Chapter 29: Game Time
Slappy
"Do we really have to play this stupid board game?" I grumbled, burying my head into my hands. "How about a different game, like Chess?" I suggested. "Me and Stine used to play it all the time... before I was locked in a damn book..."
Zach gave me the worst advice, responding to my complaint. "How about you go upstairs and do nothing." I picked my head up, sending him a sharp glare of my brown eyes. "The way you look at me, it doesn't scare me off," he brushed off the vibe I was giving him. "Not even..." He leaned towards me at the table. "Goosebumps." I rolled my eyes, not threatened at all.
"I want girlfriend..." I wished, even though it'll never happen.
"Please," Zach scoffed with a crooked smirk. "You're a wooden dummy."
"Don't call me dummy, Dummy!" I cried loudly, offended by the D word. "I hate it when people call me the word you just said."
"Boys, come on," Hannah seemed to beg, wanting us guys to stop fighting. "We're here to play Clue," she said, placing her hands on the top box with the board game inside of it.
"Can we play Chess?" I asked, not wanting to play this...boring game.
"Chess is a two player game, Slappy." Taking the top part of the box, she lifted it up, setting it to the side. "It wouldn't be fair for one person not to play a game," she told me, setting up the game. "This game, however, can be played by more players," she smiled.
"Okay, okay." I didn't want to hear anymore. "Let's play the game."
"Alright, let me get out the instructions first," Hannah responded. "I hadn't played this game before when my-"
"Then why did he bought it?" Zach sent me an angry look when I interrupted her, causing me to slump in my chair. "...I was only asking," I mumbled softly, avoiding his look.
The look didn't leave his face. "You could've waited until she finished speaking."
"Wow, you are soooooo respectful," I spoke in sarcasm, rolling my eyes with my arms crossed over my wooden, scratched up chest.
Zach was about to get up from the chair when Hannah stopped him. "Let's not start the game with violence." He slowly got back down on his seat after calming down a bit, but the hatefulness being thrown at me didn't leave him. "Now," she continued, "I'm gonna read the instructions. Listen carefully." She began reading the instructions."Setting Up The Game: First place all 6 character game pieces - whether you have 6 people playing or not - on the board at the starting squares marked with each name. The character game piece that each player is physically sitting closest to is the one they will use throughout the game. Next, separate the cards in to people, rooms, and weapons. Select a card out of each pile and put them - without looking at them - in the Confidential Case File envelope - essentially you should then have a person, weapon, and room in the envelope. Place the envelope in the center of the game board. Shuffle all of the rest of the cards and hand them out to each player, one at a time in a clockwise fashion, until all the cards have been dealt. Do not let anyone see your cards! Lastly, put the weapon game pieces at random into rooms on the board. Only one weapon per room."
"Cool, can we play the game now?" The instructions being read is starting to bore me a lot more than ever.
"Slappy!" I cringed when the young lad yelled at me. "Shut...up."
"You shut up!" I snapped right back at him.
"No, you," he attacked with his words.
"Guys!" Me and him both stopped arguing when Hannah raised up her hand, halting anymore words we could've possibly been tossing at each other. "Please," she gentled out. "You guys need to learn to get along."
"How can we when this...freak is with us?" he said, clearly meaning me as the freak.
"I'm the freak?" I replied, feeling offended. "You're a piece of crap!" I insulted.
Hannah gasped in surprise. "Slappy!" she scolded like a mother would do. "Don't you even say such horrible words to my boyfriend."
"I don't-" I started to argue, until I stopped with confusion. "Your boyfriend?" I then responded. "Him - the kid who trapped me and you and all of the monsters inside the single manuscript - is your boyfriend!?" I overreacted in pure madness.
"What gave it away? The part we I told you to keep your mouth shut when she's reading instructions?" Zach ignored my outburst with a snarky grin.
"Shut...up..." I muttered under my breath.
"You shut up..." he fought back with tight, clenching teeth, saying it slowly. "I bet no girl will ever wanted you," he condemned harshly. "You're made of wood and cloth," he pointed at me.
"What about me being human? Maybe a girl would like me, like the one back in-" I covered my mouth as fast as I could when I saw both their eyes going wide - really wide open. "N-Nevermind," I quickly changed the subject. "Let's play this stupid board game."
They both looked at each other, shrugging their shoulders. "Okay, let me keep reading the paper," Hannah replied to me. I rolled my eyes, knowing it's gonna take forever. "Here is how to play Clue. Turns: The player that is using Miss Scarlet - red game piece - goes first. From there, the turns go in a clockwise fashion..." I hope I don't get confused by this stupid game as I listened to the instructions as carefully as I can, making sure I didn't miss any word of it. "...Strategty: Use your detective pad to eliminate the possible suspects, rooms, and weapons used in the murder. You should immediately check off the cards that were dealt to you - you know for a fact that those cards aren't in the Confidential Case File envelope," she continued reading. Blah… "Moving And Entering Rooms-"
"Are you done now?" The more she went through with it, the more I felt bored. In fact, I'm bored being bored. "Can't we play the game right away?"
"Slappy..." She gave me a warning expression on her face, causing me to shut my wooden trap. "Do you want me to call dad?"
"What's he gonna do? Trap me in a book?"
"Yes," Zach answered for her.
"Zach!" Now Hannah gave him a warning look. "Enough," she added. "Do you two want to play this board game or not?" she asked us, waiting for our answers. "Well?"
Me and him breathed out of our noses at the same time, replying to her.
"Yes."
"Why not? After this, I'm going to bed."
Rolling her eyes directly at me from my dull answer, she went back to where she left off. "Moving And Entering Rooms:" she directed with her left finger, planting them onto each room since she was holding the paper with her right hand. "For each turn, a player will roll the die - unless using a secret passage - and advance their game piece towards the door of the room they are trying to enter. Players can move left, right, up, or down. No diagonal moving, but can't move into a space that is already occupied by a player. You can use a secret passage as your turn if you are in a room that has that secret passage option on the board. You do not roll the die on this turn if you do use a secret passage. You cannot move through a door if the space is blocked by an opponent's piece. Iit is possible to be stuck in a room if all doors are blocked, in which case you would have to pass on your turn until the room is unblocked..."
I looked away with my hand on my scratched up cheek, flinching from the sharp pain being given to me from myself, the memories at the mall filling into me at the bookstore where I was waiting for my creator.
At first when I heard the secret door opened, I thought it was him until I realized it wasn't him at all. She was a girl; a female who looked about to eleven years of age with dark hair which seemed to be a bit shorter than Hazel's, along with brown eyes behind her thin, rimmed glasses.
Remembering, I believe her name was... Wait... What was her name? I know it starts with a letter A...but...I don't seem to remember... When we were introduced to each other, she didn't run off like those bullies I did a long time ago.
It wasn't the point though. The point was that she was doing all this talking to keep me distracted. It set me off, badly. I wanted to grab her neck and strangle her, but I was too late to do so because my creator sucked me back into my book, letting me rot in hell like I was garbage.
When Zach told me no girl would ever wanted me sounded cruel. I may be a puppet made out of wood, but... I may have feelings for the girl back in Chicago. I never showed it to her, plus I don't think she did either. Yes, I'm handsome and attractive looking, which is great for my ego since I'm the best from my other 'friends'. Except I'm not made out of flesh. I'm simply made out of wood and cloth. No girl would ever want to go out with me. Even if I was a human being, she would give a cold stare like this boy is doing right now.
I ignored the looks, tapping my finger on the table to annoy him.
"Alright, let's play the game," Hannah suddenly broke in, bringing me back to reality, halting my finger inches away from the table top.
I place my hand down. "...huh?"
Zach squinted his eyes at me. "You weren't paying attention, weren't you?"
"I was deep in thought!" I lamed out with excustion. "I was thinking about the time back in Chicago," I explained my memory to him. "I didn't mean to slack off..." I trailed off when he continued squinting his eyes at me. "Ungh..." I groaned with irritation. "Give me the list of rules of the game, please?" I requested, my hand held out to Hannah.
