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//It will be better, it has to be better.//
This mantra has run over and over again in your head for weeks….The unrest in the capital finally erupted.
The leaders called it a revolution of the people, but you were among the people who elected the president they disposed of. You and your husband Mario joined the protests against the coop.
When you hesitated on the first day he said, "Lucia, tell me to stay and I will, but all of our friends are out there."
There was strength in numbers, a fact the revolutionaries knew too.
[[ continue story... ->1.1]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/revolution.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio "intro1" stop>>
<<audio "intro2" play>>One by one, your friends dissapeared in the night.
[[You and Mario won't be intimidated. ->1.2]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/revolution.png" class="image" width="100px">You screamed when your bedroom door burst from its hinges and masked men dragged Mario naked from your bed.
Leaping from the bed you attacked the first intruder you could lay your hands on.
[[He shoved you off so hard it knocked you out when your head hit the wall… ->1.3]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/door.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio "door" play>>Dull pain throbs through your head when the sun wakes you.
You wash the blood from your face, get dressed, walk over the broken furniture of your home and go to the police station.
They tell you that they don't have your husband. So many people have been arrested lately that whole jails are full and records are still being organized.
"Go home and wait," they say.
[[Go back to the police station tomorrow. ->1.3.1]]
[[Go home and wait. ->1.4]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/police.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio "door" stop>>
You didn't feel safe in the next town over, or even the next country. When the Netherlands gave you a visa, you thought over where your new life would be.
[[Wait for the boat to the Netherlands. ->2.0]]
[[Ruan was right, you should go back to the village. ->1.7.1]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/boat.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio "ship" play volume 0.75>>
<<audio "intro7" stop>>You wake up in the middle of the night. Careful to not wake the sleeping women and children you make your way to the bathroom.
The government put you in temporary housing with other migrants. You've gotten used to being in tight spaces with strangers. It doesn't bother you because you know you're safe.
You got used to vomiting too, but that was on the ship.
[[continue story... ->2.1]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/netherlands.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio "ship" stop>>
<<audio "intro2" fadeout>>
<<audio "vomit" time 2 fadein volume 0.85>>
<<audio "intro1" fadein>>"Congratulations Lucia"
Martha sits down next to you at breakfast beaming. You don’t have many friends here yet, but you’ve grown close to Martha and her son Jesus, who she bounces on her lap. She always looks radiant despite all she’s been through. Martha’s better off than most of the women you’ve met, she has family in the Netherlands and just needs time to find them.
[[Congratulations for being sick? - "What are you talking about Martha?" ->2.2]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/martha.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio "ship" stop>>
<<audio "vomit" fadeout>>You didn’t tell me," Martha continues "but I’ve had enough pregnancies on my own to know."
"I’m not pregnant. I can’t be..." So much has happened since the last time you were with Mario. It seems so long ago. You thought it was stress that stopped your period not … a baby.
Usually, you finish the meager meal, but the thought kills what appetite you had. Your eyes begin to water. Having a baby would be one thing if your husband were with you. But here. Alone.
Martha’s smile fades. "Plenty of women have raised kids on their own. It doesn’t have to be so bad..."
[[Martha’s voice fades as what she’s saying sinks in… ->2.3]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/martha.png" class="image" width="100px">You and Mario were looking forward to starting a family together. Your life back home wasn’t glamorous but you were looking forward to being partners in it.
Mario was taking business classes at the college, while you made extra money doing hair. When you got sick, he was there taking care of you.
You knew he wasn’t the typical man dividing life between men’s work and women’s work. He didn’t want to leave you home alone
[[You were going to be partners. ->2.4]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/home.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio "intro1" play>>//Alone.//
You know she means well but Martha isn’t helping. She left her husband by choice, and that was well after Jesus was born. If only your mom and brother
Though he’s too young to understand Martha covers Jesus’ ears. "I know a woman here. She was a midwife back home. Maybe… maybe she can help you."
