"If you'd like to sign here, Miss Epstein..."
"DOCTOR Epstein, actually"
"Sorry, Dr Epstein...yes, just sign here at the bottom and the house is all yours" said the Real Estate Agent. Dr Julia Epstein, newly qualified M.D., took out a special gold fountain pen...a present from her Uncle Reuben...and signed on the bottom line of the title deed.
"That's fine" said the agent. "Well, welcome to Foundry Cove, Willow Creek, Doctor. I must say you seem a little young to be a doctor"
"I was the youngest in my year group" said Julia, with a little more than a hint of pride in her voice. "Now, what are the neighbours like here? Are they rowdy? Do they throw wild parties?"
"Well there's 3 young professionals over the road...I think he works with computers, one of the girls works at Space Y and the other one's a cook...I think. Then you've got a woman next door who works for a fashion magazine, next to her is a young gentleman...I don't know what he does for a living I'm afraid...and then the last house is owned by a policeman so I guess if there's anything untoward in this road he'd be the person to seek help from."
"Hmmm." said Julia, pondering that information. The agent made his goodbyes and she was left to inspect her new house. Technically it was owned by her parents; a gift for graduating 1st from medical school and landing a job at the prestigious Sim City Medical Centre. They wanted her to keep on living at home with them but Julia had worked out...with mathematical precision...how the commute would be worse from their out of town home into the city whereas Willow Creek afforded both a reasonable distance from work and a moderate price range for property.
Julia was going over her new home, checking out each room when she heard a knock at the door. She looked up from inspecting under her bed and thought who it could possibly be? Her parents were going to visit tomorrow so it wasn't them and she didn't know anyone else from this area so she raised an eyebrow and cautiously went to investigate.
"HELLO NEIGHBOUR!" yelled three young people: Two women and a man.
"Am I right in deducing that you are the three people who live in that house across the road?" said Julia, puzzled at this reception committee on her doorstep.
"That's us!" said an Asian-Sim Nation woman. "I'm Liberty, these are my housemates Travis and Summer"
"I brought cake!" said the blonde girl, Summer.
"I'm Dr Julia Epstein and thank....you" said Julia, still puzzled at these visitors.
"And I'm Action, John Action" said a tall, impressive looking black man who had just arrived.
"Are you the policeman or the man living at the end of the road?" Julia asked.
"I'm a cop" said Action.
"Don't mess with him!" laughed Travis, nervously.
Julia was stuck for what to do next. She could go back inside and arrange her medical textbooks as she had planned, carefully hang and fold her clothes or invite these strangers in. Well, they had brought cake so she opted to invite her neighbours inside her house.
"I've just moved in so excuse the state of the place" said Julia, putting the cake down on a coffee table.
"It looks spotless!" said Summer.
"It's not...there's probably germs everywhere" replied Julia.
"We've been watching this place being built for weeks now" said Travis. "We were wondering who'd be moving in"
"It's so good another young person has joined our happy little community" said Summer. Action just grunted.
"My age is a factor here?" said a puzzled Julia.
"Well, you know..." said Summer, stuck for an answer.
"Do you intend to have wild parties here?" said Julia with some disapproval.
"Oh yes...OW!" said Travis, just before Liberty kicked him in the shin.
"Not wild, so to speak" said Liberty, apologetically.
"So you're a doctor?" said Summer, trying to change the topic.
"Yes, I'm newly qualified and start my first shift as an intern tomorrow" said Julia, now enthusiastic.
"Congratulations" said Travis. "It's nice to have a proper professional around here. Action just grunted. He was checking the place out...it was sparsely furnished in white and pale blue. He contemplated whether the good Dr Julia here would be similar to her home: Cold, sparse and unappealing. His dating life had improved of late...two different women in two weeks but Julia didn't appear to be number 3 to him.
Summer approached him as he finished a slice of cake. "Hey, Action, you seem quieter than usual" she said.
"This chick's place is colder than a meat locker. Creeps me out" he replied.
"Your trouble, Action, is that you never let up from work. You're always the cop" said Summer.
"Now that's where you're wrong, Summer. Action knows how to unwind" he said, turning to look at Liberty and giving her a wink.
"So I hear you Doctors party hard" said Travis, trying to make a good impression on Julia.
"We don't...excuse me, but the dirty dishes are piling up and I have to give them a clean" she said, worried about the stack of plates with cake crumbs on them. She stood up, gathered up the plates and took them to the sink.
Travis leaned in to Liberty and said, with a whisper, "I don't think she wants us around. Let's make our excuses and go". Liberty nodded and caught Summer and Action's attention with a quick j erk of her head in the direction of the door. They took the hint, welcomed Julia to the neighbourhood once again and left.
Julia once again enjoyed a moment of peace and quiet. She was contemplating finishing unpacking her suitcases when there was another knock on the door. Letting out a sigh of frustration, she walked over to the door to see who was there. It was a young man but one she recognised.
"Phew, sorry I'm late! I got caught up with work and only just made it...did I miss the others?" he said.
"You did. And you must be the man who lives at the end of the road?" she asked.
"Yes I am...I'm Jeremy"
"I know...we've met before. Julia Epstein"
Jeremy looked puzzled and tried to remember where he'd met her before. Julia picked up on his expression "It was at the Humour and Hijinks Festival"
Jeremy started to look less puzzled as he pulled a vague recollection from his memory. "Was I with my girlfriend at the time?"
"No, that was the most recent festival" said Julia, recalling the sight of Jeremy and his girlfriend partaking in a steamy embrace. She absolutely hated public displays of affection. "We met at the one before that. I was telling you I was about to graduate from medical school and that you worked for Dewey, Cheathem and Howe"
The penny finally dropped for Jeremy. "Oh yes. I remember now. So how did it all go with the graduation?"
"Top of my class, got me an internship at Sim City Medical Centre"
"Wow..." said Jeremy, impressed not only at her achievement but that she said it as if coming top of her class was a piece of cake.
As they talked, across the road Geoffrey Landgraab stopped his evening run for a moment. He had come across his son's latest girlfriend and he wanted to have a word with her.
"Gillian, what brings you here?" he said
"Oh, well, this road is between the school library and my home, Mr Landgraab" she said, swaying and speaking coyly to him.
"Gillian, are you drunk or high?" he said, disapprovingly
"Turn on, tune in and drop out, baby" she said with a giggle.
"Let me tell you this, young lady, you do not meet my standards for a girlfriend of Malcolm's. I wish you to break off your relationship with him" he said, sternly.
"Malcolm doesn't have to take orders from you, pops" she said, batting her long false eyelashes at him. Landgraab stood up to attention and leaned in towards her, his face looking menacingly.
"You do not know who you are dealing with" he said, snarling. "You are forbidden to contact my son in future. Now go and stagger back to whatever hashish den you crawled out from!"
Gillian blew him a mock kiss and staggered away. Landgraab watched her walk out of sight.
"So, hopefully, I will get that cardio-thoracic rotation at the hospital and I'll specialise in that" said Julia but she noticed that Jeremy was watching the incident between the middle aged man in running gear and the teenage girl in the latest mod fashions. "Jeremy, what's the matter?" said Julia, concerned.
"Erm...could be nothing" said Jeremy. "But that's the millionaire Geoffrey Landgraab and she's a high schooler...I wonder what that was all about?"