"Sure." She gave it to me with no hint of hesitation. "You can read at the top of the page to regain the memory of the rules."
"Whatever..." I drawled out a sigh, reading through the paper. I have to do it at least ten or twenty times for the words to get into my head with no brain inside of it, even though I'm smart about everything.
Hm... Maybe he can enroll me in school... No. It'll never work. Puppets are not allowed in schools, I told myself. I set the paper down with no care in the world. "I'm ready..." I dulled out, with no interest in the game whatsoever.
"Great!" she shared with a beaming smile. She set up the game with her boyfriend's help. "You choose a character first," she offered the figurines.
I looked at each one of them before choosing the one with the red dress. "I'll use this one," I picked out.
"Red Scarlet, you get to go first." Handing me a white cube with spots on each side, she placed it on my hand after she gave out the number of cards of six. "Go ahead, Slappy, roll the dice," she encouraged me when both she and Zach picked out their characters as well as getting the other ones set up.
"Uh..." I flipped the cube onto the board game. Four dots faced upwards. "Now what?" I asked, not knowing what to do next.
"You move four spaces," Zach deadpanned.
I ignored him, moving my character four spaces when I saw a small envelope in front of me. "What's the envelope for?" I asked.
"Well, while you were deep in your own thought, Hannah put three cards in here - the room, the weapon, and the murderer - in there, and you were supposed to write down what you think is in there," he spoke in explanation with no lightness to it.
"She didn't say that!" I was getting confused. "Gruh..." I rumbled. "This is too confusing, let's play an easier game, huh?" I suggested.
"She said-"
"Zach, it's okay," Hannah settled before he can yell at me. "He's right. I don't know how to play the game either. I know I read the rules, but it doesn't seem like a beginner game for us. How about Truth Or Dare?" she decided on another game.
A grin formed on his face. "I love that game," he empathized gratefully. "I'll go first."
However, Hannah shook her head. "No, we're letting him go first, Zach."
"Him? You're letting him go first again?" he responded. "He's a stupid, wooden-"
"DON'T SAY IT!" I screeched on top of my non-existing lungs.
"Oh what?" he began to interrogate me. "You don't want me to call the D word?" he taunted.
"Leave him alone," his girlfriend stood up for me. "He needs to be reform, so the only way to do this is to play some games. Go ahead, Slappy."
"Hmm." I rubbed my chin in thought. "I dare you to steal something from your mom's bedroom, like... her engagement ring."
Zach gasped.
"You have to. It's the rule," Hannah backed up.
"Hah!" I laughed
He clenched his teeth together. "Fine," he gritted angirly. "You're lucky she's at the store." He got up to go to his house to steal his mom's wedding ring.
It only took him a few minutes, and by the time he came back with the ring in his hand, I burst out laughing, pounding my fist on the table. My laughter was cut short when he came up to me and spoke.
"Alright, I dare you to write a love letter to the Haunted Mask."
It was my turn to gasp, and used my magic to bring a pen and paper, writing my 'love' letter down, despite having no feelings for the ugly thing for what she and the monsters done to me. After I finished, I handed it to him.
"Happy?" I asked when he took it from me.
"Very," he replied giving a smirk.
"Do I get a turn?" Hannah tried not interrupt.
"I dare you to enter in the new book full of my monster 'friends'," I commenced.
"I dare you to burn yourself," he threw back.
"No way I'm doing that! I dare you to stop being nice to everyone in town."
"I dare you-"
"Enough!" We both stopped arguing when Hannah quickly intervened. "The point of the game is to play it nicely, not getting someone hurt or make them cruel," she stated. "Now one of you has to give me a truth or dare."
We both looked at each other. "Guess I'll tell her," I volunteered. "What will it be, Hannah?"
"Truth," she answered confidently. "I want to do truth, not dares."
"Okay, have you done anything evil when Stine first created you?" I questioned her like a policeman.
"Nope," she shook her and gave out a clear response. "I never did anything evil ever since dad created me. Okay, now it's my turn. Slappy, truth or dare?"
"I'll do truth..." I decided. I rather avoid the dares too.
"Have you ever hurt somebody?" The question caught me off guard.
"C-Can you repeat the question? Did you ask if I ever hurt somebody?" I repeated the words.
"Yes, have you hurt somebody? Be honest."
"Uh...um..." I didn't know how to answer. "I don't think so..."
"Really?" Hannah tilted her head, not believing me. "What about Hazel? You bit her, right?"
"...yes..." I slouched in my seat. "I'm going back upstairs," I excused sadly.
"Good, we don't want you here," I heard Zach say behind me.
"Zach," Hannah hissed at him. I assumed he slouched in his chair as well. "You don't have to go upstairs," she called after me.
"I want to be alone." With a heavy sigh and too lazy to teleport to the guest room, I trudged up there, dragging my shoes on the ground. I can feel a tear coming out of the corner of my eye, letting it fall freely to floor as it left a green glow like it had before at the old, abandoned amusement park when I hid in the candy stall for no one to find me.
I was dumb enough when Stine's daughter followed the trail of my green, glowing tears. Turns out I'm not as smart as I thought I was. Oh well... I am a dummy for God's sake.
Reaching the room, I pushed the door open, letting it hit the wall. I didn't check for any small damage since I was in no mood to do so.
Going over to the bed, I climbed up there, planting face first onto the covered up mattress, staying this way for a long time.
When I needed air, I rolled over, staring at the ceiling. The memories of the mall bounced around me inside my head.
Not only do I remember her, I also remember having my older brother help me. All I did was make him wear a tux for him to be a decoy of me, but I guess she wasn't fooled by him.
However, I didn't think he actually liked me when he first saw me when I released him from his book. I didn't take it very somber when he called me 'runt', thinking he was playing with me. I just ignored him, forcing him to do the thing I wanted him to do.
Now thinking about it, he was left behind at the bookstore of the mall five years ago. I bet he's really ticked off at me.
I should ask Stine about him, wanting to know if Wally - my brother - hated me before since the only time I met him was back in Chicago when I freed him from his manuscript. I know which one it was. It has my name on it on the left side of the word nightmare. I believe it's titled Slappy's Nightmare. Weird how it has my name on it.
Does the new book got my name on it too? I wondered. There's only one way to find out. Getting off the bed, almost landing perfectly on my feet, I hurried over to the study room. The moment died away when I saw the book wasn't on any of the shelves from the bookcase.
I'm assuming Stine hid it somewhere for precautionary measures. Still, I wonder where he put it. It's not like I'm going to open it, I'm curious to know what the book - the new book - is called. I never got to see the title after I was free from that thing of hell.
Being careful not to be sneaky, I snuck out of the room, tip-toeing over to his bedroom, and began my search. I want to avoid breaking things, so I hunted for the book, doing my best to act casual.
I checked in each drawer of his dresser. It wasn't even in the closet. Maybe the book is under his bed. Yeah, it should be there.
Making my way to the bed, I placed myself onto my hands and knees, sticking my head underneath the large furniture.
"Slappy?"
I jerked my head with startledness - and bumped the top part of it from the bottom part of the bed, which is made out of wood. "Ow!" I seethed with a grunt, quickly crawling away from there. "What?" I cringed, focusing on my injury rather than the person who scared me.
"Why are you looking underneath my dad's bed?" It was Hannah. "Are you looking for something?"
"N-No," I answered as fast as I could, feeling the pain go away. "I was only exploring," I fibbed, hoping it'll work on her.
It did. "Okay," she shrugged off. "Me and Zach are gonna play Wii Sports. You want to play? You can make your character to look like you."
I shook my head. "I don't want to... I'd rather watch. Besides, I might break the TV. Not only that, but your boyfriend doesn't want to see me..." I turned away sadly.
I heard Hannah sigh above me. "I know he doesn't agree with you being free by my dad, but... I don't know. I can't force you guys to become friends. I wouldn't do the same for anybody, especially Hazel."
