Something was off today, in Dillydale.
Mr Grumpy flicked over a page of this newspaper, but despite the article he was reading being somewhat of vague interest, he couldn't help his eyes wandering over to the clock on his wall as the hands ticked by. It was around half past three, and the reason this focused his attention was because it was usually around now that Mr Tickle would make his daily visits, offering a tickle to help "brighten" Mr Grumpy's day.
However, as time passed, and the Mr Man didn't make his appearance, Mr Grumpy felt maybe he would be lucky today; Mr Tickle was usually very punctual when it came to tickling, and since he hadn't turned up at three-thirty on the dot, Mr Grumpy had reason to suspect that he wouldn't be turning up at all… He allowed himself to lean back in his seat, and relax, relieved that perhaps today was a lucky day, and that little pest wouldn't be coming 'round to bother him.
A deep frown formed on his face as a knock came at his door a few moments later.
"Spoke too soon…" He muttered, getting to his feet and marching over to his door, with all the intent of demanding he be left alone. (It was best not to open the door to that man, and pretending to not be home didn't work either- Mr Grumpy had been unfortunate enough to learn that lesson from one too many inccidents).
However, from staring through the peephole, Mr Grumpy was surprised to see that it wasn't Mr Tickle who stood at his doorstep. Deeming it safe, Mr Grumpy opened the door and folded his arms as he addressed the Little Miss in front of him.
"Hello, Miss Helpful." He said, voice flat and monotone.
"Hiya, Mr Grumpy!" She replied, in her usual cheerful manner. Although normally he hated company, Mr Grumpy had to admit out of everyone in this town, he supposed Miss Helpful was more bearable than some other citizens in Dillydale. "Sorry to bother ya, but I was wonderin' if you'd seen Mr Tickle at all today?"
Mr Grumpy raised his eyebrow. Huh, guess he wasn't the only one curious to the guy's whereabouts. "No, I haven't seen him. He usually comes over and bugs me at this time of day, but he didn't stop by... thankfully."
Her smile didn't falter, but the Mr Man noticed that a flicker of concern was present in Miss Helpful's eyes. "Oh… so you haven't seen him all? See, reason I'm lookin' for him is that he and I were supposed to go to a club activity together, but he never showed!"
"Well, why are you askin' ME where he's gone? Why don't you go to his house and ask? Or call him?"
"That's the thing!" She glanced over in the general direction of Mr Tickle's home, which wasn't situated too far from Mr Grumpy's own. "I did both'a those things, but he wouldn't answer his door, or his phone… nobody's seem him all day… it's like he's vanished…!"
Mr Grumpy had to admit, that was… very odd. Normally Mr Tickle would be seen running all over the place, causing mischief and wreaking havoc, all to get to the other Mr Men and Little Misses and offer them a big tickle whether they wanted it or not. So, the fact he hadn't been seen at all, had missed a social gathering where a number of potential tickle victims could be met with and hadn't even visited Mr Grumpy was… worrying.
Not that he was worried, or anything. Trying to make the best out of the situation he'd been handed, Mr Grumpy shrugged. "Y'know what he's like- probably followed a squirrel into the woods to tickle it and got lost or something. I'm sure he's perfectly fine."
Miss Helpful couldn't help but give a small chuckle. "Yeah, yer probably right! I guess I'm just worryin' a lil' too much. But, I'd reckon I'd ask around, just in case? You'll call me up if you see him, right?"
"What am I, his keeper?" At her concerned frown, the blue mister man sighed and made a shooing motion with a hand, nodding. "Yes, yes, I'll do just that, if it'll give you peace of mind. Now, if you'll excuse me, days like this don't come often. I wanna make the most of it."
So, with that, the Little Miss went on her way, thanking him, waving him off, and left Mr Grumpy to sit in his chair and gather his thoughts about the whole thing.
"A tickle free day, huh?" He pondered aloud, picking up the tv remote and switching it to his favourite station. The grumpy Mr Man allowed a small smile as Mr Lazy's familiar tired sounding voice talked over clips of trout being reeled in from the still waters of Dillydale's most popular fishing hole. This was the ideal afternoon- peace, quiet, and no irritating gleeful giggling as those larger than life arms tried to make grabs for him.
Huh… those arms were pretty long, weren't they? Heck, it wasn't as though if Mr Tickle was home, he couldn't answer the door or his phone by reaching over from anywhere in the house…
Mr Grumpy blinked. No, he wouldn't allow his thoughts to drift anywhere close to that little nuisance. He turned up the volume on his show, letting interesting discussion of the most favourable bait of the common trout drown out any ridiculous thoughts.
So if that was the case, was he NOT home? Or was he actually home but in a state where he was unable to move? Or unable to hear the doorbell or phone ringing…?
Alright, maybe he wasn't watching the right show. This was far too peaceful- it'd allow his thoughts to wander. Mr Grumpy flicked over to what looked like one of Miss Scary's horror specials, deciding that would serve as a good distraction… hm, he wondered if he had any popcorn in his kitchen…
What if he was in a coma? Or maybe he wasn't home at all and he really WAS lost in the woods? Weren't there bears in the woods? That little idiot WOULD make the mistake of offering a hungry, ferocious bear a tickle wouldn't he-?!
"Oh, CROOKED cucumbers!" Mr Grumpy yelled, throwing the remote across the room in his frustration at his constant catastrophizing. Who was he, Mr Nervous? No, this wouldn't do. This wouldn't do at all.
