Twisted
Chapter Four – New Roommates
"My first three years in high school were pretty great," Pascal recalls, lying down on red velvet colored psychiatrist-styled chair, "It wasn't until I became a senior that I faced my first bullying problem. You know, everyone likes to talk about how much General Buzz used to beat up Vidcund and me in high school, but no one ever talks about what happened the day he beat up Lazlo…"
"Die, bully!" a teenaged Pascal cries, as he punches Buzz in the stomach near the back of the schoolyard. Vidcund is punching Buzz in the shoulder while Lazlo is cowering behind the tree, physically beat, their entire class watching the fight behind him.
"Once Buzz beat up Lazlo, the two of us decided to take a stand," Pascal reminisces, staring up at the ceiling, "The sad thing was, even with both Vidcund and I punching our hardest, we still couldn't take down Buzz-"
"Uh, sir?" the furniture salesman states, stepping up behind the Curious brother, his nametag reading: 'Hello, My Name is Bob.' "Do you want to buy the chair or not?" he wonders.
Pascal shakes his head, snapping out of the memory. "Oh," Pascal sits up and glances at the pink price tag that is attached to lounge chair. "Yeah, okay," he nods.
…
Fifteen minutes later, Pascal is walking along the Road to Nowhere, whistling a happy tune as he gazes around the desert with his hands in his pockets. Pascal stops in his tracks when he sees a familiar sim standing in the corner of the Road to Nowhere and Tesla Court.
"Loki!" Pascal cries, waving his hands wildly at the scientist from across the road, "Hey Loki! It's me, Pascal!" Loki turns away from him, waving the sudden distraction away with his hand. "You know, Pascal from work?!" Pascal shouts louder, "Yoohoo! Look over here!" Loki doesn't budge. "Okay fine, I'll just come over there!" Pascal yells.
Pascal runs across the street and heads towards Loki, now noticing a mysterious other sim standing next to his co-worker. Pascal stops in front of the pair and smiles, giving them a small wave. "Hey Loki, what are you up to?" Pascal asks his rival, immediately turning to the other sim before he can respond. Pascal looks the sim over, finding his choice of hair and clothing intriguing. "Who's this?" he asks suddenly.
"This, Pascal, is Nervous," Loki states reluctantly, "He's our…roommate," he says, stroking his chin. "Yeah, that's a good lie," Loki mumbles under his breath.
"Oh. Hi Nervous, I'm Pascal," Pascal greets, holding his hand out.
"-Don't talk to the test subject!" Loki barks, "I mean-roommate. You know, cause he lives with us?" Loki quickly recovers, "Yeah, Circe and I have decided to rent some of our rooms out so more people can be exposed to our sophisticated lifestyle."
"Ah, marital problems already? Can't say I'm surprised," Pascal remarks, "Does this mean I win the bet?"
Loki scrunches his forehead. "What bet?" he wonders.
Pascal steps back, suddenly realizing that he's talking to Loki. He looks down at the ground and starts fiddling with his hands. "You know, the one that doesn't exist?" Pascal completes, giving a nervous laugh. "So, you seem cool," Pascal tells Nervous, "Maybe we can hang out sometime."
"-No," Loki swiftly cuts Nervous off before he can respond, "I don't think so. He's going to be really busy, trust me."
Pascal crosses his arms over his chest, a peculiar stare on his face. "Well, that doesn't sound shady at all," he comments, narrowing his eyes at Loki. Pascal turns back to Nervous, his pleasant demeanor instantly returning. "So I guess I'll see you around!" Pascal waves, before turning around and heading back to his house.
…
"Vidcund? VIDCUND!" Pascal shouts, bursting open the front door of their estate.
"God Pascal, what is it?" Vidcund groans, groggily stepping out of his bedroom and rubbing his tired eyes. Vidcund slowly walks over to his brother, the legs of his sweatpants dragging against the floor.
"Loki got a new roommate and you have to meet him!" Pascal explains, his eyes shining, "I already met him, his name is Nervous. I wanted to hang out with him, but Loki seemed rather against the idea."
Vidcund yawns and rubs his eye once more. "Then maybe you should stay away from him."
"What? Are you kidding? The fact that Loki doesn't want me around him only makes me want to hang out with Nervous more! Honestly Vidcund, don't you know anything about psychology?" Pascal questions.
"-A little," Vidcund mutters, "But why do you need me to come?"
