Hey there, hi there, ho there! You're as welcome as can be. To read yet another new oneshot of Fat Albert. This is is based entirely on the 2004 movie. And it'll focus on Rudy coming out of the TV again, in order to see Doris. But, it's been many years since the gang met her and Lauri, so Rudy has no idea what to expect, or what Doris is even up to. Let's just say he gets some surprises. I hope you enjoy.
Includes cute moments and such.
Disclaimer: I do not own Fat Albert (2004). They belong to 20th Century Fox.
Second Chance
Rudy just sat on a mattress, softly strumming his guitar, bored out of his mind.
The boys had just finished another rerun of their show, and they were waiting until the next day to start another. It would be the episode, 'Readin', Writin', and Rudy' where they get a new teacher... but Rudy doesn't like her.
And honestly, he didn't feel like reacting that episode yet again. It had already been on the air at least three times this month.
He would rather much have a break... he wished he didn't have to do an episode... just one... if it meant seeing the one person he had come to truly appreciate and fall in love with.
Doris Robertson.
The only problem. Doris was a girl in the real world, whom he met when Fat Albert and the rest of the gang (except for Russell) traveled from their cartoon home to real life to help Doris with her problems. During their time there, Rudy felt a connection with her, and eventually fell in love. However, he knew they couldn't be together.
And people say, long distance relationships never work.
But... it had been years since he last saw Doris. It had to be at least ten or fifteen or longer. Surely, she was an adult by now, while he and the others remained young and still showing kids a thing or two.
Still, he would give anything, just anything, just to see her again. Just to talk to her again... just to kiss her again.
The teen started to think. Perhaps he could do it tomorrow, find a portal, jump through it, and see Doris again. But how was he going to get out of the episode, the one where he had major focus...?
Well, they would just have to manage...
The next day.
"Hey, hey, hey. It's about that time again..." Albert declared. It was 2:25 PM, almost show time.
The boys were getting ready to prepare for that rerun, going over scripts, certain scenes, and other stuff. All... but Rudy, as he was just staring off into the distance, which Albert soon noticed.
"Rudy... are you ready? This is your episode..." He asked.
"Um... yeah... ready..." The rich boy replied, somewhat distracted.
"What's on your mind? You seem concerned..."
Rudy looked at his large friend, unsure if he should tell him about what he was thinking of doing. But he knew that nobody could get anything pass Fat Albert, so with a sigh, he spoke, "Albert... do you... miss Doris and Lauri...? Like, at all?"
Albert smiled softly, "I do... I think about them everyday. I always wonder what they're up to... Lauri especially..."
He noticed Rudy's expression, and put a hand on his shoulder, "You miss Doris... don't you...?"
"Yeah... I do... and... I want to see her again." Rudy admitted, "And I was thinking of doing it today..."
By now, the others were listening to the conversation, and came over, "Um, how can you see her?" Harold asked, "There's no more portal."
"I don't care. I'm gonna find a portal, and see her again! I have to see her!" Rudy frowned, "Don't you guys miss her too?"
"We do..." Bill answered, "But you forget that we don't belong in the real world. If you go back there, you might risk fading away again."
"Not to mention, we got a show to do in three more minutes..." Russell reminded, "And you're the main focus. Can't have 'Readin', Writin', and Rudy' without Rudy..."
Rudy glared at them all, "Well, you're just gonna have to do it without me! I'm going to see Doris, and you can't stop me!"
With that, he ran off to another section of the junkyard, ignoring the calls of the others to come back. Albert watched him go, with some admiration at his friend's strong will. He then looked at his watch, and saw that it was 2:30.
"Hey, hey, hey. It's showtime..."
"But what about Rudy?" Donald asked.
"I guess we'll just have to manage without him.."
As for Rudy himself, he ran throughout the junkyard, looking for any sign of a portal, something to pass through to the real world. He just needed one more chance... a second chance to see her again.
Finally, he made it to the old car... the last place the portal was scene. Climbing on top of the car, he began to feel for something... anything... that would indicate a portal. After a few seconds, he was starting to lose hope... until he felt a ripple.
Rudy smiled... he found it.
