"Ohhhhhhh, Squidwaaaaaard!"
Squidward winced at the loud call of his neighbor from the other room. Even though he figured he should be used to it by now, seeing as they had been dating for the past two months, the constant singsongy voice he used always annoyed him. Maybe it was because he wasn't really a happy-go-lucky person, like he was. True, he had been much happier ever since they became a couple, as it gave him some pleasure in his otherwise sad life. But something about it ticked him off.
Or maybe it was just tonight. Seeing as he and almost half the sea's population were going to see Squilliam's big concert this evening, and anything involving his almost-other half always got on his last nerve. He knew that he was going to be verbally abused and humiliated by him, as always, but the thought of seeing him play clarinet in front of so many people made him want to just punch something. He knew he couldn't play as well as Squilliam could, having been booed off stages several times at his own "concerts", and the wealthy octopus wasn't going to let him forget it.
Going back to what was originally getting on his nerves, he knew it wasn't Spongebob he was annoyed with. As his tentacles shook nervously putting on his tie, he realized how scared he was of a night of complete mortification. He took a deep breath as he straightened his tie a little bit. 'It's just one night, Squiddy... You can make it through one night of this torture.'
Why he was even going, he wasn't sure. Some part of him figured it was to take inspiration from the octopus's work, but another thought it was because inside he had a certain soft spot for him. A very small one at that. But something made him want to be there for his old high school colleague.
"Squidwaaaaaard?" He heard a light knock on the bedroom door.
"Yes, Spongebob?" Squidward quickly buttoned up his shirt.
The door opened, and Spongebob stood at the door, smiling broadly. "What do you think of this suit?" He held up a dark purple, sequin-studded suit with a deep, ruby-colored rose pinned to the right side. It stuck out compared to his bright, yellow body.
"It's fine, I guess." Squidward had given it a slight glance, but he was mostly staring at himself in the mirror, making sure he looked presentable.
"Oh. Well I got it today while I was on my break, and...since purple is your favorite color...I thought..." He looked at the ground, slightly disappointed. "You would like it..."
Squidward sighed, now feeling guilty that he had ignored him. He turned back to face the sponge, who now hung the suit low to the ground. He gave it a good look this time, and was actually stunned by the colors and fabrics. "W-wow...it's...I mean-" He was speechless, as he came over to hold the suit in his tentacles.
His boyfriend's face immediately brightened up when he saw how impressed he was. "You like it?" He asked, eyes bright with contention.
"Yeah, i-it's amazing..." He mused, a bit jealous of how nice Spongebob's suit was compared to his plain black and white tuxedo. And jealously reminded him of how Squilliam was going to tease him for having such a plain suit. His spirits fell almost immediately and he felt his eyes graze back over to the mirror. His usual bright, maroon eyes were now a dull brown.
"Squidward?" Spongebob poked the octopus's side, eyes slightly worried as he saw how distracted he was. Then he began to notice the shaking that was going on with his tentacles. "Are you ok?"
"Huh? Yeah, I'm fine." He lied, still not looking Spongebob in the eye.
"I can see you shaking..." His eyes grew rather frantic, as he hated seeing his boyfriend so distressed.
"I just said I'm fine, Spongebob." He said sternly, giving him a bitterer look than he intended to.
Even though he felt the harshness in his tone, he smiled at him wryly. "Does it have to do with Squilliam?" He glanced at the clenched tentacles.
Squidward felt a bead of sweat graze down his forehead. "No! Why would you think I would you think I would be nervous about going to Squilliam's concert?" He demanded, feeling himself getting more and more worked up.
"I never said anything about you being nervous..." Spongebob pointed out.
Squidward sighed and held his head in his tentacles. "Ohhh... Spongebob, how am I going to show my face to him... I'm as much of a failure now as I was the last time I saw him." He moaned, sitting down on the bed.
Spongebob walked over to sit next to him and frowned a bit. "Squidward you're not a failure." He rubbed the octopus's shoulder soothingly. "And he shouldn't call you a failure."
"Yeah, he shouldn't. But he does anyway." Squidward muttered, rubbing his throbbing temples.
