Welcome to Sunnyside.
Authors note: Okay, so now you guys will also get to hear from Woody's POV as well. I was king of nervous writing for him...so PLEASE read and review. :) Tell me what you think... This is the present time zone by the way... It will switch occasionally, so I hope it's not too confusing.
~~Woody's POV.~~
"Junk! He called us Junk!"
Mrs. Potato head yells angrily inside Andy's mother's van. One idea leads to another and pretty soon I had overheard everyone of my close friends talking about how grand of a solution it would be to simply donate themselves to a local daycare center.
"Guys, I really think this may be the answer to all our problems!" Jessie exclaims, her face lights up immediately at the thought of her new "brilliant" idea. Pfft...if only they knew.
"Guys...guys...you can't be serious." I try to laugh it off, but it seems I am the only one who is joking. My face falls instantly with horrible realization. They're serious!
"Look guys, Daycare..is a sad lonely place for washed up toys who have no owners." I realize a few seconds too late that the words may have sounded a bit more harsh than I had meant... A Barbie doll who is actually being donated to a Daycare by Molly, Andy's little sister, had heard the words and burst into a fit of sobs.
Still, I try to convince them that the trash bag incident is simply a misunderstanding, but before long the car is already pulling out of the driveway.
"Great...now it will take forever to get back." I grumble under my breath, annoyed the others hadn't just listened to me in the first place. I had tried to tell the toys that Andy's mother was just putting them in the attic, but no, no, no... They just had to believe she was throwing us out instead. They never believe me... you would think that by now they would have learned to trust me. Guess not...
Soon enough, we arrive at the daycare center and a kind woman sets our box down on a table in one of the rooms in which I assume the kids are staying in.
"Come on Buzz, we are getting out of here as soon as..." I am pulling his strong arm as hard as I possible can when I feel Mr. Potato head's foot on my head.
"Hey, watch it ya moron!" He snaps angrily. Oooh, that is it!
"What, Me? It was you who stepped on my head!" I protest but then everyone begins to break out in a fight and before I know it we are all plummeting to the ground in a sea of toys.
"Careful...these toys may be jealous of new arrivals." I glare at Buzz, knowing full well his comment was a crack at my own jealously so many years back. However, the reaction from the daycare toys is one that is not expected.
"New toys!" A Jack in the Box yells out, causing a chain reaction of wild cheers from the huge crowd of excited toys that line the floors of the brightly colored daycare room. I look up in just enough time to see a large yellow dump truck speed up to reveal a giant pink teddy bear sitting on top holding a mallet that I guess serves as a cane. Beside the bear sits a young, odd looking Barbie doll wearing all black. Despite her dark choice of make up, she seems to be smiling brightly in greeting.
The bear taps the truck a couple times with his makeshift cane, a signal to allow himself and the doll get off. It does as instructed and the doll leaps off, then holds the bears paw as he too jumps to the floor.
"Well, hello there... I thought I heard new voices! Welcome to Sunnyside, folks. I'm Lots'O Hugging Bear, but please...call me Lotso." He greets us with a warm smile. Still, there's something about this place that just doesn't feel right...
~~~Roxy's POV.~~~
"Yeah, welcome to Sunnyside. The name's Roxy." I kindly explain, knowing the place is far from sunny. I use the name that Lotso preferred to call me simply because it has become painful for him to even think of my real name..I guess due to past events. I don't mind... I had wanted an original name from the beginning anyways.
I extend my hand to the cow boy to be polite while Lotso envelops Buzz in a tight bear hug, practically suffocating him. Meanwhile, The cow boy hesitantly shakes my hand, looking incredibly annoyed at the prospect of even spending another minute here.
"So what do we need to know about you?" He asks, eying me skeptically. I return the question with a nonchalant shrug.
"Stick around long enough, and you'll find out." I give him a wink filled with mystery. He looks confused, which is exactly what I want.
"Wait, wait...we're not-"
"And your name is...?" I cut him off. It took him a moment or two to respond.
"It's Woody...Sheriff, Woody." He finally says through gritted teeth. "But look-"
"Enjoy the tour... Woody." Once again, I cut him off and walk passed.
