Chapter 54: The Confrontation

Computer spent the next several hours getting the old computer back up and running. He used that time to teach Nina how to use it properly. It felt like he was doing a service for his brethren by making sure that there was one less tech illiterate person in the world. He wished he had more time to teach her because she seemed to soak everything up with ease. It was a shame that the twit wasn't into this sort of thing as he could learn a lot himself.

Nina's dad soon got up and she introduced Computer to the aging ferret. He was pretty nice despite his, er, 'interesting' internet habits, and he was perfectly welcoming too. He didn't seem even slightly opposed to the idea of having a dog around.

Lunchtime quickly rolled in and Computer found himself surprised at how fast time was going by. He knew that he was stalling his eventual meet up with Courage, but he didn't mind. He was certainly giving the twit some time to get his priorities straight and hopefully this would accumulate into making sure that he wouldn't get whacked across the head again.

"You haven't eating anything yet today." Nina commented as they got ready for lunch. "Don't robot dogs have to eat too?"

"Well, I'm not exactly fond of eating." He admitted with a shrug.

"How can you be?" She asked. "Eating is fun and it tastes good too! All you gotta do is make sure that you don't eat too much."

"Courage pretty much told me the same thing too." He sighed. "I'd rather not risk choking again though."

"Choke? Most people don't choke when they eat. Did you?" She asked.

"Uh, I guess so..."

"You should try again once lunch is ready." She urged him. "You might start to like it."

He shook his head. "I'd rather not."

"You can't go forever without eating! It's just like sleeping! You've gotta do both!"

"I'd rather go without." He grumbled under his breath. "I really hate all the things you organic cre-"

"Hey," Nina's dad said, poking his head into the kitchen and interrupting him. "That other dog is in the lobby right now."

"You gonna go talk to him?" Nina asked, turning back to Computer.

He was certain that his internal organs had just twisted up into a bunch of knots. "I'll wait until he goes back outside. I'd rather not get into an argument with him in here."

"Argument?" She asked.

"We fight a lot, haven't you noticed?" He replied, pointing to the bump on his head.

Without warning, Nina picked him up and hugged him again. He was once again rendered silent by the kind gesture.

"Tell him that he can have lunch with us if he wants to." She spoke. It was obvious that she didn't want her new robot dog to go out there.

"I'll try and ask, but I think he's going to be pretty angry with me after this."

"Just don't let him crack your head open again, okay?"

"I can try." He laughed somewhat sadly. "Twits will unfortunately be twits."

The next ten minutes were probably some of the hardest he had ever endured. What was the dog doing that was taking so long? He knew that there were still some doughnuts left in the lobby, so maybe the dog was having a late breakfast. As far as he knew, Courage hadn't returned to eat after Nina had talked with him earlier that morning.

He waited in the hallway, keeping just far enough away so that no one could see him from the main lobby. He had taken a risk and looked out twice. Courage was looking terrible. He seemed exhausted and on the verge of tears. He keep his head down and his ears drooped. Computer would have gone out right then and there, but he wasn't sure how the dog would react to his sudden reappearance and he didn't want to get into a fight with him while Nina was so close.

The dog was indeed eating a few leftovers they had left out in the lobby. The whole place was deserted at the moment. Nobody had shown up to rent a room since they themselves had done so last night. Nina had talked to a few people who were leaving early this morning, but that was it. One obviously did not get a lot of business in a place like Nowhere.

Finally, after what felt like forever, Courage got up and left. As soon as the door closed, Computer entered the lobby. This was it, it was time to see how Courage really felt about him. Hopefully it would not end up the same way things had gone down back in the forest.

Wincing, he braced himself for the worst.

"Here goes nothing." He muttered out before opening the door.

Courage had already gotten halfway across the parking lot by the time Computer had exited the building. The pup did a small jump when he heard the glass door close. Computer waited for him to turn around, and he did.

Courage's eyes seemed to all but light up at the sight of him. He had expected the dog to say something, but he didn't. Instead, he closed the distance between them and tackled him to the ground in a hug.

Computer became acutely aware that he was practically being crushed to death, and aside from the fact that he could barely breathe, this reaction from the dog had left him utterly speechless. He had not expected things to turn out like this.

"I've been looking all over for you!" Courage whimpered. "I-I thought you'd left! I'm sorry! I'm so, so sorry!"

Computer steeled himself for what he was going to say. Part of him didn't even want to do this anymore as it would just hurt Courage needlessly. He was genuinely surprised by how the dog was acting. He had not expected this at all. Where he had expected anger, there was only guilty pleading from the dog.

