It's time to begin chapter 12. Do you know those hot Summer days? Those REALLY hot Summer days? The days that make you want to die? That's what this chapter is about. There's a massive heatwave going around the city and the kids are having a hard time beating the heat. So what do they do? Take a dip in the pool. The gang is gonna go on a pool trip to beat the heat. When I was a kid visiting my grandparents on a weekly basis, my brother and I used to go to the pool all the time. It was a good way to cool off. So let's see if Nick, Judy, and the others can cool off.
Current temperature in Zootopia: REALLY REALLY HOT! The city was getting hit with a major heatwave. Not just one part, but the whole city. Even Tundratown. The gang was brave enough to go out in the heat. They sat outside a nice cafe listening to music on a radio. The teens all had shorts, short sleeve shirts, or undershirts on. Nick groaned as he sat on his chair with his head up. Judy tried to fan herself with a paper menu. Falisha tried cooling off by drinking a glass of lemonade. Benji had his head on the table looking exhausted. Finnick groaned as much as Nick. Mervin was panting heavily with a rag over his head. Audran and Ronnie tried to distract themselves from the heat by playing paper football. Flash pointed an electric pocket fan at his face. Lastly, Darson rubbed ice over his face. None of the kids were a fan of this hot day.
"Ugggggggghhhhhh... it's so hoooooooooot!" Judy said while still fanning herself.
"It's Summer. We were bond to get a super hot day sooner or later." Nick told Judy while still groaning.
"According to the weather, it's the hottest day of the year." Falisha stated.
"UGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHH!" Everyone else groaned in discontent.
"This heat sucks!" Nick stated.
"No kidding." Darson said as he rubs more ice over his fur. He then looks at Ronnie and Audran playing paper football. "Is that really helping you beat the heat?"
"Is this getting our minds off the heatwave?" Ronnie asked as he flicked the paper football.
It hits Audran in his forehead. Audran didn't really seem faced by it.
"Nope. Not even a little, eh." Audran said firmly.
Mervin was panting heavily like a dog and Falisha was getting a bit annoyed.
"Merv, do you have to pant like that?" Falisha asked.
"I don't know. Does it have to be a billion degrees today?" Mervin said a bit smugly. "Maybe if you share some lemonade, I'll..."
Before Mervin could even finish his sentence, Falisha quickly gulped down and finished her lemonade. Implying that she didn't want to share. Mervin didn't look happy.
"You know you could have no." Mervin said looking mad. "And on that note..." Mervin went back to panting heavily.
While seem to be affected by the heat like everyone else, at least he had a pocket fan to keep him cool. Finnick looked at Flash.
"Flash, how about sharing that fan of yours." Finnick said to the sloth.
"Not... a... chance,... Finnick." Flash replied.
"Come on. I'm a desert fox. But even this is too much." Finnick said.
"I... said... no." Flash said firmly.
"I said give it!" Finnick said angrily. He then tried to take Flash's pocket fan. He had no luck what so ever. It didn't even look like Flash was really fazed. Apparently, sloths have a tight grip. "Jeez! You're stronger than you look."
"I would normally laugh at this, but the heat has also taken away my laughter." Mervin stated.
"Finn, why didn't you just make some pawpsicles like you and Nick usually do? This literally would have been the perfect time to have some." Ronnie stated.
"Don't you think I know that?" Finnick asked as he stopped trying to take Flash's fan. "But here's the thing. Even Tundratown is feeling the effects of this. So much, that the cool systems are shot."
"Uggggggghhhhh..." Everyone else went. This meant they could really go to Tundratown to cool off.
"And then when I made the pawpsicles, the time I got out of Tundratown, they all melted." Finnick said looking unhappy.
"UGGGGGGGGHHHHHHH!" Everyone else went even more upset.
"Of course they did. Cause it's soooo hot." Nick said very unhappy. He continues to mope as he put his head down on the table. "Someone change the station."
Judy turned the knob on the radio to change the station as Nick requested. She stopped when she heard some radio DJ.
"Hellooooooooo, Zootopia! This is 98.2: The Z. The hottest radio in the city. Playing the most sizzling songs in the city." The DJ said. The gang groaned after hearing all the hot-related words. "Today's a scorcher with temperatures at a whopping 104 degrees." Once again, the gang groaned. "Wow! Hottest day ever! If you're not in a place with excellent A/C, then I recommend doing something to cool off. One thing, is going down near Herd St. in Downtown Zootopia to go to the opening of the new..." For the next thing that the teens were about to hear, it was like it was in slow motion. "... indoooooor pooooooool."
The gang immediately stopped what they were doing with widen eyes. The keywords that they all heard. Indoor pool. A pool that wasn't just filled with cool water to swim in, but indoors. Meaning no need to deal with the crazy heat from the outside. After looking at each other, the kids all knew that they had the same idea.
"LET'S GO TO THE NEW POOL!" Everyone shouted out as they slammed their paws on the table.
"SWIMSUITS! WE NEED SWIMSUITS!" Judy shouted out.
"BACK TO OUR PLACES! MEET UP LATER!" Nick shouted.
