The boss and the assistant – by preety-lady-serenity

Disclaimer: The characters belong to Matt Groening, not me.

Done for the 50 theme challenge in 1sentence in LJ.


1. Ring

Smithers knew he was too old to cry but when Mr. Burns took him to buy Mrs. Bouvier's ring, he could not control himself and run home crying.

2. Hero

Waylon was crying because the other kids were teasing him on how his dad had left his mum, when Mr. Burns appeared and chased them away with his cane, instantly becoming his hero.

3. Memory

Mr. Burns was shocked to realise that every single one of his good and comforting memories of the last twenty years included Smithers.

4. Box

Charles Montgomery Burns could never understand why Smithers always bought a heart-shaped box of chocolates, which they shared together in February 15th – the day after Valentine's Day.

5. Run

When he heard a billionaire offering the young man a better business deal, Monty Burns run towards them and dragged away Waylon possessively for no one was allowed to 'court' his assistant.

6. Hurricane

When hurricane Barbara hit Springfield, Mr. Burns invited Smithers to stay in his manor in order to ensure that no harm would happen to the young man and cause him the inconvenience of training a new assistant.

7. Wings

Waylon Smithers liked stories about fallen angels because like them he had clipped his 'wings' to stay closer to a devil like Burns.

8. Cold

Smithers had become fixated with everything having an ideal temperature, not too high or low, as he was aware that the most insignificant cold could kill the man he so loved.

9. Red

Waylon Smithers rarely lost his temper but when Mr. Burns told him he was glad that he fired him and that oaf Simpson started laughing at him, he saw red, attacked Simpson and he felt really good about it.

10. Drink

Monty Burns believed that what one drinks reveals his character and so when he discovered that Waylon Smithers could drink huge amounts of whiskey, he realised that the young man had more spirit that he had given him credit for.

11. Midnight

When the grandfather's clock struck midnight, it always caused Monty Burns to wake up for a few seconds and dazed in his sleep he always whispered "Smithers".

12. Temptation

Mr. Burns once woke up during the nighttimes to find Smithers asleep on a chair, resting his head near his pillow, and for a second he was tempted to pet the young man's head affectionately, an action he did carefully as to not wake Smithers.

13. View

The old man was surprised to realise that his view on Smithers had changed, that Smithers had become the only person in that Power Plant that he did not consider as a disposable pawn.

14. Music

Waylon Smithers once came to work whistling a catchy tune, which Mr. Burns started humming for the entire day not knowing that it was from the soundtrack of the new Malibu Stacy film.

15. Silk

For his birthday Mr. Burns gave him a purple silk tie as a present, which caused Smithers to admire his idol in the mirror and wonder if he ought to buy some ties for a change.

16. Cover

Mr. Burns woke up from his afternoon nap at the Plant to see Smithers shivering in his sleep, on the floor near his feet, and without thinking he leaned down and covered him with his own blanket, before drifting back to sleep.

17. Promise

Smithers knew that Mr. Burns was insecure of losing him because every time he saw a business man talking to him at galas, he then made him promise over and over that he would not leave him unless he fired him.

18. Dream

On the day that Waylon Smithers bitterly decided that loving Mr. Burns was just a naïve dream that would never become true and he ought to give up on all hope, Mr. Burns embarrassingly admitted that he was attracted to Smithers to more than just friends.

19. Candle

Smithers was attracted to Burns in the nature of how a butterfly is attracted by a candles' flames; it was self-destructive but he could not control it.

20. Talent

Waylon Smithers had the ability to make Monty Burns control his anger and spitefulness; a talent that had saved the old man's already destroyed image from getting irreversibly destroyed.

21. Silence

Mr. Burns would often go through a long, tiresome ranting that Smithers heard patiently dreaming he could cut it off with a kiss on the lips.

22. Journey

When Smithers was stung by a bee, Monty Burns went through the agonising journey of having to take Smithers to the hospital and, secretly, feeling horrified that the young man would die in hands at any moment.

23. Fire

Once they had a business argument that caused Smithers to storm out in anger and smoke a packet of cigarettes in the snow, while Monty Burns sat by the fireplace, sulking at the blazes and thinking that his assistant was an idiot who wished to get a cold.

24. Strength

Mr. Burns did not have the physical strength to squash an ant but Smithers knew he had the emotional strength to move a mountain and the money to hire someone to do it for him.

25. Mask

For as long as Monty Burns remembers, Smithers has been always smiling but the old man cannot help but wonder if this is a mask, a pretence, because when he is alone Smithers' eyes look very sad.