"You shouldn't feel so...overpowered by him." Spongebob said, now leaning his head against his boyfriend's shoulder while still rubbing his arm. "He's just a person. A person with a lot of talent, maybe... But you have a lot of talent, too. And he knows that deep down!"
"Yeah...I do have talent." A smile began to form on his lips at the praise he was getting. He practically thrived on it.
"So, you shouldn't let him control you." He wrapped his arms around the octopus's neck, getting on his lap and smiling warmly. "Plus, he's from your high school, and you were friends back then, right?"
Squidward put an arm around Spongebob as he sat on his legs. "Yeah...sure. For like, a month maybe?" He frowned at the memory.
"Maybe you could try to be friends with him?" Spongebob suggested, rubbing his thighs as he sat.
Squidward shuddered a little with pleasure, but quickly composed himself so he could answer the question. "That'll be easy." He said sarcastically, rolling his eyes. "Don't count on it."
The sponge reached up and gave him a quick peck. "You'll be fine, Squiddy." He said sympathetically before reaching back up to kiss him full on the lips.
As they stayed in the embrace, Squidward sighed at the nickname Spongebob used. 'That's right, Squiddy! I'm living your dream!' Those words rang through him, reminding him of all the times Squilliam had said that to him. How much it reminded him how lowly he was. He tried to relax, which wasn't possible at the moment seeing how he was in the middle of a make-out session, but he figured that for a few hours he could make it. Despite how painful it would be to go through, he could make it. Possibly.
Squidward opened his eyes for a brief moment as his partner continued to kiss him passionately. He noticed his bedside clock. He pulled away from Spongebob, and the younger man looked at him in surprise. "Put on your suit, we have to go." He said, hurriedly, getting off the bed and looking at himself in the mirror a final time.
Spongebob sighed with lust before stepping off the bed and putting on his purple suit in a flash. He looked over at Squidward through the mirror and smiled seductively. "Well, how do I look?" He asked in a sexy tone.
Squidward saw his figure through the mirror and felt himself sweat with longing, but he smiled back. "Very sexy, indeed." He mused, then he went over to the door and opened it for the sponge, who gladly stepped through.
As they walked down the stairs, he felt his nerves tense up even more. Why was he getting so worked up about this?
Once outside, he stared up at the dark, starry sky. The current blew swiftly, as the sea flowers followed it gracefully. Suddenly a large, white limousine pulled up on their street. Their ride.
Spongebob squealed with glee and excitement and grabbed Squidward's tentacle and dragged him to the limo. Squidward groaned, hoping he wouldn't act so childish all night. Stepping in, Squidward dreaded the night that was to come.
Noticing large headlights, Squidward knew that they were now in the west side of downtown Bikini Bottom. The fanciest part of the town. The headlights were waving about in a zigzag pattern as they came closer to the old theater. Every muscle in his body seemed to be tensed up and he felt his tentacles shaking violently. He tried not to show it, but he knew Spongebob, from the seat adjacent to him, could tell. He hated feeling like this. So low and without control. And he absolutely detested showing it. Taking deep breaths, he attempting to calm himself down, knowing he couldn't possibly show himself like this in front of Squilliam. But for some reason, this somehow made him more worked up.
He felt a gentle hand pat his thighs. "You'll be ok, honey." Spongebob sympathized, smiling at him helpfully.
Squidward frowned at this. "I don't need comfort, ok Spongebob? I'll be fine." Usually it was Spongebob that would need the consoling, seeing as the OCD sponge worried about just everything in the deep blue sea. He detested being the one that needed the encouragement; it just wasn't like him to get like this.
"Alright..."
Now turning up to the theater, he noticed just how big it was. And how many camera people were there, flashing pictures of the people coming into the building. 'Good. At least there are some sane people who don't waste all their film on Squilliam.' He smiled a bit, seeing this as a chance for audiences all across the sea to see his own genius. Even if it was only in pictures.
"Stop right here." He told the driver up front, and he opened the door and stepped out. Immediately he was bombarded by paparazzi. All holding microphones in his face and rapidly asking him questions. He smiled broadly for all of them, answering a few of the reporter's questions.