[[Go see the midwife for an abortion.->2.4.1]]
[[Go see the midwife for advice on your pregnancy. ->3.0]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/pregnant.png" class="image" width="100px">
Though you don’t have Mario, Martha is able to make the whole ordeal less terrifying.
Martha takes you with her, when her family comes to get her. Her cousin lives with his wife and three kids. Martha, Jesus, plus you, make 8 people living in a three-bedroom house.
The kindness they’ve shown is overwhelming. They treat you like family. Sharing their food, inviting you to church, giving you some work with their housekeeping service. You can imagine how much harder it would’ve been doing all this on your own.
Your belly has swollen so much there’s no hiding your pregnancy. Everyone tells you to take it easy, but that isn’t you. Not wanting to be a burden you volunteer to help out where you can.
[[Volunteer for the church potluck. ->3.1.1]]
[[Volunteer to work more housekeeping shifts. ->4.0]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/pregnant.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio "intro1" stop>>
<<audio "intro3" loop play>>You take baby Inés with you everywhere. With not family to help and not money enough money for daycare what choice did you have.
A few of the older women at church gossip about the baby’s father, but Martha has worked to squash any rumors that pass her way.
[[Continue the story...->4.1]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/babyines.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio "baby" play>>
<<audio "intro1" stop>>
<<audio "intro3" loop play>>Most of the houses are empty when you clean them so Inés can cry without bothering anyone. One house you clean once a month for a couple that you’ve only met once.They seem to always be on vacation. You’ve never taken a vacation, even back home. Sunday is your rest day only because you need to attend mass.
Another client, Jan, is the opposite of the couple, working a lot from home. When he’s there, he’s happy to have Inés with him. Music keeps her from crying and he always has the radio on in his office.
Once you even caught him singing Elvis to her. He bright red when he noticed you listening.
Jan is the smartest person you’ve ever met and one of the nicest. When he talks to you it’s never in a demeaning or condescending way. His house is full of books, in so many languages you can’t recognize all of them.
You like that he talks to Inés in Dutch, when he’s not singing to her. You’re taking Dutch lessons at the local library, but at home, she only hears Spanish, and a bit of English from the radio.
[[Ask Jan to help teach Inés Dutch. ->4.2]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/cleaning.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio "baby" stop>>
<<audio "intro8" stop>>
Choose a Generation to start from:
[[Start Lucia's story ->1]]
The next generation: Ines. Coming soon.
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/cover-lucia.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio "intro1" play>>
<<cacheaudio "intro8" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/intro8.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "intro7" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/intro7.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "intro6" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/intro6.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "intro5" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/intro5.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "intro4" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/intro4.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "intro3" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/intro3.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "intro2" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/intro2.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "door" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/WoodenDoor.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "vomit" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/Vomit.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "phone" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/Telephone.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "shop" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/ShopDoorBell.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "ship" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/Ship.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "party" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/Party.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "party2" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/Party2.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "dryer" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/Dryer.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "baby" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/BabyBreathing.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "drink" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/Champagne.mp3">>
Double-click this passage to edit it.Inés needs to know the language of she’s going to have a life better than cleaning other people’s houses.
You tell Jan that you want Inés to speak perfect Dutch. Jan agrees that it’s important for her and for you too.
He agrees to give you and little Inés Dutch lessons, though for her that just means he sings Dutch rhymes to her while you clean. At first, it’s just in the time left when you finish cleaning early. Soon he even invites you over in his spare time.
[[Continue story..->4.3]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/babyines.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio "baby" time 13 play>>
This game was created by
Ana Barretto,
Vera Grosskop &
Phillip Morris
for the Culture Arcade Game Jam 2018.So you wait.
You clean up the mess left in your home, and wait.
You put up a new front door, and wait.
You wait for them to bring back your husband.
You wait for them to come back for you.
You wait as the coup spreads from the capital to the surrounding cities.
[[Continue story.... ->1.5]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/waiting.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio "intro2" play>>As time passes, find yourself looking forward to cleaning Jan’s apartment. You always schedule his house last so you can squeeze in longer Dutch lessons when possible.
