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As it was her daily routine, Karen mopped the floors and scrubbed the tables in the restaurant after she was finished dusting all the matrass and inventions in the laboratory.
She knew no costumers would come to see the fruits of her labor, but she didn't see this as an excuse to let the Chum Bucket rot in its own filth and rust.
Every day, she got up early in the morning so she would finish cleaning before opening time. In the meanwhile, Plankton would continue to sleep and dream of world domination.
However, that day, when she woke up, Plankton was no longer in bed.
It didn't surprise her.
Karen knew very well where her husband was.
He had locked himself in his studio. He did this a couple of times each month, usually either before Karen got up or after she went into sleep mode.
It was a habit that went back from the time Karen had first been activated.
Whatever he did inside was something Plankton kept completely to himself.
Once, a few years ago, Karen's curiosity had gotten the best of her, and she had questioned Plankton about it. More than asked, she had demanded an answer, and her monotonous voice hadn't concealed the growing jealousy that had been accumulating inside her.
Plankton had stared at her, his eye squinted in a reproaching look that made Karen feel guilty.
"Respect my privacy, Karen. Just because we are married it doesn't mean we have to get involved into each other's business all the time."
Back then, the answer had made her furious. She had thrown Plankton out of the Chum Bucket for hours. She didn't allow him back inside until midnight, after he had sung her his whole repertory of love ballads and promised her that, whatever he did in his studio, it was nothing she should worry about.
Karen hadn't believed him, she still didn't, but she had concluded that what Plankton had said wasn't unreasonable or unfair.
He could be clingy and jealous at times, but he usually gave her her own space, and didn't intrude in her business or checked her stuff behind her back.
If Plankton did that for her, she could do the same for him.
His secretiveness about the whole thing still bothered her, but she had learnt to let it slide.
After all, whatever Plankton did in his studio really had no consequence in their daily lives, so what good would it do if she kept worrying about it?
With organics, sometimes playing dumb was a requirement to keep the peace. Or in her case, it was a necessity to keep her marriage stable and happy.
After finishing scrubbing the last table, Karen looked at the clock hanging above the main door. Thirty minutes before opening time.
Good.
That's was more than enough time to to fill the napkins dispensers and then call SpongeBob.
She had just finished filling the first dispenser when she heard a knocking sound.
"Sheldon, is that you?" She asked. She looked around, but Plankton was nowhere to be seen.
Another knocking. It came from outside the main door.
Stunned by the unexpected guest, Karen put down the dispenser and looked through the door's window.
It was Sandy.
"What is she doing here?" Karen whispered to herself as she opened the door. "Sandy?"
"Karen, my gal pal!" Sandy greeted with a smile. There was something off about her, but Karen couldn't pin down what. "Long time no see!"
"Hasn't it been only like ten hours?"
"Well, that's almost half a day when you think about it." Sandy chuckled. She had mildly stuttered her words. "Anyway, I was hoping we could talk."
"Talk? Now?"
"Is that a problem?"
"No, not all. It's just a bit… unexpected." Karen did her best to sound affable. It wasn't that she resented Sandy's intrusion, but she had never been fond of unexpected changes. "Come on in."
"No!" Sandy exclaimed. Her cheeks turned crimson, and she tried to laugh it off. "Maybe we should talk outside! It's a beautiful day, and there's nothing like the warm morning sunlight in your face when you are talking with a friend."
"It's okay, Sandy. You don't have to pretend." Said Karen as she stepped outside and closed the door behind her. "I admit the Chum Bucket can be a bit depressing if you are not used to its…"
"Silent quietude?"
"I was going to say demoralizing desolation, but that works too."
Karen decided to humor her friend. After all, she had some time to spare.
They walked together and sat down on a bench near the roadway. From the other side of the street, Mr. Krabs was opening the Krusty Krab. He looked at them with a happy grin in the corner of his mouth and nodded.
Sandy answered with a wave of her hand. Karen simply nodded back at him.
