KO went straight to the dressing room after the last scene, it was the final episode of season 6. Long after the times when the character was a little boy, now he was a young man who had recently started his professional hero career. The writers of the show thought to add a romantic arc to his character's story. And since he and Dendy were such good friends on and off the show since they met, they thought it was a good idea. It was all well and good and he did have fun with it. Dendy seemed okay with it, and it helped her character get in touch with her emotions. It paid off in the end, ratings were higher than ever before and they brought in a bigger audience. It brought in real life issues of growing up while still maintaining its status as a kid's cartoon.
The two actors had gelled perfectly, and their characters just made sense. The happy go-lucky wannabe hero and the smart science girl, they made the awkward young romance story work. With Dendy learning how to handle personal relationships, and KO to learn how heroes handle romance. It worked so well that about 98% of the fandom thought they were dating in real life too.
Which was dead wrong. You see, not everyone was so on board with the idea. KO sighed as he finished his strawberry banana smoothie as he looked into his make-up mirror, and the reflection showed an expression of confliction and guilt. What nobody knows, not his fans or even his closest co-workers/friends Rad and Enid are aware of. But long before the KO x Dendy story arc was thought of, he was already in a committed and healthy romantic relationship. He heard a ping on his phone, he picked it up to see he got a text from said partner. And from the seriousness of the words, he thought something was up.
(later)
KO pulled out a key to his girlfriend's apartment, she gave it to him a couple months after they started going out. She wanted to talk to him about something, and from the text she seemed adamant that they talk it out sooner rather than later. KO's street clothes consisted of a beige undershirt, black jacket, jeans, and a hair pin to keep the hair out of his eyes. Like his character, he doesn't wear shoes. He inserted the metal key into the knob with a twist, he heard the clicks before pushing the door open.
"Hey Honey, you said you wanted to talk?" he called as he enter the apartment.
"Just a minute, I'm in the shower".
"Okay" KO made himself comfortable on the couch, the remote bouncing off the cushions and into his hand. He quickly turned on the TV, the screen first showed the news before he found a professional wrestling show. KO hummed to himself while watching two guys beat each other up, one small one with a mask and the other a giant with a really big beard. It always amazed him how the little guy moves around the bigger adversary so quickly, he's heard people always say that bigger is better. Mostly from Rad. But the myth says that David trumps over Goliath, and from his personal experience that was true. As some of the smallest heroes time and time again defeat their much larger opponents. KO was always the David, because he's been fighting since he was a little kid and faced his problems head on no matter the odds.
He heard the running water stop as the referee called for the bell, the small wrestler won with a superkick and a phoenix splash from the top rope. He turned off the tele and sighed, he pulled himself off the couch and head into their shared bedroom. Where he found an anthropomorphic mouse girl mutant sitting on the bead, with a gloomy expression and a purple silk robe. One that doesn't leave much to the imagination. Her skin was a shade of minty green, her hair a much darker shade with little mouse ears sticking out of the top of her hairdo, faint whiskers, small fangs on the corners of her mouth, and a little pink nose.
This was Fink, a young and upcoming actor at the start of the show who plays. Yep, Fink. The adorable minion to Professor Venomous, and as the series progress, the super hot ex-minion of Professor Venomous. After the Pr. Venomous Character 'died' in a lab explosion, they turned Fink into this rogue assassin that hunts mostly heroes and kills them. In the later seasons of OK KO, one of the character's clients hired her to kill KO, but instead wound up falling for the hero.
In real life however, it's a whole other story.
KO took the seat next to her, they didn't say much before Fink just grabbed the man and started kissing him. KO didn't fight back her lip assault and just fell back on the bed with her on top of him, with her arms wrapped around his neck and his around her waist the two just laid there enjoying the sweet and tender kiss. Their first one this week, with all the buzz going around KO and Dendy and work they don't have a lot of time to enjoy each other's company.
Fink halts her make out session and laid right next to him, with a sad look in her eyes. KO rolled onto his side to face her, propping his head in his hand to get a better view. They've been dating outside the show for a long time now, even before they started the Kendy arc, so he learned to tell when his mousy maiden felt melancholy. "Hey, are you okay? You seem kind of down."
Fink sighed as she stared into the ceiling, "For the past 10 years. When you and that kappa had your first onscreen kiss, at the end of season 3." KO vaguely remembered that episode, they had to reshoot the kiss 11 times before the final cut. That kissed kickstarted what their fans called 'Kendy', their ratings had improved and they brought in a new audience. Fans loved seeing the bright happy KO with the smart and analytical Dendy, some even wrote fanfiction about them. Though some were a little, much.