Spongebob came out from behind him and blushed at all the limelight he was receiving, not used to it in the slightest. He giggled a bit before rushing to catch up with Squidward, who had gained some distance between them and the limousine.
"So I hear your name is Squidward?" A female fish asked Squidward tentatively. "And that you used to go to the same school as the esteemed Squilliam Fancyson?"
"Well, yes I'm honored that you recognized me." If Squidward's ego was visible, it would be almost as big as the building itself. "And we were colleagues yes. But what you haven't heard is that I was actually more-"
"Squidward!" Spongebob appeared at his sight, huffing up and down a bit due trying to squeeze past so many people. "I found you. Let's go inside." He grabbed the octopus's tentacle.
As soon as he did, millions of camera flashes went off, trying to capture the moment. Squidward sweat a bit, mad because Spongebob had interrupted him, but also that he was publicly holding hands with him. Especially in front of so many cameras. When they had started dating, he had told him that he refused to display any affection in public, afraid of what others would think. Spongebob had been reluctant, but agreed. And he was particularly pissed off that he chose a time like now to break that promise.
"And who might this be?" The camera woman asked, and her microphone was shoved in the octopus's face.
"Err...he's...um..." He couldn't find the right words as he felt himself freeze in place.
"Oh, I'm Spongebob Squarepants!" Spongebob cried, then wrapped his hands around the tentacle and hugged it to his side. "I'm his boyfriend." He blushed deeply.
"S-Spongebob...!" Squidward stuttered, feeling the video cameras capturing the moment. He blushed a bright red, which he knew would be visible to the viewers watching, his pale blue skin being in such a contrast to red.
"O-oh... I see." The woman looked visibly disgusted, and she quickly moved ahead.
As the camera people left with her, chuckling as they went, Squidward glared at the sponge. "Sponge...bob... What did I say about-"
"I'm sorry, honey, it slipped out.." He apologized, and rather loudly. Bystanders turned to look at the display of the sponge clinging onto Squidward.
Squidward pried his arm away, rather harshly. "Stop using the pet names." He said sternly.
Spongebob still kept his happy attitude. "Sorry..." He murmured. "Let's go inside?" He offered.
"Yeah." He muttered, trying to flush the blush out of his cheeks. As more people photographed them, he noticed the number of paparazzi decreased as they walked inside the large building.
A large stage sat in the middle of the room, a little chair set up in the middle of it along with a stand right next to it. There were chairs lined up all around the auditorium. Since they were "close friends" of Squilliams, they both had reserved seats, along with Patrick, Sandy, Mr. Krabs, and Plankton.
As they began to search for their seats, he felt Spongebob squeeze his hand from below him. "Spongebob..." He felt a bit more relaxed, seeing as there was nobody to document them together. But it still annoyed him, seeing as how so many people were coming. Only the other reserved people were there with them, however, as they had all been invited to come early to "mingle".
Before he could finish, Sandy suddenly noticed the pair from a large buffet table in the corner of the room. She smiled and ran over to greet them. She was wearing a beautiful black sequined gown. "Howdy, Spongebob!" She said, giving him a quick hug. She took note of his suit and her eyes began to shine. "That's an amazing suit ya got there! You sure know how to pick yer wardrobe." She mused.
"Aww, thanks Sandy! Your dress is beautiful, too." He said, looking at the gown with awe.
Sandy grinned. "Thanks! And hello to you to, Squidward!" She said, giving the sullen octopus a smile. "To be honest I didn't think y'all were gonna come. I'm glad you did!"
"Yeah we were debating, because Squidward was quite needy this morning." Spongebob said plainly, before giggling.
Squidward blushed and grew a slightly nervous look on his face. "Spongebob!" He yelled.
Sandy just giggled and looked at the two of them, hands locked. "Aww, y'all are more adorable than a june bug's ear!" She said in her thick Southern accent. She was one of the only people to know that they were dating.
Spongebob looked puzzled at this saying, but still grinned happily. "Aren't we?" He said sweetly, hugging Squidward's side.
Squidward felt his anger come to a boil. He pulled Spongebob from his side and laughed nervously.
