Chapter 72: Ko's Health Week
Rad woke up the next morning to see and feel that Nebula was not on top of him like usual. He got out of bed, did his work out, and got dressed. He then went downstairs where he saw her with his parents on the couch. He walked closer and he saw that they were looking at old family pictures. "Ah! Good morning son!" his parents greeted. "Morning honey" Nebula cooed. "Morning" he responded. His parents then went into the kitchen to prepare breakfast and Rad sat next to Nebula on the couch. He then noticed her gazing at a picture of his parents lounging on the deck of a cruise ship holding hands. "I remember that one! That's the vacation where I got all orange" Rad said with a laugh as he told her all about that vacation. "Do you think this'll ever be us?" she asked dreamily and Rad stopped laughing. Before he could say anything, his parents called them for breakfast and after they were done, the went to leave for work. "Radicles, Nebula, wait!" his dad called as he and Theodosia ran to them. "Don't forget these" he said as he and his wife handed them each a ray gun. "Ugh Dad" Rad whined and Nebula laughed. "You're so cute when you're embarrassed" she said as she laughed. The two then got into Rad's van and he drove off. "Your parents are so sweet" she said as she admired her ray gun that his mother gave her. "They're... a lot" he said. He then noticed her get quiet and he glanced over to see her staring intensely at the ray gun in her hands.
"Ko's health week. Um… What's this all about?" Rad asked after he read off of the hand drawn picture that was hanging up. Enid then pushed him away and held her nose. "I dunno but can you please not talk to me? You smell like trash garbage" Enid requested and Rad scoffed. "I thought that Health Week was always Mr. Gar's thing" Nebula said. Mr. Gar then came out of nowhere and he was hanging upside down. "It was, up until last year" he said and he went silent for a moment as he remembered what had happened. He then snapped out of his trance and shook his head. "Anyways, it's not my problem anymore. You wanna talk health, you gotta talk to Ko. See ya" he said and he then left. "Where is that kid anyway? I wonder what he's got planned for today" Rad asked and Enid gagged.
Ko then came flying in out of nowhere. "Hi all! Happy Monday and welcome to Ko's Health Week. Where I give you healthy tips for a fun and fit life!" he greeted happily. "Dude! Did you learn that from Mr. Gar?" Nebula asked in shock that he came flying into the room. "So, what do you have planned for us for today?" Enid asked. "I'm glad you asked. Today's lesson is hygiene!" he announced. "Sounds cool Ko" Rad said and Ko paled when he smelled Rad's breath. "Rad, how often do you brush those chompers?" Ko asked. "Brush? About every month or so. Weather I need to or not" Rad responded. "I think I'm gonna be sick" Nebula gagged. "Besides, Nebula doesn't seem to mind. Right babe?" he asked as he leaned in close to her. She smiled meekly and threw a breath mint into his mouth. "Sorry baby, I love you and everything but I refuse to kiss you when your breath smells. "Come on, there's nothing wrong with my breath" Rad said. "Oh no no no no no" Ko said. He then punched a hole in Rad's teeth and jumped into it. "Sweet corn Ko!" Mr. Gar called in disbelief as Ko disappeared into Rad's mouth. "But that's not all there is to clean!" Ko said as he exited out of Rad's mouth. Nebula then put a hand on Rad's cheek and gave him a quick kiss. "Much better" she said. "Wash the rest of your body with soap and water everyday and get in all those nooks and crannies" he said as he used a mop to apply soap to Mr. Gar's body. Enid then began to sniff herself. "Sweaty? Use deodorant!" Ko said as he applied deodorant to Enid's armpits. "And be sure to also brush out any knots and tangles in your hair" Ko said as he brushed out all the knots from Nebula's short hair. "But my hair is short and I don't really need to take care of it" she responded. "That's not true. Just because your hair is short that doesn't mean that you have to stop caring for it. You need to make sure that you brush it until it's silky smooth" Ko responded as he finished brushing her hair. When he was done, Nebula's hair sparkled. "Smell that fellas? That's health!" Ko said as he flew off. "Thanks Ko" they all said in unison.