"Can you not mention her, please? I don't want to think about the event on what I had done to her."
"So you feel bad?"
I didn't answer right away. Instead, I gave a nod in case I start crying. When thinking about my attack on her, I shouldn't have done it. I shouldn't have bitten her, leaving a mark on her. Hazel seemed like a nice person.
"If you're watching us play the game, you have to be downstairs. And don't worry about Zach, I'll keep an eye on him," Hannah promised.
"How come it doesn't make me feel better?" I grudged, feeling no need to go down there wil him, knowing he'll say more unkind words to me. "Hannah..." I spoke after a short moment. "What's it like to...like someone?" I asked with full curiosity.
She returned with a surprised, full-on expression when she replied. "You wanna know what it's like to like someone?"
"Yeah." I nodded my head stiffly. "What's it like?"
"Why do you want to know?" she seemed to question me. "Is there someone in particular you want to tell me?" She gave me a small smile only for it to turn slightly upside down. "Or do you not want to?" she said, giving me a choice.
I played with the ripped fabric of my tux before responding. "There is this one person... a girl... back in Chicago. You know, the one I talked about who helped Stine who trapped me between the pages of a book?"
"I wasn't there," Hannah recalled the event. "I was asleep in the car since it was a long day when it happened," she remembered her own experience. "Dad did give me a description of her, telling me it happened back in twenty-ten; five years ago so I never met her in person. She seemed like a nice person when he told me about her."
"Huh..." I looked away slightly. "Then why did she let me get trapped in a book?" I wondered.
"Because you're..." she started to answer my question, having me give her a warning glance. "...having a temper tantrum?" she worded out slowly with an uneasy laugh. "Sorry, I didn't want to make you more angry than ever."
"I'm not angry... The only thing I'm feeling is about me," I frowned
"You?" She didn't seem to understand where I was going with this.
"Yes me," I answered her confusion. "It may sound silly but I do feel bad for everything I have done. I know for a fact I'll never change. I don't think I'll ever change for all the things I've done in the past...even the events I'd done you...and Hazel." I got up, walking over to the window, the glass all covered up with water drops as the sky continuously let the rain fall. The drops streak across from me with small reflections of myself. "By the way, why was Stine acting weird today?" I suddenly changed the subject.
Hannah approached me from behind. "Like he told you before, he's with his special someone."
I turned to her. "What's his 'special' someone's name?"
"You don't want to know." I opened my mouth to protest, but she stopped me. "You don't need to know what her name is," she said sternly.
"Okay, fine." Afterwards, I walked past her. "I'll be downstairs," I informed her, seemingly not to care about her boyfriend who foiled my plan several months ago. I wish I could go back in time and just fix the mess I made. Except I can't. I can't go back to the past.
I stepped into the hallway, looking down at the floor as I edged my way to the staircase before I stopped to look at the mysteries door above, the rope dangling over my head, almost taunting me to reach and grab it.
I was in no mood to try again to jump to see if I can reach it. I mean, no matter how hard I try, it'll always be too high for me. Like I mentioned before, not even a chair would help nor successful. Instead, it hung there limply. I also notice a hook hanging there as well, never seeing it before. I guess I didn't see it at first glance when I saw this door on the ceiling.
What could be up there... Eh, probably weird junk Stine liked to collect since he's a mysterious person for being like he had been in the past since I'm not sure if he changed or not. Mm, nah. He's the same guy, the same creator who made me back in nineteen ninety-three from the Night Of The Living Dummy story.
Huh, thinking about the book... was my older brother in it? I wasn't the main villain at all during the first book about me. All I did was sat behind the scenes during the whole entire story with only having two lines from the start and at the end of the book.
I pondered, now wondering about him being in the first dummy book I was created in, thinking about it for who knows how long. I never saw him when I was trapped in the book during all those past years, which explains why he was released from a totally different book when I unlocked it. And besides, I've been written in more books than any other monster in the world, but I was only released from the first book even though I wasn't the main antagonist in the first story.
Why though? I began questioning the thought of it. How comes I was the one to be released from that book for not being the main villain like I was back in Night Of The Living Dummy II... Wait a second, I started to remember. I only came out of Night Of The Living Dummy, not from the other books with me in them. I also did cameos for other certain books matter of factly, like in those Goosebumps Horrorland series like the once known as Panic Park. I could be wrong about the title since I never seen the book.
Maybe some are up there, I assumed the answer. However, I'll never ever open up another book as long as I live. Except I never die for being made out of ink inside my wooden body because when I got attacked by those idiots who betrayed me, the scratches from the werewolf would 'bleed' out ink, dark and liquidy, dripping onto the ground.
I remember the pain...remembering how much those scratches hurt from all the beatings I was getting during the time being trapped in the pages of the new book.
They took out all their anger out on me. They blamed me for not stopping Stine, for not killing him like I should have done. They're ticked off when I didn't give Hazel a good enough scare since it seems like biting isn't enough.
I didn't know what to do during that point when all my 'allies' turn to me with angry looks on their faces when Hannah got free from the ropes tied to a single, wooden post from the bonfire they made.
Hell, I took off the chain off the werewolf's neck to save his life for it was burning his skin off, causing the tip ends of the fur to turn a charcoal color of black.
Actually, the dream I had with me arguing with those monsters did happen to me while I was in the new manuscript for several months. I don't know why it got turned into a dream since it happened in real life.
Probably because it never left my head. I know I never said this in my entire life but I'm glad Stine got me out of there when I was continuously attacked by those jerks who I called buddies.
It was a real struggle too, because they almost got free when he pulled me with them pulling me back in, wanting to beat me up a lot more. I can almost feel their hands on me now.
The werewolf's claws... the hitting... the biting... the harsh words plummeting at me… I even have a huge gash from the Lord High Executioner, the large, muscled guy from A Night In Terror Tower on the front part of my body, being hidden underneath my suit.
But I'm not talking them anymore, refusing to recall bad memories. I'm talking about why I was only released from first dummy book, most likely the seventh one in the series because Night Of The Living Dummy is book number seven in the original Goosebumps series. It didn't make sense to me.
I'm going to ask Stine about it, needing answers to why I was the only one released from that book and no other dummy book starring me. Yes, I mentioned the D word, I know. So forget about and yes, I still hate being called a dummy. So shut up.
After glancing at the ceiling door, I decided to ignore it. I can ask Stine or Hannah to open up the door when the time comes. Right now, I want to get downstairs.
I prepared for any negativity from the Zach kid who is getting the Wii set up. When he was finished, he turned to me with a grim expression plastered all over him. "Are you gonna play the game?" he asked me with no hint of spirit.
Knowing what he was talking about, I shook my head. "No. I'll be watching." I walked over to the couch, hoisting myself up there, only for me to fall onto the floor. "Oof," I grunted. "A little help, please?" I waved my hands and feet like a turtle would do when stuck on its back.
He didn't say anything as he got up from the floor, going up to me. Then he took ahold of my mid-section with me cringing when his hands touched the claw marks. He didn't set me down nicely even though I did my best to be polite to him.
"Thanks," I submitted with a hint of annoyance and sarcasm. "You don't have to be cold around me, you know. I can change."
"Yeah, right," Zach responded skeptically.
"I can too, change," I insisted from the couch, keeping my eyes on him. "I can change within minutes, you wait and see. Besides, I can be a part of this family again like the last time," I futed, jabbing a finger at him.
"Just because you're a villain, doesn't mean you can change!" he immediately fired when hearing me wanting to be part of Stine and Hannah's relationship. "For now, you can barely say anything nice! Some wooden demon, you are!"
When hearing this, I gasped deeply like he had gone too far beneath my skin. Or in this case, my wood. It was becoming more than any regular argument.
"How dare you...!" I shot back slowly, doing my best not to get angry. "How dare you call me a demon!" I aggressively assaulted, feeling offended by his choice of words.
"What am I supposed to call then, eh, evil thing?!" he fired back. "You have no heart inside of you from all the wood you're made of."
