Spongebob called up his mom to finally catch her up on some life updates and plans.
"...so ya basically I have a court date next week and you both could come if you both wanted..."
silence hung in the air for a few seconds before his mom sighed.
"Ok pumpkin. We'll come and visit for a night or two just send me the details alright?"
"Ok mom love you"
"Love you too. Buh-bye"
click.
Spongebob slid the phone back into his pocket and refocused on the grill in front of him. It was a slow day so he was only tending to a few patties at a time. It took a lot of courage to admit to his parents at least part of what's been going on in his life. They may be disappointed in him but at least they have a better understanding of his situation.
Spongebob flipped the batch of patties.
What would they do if they found out about the real him though? This thought scared him. Would they still love him? Talk to him? Support him? Would they still be proud to call him their own son? He couldn't let the bad possibilities happen.
The patties sizzled for a while longer while it slowly turned from fleshy pink to crimson red. Spongebob scraped them up and slid them on to freshly sliced buns. He dressed them up in their usual attire of veggies, cheeses, and sauces and delicately presented the plates on the window sill.
ding ding!
A familiar red claw grabbed the dishes and handed them to their respective customers. Mr. Krabs still hasn't found a replacement cashier. Yet. So he himself is back manning the front in the meantime.
The frycook wiped a sweat from his cheeks.
"I really need to get out of this game somehow"
He went out back for a smoke. It was a bright sunny day outside and it was just about noon. A bit cooler than usual too. A burst of wind gust blew against the building which caused Spongebob to shiver and his light to go out.
"Goddamit"
He lit up his dart again just as a boatmobile slid up and hit its breaks suddenly. The piercing sound unnerved Spongebob's ears.
"Argh!"
It was Bubble Bass. His fat ass plopped out of the car and slammed shut the door behind him. He was carrying this leather black bag with him. That's strange, Spongebob thought. That looks oddly familiar.
"Spongboob"
The sponge took a final drag of the cigarette before dropping it and crushing it with his foot.
"Why do you have to call me that?"
Bubble Bass snickered.
"It's just a nickname my porous friend. Geez what's got you in a mood today? Need the HR complaint hotline?" he chuckled again.
Spongebob shrugged and met his eyes on the bag again.
"What's in there?"
Bubble Bass looked behind before opening up the zipper and revealing the baggies upon baggies of goodies.
"It's this weeks supply. Got my money you owe me? I warned ya about dealing outta your place Spongeboob. Crackheads are like fuckin' roaches...once they they find the goods it's hard to keep them out."
Spongebob pulled out a stack of bills rubber banded out of his back pocket. He didn't make enough by selling his drugs and had to also take money from his paycheck to pay Bubble Bass back. It's just another loss he has to swallow.
"Here...I'm definitely gonna need to be fronted on this new shit"
Bubble bass loss his grimace but nodded sympathetically.
"Alright that's fine. But this is the LAST time Spongebob...you really need to start paying up front next time ok?"
Spongebob grabbed the handful of baggies and folded them up as tightly as he could. He really had no idea how he was going to be able to make both profit, enough for next weeks shipment, this weeks shipment, and possible future court fees. I guess he'll just have to prioritize something's before others. Maybe his parents could lend him some money.
"Ok"
Bubble Bass closed this bag and clapped it with his other hand.
"Great! I'll see ya around..." he swiveled away for a second before quickly doing a complete 360 back to face Spongebob.
"I actually have an opportunity for you if you seriously need some extra dough"
Spongebob peeked inside the restaurant to check for orders and poked his head back out when he saw nothing.
"Ya? I'm listening"
"We gotta hit up a guy whose been behind on his payments. Another dealer like you. We've been liberal with him but he needs to be taught a lesson."
Bubble Bass leaned closer.
"We think he also might be talking to 12"
Spongebob nodded slightly but was still confused as to what he meant by 'hit up'.
"What exactly would we do to him?"
Bubble Bass crossed his arms.
"Just gotta make sure he remembers who he's fucking with is all...prepare to get a little dirty...you in or not?"