The next day, Ko announced that the lesson would be self esteem. "To start, I want you to look into this mirror and tell yourself what you think of well, yourself" Ko instructed. Rad was first and he told himself how handsome and amazing he was. Enid went next and she told herself how cool she was. It was not Nebula's turn and she stared at her reflection in the full length mirror. "Go ahead, tell yourself what you think" Ko said. "Oh, okay" she said and she could still only stare at her reflection. "When I look at you, all I see is…" she started and Ko looked at her expectantly.
"I-I see a freak and I know that it's true. I mean look at us! We are a freak! We were made in a lab and no one thinks that we're normal and not even the person who created us wants us! If she did, then why doesn't she ever visit or make time for you? You clearly aren't good enough for her! Why else would she have a baby with Laserblast? I'll tell you why, because all she sees you as is a lab experiment!" she said through heavy tears. She then sunk to the ground Rad immediately knelt on the ground next to her and wrapped his arms around her. "Nebula! You shouldn't say such things about yourself. Would you ever say such things to Rad or any of us?" Ko asked as Rad took her face in his hands as he comforted her. "Of course not! Why would I say that to him when he's so perfect! And I would never say that to you guys because you weren't made in a lab. I on the other hand was!" she responded as Rad comforted her. "What would Miss Bianca think?" Ko asked and Nebula then went into the nearest corner and sulked. "Oh man, I really am a disappointment to her" she said sadly. Rad and Ko looked at each other and Rad then scooped up Nebula in his arms and carried her to the break room. He then set her down on the couch as Ko went off to help other people.
The next day's lesson was nutrition and Nebula and Rad both did not go into work. When Enid called Rad to ask why they both called off, he told her that he was trying to cheer Nebula up. He then got off the phone and turned back to Nebula who was wrapped up in a blanket on the couch. "I really am a burden, aren't I? I'm sorry that you had to call off of work for me" she said sadly. "You aren't a burden. Besides, it's no biggie" he said softly as he sat on the couch next to her. "Look, I'm always happy to take a day off to spend it with you" he comforted as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "How about we watch a movie?" he suggested and she nodded as she snuggled into him.
The next day's lesson was mental health and Rad went to work while Nebula stayed back at his home. She was laying on the couch on her phone and she got a text from Carla. She tapped in it to see a video of Crinkly Wrinkly dancing and constantly saying "happy" and for the first time in a few days, she cracked a small smile and let out a laugh as she replied to her friend and forwarded the video to all of her friends. "Another important thing to do is limit your time on any electronic devices like phones, tablets, and computers to at least two hours a day" she heard Ko say. Nebula looked up and she saw Ko's hand reach for her. "I wouldn't do that if I were you Ko. You know how she feels about her phone" she heard Rad warn. She then quickly froze Ko's hand as she held her phone close to her.
The following day was the final lesson. "So, what's today's lesson?" Nebula asked as Rad parked his van in his usual parking spot at the bodega. "Fitness!" he responded happily as they got out. "You seem a bit better today" he pointed out as they entered the store. Ko then announced that he planned a hiking trip and as if by magic, their clothes were changed into a yellow with black trim suit and blue scarves that were tied around their necks. They also had plum colored boots with magenta laces. "I spent all night researching the best trails with the best views! And I packed enough to be prepared for anything! From hunger, to poison ivy, to" Ko was then cut off by the alarm.
