Hello, everyone! I got the next chapter ready! Surprised it's up so early?
Seeing as I have nothing new to say, except for the usual disclaimer, I will not waste any time chatting. So, without further delay, enjoy this next installment!
DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN ANYTHING from The Amazing World of Gumball, including characters, places, or any other reference that may appear in this story. Not a thing.
Chapter 28
The Forgotten Anger
"The things two people do to each other they remember. If they stay together . . .
- Demi Moore
The school door closed behind Gumball with a snap. Turning around, he found that it, like everything else, had vanished.
He was surrounded once again by a large, bright mass of swirling white as though he were inside a dome. There was no visible floor beneath him, yet his feet were most certainly standing atop something.
Though he knew there was nothing to fear, Gumball couldn't help wishing that Anais had come with him in this strange trip "outside". And yet, though she was not visibly present or holding his hand anymore, Gumball honestly thought he could still feel Anais, as though her very presence was lingering on the air.
Glancing around the swirling sphere of white, Gumball could just barely make out streaks of vibrant green, giving the impression that he was standing in a field somewhere. He could swear his feet were pressed against grass, the soft tickle of the plant beneath his toes.
And then he heard laughter — born, it seemed, out of thin air. He turned right and left, but there was no source as of yet to see.
The whiteness began to clear like fog. Still, Gumball could hear it: the sounds of mirth and joy. If he had to guess, they were coming from children. They sounded, somehow, familiar. . . .
And then the white melted away and everything became clear and colorful once more.
Gumball was, indeed, outside. He was standing at the edge of a grassy and well-spaced playground. It was different, by far, from the blacktop at Elmore Junior High: there was no hard, tar surface or basketball hoop with the net missing. This warm place was complete with a slide, swingset, sandbox, seesaw, jungle gym, and a group of large trees that provided plenty of shade and branches to climb on.
Like it had done back in Miss Simian's empty classroom, Gumball's mind seemed to open like a treasure chest full of old memories.
"Elmore Elementary," he whispered to himself. His old school. . . .
Gumball beamed with elation at being back at the familiar place. It had only been a year since he left elementary school, but — with being trapped in the Loop and what all — the sight of his first school was like gazing upon a lost paradise.
The soft, green grass gleamed in the sunlight, full of life beneath Gumball's bare feet. All around were children, and it was they whom Gumball found most remarkable.
They couldn't have been older than five or six.
Banana Joe, just a small plantain, was sitting on the wooden corner of the sandbox, laughing and joking with a small Tobias, who was turning multiple colors: sickly green, neon yellow, even red and white like a candy cane.
Carman, a tiny cactus shrub, was holding Alan by the string, whose balloon head looked smaller and not as inflated. The two were laughing sweetly, already cherishing their young bond together.
Molly, a shorter but no less chubby dinosaur, held a teddy bear-sized Teri on her black shoulders as they zoomed down the slide. Teri, her white paper dress adorned with crayon flowers, caught some air and laughed as she floated gently back to the ground.
A miniature Bobert was doing a dance very much like The Robot while Juke, his head a much smaller boom box, provided his friend with a kind of electric hip-hop tune. Leslie, a pint-sized flower, clapped his small leaf hands in time to the beat.
Gumball stood there, taking it all in. It was a state of perfect bliss: the simplicity of childhood and the joy of the moment, not a care to be had on earth. It was a moment in time that existed like a rainbow: beautiful, shimmering, colorful . . . and always so quick to fade.
"Quite a sight, isn't it?" came a friendly voice.
Gumball's fur sprang on end. His heart leaping into his throat, he jerked around to find. . .
"D-Darwin?" Gumball said, utterly astonished, face to face with his smiling brother. "W-What — ? Where did — ?"
Darwin laughed. "Surprised? Where else would I be? We hang out every day. Or rather, you and Darwin hang out every day. I would know, seeing as friendship is what I do."
Gumball, only partly taking in what Darwin said, looked back towards the school yard. None of their young classmates had ceased in their play, nor looked in Gumball or Darwin's direction — two pre-teens amongst a group of preschoolers.
"Oh, don't worry about them," said Darwin with assurance. "They're all too busy to notice us. Too caught in the present to look ahead yet."
Again feeling as though someone had just read his mind, Gumball looked at Darwin in a new light. "You're not Darwin? Are . . . are you like Anais? You know, the Anais I just left?"
"In a sense," replied Darwin. "Me and her see each other quite often and most days we work together, some days more so than others, but we're always there when we need to be. As for jobs, well," he smiled, "I guess you can say my part is more outwardly focused. To put it simply, I'm your Friendship."
"My . . ."
"Friendship, yeah" said Darwin. "Pretty cheesy, eh? Wisdom's done her job, so she's passed you onto me to get you through the next bit. But with introductions out of the way, you can go ahead and just call me Darwin. Much easier and better, and far less cheesy, don't you think?"
Though still quite confused, Gumball managed to give his brother's look-alike a small grin. "Yeah. Totally."
"Good!" said Darwin, beaming. "Now, let's get started. Time is precious after all, especially when you're young."
He raised his two orange finns and clapped them twice, then stood there.
Gumball waited, watching him.
"Uh . . . what did you just —"
"Ah, there you are, Gumball!" came a sweet little voice.
Gumball turned. His jaw dropped.
There, standing beside him, five or six years old, with stripped orange socks on her feet, was Penny.