"Excuse me, but I protected my creator way before I was trapped in the book with no heart at all," I defended from my spot. "Hey-!" I was picked up by the back of my suit being face-to-face with him. Luckily for being made out of wood, I didn't get strangled.
Zach held me up away from the couch, my feet dangling in the air. "From what Stine told us, you almost murder his bullies to death. Even going to far with the pranks."
"I couldn't help it, he needed my help! Besides, it's not like I'll ever hurt anyone."
"Really? What about the time you bit Hazel who's at the special hospital?"
Hearing this made me stopped fighting with him. Receiving only silence from me, he loosened up his fingers, letting me fall onto the floor.
"Ow! You could've set me back on the couch."
All he did was ignored me when Hannah came into the living room, holding out two white remotes with strange buttons on them. "Ready?" he asked, changing his attitude towards her. "I got it all set up," he proudly told her.
Hannah beamed. "Awesome." Taking one of the remotes, she put the hoop around her wrist, making sure it was snug it enough for it not to fling out of her hand. "Are you sure you don't want to play Wii Sports? I can create your character for you," she offered with Zach rolling his eyes at her kindness towards me. She noticed, nudging his arm with her elbow.
I shook my head, too angry to answer her with spoken sentences. Hannah tilted her head to the side.
"Why are you laying on the floor?" she asked.
"To see what the ceiling looks like," I returned in a sarcastic manner, no mood to give her real response she was looking for. "Wow, it's all plain with designs. Woo-hoo," I crowed.
"O-kay..." She turned back over to Zach. "Which one do you want to do first?" she said.
"How about tennis," he answered.
"Sure. First, let's make our characters." Going over to one of the categories on the screen, a hand went top of the icon with the word Mii on it. She pressed one of the buttons on the strange device. "I'll make mine first," she grinned, choosing a female one as I continued to watch from the ground. I wasn't curious in anyway, but it's pretty interesting to see her make her character look like her. "There," she proclaimed, after she finished. She faced over at Zach. "Your turn." The grin remain on her face.
Sending a grin back at her, he went on ahead, creating his own Mii, choosing the hair, eyes, and shirt color.
When he finished up, I couldn't help myself to speak what I think of his own character. "It doesn't look close to being you," I pointed out, being very specific with no hesitation.
"It does too," he started fighting.
"No, it does not," I fought back at him.
"Guys..." Hannah tried to intervene, but we're too engrossed with the tense conversation we were having.
"It does too, look like me!" Zach used the weird remote to point at the TV screen where the character is at.
"Clearly, it doesn't." I crossed my arms over my chest, staying on the floor.
"Guys..." Hannah tried again, not wanting to interrupt us.
"It looks like me, you freak!" Hearing the insulting word from him, I casted him a cold glare from my eyes, quickly getting up to my feet, ignoring my aching scars. "Since you don't have a good enough imagination..."
"Hold on just a second," I halted, stopping him from going any further. "Are you saying I don't have any imagination?!" I flamed out.
He answered with an eye roll. "Yes, it's exactly what I said."
"Ugh, I may be a wooden...puppet, but it doesn't mean I don't have any imagination. In fact, I actually helped Stine come up with plots of his story despite that's all you know about him, including his allergies." I crossed my arms in front of me. "You don't know anything else about my creator." Zach sent me narrowed eyebrows, with me brushing it off. "What? All you know about him is that he wrote the Goosebumps and has allergies."
"He also said he was picked on. But did you do a good job of keeping him safe? No!"
"Guys, stop!" Hannah stepped between us and intervened. "Seriously you two, stop fighting. You guys can't keep going on like this."
Zach swept his hand over his short, brown hair, sighing. "It'll never work, Hannah..." he spoke with doubtfulness. "Slappy will be evil... He'll never change." While he talked to her, he pretended I wasn't here. "Someday he'll wreck the town again like the last time. I bet he's gonna burn down all the buildings."
"Why would you think he'll do that?" she replied, keeping her voice collected.
"I don't think, I know," he simply specified. He gazed at me with a pitiful look of disgust, shaking his head. "...I'm gonna go." Handing the Wii remote to her, he made his way to the front door. "I'll play Wii with you tomorrow." There was another glance towards me. "As long he isn't in the same room as us," he groused with a tight frown on his lips, opening the door. "Bye, Hannah." Giving a friendly wave to her and only her, he proceeded out the door with the rain splashing the ground, closing it quickly so none of the water comes through the house.
Once he was gone, I let out a sigh. "Nobody's ever gonna trust me..." I mumbled. "Everybody thinks I won't change." I fixed my suit, straightening out.
"Not everybody." Hearing Hannah speak, I only shrug in response. "Slappy, you have to give both boys time; it doesn't work in one day," she told me.
"Even when I do, what would happen next in my life?" I struggled to climb on the couch, slipping down back onto the floor. "Am I going to snap like the last time?" I questioned with full of untrustiness of myself, finally getting onto the furniture for the second try, groaning in discomfort from the markings.
"Why would you say that?" Hannah responded, taking a seat next to me.
My mood rapidly changed from being sad to being anger. "Did you already forget the story I had told you back at the candy shack from yesterday?!" I growled, feeling fairly annoyed.
"N-No, I didn't." She shook her head. "I meant to say is why would you think you'll snap again?"
"I dunno..." I ran my scarred up hand over my face, sighing. "Really. I dunno," I answered with the best honesty I could have. "I don't trust anyone, including myself."
Silence filled into the room, no reply coming from her. She's probably thinking of what I had said about me - myself. Saying what I said makes sense to me, knowing I'll cause more trouble than ever before.
It looked like the quietness faded away when Hannah spoke. "Slappy... you can trust yourself and everybody else," she told me in full compasion. "Dad and I trust you... even though you broke his fingers, had the Blob monster devour-"
"Sorry to cut you off but... can you not recall the bad times I did to him?" I apologized and requested the favor. "It also goes for injuring Hazel too," I added with some emotions with both guilt and anger, feeling disappointed in myself.
"Sure, I will." She handed me the remote after answering me. "I know you don't want to play Wii Sports, so… is it okay for you to play one game?"
"Mm." I gave her a small shrug. "Sure. It might help get rid of this grief I'm having." I took the remote. "Can you show me how to make a character of myself?" I asked.
Hannah smiled. "Sure. Let me go back to the Mii menu first." Fiddling around with her own remote, she went back to it. "There you go. These are the things you can use to make your Mii character. See?" The hand on the screen moved from each category while she showed me. "You can make your head shape, choose your hair, your expression, anything. You can even choose your color, too."
"Thanks." I looked at the remote. "What letter do I press?" I tilted my head to the side.
"The A button," she responded.
Nodding, I began making my character. Admittedly, I thought it's quite funny for me to make a character of myself since I'm already one from Stine's genius imagination.
I made sure the character looked exactly like me. Except for it's only wearing a shirt and pants. So for my color shirt, I chose the color matching my suit. "I got my Mii character."
"Nice job. Now what Wii Sport do you want to play? There's tennis, boxing, baseball, golf, bowling..."
"Let's do bowling."
"Alright." Exiting off the Mii menu, she went back to regular menu, pointing the other box, pressing the button. "You may as well put the strap on your wrist. The reason they're on the Wii remotes is in case you accidently let go of it. Otherwise, it'll flung right out of your hand and break the TV. And this TV costed my dad lots of money."
I took her advice, placing the hoop around my wooden wrist, tightening it. I didn't have to worry about circulation since I'm not made out flesh. "Ready," I announced.
Hearing me, she nodded her head, and went over to the category with the word bowling on it. "Looks like I'm first."
"How do you know?" I asked.
"I do know because I have the number one Wii remote and you have the number two remote." At least she didn't say it sarcastically because it's what I was expecting from her. She got up from the couch, standing at the center of the room. "You press the B button on the back of the remote..." She showed the button to me, pressing the button. "...then you move your arm back..." Wanting to see it more clearly, I got off the couch, standing next to her but not to close, listening to her instructions. "...and swing your arm forward and release the button," she finished, giving me an example, watching the ball roll over to the white things on the other end of the lane.
