It was a beautiful, summer day - a perfect day to go out and do something fun. As she thought about what she hoped to do with Megamind later that afternoon; Roxanne approached him with excitement written all over her face. You could say that her face was like a child's face on Christmas morning. What was she so excited about? Wayne had called her that morning to share some great news…
Earlier that morning…
RING! RING!
Roxanne rolled over in her bed to answer the phone. If it was Megamind calling; she was going to remind him that she liked to sleep in on her days off. To her surprise; it wasn't Megamind calling. Instead, she heard Wayne's voice say, "Hello, Roxie?"
Roxanne was surprised to hear Wayne's voice. It had been over seven months ago since she, Megamind, or Minion heard from him. Feeling a little annoyed; she replied in a sleepy tone of voice, "Good Morning, Wayne. It's been a while. How have you been? May I ask why you are calling?"
"I've been doing great." Wayne replied in a casual voice, "The reason I've called is because I want to share some great news with you and my little buddy."
Roxanne hated that she had been woken up early. Rolling her eyes; she made a groan inside of her mind before stating, "Okay…I'm listening. What is the news you want to share with us?"
She listened with a bored state of mind as Wayne informed her about purchasing a new speedboat. After he was finished doing so; Wayne then asked if she and Megamind would like to go for a ride on the lake later that afternoon.
Since she had no plans for the day; Roxanne told him that a boat ride sounded nice. She immediately regretted doing so. Doing so caused him to ramble on and on about his new prize. 'UGH…what have I started?' she thought as she half-heartedly listened to his boasting.
After about dozing off several times and listening to a boring conversation about the boat's top speed, size, and other features; Roxanne finally became interested in the conversation when Wayne told her about the parasailing mechanism attached onboard. She wanted to tell him about her sudden desire; but he still rambled on and on - asking her how her job was going and telling her about the new music in which he has written. Becoming bored again; she thought, 'Will you shut up and let me get some words into this conversation already?'
It seemed like an eternity went by before he finally gave her a chance to talk. Once he finally shut up; Roxanne hinted that she has never been parasailing before and has been desiring to give it a try. When Wayne caught on to the hint and asked if she and Megamind would like to give the mechanism its first test flight - her mind became temporarily blown.
After watching several tourists parasail during her Panama City Beach vacation three years ago - she had been yearning for that experience herself. To be high up in the air; watching everything down below…the feeling must be exhilarating. Before even talking to Megamind about Wayne's invite; she yelled into her phone's receiver, "Yes! We'd love to!"
She started to hope Megamind would be thrilled about the idea too. Unfortunately; she would find out differently later on that morning…
About an hour after talking to Wayne…
"Hey, Megs…can I ask you something?" Roxanne called out to her blue boyfriend - who was busily working on a new invention as she approached.
Looking up from his work; Megamind saw the thrilled expression on Roxanne's face and his stomach immediately started to feel queasy. He couldn't help it - he always started to feel nervous whenever she approached him in such a giddy mood. Whenever she had that kind of grin on her face; that usually meant she was about to suggest they do something crazy. As he watched her approach; he thought to himself, 'Oh no…this could mean trouble!'
Not wanting her to see his uneasiness; he quickly readied himself to listen to her question - putting down the invention he had been working on. Sheepishly, he held out his arms in an "I want a hug" position. Once she reached him; Roxanne obliged as she wrapped her arms around him. She heard herself sigh happily as his arms wrapped around her in return. She placed an ear against his chest and listened to his heartbeat. She could hear it quicken. 'It's nice to know that I have this effect on him,' she thought as she relaxed into his embrace.
Trying to act positive about Roxanne's ecstatic mood; Megamind asked as he lifted her chin up with his left hand and looked upon her beaming face, "You seem to be in an awesome mood today. What's up?"
"Well…" Roxanne started to explain, "I had a friendly conversation with Wayne this morning and he has shared some news with me that I wanted to share with you too. After all; it does involve you in a small way."
"Oh really?" asked Megamind while lifting an eyebrow in suspicion.
"Yeah…" Roxanne replied while beaming ear to ear, "Wayne told me that he purchased a new speedboat a couple of days ago."