As far as you know Jan’s never gotten married, though he is handsome. Or at least you think so.
Your Dutch has gotten good enough that you’ve had long conversations with Jan in Dutch.
You learned that after college he took time off to travel and spent time in Indonesia, South Africa, Suriname, and Ghana. He works an assistant to the Amsterdam city council (gemeenteraad). It sounds like so much work it's amazing he has the time to spare for your lessons.
Today, before leaving Martha’s voice pops into your head and you’re driven to ask...
[[Waarom ben je niet getrouwd? (How come you’re not married?)->5.1]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/cleaning.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio ":playing" stop>>
<<audio "intro4" loop play>>
"I… Do you really want to know?" He’s taken on a shyness you’ve never seen in him before.
"I do," you tell him. "We’re friends, you can talk to me."
"I…" He takes a deep breath. You thought you were just friends, but maybe Martha was right. "I like men."
You could think of so many potential answers, but that one catches you by surprise.
Jan is nothing like the homosexuals you’ve heard about. He’s not a fiend or a deviant, he’s actually the nicest man you’ve met since Mario.
You hug Jan. You can feel his tense muscles relax in your arms. In the embrace you realize you do love him, but it’s the love you’ve had for your brother’s and uncles.
[[Continue story...->5.2]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/jan.png" class="image" width="100px">
Your marriage to Jan is filled with just as much love as your marriage to Mario was, though it expresses itself differently. Inés knows about Mario but considers Jan her "papa" all the same.
Your routine doesn't change much beyond getting to enjoy the quietness that comes from sharing your home with significantly fewer people. You work as a cleaner, take care of your family, and occasionally go with Inés to visit Martha and Jesus, who’ve also moved into their own apartment.
Soon Jan invites you to join for his work events
[[Go to the borrel ->6.1]].
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/house.png" class="image" width="100px">
After a moments thought you say, "Inés will be starting school soon. I'd be bored at home waiting for you both."
"That's fair, but do you really want to keep cleaning?"
Cleaning is all you've done for work since moving to the Netherlands. You're good at it, but it doesn't fulfill you.
Long ago, Mario joked that you could open your own salon after one week a string of girls came to you to do their hair for graduation. The most inspiring thing you do is fixing Inés hair. Maybe now's the time to try going into business for yourself.
"I'd like to try something different. I'd like to open a salon."
"Oh? That's Great! I’ll look into the paperwork."
Jan kisses you before being pulled away by some friends.
[[Continue story... ->6.4]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/jan.png" class="image" width="100px">//They don't have your husband.//
"Go home and wait," they say.
[[Go back to the police station tomorrow. ->1.3.2]]
[[Go home and wait. ->1.4]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/waiting.png" class="image" width="100px">
So you wait until tomorrow comes, then go back to the staion.
They don't have your husband.
"Go home and wait," they say.
[[Return to the police station tomorrow. ->1.3.3]]
[[Go home and wait. ->1.4]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/waiting.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio "intro2" fadeout>>
<<audio "intro7" stop>>Finally, it’s time to take what you can carry and leave. Before you leave, you call your family down south.
The area is so rural and remote that your oldest brother Ruan is one of two people in the village with a phone. Your family only heard the faintest rumors of a revolution before you told them you were joining the protests.
Maybe that far away, in a life so removed from politics, it would be safe to live again.
Ruan picks up the phone and all that’s happened to you these past weeks comes pouring out.
[[Ask if you can live with your mom and brothers. ->1.5.1]]
[[Ask your mom and brothers to leave the country with you. ->1.6]]
<<audio "phone" play volume 0.80>>
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/phone.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio "intro7" stop>>It was easy for you to leave the shattered life you had in the capital. With Mario and your friends gone it was becoming a city of ghosts for you.
It was also easy for you to fall back into the routine of life with your family. For the first few days everyone was more than happy to leave you with your thoughts most for most of the day. Then one day your mom asked for help cutting onions. Then next day she ask you to prep rice and beans. The next day the soldiers came.