The ball knocked down six of them, the other four still standing. Something came down, placing more of those white things. Six points came up on the screen.
"Those things are called pins. The bowling ball knocks them down. When you knock them all down, it's called a strike," she explained to me, like she knew I was gonna ask her what they were. "Now it's your turn."
Making sure she's out of my way, my character came up onto the screen, holding the same color ball matching the color of his - or my - shirt.
Doing what she did, I press the back button, brought my arm back, and let it flung forward, releasing the button. The ball on the screen went crooked, not going straight at all. Instead of knocking down any of the pins, it rolled into one of the two curves.
A word Missed came up, having me get a little mad. I turned to Hannah. "This game stinks!"
"You just got started. You can't say it stinks when you only have one gutterball. Anywho, we're playing this game for fun."
"I can say what I want to say." I crossed my arms. "It's your turn, too," I added. "Good luck."
When she bowled, she got a gutterball as well. "See? I can get gutterballs like you had."
I rolled my eyes. "You did it on purpose."
"I know, I know. Now your turn is up again. This time, try throwing the ball straight," she advised. "Maybe this time your knock down some pins. Or maybe in this case, get a first strike."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. I hear you," I acknowledged, going back up front to the TV. Trying again, I bowled again, making sure to aim straight. The ball rolled smoothly fast on the lane - and knocked down all the pins. "Yes!" I raised my fists in triumphant joy and victory.
"Great job," she praised, sounding very impressed. "Your first strike. Looks like you're already beating me." When it's her turn, she did another bowl, knocking down nine pins. "Six plus nine equals fifteen points," she said, doing the math.
We played it for like an hour until it was done. Of course, I won from all the strikes I've been getting, becoming good at this game. Hannah turned it off, going over to the closet with me putting the Wii remote away, setting it next to the other one.
Going over to her, she pulled out another box, smiling down at me as she shut the closet door, heading over to the coffee table. She placed it on the table, taking the top off, telling me what it is when I got over to her.
"This is Checkers. It's not like Chess, meaning you don't need to sit and think a whole lot when doing this type of board game." She took out the board, unfolding it. There, on the board are checkered squares in the color of black and red. "These are the checkers," she stated, taking out a small, zip-block bag. "Me and dad keep them here so we won't lose any of them." Dumping them out, she made sure none of them rolled onto the floor. "Do you want to black or red? The person with the black pieces go first."
"I like to be the black pieces." I gathered up all the checkers in the color of black.
"And I'll be red." Gathering up her own pieces, she placed them on the black squares
Watching I did the same, placing mine on the black squares too. Since I'm three feet tall, I have to stand or else I won't see the board game unlike Hannah who's already sitting down. After it's all set up, she told me how the game is played.
"During each turn, we choose a checker and move to the next black square. It doesn't have to be the same checker you used. If one of use jumps over one our checkers, like for example, your piece, I take it away. If you jump over one of my pieces, you take that piece you jumped over. When you reach my end, you say, 'King Me', and flip whatever checker got to the end. The same goes for me when I get to your end. When me - or you - are at the other end, we move backwards. The way to win the game is to see who has the most checkered pieces. Got it?"
"I think so," I answered, scratching my painted hair. "So I go first, right?"
"Right," Hannah replied.
"And it doesn't matter which checker piece I use, right?"
"Right," she nodded her head and repeated.
"Okay, here goes." I moved one of my pieces, and let her have a turn. She moved her, having it be my turn next. It may not be an exciting game, but at least it's not too boring.
It also took a while for one of us to steal a piece because when it was Hannah's turn for the fifth time, she jumped over one of my pieces with one of her own, taking it, setting it next to the board game.
This went on and on, and soon it wasn't as much fun as it was before. So we both agreed to put it away and watch a movie, with Hannah letting me choose.
I chose to watch a scary movie - The Exorcist.
Hannah got the movie in, taking a seat on the couch with me on the floor. She noticed me not sitting next to her. "Do you want to sit with me?"
I shook my head. "Nah, I'm good," I responded.
Not wanting to ask me any further, she got the movie started, both me and her watching it. I've seen this movie many times before Stine created her.
Thinking about those days made me sad. Even though Stine told me he didn't replace me when he created Hannah, I can still feel the betrayal within me. It wasn't fair, at least for me. When I saw the bullies doing what they were doing to him, I had to act fast, wanting to help him before he was a goner.
Things were good during the time with him, way before I was locked up in a book. We used to be best friends, always there for each other. But after what I did, everything changed within a snap.
Although he said me and him can fix our relationship, I have full doubt about it changing. It's difficult for me to trust him again for what he put me through all these years; ignoring me. I've been - or should I say - used to been his favorite. I'm smart, strong, and have powers. Only I'm not his favorite anymore… At least, it's what I think.
To be honest, I'm not sure how to change. Yeah, I did some games, but it wasn't enough. I have to do other things, like doing great deeds around the house to see it'll work for me being...reformed.
And when I do get reformed, will I have my job back? I can keep the whole family safe from bad people, I confirmed the thought of it.
"I'm going to bed," I sighed, getting up on my feet, feeling tired all of a sudden, my scars getting soar. I felt Hannah nod behind me, knowing she heard me. I made my way to steps, climbing up on them steadily. "I should get fixed up," I murmured, taking one step at a time. "Except I don't want to get fixed." I paused. "Even though the markings all over me make me...weak."
"What was that Slappy?" Hannah piped up from where she was at. "Did you say something?" she asked, facing away from the television; the movie still on.
"Nothing!" I quickly yelled as fast as I could, feeling my face turning a shade of red with embarrassment. I can't believe she heard me when I was talking to myself.
Before she can get another word out, I scrambled up the stairs, heading to one of the guest rooms, slamming the door shut behind me. I'm sure she shrugged it off and went back to watching the movie all by herself.
Whatever.
I dragged my feet over to the bed, placing my hands on the mattress. I tried to pull myself up on there to rest, but failed miserably.
Tiredly, I laid down on the floor, curling my knees close to my chest, closing my eyes, letting my mind go empty, doing my best to get rid of the grief.
It wasn't easy.
Stine
I pulled up onto Lorraine's driveway, parking the car, pulling the car keys out of the slot, sliding them into my pants pocket so I won't lose them as I unbuckled my seatbelt, grabbing the boutique of flowers in the color of pink.
My sweetheart loves the color pink, I smiled thoughtfully, taking ahold of the car door handle, and opened up the door, getting out of the car. I shut the door behind me, the smile glued on my face, walking up to her front door, running my fingers through my hair like I was fixing it.
Adjusting my glasses, I knocked on the door and waited patiently for her to answer. I looked at the clouds, seeing how gray they are. Looks like it's gonna rain. I hope it's not heavy rain or else I won't be driving back home in hours.
Like I care when it rains. Funny thing is, the rain helps me relax. I don't know why but it does. I prefer this kind of weather than any other kind that'll make me grouchy.
I was about to knock on the door in case Lorraine didn't hear me when I heard footsteps. I began to feel romantic inside and out, the smile growing bigger when they got to the door.
"Who is it?" came a sing-song voice, sounding really bubbly with a hint of amusement.
"Someone you've been waiting for," I answered, playfully mocking her happiness. "Can you guess who it is?" I said.
A chuckle came from the other side of the door as she played along with me. "You sound like somebody I know."
"Really?" I perked. "What does he look like?" I asked.
"Oh, he's handsome...nice...caring... He wears nice clothing, has glasses, along with nice hair slicked on top of his head...Oh! He also smells like mint and B.O. He told me he rubs himself with cilantro every morning on the first day of his new job."
"New job?" I inquired with fake curiosity. "Where does he work at?"
"He works as an English teacher at the Madison High School," she told me, the perkiness remaining her personality.
"An English teacher. Ah, I see. How long has he been a teacher?"
Okay, it may seem strange for me to be this way. But I can't help it, the fun is going well when she answered me.