Pfft! Is that all? "Okay…so?" Megamind replied while giving a quick roll of his eyes. Suddenly, Roxanne's smile grew wider. As he took notice; Megamind thought, 'Okay…here comes the crazy request'. His nervousness started to grow. He swallowed a lump in his throat as he waited for Roxanne's answer.
"Wayne also mentioned that the boat came with an attached parasailing mechanism. After he finished mentioning it…I told him that I've never been parasailing. I also mentioned how much I've been wanting to give it a try. After I did so; he asked me if we'd like to give the mechanism its first test flight." Roxanne watched as Megamind gave her a small smile. Starting to feel hopeful; she added, "Since my vacation to the beach three years ago…I've been wanting to try parasailing! Now's my chance to finally give it a whirl!" she answered ecstatically.
"Wow…really?" Megamind replied in a curious tone. He knew this conversation was about to go into a direction he didn't like. Oh crap…please don't do what I think you're going to do!
"Yeah…wait until you hear the best part though!" Roxanne replied as she walked two fingers up and down Megamind's chest. Watching as he lifted a curious eyebrow; she joyfully added, "I don't want to ride on the parasail alone. I want a certain someone up on the parasail with me. Can you guess who?"
Megamind knew the answer. However; that meant Wayne would be in control of how high the parasail went, the speed of the boat…EVERYTHING! That thought alone made him feel very uneasy. Deciding to play dumb; he asked, "Wayne?"
Roxanne's couldn't believe his suggestion! Casting a sly smile; she replied as she playfully punched his shoulder, "NO! Keep guessing."
Grinning; Megamind purposely suggested next, "Minion?"
Again, Roxanne looked flabbergasted. Punching his shoulder harder; she teasingly replied, "NO! I can't believe you're even suggesting I ride with someone else other than you! You're my boyfriend! I want to ride on the parasail with you…you big dummy!"
I knew it, I knew it! She wants me to let Wayne take control of everything! No way! I'm not going to let that happen! He watched as Roxanne's expression turned from one of confusion to one of hopefulness again. He hated that he felt nervous about her suggestion - it was causing him to also feel guilty. How do I say this without hurting her feelings? "Um…here's the thing," Megamind explained as he started to let her down gently, "I don't think perisoiling is something I would like to try."
What? He has never turned down one of my ideas before! Roxanne's mouth flew open in disbelief. She pushed away from his embrace long enough to start whining, "But…why?"
Please don't whine like that, Roxanne! Starting to feel very uncomfortable now; Megamind blurted out, "I don't like heights."
Roxanne knew something was up at this point and rebuffed, "After seeing you float around on the domes of your brainbots, fly around on your hover bike, or ride around in your zeppelin - you can't be telling me that you're afraid of heights! I won't accept that as an excuse - because I know it isn't true."
Oh crap! She saw through that excuse. Watching as Roxanne placed her hands on her hips and as she gave him a "don't lie to me" look; Megamind knew he had to make up a lie and he had to make it up quick! Thinking up another lame excuse; he grabbed her back into a loving embrace and replied, "Okay, okay. Even though this is embarrassing for me to admit - I'm actually worried about what's going to be in the water below us."
Roxanne's smile returned and her eyes widened as she started to laugh hysterically. I can't believe he just said that! He has got to be kidding me! Once she calmed down a little; she teased, "Megs, honey - we are miles away from the nearest ocean. We're not going parasailing over water that contains dangerous, aquatic creatures. We're going parasailing over the lake! There's nothing in the lake that's going to eat you - if that's what you are really worried about!" She watched as a scowl appeared upon Megamind's face; causing her to start laughing wildly again.
Even though he knew he was acting childish - Megamind gently pushed Roxanne away, turned around so that his back was facing her, and crossed his arms over his chest before he replied, "It's not funny!"
Seeing that she actually hurt his feelings; Roxanne decided not to question Megamind about his real reasons for refusing to go parasailing. Instead, she decided to use her gift of persuasion. "Look…Megs," she started to say as she walked up to his back, laid the side of her face between his shoulder blades, and snaked her arms around his waist, "I'm sorry. If you really don't want to try parasailing - then I'm not going to make you. I can see that the idea of parasailing bothers you for some reason."
