Hello, readers! Today I bring you another short story in which Beast Boy gets his hands on what he thinks is soda- but is actually something a little stronger. Hope you enjoy, and please review!
I don't own the Teen Titans and happy reading!
Beast Boy needed caffeine.
Preferably, soda.
Ever since Robin had gone all health-crazed, he'd made the Titans- specifically Beast Boy- seriously cut back on the junk, like pizza and soft drinks; replacing it with things like fruit salad and water. At first it was tolerable- a fruit or vegetable here and there never hurt anyone. But now Beast Boy's entire diet was thrown off. He knew his eating habits were...probably questionable. But he was a teenager- wasn't this supposed to be the time to waste your life away and forget about everything? It was enough to drive a guy insane- which was probably true at this point, considering Beast Boy was wide awake at something like three in the morning, sitting up in bed, thinking about the delicious soda he hadn't had in ages.
Then he had a thought.
Robin was asleep- more than likely. It had been some time since Slade had shown up, so hopefully Robin's thoughts would remain at rest until the next encounter with him. The other Titans were definitely asleep- as far as Beast Boy knew, they'd never had any issues to keep them awake.
Well, actually, Raven had received in an earlier battle with Control Freak that day. It had been a nasty gash which they'd had to disinfect on the field using alcohol- but Beast Boy doubted that the empathy would allow something like a cut to prevent her from sleeping.
Which meant the coast was clear.
He was probably going to feel guilty about this later- but for now all that was in his head was soda. Beast Boy missed the tingling fizz on his tongue, the sugary taste, the glorious burps that would come after chugging a whole can in seconds. He even missed the feel of the can- the cool drops of condensation sliding down the sides.
He was desperate.
Before he could think about it, Beast Boy swung his legs from his bed, scrambled down the ladder of the bunk bed he slept in, careful not to make too much noise- and slipped covertly out the door to get a quick soda break.
Beast Boy shrank down to the size of a mouse, continuing to navigate the halls down to the kitchen, which took him longer than he would have liked due to his size- but nonetheless he was able to make it there.
Perfect- there was already a cup on the counter. A plastic cup only around half-filled with golden-brown, partly transparent liquid- but the half-cup was all Beast Boy needed. All he was going to have was that cup.
Eager, Beast Boy darted straight at the cup, snatching it up off the counter and draining it in seconds. It tasted better than he ever remembered, like a waterfall of sweetness flooding into his mouth with just the right tinge of bitter.
Suddenly, Beast Boy found himself tearing up the contents of the refrigerator, in a needy search for more of what he had just had. It wasn't soda he ever remembered tasting before- but it felt like long enough since his last soda that he would have forgotten how it tasted.
Soon enough, he found exactly what he was looking for- a logoless bottle filled with just the drink he had just had. He felt his stomach flip with anticipation as he reached for the bottle and snatched it from its perch on the shelves. Beast Boy still had no idea what the stuff was- he just knew he had to have more. It tasted so much better than he recalled.
In the blink of an eye, Beast Boy had downed the whole thing, slamming it back onto the counter. It was perfection. He was so glad he had decided to go rogue and sneak the soda. It was easily the best thing he'd had in weeks.
Oh, crap- did he just hear footsteps?
Instinctively, Beast Boy shapeshifted to the form of a fly, not bothering to throw away the bottle of soda or the plastic cup. If Robin caught him here- he was so dead. Robin would make him do push-ups for weeks! No way was he going to do that.
Beast Boy rocketed out of the room, buzzing through the hallways as fast as his fly body could take him back to his room, where he morphed back into his normal form and hurled himself up the bunk bed ladder into his bed, throwing the covers over himself and shutting his eyes tightly.
Did the ceiling come down on his head?
That's what it felt like the next morning when Beast Boy woke up- like something slammed down on his head while he was sleeping and now he had the worst headache of all time. Like his skull had been cracked open- that's how badly it hurt.
Beast Boy let out a loud groan as he groggily climbed out of bed, face contorted into a pained grimace. As if through a fog, he put his clothes and shoes on, then dragged himself through the disaster that was his bedroom to the bathroom; barely aware of his own actions; only the relentless throbbing in his head. All Beast Boy wanted to do was crawl back into bed and stay there until he actually felt like being alive- but he knew with the Titans' uncertain yet strict schedule, that probably wasn't going to be possible.
Maybe, he thought, hand holding his head, some water would make him feel better. Decidedly, Beast Boy stumbled from his room and down the halls, his vision blurring and doubling in front of his eyes. It was like a fever dream or something- more like a fever nightmare.
Man, he felt like trash. Was this some type of bad karma from breaking his water-only diet last night? If this was the price he had to pay, he would never even breathe in the same direction as a can of soda again. This was so not worth it.