"BREAK!" Everyone said as the clapped in a circle.
Everyone then dashed off to their respected homes to get swimsuits, towels, and other stuff for their day at the pool. After running, Nick made it to his home and open quickly opened the door. The tod was practically out of breath. John and Frankie noticed as they walk over to Nick.
"Nicky?" Frankie said.
"Are you okay, son?" John asked.
Nick was too exhausted to even answer his parents. Instead, he once again dashed this time to the kitchen, opened up the fridge and took out a nice cool water bottle. After closing the fridge, he quickly starts drinking the bottle. John and Frankie could guess that the heat has made Nick thirsty.
"Uhhh... thirsty, I see." John said a bit awkwardly. "Exactly wha..."
Before John could say anything, Nick had one of his fingers up as he wanted to have a moment to finish his water. After drinking the bottle dry and his thirst quenched, Nick was ready to speak with his folks.
"SuperHot!NewPool!Indoors!NeedTrunks!" Nick said super speedy.
Nick then quickly dashed to the stairs as he passes the twin's playpen and quickly said "Hi, minis!" to his baby brother and sister. He went up the stairs to get some things from his room. His parents still looked confused.
"Did you get any of that, honey?" John asked.
"Something about 'Super Cool Trucks'? I think." Frankie said.
Meanwhile, Judy made to her and Gwen's apartment. Gwen was trying to be the heat by stand in front of their isolating fan. Judy just walked inside.
"Hey, sis!" Judy said as she closes the door.
"Hey. If you wanna share this fan, the answer's no." Gwen said feeling too hot to wanna more.
"It's fine. I'm going back out anyway." Judy stated as she goes through the drawer. "Where are they?"
"You're going back out in this heat?" Gwen asked surprised. "Good luck to you."
"We heard that there a new pool opening up so we are all gonna head there." Judy said as she packed a few items in a blue tote bag. "Best part, the pool is indoor."
"Indoor pool?" Gwen asked sounding like her interest had peaked.
"Yep!" Judy said as she stands up with her bag. "Gotta hurry. See ya, Gwen."
Judy then dashed out of the door.
"Wait! Wait! Where's the..." Gwen said considering in coming with her. But it was too late. Judy had already left the room. "... and she's gone. I could go after her, but..." It was still hot and Gwen really didn't really want to break a sweat. "Ugh... too hot for that."
During this time, Mervin was getting stuff for the pool from his house. Unlike Nick or Judy, Mervin was being discrete about heading to the pool. He didn't want his brothers to know about his pool day. He quickly went up to his room, got a triangle bag and stuff it with things for the pool. Little did he knew, someone was behind him.
"Hey, Mervy!" A young girl said.
"WAAAHH!" Mervin shouted out a bit freaked out.
Mervin turned around to see who it was. It was a young girl hyena that was no older than 4. She wore a yellow and white striped shirt with a flower on it and blue jean shorts. This was Mervin's little sister, Melody.
"M... Mel! Heeeey, baby sister." Mervin said nervously.
"Whatcha doing?" Melody asked curiously.
"Uhhh... nothing." Mervin replied not wanting to really tell his sister about the pool.
"Then what's that?" Melody asked while pointing at Mervin's swim trunks.
"Oh! These?" Mervin said while holding up his black trucks. At that point, there was no point in lying to his little sister. "*sigh* Okay, Melody. I'll tell, but keep this a secret. Kay?"
"Kay." Melody said as she walked up to Mervin.
"I'm heading to the pool that just opened up. But you have to keep this a secret and NOT tell our brothers. Got it?" Mervin said to his sister.
"Kay." Melody replied.
"Promise?" Mervin said.
"Promise." Melody said.
Mervin then booped Melody's nose. Whenever Mervin told his baby sister a secret, he would often do that. Hoping that Melody would keep her word, Mervin finished packing for the pool.
Later, the gang met up at a bus stop to get on a bus that would lead them directly to the pool. At the stop was, Judy, Benji, Finnick with sunglasses on, Mervin, Falisha, Ronnie, Audran, and Flash with a bag filled with stuff for the pool. They also seemed to manage with the heat better. They were all ready, except Nick and Darson weren't here yet.
"Where's Nick and Darson?" Judy asked. "The bus is about to come."
"Well, you know how they are. They like to be late." Ronnie stated.
"I'm surprised Flash made it here before they did." Benji said.
"I'm not." Mervin and Falisha said together.
"We remember the thing with the wagon when we were little. So getting by a little cart, pretty believable." Mervin stated.
Flash waited 3 seconds before saying "What can I say? I aim to impress.".
"I may never understand this sloth." Judy thought.
The group then hears a voice from a distance.
"Hey! Sorry I'm late!" It's was Nick's voice.
"Nick! Glad that you ma..." Judy said happily. Her expression changes into a bit of a shocked one when she looks at Nick. "HOLY SHIRT!"
Nick didn't just come the way he looked before. He had on sunglasses and a red Pawaiian shirt with a white leaf pattern. The shirt was unbuttoned. Most of Nick's friends had... mixed feelings for his shirt. Mervin and Ronnie responded by laughing.