Feeling his body start to relax; she continued, "I asked you to join me because I like the idea of making a new memory with you. That was my only reason for asking at all. I'm asking you to make this a special day for us. I'm not trying to make you feel uncomfortable."
Watching his actions; Roxanne could tell that her words made Megamind's heart start to thaw. Time to put on a show! As he turned around to face her again; she widened her eyes and filled them with fake tears.
Megamind's heart skipped a beat after he suddenly realized what she was doing. Oh no…she's using my own tactics against me! This is so unfair! How dare you!
Seeing Megamind's eyes widen because of her act; Roxanne decided at that moment to pooch out her lip and start to make a whiny puppy dog sound. I'm not giving up, Megs. You're about to give into my desire! Increasing the volume of the whine; she watched as Megamind's face started to soften. It's working! Any moment now…
Oh no…not the whiny puppy dog noise! Anything but that! Roxanne…you evil woman, you! How can I turn you down now? He tried to turn his face away; but the power of Roxanne's whine was too much. UGH…I give up! Finally relenting because of Roxanne's performance; Megamind stated, "Alright, alright. If it really means that much to you…I'll go perisoiling with you." Watching as Roxanne tried not to smirk; he added, "Under one condition."
Yes! I knew that performance of mine would work! "What is the condition?" Roxanne asked while trying to hide her sly smile.
"Since the only time Minion gets out of the lair is when he helps me fight evil - I think he should come along for the boat ride as well. I'm sure he'd like to watch as we ride up on the parasail. Heck…I bet he'd enjoy a nice swim in the lake too."
Roxanne smiled at Megamind's thoughtfulness and answered, "Sounds fair to me and I agree. Minion could use a day out too." Feeling giddy again; she added, "Does this mean you've changed your mind?"
Breathing out an annoyed breath; Megamind replied in a surrendering tone, "Yes."
Roxanne smiled and replied, "GREAT! I'm going to go now and give Wayne a call. He needs to know Minion is coming along too!" Leaning in; she gave Megamind a huge kiss of appreciation before turning around to walk in the direction of her purse.
As he watched her walk away; Megamind groaned and thought, 'I just hope I don't regret this!'
Later that afternoon…
After arriving at the Southside Docks with picnic supplies in tow; the three "sailors" approached Wayne waiting on the dock beside his massively sized boat. Once they were finished approaching - Megamind, Roxanne, and Minion couldn't believe what they were seeing. The white colored boat had to be 30 feet long! As he watched his friends gawk at the boat's size; Wayne chuckled and said, "Welcome, guys! I'm so glad you could make it!"
After some momentary silence; Roxanne finally broke the quietness by gesturing towards the boat and saying, "Wow, Wayne! This is really impressive!"
Wayne smiled, closed the gap between them, and took Roxanne into a friendly hug. Thinking that Wayne was moving in on his territory; Megamind started to feel a twinge of jealousy as he watched his bikini-clad girlfriend receive a hug from his former nemesis. "Thanks, Roxie!" Wayne replied with pride.
Secretly rolling his eyes at the scenario; Megamind wished that Wayne would let Roxanne go. Alright…that's enough now! She's my girlfriend…you stupid hunk of beef! Starting to feel annoyed; Megamind watched as Wayne then gave Roxanne's hair a quick tussle.
The discomfort Megamind was feeling was far from over though. Suddenly getting his wish; he watched as Wayne released Roxanne and started to approach him next! Oh God…please tell me he's not going to… Before he could finish his thought; Wayne grabbed him up into a hug. Megamind could feel himself start to smother as Wayne said, "Hey, little buddy! Long time…no see! How have you been?"
I can't breathe! Let me go! Megamind wanted to answer, "I've been doing well. How have you been?" However; since the air was accidentally being squeezed out of his lungs and his face was uncomfortably smashed against Wayne's chest - all he could manage was a weak, "Mmmmmrrrrrrffffff…"
Hearing Megamind's weak reply; Wayne realized that he was hugging his little buddy too tightly. Quickly releasing Megamind; he apologized, "Oh man. Sorry about that."
Megamind lifted a finger in a "one moment please" gesture. It took a couple of minutes for him to catch his breath. Once he did; he sighed and replied, "It's okay, Wayne. I'm fine."