Beast Boy arrived in the common room shortly, where the other Titans were all seated at the table, eating a breakfast of toast, eggs, and orange juice. Head still pulsing, he trudged over to the refrigerator and sluggishly pulled it open, in search of a cool drink of water, hoping maybe it would stop the aching in his head.
Raven glanced up from her mug of tea at the changeling, her nose wrinkling. "You look like crap," she remarked casually, and then looked back down at her plate.
Beast Boy didn't have the energy to reply with a rude face or childish retort, instead continuing to rummage through the fridge. Finally finding an unopened water bottle, he took the top off and chugged the whole thing down- only to find it didn't relieve his pain much at all. He squeezed his eyes shut and sighed, wishing he could just go back to bed.
"Cut it out," Robin chastised Raven, who didn't acknowledge the Boy Wonder. Then he turned around in his chair to face Beast Boy, swallowing a bit of eggs, with a look of mild concern on his face. "Beast Boy? Uh...you okay?"
No answer from the shapeshifter, who now was leaning drowsily against the counter. He looked like he was struggling to even stay upright.
"Uh, dude?" Cyborg, sitting beside Robin, queried. "Hellooo? Beast Boy?"
"Huh?" Beast Boy snapped his head up, which had just begun to droop. "Oh, um, yeah, I uh, is okay. I okay. I am okay." But his eyes were half-closed as he said this, and his speech was slurred- which clearly didn't make him seem as if he was 'okay.'
"No remark in return? No stupid faces?" It was Raven again, observing Beast Boy with a perplexed frown. She then regarded the rest of her teammates. "He's probably dying."
Cyborg and Robin both shot Raven exasperated looks while Starfire addressed Beast Boy. "You do not sound okay." The alien eyed the green teen with worried eyes, suddenly getting up from her seat and flying over to the lethargic shapeshifter. With a thin hand, she laid the back of her hand against his forehead briefly, then took it away. "You do not seem to have the fever." She peered up at the ceiling thoughtfully. "What illness could have befallen you?"
She received only a weak moan in response from Beast Boy who was now using his arms to keep him upright. He felt dizzy; like the room was spinning. Nervously, Starfire floated back over to her chair, eyebrows creased.
Suddenly Robin noticed the empty soda bottle sitting on the counter beside a roll of paper towels. "Hey, Cyborg, didn't you put the alcohol back from yesterday?"
Cyborg partially turned around and followed Robin's gaze. "I put it in the fridge..?"
Robin, befuddled, got up from his chair and brushed past a sickly Beast Boy to get to the bottle, which he picked up by the top and dangled it back and forth a few times disapprovingly. "Come on, guys, you need to remember where stuff goes." Robin stopped, tilted his head, and stared at the bottle. "And why is it empty?"
Cyborg did a not-too-sorry palms-up shrug. "I don't know." Obviously not concerned with the empty bottle, he turned back to his food and began spooning more eggs into his mouth.
"Guys, a whole bottle of beer doesn't just disappear," Robin needled, tapping his foot impatiently. "We don't waste stuff here. Use your brains."
"Oh, that?" Beast Boy chimed in, his voice low and phlegmy. "I had some really great soda last night. It's not beer, it's soda."
"No it's not-" Raven started, then cut herself off. "Wait." Her eyes darted from Beast Boy to the empty clear bottle, Beast Boy, bottle, back and forth. "Hold on- oh, crap." She rolled her violet eyes to the back of her head.
"What is it?" Robin asked, intrigued, setting down the glass bottle back onto the counter.
"The empty alcohol bottle, Beast Boy, him being sick," Raven explained, puzzle pieces clicking together in her head. "Beast Boy's drunk."
"What?" Cyborg blurted. Both he and Starfire jerked toward Beast Boy.
"Are you all deaf?" Raven demanded, indicating the changeling. "He just said he thought the alcohol bottle was soda- and that's why he drank it. The whole thing, apparently," she added ruefully. "It would explain his sickness and the slurred speech."
All of the other Titans silently observed Beast Boy with narrowed eyes, seeing if Raven's hypothesis was correct for themselves. Finally, Robin tossed up his hands.
"That sounds about right," he said, eyeing Beast Boy from the corners of his eyes. Then, Robin cocked his head at Cyborg, smug and accusing at the same time. "This is why we put things where they go."
"Aye, aye, captain," Cyborg saluted sarcastically, rolling his eye. "We can worry about my listening skills later. In the meantime-" he addressed Beast Boy- "no fights for you today."
Beast Boy, barely awake, nodded groggily. "Yay," he cheered feebly. He felt like total crap anyway- too crappy to even be surprised or appalled that he had chugged a whole thing of beer last night rather than soda.
He was never, ever going to drink alcohol ever again.
Hey, readers! Hope you liked this story- sorry it's kind of boring. I promise there are lots of exciting things in the works!
Have a great day or night!