They started with the men. Everyone assume if you coopertated gave them the food and the hunting rifles they’d move on, but once they men had finished gathering the supplies they were shot.
The children were next.
The women were raped and then shot.
[[THE END->ENDING]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/death.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio ":playing" stop>>
<<audio "intro7" time 4 play>>
Ruan turns down your offer to leave.
"Why would anyone but God care what happens down here?"
Ruan has always been stubborn. He still thinks of you as the little sister following him everywhere even as you talk to him now, as a woman fearful for your life, his, and all of your family’s.
He might be right, the trouble might pass them over, but the government knows who you are.
[[ Leave alone ->1.7]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/phone.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio "phone" stop>>"Abortion is illegal in the Netherlands too," the midwife explains "but like everywhere it can be done."
While you want to pay attention to her, thoughts of having a baby by yourself take over your mind for a second.
"Even if you survive," she continues " you can go to prison if someone founds out!"
She recommends that you to continue your pregnancy and not take the risk, but she understands the difficulty of having a baby by yourself. She is willing to help. Still, she mentions that an illegal abortion should be seen as a last resort.
[[Give up on the abortion and decide to have the baby ->3.0]]
[[Continue with the abortion ->2.4.2]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/pregnant.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio "intro7" stop>>The midwife can’t perform the procedure herself, but promises if you pay her she will set it up for you.
One night she sends you to the university where her nephew is a medical student. He meets you at the bus stop.
You start to introduce yourself when the nephew interrupts you, "The less we know about each other, the better. But if you want, you can call me Rogier."
He walks you to the back of a building where a door has been propped open.
He takes out a flashlight to guide you both through the darkness to a lab that feels like a hospital room. There’s a small lamp he turns on but that’s it. Fear sets in as he asks you to undress and lay down on the metal table.
"I can’t risk taking any medicine, but drink this."
Your throat burns, your back freezes, and soon the pressure from his tools goes from unpleasant to painful. You take another long drink from the flask.
"Shit."
You look down and there’s so much blood...
[[THE END->ENDING]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/death.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio ":playing" stop>>
<<audio "intro7" time 4 play>>
<<cacheaudio "intro8" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/intro8.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "intro7" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/intro7.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "intro6" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/intro6.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "intro5" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/intro5.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "intro4" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/intro4.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "intro3" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/intro3.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "intro2" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/intro2.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "intro1" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/intro1.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "door" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/WoodenDoor.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "vomit" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/Vomit.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "phone" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/Telephone.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "shop" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/ShopDoorBell.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "ship" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/Ship2.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "party" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/Party.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "party2" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/Party2.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "dryer" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/Dryer.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "baby" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/BabyBreathing.mp3">>
<<cacheaudio "drink" "https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Audio/Champagne.mp3">>You’ve been to the station so many times that you know the routine. You’ll walk up to the desk, give your husband’s name, and they’ll tell you they have no record of him.
But this time that’s not quite how it goes. After asking for Mario the officer at the desk tells you to "Wait right there", while he goes in the back.
For a brief moment your heart lightens when you see he’s not alone. An instant later you realize it isn’t Mario that’s with him. This man … something about him scares you.
You turn to leave but another officer has stepped in front of the door. A strong hand moves your shoulder to turn you back around. Now that he’s so close you can see the scratches on the side of his neck. Marks left by you.
His hand burns your skin now. Tears are streaming down your face as he walks you to the back.
[[THE END->ENDING]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/death.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio ":playing" stop>>
<<audio "intro7" time 4 play>>
Thank you for playing our game!
This game was created during the Culture Arcade 2018 Game Jam.
Phillip Morris
Ana Barretto
Vera Grosskop
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/flower.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio ":playing" stop>>
<<audio "intro8" play>>
It was also easy for you to fall back into the routine of life with your family. For the first few days everyone was more than happy to leave you with your thoughts most for most of the day. Then one day your mom asked for help cutting onions. Then next day she ask you to prep rice and beans. The next day the soldiers came.
They started with the men. Everyone assume if you coopertated gave them the food and the hunting rifles they’d move on, but once they men had finished gathering the supplies they were shot.
