"MICHAEL! Can I get m-m-mint chocolate ch-chip!?" Rabbit trotted along happily leading The Spine, Hatchworth, Mr. Reed, Matt, and Steve in a cheery parade down the sidewalk to a charming little ice cream shop on the corner next to their parked tour bus. "Ha! It's an i-ice cream parade!" Rabbit did an extravagant spin.
"Of course you can Rabbit!" said Michael Reed who internally cringed at the idea of having to clean out the congealed and sticky substance that would inevitably be clinging to their internal mechanisms. Oh well, they had earned it.
Mr. Reed suggested that they all go get ice cream due to their most recent successful show that had just taken place in the cities conference center a short while ago. Rabbit beamed at the idea and had skipped out the door without so much as a glace behind to his fellow band members.
When Rabbit had reached the door of the little parlor, he opened it and with a grandiose wave, directed the party inside.
He was just about to follow his band mates, when is auditory receptors picked up a strange and erratic hubbub that was coming from across the street. There were many people all crowded around the entrance of a court house holding up various signs and rainbow colored banners. Rabbit, being a serious fanatic of all things colorful and shiny, was immediately excited and drawn to the crowd. He had just about made it to the sidewalk curb when he was stopped short by something he saw on the other side of the street.
Looking directly at him was a young woman dressed in, what Rabbit thought, was a VERY pretty blue and white polka dot dress. She was in sea foam green heels and had a pretty blonde bob haircut. She smiled and waved. Rabbit smiled and waved back.
Rabbit had often admired the elaborate outfits the Walter girls got to wear all of the time and had once or twice thought about going through their closets to gawk at the variations of frill and lace. This dress was no exception to his ogling.
Just as the copper automation was about to step down from the curb to personally compliment the women, she was advanced upon by a group of angry looking people. Rabbit froze.
Without hesitation, the group descended on the woman and immediately began pelting her with harsh comments ranging from "Fag!" to "Abomination!" She stood perfectly still and stared at the ground.
Rabbit was so confused and beginning to get very, VERY angry. Why were they saying such awful words to such a pretty innocent girl? She had been doing absolutely nothing! At that moment, as if to answer all of Rabbit's questions, one of them violently tore at the women's hair. To Rabbit's shock, it was ripped off in one piece and was thrown to the ground in a toss of rage.
The copper bot couldn't move. Rabbit was frozen in place as he saw this horror take place in front of him. This wasn't a women…this was a man.
But…why should that have made a difference!? Nobody deserved to be verbally attacked for wearing a pretty dress. Rabbit was becoming enraged.
"H-H-heEeEEEY! TAKE YOUR HANDS OFF H-HIM!" shouted Rabbit from across the street. The assailants spun around and stared at the source of the abnormally loud voice. T he man in the pretty blue dress gave Rabbit a look of thanks and dashed away the second he got the chance.
Before the angry group could say or do anything in response to Rabbit's demand, they were confronted by two officers and lead away from the group of protestors.
And just like that, it was over.
Rabbit stood at the curb trembling, with streaks of oil running down his oxidized face which was contorted in a pained scowl. He was on the verge of a complete breakdown on the side of the street.
"Rabbit?" The voice was Steve's. Rabbit flung himself around in surprise.
Steve Negrete was holding two ice cream cones, one vanilla and one mint chocolate chip. A look of terrible concern swept across his face the second he was greeted with Rabbit's.
"Oh man buddy, what the heck happened?!"
Rabbit didn't respond. Instead, he ran to the tour bus, unlocked it, and scrambled inside leaving a very perplexed Steve on the side of the street.
Rabbit didn't say a thing to anyone the whole way home. The Spine was especially worried, as his big brother NEVER acted like this. Hatchworth was equally concerned and sat slightly closer to Rabbit, occasionally glancing over at his unchanging face. Rabbit was stuck in a dead-pan expression.
The silence on the ride home was unnatural and heavy.
The second that they stopped in front of Walter Manor, Rabbit sprang up and rushed out of the bus. He didn't even give the rest of the band so much as glace as he disappeared inside.
As Rabbit rushed through the winding hallways of his home, the oily tears began to fall again. When he reached his room, he slammed his door shut. He spun around and slumped to the floor in a pathetic, metallic heap. With a giant heave, Rabbit sobbed into his hands.