A Boxmore box then dropped out of the sky. It then opened to reveal Darrell, Shannon, and Raymond. "Sup Lamers? Hope y'all stretched cause we're your next workout!" Darrell taunted. "You guys are really gonna get shredded!" Shannon said as she summoned her buzzsaws. "No pain, no game" Raymond said as he held up a peace sign. "Hey! I'm sorry, but does this sign say 'Darrell's Health Week'?" Ko asked angrily as he held up his hand make picture. "Oooooh, you're in trouble" Nebula taunted. Before he could respond, Ko shoved the picture into his face. "Does it? Does it say 'Darrell's Health Week' anywhere on this?! No it doesn't! That's because it's 'Ko's Health Week' and Ko says we're going hiking!" he said getting angrier. "Remind me to never make him angry" Nebula said as she leaned into Rad. The seven of them then followed Ko to a nearby trail. To Nebula's surprise, everyone got along and she and Darrell talked about the scenery as they took pictures. "What! Are we actually bonding?" before they took another picture of the scenery. She sighed dreamily as she took a picture of Rad and Ko looking at a frog. She then began to laugh with Shannon as Darrell fell into the stream and when she saw how Raymond was trying to avoid the water, she smirked and splashed him.
They then began to climb up rocks and Raymond helped Ko onto the rock. Nebula saw Darrell struggling so she held out a hand and helped him up. "You okay?" she asked and the robot nodded. Before he could say anything, Rad got Nebula's attention and she fawned over him as he stood in the rays of the sun. Ko then lead them to a ledge that overlooked a waterfall. "Wow Ko, this is amazing! I can't believe you scouted out such a beautiful trail!" Enid praised. "Yeah! I wasn't sure about this hiking at first, but I feel oh so refreshed and energized!" Shannon said as she began to strike a pose. "That's great Shannon! Did you know that regular exercise doesn't just make you feel good, it makes you look good too" Ko said sleepily. "No wonder why you always looks good Rad" Nebula said with a wink and Rad rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "You're right! My skin is absolutely glowing" Raymond gasped as he looked into a silver mirror with a rose on the back. "Raymond, you don't have skin" Nebula pointed out. "That's not all! Exercise can help reduce the risk of disease" Ko said as Enid used a thermometer to take her temperature. "Strengthen your muscles and bones" Ko continued as Rad flexed his body. When he flexed his arms, his shirt tore off and Nebula sighed happily as she fainted. "Promotes better brain health and memory, and you know what else? It even helps you get better" Ko said as he started to fall asleep.
He then fell backwards and everyone started to freak out. Rad and Nebula quickly used their levitation powers to rescue Ko and bring him back up. Everyone let out a sigh of relief as Nebula placed Ko on the ground. "Thanks guys, I haven't really been sleeping much. I've been staying up late every night researching healthy habits for my lessons this week. I guess I'm a little" Ko explained and before he could finish, he fell asleep. "Oh Ko" Nebula said softly. "Now that is a no-no. Let's rap. Poor little thing, in all your efforts to look out for everyone else, you forgot to look out for number one, you" Darrell said as he poked Ko's nose and Ko pointed to himself once he woke up. "That's right Ko. A growing boy like you should be getting at least eight hours of sleep every night and be tucked in before ten" Darrell said and Ko just stared at him with an open mouth. "You see now Ko?" Darrell asked. "Everyone needs their beauty sleep" Shannon said. "Even superior beings like us require powering down to recharge every night" Raymond explained. "How else do you think we look this hot?" Shannon asked and Nebula scooped a sleepy Ko into her arms. "Hey, why don't y'all get some rest yourselves? We'll take it from here" Darrell suggested as he put a hand on Nebula's shoulders. "Fine. But if any harm comes to him, I'll rip out all of your circuits and douse all of your parts in water. Got it?" she asked and Darrell scaredly nodded. She then hesitantly handed Ko to him and the three robots took off. "Good night!" Rad, Nebula, and Enid called to the robots as they flew away.
The next morning, Rad and Nebula were working out outside of Rad's home when they saw a puff of smoke over the Boxmore building in the shape of a heart. "Raddie come here!" Nebula called and he walked over to her. She then levitated her phone and she put her hands on Rad's chest. She them motioned to the heart shaped smoke and Rad put his arms around her waist and Nebula took the picture of them with the heart shaped smoke in the air behind them as they kissed.