She was a short peanut, the top of her head hardly reached Gumball's torso. Her tiny antlers were curved, hardly longer than an inch. And, to top it all off, she was positively adorable.
"P-Penny?" spluttered Gumball, eyes wide and lost for words.
Penny must've thought the dumbstruck look on Gumball's face was funny, for she started giggling.
"I've been looking all over for you, silly," she said brightly. "Come on, let's go play on the swings! You promised me, remember?"
Before Gumball could muster up the words to give a reply, the little peanut girl grabbed him by the hand and led him in a small sprint across the playground, Darwin following after with ease.
"She's cute, isn't she?" he said, beaming at the little girl. "You thought so the first time you ever saw Penny. Remember?"
Gumball didn't know what to think, nor did he know what to expect. He was too busy trying to make sense of his surroundings while his literal childhood sweetheart led him by the hand.
His young classmates were all eyeing him as he fumbled on towards the swings. Some laughed, others simply stared. For whatever reason, though, none of the children looked alarmed by the fact that Gumball was plainly older than any of them. Though he recognized every classmate for who they were, there was a vastly significant difference between these shrunken versions and the students Gumball knew back in the present.
As Gumball thought this, he looked back to Darwin and saw, to his confusion, something very strange. Darwin seemed . . . taller somehow. He was looking down at Gumball rather than straight at him when, but a moment ago, their eye contact had been level. But how could this be? Darwin still held the appearance of a twelve-year-old. Had he magically made himself taller?
Before Gumball could ask, Penny had come to a halt and let go of his hand. Standing before them was a swing set with three vacant swings. A birch tree with a rather large trunk grew off to the side, covering half the swing set with its shadow.
"Come on, Gumball!" said Penny brightly. "Let's see if we can fly!"
Giggling, she leapt onto the swing at the far right, the one in the sunshine.
Gumball eyed her, perplexed.
Penny was a tiny, little girl, and yet, like Darwin, she looked as though she had grown several inches too. So why was her's and Gumball's eyes now level with each other?
"Uh. . .Hey, Darwin, why is —"
Gumball froze, for the voice that had just issued from his mouth was different. It was his, Gumball could just recognize the tone, but it was higher in pitch. "Hey . . . what's. . . " his voice was still high. Panicing a little, he asked, "Why do I sound like this?"
With a smirk and a chuckle, Darwin held out his finn and a handled mirror materialized out of thin air. He held it out.
Gumball gaped at his reflection.
Darwin and Penny hadn't grown taller. No. Gumball had shrunk. The face looking out at him from the mirror was six years younger than twelve. Not only that, but his hands and feet were smaller too, and the sweater and pants he wore could only ever belong on a child.
"I . . . Wha . . ! What did. . . !
Lost for words, Gumball frantically eyed his tiny blue fingers, felt his inch-long whiskers, ran his hands over his small cat ears, staring open-mouthed at his younger reflection which mimicked everything he did!
"Don't worry," said Darwin kindly, taking the mirror and pressing it into nothing. "I just made this little change to help move things along. You'll be back to your regular self when this is over. Now go on, you don't want to keep Penny waiting."
Sure enough, Penny called out, "Hey, Gumball! Whatcha' waiting for?"
Gumball looked from her and back to Darwin.
"She can't see me," said Darwin. "None of them can. All of this is before you and Darwin met. And besides, I'm only real to you. But enough talking," he concluded with a smile. "Go on and play. Have some fun."
Gumball hesitated. This whole scene was making less sense by the second. He wasn't sure if he liked being six-years-old again.
Some people, his father for example, may fantasize about reliving their youth, but the actual sensation felt bizarre to Gumball: to be a child and have years of knowledge and experience at your hands, knowing you will see the world not like those around you but as an old soul reverted back into a shell you had long outgrown.
The laughing children were all lost in a euphoria that felt, somehow, foreign to Gumball. His memories of preschool and of what had happened there were blurred and vague at best. He felt no different in this younger form than he had felt two minutes ago in his twelve-year-old form. Really, it was hardly different than changing clothes.
But . . . perhaps reliving his youth wasn't the point here. . . .
Confused but not wanting to shun either of them, Gumball chose to go along with Darwin's suggestion and walked the short distance to Penny, taking the middle swing beside her.
"Who were you talking to, Gumball?" asked Penny, her legs hanging an inch above the grassy ground.
"Oh, uh . . ." He looked back to Darwin, who was standing by the seesaw, smiling. "Just a . . . an imaginary friend."
Penny blinked.
Gumball gave a weak smile, feeling his face go red with embarassement. But then Penny giggled.
"You have one, too?" she asked, clearly interested. "I also got an imaginary friend! I call him Mr. Cuddles. He's big and furry!"
And on that odd little note, she kicked off from the ground and started to swing, laughing as she did.
Eyeing her move back and forth, Gumball pushed back on his swing and started a slower, easier momentum. After about a minute, Penny was at full height, laughing and grinning as Gumball stayed closer to earth.
It was nice, hearing her laugh. Gumball had forgotten he and Penny used to do stuff like this. Before Darwin had come into his life, Penny was his first playmate. She was one of the only girls who didn't think he was a weirdo or a dummy. From their first day together in preschool, Gumball couldn't get enough of seeing her, from her sweet smiles to every time she took him by the hand and pulled him over to another bout of fun.