"So you can distract Loki, duh!" Pascal states, as if it were obvious. "For some reason he only lets me in his house if you're there. Hmm…I wonder why that is?" Pascal says, bringing his hand up to his chin ponderously.
Vidcund quickly steps forward, his eyes widening. "No use pondering that over now, let's go!" Vidcund exclaims, pushing Pascal towards the door.
…
One walk down the Road to Nowhere later, Pascal and Vidcund are stepping onto the front porch of the Beaker estate. Vidcund sighs as he turns to Pascal, who is just about to ring the doorbell. "I don't know about this, Pascal," Vidcund speaks up, clearly uneasy, "Are you sure it's a good idea to leave Lazlo alone for this long?"
Pascal rings the doorbell and waves his hand down. "Relax Vid, I'm sure he's fine."
Meanwhile, back at the house, Lazlo is fast asleep on his bed. Two burglars are holding the bed up steadily, slowly moving it out the side door. Lazlo turns on his side and snores, still in a deep slumber.
Back at the Beaker residence, Loki swings open the front door, his face falling when he sees Pascal standing on the other side of it. "What do you want, Pascal?" he groans, a slight irritation in his voice.
"We want to see your roommate and welcome him to the neighborhood!" Pascal exclaims. Behind him, Vidcund looks uncomfortable.
"-No."
"Come on!" Pascal urges, stepping forward.
Loki crosses his hands in front of his chest. "No," he states firmly.
"Well, that's too bad, cause we're coming in anyway," Pascal says, pushing his way into the house. He steps into the living room and smiles. "Oh hi, Circe!" Loki rolls his eyes.
"Are you going to come in too, dingus?" Loki wonders, staring up at the scientist that is still standing in the doorway.
"Can I?" Vidcund asks wondrously.
Loki shrugs and steps aside. "-Knock yourself out."
…
"Wow, that Nervous is quite the guy!" Pascal beams, as he and Vidcund walk down the Road to Nowhere later that afternoon. "Do you think that's his real name?" he wonders.
"I don't know," Vidcund says as the pair turns the corner and heads up Cover Up Road, "Maybe it's a nickname or something-Oh my gosh!" Vidcund exclaims, stopping in his tracks when he sees their house, "What happened here?!"
The two brothers step forward and eye the beaten down structure. A few of the windows are cracked and the door is ripped off its hinges. The shrubbery is a complete mess and has been stomped on as a bunch of muddy boot prints lead into the house.
"We've been robbed…during the day!" Vidcund cries, turning away from the tarnished shrubbery and grabbing Pascal by the shoulders, "Who does that?!" he shouts, panickily shaking Pascal by the shoulders.
A few feet behind them, Lazlo wakes up, lying stomach-down in the sand where the robbers left him. Lazlo looks around at the destruction. "-Huh," he chimes, clearly dumb-founded, "Imagine that."
"I don't understand, why didn't you stop them?" Vidcund asks, staring down at his younger brother.
Lazlo shrugs. "I would've tried, but it was nap time."
Vidcund groans and slaps his forehead. "See? I told you we shouldn't have left him home alone!"
"Vidcund, he's twenty-five years old," Pascal begins, hoping to cease his brother's glares, "If we can't leave him alone now, we never will."
"Unbelievable!" Vidcund outbursts, "Now we're out hundreds of dollars!"
"Now, now, I'm sure they didn't take that much," Pascal replies, the brothers dispersing into the scene of the crime. Vidcund steps into the kitchen while Lazlo makes his way to the nearest bedroom. Pascal sighs and moseys on into the living room. He grabs the television remote off the computer table and squats down. Pascal falls to the floor, the chair missing from its usual spot.
Pascal scans the area, looking down at the empty floor beneath him, shocked. "Well, that's weird," he states, aiming the remote and pressing the power button. Pascal gazes up, only to realize that the television is gone as well, the white-painted wall completely bare in front of him. Pascal turns towards the kitchen, "Vid!" he calls.
Vidcund enters the room, carrying one of their steel pans, which now has a hole punched in the bottom of it. "What?" he asks.
"Either I'm going crazy, or the robbers took our entire living room set," Pascal tells him.
Lazlo steps into the room, throwing his hands up in frustration. "Well, they took everything in my room," Lazlo informs them, "Even the toilet's gone! We're going to have to pee in the hole now," Lazlo says, crossing his arms in front of his torso, "-Not that I'm complaining. It actually saves me a lot of effort."
"Oh God, what are we going to do?" Vidcund cries, on the verge of a panic attack, "We don't have the money to replace this stuff!"