26. Ice

It was snowing for days and they were going towards the car when Smithers slipped on the icy concrete and fell down causing the old man to burst in laughter but also, once the outburst finished, get quite worried because the young man stayed down and held his leg wincing in pain.

27. Fall

He was driven to a boring charity gala when while passing from the park, he saw Waylon Smithers Junior chasing the yellow and orange leaves; and while he still believed that children were impish, he could not help but think that this child was somehow cute.

28. Forgotten

When the interview finished and twenty-four year old Waylon left his office, Mr. Burns thought that the young man must have forgotten him with the years passing by, but reality was that neither of them had forgot the other; they were both just being formal.

29. Dance

Charles Montgomery Burns was an avid dancer despite his old age and he loved it because as he once confessed to Smithers it was the only form of self-expression his grandfather had allowed him when he was a child.

30. Body

'Healthy Mind in a Healthy Body'was an Ancient Greek motto Monty Burns believed in and so he decided to engage Smithers, and himself, both to vigorous exercise and a hearty game of chess every day.

31. Sacred

Burns knew that for Smithers every word of his was sacred, every wish was the young man's command and every decision was unquestionable, so in the rare cases when the young man insisted against something he thought for a bit before taking the final decision.

32. Farewell

When Smithers cried uncontrollably his farewells in front of Mr. Burns' grave he mostly cried for the kisses he never had the chance to give him.

33. World

Waylon entered the bar and got really drunk because he could not stand anymore the fact that the old man meant the world to him but on his behalf he worth nothing to the old man.

34. Formal

When he saw the young man wearing a tuxedo – vest and all – Mr. Burns' first thought was that Waylon was handsome enough to eat, a thought that he pondered upon for days.

35. Fever

Smithers was home, burning from fever and wallowing in self-pity that no one cared if he was to live or die when the phone rang rand and Mr. Burns' commanding voice told him to hurry and get back on his feet because he was getting crazy without him, a sentence that greatly cheered him up.

36. Laugh

It was their secret for the last twenty years that they would occasionally start a money-fight that they would not stop until they were both on the floor roaring in laughter and one would admit defeat.

37. Lies

Mr. Burns lied to himself about his budding feelings for Smithers until a day came that he sounded so unconvincing that he had to succumb.

38. Forever

"Nothing last forever," the old man said gravely when another lady-friend left him for a younger man and Smithers had to bite his lips until they bled so that he would not shout "But my love does!"

39. Overwhelmed

When Monty Burns realised his erotic feelings for Smithers and started to court him, Waylon felt so overwhelmed by the situation that he ran home and did not leave it for two days.

40. Whisper

Waylon Smithers whispered answers in his ear when he needed them, saving him from embarrassing situations, and soothing words when he woke up distressed from nightmares and it was those whispers that made Smithers so irreplaceable.

41. Wait

"I love you dammit!" Monty Burns exclaimed in frustration and then had to wait for two whole agonising minutes for Smithers' response as the young man was too shocked and happy to speak.

42. Talk

Mr. Burns would often talk about things that happened decades ago and interested no one apart from Smithers.

43. Search

For Smithers' birthday Monty Burns decided to overlook the strangeness of the hobby itself and searched for Malibu Stacy's Platinum Redhead Edition everywhere, gave 1000 dollars for it and made Smithers extremely happy.

44. Hope

Smithers knew that he and Mr. Burns could never be together, but after that mouth-to-mouth he could not help but hold on a shred of hope.

45. Eclipse

When Monty Burns was but a mere child he saw a solar eclipse and it was the same powerful sensation he wanted to recreate when he blocked the sun, but no one could understand him, not even Smithers.

46. Gravity

The Law of Gravity did not seem to always work on Mr. Burns, who was often taken away by the slightest gust of air, so Smithers assigned himself to become a factor that would keep Mr. Burns on the ground.

47. Highway

During a long highway journey Mr. Burns could not help but notice that Smithers had the tendency to chew his lower lip when angry and he seemed somewhat handsome when he shifted the gears.

48. Unknown

In his old age Monty Burns would sometimes fear the unknown but he took a leap of faith when his relationship with Smithers changed from friendship to romance.

49. Lock

Thinking about it he had locked so many people out of his life, fiancées, family and friends, but he had allowed Smithers in so what was so special about him?

50. Breathe

"BREATHE GODDAMIT, BREATHE – YOU CAN'T LEAVE ME I NEED YOU," a voice screamed in his head in agony as he gave Smithers that mouth-to-mouth, "I CANNOT BE WITHOUT YOU!"