"Go home, Courage." He finally said.

No faltering now. He had to make sure that he was convincing.

"W-what?" Courage gasped, gazing up into his eyes.

Computer forced his expression into something between both mild anger and complete determination. He so badly wanted to remain expressionless, but he knew that he'd slip up if he did so.

"Go home." He repeated. "I've decided that I'm staying here."

Courage's face filled with complete bewilderment. He seemed to be at a loss for words. Every attempt he made to talk just came out as breathless air. It was like his brain could not comprehend the words that had just been spoken.

"C-Computer, what a-are you-" He managed to stutter out.

"I've made a new friend and she wants me to stay here. I've decided that I like it here too, so I've offered to be her pet. She's my new owner now."

The dog's eyes began to fill with tears. "But, Computer, what about, w-what a-about-"

Computer allowed his eyes to narrow. "That's your problem now! I suppose you should have thought about this before you tried to crack my head open!"

The dog's watery eyes slowly moved upwards until they fell upon his bandaged head. "I-I'm so sorry."

"Sorry isn't good enough anymore!" He yelled, pushing the dog away and standing up. "I have a real owner who cares about me now! So go home!"

He was dredging up genuine anger over how Courage had been treating him lately. He wasn't truly angry anymore, not really, but he could still drum up those lingering emotions for this little act of his.

Courage backed up several steps. Tears were still rolling down his face. "Computer, can't we-" He whimpered. "C-can't we work this out s-somehow? The full implications of what was happening seemed to slowly be dawning on him.

Computer crossed his arms. "Absolutely not! I hate being with you!" He spat. "I have a real home now and I don't have to live in some awful attic ever again! I don't have to spend all of my time being bored, being alone, and especially being lonely! I don't have to put up with you or anything you routinely put me through! I can't believe I bought into all that crap about us being friends! We never were! You were just using me the whole time! Just like all of my other owners! At the end of the day, I'm still just a computer for you to boss around!"

His words were surprisingly genuine. He was voicing a lot of his frustrations and suspicions that he had been harboring for so long now. Even now a part of him really didn't want to go back with Courage. He could see his life as Nina's pet laid out before him, and he really wanted it. It was a respite from the hell that had been his life for so long. It was something that not even Courage could give him, regardless of the dog's intentions, good or bad.

Courage was stunned silent by his words. He just stood there, trembling. Tears continued to roll down his face. It was a sorry sight indeed, and Computer really did feel bad for it. He was waiting for the dog to get angry, or worse, violent. He was expecting it. Courage wasn't just going to let this happen without saying or doing something about it first.

"But what about my illness?" He whimpered out. "I-I need your help. You, you said that you wouldn't abandon me."

"Find somebody else to save your worthless hide! I don't want anything to do with you any longer! I don't owe you anything and I don't have to do anything for you if I don't want to! You should have tried to stay on my good side, you stupid twit!"

'Come on! Get mad!' He thought to himself. He was waiting, expecting, getting ready for the worst, but the dog just stood there and cried. He seemed so crushed and that was far worse for Computer to endure than dealing with his anger.

"I'm sorry, Computer." He spoke, sniffing once and then straightening himself up. "A-are, are you really that happy here?" He asked.

Computer blinked. "Yes, I am. I've spent some time with the people who live here and I want to stay with them. These people actually want me around for a change, instead of just wanting to use me."

"B-but, but I do want you around too!" The dog argued so pathetically that Computer had to fight the urge to wince.

"Correction! You just want me to help you, that's all!" He snarled out instead.

"N-no, I-"

"You don't want me around because I'm just an inconvenience! If none of this had happened, I'd be up in that attic rotting away right now! You wouldn't have given me a single thought for days now!" His tone was coming off far more scathing and bitter than he intended it to.

"That's not true!" Courage yelled. "You've already got a home! You belong with us! You're a part of our family!"

"No, I'm not! And I'm not going back with you!"

He expected the fighting to begin now, but it did not.

Courage closed his eyes. "Are you really that happy here?" He asked for a second time.

"Yes! And I'm staying here no matter what you say! I'm actually appreciate for a change and I am not giving that up!"

"Can you wait here just for a second?" Courage asked. He had managed to stop crying and there was now an almost calm acceptance to him.

Computer found himself blinking with surprise at Courage's request. What was he up to?

"I-I guess." He answered. "What are you going to do?"

"Just wait here." Courage replied, turning around and heading over to their room.

