Disclaimer: I wish I owned Willy…But I don't. I don't own anything else in this story, either.
A/n: I know, I know, this update is way overdue! Sorry I took so long. I promise to try my best not to take so long with the next one! I love reviews…but I only got two for the last chapter:-( Thank you to the two people who did take the time to review. I really appreciate it! That said…I hope you enjoy this chapter! As usual, please review! You'll get a hug from Willy if you do!
Chapter 4: Suppertime Panic
Neither Ronnie nor Willy knew quite what to say after their brief "moment" in the elevator. Finally, Ronnie broke the silence. "I've never seen so many buttons in an elevator before!" she blurted out.
As soon as the words were out of her mouth, Ronnie felt silly. What a stupid thing to say! Willy, however, didn't seem to think so. "Each one takes you to a different room in the factory! Isn't that neat?" he exclaimed.
Ronnie couldn't help but chuckle at some of the names on the buttons: Peach Mumble, Hats you don't Wear, Whizdoodles…Then, suddenly, she noticed a button that made her blush. "Icky French Kisses? What exactly is that room for?" she asked.
Willy turned beet red. Of all the buttons in the elevator, why, oh why, did Ronnie have to notice that one? "Um…I'd rather not talk about that one," he said. "All of these rooms look interesting," Ronnie commented. Willy grinned. "Go ahead, pick one!" he said.
Before Willy or Ronnie could say or do anything more, they both heard a beeping noise. Willy made a face. "Why did I ever let Charlie talk me into carrying a pager?" he groaned as he reached into one of his coat pockets and pulled out a pager.
With an exasperated sigh, Willy pressed the "talk" button on the pager. "Yeah?" he said. "Willy, it's time for supper. Oh, and Mom said that Ronnie is more than welcome to join us if she'd like to," said a very familiar voice. "Is it that late already, Charlie?" Willy asked. "Yes, Willy," said Charlie. "'Kay," said Willy as he turned off the pager.
It didn't take Willy and Ronnie (who happily accepted the invitation) long to reach the Buckets' house in the Chocolate Room. Charlie was there to greet them.
"Come on, the others are waiting," he said as he led them into the house.
"There you are, Willy! I was worried you were going to skip supper again!" Mrs. Bucket said to the Chocolatier (needless to say, it wasn't an uncommon occurrence for Willy to decide to skip meals). Then, Mrs. Bucket turned to Ronnie. "You must be Ronnie! I'm very pleased to meet you!" she said as she held out her hand. Ronnie shook it. "I'm pleased to meet you, too, and thanks for inviting me to supper!" she said. "No problem!" said Mrs. Bucket.
Once Ronnie had been introduced to the rest of the Buckets, everyone sat down to eat. This turned out to be a bit of a problem, since the table was so small and barely had enough room for eight people, let alone nine. Finally, after a bit of shuffling, they managed.
"So, what do you think of the factory?" Mrs. Bucket asked Ronnie. "It's amazing!" Ronnie exclaimed. "I'm glad Willy invited you to the factory! If you ask me, he's been alone for far too long! It's about time he…" Grandpa George began. Mrs. Bucket nearly choked on her bite of chicken. "Dad!" she exclaimed. Willy, however, hadn't been paying attention.
For some reason that he couldn't quite figure out, the Chocolatier was feeling very weird. Not bad, exactly, just…weird. Whenever Ronnie looked at him, it sent a tingling sensation down his spine. He had an odd feeling in his stomach, sort of like nervous "butterflies". Unlike nervous "butterflies", however, it actually felt good!
To complicate matters even further, since everyone was so crowded around the small table and Ronnie was sitting next to Willy, she obviously couldn't help but bump up against him (in fact, if she had been sitting any closer to him, she would have been in his lap!). This caused strange warmth to spread throughout Willy's body. In addition, his trousers were getting very uncomfortable. "What in the name of chocolate is going on?" he wondered.
Mrs. Bucket couldn't help but notice the strange look on Willy's face. "Willy is everything all right?" she asked. "What? Oh, yeah! Everything's fine!" said Willy, sounding not at all convinced. Mrs. Bucket shrugged. Obviously, Willy didn't want to tell her what was bothering him. She decided it would be best to change the subject. "So, Ronnie, where do you work?" she asked.
Ronnie didn't answer. Instead, she stared at her plate. Suddenly, Mrs. Bucket felt guilty. After all, for all she knew, Ronnie had lost her job, the way Mr. Bucket had. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have assumed…Did you lose your job?" she asked kindly. "No. I…" Ronnie stopped in mid-sentence and stared at her plate again.
Mrs. Bucket wasn't sure what to say. A tear trickled down Ronnie's face. "Ronnie, what's the matter?" Mrs. Bucket asked. "I…I've got to go!" said Ronnie. Then, to everyone's surprise, she got up and ran out of the house.
A/n: Sorry about the cliffhanger! I plan to get the next chapter out in a couple of days, though, so you won't have to wait too long! As usual, please review!
Chapter 5 preview: Willy tries to figure out what his strange feelings mean, and we find out more about just why Ronnie ran away.