Chapter 3

Darwin couldn't get any sleep that night. What mostly revolved in his mind was the past two days event that had kept him wide awake. And accompanying his troubles was the fact the Anais was probably already vanquished, if not then it was still an imminent fate sooner or later. Darwin had too much energy and lying down wasn't going to help. Darwin got out from bed and walked out his bedroom quietly, ensuring Gumball wouldn't wake up. Darwin made his way back to the TV screen, with the awkward desire to try to find out what that little device was. Kneeling on the floor, Darwin searched for it in the dark, a very annoying component because the TV screen was dark as well, which added to his disadvantage. But he was able to limpidly spot a spot of white, and he put his head closer. He was wondering if it made any sounds. With the room being completely silent, he was able to hear the quietest sounds of whirring. So it was a machine in activation. But what did it do? Darwin wondered. He sat on his legs ans sighed. What was so frickin' important about the stupid little thing in the TV, Anais? Darwin raged in his mind.

He took a deep breath and massaged his temples. He sat on the couch and rested his back against the cushions.

" Darwin?" the voice pierced through the darkness. It echoed through the hallway, and Gumball was still in the bedroom. He heard his footsteps walk down the stairs. " Why are you awake?" Gumball asked, approaching the couch.

" I can't sleep." Darwin said idly. Gumball sat on the other side of the sofa.

" Is it because of Anais?" Gumball asked with a sigh. Darwin stayed silent from this, he should already know the answer. Gumball scratched his head.

" Is there...do you want to talk about it?" He asked. Darwin rose to his feet and began walking away. " Darwin, please. Answer me, I just want to help—"

" Then help by leaving me alone, Gumball. There's a start." Darwin said coldly. He continued walking up the stairs, leaving Gumball by himself.

• • •

It wasn't just a typical day in school. It was more annoying. Darwin seemed to attract the attention of almost everyone, because they were so concerned about his emotions. He could barely even walk past anyone without them repeating the same words, Are you alright? Or Did something happen? Do you want to talk about it? It began to drive him mad. Darwin stayed silent in his seat, in the middle of class. He had his head down, starting to receive a head ache.

" Darwin? You feeling okay?" Gumball whispered.

"...No...I. Am. Not." Darwin groaned.

" Do you need to go to the nurse?" Gumball asked. Darwin gave him a glare.

" Stop talking. That's what's going to help my head ache." He said sternly. Gumball eyes flashed with fear and he turned away, facing the chalk board. His head ache boomed every other sound in such a clamorous volume that he wouldn't be surprised if it was a migraine instead of an ache.

"DARWIN! SLEEPING AGAIN?" Ms. Simian screeched, which had left a remaining ring in his ears.

" Ms. Simian...I have a head ache...I can't concentrate, and you made it worst." Darwin replied. It stayed awkwardly silent for a moment, and she cleared her throat.

" Instead of just wallowing in your pain, why didn't you just get up, and ask for a pass for the nurse?" Ms. Simian asked in an accusing tone. Darwin looked up and sighed. Ms. Simian sat at her desk and pulled out a wad of sticky notes. She began scribbling on it with her blue pen and she tore it off the pad.

" Was that so hard?" Ms. Simian said. Darwin stood from his seat and ignored her question. He took the note from her hands.

" Thanks." Darwin said quietly. It was surprising how Ms. Simian was now willingly to help, in a non caring way, but nevertheless, she was still being more kind then usual. Though it was more only her actions that were changing, not her shrewish attitude.

Darwin gladly went to the nurse's office to receive some ibuprofen, something that would at least deplete the pain at an acceptable rate, unlike the unreliable acetaminophen that was only used for weaker fevers. He stopped at the nurse's room door, and he heard her on the phone. His headache made him dizzy, so he couldn't hear all of what she was saying.

" How do I know if it will work? I've never—We have never used this drug before! We didn't even test it to see if It works!" She snapped. Darwin held his head. What she was saying didn't make any sense to him, and he was in a hurry to end the pain. Darwin abruptly opened the door and she slammed the phone on it's receiver. She turned back to see him with a relieved sigh.

" You scared me." She said with a chuckle. An amused smile crept on her face until she looked back at her hands. " Oh, honey buns. I hung up, didn't I?" The nurse asked, moving her hands away from the phone. She gave an apathetic shrug. " Oh well. I'll call later. What can I help you with?" She said with a kind grin.

" Ms. Simian sent me...I have a horrible head ache." Darwin held out his hand with the note in it. She gave it a curious look and took it gently.

"Well, it's nothing I can't handle. Go sit down sweetie, I'll give you some ibuprofen." Darwin sat at the beds they supplied, and sighed. She left the room into her office and scanned her shelves that was teeming with other pills and liquid medicine. She swiped one off the shelf and entered back into the room.