Spongebob's gut obviously told him 'fuck no' but his brain was shouting something else. He knew he was trying to get out of the game but these financial hits really are making him doubt himself. His brain was trying to rationalize the situation. It's only one time right? Plus he'll be making some extra cash that he needs desperately.
"How much?"
"150"
Spongebob nodded and forced out an "ok"
Bubble Bass smiled and made his way to his car.
"I'll text you the address to meet me at and when. Don't be late."
With that, the overweight fish hopped in his car and sputtered off and onto the highway outside joining the rest of the midday commuters. Spongebob took in a deep breath as soon as he heard his crustacean boss yelling.
"SPONGEBOB! GET THE LEAD OUT YER ASS AND FILL THESE ORDERS!"
"Yessss sir" Spongebob whispered sarcastically and walked back into the devil's kitchen.
The frantic sponge maneuvered through the rest of the work day with ease and was now walking out of the Krusty Krab and to his abode. The sun was setting leaving a yellow-orange hue in the sky dotted with purplish flowers. He was too busy in his mind to appreciate the beauty around him however. The lawyer hasn't been called up yet and he decided he should just get it over with.
ring ring. ring ring. ring ri-
A female voice answered.
"Hello? This is Martha Fiskbaum Public Defender Attorney of Barnacle County. Of whom am I speaking with?"
"Uh-h Spongebob. Spongebob Squarepants?"
"Ohhh Mr. Squarepants! It's finally nice to be able to speak with you..." she was silent for a few seconds.
"Ah wow we have a lot to discuss. I see court is already next week. Why haven't you called sooner? We might be running against the clock here."
Spongebob stammered for a minute. He wasn't used to this direct confrontation.
"Uh well you see...I didn't get it in the mail until a few days ago."
"Hmmm well what I DO see..." He heard mouse clicking in the background.
"No ya it says it was delivered over a month ago. Do you check your mail often, Mr. Squarepants?"
Spongebob thought for a moment as he approached his house. Come to think of it. He forgets he even has a mailbox.
"I suppose not no" He shyly admitted.
"Not to worry Mr. Squarepants. This seems like a cut and dry case anyways. I'm reading your e-file and shows you were found with about a gram of cocaine on your person and were held in jail for a few hours...then released on bail"
"That's right."
"Mhm. Ok well I think as long as you plead guilty you should be able to get off on a fine and community service. Especially considering you're a first time offender. However, I do want to warn that there is still a possibility of jail time. Even so, it wouldn't be longer than ninety days."
Spongebob's heart dropped upon hearing this. Ninety days? That's still an awful long time to be locked up away from the world. What would he do about his job? His bills?
"O-ok...is there anything I should do in the meantime ma'am?"
"Uhhh" he heard more background clicking.
"Honestly. Just show up on time and dress nice. Like I said, it'd be in your best interest to plead guilty as the evidence against you is pretty obvious. But regardless we'll debrief together before the trail day of."
Spongebob stepped inside his house and shut the door behind him.
"Ok sounds good."
"Alright Mr. Squarepants I'll see you next week. Remember to come a little early!"
"Will do. Buh-bye"
click.
Spongebob placed the phone back in his pocket and he stood in the living room for a minute, zoning out, before being pulled back from reality by the stickiness of the clothes on his skin. Quickly, he ripped off his putrid garments and threw them on to the floor. Spongebob walked around bare-ass naked and went to the kitchen to look for a snack. His cabinets were quite empty but he managed to find a box of half-eaten cereal and went to snack on that while walking up the stairs. The yellow sponge with the bubble butt made it to his bathroom and turned on the shower to let it heat up. The cereal box was placed on the sink counter and he made his way to the now repaired window. The sunset was getting dimmer now but it was still donning a bloody red color. How gorgeous, he thought. His eyes darted to the moving truck parked in front of the Easter Island head. It looked like the front doors were wide open, This caused Spongebob's heart to pump harder and his knees to crouch.
