Hi, again. Well, as you can see, I already wrote chapter 4, and I don't want to drag out, so enjoy reading!
(The Watterson house. Nicole is angrily walking from one end of the living room to the other, impatiently waiting for her sons. Richard and Anais are already fast asleep. At one moment, the bell rings. Nicole quickly walks towards the door, opens it, and notices Gumball right on the doorstep, and Darwin just behind him.)
GUMBALL (nervously): Hi, mom.
NICOLE (suspiciously): Well? (Pause.) What is it so important that you have to show me?
(Gumball nervously looks at his brother, who takes a deep breath and nods. Gumball looks back at his mother, and also takes a deep breath. Then he looks at Madeleine and Norman, who are standing behind the corner so Nicole can't see them. Gumball points his head at where he's standing, so that they would stand there. They do. Gumball, of course, moves a bit to the side. Nicole sees Madeleine and Norman. Since they are goldfish, Nicole looks at Darwin and back at them, and starts drawing conclusions inside her head. Then Gumball speaks up.)
GUMBALL: Mom, these are Madeleine and Nicole. (Pause. Mentally prepares to say the next sentence, not knowing how his mother will react.) They are Darwin's biological parents.
(Nicole's mouth opens wide. She's beyond surprised by this. Looks at all four one by one. Takes a minute to process that this is actually happening. It finally goes through her head that the real parents of the boy she adopted such a long time ago are actually alive. A tear shows up on her face.)
NICOLE (through tears): You... you are his... (Madeleine and Norman nod. Nicole cries a little harder.) Oh my gosh, that's so... (Can't come up with words to describe this situation.) You must have been desperate... How did you find... When did this happen... Wait a second! (Pause. Realizes something. Looks at Madeleine and Norman angrily.) You morons!
MADELEINE: Excuse me?
NICOLE: Why did you abandon him?!
NORMAN: What? Why would we abandon him?! He's our son, don't you thi-
NICOLE: Then how? How did he get separated from you? How could you be such an irresponsible excuse of parents to lose your own child?! (Pause. Darwin is watching this with tears in his eyes.)
NORMAN: Don't you think we're trying to make it up for him?
NICOLE: By showing up after this long, and just saying "Hi, we're your real parents, come hug us"? How do you even know you are? How can I trust you?!
(These questions actually make Darwin angry, so he steps inside and rushes into his room.)
NICOLE: Darwin, come ba-
DARWIN (yells): NO! (Does not look back.)
(Gumball closes his eyes in embarrassment. Madeleine looks down on the floor. Nicole looks back at Madeleine and Norman. Norman takes out the same photo from the mall, and shows it for Nicole to see it. When Nicole sees the picture, she is more than surprised to see how wonderful, how natural, Darwin and his real parents looked like. She feels guilty for yelling at them.)
NICOLE: I'm so sorry... I didn't know... I thought you-
MADELEINE (angrily): How did you not know? Look at us! We're goldfish! What else could it have been?!
GUMBALL (can't hold it in anymore): ENOUGH! (Silence. Speaks to his mother) Why did you have to ruin this moment? They finally got together after all this time... And you just yelled at them. (Pause. Doesn't know what else to say. Sighs.) Why? Just why?
NICOLE (still feels guilty): I'm sorry, honey. (to Madeleine and Norman) So, what now? I suppose... (She can't believe she's about to say. Almost bursts in tears.) I suppose you want your son back? (Lets a tear out.)
(Madeleine and Norman look at each other. They know this is a complicated situation at the least. They know they will turn out horrible parents if they don't take their son back, but they also know they will be highly inconsiderate towards Nicole, as well as other Watterson family members they haven't actually met, if they do. Now it's them who feels guilty. Norman tries to say something, but dismisses it.)
NICOLE (still in tears): Why don't you come in? Maybe we should discuss all this in the morning... (Pause.) After we all get some sleep. (Pause. Madeleine and Norman agree. They step inside. Gumball does the same.) Gumball, can I just talk to you for a second?
GUMBALL (worried): Okay... (The two step back outside. Nicole closes the door, kneels, puts her hand on his shoulder, and looks him in the eyes.)
NICOLE: Gumball... Why didn't you tell me?
GUMBALL (sighs, looks away): I don't know... (Pause.) I didn't know how you would react.
(Pause. Nicole thinks about it. Hugs her son.)
NICOLE: It's okay, sweetie. (Pause. Figures out she has to ask him one more question.) So... what were you planning to do after all this? (Pause.) Do you want to send Darwin back... (Almost says "home". Gumball figures out she wanted to say it. He closes his eyes once again. He thinks that this all may not have been such a great idea. He remembers, though, that not doing this, after finding out about Darwin's biological parents, would've been even worse of an idea. Sighs. Opens his eyes.)
GUMBALL: Can we talk about this in the morning?
NICOLE: Sure, honey. (Pats his head. Goes to open the door.)
GUMBALL: Wait! (Hugs his mother once again. She accepts the hug. He cries.) I love you, mom.
NICOLE (smiles): I love you too, sweetie. (Kisses him in the head. Lets out another tear. Pause.) Come on, you should get inside. It's cold. (Gumball nods. The two step back inside.)
Well, that's chapter 4. In the next chapter, we'll see how this all will work out, and who will actually get the custody of Darwin. Until then, comment.