"So what is it you wanted to talk about?" Karen asked Sandy.
"I have no idea."
"What?"
"I mean-" Sandy rubbed her hands uncontrollably and bit her lower lip. "How you've been?"
"You mean since last night?"
"Yes."
"Fines, I guess. Not much happened."
"How interesting!"
"Interesting? That's not how I would describe it." Karen gazed at Sandy with a confused expression. Her friend's smile twitched, as if her muscles were about to give in after being forced to keep that grin for so long. "What's the matter with you? You seem nervous."
"No, I don't."
"Yes, you do."
"Anyway, how's everything with Plankton?" Interrupted Sandy.
"Oh, you know. Same old, same old…" Karen said calmly, but she quickly adopted a more serious tone. "Wait, why are you asking me this? Is your interest in my love life so strong that you had to come see me this early in the morning? I don't know whether to be flattered or disturbed."
"You two make and interesting couple!"
"That's one way to put it…. Wait, you are digressing again! Listen, Sandy, it's not that I don't enjoy senseless blabbering, but you're acting weird. It's freaking me out a bit."
"I…I- "Sandy didn't say much beyond that.
"Look, let's talk more once you've calmed down a bit, alright? I'll be busy today, but I'll call you tomorrow. We could go for a coffee or something." Karen stood up. "I really have to go now. Take care, Sandy."
She had barely taken two steps when she felt Sandy's hand on her wrist.
"Wait." Sandy let go of Karen as soon as she got her attention. Her expression was back to normal now, and Karen could see honest shame in her eyes. "I'm sorry I acted like this. There's something I really wanted to talk about with you, but…Darn it, I'm not very good at this!"
"Just say it." Urged Karen firmly.
She wasn't angry, but one thing she had learnt through her experiences with organics was that the more they hesitated, the less likely it was for them to do or say what they wanted.
"I'm sorry."
"You've already said that. Just say what you really want to already."
"That's what I wanted to say." Repeated Sandy. "I'm sorry."
Karen felt how her circuits took a while to process that information.
"I don't think I understand." She admitted.
Sandy sighed and rubbed her frown with her fingers.
"I'm sorry about what I said last night." She spoke without looking at Karen. "I got carried away. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable, Karen. I'm sorry."
Ah, so that's what it was. Karen should have known.
Organics. She thought. Always so sentimental.
She considered that characteristic was as amusing as it was endearing.
"It's alright Sandy." Karen said. "You didn't make me feel that way."
"Then, why did you leave without saying anything?"
"I…" It was Karen's turn to stutter. "Okay, I did feel uncomfortable, but it wasn't your fault. You spoke your mind, and I like that."
"Still, I shouldn't have said what I said."
"No, what you did wasn't wrong." Karen put a hand on her shoulder. "Sandy, do you know hard it is to find someone who will tell me what they truly think of me? Most of them don't understand me enough to give me an opinion worth hearing, others are afraid I will go rouge if they make me angry, while others just don't think the questions of a robot are worth answering. Sometimes, even what Sheldon tells me feels…"
Karen stopped herself before she spoke too much. Those were thoughts she didn't feel like sharing, at least not in that moment.
"Please." She continued, acting is the last sentence hadn't left her mouth. "Don't ever stop being honest with me. Even if you think that what you say is harsh, even if I get upset, even if I don't like what I hear, don't stop doing it."
Sandy opened her mouth, but said nothing. Instead, she nodded in agreement.
Her expression had relaxed. Karen felt relieved too.
She knew well this sort of little misunderstandings could become unsolvable if they were left unspoken.
"Boy, I feel as if a statue had been lifted from my shoulders." Said Sandy. "So…do you still want to be part of the Sponge Squirrel Star Gaming Club?"
"Of course I do. I can't abandon you all now." Karen folder her arms and gave Sandy a smug grin. "You'd be lost without me."
"Your humbleness is inspiring."
Their laughter was interrupted by the deafening echo of three screaming voices.
They looked at the Chum Bucket at the same time.