"What?" Nick asked as he shrugged.
"Dude, why are you wearing that shirt?" Ronnie asked trying not to laugh more.
"It's Summer and we're heading to the pool. So I decided to switch to wearing something 'festive'." Nick said proudly.
"Nick, I'm sorry. But your shirt is just so... tacky." Judy said honestly.
"Tacky? Carrots, this shirt is great. Light, colorful, and fun to wear." Nick stated. "I honestly see myself wearing shirts like this more often."
"Nick, when we become adults and work for the ZPD, promise me you won't wear shirts like this." Judy pleaded to Nick.
"I will make no such promise." Nick said boldly with a straight face.
"*sigh* Whatever." Judy said not caring anymore. "As soon as Darson and the bus get here, we can..."
"I'm here!" Shouted out someone from the distance. It was Darson.
"Darson! Thank god you..." Judy said before looking at Darson and reacting the same way she did with Nick. "SWEET CHEESE AND CRACKERS!"
Like Nick, Darson was also wearing a Pawaiian shirt. To make things more surprising, it looked EXACTLY like Nick's shirt. Most of the gang, mainly Mervin, Ronnie, and Finnick started laughing even more.
"OH MY GOSH! THEY'RE SO TWINING! HAHAHA!" Mervin went. "This is the best thing ever."
"Seriously? You too, Darson?" Judy asked.
"Oh come on. This is a good shirt. The perfect shirt for the Summer." Darson stated.
"See? He gets it." Nick said happily.
Darson then noticed Nick wearing the same shirt as him and walked over to him. The two looked up and down at each other before giving each other a smirk, a wink, and the double finger guns.
"Eyyyyyyyyyy. Looking good." Nick and Darson said to each other.
"Oh my god..." Falisha said as she rolled her eyes.
A few seconds later, the bus came.
"Finally! The bus." Judy said happily.
"Alright, guys. The bus should take us straight to our destination. So let's be sure to enjoy our pool day." Nick said raising a fist up.
"Yeah!" Everyone else went also raising a paw up. Flash too, but a bit slower than everyone else.
As the bus stopped and opened the door, the teens shouted out "Pool day! Pool day! Pool day!" as they entered the bus. The bus closes its doors as they enter and the bus moves forward. After a couple of minutes of driving and walking for 3 minutes, the group had finally made it to the front entrance of the new pool. The outside of the pool looked like the size of a school football field if not larger. Meaning that the pool must be pretty huge. As the group all looked excited they all quickly go inside and once again shouted out "Pool day! Pool day! Pool day!". There was, however, one unexpecting thing. As the kids go to the pool area, they all froze and their jaws dropped with that they saw. The pool...WAS PACKED. Hundreds of other mammals, big and small, young and old, came to the pool today. Guessing everyone here had the same idea as the kids did.
"So... uhhhh... there's a lot of people." Judy stated as she scratched the back of her head.
"It's the hottest day of the year and it's this pool's grand opening. OF COURSE, IT WAS GOING TO BE PACKED!" Finnick shouted out.
"Why didn't any of us realize that sooner?" Audran asked.
"Guys, everyone has the right to come here. Sure, they're a lot more than expected and the pool is a bit... crowded." Nick said noticing there was barely any room the massive pool. "But come on. We're here to have some fun. So let's do that."
"Yeah. You're right, Nick." Ronnie said.
"Alright then. Let's all get changed and have some fun." Falisha said eagerly.
"Yeah!" Everyone else said happily.
The group headed to the changing room. The boys went into the boys' changing room and the girls went into the girls' changing room. After a few minutes, the boys came out of their changing rooms first. Nick had on green swim trunks, Benji had blue trunks, Finnick had red trunks with white lines on the side, Mervin had black trunks, Ronnie had yellow ones, Audran had white ones and goggles over his head, Darson had dark blue trunks on, and lastly, Flash had tan trunks on.
"Look at us. Look at us." Nick said smiling as he looks at his crew.
"Watch out, ladies. The shirts are off and the guns are out." Ronnie said grinning and flexing.
"Speaking of ladies, Judy and Fal haven't come out yet?" Mervin asked.
"Meh. They're girls. They take a bit longer." Finnick stated.
"Might as well give them another minute or two." Audran said as looked at the crowded pool. "Not like their much space in the pool anyway."
"Fair point." Nick said agreeing.
The boys waited for the girls. After two minutes, they finally came out. Falisha was wearing a black one-piece swimsuit with a white stripe on both sides. Judy's swimsuit was quite different. It was a light blue and white polka-dotted two-piece and the bottom part looked sort of like a skirt. The boys were pretty surprised by the girls swimwears.
"Wooooooaaah..." The boys went in awe.
"Guessing you boys like our suits." Falisha said not surprised.
"So, what do you think, Nicky?" Judy asked before doing a quick twirl. "Do you like it?"
Nick was pretty red-faced after looking at Judy. Being her boyfriend, Nick was allowed to call her cute and Nick thought that. However, it seems like Nick had something else in mind. Nick then took his green towel out and quickly wrapped it around Judy's middle.