And here he was, six-years-old again, reliving the feeling, all while Darwin watched from beside the seesaw.
It was a peaceful, partly cloudy day, the season of spring was ripe with green grass and tall trees, and all around, as he swung up and down, up and down, Gumball and all his classmates were laughing and having fun. It was bliss. Though only a memory, the feeling was real, and that, Gumball appreciated.
After about five minutes in which Gumball savored the simple joy of afternoon recess, Darwin, he noticed, had moved from the seesaw and over to the other side of the swings, over by the birch tree. He was staring fixedly at it.
Gumball, wondering what Darwin was up to, looked to his right and, at once, lost the momentum in his swing. There, floating behind the tree's large trunk, was a strange, transparent shape. It was a faded white, the color of chalk, and had what seemed to be a bow atop its head.
The little eyes widened upon seeing Gumball and the shape disappeared behind the tree.
Penny, noticing that Gumball had stopped swinging, put her feet down on the ground to break her momentum. They didn't say anything, but turned again to look at the tree. The little person behind it was peering out at them.
"That's the new girl," Penny whispered to Gumball. "You know, the one Mrs. Cardinal said was coming this afternoon. She must've just got here."
Penny then waved, beaming. "Hi!" she called out cheerily to the person behind the tree. "I'm Penny! Want to come play with Gumball and me?"
Gumball looked from Penny and back to the girl, who did not move, but continued to look out at them from behind the trunk. She seemed sad, Gumball thought, perhaps even scared. . . .
"What's wrong?" asked Penny, frowning. "Don't you want to play? There's an extra swing right there."
The girl eyed the spare swing closest to her, but still remained hidden, hesitant. She looked back to Gumball, who, trying to be friendly, gave a tiny smile and nudged his head to the swing, inviting her to come and play.
But she didn't move. She only continued to stare.
"Maybe she doesn't like swinging," whispered Penny. "What do you think, Gumball?"
Gumball knew what he had to do. If his memory was correct, (and he wasn't fully sure if it was), he had to be the one to go and invite her over.
"I'll, uh . . . I'll go talk to her," he said, still in that child's voice he hadn't heard for so many years.
His little blue feet touched the grass again. He looked to Penny, who smiled cutely, hanging in midair on her swing. Then Gumball looked to the girl, floating in midair from behind the tree, and stepped towards her.
The girl shirked a little as Gumball approached, but still he could see the edge of her face.
"Hi," he said somewhat awkwardly. "My name's Gumball. You know, like the candy?" He gave a small laugh for the sake of humor. "Kind of weird, I know, but . . . I like it. So . . . what's your name?"
Silence fell between them.
Gumball knew perfectly well who the girl was, that he would come to know her as well as he knew Penny, but still, first impressions were important.
With what looked like a lot of courage, the girl finally spoke.
"M. . .my name is . . .Ca. . ." The girl talked in such a soft voice that the slow moving chains from the swing set drowned her out.
Gumball raised his ear.
"Sorry, but can you, uh, speak just a little louder, please?"
The girl cringed, eyeing the ground nervously. She looked as though she wanted nothing more than to fade into thin air; Gumball wouldn't be surprised if she did, she was transparent enough as it was.
"Hey . . . it's okay," said Gumball gently, taking another step closer. He placed his palm against the birch tree and looked into the girl's eyes. "Me and Penny just want to play. I bet you'd do great on the swings, seeing as you can fly."
The girl's face became less tense.
"Me and Penny have a game we like playing. It's called Moon Jump," Gumball said, the long, forgotten memory resurfacing as he spoke. "We both get on the swings and see who can jump the farthest. I never win, obviously, but it's still fun."
Gumball gave a goofy smile.
The girl raised an eyebrow, perhaps because of Gumball's face. Gumball, however, felt confident.
"I like your bow, by the way."
"Huh?" the girl said. Her eyes widened a little as a tint of red appeared on both her cheeks.
"I said, I like your bow," Gumball repeated. "The skull looks good in your white hair. So . . . what was your name again?"
Another moment of silence. He heard the girl give out a soft sigh, and then, at last, she floated into the opening.
She, like Penny, was miniature to the girl Gumball knew in the present. And, like Penny here, she was absolutely adorable. The skull bow on top of her head was twice the size Gumball was used to seeing and covered a good portion of her ghostly white hair, which fell to the bottom of her neck, the front bangs just above her eyes.
"I'm . . ." the girl hesitated, " I'm . . . C . . . Carrie."
"Carrie?" repeated Gumball, smiling.
"Yeah," she said, now frowning as though affronted. "Going to make a nickname out of it?"
Gumball, confused by the question's abruptness, asked, "A nickname?"
"Yeah. Like, 'Oh, it's Scary Carrie, here to jump out and say boo!' Going to start doing that? Huh? Are you?"
Gumball stared, astonished. The shy, quiet girl from a few seconds ago was suddenly accusing him of being a bully, when she didn't even know anything about him!
But he kept his mood in check. Something — Gumball wasn't sure what — told him he needed to give Carrie this chance. And besides, she was just a little kid.
"No," he said calmly. "I wasn't thinking that. Why do you ask? Did someone make fun you, calling you 'Scary Carrie'?"
Carrie, clearly not expecting this calm of a response, frowned and looked away, embarrassed. "K-kinda. Yeah . . . lots have called me that. . . ."