He backed up, and saw the portal swirl... and saw... a young girl watching him... she looked confused. Rudy wondered if that was Doris. She seemed rather young... younger than how old Doris was when they met. And besides, Doris had to be older by now. Well, maybe the girl knew her...
Backing up a little more, Rudy ran towards the portal, and jumped through it. Much like before, he landed on the floor of the living room, and as he got up, he heard the little girl screaming. Her curious look turned into one of terror, as Rudy tried to shush her.
"It's okay. It's okay. I'm not gonna hurt you..."
"Penny? What's wrong, baby?"
That's when a woman came in from the kitchen, as as soon as she saw Rudy, she stopped in her tracks. Penny jumped up and to her mother's side, "Momma! That boy just came out of the TV!"
Rudy looked at the woman, "I'm so sorry, M'am. I didn't mean to scare your daughter. You see, I was looking for Doris. Doris Robertson... do you know her...?"
But the woman just walked towards him slowly, "Rudy... you're back... you really came back... but how...?"
"Well, I found a ripple, and jumped through, and-"
At first, the rich boy was confused to how this woman knew his name, until he looked more closely at the woman, and gasped, "D-Doris...?"
"Yeah... it's me..." She chuckled with a smile, "It's been a while. I've grown up..."
She wasn't wrong. She looked more beautiful than ever to Rudy, and he couldn't be more happy to see her. Doris then gestured to the little girl, "This is Penny... my daughter." Rudy looked down at the young child, as he bent down to her level to shake her hand, "Nice to meet you, Penny... you look just like your mother, you know that?"
Penny giggled, "Thank you..."
"Shouldn't you be in the TV...?" Doris asked, "I mean, the show is on. And I think it's an episode starring you..."
"I know, but... all these years... I missed you..." Rudy admitted, as Doris hugged him, "I really missed you... a lot... I think about you a lot... and I wanted to see you again... I had to see you one more time..."
"Oh..."
Doris, to be perfectly honest, missed him too. She always wondered if he would come back. She remembered when the boys had to go back, Rudy said he would give her a call if he ever came out of the TV... and now he was back.
"Would you like something to eat? Or a drink or...?" She asked.
Rudy smiled, "Sure. I'm not relying on the writers to determine whether or not I'm hungry, so I can eat."
With that, the woman and teen walked into the kitchen, while Penny continued to watch the show... or rather, what the show was trying to be like without Rudy.
In the kitchen, Doris pulled out a plate of cookies and a soda can, before sitting down at the table with Rudy, "So... how is the rest of the gang?" She asked.
"We're still learning from each other, while we do our thing..." Rudy explained, shoving a cookie in his mouth, "Fat Albert's still fat, Dumb Donald's still dumb, Weird Harold's still weird, Mushmouth is still... Mushmouth. Bill's still Bill, Bucky's still Bucky, and Russell's still an annoying little shrimp."
Doris chuckled, "That's good. I've been doing well myself... somewhat. I inherited this house, and my parents moved down the street. Lauri moved out of town, and she's actually getting married next month."
"Cool. Maybe the rest of the gang and I can come to the wedding. And not fade away."
"Maybe... and I hope Albert won't be too upset."
"Hey, he'll understand. And I know he still loves Lauri..."
Rudy took a sip from the can, before looking back at Doris, "I wanna know what you've been up to... what's going on in your life?"
Doris' smile began a little sad, "Well... things haven't been so great lately. My husband, Jonathan, passed away not too long ago in an accident, so it's just been me, Penny, and little Rudolph."
"Rudolph?"
As if on cue, a babies cry was heard. Doris stood up, "Be right back..." With that, she left the kitchen for a moment. A few minutes later, she came down, holding a tiny baby boy.
"This is Rudolph... he was born five weeks ago... after Jonathan died..." She introduced her son to Rudy.
"He's adorable..." The rich boy said, looking at the newborn.
"I named him after you... and his middle name is Albert... after my grandfather..." Doris explained, sitting back down, cradling her little one, "You wanna hold him, Rudy?"
Rudy looked a bit concerned. He never really held a baby before, not even on the show onscreen. Doris noticed his hesistance and smiled, "It'll be okay. I'll show you what to do."