"Nick! What are you doing?!" Judy asked wondering why Nick was wrapping a towel around her.
"Covering you up." Nick said firmly. "Why are you wearing a swimsuit like this?"
"Uhhh... cause I like it." Judy replied.
"What happened to the blue one-piece suit you had when we were 10?" Nick asked.
"I outgrew it. Obviously." Judy said with a straight-face. "What's wrong with this one?"
"It shows your stomach." Nick replied. "You shouldn't be showing so much fur for a swimsuit."
"You know, for someone who is supposedly my boyfriend, you're acting my dad." Judy stated.
"Well, what would your dad think?" Nick asked. "Wearing something that shows your stomach."
"Well, you're one to talk, Slick. Showing off that naturally foxy body of yours." Judy said.
"Pretty sure the rule for boys covering up is different from girls." Audran stated.
Judy then removed the towel from her body and gave it back to Nick.
"Nick, while I appreciate your concern, it's not needed. Everything will be fine. This is a pool and we are here to have fun. Aren't we?" Judy asked.
"*sigh* Fine." Nick said calming down. "But if any other guys, especially bucks, eyeball you in any way, I'mma kill them."
"Relax. No buck gonna steal me away." Judy said to Nick while holding his paws.
"You sure?" Darson asked. "I mean, in hindsight, you are an attractive bunny, Judy. It would be no surprise if someone..." Judy and Nick then gave Darson the stink eye. Darson automatically knew that he said too much. "I'll shut up now."
"Anyway... there's a little more space in the pool now. So how about we take that dip?" Audran asked.
Yeah. Let's do it." Ronnie said with a paw up. He then dashes to the poolside and jumps in while shouting "CANNONBALL!" and making a big splash.
"I get that splash an 8.6." Nick said with a grin.
"I'll show him how it's done." Mervin said eagerly. "My brothers had cannonball contests all the time. And since they're not here, I don't have to go all out just to keep up." As Mervin talks, Nick looked over at the distance. "Oh yeah. So glad I didn't tell them about the pool."
"Uhhhh... duder?" Nick said.
"Yeah?" Mervin said looking at Nick.
"Isn't that them over there?" Nick asked as him and some the others pointed out at the distance.
Mervin turned around and looked at the direction his friends were pointing at. He was shocked by what he saw. They were pointed at a group with 5 boy hyenas with different ages. The group WAS Mervin's brothers. The other Howlino boys. The brothers then spotted there brother and looked as shocked as he was.
"Oh you got to be kidding me!" Mervin said angrily as he marched over there.
"He... doesn't seem happy." Judy said.
"Let's just let him handle his business." Finnick said.
Mervin marched all the way to the other side of the pool where his brothers were standing. Mervin's brothers were Miles, Mac, Murray, Merlin, and Mali. Miles, the tallest and the oldest, wore red swim trunks, Mac, the mildly chubby second-oldest, wore green trunks and a black swim shirt, Murray, the skinny and third oldest brother, had red dye on his hair and blue and black trunks, Merlin, the middle child that usually wears glasses, wore goggles and white trunks, and Mali, the second youngest brother, wore light blue trunks.
"What are you guys doing here?" Mervin asked.
"We been asking each other that same question." Mac said angrily.
"I thought I told Mel not to tell any of you." Mervin stated.
"Funny. Cause I told her the same thing." Murray stated.
"Me too." Mali said.
"So did I." Merlin said.
"Ugh. So Melody kept our secret, but didn't say anything about ALL of us coming here anyway." Mervin said before placing his right palm on his face. "*sigh*"
Meanwhile, at the Howlino home, Melody was playing with her dolls when her mom came into the room.
"Melody dear, have you seen any of your brothers?" Mrs. Howlino asked.
"They each told me they were going to the pool. But it's a secret. Shhh." Melody said.
"Okay." Mrs. Howlino said quietly and playing along.
Back with the Howlino brothers...
"Look, whatever." Miles said. "Here's the deal. This pool just opened so none of us screw this up, okay?"
"Yeah. I don't want us to get banned from here like the restaurant." Mervin stated.
"Are you STILL blaming me for that?" Mac asked.
"Yes!" The other brothers answered.
"It was the last strawberry shortcake in the restaurant. I wanted that piece." Mac said firmly.
"You knocked out an old lady for it." Murray stated.
"I will not apologize for that. That cake was good and moist." Mac said firmly.
"See, that is why we're still banned from there." Mali stated.
"Okay, look. Just because we're brothers, it doesn't mean we have to be around each other. So let's just do our own things and not blow it. Agreed?" Mervin asked.
"Agreed." The other brothers answered.
With that, the 6 hyenas went at separate directions. Mervin went back to his friends so they could finally start enjoying their pool day. The boys enjoy their dip in the pool while Judy and Falisha sat by the empty pool chairs for a bit.
"It was a great idea to come here." Judy said to Falisha with a smile.
"I'm surprised that we didn't put 'pool' on our 'Endless Summer' list earlier." Falisha said. "I'm glad that you are here for the Summer, Judy. For a while, it's always been me and the boys. I haven't had much girl friends to hang out with since Gazelle moved."
