Vince was sitting in the Nabootique bored out of his mind. Howard told him he'd only be gone for a few minutes but several hours went by. Vince couldn't tell which was worse, Howard leaving him like this to see that infuriating blonde or having her here giggling constantly like a guinea pig and jabbering on about poetry and singers he doesn't know. At first the whole thing was sort of adorable, but now it became a real nuisance each day. All Howard would want to talk about was Alice all the time, everything from her favorite animal to the brand of shampoo she'd use. Anytime Vince would try to make a conversation, Howard would reply with something like "Oh Alice loves that," or "That reminds me of a funny story Alice told me the other day." Vince found it alarming that he was actually beginning to miss getting lectured by him. The hard-headed big oaf he knew all his life seemed to have been altered. Now he was acting ridiculous. Howard would walk around with a goofy grin on his face and he was all giddy. He could've sworn he heard him humming too. He was anything but serious or structured lately. It was as if his whole world revolved around Alice.

Vince began flicking paper clips with rubber bands from Stationary Village as a pass time. It was amusing for a while until there weren't any more paper clips. He tapped his fingers on the desk, trying to think of how else to make time go by faster. "I know! I'll ring up Leroy!" Vince declared. Vince picked up the phone and dialed Leroy's number. "Hey Leroy it's me Vince!" he said in a cheerful voice. Suddenly he frowned. "What do you mean you can't come over? Your dog died? Well get a new one!" he hung phone up and crossed his arms. "That dog was just fine the other day!" he grumbled.

Vince remembered that he was sort of seeing someone lately. So picked the phone up again and dialed the girl's number. "Hey Melanie, remember me? It's Vince," he said with a grin. Automatically, he heard the other line being hung up. He raised his eyebrows, bewildered, but then remembered he was seeing her friend too.

Moments later, Vince was lying sprawled out on the desk humming the tune of "Paint it Black" solemnly. "Painted… painted… painted black…" he sang hoarsely. Vince whined and kicked the desk, making a loud thud with his boots. "Bored! I'm so bored!" he cried out.

"Oi! Keep it down will you?" Naboo shouted from upstairs.

"Naboo! Can you please come down here? I'm so bored!" Vince wailed

"What the hell do I care?"

"C'mon please! Howard's gone and left and I'm just laying here bored! Bored! Bored!"

"Shut up! I'm busy smo… I mean I'm making smoothies!"

"Ooh can I have one?"

"No! As I said before, I'm extremely busy!"

"Well could you at least have Bollo come down?"

"Bollo can't come down either… he's errr…." Naboo looked over at the big ape laying flat on the floor. "Bollo I told you to wait for it to take effect… Kirk said this stuff was really potent…" he muttered.

"Naboo… Naboo… I'm a butterfly… butterfly… "Bollo slurred while flapping his arms on the floor.

"Oh God Bollo…" Naboo chuckled slightly while holding the hookah. "The monkey's kinda got his hands full at the moment!" he shouted.

"Naboo… Naboo… tell me… am I beautiful? I've never been a butterfly before…" Bollo continued to flap his arms.

"You sure are… a great monarch…" the tiny shaman snickered and took another hit.

"Oh good… good… Bollo is king butterfly!" his mouth hung open in awe.

Vince banged his head against the desk and groaned. "Howard better hurry up or I'll die of boredom!" Almost as if on command, Howard showed up in the doorway, but he had Alice following along. Vince's stomach churned when heard her obnoxious giggling. "Well it's about time you got back! I was here by myself for hours Howard! What took ya? You told me you'd only be a minute!" his voice squeaked at the end from getting exasperated.

"It's like he's my mum or something," Howard muttered to Alice. She giggled and patted his shoulder.

"Oh I'm the mum here?" Vince retorted. "You're the one who nags at me for everything and you order me around all the time! Not only that, you mentally abuse me with your crummy jazz music and you embarrass me in front of my friends and… Howard! Are you even listening to me?"

Alice was giggling loudly as Howard held her close while kissing all over her. "Huh? Something about listening to jazz music and abusing it?" he replied, completely unaware of what Vince said.

"How could you do that? That's relentless!" She pouted and held his hands.

"I know, the nerve of some people!" he chuckled and kissed her.

"Howard aren't you going to listen to me?" Vince cried.

"Aw Moonie c'mon, your friend's trying to talk to you," Alice playfully bumped Howard.

"Yes Moonie, I'm trying to talk here," Vince mocked her.

"What'd you do today?" Howard asked Vince absent-mindedly as he stroked Alice's face. She looked up and smiled at him.

"Nothing, nothing at all but sitting here watching the hours fly by while you're having fun with Blondie there!" Vince grunted and pinched the bridge of his nose. Howard still wasn't paying attention to him.

"I don't see any harm in that, do you my dear?" Howard held the sides of her face and gently pressed his forehead against hers.

Alice giggled and touched his hands. "Nope, not at all."

"Well actually there is, something bad always happens when you're gone," Vince crossed his arms. He felt like he was a ghost.

"Did anything happen?" Howard asked.

"Well… no, but what if something had happened?" Vince puffed.

"You would've been fine. You got Naboo and Ballo here to help you."

"Not really, they're 'busy'."

"Vince what's your problem? You're starting to sound tense."

"Damnit Howard! Where are you? Isn't it obvious?"

"Not exactly, what is it?"

"Ahhh! It's right there! Clinging to you like a baby koala and giggling nonstop! It's driving me insane!"

"Vince! That was very rude!"

"It's true! You might as well put her on your back and feed her monkey nuts!"

"Vince! What do you have against her?"

"It's not her personally, it's her relation to a blind freakazoid that wears corsets!"

Alice's mouth twisted into a sour face and she glared. "Dry up you upstage wet blanket! I love my uncle-avous to death-ski! What makes you the elephant's eyebrows? You're all wet and you're full of phonus balonus! You got me worked in a lather 'cause of your futzing bushwa!"

"Uhhh…" Vince felt like his brain shut off.

"Oh Alice… you beautiful creature! That was remarkable!" Howard looked at her like she recited the most beautiful sonnet.

"What in blue fuck was that?" Vince cried, hopelessly confused.

"Ohhh…that was jazz slang! Beautiful, beautiful jazz slang straight from the Roaring 20s! Where'd you learn that my darling?" Howard turned her chin up.

She blushed meekly. "My grandmother was a flapper."

"Ohhhhhhh!" Vince cried out in revolt. "No wonder I'm starting to get feverish!" he checked his forehead to see if he was getting warm.

"Go on, say something else please!" Howard squeezed her waist and nuzzled her cheek.

Alice giggled. "Easy there baby grand, don't turn the joint into a petting party!"

"Ugh! Y'know what? Whatever I'm leaving before my face puffs up like Jiffy Pop! I'm gonna see Leroy about this dog!" Vince dashed off to the door.

"Oh you gotta see a man about a dog, bird? Just hope you don't come back too zozzilfied!" Alice called out.

Howard chuckled with delight and hugged her.