"Well, why don'cha come 'round the back here. Everyone's here 'cept for Plankton." She offered, and walked back to the buffet table.
Once she was out of sight, Squidward gave Spongebob an annoyed look. "Spongebob! You do not say things like that to people in public!" He whispered harshly.
"S-sorry, but Sandy thought it was funny!" He giggled.
"Yeah, well, some other people won't find it funny, ok?" Squidward said, trying to keep calm, now putting his arms on the sponge's shoulders. "So...please... can you-"
"Well, well. He-llo-oooo there, Squiddy!" Squidward froze in place, hearing the familiar sound of his rival's voice in his ear.
He turned around to see his double standing behind him, wearing a long black, silky robe. He grinned widely, unibrow raised in the air. "Well, I'm not interrupting anything, am I?" He glanced down at the octopus's hand placement on Spongebob's shoulders.
"Err, no, not at all!" He quickly said, taking his hands off of him, and turning to smile nervously at his rival.
"Heh, seems like you're sweating as always, Squiddy dear." He folded his arms. "Afraid to be in my godly presence?"
Squidward frowned. "Well, I wouldn't say you're 'godly', Squilly dear." He imitated in a mocking-tone. "Just because you can paint and play clarinet, doesn't mean that you're an idol."
"Yes, and I think you of all people would know that. You are anything but godly." He laughed in a snooty way at his own joke. He patted Squidward on the arm. "Don't worry, you'll get there someday."
"Whatever..." He muttered, wishing he had thought of another comeback to throw at him.
Squilliam then noticed Spongebob standing behind him. "Spongy-kins!" He cried happily, and planted two light kisses on his cheeks. "Glad you could make it!"
Spongebob blushed sightly. "Hehe, anything to see your amazing clarinet-playing!" He complimented happily. "I can't wait to hear it!"
Squidward raged with anger, as Spongebob had now completely gone against him. "Oh, thank you, I know you are just dying with anticipation." He squeezed one of Spongebob's cheeks playfully. Then his eyes caught the suit. "Spongy, this suit is absolutely fabulous!" He held a little piece of it in his tentacle, staring at it in awe. "You must tell me where you got it!"
"Somewhere downtown." Spongebob replied, glowing with the praise he was getting. "You really like it?"
"Like it? It's amazing!" He mused, taking in every little detail. "If I knew there were suits out there that looked as exquisite as this, I wouldn't have worn this robe! Of course it is fine silk." He fondled the fabric of his own outfit. Then his eyes drew to Squidward's suit. "Squidward, I see you are as bland as ever with your wardrobe."
Spongebob giggled. "I told him if he wanted to borrow this one, he could! But he insisted on wearing that old thing.." He elbowed Squidward. "I don't know how long ago he got it.."
"Well it certainly wasn't in this decade, that's certain." Squilliam countered and he and Spongebob burst into laughter.
Squidward felt his face grow hot with embarrassment. He was outraged that Spongebob was doing this to him. He had promised that he would support him, but now he was teasing him along with Squilliam.
"Well then, now that we got the greetings out of the way..." He motioned to the buffet table. "Help yourselves until the rest of the audience gets here." Before going to join the others, he whispered in Squidward's ear, "That would be 30,000 seats sold." He gave him a victorious smile and he went to go join in conversation with the others.
Squidward felt his tentacles ball into fists at this. Spongebob laughed from next to him. "Aww see Squidward, he isn't as bad as you think he is!" He said. "He's really sweet!"
"How...dare...you...!" He cried, whipping to the side to glare at him with hatred.
"How dare I what?" Spongebob asked, blinking with innocence.
"Y-you...you're taking his side now?" He was trying to keep himself contained, knowing that Squilliam was only right across the room. "I thought you said that you were going to support me!"
"What do you mean, 'his side'?" Spongebob wondered. "I was just being friendly."
"You were egging him on, Spongebob..." He growled, feeling his temper boiling. "You were being just like him..."
"It's ok.. We're here with all of our friends..." He smiled at the enraged octopus. "Just take a deep breath!"
"You absolutely humiliated me!" He yelled, drawing some attention from a few bystanders. "How can you expect me to take a deep breath?"