"Really?" Judy asked.
"Yeah. Besides the girls at Bunnyburrow, most of the girl friends I know are either busy or away for the Summer. " Falisha stated. "Don't get me wrong. I love the boys and all, but... they're just... so..."
"Boys?" Judy asked knowing what she meant.
"Exactly." Falisha replied.
"I get it. The boys do outnumber us. I think we need to find another girl be to buddies with." Judy stated.
"Well, they're quite a few girls our age here." Falisha said as she looked around and at the pool.
"Well, we can't just talk to some random girls. We need to find someone we can easily connect with. Someone we have something in common with." Falisha stated.
"That will be tough since the best person to get along with is someone you already know. Like someone in school or..." Judy said but as she talked, she noticed someone from the distance. "... Mimi?"
"Mimi? She's nice, but a little awkward." Falisha said.
"No. I mean, Mimi is here." Judy stated firmly as she pointed. "Look."
From the edge of the poolside was a teenage skunk girl with a pink swimsuit, pink bathing cap, and goggles on. It really was Mimi. The same Mimi that the gang has meant before. The good, but very ditzy girl was looking hesitate from getting into the pool.
"Okay. The worst part about going into the pool, besides drowning, is the first dip. But once you get through it, it's nice and refreshing to the body." Mimi thought to look determined. "Now, I just need to dip my foot in and..."
The second Mimi dipped her foot into the cold pool water, it was like her entire body froze up.
"EEP!" Mimi shrieked before immediately taking her foot out of the water. "NOPENOPENOPE! TOO COLD! TOO COLD!" Mimi thought. "Maybe I'll just stay out of the water."
"Mimi!" Judy said while walking over to the skunk girl.
Hearing her nickname, Mimi turned around and sees Judy and Falisha.
"Oh! Judy! Falisha!" Mimi said happily. "It's good to see you again. REALLY good to see you."
"It's been a while." Falisha said.
"Quite a while. Give or take two weeks." Mimi said. "Are those other guys with you?"
"Yeah. They are over there." Judy said pointing at the pool spot where the boys were.
"Oh goodie. I expected them to be with you since you are all usually together." Mimi stated.
"So, what brings you here?" Judy asked.
"Well, when the A/C at your home is broken and the heat is enough to make you wish for a fast death, the pool seemed like the best option." Mimi stated. "You know, cause I kinda like living."
"Ha ha... I see..." Judy said smiling awkwardly.
"Uhhh... Mimi, can't help but notice that you're still pretty dry." Falisha said looking at Mimi's non-wet body.
"Good observation skills. It's cause I haven't... actually swam yet." Mimi admitted.
"Oh. Well, how long have you been here?" Falisha asked.
"Well... you know... almost an hour." Mimi said looking a bit shameful.
"Seriously?" Falisha said raising an eyebrow.
"It's cold water! Really cold! Taking that first dip is like taking a bath in Tundratown." Mimi stated.
"Yeah. But when you get through that first part, it's so refreshing." Judy said.
"Right?" Mimi said agreeing.
"Mims, it's sometimes best to just jump in and get it over with." Judy stated boldly. "Come on. We'll jump with you if it will help."
"O... okay." Mimi said willing to try.
Judy and Falisha stood beside Mimi with her standing in between them. They went to the pool's edge about to jump in.
"On three." Mimi said. "One..." Before she could even get to two, Judy and Falisha lightly pushed Mimi in the water. As expected, the water was pretty cold and Mimi was shivering all over. "WAAAAH! COLD! COLD! COLD!"
"Sorry!" Judy shouted out. "But we didn't want you wuss out at the last second."
"That was a total Nick move." Falisha said to Judy.
"It was definitely a Nick move." Judy said agreeing with her friend.
Meanwhile, Nick and the boys were all in the pool enjoying their time. Finnick was on an inner tube while having his sunglasses on.
"This is the life, ain't it boys?" Finnick asked.
"Oh yeah." The others went.
"So Merv, what were you talking to your brothers about?" Nick asked.
"Nothing big. I don't want to talk about it." Mervin said.
"Come on. You can tell us what's up." Benji said.
"I said I don't want to talk about it." Mervin said firmly. He then got splashed with water by Nick. "Hey!"
"Tell us!" Nick said preparing to splash him again.
"No." Mervin said keeping his firmness.
Nick, Ronnie, Darson, and Audran then all splashed at Mervin while shouting out "Tell us! Tell us! Tell us!"
"Hey! Hey! Alright! Alright!" Mervin said wanting the other to stop splashing him with the water. The boys then stopped splashing the hyena. Mervin then swims to one of the walls of the pool as he explains to the others. "First off, don't get the wrong idea. I do love all my brothers. But... they can be... much."
"What do you mean?" Nick asked. "I like your brothers and they don't seem that bad."
"Nick, you don't have to live with them. Besides, you wouldn't understand. I'm the second youngest kid in my family while you're the oldest in yours. Plus Todd and Vicky are still babies. By the time they grow up, you'll barely be around."