Why, oh why did those people have to be so cruel?! Why does our world have to be so cruel! Rabbit trembled with sorrow. All that nice man wanted to do was wear a pretty dress for once! Boy clothes aren't as fun to wear anyway! Why would people be so mean to him if he just wanted to dress up in something more fun!
…like me.
Rabbit's glitches worsened as his sobs increased in volume. He was having a hard time catching his breath. His chest hurt, and he knew that his hitching was hindering the proper function of his bellows. With a calm and carefully practiced breath, Rabbit eased himself against the door frame, coming into a sitting position.
He knew that he needed to calm down, as he took in a slightly hitched breath. Grasping his sides, he eased himself back to normal functioning. Looking down he noticed the large splotchy oil stains on his shirt. Rabbit slowly got up and massaged his aching joints as he walked to his closet. Stripping himself of his shirt and multiple belts, he tossed them aside and creaked open the sliding metal door. The closet contained similar variations of Rabbit's band outfits. Sliding them all aside, Rabbit revealed a beautiful black and white striped dress.
"Oh Rabbit! They're lovely!" said Walter Girl Paige as she looked over Rabbit's shoulder at a catalog he was gazing at. Rabbit jumped slightly at hearing her voice break through the silence.
"Oh, Paige! H-h-h-h-hey there! W-w-hat are you D-d-d-d-d-d-d-d-d?!" Rabbit scrambled to hide the vintage dress catalog while trying to get a grasp on his words at the same time. He wasn't having much luck.
Paige giggled and sat daintily on the arm of the large chair. Rabbit shyly glanced at her after masterfully burying the catalog in his lap. If a robot could blush, he would have been a vibrant shade of crimson.
"What on earth are you so jumpy about? I was enjoying looking at those just as much as you were!" Paige planted a quick kiss on Rabbit's bandana covered head and hurriedly skipped away without another word. Just before closing the door to the study, she gave Rabbit a little wink. The speechless automaton's insides did a little flip-flop…and then she was gone.
Rabbit picked up the catalog once more and looked at it silently. With another short glace at the door…he smiled.
With zero hesitation, Rabbit grabbed the lacy striped dress and hugged it to his chest. Nobody in the house had any idea that he even had it, let alone contemplated wearing it. The day the Paige had caught him browsing his favorite catalog he had gained a sudden burst of confidence and ordered the prettiest dress in the book. It was a beautiful 50s style cocktail dress with lovely black and red overcoat. He had also purchased matching shoes and a long, shiny black wig.
"Might as well complete the look," he thought.
Reaching up to the tallest shelf in his closet, Rabbit retrieved the large box that contained the finishing accessories.
With a deft sweep, Rabbit removed his be-goggled hat and placed it on the table beside him.
After removing his pants, he eased the dress over his head and onto his slender frame. He opened the box and took out the black wig and shoes.
When Rabbit was finally dressed, he retrieved his hat and placed his on his head which was now covered with luscious black locks.
Silently…almost reverently, Rabbit gazed at his reflection in the twisted bedroom mirror. "I'm beautiful…" he thought. He stared for about 5 minutes straight.
Then, slowly, he sank to the floor once again. The thoughts of earlier that day were overcoming him.
"Why can't they just let us be beautiful…" Rabbit began to cry softly in the silence.
"You're beautiful."
Rabbit scrambled up and flung himself around to find Walter Girl Paige gazing at him in the doorway.
Immediately, he was stricken with embarrassment and tore off his hat. Before he could remove his wig, Paige rushed forward and took him into a warm, comforting embrace. Shocked, Rabbit stood rigged for a moment and then relaxed into Paige's accepting arms. Melting into her embrace, Rabbit shook softly until his sobs subsided. "Y-you don't thi-i-ink I'm an…abomination?" He took a step back from Paige and protectively wrung his hands in front of her.
Paige simply smiled. "Never Rabbit…Besides, dresses are more fun to wear anyway!" Rabbit was dumbfounded and elated all at the same time.
And with that, Paige took him in her arms once more and gave him a soft kiss.
I love you, my beautiful Bunny Rabbit.