Feeling relieved; Wayne shut his eyes, slapped Megamind on the back, and said, "You've always been a tough, little warrior!" Since he had his eyes shut; Wayne didn't see the sudden bare space where Megs had been standing. Everyone heard a loud SPLASH instead! The force of his slap had sent Megamind flying into the lake!
'Oh man…what did I do now?' Wayne thought after he realized what happened. Feeling horrible about his clumsiness; he anxiously watched for Megamind to surface in the water.
Roxanne and Minion were doing their best not to laugh. As Megamind surfaced and started to swim for the dock - the look on his face said it all. He was humiliated! They couldn't help it. They started to snicker. After Megamind finally reached the wooden edge; they tried to control their snickering as Wayne pulled a soaked alien back up onto the dock.
Instantly, Wayne apologized as he started to check Megamind over for injuries. "I'm so sorry, little buddy! I guess I forget about my own strength sometimes. If you want - I can use my super breath to dry you off."
Defensively, Megamind held up his hands and replied in a hurried voice, "No, no! That's quite alright! I'm going to get wet again later anyway." About my luck; you'd blow me to Kingdom Come! Wayne tried not to laugh and handed him a towel. As he wrapped the towel around himself; Megamind finally heard Roxanne's and Minion's snickering. I'm glad those two find this so hilarious - because I'm not finding it funny at all! Looking over his shoulder; he gave them a scowl of disapproval and resisted the urge to revengefully push them into the lake. Seeing his angry expression; they instantly stopped their snickering. Roxanne suddenly showed an ashamed expression on her face and Minion avoided Megamind's stare by looking down at his robotic feet. Megamind smirked as he smugly thought, 'That's right. You should feel sorry!'
Sensing the moment was starting to get tense; Wayne ended the uncomfortable scenario by suggesting casually, "Um…okay. Why don't we go ahead and get going? I know this perfect, little cove where we can enjoy some privacy."
Surprisingly, Megamind was the one to answer. "Great. Let's go." Before you accidentally cause me any more bodily harm!
Later, after arriving in the cove…
Once they arrived in the cove Wayne spoke of; the four friends enjoyed the ham and cheese sandwiches, chips, and drinks Minion had packed for their picnic lunch. After they finished eating; they decided to enjoy a refreshing swim in the lake. Minion swam away with a school of fish; while the three remaining friends enjoyed doing whatever came to mind. Floating on his back; Wayne enjoyed the coolness of the water while Roxanne and Megamind began a splash war nearby.
In their own little world; Megamind and Roxanne were having so much fun splashing each other. They almost forgot about parasailing. Wayne unknowingly ruined the fun they were having when he finally decided to remind them about his invite by swimming up to them and asking, "Do you still want to parasail, guys?"
Feeling his nervousness return; Megamind wanted to reply, "No." However; he knew Roxanne would be disappointed in him if he did. Instead, he watched as Roxanne replied, "Sure. Let's go for it!"
Minion finally returned from his adventure with the other fish. He noticed as his master grimaced. He knew something wasn't right, but didn't say anything. Instead, he secretly prayed for Megamind to have fun on the flight.
As they all started to swim toward the boat; Megamind insulted himself for giving into Roxanne's little performance earlier that morning. Drat! I was hoping she would chicken out! Now there's no way for me to get out of this without making Roxanne upset! I'm such a coward for not telling her the truth! Coward, coward, coward!
Once everyone was back onboard...
The three "sailors" watched as Wayne unfurled the parasail and readied the mechanism for its upcoming flight. Giving Megamind's hand a loving squeeze as they decided to take a seat and wait for Wayne's instructions; Roxanne asked, "Are you ready for this, honey?"
Even though he didn't want to carry on with the flight; Megamind put on a faked brave face and lied in a worried tone of voice, "You bet. This is going to be fun!"
Sensing the tension in his friend's voice; Minion replied, "Are you sure, sir?"
"Yeah," Megamind lied again. To distract himself from Minion's gaze; he continued to watch as Wayne checked the mechanism's cable over for frays.
Once he was sure everything was safe and secure; Wayne informed the waiting couple, "Alright, guys…if you'll move back to the boat's stern…I'll get you both properly fitted into your parasail harnesses."