"He's been teaching English for several months now. If you want to, you can come into my home and wait for him," she offered kindly.
"You don't need to wait for him," I smiled. "He's already here."
The knob turned and she opened the door. A smile crossed over her pixy face, turning a shade of pink when she saw me. "Robert!" Lorraine exclaimed in full joyfulness, giving me a hug and a kiss on my lips.
I returned the favor. "Hi, sweetheart. You look as beautiful today," I flirted. I held up her gift in full happiness. "I got you a gift - flowers," I presented them in front of her.
"Robert, they're so pretty..." she breathed, taking the flowers out of my hands. "And they're pink too," she realized before smelling them.
"You did told me on our first date that you love flowers, especially the pink ones since it's your favorite color," I recalled, chuckling at the memory.
"Haha." Lorraine let out a laugh, giving the flowers another sniff. "They smell wonderful..." Her blue eyes locked on mine. "...just like you," she blushed.
"...Thanks." My face turned red in return.
Stepping to the side, she held the door open. "Come on in," she said invitingly. "I'll make you some tea."
"Thanks," I repeated, stepping into the living room, looking around the place. She's got nice decor here, I had to say, with a nice couch, a rug, a coffee table, pictures strewned on the walls, a recliner, and a flat-screen TV, it looks better than my home, but I'm not gonna judge.
I went up to one of the photos on the wall to see Lorraine with a small child. Hm, the child looks like Zach, only I'm not too sure. So I turned to get her attention. "Lorriane."
She stopped, taking a glance at me. "Yes, sweetheart?"
I pointed at the photo I was looking at. "Is this Zach when he was...two?" I asked her.
"Yes, I used to babysit him. He was difficult to keep up." She chuckled, recalling the memory before she even met me. "He wasn't handsome when he was real little, but now he is and dating your daughter," she sang out loud. "I'll go make the tea." With that, she walked to the kitchen.
While she was making the tea, I sat down on the couch, taking my glasses off. I cleaned them off with my shirt. As I was getting the specks off the lenses, I thought about the time when I first saw her at the back of the grocery store when she hit the werewolf into the dumpster. I have to admit, I was surprised just as the kids.
But when she got out the car, covered in poodle hair, I immediately saw how pretty she was with her blond hair, along with her blue eyes. Her smile always on her face... She looked better than my ex-wife when I think about it. In fact, me and her have been dating for a while, knowing we trusted each other. Well, I never told her about my past marriage I had, so I'm afraid to bring it up, frightened to get a bad reaction from her.
It wasn't the only thing I never told her. I never told her about Slappy. Actually, I don't even know if she knew about him. I told her about Hannah, telling her what she truly was when I was bringing her back for Zach. Like, will she end up dumping me when she finds out? The only people who know Slappy's released are my daughter and his friends, minus Hazel, whom I have to tell her soon when she gets better.
I know Hazel is gonna get ticked off at me when I tell her about him after I decided to get him out of the new book when he was crying out when I heard the monsters' angry noises. I don't know how she'll feel when I tell her she'll have to start school, not knowing what the response will be from her. Principal Harrison told me he'll be getting school supplies for her, and sign her up in the classes her friends are in, like my English class since both Zach and Champ are my students.
Thinking about it, it's kind of funny to be both Zach's neighbor and teacher, having me release a short chuckle.
Lorraine then came back with two mugs of tea, sitting down next to me, giving me her bright smile of hers.
"Here you go," she announced, handing one of the mugs to me. "I wasn't sure what kind of tea you like, so I made my favorite." I nodded, feeling the heat from the mug with hand, using the other one to grab the handle in order not to get burned. "It's mint tea with lemon and sugar." Hearing the tea flavor, I took a sip, trying it. "What do you think?" she asked as I took the mug away from my mouth. "Good?"
"It's not good..." Her face began to sadden. "It's great!" I exclaimed, expressing them out, her frown being replaced with a grin. "This tastes great...And I'm not even a tea person." I took another sip, setting it on the arm of the couch. "I'm more of a coffee person," I told her, hoping it doesn't spare her feelings.
"It's okay, at least you like the tea," Lorraine responded, placing her own cup on the coffee table before leaning back on the couch. "You should try my cooking, my sister and my nephew loves it," she expressed delightly. "Whenever I make dinner for myself, I always have enough for them too since they don't cook."
"They don't cook?" I questioned with an arched brow. "What about when you don't make dinner for one night?" I don't understand how both he and his mother don't make their own dinners. "Where do they get their food besides your cooking?" I wondered.
"They either have take-out or go to restaurants in case I don't bring food to them," she said with the same delightful expression. "Gale did cook the one time but..." Her nose scrunched up. "I don't mean to be offensive or anything, but her cooking...it tastes like…" She tried to come up with a good word for her sister's cooking. "Garbage," she managed to describe. "So it's the reason why those two order take-out when they get hungry."
"I see." I nodded. "Well, I can cook too. Hannah likes my cooking. Me and her will always sit at the dining table to eat and chat. Except when she's mad at me at times." I received a confused return from my loved one. "It's a father-daughter thing," I explained. She nodded, now understanding the term. "You remember how I told you my daughter used to be a ghost while I was working on my new book. During the first years of having her, I used to keep her away from people, including her kids who are her age because of my...dark secret." I sighed. "To be honest, when I told you about what I use to do for a living...about me creating my own friends to terrorize the locals...the time where I use to hate people all of my life...I thought you would leave me like-" I instantly stopped.
She noticed, giving me concerned eyes as she prompted me. "Like?"
"Like my ex…wife." I hesitated to tell her about my other past, but she gave me an encouraging look, urging me to go on, listening like had always done when ever I have any problems. "I used to be married," I told her, pausing to see how she'll react. "Then I found out she cheated on me," I went on after getting no bad intentions from her. "It turned out she didn't care for me at all. I remember her name, but I don't really wanna say it."
I felt her hand on my shoulder, having me turn to her. "I understand. I wouldn't want to tell my ex-boyfriend's name either. The fact is, he never gets any of my jokes from how serious he was. So when I found out we weren't a good match, I broke up with him."
Fixing my glasses on the bridge of my nose, I nodded. Having love can be difficult, even when you are having trouble finding your special someone, like me.
"I guess we have some things in common. It doesn't matter about liking the same things or not. All it matters is being with you." Pink circles warmed up my cheeks when I said it.
Her face grinned back at me, her blue eyes giving off that sparkle before she offered me for something else. "You want a tour around this place?" I didn't have time to answer when she pulled me off my feet. "This the living room... Oh wait, we're already here!" she chortled, as she made her way to the kitchen. "Here's the kitchen. I don't have a dining room, so the table sits over there." She pointed at a lonely, round table with a single chair up against it. "I most likely will eat in the living room and watch some TV before bed." Turning, she went back to the living room with me following her as she made her way up the stairs. There, she showed me where her bedroom is. "My bedroom is right next to the bathroom." She gestured at the rooms. "Since my house isn't very big like the other houses where you live, it can get tight in this place if I put too much furniture."
"Do you want to stay over at my place?" I offered, but suddenly realize I made a mistake.
But before I can change my mind, Lorraine shook her head and declined. "I'm good living here, Robert, thanks."
"Okay. I was about to change my mind since I only have two guest rooms at my place. Also, you and me are not...ready to sleep together. Unless you know what I mean..."
"Yes, I know what you're saying, dear. I'm guessing you never had..."
"No. I hadn't. During my last marriage, me and my ex-wife were thinking about having kids of our own. Except we were too busy. That and...when I found out she didn't love me at all in the first place." I sighed, raking my fingers through my chest-nut hair. "...She only did what she did because she felt...sorry for me..."
Lorraine sighed, too. "She sounds like a jerk." Then she perked up right away, changing the environment within us. "Let's watch a movie; you can pick whatever you want?"
"Do you have any horror movies?" I inquired, the two of us making our way back to the living room. "It's my favorite movie genre, as well as Hannah's."
