A yellow hand rested itself upon the oak wood table, and had its nails painted purple by another friendly yellow hand.
After her nails had dried, SpongeBetty Penelope Isabella White pulled her brand new green notebook out of the closet, and grabbed a marker. She wrote "I (heart) EMO kids". SpongeBetty then shoved the spiral-bound notebook into her backpack, jumped on her bike, and took off.
The feisty young sponge rode through the coral forests and shells, to a lonely bench by the pier of Bikini Bottom. SpongeBetty (called Isabel for short) was a young woman of fifteen with bright blue eyes and dark auburn hair that shined flawlessly in the underwater sun.
As Isabel dished the notebook back out of her bag, three children ran in circles around her. Two boys, one little girl. One of the boys came up to her and smiled; a few teeth missing. Isabel waved lightly and smiled at him. The little boy then ran away to join his friends in their innocent game of tag.
Isabel flipped through the pages of her notebook until she found a vacant space. She clicked her pen and began to write.
"Dear Diary, how is your day going? Mine's all right. I can't wait for school to open up again, it seems like it's been forever. Sounds funny coming from me, doesn't it? Well, I'm not the same person that I was. I still can't believe that that ten-year old drama started with one doorbell ring…"
10 YEARS EARLIER…
Sandy's tree-dome sat alone is the serene ocean, seeming undisturbed, until the world's favorite sponge leapt gaily through the air.
"Woooooooooooooooooo Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!" SpongeBob cried. "I've got the SPAM Sandy!"
SpongeBob ran up to Sandy, sneakers squeaking on the floor. Sandy stood at her stove waiting. SpongeBob got onto one knee in front of her, holding the can of the fattening meat above his head.
"The SPAM awaits your slicing my fair lady." Said SpongeBob. Sandy laughed while taking the can. Patrick then skipped merrily into the kitchen.
"Sandy! Can I have some SPAM now?" he asked anxiously.
"Well, Patrick, I have to fry it first," informed Sandy.
"Oh, then can I put a slice in the crotch of my pants for warmth?"
SpongeBob and Sandy stared at him. Patrick just smiled back like he hadn't said anything wrong. Then, the doorbell rang.
"Oh, someone's at the door." Said Sandy. She started towards the door, SpongeBob and Patrick following like two inquisitive puppies. Sandy pressed the button next to her door, allowing her to speak through the speakers.
"Hello?" Sandy's voice echoed outside.
"Hello?" answered another squirrel from outside. SpongeBob ran to the side of the tree-dome to get a good look at the visitor. He was a very handsome mammal for sure, SpongeBob observed. He had soft brown eyes with a serious, angular face; like that of an actor. He also had soft blonde/brown hair. He seemed totally harmless… on the outside.
"Could you please tell me who you are?" asked Sandy.
"Hi, my name is Earl Torrence, and I'm scientist from Texas." Said the pleasing-to-the-eye squirrel. SpongeBob ran back to the door to hear the conversation. "I'm looking for some help with my latest experiment. Your employers recommended that I seek your assistance."
"Well, I'm sorry Mr. Torrence, but I'm awful busy." Sandy replied. "Maybe you could come back later."
While Sandy talked, a baby scallop floated to the ground by Earl's foot. Earl looked upon it like it was the scum of the Earth. He swiftly stepped on it, crushing the poor scallop into unforgiving sand.
"Well, I'm kind of crunched on time, if you could just have me a minute that would be great." Said Earl.
Sandy hesitated, but finally agreed, "Okay, but you have to make you're presentation fast, I'm having dinner with my friends."
"Don't worry, you won't regret any time spent with me." Said Earl, reassuringly…
………………………………………………………..
A few miles over, a hoodless boat wheeled at a fast pace on the road and around Sandy's tree-dome. A man named Jason White drove with his 4-year old daughter, SpongeBetty. The radio blasted "Highway to Hell". Isabel bobbed her head and sang along with her father. They continued driving down the road. Then out of the pink coral bushes, a seahorse leaped out onto the road. Jason swerved, Isabel screamed. Jason then crashed into a nearby outhouse, knocking them both unconscious.