"Well," said Gumball, smiling, "you won't hear me or Penny say it. I think Carrie's a very nice name."
The little ghost girl rubbed the side of her arm with her hand. "Thanks."
"So . . ." said Gumball, "would you like to swing with me and Penny?"
Carrie looked from him and then to Penny. Then, without giving an answer, she floated over to sit on the swing closest to the tree, leaving Gumball to take the middle swing again.
"Okay," Gumball said bracingly to the two girls. "Let's see who can make the farthest moon jump. Ready? Go!"
Gumball had no idea what sparked him to do it, but soon he and the two girls were swinging back and forth, and he was enjoying every minute of it. It had been years since he had last been on a swing set and he wasn't even sure if he, Penny and Carrie ever did something like this together. But he didn't care; right now, he was enjoying himself. Penny was giggling wildly, and, looking to the right, Gumball saw a small but genuine smile grow on Carrie's pale face.
Finally, when he felt he couldn't go any higher, Gumball let go of the chains and flung himself forward. He flew, the wind in his face . . . and crashed, face-down into the grass.
"Ow. . ." he muttered, spitting out the taste of grass and dirt. But it wasn't a big deal. He wasn't hurt at all. He got up, brushed off, and turned back around to the girls.
Penny let go of her swing next, landing gracefully on her feet about a foot away from where Gumball fell. She beamed, and so did Gumball, who couldn't help feeling impressed: only six-years-old and already Penny was showing promise at being a fine cheerleader.
They turned back to the swings and their faces fell in awe at what they saw.
Not only was Carrie still swinging, but she was increasing in height. She and the top bar of the swing set were now parallel with each other. She was going back and forth with greater strength each time. Eventually, she swung so hard that she looped around the top bar and, upon coming forward, flew like a white bullet past Gumball and Penny.
She twirled and spun upward like an acrobatic dove, laughing loudly with mirth as though she had never laughed like this before.
Carrie must've become aware of this, because, realizing where she was, so high up in the air, she floated back down to the grass and said, back in her timid voice, "Heh . . . sorry about that."
"Are you kidding?" exclaimed Penny. "That was great!"
"Yeah!" Gumball agreed. "The clear winner."
"Wow! Did you see that?" said a new voice.
"Man, that was coooool!" came another.
Gumball and the two girls turned. All their classmates were bunched around them, all staring at Carrie with wonder.
"Do you always fly around like that?" asked Alan, his voice even higher on helium than Gumball was used to hearing.
"Uh. . ." said Carrie, looking from face to face.
"Can you take others with you?" asked Banana Joe eagerly. "Will you give me a ride?"
"Well . . . I . . ."
"Do you live in a haunted house?" asked Molly with positive interest. Then she gasped excitedly. "Are you into sleepovers?"
"Uh . . ."
RIIIIIIIIIINNNNNGGG!
It was a good thing the bell decided to ring at that precise moment: Carrie looked as though she had never received this much attention before and was quite overwhelmed by it.
As his classmates began heading back towards the school doors, Gumball turned to the little ghost girl.
"Carrie?" he said delicately. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah . . . fine," she said, staring off towards the school. "I didn't think they'd be happy to see me. People don't usually want me to hang out with them. Whenever I try to play, most scream whenever they see me, or just keep away."
"Why, though?" asked Gumball. "I mean, you're so nice and fun."
Carrie face shot in his direction, looking even more surprised. "You . . . you think I'm . . . fun?"
"Well, sure I do!" said Gumball with a laugh. "You probably could've literally flown to the moon at how fast you were going."
"And," Penny added, "you saw how everyone was. They weren't being mean or calling you 'Scary Carrie'. They liked you! They've never had a ghost for a friend before."
"A . . . friend?"
"Sure! I mean, if you want to. I certainly want you to. Come on!" she said, beaming, heading back to the school. "I gotta show you to the other girls!"
She ran off, laughing, her attitude as bright as the afternoon sky.
Gumball looked back to Carrie. They were the only two left on the playground.
"So . . ." Gumball was at a loss for what to say. Carrie floated there, looking just as awkward. "I . . . guess we should get back too?"
Carrie nodded.
"Thanks . . . Gumball," she said gently. "Thanks for letting me play with you. I really liked it." And with that, she floated away, a little smile on her face.
After Carrie and her skull bow disappeared beyond the school door, Gumball just stood there on the playground, staring at where Penny and Carrie had left, unsure of what to do or how to make sense of what he was feeling.
"It's amazing, isn't it?" came a voice that made Gumball jump and turn around. "The effect a simple act of kindess can leave on a person," said Darwin, staring in the direction of the school. "What's even more amazing is how it grows, passing from one person to the next."
"Where did you go?" asked Gumball.
"Oh, I was still here. You just didn't notice." Darwin laughed. "I guess you were too busy having fun."
"Sorry. . . ." said Gumball meekly.
"Don't be. You, Penny, and Carrie were just busy being yourselves. What you three made together on this warm spring day was just the beginning."
Gumball frowned, eying Darwin curiously. "What do you mean, 'what the three of us made'? What did we make?"
Darwin fixed him with an all-too-knowing smile. "Something rather special."
Gumball felt his cheeks go hot. He felt half-annoyed, half-embarrased, and, to add to these bizarre feelings, he found he didn't mind them in the slightest.
Apparently, Darwin found this funny, because he started to laugh again.