"I can help you!" He said, wrapping his arms around the octopus's neck. "Just relax, Squiddy..."
In horror, Squidward ripped him off. "Do. not. call. me. that." He spoke through clenched teeth.
"But I like calling you that, Squiddy..." He whispered, and he wrapped his arms around his neck again. Before he had time to react, Spongebob kissed him passionately.
Immediately a chorus of wolf whistles and "oooohs" arose from the crowd. A few of the regular audience members had arrived and were now videotaping the ordeal. People snickered loudly and cheered for more as Spongebob continued to kiss him. Mr. Krabs' mouth dropped at the sight, never expecting to see something so intimate happen between his two crew members. But Squilliam's jaw dropped almost to the floor.
Squidward yanked Spongebob off in horror and harshly threw him back down on the ground. Spongebob gave him a despairing look at this sudden act of rejection. "Squidward...?" He whispered.
Before he could yell at him again, he heard Squilliam's laugh that silenced everything in the room. They all awaited for what he was about to say. "Well, well, Squiddy, looks like the yearbook committee's prediction was right. You were voted most likely to suck eggs...and just look where you are now!" He laughed even harder.
And everyone joined in with him. All pointing and laughing at him. Not at Spongebob. Him.
"Wow, what a fag!" He heard the tiny voice of Plankton from across the room.
As soon as he heard those words a flashback hit him in the face like a brick wall.
Squidward with his long, flowing blond hair stands outside the band room during class. He is supposed to be meeting Squilliam here for one of their regular make-out sessions. Class ends in around 5 minutes, so he knew they wouldn't have long until everyone came out and saw them. He had made it his mission for people not to find out that he was gay. He knew that he was already unpopular enough. He didn't need to be bashed and beat up for homosexuality too. He was lucky that Squilliam wanted to keep it to themselves also. With his cunning personality he half-expected him to tell the whole school the day they began dating. But since then, the once-malicious octopus had become so sweet-tempered. Squilliam even suggested that every day they met here so they could have some alone time. He was surprised that they hadn't been caught yet.
He peered inside one of the classrooms quickly to check the time. 4 more minutes left. Where was he?
Then he heard sensual voice of his boyfriend from across the hall. "Ohhh, Squiddy!" He said rather loudly.
He turned to see the well-dressed octopus lifting his ever-flowing unibrow seductively. He rushed over to meet him and gave him a slight glare. "Squilliam, you should come earlier if you're so intent on nobody finding out..." He whispered in case any teachers were to walk by.
Squilliam scoffed and smirked widely. "You know, I don't want anybody finding out either, but you worry too much, Squiddy dear." He raised his unibrow and put his arms around Squidward's neck.
Immediately all tension left his body as he wrapped his arms around the opposing octopus's neck. He smiled wryly. "I'm sorry... I just..." His eyes darted about as he tried to think of what to say. "I care about us, that's all."
Squilliam rolled his eyes. "And I care about my multimillion-dollar mansion, now kiss me you sexy beast!" He growled and thrust his lips forward at Squidward.
Squidward loved it when he called him that. And that sexy kitty growl of his. He kissed him back just as hard, getting lost completely in the moment. Everything seemed to just disappear. It was just him and Squilliam, who was now pushing him back as he tried to contain his arousal. It had never been this amazing before. Sometimes they had been quick pecks on the cheek, or a few smooches, but never anything this intense. And every second of it made him want class to last forever.
Then that reminded him. Wasn't the bell supposed to...
The last thing he heard was the final ring of the bell that had been going on for the last 20 seconds. They had both literally drowned it out. And all he could hear now was shocked gasps and snickering. Vicious snickering.
In a panic he opened his eyes to see if Squilliam had noticed, and for a split second he saw the same surprised look on his boyfriend's face. Then he saw a glare. And the next thing he knew, he was pushed across the hall and into the wall, head spinning now from hitting solid concrete.
Dizzily, he opened his eyes to make out Squilliam glaring at him from across the hall. Had he...pushed him? Students around them looked in complete shock and confusion.