" Here you go." She said, pouring him a glass of water and gave him a dosage of two pills. " Make sure you drink all the water." She said in a blissful tone. Darwin plopped the pills in his mouth, and guzzled down the cup of water.

" There now. You can rest for a while until your fever goes away." The nurse smiled friendly like, but she seemed to be a little nervous. Her buck like teeth were always showing, despite if her mouth was open or closed. Oddly enough, she was a bandage herself. She walked away and entered in her office and closed the door. Darwin rested his head on the fluffed pillow, which was relaxing. But it didn't hinder his head ache much. At least it was more comfortable then the desk. Darwin sighed, knowing that he was going to be bored until he fell asleep. He had the feeling that it wouldn't be another few hours until he actually did slumber, but he waited expectantly. But awkwardly, once he took a deep breath, it drained his energy along with his exhale. He began to feel drowsy and lethargic. Ibuprofen didn't make you tired at all. At least from what Darwin knew. Then everything began to blur his sight; even the simplest and biggest of words were unidentifiable.

"Ms? I'm not...ugh, I don't think that what you gave me was ibuprofen." Darwin said, trying to assemble a sentence. But she either didn't hear him, or she ignored him. He was about to call out again, but that was when everything began to blacken and mute, just like the time when Anais was first taken. The last thing he remembered was the terrified face that Anais had, when she knew it would be the last time they saw each other.

• • •

Darwin woke up in a shear panic. He began coughing and he felt sweat drip off his brow.

"You took a little nap there, didn't ya?" The nurse voice said playfully. She chuckled. " Well at least your head ache is gone. How do you feel?" She asked, leaning forward. Darwin glanced at her, and then remembered where he was.

"...I...don't remember much..." Darwin said out of breath. He blinked and looked at her again.

" Oh my. What do you remember?" She asked with her smile disappearing. She sat down at the other bed.

"...I...remember..going to the nurse about my head ache...I remember in class I was angry at Gumball...That's...that's about it—that's all." Darwin said, thinking deeply about the past.

" You don't remember anything else?" She asked, squinting her eyes slightly.

"...What happened to Anais?" Darwin asked.

" She went crazy...just like the others." The nurse said carefully. Darwin's eyes widened.

" She did? How?"

"...I don't know..." The nurse sighed and got up. " She was fine two days ago, and then she just...changed." The nurse watched him. Darwin was bewildered. How did she get crazy? He thought to himself.

" You can head back to class now." She said, crossing her arms across her chest. He nodded slowly and stood on his feet. He walked out of the room, concerned about his little sister.

Darwin opened the door to his class room and with a little surprise, it was empty. Ms. Simian looked at him with suspicion.

"It's lunch time." She said idly. Darwin looked at her, and a moment later he absorbed the information.

" Oh...right..okay thanks." Darwin nodded and closed the door. Twice already he thanked her, and it began to make him feel awkward.

Darwin opened the cafeteria doors and searched the room for Gumball. Maybe he knew the answer for Anais' disappearance. Everybody took cautionary glances at Darwin, as if they were trying to not make him notice if they were looking at him. But ignoring them, he looked for his brother. Sitting at a table by himself, Gumball sat at the way west side of the cafeteria. Darwin rushed to the seat beside him and sat himself down.

" Hey dude, you feeling better?" Gumball asked with a smile.

" What happened to Anais?" Darwin changed the subject. It made his smile disappear.

"...like...she went crazy." He shrugged apathetically. Darwin sighed impatiently.

" I know that, but how?" Darwin demanded. Gumball had a steady look on his face. He cleared his throat and turned his body towards him, giving him his full attention.

" Nobody really knows how, Darwin. People just...I dunno—switch or something." Gumball shook his head slightly, not at all confident in what he was saying.

"...But it's not like her, Gumball...She was fine a few days ago." Darwin sighed. "But that's not what's bothering me most...It's the fact is that I don't even remember her getting crazy. It's just blank..." Darwin rested his elbows on the table. He held his chin up with his knuckles.

"...Well...getting lunatic can happen to just about anyone, Darwin. It's just something we have to learn to accept." Gumball gently placed his hand on Darwin's shoulder.

"...But...why Anais?" Darwin said, closing his eyes. He tried to shield back his tears. " She's going to be vanquished." He said regretfully. Gumball sighed.

" I know...but there's nothing we can do about it now." He patted Darwin's back. Darwin tried his best to remember the event when Anais changed, but he couldn't. It was like if it was never part of his memory, as blank and void as a static on a television. Darwin buried his face in his palms.

" What was the last thing she said?" Darwin asked with a depressed sigh. With an awkward silence that Darwin felt it fall upon Gumball, he seemed to stiffen his breathing. He heard him shift in his seat.