With that, she placed Rudolph in the teen's arms, and showed him how to hold him gently, and support his head and neck. Rudy looked down at the newborn, and smiled, "Hi, Rudolph..." He greeted, "I'm Rudy. We have the same name. Isn't that cool?"
Rudolph let out a soft coo, as he gazed curiously at Rudy. Doris smiled, "I think he likes you..."
"I think so too..." The teen replied, allowing the baby to grasp his finger with his tiny hand, "And... I'm sorry you lost your husband... I can't imagine that kind of pain..."
Doris sighed, "Yeah. The sad thing is, our relationship had really been rocky. We fought so much, we both wondered if we truly loved each other... and... I only wish we could have worked things out..." She looked down at Rudolph and sniffed slightly, "And... he never got a chance to meet his son..."
Rudy, while still holding Rudolph, moved closer and hold his friend's shoulder, "Hey... it's okay. Everything will be alright... you've got your parents, Lauri, Penny, Rudolph... and me... we're all here for you..."
"Thanks, Rudy... that means a lot..." The woman hugged him again, while trying not to squish her son, "But you know you can't stay here... the show will be ending soon, and you don't wanna wait until tomorrow to go back, do you...?"
"No. I'd rather not fade away..." Rudy chuckled.
After giving the baby back to Doris, he then walked back into the living room, to find Penny laughing at the screen, "This episode is so funny!" She giggled, "They're trying to figure out what to do without you!"
She pointed to the screen, which showed the rest of the boys at school, seemingly trying to do a scene that involves Rudy... but it just ended up being funny, even with some of the guys trying to pretend to be Rudy.
"Well, I told them to manage..." Rudy shrugged.
Doris walked into the living room, "Rudy...? Before you go.."
The rich boy turned to his friend, as she walked up to him to give him a kiss on the cheek, "Thanks for coming to see me..." She whispered, "It really really means a lot to me... I love you..."
Rudy blushed deeply, "You're very welcome, Doris... I love you too..." He then stroked Rudolph's short curly hair, "I'll see you around, Rudy Jr."
"What about me?" Penny asked, "Will you come back to see me too?"
"Of course, Penny..." Rudy bent down to her level again, "And while I'm gone... you help take care of your mom and brother. Can you do that?"
"Yeah!" The child beamed, giving the teenager a hug, "I love you, Rudy!"
Rudy couldn't blush anymore then he did, but he returned the hug, "I... love you too, Penny. I'll see you everyday at 2:30... and if you're lucky, maybe I can bring you to the junkyard to meet my friends one day... that is, if it's okay with your Mom."
Penny gasped in excitement as she turned to her mother, "Can I, Momma? Can I go with Rudy into the cartoon world?"
Doris wasn't sure that was such a good idea. After the boys almost faded away from being outside the TV so long, what would happen to her daughter inside the TV too long? But, not to dash her daughter's hopes, she said this, "Well... maybe for a day. Perhaps on the weekends when she doesn't have school. And as long as she comes back before the show starts. We don't want her to be part of an episode and other people get confused..."
"Yay!" Penny cheered.
"And as long as you promise to look out for her, Rudy..."
Rudy put a hand to his heart, "Cross my heart, Doris. I'll take care of her... well, I better get back before the gang lose their minds without good 'ol Rudy..."
With that, Rudy stood in front of the TV, and with a large jump, he glided through the screen, and back into the cartoon world, where his friends started to ask him where he was, and tell him how hard it was to try and do an episode about him without him. But he just sat them down to explain what Doris was up to...
All while Doris, Penny, and Rudolph watched from the cough with smiles...
THE END
Awww! Wasn't that cute? Rudy gets to see Doris again, and finds out that she's a widow with two kids. Penny, her five year old daughter (named after the main protagonist of The Proud Family, where Kyla Pratt, who played Doris in the Fat Albert movie, voiced her), and Rudolph, her little son (named of course, after Rudy himself, along with Albert as a middle name). And Rudy even promises Penny a chance to hang out in the cartoon world sometime. Let's hope she doesn't fade away after staying there too long.Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this little oneshot. And keep on the lookout for more in the future, and more multichapter stories. I'll see you guys later. And as always, don't forget to review, please. Thank you.