The children were next.
The women were raped and then shot.
[[THE END->ENDING]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/death.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio ":playing" stop>>
<<audio "intro7" time 4 play>>
Anytime you’re not at work or home you’re at the church. Eventually you meet Carols there and you two get close. He offers to marry you so you don’t have to work so hard or be a single mother.
You say yes.
When your daughter is born you name her Inés. You watch her grow up in a land so foreign to you that it never feels like home. You never find the time to learn Dutch, but she has school and friends that help her. More than once you can tell your heavy accent and bad grammar embarrassed Inés in front of her friends.
You regret she won’t have the same connection to your culture that she does for the Dutch culture.
You throw yourself into your work, your new family, and church. This is not the life you imagined for yourself when you were with Mario, but it’s better than what was waiting for you back home.
[[THE END->ENDING]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/flower.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio "intro1" fadeout>>
<<audio "intro8" stop>>Martha suspects Jan has a thing for you. She tells you as much one evening as you brush Inés’ fine, soft, hair.
"You’ve been cleaning his house for a year. Unmarried men only have one thing in mind, eh, married men too."
Martha's comment snaps you out of your relaxing rhythm. Getting your family on the phone has gotten rare and rarer. Keeping your fingers busy with Inés’ hair normally clears your darker thoughts of what might be happening to them, but now Martha has put a new weigh on your mind. You haven’t thought about another man since Mario. Life is hectic enough with work and Inés.
[["No, we’re just friends." ->5.0]]
[["What should I do?" ->b5.0]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/brushing.png" class="image" width="100px">
As time passes, find yourself looking forward to cleaning Jan’s apartment. You always schedule his house last so you can squeeze in longer Dutch lessons when possible.
As far as you know Jan’s never gotten married, though he is handsome. Or at least you think so.
Your Dutch has gotten good enough that you’ve had long conversations with Jan in Dutch.
You learned that after college he took time off to travel and spent time in Indonesia, South Africa, Suriname, and Ghana. He works an assistant to the Amsterdam city council (gemeenteraad). It sounds like so much work it's amazing he has the time to spare for your lessons.
Today, before leaving Martha’s voice pops into your head and you’re driven to ask…
[[Waarom ben je niet getrouwd? (How come you’re not married?)->5.3]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/cleaning.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio ":playing" stop>>
<<audio "intro4" loop play>>"I… Do you really want to know?" He’s taken on a shyness you’ve never seen in him before.
"I do," you tell him placing a hand on his shoulder. "You can tell me anything."
"I…" He takes a deep breath. You thought you were just friends, but maybe Martha was right. "I can’t. I just haven’t found the right women."
That wasn’t the answer you wanted to hear. You leave before he can read the disappointment on your face.
[[You let more and more of the shifts at Jan’s place be taken by someone else. ->5.1.1]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/jan.png" class="image" width="100px">
Anytime you’re not at work or home, you’re at the church. Eventually you meet Carols there and you two get close. He offers to marry you so you don’t have to work so hard or be a single mother.
You say yes.
Inés, you watch her grow up in a land so foreign to you that it never feels like home. You never find the time to learn Dutch, but she has school and friends that help her. More than once you can tell your heavy accent and bad grammar embarrassed Inés in front of her friends.
You regret she won’t have the same connection to your culture that she does for the Dutch culture.
You throw yourself into your work, your new family, and church. This is not the life you imagined for yourself when you were with Mario, but it’s better than what was waiting for you back home.
[[THE END->ENDING]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/flower.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio "intro3" fadeout>>
<<audio "intro8" stop>>
<<audio "intro1" fadein>>You end up talking for hours, in Spanish, because he wants you to understand everything he says.
He’s never had anyone besides his lovers to talk to freely and it’s made his life as lonely as being homosexual has made it hard. He sometimes goes on dates with women for show, but he suspects the people that know him, know the truth. Past a certain age it has gotten more and more suspicious for him to be be single.