"Don't feel bewildered," he said through his chuckles. "It's not something terrible, what you're feeling right now. Quite the contrary. What you feel and what those two girls feel is something magnificent. But," he added, giving Gumball a look of mild seriousness, "out of respect for you, we'll just leave it there for the time being. Right now, we need to move on. There's still something else I need you to see."
Darwin clapped his finns twice again, and at once, a strong wind began to blow.
The cool gust wisped over Gumball's fur, whistling past his ears.
The world began to change. One moment, the birch tree by the swings had all its leaves a flutter. The next, it was as though everything had been given a different coat of paint.
The sunny sky faded to a dull, overcast gray. The trees had most of their leaves missing and the grass had lost its brilliant green sheen.
The Elmore Elementary playground had undergone a few noticeable changes, too. The slide looked much less smooth and the jungle gym showed signs of rust at the bottom. Everything had an old, worn look about it, or perhaps it was just due to the weather and the change of seasons. . . .
Gumball turned around. The swing set he, Penny, and Carrie had played on was, from the looks of it, still in rather good shape. The birch tree Carrie hid behind was taller now, its gold leaves and white branches reaching in all directions.
The school bell rang and out from the doors ran many familiar faces, all dressed in fall coats and hats.
Gumball's classmates were all their current age now. Teri no longer had crayon flowers adorned on her paper dress. Carmen was no longer a shrub and Banana Joe no longer a small fruit, though his and Tobias' love of jokes was still healthy and aparent, as both made weird noises with their mouths as they rushed past Gumball to hang out with Clayton.
Like before, the group of kids didn't look at either Gumball or Darwin, as though they were completely invisible.
"They've all —" he stopped dead at hearing his voice. It was back to normal.
"Changed?" Darwin finished for Gumball. He looked around at the kids. "Yes . . .they have. You have too."
He pulled the hand-mirror out of thin air again and showed it to Gumball. His young, twelve year old self looked right back at him.
The difference of six years was startling.
"Wow. . . This feels. . . ."
"It's normal to feel like that," said Darwin, stowing the mirror away again. "Time goes by so fast, we hardly notice a thing. It's only when we look to the past, back on how things were, that such feelings affect us."
Gumball blinked. "That sounds like something Anais would say."
"Certainly, yes. As I said, me and her often work together. Remember? I told you that about fifteen minutes ago."
"Sorry."
Gumball looked back to the classmates.
Most of the boys were grouped with the boys, laughing about something. Most of the girls were grouped with the girls, giggling about something. Tina and Jamie was standing together, shaking Bobert down for lunch money. Kind of stupid, really; if Gumball's memory was right, lunch was always before recess.
But as he continued to stare at the changes in everyone's age, appearance, and behavior, Gumball soon realized there were a few faces missing.
"Hey. . .," said Gumball, frowning. "Where am I at? And," he looked over again at the group of girls, but couldn't distinguish any antlers or skull bow amongst the mix of heads, "where are Penny and Carrie?"
Darwin raised an eyebrow. "First off, you are here, obviously. That is, you are where you are standing, asking me these questions. As for Penny and Carrie, they're looking for you. Here," he raised his finns, "I'll help them out so they can help you out."
He clapped his finns again, and this time he vanished on the spot, faster than the blink of an eye.
Baffled, Gumball stared at the spot where Darwin disappeared, his brain awhirl with questions. What did Darwin mean, 'so they can help you out'?
Then a mellow voice spoke.
"Oh, there you are, Gumball."
Carrie floated up next to him. She, like the other kids, was twelve. Her skull bow was much smaller now and her white bangs now covered one of her eyes.
"C-Carrie?" said Gumball, amazed at the six years of change to Carrie's appearance. "Hey. . ."
"How you doing?" she asked.
"Fine, I . . . guess?"
Carrie eyed him silently, then tilted her head in a curious way. "You seem upset."
"Oh, no. I'm feeling quite fine," he assured her.
"Are you sure nothing's bothering you?" Carrie asked again, and Gumball could've sworn she looked sympathetic. "Nothing you want to talk about?"
In all honesty, Gumball wanted to ask her what he was doing here, what Darwin expected him to do in this shade of a long forgotten memory, but he couldn't see how he could explain that to Carrie without confusing her.
"I . . ." he began, trying to word it careful, ". . . I guess I just . . . don't know what to do right now. I'm not feeling up to doing whatever the boys are doing."
They both looked in the direction of their male classmates. Clayton and Tobias were doing some kind of funky dance over by the sandbox, or else just acting like they normally do when they want to exert their energy. Eventually it ended in Tobias tripping over the sandbox's edge and falling face forward into the sand (no surprise there).
Carrie turned back to Gumball. "You know, Gumball, Darwin is really sorry."
Gumball blinked. "What?"
"It was just an accident," Carrie went on. "He didn't mean it."
"Didn't mean what?" asked Gumball.
Carrie glared. "That's not funny. You care a lot more than you think, even if you don't feel like you do."
Gumball stared at her, opened mouth and a little disturbed. What on earth was she talking about? "Is Darwin, uh, upset about something?"
"You honestly haven't noticed?" asked Carrie. She frowned. "That's not like you, Gumball. Not at all."
"I don't know what you're —"
"Gumball?" came a sad little voice from behind.
He turned. There stood Penny. She, like Carrie, was twelve and very beautiful, and looked positively woebegon.