Then, "What in Neptune's name do you think you're doing, Squidward?" Squilliam demanded from across the hall, coming to step closer. "Are you not just some poor sap, but a pervert too?"
Was he hearing things right? Was it from the collision? No. When he blinked to clear things up, he saw Squilliam standing above him, a hateful glare across his face. And he looked genuinely devastated. He was turning on him. His own boyfriend. "What the hell are you saying?" He demanded in a rage.
Suddenly his speech was cut off by a tentacle blow to the face. As he held his throbbing nose, he looked up to see the same look of abhorrence. "Stop trying to bring me into your sick little fantasies. I'm not some pretty boy, like you!"
Squidward blinked. And he felt lump appear in his throat, and it wasn't because he just took a sharp blow to the face. "Squ-Squilliam...?" He murmured hoarsely.
"Don't even come near me anymore, you sick bastard!" He could see him working up a fake aggrieved look before sauntering out of the room, breathing heavily like he had just been emotionally scarred.
Before he could even have time to think, he soon noticed all the students crowded around him. Some grinning maliciously and some glaring with hatred. He suddenly saw a few of them beginning to close in on him. He knew all too well what they were about to do, and he struggled to get himself up to run away, but one of the bigger fish grabbed onto the collar of his shirt and thrust him up against the wall. He growled at him menacingly and he tried to break free of the fish's tight grip, but before he could, he was thrown across the hall into another wall, this one knocking him almost unconscious.
As he felt the world blacken around him, he felt a few of them kicking at his legs and face, and he could hear himself murmuring as loud as he could for them to stop. But they continued on, and as he felt his vision go hazy, he heard one last comment from one of them as the others walked to their class.
"What a fucking fagget."
And it wasn't just any voice.
It belonged to Squilliam Fancyson.
His boyfriend.
His own boyfriend, calling him a fagget. Betrayal. Hurt. And his current boyfriend had done it to him. He had sided with his ex. And now the whole situation was happening all over again. The awful images finally leaving his mind, he looked around him frantically to see the faces of all of the fish staring directly at him as they laughed. Mr. Krabs, Plankton on his shoulder, looked completely and utterly disturbed. Sandy looked on consolingly. But one caught him in particular. Squilliam wasn't laughing with them.
Before he could take in that sight, he felt a tug on his suit. "S-Squidward...?" He heard the soft, delicate voice of Spongebob. He sounded like he was about to apologize.
As the voices and laughing mocked him, he felt the redness overtake his whole face. He wanted to run and get out of there. But what good would that do? All of Bikini Bottom had seen it, including his arch rival. And nothing he could do at this moment could fix it.
He felt another tug at his side, and it was suddenly as if that was his snap back to reality. All foggy thoughts and flashbacks drew away from his mind. Now all he could hear was the ear-piercing laughter. And he saw Spongebob looking at him from the side sadly. Narrowing his eyes, he glared at the sponge with absolute hatred. "Y-y-you..." Was all he could get out through clenched teeth.
The laughter finally getting to him, he felt himself snap. Eyes bloodshot, he turned to the crowd. "ALL OF YOU, SHUT UP!" He screamed at the top of his lungs.
He then felt arms wrap around him. "Squidward, it's ok..." He heard Spongebob whisper.
In a rage, he recoiled his tentacle sharply, so much it knocked the poor sponge to the floor. He looked back up at him in surprise. "No, it's NOT OK!" He lashed out, eyes bulging pointing a tentacle in his face. "You took my one chance at impressing ANY of these people, and CRUSHED it the moment we stepped out of that limo! I told you how nervous I was, and I told you MONTHS ago that we weren't supposed to do this in public!" He leaned into the sponge's face further, death flaring through his eyes. "I don't know why I even took you with me... You are the most IDIOTIC, MORONIC, ASININE, THICK-HEADED, CAMPY, INSANE, AND DIM-WITTED PERSON I HAVE EVER MET! And if it weren't for my damn lust, WE WOULDN'T EVEN BE DATING!" He took a deep breath as he finished, and finally pointed a tentacle to the door. He flared his nostrils in anger, but also hurt. "Now why don't you just haul your yellow ass out of here, because I NEVER want to see your face ever AGAIN!"