"Wow. Really?" Nick said not happy with Mervin's remark.
"Sorry. Guess it's not that different from me and Melody." Mervin said. "What I mean is... you don't have to deal with what I had to deal with. When the six of us are together at the same place, things get crazy. It's like our brother instincts tell us to fight and argue with each other on a daily basis. You know, because of that, we got banned from one or two places."
"I can see that." Ronnie said.
"I know that compared to Jude's family, I have it easy. But... that doesn't mean it is easier." Mervin said sincerely. "It's like... I'm just a number in a crowd and when I'm in said crowd, things get... you know..."
Mervin then submerged himself into the water a bit looking a bit depressed. To Mervin, he was a lot like his brothers. But he wanted to be, not only different but independent from them.
"Mervin, can I say something?" Finnick asked. "You're a dumb-dumb."
"What?" Mervin said looking a bit mad.
"Dude!" Nick replied not looking happy with Finnick.
"Okay. I'm going to take off the F-I and N in my name to be Nick for a moment. I'm also going to say what Nick always says in moments like this and cut out the middle man." Finnick said. "Blah blah blah... you're overthinking it. Yadda yadda yadda... you and your brothers are your own mammals. Yakkity yak yak... talk with them about it. Blah blah... grow to understand them more."
"*chuckles* That sounds exactly like something Nick would say." Mervin said laughing.
"I don't talk like that." Nick said firmly.
"Actually, you do." Darson said. "I mean, you talked like that a few times with me."
"And me." Finnick said.
"Me too." Ronnie said.
"Same here." Benji said.
"You do talk to us like that a lot." Mervin stated to Nick. "It's kind of your thing."
"No. My thing is making people's lives better. Talking... is just part of the process." Nick admitted while lightly sinking in the water.
"Uh huh." The others said in unison.
At that moment, Judy, Falisha, and Mimi swam over to the boys.
"Hey guys. Look who's also here?" Judy said to the boys with Mimi floating beside her.
"Mimi!" The boys all shouted out excitedly.
"H... Hey." Mimi said while smiling and waving awkwardly.
"It's good to see you again. Been a while, hasn't it?" Nick said.
"Yeah. If you call 11 days, 5 hours, and 23 minutes a while." Mimi stated.
"You actually counted the days, hours, and minutes?" Ronnie asked while raising an eyebrow.
"Whaaaat? No." Mimi said. "Just the days and hours. Cause the minutes would be weeeeird."
"Riiiiiight." Ronnie said smiling awkwardly. "I'm assuming you're here to cool off too."
"Oh yes. This heatwave is un-bearable." Mimi said making a joke.
"Hahaha!" Mervin laughed.
"You didn't have to make a joke." Ronnie said with a straight face.
"Sorry. Sorry. I was trying to be humorous." Mimi said apologetically.
"Trust us, we get enough jokes from that guy." Audran said while pointing at Nick.
"Hey. I resent that. I've barely made as many jokes these days." Nick stated.
"Barely is still too many." Finnick stated.
"Hmpt!" Nick grunted as he puffed out his cheeks.
"Mervin... and I... like... your... jokes." Flash said with a smile.
"Thanks, Flash. Glad some people know a good joke when they hear one." Nick said.
The others besides Mervin and Flash just shook their heads. They weren't really a fan of Nick's simple jokes. Even his own girlfriend. Shortly after, a few of them got out of the pool for a bit. Benji was playing Marco Polo with Falisha and Ronnie, Mervin went over to the diving board, and the other dried off a bit. Nick shook his whole body to get some of the water off. He then grabbed his towel and started drying himself. Once he finished drying off, he looked at Judy and Falisha who were talking with Mimi.
Nick noticed that Judy and Falisha were spending most of the day with Mimi. Nick totally understood why Judy and Falisha were hanging with Mimi. It's because they were all girls. There really wasn't any out girls in their group. Mostly boys by a high margin. So he thought it was great for them to have another girl around. He then saw someone approach the girls. The person was a male brown rabbit around the age they were. He had green eyes and dark blue trunks on. It seemed that he had his eyes on Judy.
"Hey there." The rabbit said greeting Judy.
"Oh. Hello?" Judy said being polite.
"My, you are quite a pretty bunny are." The male rabbit said being flirty.
"Umm... thanks?" Judy said.
"Sorry, Casanova. She's already taken by someone." Falisha stated.
"Yeah. Sorry, but I already have a boyfriend." Judy told the boy.
"Really? I don't see him anywhere." The buck said looking left and right. "Besides, whoever your boyfriend is, you can do better."
Judy and the other girls started to look angry with this bunny.
"What makes you think I can do better? Cause looking at you and hearing the way you talk, you're not much." Judy said not being interested in him the slightest.
"Please. I bet compared to me, your boyfriend is nothing spe..." The rabbit went sounding a bit smug.
But before he could finish that, Nick showed up from behind Judy and placed his paws around Judy's shoulders.
"Hey, sweetie." Nick said to Judy.
"Oh. Hey, Nicky." Judy said smiling at her boyfriend.