You end up sharing your own life too. He knows about the revolution in your country, but not your involvement. After recounting the night you lost Mario it’s his turn to give you a hug. Then there are the more recent concerns of life as a single mother, far from home.
"It would be so much easier if we could just marry each other."
[[Why don’t we? ->6.0]]
[[Yeah, it would. ->5.1.1]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/jan.png" class="image" width="100px">
Jan's suspicion that not being married was holding him back seems to have been true. When he introduces you as his wife at parties you can sometimes catch a brief glimpse of something flash behind the faces of his friends. It's hard to tell if it's because they know his secret or disapprove of how you met.
Either way, in time, people come to accept the two of you as a couple.
As your life with Jan grows, the life you had before fades further and further away. When you’re with him in his world you’re distinctly aware of how much you stand out. It’s not only your looks, but also your heavily accented Dutch, and Latin sense of style. When you were living with Martha and her family it felt like you were still back home.
[[You have you resign yourself to thinking of Amsterdam as home now. ->6.2]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/wine.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio "party2" play>>
Several years, and too many social occasions for you to count, and Jan is invited to run for city council. After weeks of campaigning, he wins a seat!
At the victory party, he pulls you aside.
"I know being a politician's wife, wasn't really what you signed up for. How can I thank you? You can quit your job cleaning. I'll have enough to support us."
It's been so long since you had a real choice for what you would do in life that you need a moment.
[[Stay at home with Inés. ->6.2.1]]
[[Keep working. ->6.3]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/jan.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio "drink" play>>
<<audio "party2" fadeout>>
You say yes and take up Jan on his offer to be a stay at home mom. Whenever you’re not at home or with your family somehow you find yourself putting in time at church. You meet a man named Carlos there who reminds you of Mario, but you’re happy with the life Jan is giving you despite what it lacks.
You watch Inés grow up in a land so foreign to you that it never feels like home. You regret she won’t have the same connection to your culture that she does for the Dutch culture.
Maybe someday things there will settle down and you can share with your family the things you loved about your country.
[[The End ->ENDING]]
<<audio "intro8" stop>>
<<audio "intro1" fadein>>There’s a tingle of energy running through your body as you leave the party early to get home before Inés goes to bed. It’s amazing how life seems to shape itself based on singular moments, and snap decisions.
Had you not married Jan would you have been a cleaner forever?
Had Jan not taught Dutch Inés would she be late starting school?
It doesn't matter. I’m giving Inés the best life I can.
[[Go to sleep.->7.0]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/brushing.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio ":playing" stop>>
<<audio "intro5" loop play>>Jan was true to his word and took care of all the official stuff (getting registered, securing a loan, finding a location, etc.), so you could focus getting yourself ready to be a professional stylist. He even paid for you to take cosmetology classes.
For weeks Inés was prettiest 7 years old in school.
Today, at 9am sharp, Lucia's Beauty Salon opened in De Pijp neighborhood of Amsterdam. You keep yourself busy adjusting everything ever so slightly that after a couple hours nothing could make the salon any more perfect… besides getting a customer.
A couple of Dutch women look in through the window, then carry on down the street.
[[Continue story... ->7.1]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/salon.png" class="image" width="100px">
Martha lives close enough that she stops by during her lunch break.
" Lucia, your shop is beautiful!" She gives you a big hug before you take her to the chair.
"Tidying-up is the only thing keeping me busy."
"Oh, hush. It's your first day. People will come."
Inés joins from school shortly afterward. Now that Jan’s a councilman it didn’t feel right to burden him with babysitting duty when Inés could as easily join you here. After watching you slowly work on Martha for a bit, she goes off to flip through fashion magazines. You haven’t caught up with just the two of you in so long, that time gets lost chatting.
[[continue story->7.2]]
<<audio "shop" play>>
<<timed 8s>>
<<audio "dryer" play>>
<</timed>>
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/martha.png" class="image" width="100px">
Martha gasps when you hand her the small mirror to look at her hair.
"Wow! I should’ve had you doing my hair this whole time."