"Aw, look at y'all.. you've been through a lot today, haven't ya?" I can hear Lotso ask from beside me.
"Yeah...it shows. You guy's look terrible." And your about to look even worse... I feel myself wanting to say, but instead I settle on letting out a small laugh, noticing the death glare the words immediately emit from Woody. I find it kind of amusing. Lotso quickly raises a warning eyebrow, but luckily he doesn't get the chance to say anything.
"That's because it has been terrible!" Mrs. Potato head gasps out dramatically. Talk about your accessories... The kids in the Caterpillar room are going to have a filed day with her.
"Well, your safe now..." Lotso reassures, making his voice sound as comforting as possible. He places a reassuring paw around my shoulder, as if to support his claim and I simply smile in response.
"We're all cast offs here.. We've been dumped, donated, yard sales, and just plain thrown out..." I listen, silently following as Lotso rambles on. The words themselves almost give me chills as I once again remember the night we became...'cast offs.'
"Told you...it's just a nice way of saying that this place is really only a sad, lonely place for toys that no one really wants anymore." I hear Woody bitterly mutter to a Buzz Lightyear action figure, only receiving a hard slap on the arm from a hyper cowgirl who had came to stand beside him.
"Don't ruin this for us, Woody... It's perfectly clear that Andy doesn't want us anymore. Can't you see that?" The cowgirl snaps, shooting him a cold glare.
"Jessie..that's not true...we're still Andy's toys!" Anyone could see Woody looks hurt, but he tries hard not to show it as Lotso walks up and drapes an arm around his shoulder.
"So you got donated by this Andy, huh? Well it's his loss Sheriff...he can't hurt you no more."
"Woah, woah, woah, woah, wait..." Woody puts his hands up in the air in protest, but Lotso cuts him off.
"Now, let's get you all settled in.. Ken? Where is that boy?" He looks at me expectantly. For a reason unknown to all of toy kind, Ken and I have been dating for almost 6 months.
"Pfft... In the dream house, no doubt." I roll my eyes in the direction of a giant luxurious Barbie doll house in which Ken has insisted in renaming, 'Ken's dream house.'
"Ah, thank you Roxy. Ken? New toys!"
Lotso calls up to Ken, my supposed 'boyfriend' who is instantly in puddles once he catches site of the Barbie who was being donated along with the rest. I roll my eyes and stomp over to grab his arm.
"What's the matter, a Ken doll who's never seen a Barbie before?"
"Well, actually, I... No...not really... Not one like that." He slurs his words dreamily, his head obviously high above the clouds. I shoot him a death glare, wondering why the heck I ever agreed to be his girlfriend.
"Well if you want to live, you will keep your freakin' eye balls inside your stupid little head. Got it?" I harshly whisper to him in a tone that always makes Ken shudder. I guess it is pretty obvious who wears the pants in the relationship. Straightening up, I turn to the others and force a bright smile. At this point every eye is focused on us... Barbie is now hiding behind Jessie, who looks utterly freaked out. Even Lotso looks a bit surprised. I use this moment to clear my throat. .
"Oookay, So...who's ready for our little dream tour?"
~~~Woody's POV~~~
After showing us around a little and introducing us to a baby doll Roxy seems to call Big Baby,'the pink bear we now know as Lotso addresses us to the a room entitled, the Caterpillar Room. Of course, to everyone save myself, this place looks like...well, a dream come true. Of course, the fact that Lotso, Roxy, and Ken, despite their earlier dispute, are hyping the place up to look like a paradise isn't helping either. We don't belong there... Sunnyside was never and could never truly be our home.
We're not like the rest of these toys... We were never 'forgotten or abandoned' or any of those things Lotso had listed earlier. Unlike them, we already have an owner, and his name is Andy.
"You need anything at all, just come talk to me." Lotso gives us a kind smile, but then he notices Roxy and Ken, who seem to be arguing once again.
"See you in my dreams?" The feisty Bratz doll is standing in front of Ken with her arms crossed in an angry manner. She spoke through gritted teeth.
"What? I was just bein' friendly!" Ken tries to defend himself with a lame excuse, but Roxy is too smart.