The Curious brothers sit in silence, deep in thought, as each of them try to come up with a plan to resolve this mess. "Hey, I know!" Pascal speaks up, standing up from his chair and turning to his brothers, "When I went by Loki's house earlier, he told me that he was renting. We could live there!" he states, his face beaming at this idea, "I'm sure we have enough money to rent a room-"
"-Oh no," Vidcund interrupts, his arms crossed, "I am not living at the Beaker residence! Those people are nutcases!"
"Come on Vid, where's your sense of adventure?" Pascal chimes, "Besides, we'll only be there until we can replace our stuff, which'll only be a couple of days or a month tops," he nods.
Vidcund looks to Pascal and Lazlo, who are both staring at him with hopeful grins. Vidcund lets out a heavy sigh. "Fine," he grumbles, "But this was your idea, not mine."
…
A few hours later, the Curious brothers are standing on the front porch of the Beaker estate, each of them holding what was left of their belongings. Pascal steps forward, excitedly turning to his brothers. "Well, here goes nothing!" he beams.
"Ugh, don't remind me," Vidcund groans, as Pascal rings the doorbell.
Loki swings open the door, appearing more irritated than before. "What do you want, dingus?" he snarls at Pascal. Loki shifts his eyes, now noticing Vidcund and Lazlo standing behind Pascal as well. "Or, er…dinguses," he quickly corrects.
"Hello Loki, if that is your real name," Pascal begins, pointing his finger in Loki's face; the villain raises an eyebrow. "We'd like to rent a room, please," Pascal states confidently, sporting a large smile. Behind him, Vidcund is hugging his belongings to his chest, looking scared out of his mind.
Loki narrows his eyes at his colleague. "What the hell are you talking about?"
"Remember when I came by here earlier and you told me that you were renting rooms to people…you know, people like Nervous?" Pascal recalls, placing a hand on his hip as he continues to stand triumphantly in front of his rival, "Or was that just a lie to cover up a terrible, inhumane secret? Wait, don't tell me-" Pascal claims, holding his hand out in front of Loki's face. Pascal reaches into his pocket and takes out a Nokia cell phone. He hovers his finger over the call button, "-We'll just let the feds decide!"
Loki looks up at the doorframe, before grabbing the cell phone and throwing it into the crater. Pascal watches the phone fall into the sand, stunned. "Well, thank goodness that was Vidcund's phone."
"What?!" Vidcund cries out.
Pascal smiles and waves it off. "Eh, we'll get it later. So, can we rent a room here or not?" he states, turning his attentions back to Loki.
Loki folds his arms and huffs. "Fine. You three dorks can rent a room here," he replies reluctantly, "Just don't Curious it up!"
"Ooh, it's a verb now!" Pascal awes, turning to his brothers. Pascal nods in approval as he steps into the house, Lazlo following close behind him. Loki eyes Vidcund as he steps through the doorway. Vidcund stops once they make eye contact with each other.
"Why do you dorks need to stay here anyway?" Loki asks him, "What happened to your house?"
"We were robbed this afternoon while Pascal and I were over here," Vidcund reveals, clenching onto his belongings, "The robbers took pretty much everything we own, but surprisingly, they didn't steal any of my clothes."
"Gee, I wonder why?" Loki states sarcastically. He rolls his eyes, "I guess toilet-chic wasn't in this year."
Vidcund walks forward, attempting to catch up with his brothers, but Circe steps in his path. Vidcund nervously fiddles with his clothes when he sees her. "Uh, are you sure you're okay with us staying here?" he asks.
"Are you paying us?" Circe wonders.
Vidcund nods.
"Then I don't care!" Circe replies, grabbing Vidcund by the arm, "Now come on, I'll show you guys to your room."
…
"So let me get this straight," Vidcund begins a few minutes later, staring down at the queen-sized bed in the Beaker's medieval-style guest room, "we're all going to share one bed? That doesn't really seem feasible…" he mutters.
"Of course it is!" Pascal chimes in, "You and I can just sleep side-by-side normally and Lazlo will sleep perpendicular by our feet."
"Eh, works for me," Lazlo shrugs. Suddenly, Lazlo's stomach starts grumbling. He groans and places his hand over his aching stomach. Lazlo turns to Circe. "Hey, can I cook dinner in your kitchen? I'm great at making group meals, so I can easily make enough for everyone."