"SpongeBob! Patrick!" Exclaimed Sandy. She ran off before Karen had the chance to ask any questions.
Karen followed closely behind her. The screams had shaken her to the core, and while a tiny part of her feared for the sponge and the starfish, her thoughts were all focused on one person.
Sheldon.
It was all she could think of.
From inside the Krusty Krab, Mr. Krabs caught a glance of the two women, and thought how never in his life he had seen someone run so fast.
The three friends stopped behind the Chum Bucket.
"Here we are!" SpongeBob said. He put down a box filled with games and the console.
"I've told you SpongeBob, I'm not good at this."
"Don't worry Sandy, you'll be fine. Just keep her distracted for a few minutes while me and Patrick set up the party."
"Something tells me Karen is not very fond of surprise parties..."
"Don't be silly Sandy. Everyone loves surprise parties, even Squidward!" Added Patrick. He was carrying a box stuffed with snacks and sodas. It had taken every ounce of his self-control not to engulf it all on his way to the Chum Bucket.
"Alright, I'll do it." Said a mortified Sandy. "But hurry up! And don't let Plankton see you. I don't want him to make a scene out of this."
"We can deal with Plankton." Said SpongeBob.
"We'll just step on him."
"Patrick, remember we agreed to do that only as our last resort."
"Oh, right. Sorry."
"Just be careful you two." Said Sandy. She left, wondering in silence why she had even agreed to take part in that scheme.
SpongeBob and Patrick waited until Sandy and Karen were far away from the Chum Bucket before their next move.
"Okay, now it's our chance!" Said SpongeBob.
He used Patrick's shoulders as a stair to climb his way into the Chum Bucket's laboratory through an opened window.
Once inside, he became ready to catch the two boxes Patrick threw at him through the window. He managed to catch them without making much noise.
"Now it's your turn, Patrick." He announced as softly as possible. A second later, his whole body became crushed under Patrick's wait.
"Good thing I landed on a pillow." Patrick got up. "Oh, it's just you SpongeBob."
He helped him back on his feet.
SpongeBob swiftly put a hand on Patrick's mouth and hushed him. Luckily for them both, Plankton didn't seem to have heard them.
"Remember Patrick." He whispered in the other's ear. "Nice and quiet."
"What? I can't hear you!"
He covered Patrick's mouth again. Perhaps the less he explained and the sooner they got into action, the better.
He handed over the snacks box to Patrick and ordered him with hand signs to put them in a table nearby.
Patrick complied happily, and though his work was messy at best, SpongeBob didn't have the heart to chide him.
At the same time, SpongeBob opened the box where the games were and took a bag filled with balloons and confetti. Using his mouth and the holes in his face, he managed to get all the balloons ready in a matter of seconds.
As for the confetti, he tossed it around the laboratory while skipping like a little child. He also put some decorations on the walls and on Plankton's deactivated inventions scattered all around the laboratory's floor.
The place soon began to look livelier. They were almost done, and all there was left was to install the console into the big screen that Karen had once used as her preferred physical body.
SpongeBob carried the console to the screen.
He grabbed the cables and prepared to plug them in, but he felt strangely uncomfortable doing so. He wasn't sure why.
"Something tells me that if Plankton saw me, he would destroy me."
He gulped. He knew he had to hurry, but he hadn't expected that obstacle.
"SpongeBob!" Patrick said in a decently low voice.
"Not now Patrick, I'm in a bit of a tight spot."
"Seriously, look at this!"
"Not so loud!" SpongeBob turned around.
His jaw dropped to the floor and his heart skipped a beat.
He left the console forgotten on the floor and went to Patrick's side. His friends was no less in awe than him.
"Holy fish paste!" SpongeBob said with teary eyes.
"I've never seen anything this beautiful since the donut I had for breakfast." Said Patrick. In his hand, he held the old, white cloak that had covered his new discovery.
"What kind of console is this anyway?" SpongeBob caressed the giant purple cube and examined it so closely that his eyes watered. "I don't think it's out in the market yet. No, scratch that. It hasn't even been announced!"