They followed his request and moved to the back of the boat. Roxanne was fitted into her harness first. When it was his turn to be fitted; Megamind asked, "Wayne, how does this harness work exactly?"
"Well…" Wayne started to explain, "As the parasail lifts up into the sky; the harness cradles your body into a sitting position. It's almost like sitting in a swing."
"I see," Megamind replied.
Once he had their harnesses fitted properly; Wayne asked his friends to stand on the parasailing platform as he attached their harnesses to the parasail's hooks. He double-checked the attachment before looking at the harnessed couple and stating, "Now…sit down on the platform, please." Once they had done so; he added, "On the count of three; I'm going to let you both out slowly. I'll let you fly up until you reach 150 feet. If you want to go higher; give me a thumb's up. If you want to come in lower; give me a thumb's down. Cross your arms like an 'x'; if you want your flight to end. Got it?"
"Yeah…I think so," Roxanne replied.
Wayne looked at Megamind next and asked, "What about you, little buddy?"
After nervously stealing a peek at Minion's knowing smirk; Megamind huffed and answered, "Yeah. No problem."
Smiling; Wayne replied, "Okay…on the count of three!" He watched as Roxanne gave him an excited grin. Next, he turned his attention to Megamind's face as he said, "One." Seeing Megamind's uncertain expression; Minion smirked as Wayne said, "Two." Wayne suddenly noticed Megamind's expression as well. Before Megamind could chicken out; Wayne yelled, "Three!" As Minion watched on; Wayne pressed the mechanism's lever. Slowly, the parasail began to lift into the sky with an excited couple attached to it.
As the lovers were lifted into the sky...
Suddenly, an unexpected gust of wind caused the parasail to shoot up to 25 feet within 5 seconds. The sudden lift into the air made Megamind panic! He closed his eyes and started to yell, "Oh my God! Oh my God! We're going to die! We're going to die!"
Roxanne could understand Megamind's reaction. The sudden change in altitude made her jumpy too. However; looking at the beauty around her helped her to relax as the parasail continued to lift into the air. Quickly stealing a glance at her frightened boyfriend; she placed a hand on his shoulder and said, "Its okay, Megs! We're fine. You can open your eyes now. We're almost at 150 feet."
"No! I don't want to!"
Rolling her eyes; Roxanne asked, "Why not?"
Answering her question; Megamind yelled, "Wayne's trying to kill us!"
Laughing; Roxanne rebuffed, "Wayne's our friend! He wouldn't do anything to harm us."
"Yeah…right! Just look how he treated me when I was a villain!"
Roxanne argued, "Only because he felt he needed to treat you that way!"
Megamind didn't like her reply. He argued back, "Thanks…that makes me feel a lot better!"
His remark helped Roxanne to suddenly figure out what was going on in his big brain. "You don't like Wayne having control of this flight…do you?"
The gig is up. I might as well tell her the truth. "No. I hate it. I've always been in control of everything that's happened in my life. Letting someone else take control is new to me."
Roxanne noticed that Megamind still had his eyes closed. Sighing; she suggested, "Look…I understand that you've had a rough past. I know that everyone treated you differently. Because of that; I can understand why you like to be in control of your life's situations. However; now isn't the time to let your past ruin your fun. Now is the time to open your eyes and look at all the beauty surrounding you!" Watching Megamind hesitate; she added, "Please…open your eyes. Don't think about Wayne. Don't think about your past. Just think about us and the incredible experience we're sharing right now!"
Slowly, Megamind finally opened his eyes. Looking downwards; he could see his feet dangling below him. Wayne's boat looked like a tiny speck on the water. Minion was waving up at them. As Megs looked around; he could see Metro City off in the distance on their left. The city looked majestic from this view. Hearing several squawking sounds; he watched as a flock of Canadian geese flew by on their right. He started to relax. He realized that Roxanne was right. Why should he let his past ruin all of his fun? Starting to feel thankful because Roxanne talked him into opening his eyes; he glanced her way and complimented her, "You're right. This is an amazing experience! Thank you for sharing it with me. I'm sorry for acting like such a coward."
"You're not a coward, Megs. You're welcome and thank you for agreeing to come along with me." Seeing Megamind's face light up from bliss; she laughed. Roxanne felt blissful too. This would be an experience she and Megamind would remember for the rest of their lives.