Circe raises her head up a bit, shocked, seemingly pleased by Lazlo's request. "Yes," she answers, astoundedly, "Yes, you can," she awes, stepping out of the room after him.
"Oh my gosh, I'm going to eat real food, not some low-quality crap that Loki or I usually make!" she screams excitedly in her mind as she trails Lazlo down the stairs.
An hour later, all the scientists are situated at the Beaker's dining room table. Vidcund stares down at his overly-extravagant plate before gazing up at the dimly-lit room around him.
"Hey, where's Nervous?" Pascal wonders, situated at one end of the dining table across from Loki. Pascal points down at the empty table setting that is set up at the chair next to him.
Loki stares down at Pascal, "Nervous doesn't eat with us, he doesn't like people," he states, aggressively grabbing a breadstick and taking a bite. Pascal shrugs his shoulders.
"Neither do you, what's the big deal?" Pascal asks.
"Yeah, but that's for an entirely different reason," Loki explains, "It's cause nobody's good enough for me," Loki states, glancing briefly at Vidcund. The biologist shyly looks away.
"So anyway," Pascal begins again, continuing with his story, "I just told Vidcund that we would stay with my best friend in the whole world…Loki," Pascal tells Circe.
"-And I answered the door and said, 'Who the hell are you'?" Loki interrupts, narrowing his eyes at Pascal, the glare not leaving his face.
"Lazlo, this is really good," Circe speaks up next to Loki, taking another bite of smoked salmon, "I don't think I've ever eaten this much in one sitting."
"Careful dear, we all know Lazlo doesn't have a history of washing his hands," Loki mutters, nonchalantly taking a sip of his red wine.
Nearby, Lazlo seems completely unfazed by the mad scientist's comment. "Thanks Circe, I've always enjoyed cooking. It allows me to be creative and it keeps Pascal away from the stove."
"You got that right!" Pascal chimes, giving Lazlo a high-five from across the table. Loki groans and shakes his head, his eyes trailing to Vidcund who is awkwardly picking at his food next to him.
"Are you not hungry?" Loki wonders, staring down at Vidcund.
"No, I'm still shaken up from the robbery," he replies, picking at his food once more. Loki tilts his forehead and leans forward in his seat.
He takes another sip of wine. "That's too bad," Loki mumbles.
"Hey! You guys kept my potato!" Pascal chimes, gesturing to his wedding present on the kitchen counter, "You know, I genetically modified that one myself so that it's pink on the inside."
"Why would do you that?" Loki wonders, moving his foot out underneath the table. He starts rubbing his foot against Vidcund's leg.
"Because pink is cooler, duh!" Pascal replies, looking up at his brother, who appears rather stiff. "Vid, are you okay?"
"Yeah," Vidcund squeaks, tensing up some more. "I uh-just have to use the bathroom," Vidcund states suddenly, quickly getting up from his seat and heading into the hallway, clearly startled.
The doorbell rings.
"Ooh! I'll get it!" Pascal replies, standing up in his seat.
"No, you won't," Loki grunts. Loki swiftly gets up and answers the door, his smiling sister on the other side of it. "Erin?" Loki calls out, his face filled with confusion, "What are you doing here?"
Erin rolls back on her heels, dressed surprisingly fancier than usual; she is wearing a pink knee-length, sleeveless dress with matching heels. "I was just in the neighborhood and – Oh my gosh, you didn't tell me you guys were having dinner!" Erin exclaims, immediately shifting her focus to the kitchen. She races into the house and takes a seat at the table across from Lazlo. "Let's eat!" she cheers, flashing an enthusiastic smile. Erin leans across the table and gives Lazlo a wink. "Hey Lazlo," she flirts.
Across the room, Loki sighs and rolls his eyes, still leaning up against the side of the open entrance door. "-Whatever."
Suddenly, Pascal stands up in his seat, holding his stomach in pain. "Oh God!" he moans, racing past Loki and into the hallway, bringing his hand to his mouth. Pascal runs into the bathroom and crouches down in front of the toilet, his stomach flip-flopping, feeling sicker by the minute.
"Are you okay?" Vidcund wonders, cautiously stepping into the room. Vidcund kneels next to Pascal, clearly concerned for his brother.
"Yeah," Pascal musters, his face sweating. His stomach rumbles. "-I mean no!" Pascal quickly corrects, before wrenching forward and throwing up into the toilet bowl. "Aww man!" Pascal groans, staring down at what was previously his dinner.