"Mr Tickle! Mr TICKLE!"
Alright, so going off for a walk to clear his head hadn't been an idea that had worked. Instead, his feet had led him all the way to Mr Tickle's house without thinking about it. His frustration at his completely irrational emotions was mostly the reason for why he was so angrily hammering on the Mr Man's door. "Mr Tickle, are you in there, or not?! Answer the door!"
Allowing his hand a break from the knocking, he listened, and was sure he heard slow padding footsteps making their way over. There was a click as the door was unlocked, and it slowly swung open, revealing…
"H-hello Mr Grumpy…" Yep, that was Mr Tickle, alright. But he certainly didn't look or sound well. For one thing, he was wrapped up in a thick blanket that looked like the covers to his bed, as if he'd stumbled out and refused to unwrap himself from them. For another, his voice was hoarse, as though he had a sore throat, and he was lacking the usual enthusiasm in his tone.
Looked like a case of the flu, alright.
"Woah…" The other said, blinking once or twice. "You look terrible."
Mr Tickle chuckled, but it turned into a coughing fit, which made Mr Grumpy flinch. "Yeah, I probably do… S-sorry for…not coming over today…"
"Hmph. It was a relief, really! A day without a tickle, just what I've always wanted…" His arms knitted together, and he paused for a moment or two, hesitating, waiting, as if expecting Mr Tickle to jump at the chance given to him now that he was face to face with Mr Grumpy.
He didn't. Mr Tickle simply stood, wrapped up in his covers. "Eheh… yeah, to be honest… this might sound weird, but…" He gave a sniffle. "I don't feel much like tickling today… or doing anything..."
Mr Grumpy's eyes widened. He didn't feel like tickling?! What kind of sickness was this?! …Not that he was worried! "You had a club activity today, according to Miss Helpful. She came 'round asking for you after you didn't pick up the phone or answer the door…"
Mr Tickle gasped. "O-oh no, I forgot all about it… I just couldn't get up this morning…" He sunk into the quilt covering him, hiding his face somewhat, brows furrowed. "I've been sleeping all day, pretty much… you're the only thing that got me to wake up, Mr Grumpy!"
"Sleeping all day?" Mr Grumpy frowned. "Sure, you might feel like doing that when you're sick, Mr Tickle, but it's no good skipping out on meals when you have the flu. Also, don't wrap yourself up too much! If you have a fever you're gonna steam up like a boiled cabbage." Despite his stern tone, the Mr Man in the doorway was, for some reason, smiling, which made Mr Grumpy stop in his tracks and stare at him oddly. "What's with that look?"
"Aw, it's just… I can't help but feel kinda flattered you're all worried for me, Mr Grumpy…!" Mr Tickle gave a soft giggle, still looking pleased despite feeling run down.
The Mr Man felt his cheeks burn- he couldn't allow Mr Tickle to think he was going soft. "I-I'm not worried! I just… I'm just telling you common knowledge, you dodo bird! It's not like you can think for yourself on MOST days, let alone when you're sick…!"
"Mhmm… I'll keep that in mind, okay?" Mr Tickle grinned for a moment, but it was interrupted by a small sneeze. "Ahh-choo!"
The rectangular Mr Man groaned. "Get some tissues for that, please… Now, I think I'm gonna make my way back home- I don't wanna catch whatever it is you have."
"Oh, okay…" Mr Tickle sounded slightly disappointed, but waved him off in higher spirits than earlier. "Well, thanks for stopping by…"
"Goodbye." The door started to slowly close, and Mr Grumpy turned back, and said softly. "And…get well soon, Mr Tickle…"
Despite making the attempt to keep that last sentence quiet, it didn't escape his ears- Mr Tickle shut the door, knowing that those words would ring true with the knowledge that Mr Grumpy was secretly looking out for him, whether he wanted to admit it or not.
"Huh, I really don't see why he gets all excited about..." Mr Tickle muttered to himself, watching the last few minutes of an episode of Trout Tuesday and being unable to see the appeal in the show Mr Grumpy spoke of so highly. "Why don't they tickle the fish when they catch them?"
However, the doorbell gave a chime, bringing Mr Tickle's attention away from the tv- his tummy did an almost hopeful flip, expecting Mr Grumpy to be outside when he opened the door.
However, it wasn't- trying not to feel disappointed, the Mr Man smiled at the red haired Little Miss who had come to visit. "Hi, Miss Helpful…!"
"Hello Mr Tickle!" She said, smiling. "Feelin' any better?"
"How did you know I was sick?"
"Well, I got a call from Mr Grumpy! I was askin' for ya, and he said he'd call if he knew where you were!" Miss Helpful walked on in when Mr Tickle stepped aside, holding a bag in her hands. She set it on a side table, and got out a few things- a couple boxes of tissues, what looked like a thermos, a hot water bottle, and electric thermometer. "He told me you were sick, and said I should bring you over some soup since y'hadn't eaten all day!"
"HE said that…?" Mr Tickle laced his fingers together, a sweet smile on his face.
"Mhmm! Hope you like chicken noodle. He insisted on it." She gave a sly sort of smile and leant closer to him. "Between you and me, I think he was worried 'boutcha. But I don't think he'd admit to it for one second."
"Heh… I think you're right there." Mr Tickle cast his eyes out of the window in the direction of the other's house, thinking to himself that once he was well again, he'd head on over and personally give Mr Grumpy the biggest thank you tickle he could muster up.