"...She...she...she just said...She loved you as a...brother..." Gumball nervously picked out words from his mind. Darwin glanced at him; notifying his change in behavior.

" You okay?" He asked, a little indifferent.

" Yeah...yeah—I'm fine." Gumball cleared his throat. He removed his hand from Darwin's shoulder, and continued eating. Darwin sighed and stood from his seat. He departed out of the cafeteria, now feeling upset about Anais.

• • •

After Darwin left the cafeteria, everybody started murmuring quietly amongst themselves. Gumball knew what was going to happen next, and he regretfully waited. He heard a high pitch drone in his ear, and his muscles reacted by tensing up.

" Gumball! You could've triggered back his memory you idiot!" The voice was heard at the other side of Gumball's ear piece. He held his left ear.

" I didn't know what to say! I just got nervous!" Gumball pleaded. But the pitch got louder. It began to irritate his brain, causing a head ache. "I'm sorry, Gordon!" Gumball clasped his ears trying to mute the sound. The pitch stopped abruptly.

" You could've made something up instead of using that! If Darwin's remembers what happens, then you are going to pay for all of it!" Gordon shouted at the other side. After his scolding, he hung up and Gumball felt almost deaf at his left ear. Shivering and hesitantly, he softly felt his ear and could feel the trickle of blood spill out of it. He undid the ear piece, which was required to be hidden inside a created flap of skin in the ear. Usually made by cutting a layer of skin then preserving it from healing back into place. Gumball stuffed his ear with his napkins, and let it absorb the runny blood. Another mistake, and Gumball knew as well, that he might be vanquished.

• • •

Darwin couldn't get his mind off of the current events. Or at least the event's he could remember. Anais suddenly had become lunatic, and he didn't even get a chance to say good bye. The bell rang and it signaled their departure.

He waited for Gumball on the school steps for him to come outside. Absentmindedly, Darwin noticed the wave of people slowly decrease until there was there was only a few people exiting out the doors. Finally Gumball showed his face and pushed the doors open.

"What in the world took you so long?" Darwin asked impatiently. Gumball walked right passed him, and he seemed to be ignoring him. Darwin walked behind him and grasped his shoulder.

" Gumball, I'm talking to you." He said sternly. Gumball flinched and took a brief glance at him.

" What?" He inquired, as if he didn't even hear him.

" I asked what took you so long." Darwin repeated; a little more concerned then annoyed. Gumball sighed.

" Sorry. I didn't hear you. I can't really hear out of one ear right now. I tried to clean it out, so it's why I took so long." Gumball shrugged apathetically. And he turned around and continued walking away. With the sudden change of behavior, it gave Darwin a little bit of concern, but he didn't linger on too much on the subject. A horn blared, and their mother veered by the side walk. They jogged towards the car and Darwin entered into the back seat. The leather interior was always a disadvantage on any occasion; if it were hot outside, the leather would absorb all of the heat. If it were snowing, The leather wouldn't generate any heat. Right now it was unbearably warm on his back, as Darwin strapped himself into the seat belt.

" How was school?" Nicole asked, keeping her eyes into the street.

" It was alright." Gumball indifferently answered for both of them. " Just the usual boring day." He added as an afterthought. Darwin got a sense of hope suddenly fall upon him.

" Mom?" Darwin began.

" Yes?"

" How did Anais become crazy?" Darwin repeated his question. Again, the same anxious silence had emanated from her, and her motility had seemed to stiffen.

"...I'm not exactly sure of the cause of events Darwin, but I know that she became crazy just like the others did; nobody really knows why, Sweetie. I can't really help you with you question." She said, peering out into her window, watching for any passing by cars before taking a right into the lane. Darwin's hope sank into disappointment.

"...When did she change? And why can't I remember it?" Darwin asked with a sigh.

" She seemed to change yesterday, dear. But I'm not sure why you can't remember." Nicole said, peaking at him in the rear view mirror, taking her eyes off the windshield for a second, then switching back to the road. None of this was helping Darwin. Nobody would be able to answer him, and it only made matters worse. Darwin leaned his head on the window and his head vibrated against it. He felt almost sorrowful for Anais.

" Honey, I know it's hard to accept that Anais is going to be vanquished, but there's really nothing we can do about it. It's...It's not our decision—"

" And why can't it be ours? She's part of our family."

" I know she is, Darwin." Nicole stopped in the middle of her sentence and sighed.

"...Why does she have to die for it?" Darwin asked depressed. He fought back the tears that watered his eyes. And with the inevitable silence, they didn't answer him. And the painful memories had replayed in his mind which only wrenched his heart. Anais was only 5 years old; and she wasn't even going to live the rest of her life. It truly was a cruel, twisted world they lived in.