If anyone could describe Spongebob's face in mere words, it would be: destroyed. Absolutely destroyed. His eyes were filled to the brim with tears and his bottom lip quivered as he tried to keep them contained. He whimpered as he tried to get words out. Looking at his boyfriend's harsh eyes, he knew what he had just said was all true. He couldn't take it. He ran over to Sandy and Patrick, who welcomed him with open arms as he sobbed into their dresses and suits. Squidward earned a few well-deserved glares from them.
Squidward took a deep breath and opened his eyes after his brief breakdown. He looked around him to see eyes glaring directly at him, and he heard the heartbroken sobs coming from Spongebob. He looked at this, annoyed. "Why are YOU the one crying, Spongebob? I'm the one who just got humiliated in front of hundreds of people!"
"Yeah. And you're also the biggest asshole I've ever met on the planet Earth!" A deep-voiced fish cried from next to him, glaring.
"What the hell is wrong with you?"
"That poor thing..."
"You bastard, what's your problem?"
"YOU STINK!"
Squidward felt himself grow red with anger. All the insults being thrown around at him. His boyfriend betraying him. He couldn't take it. "ALL RIGHT! SHUT UP, ALL OF YOU!" He screamed, the room falling completely silent. Even Spongebob turned to look at him in fear, and he shrived back into the arms of his best friends as his eyes filled with tears once again.
Squidward felt hurt and betrayal run through him, and he tried to hold back the tears that were coming. Angry, hot tears. "It's obvious that none of you need me here. If you did, I wouldn't be here, getting verbally abused by you simpletons, betrayed by my own boyfriend, and being one-upped constantly by my conceited high school rival!" He gave a death-glare to the octopus, who was surprisingly, looking on sympathetically. He wasn't glaring like the others. He wasn't laughing. He looked sorry for him. Squidward couldn't have noticed this if he tried, as he was burning up too much to care. "So I'll be going back to my lowly home where I can sit alone and wallow about how much I SUCK EGGS compared to you all!" He angrily began to walk towards the door. A few stray tears rolled down his face and he quickly wiped them away before anyone outside could notice. Before he left, he turned to the crowd one more time. "I'll see you all in Hell!" And more tears rolled down and he began to walk down the long red carpet.
Then he heard a familiar voice as he passed down the stage. "Squidward, wait." For once, it was soft and sympathetic.
"You of all people, want me to wait?" Squidward demanded in a hoarse voice, turning to face his old rival.
Squilliam's face immediately fell when he saw the tears running down his cheeks. "Squidward...are you...?" He looked absolutely shocked.
"Yes, Squilliam. I'm friggin' crying." Squidward spat, wiping away a few more that ceased to stop. "Are you happy? Isn't this what you wanted your whole life? To humiliate me completely in front of all of your friends?"
Squilliam actually looked genuinely ashamed hearing this. "Squidward... I didn't mean to-"
"I don't want to hear it!" Squidward shouted, knowing this was probably all a ruse to trick him into degrading himself further. "I'm leaving..." He turned to walk away.
"What about Spongebob?"
"You heard me. He obviously doesn't need me if he wanted to make a fool of me like that." Squidward muttered, continuing on his way.
Squilliam was about to reply to this, when all of a sudden, a little piece of plaster fell on his head. A few crackles came down with it, and he looked up to see a chandelier dangling by a thread just a few feet forward from him. The fixture dangled left and right, the wire holding it up breaking slowly. His eyes then traced the path of Squidward, who was making his way out. As the wire disintegrated more and more he quickly realized if Squidward walked any further, he was sure to be crushed. "Squi-" He was about to warn.
But a sudden snapping noise let him know what was about to happen. The glass chandelier came down. Hearing Squilliam's cry, Squidward turned around to reply haughtily. "What do you-AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!" Seeing the fixture about to fall on him, he tried to run, but it came down right on top of him. His world faded to black.
All the people around him heard was his shortened cry, the sound of glass breaking, and the cracks of crushed bones.
And Squidward had stopped breathing, completely unaware of the octopus, sponge, and other fish at his side, trying to pick up his body from the mangled mess.