Isabel woke up about fifteen minutes later with blistering headache. It felt like a piece of metal being shaken, making that horrible wobbling sound in her ears. She looked to her left, at her father, who was slumped over the car door.
Isabel patted his back. "Get up daddy, we're okay."
Jason didn't respond.
"Dad! Wake up!" Isabel shouted. "Daddy!"
Isabel climbed out of the car and went around to the driver's side of the vehicle.
"Dad, quit messin' with me and get up!" Isabel shouted again.
Isabel slowly lifted her father's shoulders, being careful that she didn't hurt him. But she immediately dropped him when she saw his face.
Jason's entire face was gone. All that was left was a bloody mass. A bloody mass that would be engraved into Isabel's memory for the rest of her life…
…………………………………………………………………
Sandy, Earl, SpongeBob, and Patrick sat at Sandy's kitchen table. SpongeBob and Patrick with steaming plates of SPAM in front of them. They dug in like pigs. Earl flinched when drops of grease flew into his young face. Then his attention turned to Sandy when she spoke.
"So, what was it called again?" asked Sandy.
"Oh, the crime gas" said Earl.
"Yes, what is it? How does it work?" asked Sandy.
"Well, Ms. Cheeks, as you know, crime rates have been at a mind-blowing high."
Sandy nodded, remembering the last time someone spray-painted art on her tree-dome.
"Well, the Crime Gas, or CG for short," Earl continued, "Is added to oxygen processors, or for down here we add it to the water filter. It's to help tone people's behaviors, to make people better."
"Well it sounds interesting," said Sandy, "But how come you couldn't put that out a long time ago?"
Earl at first said nothing, just looked at Sandy uncomfortably. Sandy eyed him, SpongeBob and Patrick stopped chewing to listen. Finally Earl spoke in a low tone.
"P-People died, Ms. Cheeks. That's what I regret to tell you."
"What happened?" SpongeBob inquired.
"Accidents. During testing. My group and I went to a city that was infested with crime. We installed the CG and left for a few months. A few of my co-workers stayed behind to, you know, take notes. When I came back, the whole population was dead."
Earl looked on, not wanting to look at the faces of the others.
"They just became too calm, and they let themselves die. I lost some of my best friends."
Sandy took Earl's hand in her own.
"Don't worry, I'll help you fix this. You can make it right again."
"Thank you Sandra. I know you'll be a great help to me."
…………………………………………………………………………
In the Bikini Bottom Children's Mental Health Center, Isabel sat at a table sitting across from a man with thick-rimmed glasses and a bald head that shone brightly under the cheap ceiling lamp. He was holding a small index card with a picture of a typical beach ball, with the word "ball" next to it. He had a little gold nametag on his shirt that said "Mr. Bologna" in white letters.
"Please don't tell me that's your real name" said Isabel
Mr. Bologna ignored her. "Now SpongeBetty, can you tell me what you see on the card?"
Isabel glared at him.
"Come on now, it's very easy" He said.
"I want to be called Isabel."
"Why is that?"
"It's my middle name!" said Isabel.
"I know that. But why?" asked Mr. Bologna
"I like it better than my first name."
"Why?"
"Quit asking me 'why' questions!"
"Well, Sp- Isabel, I need to know about you so I can help you-"
"Oh you stupid jackass! You can't help me! No one will ever be able to help me!" Isabel shouted, her face turning a slight pink.
"You know that's not true." Said the bald man.
"Yeah it is true because my whole family is dead!"
"I know sweet-heart, but that's why we're going to take you to a really nice place just around the corner, with lots of nice kids who play soccer and blow bubbles. Don't you want to live with nice kids who play soccer and blow bubbles?"
"What kind of idiot likes to blow bubbles?" said Isabel, crossing her arms.