The male rabbit started to look a little scared. He wasn't expecting Judy's boyfriend to be a fox. Unfortunately, the rabbit was one of the rabbits that feared foxes.
"This guy isn't bothering you, isn't he?" Nick asked while giving the rabbit a deadly glare.
"I... I didn't mean to!" The rabbit said frantically. "I... I will be going now!"
The rabbit then quickly ran away. As he did, one of the lifeguards shouted out "NO RUNNING!". It is dangerous to run in an area near the pool after all. Nick had a wide grin on his face.
"The one time I'm okay with bunny being afraid of me." Nick said still grinning. He then turned Judy around. "See, Carrots? What did I tell you? That guy tried to make a move on you."
"And he was getting nowhere with me." Judy told Nick. She then held onto Nick's paw. "You know you're the one for me, you know that, Nick?"
"Be it as it may..." Nick said as he held both of Judy's paws and leaned down a little. "... I'm not leaving your side for the rest of the day. I don't want anyone else to try and steal you away from me."
"Okay. If you're gonna be so worry." Judy said with a sly smile.
Judy then walked off with Nick. Leaving Falisha with the company of Mimi. Mimi looked at Nick and Judy with admiration.
"Awwww! I had no idea Nick and Judy cared about each other THAT much." Mimi said looking all starry-eyed.
"That's Nick and Judy for ya. It's like those two were meant for each other." Falisha stated knowing Nick and Judy's history.
"Do you have a boyfriend yourself?" Mimi asked.
"A... wh... what?" Falisha uttered as she started to blush. She then started to twiddle her fingers. "I mean... I do kinda know a boy I like. But we aren't really a 'thing' yet."
"Ooooooh! So there is a boy? Please tell me everything!" Mimi pleaded eagerly wanting to hear everything Falisha had to say.
Meanwhile, with Mervin, he was eager to jump off the diving board. The diving board was pretty tall. Possible as tall as the neck of a giraffe, if not taller. As he looked up, he noticed someone was attempting to dive off of it. It was his brother, Mali. He took a leap off the board and did two flips in the air before diving into the water. A few mammals applauded Mali for such an excellent jump. This included the other Howlino brothers watching by the side of the pool.
"Not bad, Mali. But I still think I'm the one to beat." Miles stated as Mali got out of the water.
"Please. That was awesome." Mali said thinking he was the better diver.
"Not awesome enough to top my jackknife dive." Miles stated.
"Or my mega cannonball." Mac said boldly.
"What are you all doing?" Mervin asked. "Didn't we all agree to NOT be near each other?"
"Tried that. Didn't work." Murray stated.
"So we decided to have a diving contest." Merlin said.
"We've all had our go. You in, Merv?" Mac asked.
"HA! I'm not only in, I'm going for the win." Mervin said confidently.
"Well then..." Miles said while moving out of the way allowing Mervin to make his way to the diving board. "... let's see what you got."
"Heh. I got this." Mervin said confidently.
Mervin then passed his brothers and made his way to the ladder of the diving board. He then started climbing up it. At first, he climbed up the ladder filled with vigor. But as he got higher and higher, he started to get nervous. He didn't truly realize how tall the diving board was. In fact, to him, it was looking than it actually was. As if he was a hundred feet from the ground.
"Hehe! My, I'm pretty high up. Didn't think this was so high." Mervin thought starting to look a bit nervous.
Mervin then made it to the top. He even got noticed by his friends.
"Look, Mervin's on the top of the diving board." Judy said to Nick who said that he wouldn't leave her side for the rest of the day.
"Oh. Look at him going big." Nick said.
"YOU GOT THIS, MERVIN!" Finnick shouted out.
"TRY NOT TO THINK ABOUT FALLING TO YOUR DEATH!" Mimi shouted out.
"MIMI!" Some of the gang shouted out at the skunk thinking that wasn't the best thing to shout out.
"Sorry." Mimi said apologetically.
Meanwhile on the diving board...
"Great. Now I'm thinking about falling to my death. Thanks, Mimi..." Mervin thought with a straight face. Mervin then stood at the edge of the board. He then did the one thing you shouldn't do from a height place. Look down. "Holy nachos! That's a big drop!"
Mervin then started shaking and losing his footing. This worried a bit of the people watching. Including Mervin's friends and brothers.
"Oh no." Judy said looking worried.
"Careful. Even if he falls into the water, the wrong move could really injure him." Nick said looking concerned.
By the passing second, Mervin got more and more scared.
"*whimper* Okay. This was a bad idea. Maybe I should go down." Mervin thought.
"MERVIN!" Shouted out the Howlino brothers.
Mervin then looked down at his brothers.
"Mervin, we're not forcing you to jump!" Mac shouted.
"If you don't want to, then don't!" Murray shouted.
"We were scared too! Even Miles!" Mali shouted out.
"But if you do jump, be calm!" Merlin shouted out.
"And just go for it!" Miles shouted out.
After hearing the advice he was getting from all of his brothers, Mervin was able to gain back some of his composure.