"Oh shit, Squidward might have seen me"
Sure enough, The scrawny blue cephalopod walked out of his front door with a few boxes and went around back to placed into the back. Luckily it looks like Squidward wasn't even acknowledging the pineapple next door as once he walked out from the back of the truck, he kept his eyes peeled to his own front door. Suddenly, Spongebob heard voices talking.
"Who the hell is he with? Did he hire moving men?"
A familiar furry mammal stumbled out of the house carrying an oversized box over her head. Her arms were shaking but she was moving at a fleeting pace.
"Holy fuck..."
The bedroom was becoming swampy from the hot water vapors of his shower. The sound of pressured water against the plastic tub muffled anything he could hear from the outside. Spongebob looked down at his naked image and went on to take a quick rinse in his shower. he didn't want to admit it but he was rushing because he thought he really needed to catch Sandy before she goes. He lathered, scrubbed and rinsed before shutting the shower head off. Spongebob left his towel out in the bedroom so he had to hop out and make a beeline for the warmth of his cotton linens. As he dried off he peeked out the window and saw the doors on the truck were shut.
"Shit shit shit"
Spongebob threw on some clothes and rushed down stairs and to the front door. He started pulling open the door-handle before freezing in a wave of fear.
"What the fuck are you doing, Spongebob? What if she doesn't wanna see you? What if she's with Squidward? You can't just barge in on them like that..."
The palms of his hands were starting to sweat which made his wipe them against his shorts. He smacked his head a few times out of frustration. The sponge understood the gravity of the situation but was too riddled with the terror of what could go wrong. His mind immediately went to to the bottle of rum he had. Maybe that'll calm him down. One or two shots can't hurt. So he did just that.
As he breathed out the vapors of the brown ether, he made his way outside and took a sharp inhale through his nose. Even the sight of the house next door caused his body to shake. As he approached he heard the opening and slamming of the front door and he stood still like a statue. He was standing in the middle between the two houses so whoever came out has gotta be able to see him out in the open. Sandy walked down the front step out into the driveway with a box in hand, she also had some keys on her fingers which Spongebob assumed it was for the truck. Spongebob wanted to say something but before he could Sandy turned her head to face him and gasped.
"Oh shi- Not today satan!"
She hurried to the back of the truck where a thud followed and almost jogged back to the front of the house.
"Sandy! Wait!" Spongebob shouted instinctively
Sandy shook her head and kept on moving. But Spongebob was faster. As Sandy's right foot landed on the front door step Spongebob lunged for her arm and forced her to turn around to face him.
"Wait!"
Spongebob was panting heavily from the exertion but was able to regain himself while still gripping her arm.
She started lashing side to side.
"Get the fuck off of me!"
She punched his knuckles which made him lose grip and she backed up to the door with her fists up.
"Sandy please! We need to talk about this...why haven't you answered my texts? Where were you?"
Sandy shook her head and snickered to the sky.
"Why the hell would I talk to a PSYCHOPATH like you? You don't think I know what's going on?"
"Sandy..." Spongebob walked up closer.
"Please put your fists down, Sandy..."
"Not a chance BITCH!"
Spongebob started shaking again and looked down to his feet, talking sheepishly.
"Look...I don't know what Squidward has told you but I need you to hear me out..."
The defensive squirrel lowered her hands a bit as one of her her fists transformed into a pointy finger into the chest of the sponge.
"I don't NEED to hear from you anymore! I was THERE! I saw what you've done to him in real time..."
Spongebob jolted his head up.
"What do you mean you were there?!"
"The hospital, Spongebob. I was at the hospital WITH H-HIM!" her voice cracked and sounded more distraught.
The confused sponge took a step back and peered at her like he is seeing her for the first time.
"What?! Why were you in the hospital?!"
Sandy huffed while obviously holding back tears.
"I was USING too Spongebob! And- Oh! Why would care anyway...after what happened with Squiddy I bet you would be giddy seeing me as a slave to your game..."
"What?!"
