai kept his promise and watched over Azra every single night. He would not have anything harmful happen to his friend. Ai didn’t sense Cheng in the afterlife, so there was still hope for Azra.

From the night that Ai died on, Azra moved into the house that Cheng had bought for them. Here she found some peace of mind.

And so days past, weeks past and Fall had come to spread its warm colors over the ancient Chinese landscape.

Azra woke up. The hurt in her heart was still there, but she noticed that the raw pain and sorrow had left her. A plan had formed in her mind. She needed to go on with her life. She would hire someone to help her find Cheng.

Just like every morning, she also set a plate for Cheng. And although he never showed up, she felt comfortable doing so. She had to go home for a couple of days, Riverview seemed far, far away. Still no Green card from the Chinese government. She fixed herself Cheng’s favorite breakfast and looked at the empty seat across the table.

Where did you go to my love…?

To be continued…