A wave of fear washed over Computer. The dog was going back to get the pan! In a moment of panic, he considered the possibility of asking Nina for help. Courage wouldn't dare attack two people! On the other hand, the dog had nothing left to lose now and he was probably planning on going down with a fight.

He cringed, unsure of what to do. This was what he had been going for. He had wanted to prove to himself that Courage wasn't really as kind as he seemed. No, he had really been trying to prove to himself that Courage 'was' as kind as he had hoped, but now it was clear that it was all one big lie. This was what he had so desperately wished wasn't true. He'd have to face the dog head on, just like everything else. No running away this time.

The dog came running back. There was something in his paws, but it wasn't the pan. His face was filled with a grim acceptance that only helped to confuse Computer even further.

What was going on? What was Courage going to do? Computer wasn't sure what was in the dog's paws, but several unpleasant possibilities ran through his head.

Courage thrust the thing into his arms and he glanced down at it. It was the yo-yo the dog had give to him back on farm. It was supposed to be lucky, right?

Now it was his turn to be temporarily stunned. "Why are you-"

"Promise that you won't forget about me?" Courage asked, giving him a surprisingly happy smile.

"W-what?" He choked out. The dog was just going to let him go? No arguments, no pleading, no anything?

Courage seemed to read his thoughts. "If you want to stay here, I can't stop you. If these people really make you that happy then I wouldn't want to take them away from you anyway. I'm not going to force you to do anything. If you really are happy here then I'm happy for you too!" His voice trembled with those last few words and he was still fighting back tears despite his smile.

Computer almost couldn't believe what he was hearing. He stood there with his mouth agape, unsure of what to say to the dog. Where was the anger? Where was the inevitable fighting? This was not what he had expected. Courage was just...accepting this?

"Please don't forget about me." He repeated, all while continuing to smile. "If you really don't want to see me again, that's fine, but m-maybe you could come visit once in awhile? I mean, I'm probably not going to be around much longer but, but-" His smile cracked and he broke down crying all over again.

"Courage..." Computer found himself muttering out without even realizing it.

He was wrong, completely and utterly wrong. Courage wasn't stringing him along at all. The dog was genuine. All those thing he had said, he had meant them, every last word of it.

Courage turned, still sobbing, and began to walk away. He looked back one last time to say, "Thank you for everything, Compute. I'm glad you've found a place where you belong and where you're happy. You deserve it."

He let the yo-yo fall to the ground with a clatter. 'He wants me to be happy?' He thought. 'He doesn't even care if he dies, just so long as I'm happy?'

"Hold on!" He cried out, racing forward until he overtook Courage. "I-I didn't mean any of that! Well, I was planning on staying here, but then I decided that I was going to keep my promise to you, and I'm going to keep helping you no matter what! I only put you through all that because, b-because I needed to be sure."

Courage slowly gazed up at him. He didn't seem convinced. "Needed to be sure of what?"

"That I could really trust you and that you really were my friend. I'm sorry. I keep misjudging you over and over again. I didn't mean to doubt you, it's just that it's very hard for me to trust-"

Courage cut him off. "Y-you're still going to help me?"

"Yes! I promise! I do want to stay here, but I'm not about to let you die either."

Courage face went red and he began to cry all over again. What on earth was he still sobbing about? Everything was going to be alright now!

"Come on, dog. You don't have to keep crying." He said, trying to comfort his friend.

"I-I thought you were going to leave me to die! Why'd you have to do this?" He sobbed. "I spent the whole day looking for you! I thought you'd gone away and I didn't know where to look for you anymore! I-I was so worried!"

"Look, my friend offered you lunch, if you want it, but I don't think she'd want to see you bawling your eyes out like this. It's going to be alright, twit."

Courage nearly tipped him over a second time with another crushing hug. He continued to cry near endlessly, much to Computer's annoyance and disappointment. This wasn't how he had wanted this to end. He hadn't meant to hurt Courage this badly.

"It's alright, Courage. Everything's going to be fine now, so please stop crying."

"S-sorry." He choked out, but his sobbing did not let up.

"I'm the one who should be apologizing. I shouldn't have strung you along like that, sorry."

He meant it. Had he known that Courage would take this so badly, he would have never, ever-

"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!" Courage continued to plea between sobs.

"Fine, how about you promise not to crack my head open again and we'll call it even?" He spoke, trying to cheer his friend up in any way he could.

To think, Courage was actually willing to let him do whatever he wanted, just so long as it made him happy. He almost couldn't believe it. How stupid he was to have doubted how much the dog actually cared about him. Yes, he knew now without a doubt that Courage was worth saving.

End Of Chapter