"Okay. My bros are right. I don't have to jump,... but I want to." Mervin thought. He then looked back at the ladder. "Plus it's scary to go back down that ladder." He then stood by the tip of the diving board. "I got this. Be like Nick and Judy."
Mervin closed his eyes for a few seconds, he then thought of Miles's words "Just go for it!" and jumped off. Keeping a T-Form, he somersaulted backward 4 times while turning. He then held his arms out forward as he falls into the water. It was beyond an excellent dive. As Mervin swims up to the surface, he could hear cheers from the spectators that watched him. As well as his friends and his brothers.
"That was awesome, Merv." Ronnie said while clapping.
"Excellent dive." Audran said.
"Woo! That's how it's done, little bro." Mac said.
"I'd say Mervin beat us all." Mali stated with a smile.
"*sigh* Our little brother wins our contest." Miles said while shrugging. "I suppose I'm okay with it."
"Psst! Speak for yourself." Murray said looking pouty with his arms crossed.
After a long while, the gang thought that they had a long enough pool day and that it was time to head home. Changing back into their regular clothes as they leave the pool. They all came out along with Mervin's brothers and Mimi. They were still talking about Mervin's dive.
"... and when you hit the water with that graceful dive, it was awesome!" Audran stated boldly.
"I'm just glad I didn't screw it up." Mervin said.
"We should have rematch one day." Miles suggested.
"Haha! Not happening." Mervin said firmly. "Seriously, going up that thing once was scary enough. No joke."
"Agreed." The Howlino brothers said.
"Alright. I'm starving. How about we get some tacos before heading home?" Mac asked.
"I'm down for some tacos." Merlin said raising a paw up.
"So long as it's not from the Taco Hut down the block. Still banned from there." Mali said.
"Mac's fault!" Miles and Murray stated.
"Oh yeah. Blame the chubby one." Mac said looking a bit mad.
"Been there." Benji said understanding Mac because he was chubby like him.
"You coming, Merv?" Miles asked.
Mervin nodded his head and said "Yeah.". He then turned to his friends. "See you, guys."
"Bye Mervin." Nick and Judy said waving goodbye.
Mervin then left the group with his brothers. Mimi then walked a bit forward.
"Well, I guess I'll be going now." Mimi said sounding sad. "It really was nice to see you all again. It's a shame that we have to part again. Maybe we will meet again soon. Maybe in another 11 days... or months... maybe even years. Who knows? Maybe this will be the last time we see each other."
The group could tell Mimi was being a bit overdramatic. Actually, way too overdramatic. Judy and Falisha could tell that Mimi didn't want to really say goodbye yet. And frankly, neither did they.
"Mimi, can we asked you something?" Judy asked.
"Yes?" Mimi said as she looked eager.
"Falisha and I have been talking and..." Judy said.
"... Would you like to be a part of our little group?" Falisha asked.
"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!" Mimi went overly excited. "Really?!"
"Yeah. We think you will fit into our group just fine." Judy said.
"Also, we need more girls." Falisha said seriously. "Seriously, we need another girl with us so badly."
"We really do." Judy said agreeing and nodding. Judy then turned to the boys. "It's okay with you guys, right?"
"Of course." Nick said with a welcoming smile.
"Fine with me." Finnick said okay with Mimi joining.
"The more the merrier." Benji said smiling as well.
"Our group was becoming a bit of a Dude Ranch." Ronnie admitted.
"That really was kinda the case, eh?" Audran said.
"We could use a new person." Darson said.
"Welcome... to our... group,... Mimi." Flash said slowly, but happily.
"So, how about we exchange numbers?" Judy asked while getting out her cellphone.
"S... sure!" Mimi said happily.
Everyone then gave Mimi their numbers and Mimi gave them hers. Judy also gave Mimi Mervin's number since he already left. Nick said he would text him later and tell him about Mimi joining then group. Once they finished exchanging numbers they put their phones away.
"And with that, we should all get going." Nick said.
"Yeah. Mervin's bros had a good idea going out for some grub." Ronnie said as his stomach growled. "I could go for a burga."
"With some fries." Benji said wanting a burga too.
"Mervin and his brothers had a good idea going out for tacos, but I'm feeling more in a mood for nachos." Darson said.
"I'm thinking pizza." Finnick said as the boys started walking.
Finnick, Benji, Audran, Ronnie carrying Flash, and Darson all left wanting to get some food. Falisha then waved goodbye to Judy and Mimi.
"I'm heading home. Are you and Gwen coming over for dinner again?" Nick asked.
"Of course. But I should get her first." Judy stated.
"Then I will see you then, my dear Carrots." Nick said before kissing Judy on her forehead. Judy responded by blushing.
Nick then made his way home. Judy said goodbye to Mimi and went on her way too. Even with her being by herself now, she couldn't help but feel happy.
"I have posse now. Mom's not gonna believe this." Mimi thought with a wide grin.
So, Mimi is now a part of the group. To be honest, I really wanted to add a new chapter to the group for a while now. Especially when I realized how many boys are part of the group. Plus skunks, like hyenas, are pretty rare to see in Zootopia. Anyway, so glad I finished a new chapter. On with starting the next chapter. Til then, peace out.