KO got an idea on what she was thinking, "Fink, you know it's all for show right? The whole 'KO and Dendy' thing was all a big publicity stunt, to make the people happy. Without our fans, there wouldn't be a show."
"Yeah, but." Fink turned her head slowly to him, with a little tear in her eye. "Would they still be fans, if they knew about... us?" KO's reassuring smile faltered slightly, "It's just, everyone thinks you and Dendy are really dating. The crew, the cast, the fans, everyone. Sometimes, I feel that you and her would eventually 'get married' and I'll be left in the dust. I feel that, that nobody will want to watch our show anymore if they knew... (sniff) if they knew that their hero was... was dating a bad guy." she then softly cried as KO brought her in for a hug, letting her release her tears on his shoulder.
"There, there." he patted her softly, "You don't have to worry. Like my mom says, all fans are different. And I know there are fans who love you, Fink. If they were really my fans, they wouldn't care who I date. And besides you're not really a bad guy, you just play one on TV. That has nothing to do with your personality in real life, and you know it."
"Yeah, I guess you're right. But still, it kind of stings a little that no one gives a passing glance at 'us'." Fink said.
"Relax, all fans are different. Some with differing opinions than each other, but that's what makes them fans. Just don't let it get to you, would want some random stranger telling you how to live your life?" she thought about it and shook her head, "Exactly, which is why you're my girlfriend. Because I follow my heart."
She looked up to him, "I want to follow my heart to."
KO brought her face in till their lips were a millimeter away, "And what does your heart say?" Fink just let out a feral smile, KO went wide eyed before he was pounced on again. Well that takes care of that problem, but now he has an entirely new problem on his hand.
(meanwhile)
"Enjoy you're stay." the doorman dully said to a grown up couple, as they walked away he put up an 'On break' sign before leaving his desk. After he was gone, a shuffling can be seen in the fern right next to the desk. Out popped the head of a young anthropomorphic meerkat with a white 'OK K.O.: Let's Be Heroes' shirt, khakis, blue shoes, and a camera around his neck. He looked both around to see if the coast was clear.
"So you're probably wondering why we followed Kaio Kincaid to this apartment building, eh Reggie?" the meerkat asked as he jumped out of the plant, and was met with a bored looking frog-boy with goggles over shoulder length green hair, a green shirt, green shorts, and water shoes.
"Not really Bernie, as the president of his fan club you tend to follow him a lot from a distance. We all just stopped asking questions." he dully replied.
"Good call, now I'm sure you've seen the millions of sites that suggest KO and Dendy are dating in real life?" Bernie questioned.
"How can I not? It's all they ever talk about." Reggie stated.
"Well thanks to that nobody even cares that this may be the last season they ever do, or the growth of the characters. Shows should be about their stories and compelling tales of a relatable protagonist, not dating and that shipping garbage." Bernie ranted.
"Point?" Reggie asked.
"Don't tell the others about this, but I do not believe that just because Kendy is canon on the show that their actors are actually dating, that's just stupid. Look, all we're doing is a simple interview with the man in the privacy of his home. Here it from the man himself, and I need a witness and photographic evidence that I actually met our hero. Now do your little nerd thing and find out which room he is." the fanboy meerkat demanded.
Reggie just sighed before pulling out a tablet, "Okay, with my global cellular tracking app I can deduce that our idol is in room 30-U."
The two boys headed over to the elevator, only to find an 'out of order' sign. "Dang it!"
"Oh well, we tried." Reggie tried to leave, only to be pulled back by Bernie.
"Not so fast. There is another way."
(Later)
We then see the two kids climbing up the side of the building with suction cups, "ARE YOU SURE THIS IS SAFE!?" Reggie yelled over the winds.
"RELAX, I PAID A GOOD FORTUNE ON THESE! JUST TELL ME IF WE'RE THERE YET!"
"FINE! Just one more floor!"
After a while, they finally made it. Thankfully the curtain was left slightly parted on the window, unthankfully what thy saw was way more than either of them can handle. They both screamed in terror before accidently pulling their suction cups off the side of the building, but not before Bernie quickly took a picture. They fell a pretty good distance before Reggie quickly grabbed Bernie and shot his tongue out till it caught onto the roof, the frog-boy then shot them both up until they landed on the roof. Bernie still screaming as Reggie just had a shocked look in his eyes along his otherwise stoic expression, Reggie then slapped the screaming super fan to make him stop screaming.
"Well, I'm gonna have to bleach my eyes when I get home. And we didn't get an interview."
Bernie shot up, camera in hand "Well, at least it wasn't a total lost. Because I was RIGHT!" he cheered, "With a little editing, this will prove those rumors are full of cob! What can possibly go wrong?"
Reggie groaned, "Dude, never say 'what can possibly go wrong'!"
TBC