"Penny?" The way she looked at him, as though someone had stamped her feelings into the ground, was not pleasant. Gumball wished he could turn away, but some part of him refused. "What's wro —"
"You need to go and talk to Darwin," said Penny. "Nothing I've said has helped."
"But what's wrong with him?" he asked loudly, unable to keep his voice down due to worry. "What's happened? What did I do this time?"
"'This time'?" repeated Carrie. "You mean, this sort of thing's happened before?"
Gumball looked to her, then back to Penny. He didn't know what to think. He hadn't the slightest clue what was going on and it was beginning to scare him.
"Where's Darwin?" he asked.
"Right over there." Penny pointed towards the seesaw next to the swingset. Gumball could see an orange body sitting at the base of the birch tree.
"Gumball," whispered Penny. He turned to her. "Please. Go and talk to him. Please . . . for me?"
"I . . ." he stammered.
"She's right. You're the only one who can fix this," said Carrie matter-of-factly. "Are you really so mad that you won't even talk to your own brother?"
She nudged her head in Darwin's direction. Penny nodded in agreement, her hands held over her heart.
Gumball looked from them and back to Darwin.
Nothing the two girls said made any sense to him except that Darwin was sad about something, something he, Gumball, had apparently gotten angry over. But what it was it though? What could happened to reduce Darwin to this state? Did Gumball dare ask Penny and Carrie for details? Was the other Darwin, Gumball's Friendship, trying to show him something, something he was controlling? Or was he and the Darwin beside the tree the same person?
The whole world seemed to lay still beneath that overcast sky. It was a most uncomfortable shade of gray. The only signs of life or movement on the playground was the gibbering from the other students, but the noise they made fell mute to Gumball as he continued to look in the direction of the swings and seesaw.
Without really thinking, he began to walk.
He had no idea what he was going to say or do. He didn't understand why he was feeling guilty when he didn't even know what Darwin had done to offend him. He was more confused by what was happening now than he had been in Miss Simian's classroom with Anais. At least there Anais was able to provide explaination. Here, there was nothing but Gumball's own thoughts and instincts, and they were as unclear as everything else. All he knew for certain was that Darwin needed help.
Gumball reached the middle of the playground, and already he was half-regretted this. He passed by the girls, who all gave him quick, furtive glances. They seemed either curious or nervous. Gumball ignored them, forcing himself to keep his eyes set on Darwin.
He passed by the boys, and they too ceased in their play to eye Gumball.
Did they know? he thought. Was he the only one who didn't understand what had happened?
Gumball pushed on, feeling as though every eye on earth were watching him, weighing at his back.
He stopped next to the seesaw, whose dull, chipped paint suggested it had seen and felt many hard storms and hot dry days. Yet, like the swing set, it was, otherwise, in fine shape.
Absentmindley, Gumball's hand reached up and pushed down on the seesaw's upmost seat. The metal hinge creaked as the wood frame bowed its way down to the drying grass. It wasn't a terrible creak, though; it only sounded loud because Gumball was so close.
Darwin did not react to the sound in anyway.
Already Gumball could tell he wasn't going to like this. He knew it was going to be awkward, perhaps even embarrassing, seeing as he didn't know what the problem was. But . . . he couldn't just leave. Confused though he was, he wasn't going to walk away and pretend that Darwin was fine.
Holding his breath, ready for what, he knew not, Gumball moved forward and stopped at the base of the birch tree.
"Hey, buddy," he said in as friendly a voice as he could.
Darwin's head jerked a little, but he did not answer back.
"Darwin?"
Again nothing.
"Darwin? You okay?"
He walked around the trunk. What he saw made him feel sick.
Darwin's knees were bent upwards to his chin. He was facing the leaf-strewn ground with eyes that were red and puffy.
"Hey," Gumball said gently. He knelt down to his brother. "What's wrong? Why are you over here all alone?"
Darwin sniffled, and his wet eyes raised to meet Gumball's gaze.
"Come to yell some more?" he asked in a croaky voice.
Gumball frowned. "No, I . . . I just want to talk. What's bothering you?"
This must've been a very dumb thing to ask, because Darwin's face twisted with grief and annoyance.
"Stop pretending!" he muttered.
"I'm not pretending!" Gumball replied in frustration. Darwin flinched. "Sorry. . . but I want to know what's bothering you. What did I do?"
But Darwin only dropped his gaze back to the ground. Talking was clearly not on his mind right now.
"Darwin, please," said Gumball emploringly. "You and I can talk about anything. Whatever's happened —"
"Stop pretending you don't know!" Darwin snapped, his voice breaking. "You've already shouted enough! There's no way you've forgotten!"
He turned sideways and glared at the fence, his cheeks wet with tears.
Gumball ran his hand down the side of his face. Mournfully, he looked up into the dark gray sky and then down to the earth, the dry leaves crunching under his feet as he moved.
What was it? What terrible thing could Darwin possibly have done to him? And if it really was so terrible, why couldn't Gumball remember it?
"What's the point?" he asked himself quietly, praying his Friendship would answer. But, of course, nothing came. There wasn't even any wind to lend a whisper.
Gumball looked back towards the school, cloaked in a long shadow. Penny and Carrie were still staring his way, both looking worried.
He turned back again to Darwin, who still looked affronted.
He closed his eyes.
"Anais," Gumball whispered. "Come on, Sis, help me out. What do I do?"