"Karen must be well connected." Said Patrick. "I wonder if she can help me get some of those discontinued barnacle chips. I miss them so much."
"Oh Patrick! With my new game and this shady but unique console, this party is going to be legendary!"
"Yeah!"
"Woo-hoo!"
"YEEHAW!"
"OH BOY!
"What's all that noise?!"
The angry, meddling voice brought SpongeBob back to his senses. He tried to silence Patrick, but it didn't matter.
Plankton was already there. He had stormed out of his studio so quickly that SpongeBob was surprised the floor hadn't caught fire.
SpongeBob giggled and gave him an awkward smile.
"Hi Plankton."
"SpongeBob? What are you doing here? Are you here to lend us your game?" Plankton's initial calmness vanished as he noticed how his lab had been reduced to a poor imitation of a party saloon for kids. "You monsters! What have you done to my precious laboratory?"
"Wait, we can explain!"
"Get out! Karen, kick them out of here. Karen!"
"Shh." SpongeBob threw himself at Plankton and forced him to shut up. "Just listen."
As Plankton struggled in his hand, SpongeBob explained everything to him about the surprise party he had prepared for Karen, but Plankton didn't seem to be listening. Still, SpongeBob continued.
"…and that's why are gonna have this party. You can join us too, I'm sure that'll make Karen happy."
Plankton struggled against SpongeBob's hand. The veins around his eye stood up like overgrown roots.
"Plankton, please cooperate. I basically had to beg Mr. Krabs to give me the day off, and Patrick and Sandy had to call off very important meetings."
"Not to mention I'm going to miss the new episode of Mermaid Man Reloaded. The sacrifices I make for my friends…" Lamented Patrick from behind SpongeBob.
Plankton's eye was fixed on Patrick. He became even more agitated, but SpongeBob gave him no chance of breaking free.
"Listen. Karen and Sandy will come back any second now." He said. "We are doing this for Karen. It would be mean of you if you ruin this with one of your meltdowns. I'm going to let you go, but first you must promise me you'll try to be nice. If nor for us, then do it for Karen. What do you say? One blink for yes, two blinks for no."
Plankton, his eye still fixed on Patrick, winked several times. His muffled voice sounded desperate.
"What? Sorry, can you do it slower again?" Asked SpongeBob shyly.
"Forget it SpongeBob. Just step on him."
"Patrick, Plankton may be a barnacle head but-" SpongeBob turned around. His grip one Plankton loosened. "Patrick, what are you doing?"
Just as he spoke, Patrick inserted his new game inside the gigantic purple console.
"What? I just want to test it before the party starts." He shrugged.
"We were supposed to wait for Karen and Sandy!" Said an angry SpongeBob.
"It's just a little test…"
"You big, pink imbecile!" Plankton screamed. He stood bravely before Patrick , but the starfish remained unimpressed. "Do you have any idea of what you've done?!"
"Enough of you." Patrick lifted his foot.
Before he could squash Plankton, and before SpongeBob even had the chance to stop them, a blinding white light emerged from the console's slot and engulfed them like fire.
The three of them screamed in unison.
Moments later, Karen and Sandy came in running. The last thing SpongeBob Saw before his reality became a white space of nothingness was Karen's surprised expression.
She was screaming a name.
SpongeBob tried to reach her, as he tried to reach Sandy, Patrick and Plankton, but the light swallowed them all in an instant.
Soon, it engulfed all of Bikini Bottom and its habitants. It caught them off guard, and it happened so quickly that most had no time to understand what was going on.
The light engulfed Mrs. Puff as she was driving to her school. It engulfed Larry as he was exercising in the gym. It engulfed Pearl as she talked with her friends on the phone.
However, the first one to be engulfed by it, besides SpongeBob and the rest, was Mr. Krabs.
His last thought before he disappeared was if, somehow, that light could be one of Plankton's schemes to steal the Secret Formula.