She has a cleaning job she has to go get ready for but promises "I’m going to send everyone I know to you."
When she leaves it’s just you and Inés for hours. It’s also her first time seeing the shop all set. She’s curious about all the new equipment and you happy to show her how it all works.
[[Give Inés a tour ->7.3]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/martha.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio "dryer" stop>>
The tour doesn’t take that long since she’s too young to learn everything you know. You get down on your knees to look her in the eyes.
"Inés when I was a little girl and your grandpa died, the farm and everything was given to your uncle Ruan."
"Because you were little, Mommy?"
"Yes, and because I was a girl."
"Oh?"
"But when you get older, this shop and everything in it will go to you."
"Really?!" Her eyes light up for a moment then the joy fades, "What if I get a brother too?"
You almost tell her how that'll never happen, instead, you say, "If you get a brother or a sister then you can share."
[[Continue story... ->7.4]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/salon.png" class="image" width="100px">
The rest of the afternoon you flip through magazines with Inés on your lap.
...
Looking up you see a middle-aged Dutch woman enter. She has shoulder length curly blond hair that just touches the top of her navy blue, sharply tailored suit. You’ve seen a few women in suits thanks to Jan, but this woman carries herself in such a way that you couldn’t imagine her in anything else.
"Ik heb geen afspraak, maar heeft misschien tijd voor mij?" (I don’t have an appointment, but do you have time to take me now?)
[["Ja. Natuurlijk" (Yes. Of course.)->7.5]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/salon.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<timed 2.2s>>
<<audio "shop" play>>
<</timed>>
She could obviously hear your accent because she seamlessly switches languages.
"Thank you. It’s nothing complicated just a trim before I head out of town."
Leaving Inés with the magazines you get to work. This woman is even more talkative than Martha. In the first five minutes of getting started you learn that her name is Esther, her cat’s name is Roger, she’s an M&A lawyer (whatever that means), she lives around the corner and she’s currently going on a trip abroad for Shell.
"I know I talk a lot, you’ve got to stop me."
[["It’s nice getting to know my clients' lives." ->7.6]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/esther.png" class="image" width="100px">
Martha and Esther become your regular customers coming in a couple times a month.
Soon you consider Esther is just as much your friend as Martha. Esther doesn’t ask too many questions about your past, being friends focuses more on your life in Amsterdam.
Lucia's Beauty Salon sees steady growth in the number and diversity of its clientele thanks to Martha and Esther's recommendations. Before the end of the year, you have to hire your first worker.
Every day after school Inés comes to the salon. She is a very friendly girl and spends more time chatting with the women than flipping through magazines these days. You love that you can still bring her to work with you, but maybe Inés shouldn’t spend so much time here.
[[It's fine that she stays. ->8]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/customers.png" class="image" width="100px">
Your dedication to the salon ensures that it flourishes. You don’t have to worry about having something to leave for Inés when she’s older.
The political situation in your home country has stabilized to the point where political prisoners are beginning to be released.
One day, Martha rushes into the Salon and tells you Ruan called her brother’s house looking for you. You quickly finish her hair then go to the back office to call Ruan.
Your call wakes him but he doesn’t mind. You talk for hours. About how he was arrested for being the de facto leader of the village. About how the rest of your family fled. About how you both missed your mother’s funeral. Finally, you ask about Mario.
He’s always been on your mind, but you had to work up the courage to ask. If he was alive Mario would’ve found a way to contact you by now, just like Ruan did.
Ruan hasn’t heard anything about Mario, which as good as confirms your fears.
You’ve now lived more years with Jan than you did with Mario, and Jan is the only father Inés has ever known. That doesn't stop you from crying hopelessly once you’re off the phone with Ruan.
You cry for the finality of losing Mario and your mother, but you realize you’re also crying because the this is the end of that chapter of your life.
[[ Finish ->ENDING]]
<img src="https://twinelinking.yolasite.com/resources/Generation_Images/phone.png" class="image" width="100px">
<<audio "intro5" fadeout>>
<<audio "intro6" play>>
<<audio "intro8" stop>>