Mordecai's POV

"Morning, Pops!" I say as I open his door. "Why, hello there Mordecai! I was just wondering if you could quite possibly check under my bed again," I smiled kindly at the child-like man as he said this. At least once a week, for the past month or so, Pops would wake up from a nightmare. He never tells me much about them other than the fact that it's always the same nightmare and asks if I could please not mention it to the others.

It's a pretty well-known fact that the lollipop-humanoid gets scared easily, even more so than Rigby, and it bugs me that there's something spooking him out to the extent that it is. "No problem, Pops. Same dream again?" I ask as I peer under the bed. "I'm afraid so. I am rather uncertain as to what the cause may be, but it seems to be worsening. The image is just so… s-so vivid and so… a-and um…" I put my feathery palm on his quivering shoulder and looked at his crestfallen face. "It'll be okay, Pops, don't worry." I smiled at him again. "Remember, I'm always here to listen if you ever feel like spilling the beans."

"Spilling the what? I assure you, there will be spilling of beans, don't you worry. What a mess that would make!" The stick-thin man threw his arms over his excessively large cranium with a confused and rather sympathetic expression on his face. "Now if you'll please excuse me, I would like to get properly attired for the day ahead," I nodded my head quickly and left the room, Pops smiling after me. He's just as batty as he's always been, I chuckled to myself.

I headed downstairs and onto the massive blue house's porch to see if anyone was early for our morning staff briefing. Why am I awake so early anyway? I checked my phone for any texts from CJ or Benson. Nothing. As soon as a sigh escaped my beak, I saw Muscle Man and Hi Fives approach with what appeared to be the remnants of their morning meal still in their hands.

"Hey bro, you know who else likes hot-dogs for breakfast?" Muscle Man looked expectantly and overly cheerfully at Hi Fives before hurriedly finishing his signature joke by blurting out: "My mom!" They both started laughing ecstatically and proceeded to hi-five each other. "Good one, man! Hey Mordecai," I looked up when the little ghost said my name. "Hey guys," I greeted them both before continuing to stare longingly at my screen. C'mon, CJ, wake up.

Even if CJ was busy tonight, I could still do something with Rigby and Eileen. I didn't have to spend every waking hour with CJ, and it was okay if she was busy. I sent the text too last-minute, I mean what the heck, maybe she wasn't even awake yet and …Oh crap, I'm over-thinking everything again. I laughed at my unnecessary nervousness, earning me a weird look from my greasy co-worker, Muscle Man. Before he could open his mouth to comment, Skips, Rigby and Benson arrived.

"Alright everyone, I'm going to do a quick roll call," Benson said as he skimmed the stairs for missing staff members. "Skips, Muscle Man and Hi Five Ghost, Mordecai and Rigby. Great, it seems the only person missing is Pops," The red gumball machine seemed impressed with the overall turnout, and even mustered a small smile in my general direction. "Right, I guess I can start giving you guys' instructions, I'm sure Pops already knows today's agenda. So, as you should have read in the e-mail I sent out to you all, the park is in need of some basic maintenance. I discussed the situation with Mr Maellard and we've decided to-" "I am terribly sorry for being late, Benson. I got a tad preoccupied, and I didn't mean to interrupt you." I looked away from Benson to see a rather tired-looking Pops smiling apologetically at us all before taking a seat on the stairs like the rest of us.

"That's okay, Pops. Now, as I was saying, we've decided to…" Benson carried on talking but I couldn't take my eyes off of Pops. His eyes were sunken in, had they been that way this morning? He seemed less energetic than usual, and his eyes weren't as lit-up as usual. Although he was smiling, something was obviously up, and I had a feeling that his wacko dreams might have something to do with it.

Margaret's POV

I was sitting at the kitchen table with my empty, pale yellow mug in front of me; listening to Eileen talking about Rigby. "He even sent me a message this morning, I think we might be hanging out with Mordecai and CJ tonight. Isn't it exciting?" She looked at me expectantly, almost ready to jump out of her seat. "I mean, not to be weird or anything, we hang out all the time, but still. I have a good feeling about it, Margaret!" I grinned at my rather enthusiastic friend. "It sounds great, Eileen. I'm happy for you guys! Did he mention what movie you guys would be watching?" I asked, attempting to participate in the conversation.

"Oh, he said Mordecai would handle it. Rigby was actually thinking about having the movie night here, but I'm not sure what they've decided yet. I also don't want to keep you up or distract you from writing those research reports, so I think we'll just have it at the park." Eileen smiled at me jubilantly. "Awesome! You guys wouldn't be a bother though, so if they wanna have it here then go for it! I'll just turn up my music. Besides, it might be nice to see Mordecai and Rigby again. It's been a while, and I want to try be on friendlier terms with CJ. I won't hang out with you guys, but I don't mind greeting. If all else fails then I could spend the night at Del's house or go visit my parents." I was eager to let Eileen know that she could make plans and spend time with other people if she wanted to. Just because we were living together didn't mean we couldn't have our own separate lives.

"Really? You'd be cool with that? Thank you!" The short mole was beaming at me as she exclaimed this. "Yeah, no problem," I smiled back at her. Truthfully, I was also hoping that seeing Mordecai would help give me closure and overall just get him off of my mind. I hadn't had a real conversation with him for ages, and I'd had so many incidents with CJ that meant he didn't even feel comfortable hugging me anymore. I still wonder how long it took him to get over the breakup. Maybe he was also going through this and the closure would do us both good.

"Ah, shoot! It's already twenty to nine! I've gotta get ready, I'll see you later Eileen!" I stood up and rushed out of the kitchen. I was going to an interview straight after breakfast with Del, so I probably needed to wear something more formal and interview-ready than a shirt and jeans. I climbed the stairs, thinking of outfit ideas. My regular work clothes seemed too formal, so I settled for a basic sundress and threw on a necklace. The last time I'd worn it was when I was on a date with Mordecai, and it brought up a lot of memories. Mordecai. I need to stop thinking about him and get him out of my head!

I ran back down the stairs, grabbed my bag and was out the front door. "Remember, if you forgot your keys or need a spare, there's a set under the ceramic turtle in the front garden! Enjoy your date and good luck!" Eileen called after me. "Got it, thank you!" I replied, closing the door behind me. I jumped into my rust-red car and made my way in the general direction of the café I was meeting Del at. Today was going to be a long day.

I know it's a bit boring right now, I have a few plots unfolding soonish though. :-) I think I like writing from Mordecai's perspective more, but that's also because nothing's really happening in Margaret's yet (Stuff will happen, there is a game plan).

Thank you for the positive feedback and I hope you guys liked the second chapter. The story line will start developing more in the next chapter hopefully. ^^