"Like I said, you can pick any movie you want. Including horror," Lorraine stated. "I don't want to put in the movie you don't like."
Once we got back to the living room, she took out some horror movies. "I don't watch a lot of horror movies," she admitted with no shame at all. "I'm more into comedy and romance films then these. Here." She placed the DVD boxes in my hands. "Choose whatever one you want to watch and I'll put in for ya."
Looking through the DVD's, I put down the rest, holding one in my hand. "How about this movie?" I suggested with loving smirk.
"Psycho," she read the title name. "Nice choice, dear," she commented. "Now sit down and let me put it in." We then heard rain pounding on her room. "Good weather to watch a movie," she said with playful sarcasm.
"It'll light up soon. Besides..." I looked out the window. "...it's raining too hard out there. It might get windy too. Luckily, I brought my phone with, so in case I'm not going home today, I'll inform Hannah."
"Good idea." Gently taking the DVD box, she opened it up, taking the disc out, examining it. "I don't think I've watched this one… Like I said, I don't watch a lot of horror movies, so I have no idea what this is about."
"You want me to tell you what it's about?" Lorraine's eyes widen when I said that. "I'm joking, I'm joking," I grinned.
Taking my rare sense of humor, she chuckled. "You got me there." Knowing how rare my humor is, I normally don't kid around or tell jokes all the time. I may have my serious side but it doesn't mean I don't have a humorous side inside me. It just takes time for me to use it. "The disc looks good," she observed. "I'm pretty sure it'll work." Going over to the DVD player, she used the TV remote to turn on the television, switching the channel for the movie. After, she picked up the DVD remote, pressing one of the buttons to open up the DVD player. The thing slid out where the DVD is placed on, waiting for the disc.
Putting the disc in, she stood back up, walking over to the couch and sat down, patting the same spot I sat on five minutes ago. "Sit down. I don't want you standing while you watch the movie." A grin came upon my face as I went up to her, sitting right next to her when I accidently knocked down my cup of tea, watching motionless when it spilled all over her rug. The tea turned the part of the carpet a brownish color, staining it. "My word..." was all she can let out, with both of us looking at the small mess.
"Lorraine, I'm terribly sorry. I didn't mean to make a mess." I jumped to my feet. "I'll clean it up."
"No, no," Lorraine demurred, shaking her head, getting up. "You sit down and watch the movie. I'll clean it up since your my guest...and my boyfriend." She motioned for me to sit back down on the sofa.
I sat back down and she went in the kitchen to grab some paper towels. I felt bad for what I'd done, but she knew I didn't mean to make a mess on the living room rug. I mean, I should be the one cleaning it up, knowing I'm the one who spilled my tea.
Plus, my OCD is starting to go up a notch. And before I can even start freaking out, which usually happens when something is not perfect, like when I have to check every new manuscript to see any crease or markings back when I used to write all the monsters I've made, Lorraine came back with some paper towels, humming to herself.
While she mopped up my mess, I couldn't help feeling embarrassed seeing her what she's doing, so I wasn't afraid to say it.
"Lorraine, I know you said I didn't do it on purpose but... I'm a grown man, not a child. Besides, you don't have to do that. It makes me feel...uncomfortable." I rubbed the back of my neck, messaging it a little. "You wouldn't like it when I clean up after you."
"Actually, I won't mind at all," she answered when all the paper towels are soaked from the spilled tea. "Plus, I'm getting a new rug soon," she added, standing back up. She went in the kitchen to throw the soggy paper towels away.
When she came back, she sat down next to me. The movie menu came up on the screen, having her press play on the DVD remote. She then surprised me when she laid her head on shoulder.
"I'm glad you came over to see me, Robert," she purred with compassion. "I'm always here by myself all the time, never having any visitors. It's not a bad thing or anything, but it's nice for you to be with me."
I didn't know what to say after that moment. I felt happy being with her too, no doubt about it. I've always loved her at the very start ever since we got together.
I'll tell her everything, from my childhood up until now.
Since she found out I was R.L. Stine, she didn't hesitate when her nephew instructed her to go to the police station to send the cops to the high school to help us. Only she didn't come back until after all the monsters were back in the book.
Oh. And the Horrorland theme park when I found out that the Invisible Boy was loose, so me and the kids had to trap him in One Day At Horrorland book.
Never did I tell her about the Boy. Like I never told her about Slappy being out of the new manuscript. Actually, she doesn't know anything about him.
I'll tell her someday. For right now, I want to sit back and relax, watching the movie I chose with her.
"So," Lorraine spoke, "how's Hannah doing?"
"She's doing fine," I answered, my eyes on the TV, giving her a smile to show her I'm listening.
"And the other kids? Are they doing fine like she is?" she asked, moving a part of her hair out of her face.
"Zach and Champ are doing fine, too," I told her, flicking a piece of lint off my pants, letting it float away.
"What about Hazel?" I saw her turn her head to me. "How is she doing? The last time I saw her...she looked miserable."
I sucked in a breath, rubbing the back of my neck again. "She's...not doing well."
"Not...doing well?" She tilted her head. "What's wrong with her? I mean, how come she isn't doing well?"
I sighed. "For starters, none of us had never seen her smile or laugh," I began telling her. "When she told Hannah about her past, and Hannah telling me, me and the boys found out Hazel's god parents, the people who she used to live with before she ran away from them, treated her badly. It gave her clinical depression. Well… it started off like that until she kept having these sudden mood swings when she started snapping at us."
"Yeah, she snapped when I asked Champ on how he got his name," she recalled. "It shocked all of us too."
"Yeah." I nodded my head. "But before that even happened, her therapist kept switching meds since none of them work. So when her doctor combined two different pills. They worked for several months, having her smile... Until they stop, and she started having mood swings, getting all snapping like I told you. She even demanded to see a new doctor because she was picking up fights with her old one, so I took her to a new doctor, and he told her what she actually has. It turned out she has manic depression, also known as bipolar disorder, along with schizophrenia..."
Lorraine than halted me. "Sorry to interrupt, but she has two illnesses?" I nodded again. "So when she has two types of illnesses, did her doctor gave her new meds?"
"Apparently, no." A shocked look came upon her. "It's because they were so bad that her therapist doesn't even know the new meds will work for her. Not only that, he doesn't know which one has the most since the symptoms are the same," I quickly explained. "I should also say she has haphephobia..." A confused expression came upon her, having me explain what the word means. "She has a fear of being touched." I ran my hair with my fingers. "I...did hug her... But she didn't like it. She's never been hugged, Lorraine. Never. The reason she doesn't want to be touched is from all the beatings she's gotten when she was younger. She's also living with me since she used to live and survive on her own."
"Is she still there? Maybe I can get her to smile. I make you happy all the time whenever we see each other." She gave me an example, showing me her gleaming smile.
"She's not at my house, she's at a mental hospital."
"A what?"
"A mental hospital," I repeated. "Long story short, she ended up hurting herself, so she's under suicide watch."
"I'm sorry to hear what she's going through," she apologized, showing care in her words. "I hope she gets better soon."
"I hope so too," I replied. "It took hours to get her there since it's not in the town we live in. None of us know how long she's gonna be there, but we want her to get better soon. None of like to see angry or sad twenty-four seven."
Lorraine bit her lip, her eyes away from the movie. After a second, she spoke to me.
"Whenever she comes back home, tell her I'll be there for her. I'm one of the nicest people in town. So in case she feels down, give me a call, and I'll spend time with her. I'll take her to the places she's never gotten to go." She smiled at me. "I'll take her to that one resturant you and me want to on our first date."
"I'm sure she'll like that," I smiled back. "I bet she'll like the food they have there."
"Yeah..." After our conversation about Hazel, we went back to watching the movie. It's a pretty old horror movie. There was no color, stating what year it was made. It wasn't too scary, but it was sure is entertaining to watch.
When the movie was over, I got up from the couch, seeing the rain slowing down, along with the wind. I turned to her.
"I'll see you some other time," I waved in farewell.
