A/N: Ahhh it's late and I'm tired, but I won't have another chance to publish this until tomorrow night lol. I probably still need to proofread it a bit more, but lemme know what you think!

Darwin's first thought as he surveyed the ruins of their kitchen was Mom's in for a surprise when she gets home… He stood up. Gumball had a proud look on his face, and Darwin soon realized why. The smoke cleared to reveal Carrie, not a ghost anymore, but a living thing.

But that wasn't why Darwin's heart stopped. Darwin was in love. She was beautiful. He wanted her; he needed her, he would do anything for her. The last time he had a feeling this strong was when that foreign girl wearing the beautiful dress moved in, but Carrie blew her away. She was about the same height as Gumball, with matching arm and leg lengths. She had the perfect complexion with her pinkish-white skin; her black hair was tied up in a short ponytail; she kept the simple face she had when she was a ghost, but her fringe no longer covered her left eye; and she wore a red checkered shirt with black skinny jeans and black converse shoes, giving her the look of a rebel. He couldn't help but stare at her intently, romantically, devotedly.

"She will be mine…" he whispered.


"Uuuuu…" Carrie groaned, attempting to grasp the situation. Her entire body ached.

Wait… she thought. My body aches?

She looked at herself. She wasn't a ghost anymore – she had an actual body, complete with arms and legs. Her lips curled into a smile as an incredible but foreign feeling swept over her.

This feeling…is this what happiness is? I've been missing out!

"So, how's the new body?" Gumball asks.

She looked up at Gumball and Darwin. Gumball looked smug, with his hands on his hips and eyes that said "check out what I accomplished today". Darwin just stared at her, his eyes taking the shape of two hearts. Another odd feeling swept over Carrie as their eyes met. Something in her chest started pounding, and she started getting nervous. For some reason, she thought of the time Darwin pulled her in for a big kiss at the Halloween party. She shook the feeling; right now, she wanted to let them know how grateful she was.

She reached out and gave the two of them a big hug. "It's great! Thanks, guys. You're the best." It felt good to hug them. Gumball felt soft and warm; Darwin felt smooth.

Gumball responded by shrugging and saying "I already knew that, but hearing it out loud is still nice."

Darwin just looked like he fainted. Carrie giggled.

"So what're you gonna do now?" Gumball asks.

"I dunno. What do people with bodies usually do?"

"Well…"


Gumball decided to take Carrie out for a night on the town to show her what having a body is all about. Darwin tags along, too, but mostly just to fawn over Carrie.

First they take her to Dessert Land.

"One Ice Cream Volcano, with extra sprinkles and frosting, please!" Gumball orders.

"Coming right up!" Larry, the cashier, responds.

"An ice cream volcano?" Carrie asks, thoroughly intrigued.

"Yep! It's this mountain of ice cream, and fudge erupts from the center!" Gumball explains.

Larry sets their order down. The ice cream brushes the ceiling, and Carrie gapes in amazement.

"Dig in! Hey buddy, aren't you gonna eat some?" Gumball asks Darwin.

Darwin doesn't hear him – he's crouched under the table, looking up at Carrie with sparkly eyes. Carrie looks down at him and giggles, sending him scurrying away, tripping at least three times before reaching the door.

"Umm, I gotta go get a makeover-I mean make myself beautiful-I MEAN play some games with Tobias! See ya!" he calls out as he makes his way out.

"Oh well, more for us!" Gumball hands Carrie a spoon. She takes it, and they tear into the ice cream. It tastes great! Carrie had used Gumball's body to eat before, but she never got to actually taste the food – she only experienced Gumball tasting it. Before long, they reach the cherry on top.

"Hmm, Darwin and I usually rock, paper, scissors for it, but seeing how it's your first time…why don't you just take it?"

Carrie blushes. "Thanks, Gumball," she says, popping the cherry into her mouth. It was delicious – she could see why they put it on top: saving the best part for last! "Mmmmmmm…"

Carrie practically pranced out the ice cream shop. Happiness was a great feeling.

"So, what's next?" she eagerly asked Gumball.

'Next' turned out to be a movie.

"Despicable Me 2? Umm, are you sure about this? I hated the first one. There was no death or darkness…"

"That was back when you were dead. Now you're alive, which means you should be able to appreciate the humor in it!"

"Well, okay!"


"Un DER Weaaaaaar!" a minion sang on the screen. Gumball and Carrie were laughing hysterically at it.

"Ha! The original song goes 'I swear', but the minions' gibberish makes it sound like 'underwear'!" Gumball points out the obvious.

As the credits rolled, Gumball and Carrie were still laughing.

"Ah, man. Movies are a lot better when pain isn't the only thing you can feel!" Carrie says.

"Yeah…well, it's getting late, I should probably go home and get some sleep." Gumball yawns.

"Wait, can you show me how to sleep, too?"

"You're kidding, right? You've never slept before?"

"Well…no. Does the phrase 'restless ghost' mean nothing to you?"