"It's okay," Vidcund states, gently patting his brother on the back, "You can always eat leftovers later…unless it was the food."
Pascal shakes his head. "No, it's the pregnancy," Pascal whispers, leaning towards Vidcund. "Now, can you help me up? I feel really weak."
"Yeah, of course," Vidcund responds, helping his brother up off the tile and walking him up the stairs to their room. Unbeknownst to them, Loki has been watching the entire display from the first-floor hallway.
…
Five hours later, Pascal is fast asleep in the guest bedroom, Lazlo at his feet, as Vidcund struggles to fall asleep next to him. Pascal flops over on the bed and lets out a heavy snore. "No, no. You have to keep it plugged in if you want to see it dance!" Pascal sleep-talks. Vidcund scrunches his forehead and moves slightly away from him.
Vidcund sighs as he pulls the covers over his torso. He gazes up at the gray popcorn ceiling. "I'm never going to be able to sleep here," he mumbles. Vidcund slowly slips out of bed and exits into the hallway, gently closing the door behind him. Vidcund quietly maneuvers through the dimly-lit hallway and carefully heads down the stairs. Vidcund sighs as he plops himself down on the couch in the living room. He runs his hand up against the velvet-lining. "-Not bad," he mumbles.
Vidcund eases into the piece of furniture a bit before picking up a magazine that is on the adjacent coffee table. "Hmm…Evil Science Weekly," Vidcund mutters, opening the magazine and scanning the first article, "This week's topic is 'Ruining Mankind'?" Vidcund questions before giving a small shrug, "Well, I guess it fits their message."
After a few minutes of reading Evil Science Weekly's drivel, Vidcund closes the magazine and tosses it back onto the table. "I want to go home," he states.
"If you want to go home, then why did you come here in the first place?" Loki's voice rings out behind him. Startled, Vidcund quickly sits up on the couch and looks to his rival. Loki sits down next to him, carrying a mug in his hands.
"I didn't want to," Vidcund continues, "It was Pascal's idea. I would've been fine with sleeping on the counter…until I had to eat on it the next day," he shudders. "Besides, you make it seem like it's my fault that I don't have a backbone!"
"Of course it's your fault," Loki states, as if it were obvious, "Who else's fault would it be?" Vidcund groans and turns his head away from Loki, staring at the painting of flowers on the wall near the front door. "As much as you deny it, I think you like living here, Vidcund," Loki tells him, "After all, it gives you a chance to witness the creative genius in action!" Vidcund raises an eyebrow, "Don't think I'm not onto your ploy to steal my ideas and use them for your own scientific gain!"
"Yes," Vidcund rolls his eyes, "because the Electric Vomit Recycler will surely grant me a boatload of respect from the scientific community," he states sarcastically, "I'm sure tons of people vomit in their toilet, then look down at the aftermath and say, 'Hey, you know what? I really wish I could throw that up again!'" he mocks.
"Wow," Loki begins, staring at Vidcund unimpressed, "If I had feelings, that still wouldn't have hurt me," he says, placing his empty mug on the coffee table "But tell me, if you're such a genius, how come you don't have a house?"
Vidcund turns to Loki, narrowing his eyes in a huff. "I do have a house; it's just being investigated by the police."
"-And I'm sure that's going to take years," Loki replies, "Cops love to take their sweet time. If I was on the case, I would be able to solve it in three seconds flat," Loki brags, "but I've been too busy working on my Nobel-Prize-winning invention."
Vidcund crosses his arms and turns away from Loki. "Seems like that's not the only thing you've been busy doing this month," Vidcund mumbles.
Loki tilts his forehead, confused. "What do you mean by that?" he wonders.
"I saw you with Crystal the other day," Vidcund recalls, not bothering to look at him, "You seemed pretty into her."
"Nah, she's just a colleague," Loki speaks, waving it off, "Kind of like a borderline friend," he reiterates, moving forward. He places his hand on Vidcund's shoulder and lowers his voice to a whisper. "I'm pretty into you," he confesses, staring at him lovingly, "so you shouldn't feel bad about this whole thing."
"Really?" Vidcund squeaks, gazing into his eyes.
Loki nods. "Come here," Loki states, motioning Vidcund towards him. The pair lock lips as Nervous Subject walks up the basement stairs, freezing in place when he sees them. Vidcund nudges Loki in the shoulder, giving a deer caught in the headlights look, as he gestures to the man behind him.
Loki turns around and locks eyes with the wide-eyed test subject. "Shit…" he softly curses.