"Alright, window stain," MC growled at the little smudge in the corner of his bedroom window. "For weeks, I have tolerated your presence. For weeks, laziness and procrastination have spared your wretched life. I say no more!" He exclaimed as he raised a spray-bottle full of window cleaner at the offending stain. "Nothing can save you from your imminent destruction!"
Ding-dong!
MC shrugged. "Except that. Consider yourself lucky, punk," MC declared as he tossed the bottle aside and made for the front door. "I hope Monika's guess today involves scrubbing my windows," he thought out loud as he opened the door.
"Good morning, Mon-" MC started, but to his surprise, there was no Monika there. Instead, he found himself face-to-face, er, face-to-knee with nature's living ladder: the giraffe.
MC pinched his stomach, certain that he must be in some strange fever dream. He hadn't gotten sick by running in the rain yesterday, had he? Apparently not, as he found the beast staring back at with a rather annoyed expression. Yeah, that's a giraffe, alright. On my front lawn, no less. That seems about par for the course for a Monika guess, I suppose.
"Hey MC!" He heard Monika call from somewhere, but a quick glance around his yard yielded no sign of her.
He turned his gaze skyward to the giraffe, his faced scrunched up in confusion. "Monika? Did you turn yourself into a giraffe?"
"No, silly, up here!" Monika called from above. MC stepped a few paces to the left to find Monika's head poking out from behind the giraffe's neck, which now had her arms loosely wrapped around it. Her smile was as wide as ever. "You should come up here with me; this view is absolutely stunning."
"Monika!" MC shouted as he pointed an accusing finger at her. "I have several questions."
"I have one question, MC," Monika countered. "Do you like giraffes? I bet you like giraffes."
"At the zoo? Yeah, I guess. Why is there one in my yard, though?"
"Well, we always walk to school, you know? I figured we could maybe mix things up a little bit," Monika suggested with a mischievous grin.
MC facepalmed. "Monika, I thought we agreed that exotic creatures wouldn't get you anywhere. You do remember what happened last week with the dinosaurs, right?"
Monika's expression turned into one of longing. "Yeah, I remember, all right," she sighed dreamily. "Especially how you were, ahem, dressed. You should do that more often, by the way."
MC's faced turned as red as the Soviet flag. "H-hey! Stop fantasizing about me in my underwear!"
"Why don't you come up here and make me?" Monika teased as she idly swung her legs back and forth. "Or are you scared of heights?"
"I am a strong man, I fear nothing!" MC proudly declared as he began to scamper up the giraffe's body like a monkey climbing a tree. It wasn't until after he reached the top that he realized he had fallen right into Monika's trap. "Oh. Boy, do I feel dumb."
Monika giggled, then scooted back and patted at the spot in front of her. "Sit here, MC. I'd hate to spoil the view for you."
MC finished scaling the giraffe and took the requested seat. "That's awfully kind of you, Monika," MC half-joked.
"I already got to enjoy it on way here. What kind of future wife would I be if I didn't share beautiful things with the man I love? Besides-" she wrapped her arms around MC's waist and rested her head on his shoulder. He could feel her hot breath tickle his ear, a sensation that made his heart beat uncomfortably fast. "-what I have right now is so much better than any view could possibly be."
MC cleared his throat. "Personal space, Monika," he informed her gently, yet firmly.
To his surprise, she did not let go. Indeed, the very thought only served to make her giggle. "Nope. My ride, my rules."
Well, no way out of this one, MC thought, and then he turned his attention to the giraffe. "Sorry buddy, she got me good with this one."
The giraffe emitted some kind of snort, though MC did not know if it found the situation frustrating or humorous. Regardless, it turned away from MC's house and began the long walk to school. MC rolled his eyes, figuratively embraced the fact that he was trapped in Monika's metaphorical embrace, and rode forward.