"Yeah, a little too friendly if you ask me.." She snaps in the same cold tone she has been using with him almost every time she has spoken to him. Ever since she saw him first make googly eyes at Barbie.
"Okay, come on now kids...recess don't last forever." Lotso attempts to inform them, yet the two only seem focused on their argument.
"Your unbelievable, you know that?" Roxy ignores Lotso's comment and keeps her flaming glare locked on Ken.
"Come on, Roxy...you know your my girl! I-"
"Save it, Ken." She storms passed him, towards the exit, but before leaving the room her eyes land on me.
"Again, welcome to Sunnyside...hope you enjoy it." Roxy says in a monotone voice like she had rehearsed the words hundreds of times before. Which, I suppose she probably has depending on how long she has been staying here at the daycare. I look into her eyes and notice for the first time how empty they look.
Before I can respond, she hurriedly bolts passed the dump truck and out of the open doorway as fast as her legs can carry her. I find this a bit odd, but I don't give it much thought until I notice the doll stop momentarily at the sight of a human. She had kept herself hidden behind a near bye coriander, but instead of freezing like us toys are supposed to do, Roxy simply stands there. She seems to be in a trance, studying the human for a moment or too. However, it doesn't last long. As soon as the human is gone, Roxy takes her chance to dash off down the hall.
What on earth is she doing? And where is she headed too in such a hurry? Oh, what am I doing...I don't have time for this, I have to get back to Andy's house!
Suddenly, I direct my attention to Ken and Barbie. He seems to be asking her to come live in his dream house back in the Butterfly Room. I look back at the others only to see that they are supporting Barbie's decision in leaving with Ken. I doubt they had heard the same things I did between Roxy and Ken or else they would feel differently towards the pathetic girls toy. I roll my eyes as Barbie, of course, makes her choice to leave with Ken.
The two dolls leap on the dump truck Lotso had originally made his first appearance in with Roxy. Only this time, it was Barbie and Ken who were sitting in her place, much to Lotso's annoyance. He hasn't said anything yet, but the look on his face tells it all.
"Welcome to Sunnyside folks...your gonna love it here." Lotso smiled warmly as the truck he is now sitting on begins to pull out down the same hall Roxy had dashed down only a few moments ago.
"Wait..." I hesitantly speak up, and the truck stops at once as Lotso's directs his attention towards me.
"Yes, Sheriff? Somethin' the matter?" Lotso looks concerned, yet something in his eyes looks kind of..,distant. Although, I may just be paranoid...
I eye Ken and Barbie. Barbie in turn looks confused while nervous guilt haunts Ken's eyes. I contemplate just blurting it out, but felt it wasn't really my place.
"Err, no...thanks for the welcome." I figured arguing my case about Andy would be pointless since he wouldn't listen to me earlier. Lotso simply nods in response and finally Big Baby closes the door behind them. Once they are gone, I let out a long sigh before turning to face the others.
"Okay, guys look, I admit it...it's nice here... but we already have a kid back home, and his name is Andy! Look under you foot Buzz, you too Jessie...who's name is written there?" I ask, trying to get through to them. Trying to remind them we don't belong there.
"Maybe Andy...doesn't want us anymore." Rex timidly breaks the silence, but the words only add to my growing annoyance.
"Oh, come on... He was putting you in the attic!What part ofthat don't you understand? " I practically yell, yet still no one seems to move. Suddenly the room is filled with a choking silence.
"Look, Woody...it's perfectly clear that Andy doesn't want us anymore. Everyone here knows that you don't want t believe that, and maybe you won't give up and move on...but we will. We have too." Jessie says keeping her voice calm, but I can still sense the silent tension in her tone.
"I can't believe how selfish you all are... After all we've been through."
"Look, we can't all be like you Woody. Andy chose you to go with him to college, no one else. He could careless about the rest of us now." Mr. Potato head chimed in.
"Come on now, that's not true..."
"Yes, it is Woody...and you know it. Now go run off to college...we'll be just fine staying here." Jessie says through gritted teeth.
"So, this is it? After all we've been through..." I take one last agonizing glance before finally giving up and turning to leave.
Authors note: Kind of just a short chapter to get the story to the point it needs to be to get interesting, haha, so please be patient.