"You heard me! Being locked up with him is when I found out who you really were and Spongebob I-" her eyes started welling up and he went to wipe them with her arm fur. She was trying to finish the sentence but nothing would come out of her gaping mouth.
"I-I really didn't wanna believe him, Sponge, I really didn't. But I-I couldn't deny it, my gut knew when he told me the situation that he was right. I knew you were up to something no good! I fucking knew it in my soul! Speaking with Patrick and Mr. Krabs just confirmed it all..."
Spongebob stood in silence for a second while Sandy wiped her running nose.
"But I had no idea you were capable of this...of this evil! He forgave you for assaulting him Spongebob! He tried helping you get sober! Why would you hurt him like this?! Why would you hurt ME?!"
Spongebob nodded his head subtly and gazed at his feet again.
"Sandy...I am so fucking sorry that you got caught up in this..."
Sandy laughed violently and spat at the ground.
"You are NOT SORRY Spongebob! You're just sorry your ass got CAUGHT! If Squidward never figured it out and landed in the ER would you have continued on with your plan?"
Spongebob didn't look up but he shrugged his shoulders.
"ANSWER ME!"
He could hear the hurt in her voice.
"I don't know...I guess I would have ya..." he looked up.
"I needed the money, Sandy. I needed to pay you back. You know how much it pained me to see you on that pole shaking your ass for people like that...I also wanted to build a future for us..."
Sandy laughed again and crossed her arms. This made Spongebob feel small.
"What 'future for us' do you mean, Spongebob? You work as a fry cook in some greasy burger trap and you got a pending criminal charge on ya! You're an alcoholic, crackhead, and probably abuser of other shit I don't know about! Where the hell were we gonna go Spongebob?"
She stepped closer.
"You're a 33 year old college burnout who settled into a career he started at 18. Despite growing up in the affluent suburbs, you totally closed off any opportunity HANDED to you in the sake of comfort and familiarity. You're a thief, an abuser, a liar, and a betrayer of those around you who once loved and cared about you. You had everything Spongebob, EVERYTHING! I don't why or what caused you to become so complacent and miserable all these years but with this 'path' you're going you're either gonna up dead or in jail and THAT is not the future that I WANT for ME!"
Spongebob felt his face turn warm and tried replying but couldn't. His body felt crippled by the jaws of hell Sandy unleashed on him. Where does he even go from here?
Sandy heard footsteps approaching to her right and a frightened yet concerned starfish approached.
Sandy sighed.
"Patrick now's not really the-"
"Why is everyone yelling?"
Spongebob turned to face Patrick at the sound of his voice. The moon was showing up and was pulling the dark curtain behind it. Spongebob's eyes had to adjust in the dark to see his buddy.
"Pat..."
Patrick averted his gaze away from the sponge and met his eyes with Sandy's.
"I thought maybe we were gonna be friends again..."
Sandy sighed and looked sympathetically to the saddened sea star and then her face contorted as she glared at the cowering sponge.
"Sorry Pat. I don't think I'll ever speak to this motherfucker again. He could jump off a bridge and into the pits of hell for all I care."
With that she turned and went inside Squidward's home. But paused before fully immersing herself inside.
"Spongebob"
"Ya" The sponge replied instantaneously.
"If you ever come near me again..." she turned towards him.
"I swear to god I will kill you with my bare hands" her bloodshot eyes emphasized how serious she was. With that she went inside with a slam of the door and in which cause both Spongebob and Patrick to flinch.
Patrick didn't budge but wouldn't lock eyes with Spongebob.
"Patrick...I'm really sorry."
Patrick just shook his head.
"Did you really do all that, Sponge?"
Spongebob didn't say anything for a while which finally made Patrick meet his eyes. Spongebob wiped his eyes and shifted uncomfortably. This was more than enough of an answer. Patrick started tearing up and backed up to his rock, eventually finding the lever and heading inside.
Spongebob let the night breeze over take him as he sat in his own pool of despair. How he wished this was a dream. Please please relive me form this pain, he thought.
It don't mater if he wakes up in his bed three months ago or six feet under tomorrow.