She waved too. "I'll see you as well, sweetheart. Oh! I have something for you." She looked around a bit, pretending to look for it. "Here." She blew me a kiss.
I caught it, blowing it back to her, and she caught it with her hand. "Bye, Lorraine. I love you." My face turned pink.
"I love you, too," she returned. "You're the love of my life," she professed, her face showing the same color as mine.
After that, I walked out the door, the rain landing on my head and shoulders. "Maybe it'll clear up when I get home..." I thought outloud, going over to my car. I got in, getting the car keys out, slipping one them into the slot, and started the car, driving off her driveway as I made my way back to my house.
While driving home, I wanted to go back and tell her about Slappy. I wanted to tell her, but I wasn't sure if she knew him or not.
Sigh. I'll tell her when I'm ready, I told myself.
Let's hope she doesn't leave me when I do. I needed the right moment and the right time.
The rain stopped when I arrived home like I had thought. I parked the car, taking the keys, opening the car door, getting out, shutting the door in the process. I went up to my front door, opening it to see Hannah watching a movie.
"Whatcha watching, Hannah?" I asked, closing the door, hanging the keys on the hook on the wall, crossing over to the couch.
"The Exorcist," she answered. "Zach was here," she then informed me. "But he left because of Slappy."
"Why didn't you text me?" The movie was almost at the end. "You know the rules about letting your friends in the house when I'm not home."
"...I guess I forgot…" She played with her hair. "I tried to get the guys to get along by playing a couple of games, and well..."
"They started arguing?" The answer caught her off guard, having her let go of her hair that was between her fingers.
She blinked, looking at me. "How do you they were fighting?" she questioned me.
I chuckled. "I'm your dad and I know these types of things. I can also tell the way you feel." I looked around the room. "Where is Slappy anyway?"
"Upstairs," she simply responded. "I guess he wants some alone time." When the movie ended, she took it out of the DVD player, placing the disc back in its box. "I'm going to make a sandwich, do you want one?" She waited for my answer before going to the kitchen.
I shook my head, declining. "No thanks, I'm good. I'm going upstairs to see how he's doing." Hannah nodded, heading her way to the kitchen. I heard her get the stuff out to make her sandwich.
As she was doing that, I went upstairs to the guest room. The one Slappy is in. However, when I stepped inside the room, he wasn't there. "Slappy?" I called his name. "Are you in here?" I heard him from the other side of the bed.
"I'm right here, Stine. What do you want anyway? I don't want to be bothered, I want to be alone for now. If you're wondering what we did when you left, we played stupid games. I won a Wii Sport game."
"Really?" I was impressed, walking over to where was at, seeing him lying down on the floor with his knees close to his chest. "Are you feeling okay?" I asked with concern.
"I don't know..." Slappy softly responded. "I feel like rubbish..." he mumbled. "I know you want me to get fix...but..." He sighed, sitting up. "...it's for the best when I do. Maybe it'll make me feel better," he hoped.
I knelt in front of him. "Are you sure...? You don't have to get fixed right now."
"I wanna get fixed, Stine," he insisted. "I'll stay still, pretending not to be alive. I'm pretty good at it," he promised with hint of boastfulness, trying to be prideful. "Anyway, I'm really sore," he groaned. "All thanks to them," he pressed out, referring to the monsters. He carefully got up, his eyes on me, placing his hand on the bed for support, thinking he was going to fall over. "I'm not sure if you know any places, but in case you do, it better not be a doll hospital."
"I don't know any places that fix things like you." Slappy didn't like my honest answer, turning away from me. "I can look it up on my phone, though." This got his attention, slightly looking back at me. "All I have to do is go on Google and look it up." He watched me use my cell phone as I spoke into it. "What places fix ventriloquist's dummies?" I caught glazing eyes from him when I said a certain word into the mic. "Sorry." He rolled his eyes at my apology. "Okay, let's see..." I scroll down the list, wanting to see if they have one in this town. "Aha!" I declared. "There's an old antique shop downtown. I can take you there to get you fixed. Sound good?"
"Yeah, sounds good to me," he released with a mutter. "Though you don't have to say the D word when you spoke into that thing."
"Then how will Google know what I'm talking about?" I replied. "Plus, I did say sorry."
"Uh-huh," he returned with another eye roll.
"Since you're made out of wood, I'm going to put you in a suitcase."
Not taking my joke, he snapped at me. "No! I don't want to be in a suitcase, Stine! I can go to the car without it. I'm not a normal-" He stopped. "You know what I mean," he stated. He stomped out of the room in an angry matter.
I breathed out of my mouth. "This better work." Standing back up, I made my way down the stairs, seeing Slappy at the door.
He has his arms crossed over his chest, tapping his foot on the floor. "Let's get going before I get any worse." The way he talked, it sounded like he was eager to get this over with.
I got to the bottom of the stairs when Hannah came to the room.
"Where are you going?" she asked with a half-eaten sandwich with tomato and lettuce between the white bread. "And why is Slappy at the door?" She ripped the sandwich with her teeth, chewing slowly.
"I wanted to get fixed up," he answered before I could. "I promise to stay still like a...uh..."
Hannah nodded, swallowing. "I know what you mean. You need to get over the D word." It didn't come out rudely when she told him that. "What kind of place you're going, dad, to get him fixed up?"
"There's an antique shop downtown," I told her, grabbing the keys. "I don't know how long we'll be there," I said honestly. "We could be there for hours, who knows?" I shrugged my shoulders before whispering in her ear. "It's gonna change is attitude once he's all primped up."
She tilted her head to the side. "Are you sure it'll improve his attitude?" she queried, the doubtfulness showing up on her.
I sighed, running my hand over my face. I'm not sure it'll change his attitude, so I gave her the only answer I can come up with.
"We have to find out later."
After my answer, I took the doorknob in my hand, reaching down to pick him up. I stopped - hesitating - ready for him to blow up with my hand inches away from him. He noticed, speaking to me.
"Go ahead. You can carry me to the car. I don't want to walk there anyway, even though it's not too far away."
"Are you..." I started to ask, but he held up his hand to silence me.
"I'm sure," he responded, holding out his arm.
I picked him up, feeling him flinch, probably due to the marks and scratches. I turn back over to my daughter. "We'll be back," I promised her. I got a nod in return since she took another bite of her snack.
With Slappy in my arms, we went over to my car. I grabbed the passenger side before stopping. "You want to sit up front?"
"Eh," he shrugged. "Sure. I sat at the front when I released the Haunted Car. Only because I was driving it."
"Yep." Opening the door, I place him in. "Put your seatbelt on," I instructed him.
"Don't tell me what to do," he quickly snarked with a growl in his voice. "Plus, I refuse to put it on me."
I shrugged. "Your choice." Closing the door, I made my way to the otherside, getting in the car. Closing my side, I buckled up, starting up the car. "At least no one can see you," I said.
He didn't say anything, placing his hand on his scarred up cheek, resting his clothy elbow on the door.
With the car roaring, we made our way to the antique shop.
I really hope this will make him feel better.
Note: Hey, for those are reading/following me, my Google Docs for some damn reason is not working. It's hard to explain. All I did was restart my laptop and for some reason, Google Docs, the place where I type each chapter, isn't working. I didn't lose my chapter, it's still there, but when I click on it... it won't be there. The whole page will be...blank...gone. The whole screen will be a complete white. Again, hard to explain. I don't know how long it'll last because I didn't do anything to it except shut down my laptop. So if it keeps this up... I don't know what to do. Now it's gonna be longer for both chapters/side stories to be up. I'm afraid to take it to get fixed, fearing I'll lose everything - like my Fanfic account.
For those who had the same problem with Google Docs not working, Private Message me. Chapter thirty is on there but when I click on it, well... I don't need to repeat myself, do I? I mean, I could redo my chapter on Fanfiction Document, but I don't know... I never had this happen before, and I refuse to take it to a place where they fix things like my laptop.
Yeah... I have no idea what to do for this type of situation.