"Uh, basically you just lie down and close your eyes…"

"That's it?"

"That's it."

"…Would you mind showing me at my house?"

"Ehhh, I guess. It's really not that hard, though."


A few minutes later, they are in Carrie's room. Gumball is on Carrie's bed, demonstrating the proper sleeping position.

"So yeah, you just get comfortable, close your eyes, and eventually you'll fall asleep." Gumball explains. He yawned, but quickly shook himself awake. He had to be careful – it'd be pretty awkward explaining his sleeping at Carrie's house on Carrie's bed next to Carrie to his parents or worse, to Penny.

"O…kay. Scoot over, let me try."

Gumball gets off the bed. "Sorry, my mom says boys and girls aren't supposed to share beds unless they're 'together'".

Carrie looked confused, but she was too tired to seek an explanation. She just lay down and closed her eyes…

"My eyelids are getting heavy…"

"That just means you're doing it right. Well, I should get going before my mom gets worried. See ya tomorrow!"

"Thanks, Gumball," she yawned. Within a few minutes, she was asleep. Gumball turned out her lights and made her way out of the house. To his surprise and horror, he saw Penny, hands on her hips and an angry look on her face.

"Well, someone looks like he had a good evening cheating on his girlfriend!" she says fiercely.

Uh oh... Gumball thought.


Note: this part takes place after school on the same day

Penny didn't really feel comfortable with Carrie spending so much time with Gumball. She was staring at him for the entire class, and now Gumball invited her over to his house! She wanted to follow them, just to be sure they weren't doing anything behind her back, but she had cheerleader practice. Besides, Gumball liked her; everyone could see that. She just pretends not to know it to humor him. Any day now he'll confess his feelings to her.

"OUCH!" someone yelled. Penny was suddenly aware of where she was.

"Sorry Carmen!" Penny was supposed to catch her.

"What happened? You're usually so focused…" Teri asks.

"It's nothing, I was just thinking about a certain someone…"

"Gumball, huh?" Carmen asks.

Penny nodded.

"Does it have anything to do with the fact that he invited Carrie to his house?" asked Molly.

Penny nodded again.

"Well don't worry – I heard Gumball was just helping her get her own body."

"Carrie's going to possess him again?"

"Nooo, something about her wanting her own body or something."

The girls looked at her.

"I didn't really get it either."

"Anyway…good practice today, girls. Remember, the game's in three days! I'll give you a day off tomorrow, but we're practicing the last two days, got it?" Carmen ordered. She was the head cheerleader, and a good one at that. She was dedicated to the team.

"Aye aye, captain!" the girls replied.

"Dismissed!"

"Hey, Penny, you wanna check out my new tree house?" Molly asks.

"You built another one?"

"Yup! Only this time, there's no tree…it's just a house."

"Sounds great, but I'm gonna head over to Dessert Land first for a milk shake. Some other time, maybe!" The girls split up after school. Carmen had another after school activity to tend to, Teri and Molly went over to Molly's new tree house, and Penny headed to her favorite dessert place. She still remembered the time she shared an ice cream volcano with Gumball. Darwin was there, too, but Penny liked pretending it was just her and Gumball. It wasn't that she hated Darwin, she just wished she could spend more time alone with Gumball.

Penny sighed as she reached the entrance to the ice cream place.

"Mmm, usually Darwin and I rock, paper, scissors for it, but seeing how it's your first time…why don't you just take it?" a familiar voice said. Penny was about to run inside and say hi to Gumball when another familiar voice responded, this one female.

"Thanks, Gumball." Penny perked up. Gumball was at a dessert place with another girl? She peered through the window. It was Carrie! And she was beautiful now! And, worst of all, she was flirting with Gumball! Penny wanted to storm in there and take her future boyfriend back, but realized she could be making a huge mistake. Gumball wouldn't betray me like that…would he? Penny thought. Sticking to the shadows, she follows the two of them out of the shop and into the movie theater. A movie? What is this, a date? Penny was on the verge of tears – she felt safe because she thought Gumball could never attract another girl's attention, but there were extraordinary circumstances…Gumball got Carrie a beautiful new body. She must have been grateful – grateful enough to be his girlfriend…

Penny very nearly screamed, but she held on to a shred of hope that this is just a misunderstanding. When the movie finished, they started walking somewhere. Penny had a feeling she knew where they were headed, but she didn't want to believe it.

Her suspicious were confirmed when they pulled up to an imposing dark, malevolent mansion – Carrie's house. As if just walking her home wasn't enough to break Penny's heart, Gumball entered the house with her! The evidence was overwhelming. Penny broke into tears. She wasn't sure how long she sat crying in the bushes, but she noticed Gumball leaving.

I'm gonna give him a piece of my mind, she thought.

She emerges from the bushes, puts her hands on her hips, and in the sternest voice possible, says "Well, someone looks like he had a good evening cheating on his girlfriend!"