He didn't hear anything, nor had he expected to. He knew he was being unwise, asking for assistance from thin air. All he had was the dull, harsh feeling he got every time Darwin yelled at him, blaming him for the failing grade, all because he forgot to include his name.
He stared at Darwin, who stared miserably out into the wide beyond.
Never in his life did Gumball feel such a mixture of confusion and regret, and the fact that these emotions didn't seem to have a source made it feel all the worse.
He swallowed and stepped forward, two feet from his brother. Whatever was about to happen, Gumball only prayed it would ease this horrible feeling.
"Darwin . . ." Gumball said in as frank a voice he could muster, "you don't have to look at me, but . . . just, please, listen. What happened with you and me . . . it happened, okay? There's nothing you or I can do to change it, or change how I acted. I know I shouldn't have shouted or glared or acted the way I did. I was just . . . angry. Angry at how unfair it was —"
"You wouldn't even let me finish a sentence!" Darwin cut across him in that trembling voice.
"I know," said Gumball softly. "I was stupid. I . . . I wasn't thinking. I didn't want to be reasonable. I just wanted to feel angry, angry for as long as I could. But I've had enough time to clear my head and think straight."
"And?" asked Darwin critically.
"And . . . I'm sorry. I was an idiot to press all the blame on you for something you didn't mean, for something that you would never intentionally do to me. But . . . I did anyway. I can't change what I said, Darwin, but I don't want to be angry anymore. I don't want to stop being friends with you just because one stupid thing didn't go according to plan. I'm not saying I'll forget what happened, but I don't want to dwell on it. Time is precious, especially when you're young. So . . . I'm sorry, Darwin. I'm sorry for what I did. For everything I said. . . ."
He waited. The whole world, perhaps, waited with him.
Then Darwin turned to look up at Gumball, a tear on his orange cheek. Gumball readied himself for the reply, whatever it may be.
Darwin pushed himself up from the grass and turned to face his brother.
The two stood still. Gumball, feeling nervous; Darwin, looking uncertain.
Then they acted.
They moved at the same time. Without needing to think, they stepped forward and embraced each other.
"Thank you," whispered Darwin, a fresh tear flowing down his face.
"Hey, come on," said Gumball with a sniff. "You would've done the same for me."
I know you would, he thought in his mind.
And there they stood. Still baffled by whatever it was that caused this, Gumball didn't care so long as Darwin was all right.
"Uh, Gumball?"
"Yeah, buddy?"
"We should probably stop hugging," he said with a light chuckle. "Everyone's starting to stare."
Gumball looked to the side. Indeed, several of their classmates were looking their way. They all looked relieved. Penny and Carrie, too, were both smiling their beautiful smiles.
Quite happily, Gumball returned them.
At that precise moment, the school bell rang, signaling the end of recess.
As the other students headed for the school doors, Darwin pulled back, grinning at Gumball.
"Come on, buddy," he said, his attitude bright. "Don't want to be late!"
So happy just to see his brother back to his old self, Gumball followed him towards the school. Everything seemed much brighter and calmer now, even though the gray sky above was still solid and smooth.
"Hey, Penny!" Darwin said as he walked past her, beaming. "Hey, Carrie!"
He moved on, a spring in his step, and dissapeared behind the school doors.
Penny and Carrie looked back at Gumball. They didn't say anything, but the simple beauty of their smiles was more than any words could describe.
"Quite a sight, isn't it?" came Darwin's friendly voice from behind.
Gumball turned around to see Darwin, his Friendship, smiling the same smile Gumball saw go behind the closed doors.
"So. . ." said Gumball, looking from him to the two girls.
"You're ready to go on," said Darwin.
"But why?" asked Gumball. "What was that all about? What happened to make me so mad at Darwin?"
"Does it matter if you know?"
"Well, it would make things less confusing, for one!" said Gumball, and he couldn't help but feel slightly annoyed. "Did it involve something about school? Another project, by any chance?"
"Who knows?" said Darwin with a smile and a shrug. "I certainly don't."
"You don't know?" said Gumball, incredulous. "What do you mean, you don't know?"
"It doesn't matter that you don't know," Darwin explained. "All that matters was how you acted."
"But, but," Gumball spluttered. "But how does that help me?"
Darwin chuckled. "Do you really have to ask?"
Gumball grumbled at the bemused response.
"All right," he said with strained patience. "Tell me this, at least, Mr. Friendship. Did this, whatever this was, have anything to do with me apologizing to Darwin for forgetting to include him on our science report?"
"Maybe," replied Darwin, still smiling.
"Well," Gumball said with clenched fists, "sorry to disappoint you, but I don't think Darwin, the real Darwin, is going to be as forgiving."
At that moment, Darwin's grin dropped. "Why would you think that?"
"Because he yells every single time it happens!" shot Gumball. "Because I messed up when the mistake was so easy to avoid!"
"But he's your friend," said Darwin. "Your best friend and brother."
"So? That's not going to change how he feels! He's still going to yell!"
"Enough to never forgive you? Hasn't he done so before? What about when you ran away after your tantrum in the gym, or at the end of the first day while you were asleep?"
With a scowl upon his face, Gumball fell silent, bitterly disregarding the mentioned moments. They had been random at best and Darwin only started feeling sympathetic after the events had sunk in, long after the damage had laid its salt into Gumball's emotional wounds.
"He's your friend."
Gumball looked up, and Darwin continued with calm confidence. "Yes, you made him angry, but he's still your friend. He will forgive you."
"What if he doesn't?" stressed Gumball.
Darwin frowned, looking most sorry for Gumball. "Don't you have faith that he'll forgive you?"
Gumball didn't answer. He just couldn't bring himself to say 'yes'. Deep down, he believed Darwin would forgive him, but then he thought of all the times Darwin slapped that failing grade down onto his desk, thought of all the times Darwin gave him the cold shoulder, how he refused to talk to him.
"What do you think?" asked Gumball. It seemed the wise thing to ask. Who knew more about friendship that his literal Friendship?
"What do I think?" asked Darwin, his eyebrows raised. "I think you have what it takes to help him forgive you. It's not something you can sit around and expect to happen."
"But how?" Gumball asked deserpately. "I don't know what to do."
"I have faith that we will. If you are his friend, we will find a way to mend the hurt we have caused. And if he is really our friend, he will understand."
"But he was so angry —"
"And so were you, and you don't even remember why you got angry. But regardless of what happened, you and your brother mended. It's just how things go sometimes. Friendship isn't just happiness and laughter. It's not always a smiling affair. Sometimes the best moments arise from our worst. It's a really strange thing when you think about it."
"So . . . what do I do?"
"You already know," replied Darwin.
"Not that again!" said Gumball incredulously.
Darwin burst out laughing. "Yep, I'm afraid so. But don't be discouraged. You do know. Trust me when I say, as your Friendship, you have what it takes to fix this, and not just with Darwin. Trust me on that."
"But how can —"
"Please . . . Trust me."
The world fell quiet at these words.
Gumball still had so many questions about what was going on, about everything that happened out here on this playground. But just as he was about to insist, a tiny thought, much like a voice from within, told him that his time here was done and that it was best to move on.
He let off a sigh. He was just going to have to trust Darwin on this — both Darwins.
"Okay," said Gumball steadily. "I'll do my best."
"That will do," said Darwin with a nod. "Come. It's time to go."
He began walking towards the school. Gumball made to follow him but stopped dead, for someone else had joined them on the playground.
"You again?" said Gumball with surprise, for he found himself face to face with his Twin again, still in his night clothes, still tired as all get out.
The Twin didn't reply, but stood there beside Penny and Carrie, both looking sadly at the disheveled blue cat. Without saying a word, they turned their backs on him and made their way towards the school.
"How did you get here?" asked Gumball.
The Twin didn't answer. He didn't even look up from the ground, dead exhaustion in his gaze.
"He didn't arrive here," replied Darwin, frowning at the Twin. "Let's go." And he continued on without so much as another look.
"Wait!" called Gumball. "Shouldn't he come too?"
Darwin shook his head, his expression quite mournful. "He can't come. He won't."
"But why?"
"He just won't," said Darwin simply. "There's nothing we can do." And he moved on, leaving Gumball with no other choice but to follow, but not before giving the Twin another look.
The Twin did not crane his head to look up, nor made any sort of movement. He had the dreary appearance of a very lonely soul.
Gumball stopped outside the school doors, Darwin, Penny, and Carrie standing at his side.
"I think you'll like this next one," said Darwin.
"Why?" asked Gumball, eyeing Darwin suspiciously.
"You'll see," he responded teasingly.
Gumball raised an eyebrow. "You can be really hard to predict, you know that?"
"Yes," said Darwin, grinning. "I know that very well."
Gumball rolled his eyes.
He was about to step towards the door when, at glancing at Penny and Carrie, he stopped.
The two were smiling at him: Penny's was sweet, and Carrie's was calm. Gumball couldn't honestly say which he liked better.
Perhaps it was out of curiosity, but Gumball couldn't stop himself from asking. "Um . . . should I ask? About . . . you two? About us . . . the three of us?"
Penny giggled. "You don't need to."
"You already know," Carrie said simply.
Gumball almost groaned at hearing those three words again, but had to agree that he probably knew the answer already.
"You don't have to worry," said Carrie. "The three of us, we're just fine."
"There's plenty of time to figure everything out," said Penny. "For right now, we're both happy just as it is. We're both willing to see where this goes with you."
Gumball nodded. Simulatenously, Penny and Carrie returned it.
From overhead, a thin slant of sunlight broke through the overcast gray and fell across the playground.
Gumball, feeling the faint warmth brush over his neck, turned around and gave the place one final glance.
He had a lot a good memories here, and not just with Darwin, Penny, and Carrie. He remembered playing extreme tag with Tobias and Banana Joe. He remembered building sandcasles with Carmen and Molly while Teri watched, not wanting to dirty herself with sand. He even found something to admire about the times when he was chased around by Tina whenever she was in a bad mood.
All those memories happened so long ago. The words that were said and the sights that were seen were now, more or less, a blur — too vauge to fully recall. All that remained of these memories was how Gumball felt about them.
Someone placed a hand on his left shoulder. It was smooth and orange.
"Remember," Darwin said kindly. "Don't forget."
Again, three familiar words. Again, Gumball wondered what they meant.
But then he remembered what Anais had told him.
He sighed with a bemused shake of his head.
"Thanks for the reminder," said Gumball.
Darwin smiled. "And thank you for being here."
All comments, positive or negative, are welcome, as always.
