Chapter 6: In Which Riley is Brought to Terms
The emotions sat on the large couch, trying to kill time as their human friend was still attempting to kick open the glass wall. Fear lay half asleep, his head resting on his skinny elbows. He snapped awake every so often after hearing another loud thump from Riley who was kicking with all her might.
Disgust yawned checking her nails, Anger sat next to her, yet still keeping his distance as she had tried to melt chocolate on his fiery head. He was scowling, his growing impatience shown through his large fingers tapping rhythmically on the arm rest.
Joy and Sadness sat on the floor, Sadness cross-legged, Joy on her stomach, both building a house of cards the emotions kept in their activity drawer. Joy had just placed the final card on top when a sudden yawn from Sadness knocked them down again. Joy sighed, picking them up and starting again.
Considering Riley had only just stumbled across their workplace, through a tube, landing in a pile of her own memories-it was only natural that she would have a few questions. As Joy had tried to guide her away from the window, and Fear had ducked as a chair bounced off the glass and headed straight for him, the other emotions knew it was going to take a while. Anger suggested a time out, Disgust a lack of attention. Sadness' plan had eventually been settled on; To let Riley throw her little tantrum, give her some space and then maybe lock her in a room and listen to her cry at the door until she was ready to talk again. Though Joy had decided not to put the last part into play.
Suddenly Anger growled loudly and jumped up.
"WOULD SOMEONE SHUT HER UP ALREADY?! IT'S BEEN OVER 10 MINUTES!"
Fear's head slipped onto Digust's head, and she lifted him off with her pinky to prevent him from salivating on her dress. He awoke with a start as he was pushed upwards. "Uh, What?" he stuttered, sleepily.
"Next time, don't put your grubby hands all over me!" Disgust scolded.
Fear laughed nervously, "Wouldn't dream of it, Disgust!"
"Yeah!" said Anger, his turn to tease, "She doesn't want your dirt on her, she's already got enough of her own!"
Disgust narrowed her eyes, and Fear cringed. This was wasn't going to end well!
"I have enough dirt? What about you? You're the grimeist, grossest, most evil little goblin I have ever met!"
"Goblin?! If I'm a goblin, sweetheart, you're a slimy slug!"
"Aah, I get it! Because I'm green! That's clever, you're Cle-vur!" she said patting him on the head patronizingly, "you deserve an award! Well, if I'm a slug, you're a fat red bellied frog!"
"You take that back!"
"Make me!"
"Knock it off you two," warned Joy placing another card on top, "We aren't going to get her anywhere if we just stand about arguing."
"Yeah," sighed Sadness, "listening to you both arguing all the time makes me tired." She yawned and fell onto her back, the sudden movement making Joy's cardhouse fall again.
"Sadness! You ruined my castle!"
"I'm sorry."
"It's fine-just. Try not to be so clumsy."
"Being clumsy is something I'm good at," Sadness replied, "You're asking me to give it up?"
"No No no no-Sadness!"
"Am I just too awful to even be clumsy?!" she wailed.
"No!" cringed Joy, realising she had set her off, "don't be like that now!"
Sadness' bottom lip quivered, "No! NO! Don't you start crying! Aww, come on Sadness, please don't do this, remember the funny movie where the boy was stung to death-"
Sadness melted into a wailing puddle on the floor. Joy sighed, exasperated. Being the head emotion wasn't easy. Whether it was breaking up an argument between Anger and Disgust, trying to calm down Fear or cheering up Sadness, in between keeping Riley happy and healthy her job did have some setbacks. She glanced at her girl who was still frantically trying to break open the glass. Joy rolled her eyes but decided to keep her calm as well. Considering there wasn't really an outside Riley to control anymore, a small one on the inside would give her something to contend with.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you," said Joy, chuckling but still serious, " that's a forty foot fall to Memory Dump down there!"
Riley looked down and stepped back in surprise as she was treated to more darkness. A darkness that seemed to go on and on. She realised what she had almost fallen into, and backed away in case the glass were to break suddenly just then.
"S-Sorry," said Riley, "I shouldn't have been so dense. I just thought I'd I could escape-"
"Escape?" said Anger, "there's no way to escape here, kiddo. That glass is throw-proof, no simple object can break it and it cannot be broken by brute force." Then with an unsettling smile he added, "I'm the only one who knows how to open it!"
"Oh yeah, with your special powers. I remember." smiled Disgust.
"Do you wanna start this again!?" yelled Anger shaking his red fist at her.
"Guys! What did I tell you? It's okay Riley! Besides, we don't blame you-do we?"
She looked round to the other emotions who all stood rubbing their arms uncomfortably, "Y-Yeah, sure, course not."
Joy turned round, but Riley, upon hearing there was no real exit, had bolted into a corner and was trying to put her foot through the wall.
"Oh brother," muttered Joy, "Listen, Riley-!"
"Stay away from me!"
"Please, I know it's-"
"Just leave me alone!" shouted the girl kicking the wall harder.
"She's gonna mark the paintwork," sighed Fear rubbing his eyes.
Joy tried to pull Riley away from the wall, but ended up on the floor as Riley's hockey muscles worked in her favour.
"I SAID LEAVE ME ALONE!"
Joy stared at her, with expression full of shock and disappointment. Riley was shaking a little, but it didn't stop the scowl on her face as she stomped her way up the ramp and headed to the first door she saw and slammed it shut behind her.
Joy sat still for a moment or two before picking herself up, a look of hurt in her blue eyes. She eventually felt a tug at her dress and heard Disgust's voice behind her.
"Joy?"
Looking down she saw Sadness offering her a tissue. Joy didn't know how, but she felt as if Sadness had a sixth sense or psychic ability for when people were going to cry. As much as she wanted to burst into tears at the point she decided to politely refuse Sadness' offer to which she stuffed it back into her turtleneck almost as if she would need it later.
Joy turned around to see Disgust, Anger and Fear, all looking at her with concern. She knew she would have to say something, she couldn't pretend they hadn't seen.
"What's gotten up Riley's nose?" Disgust asked.
"If you ask me, she needs a good foot-down!" added Anger.
"She didn't hurt you too badly did she Joy?" Fear asked.
"Why do you care?" questioned Anger, brows raised.
"Ehh, becaaaause- as an emotion, it's my job to keep Riley safe, so it's also my job to look out for fellow teammates too!" said Fear indignantly, wiping down his sweater and coughing, "Wow, is Friendship Island bright tonight or what?"
"The islands have stopped working, genius." Disgust said flatly.
"Uh, I mean, hey-the orbs are all-"
"They've stopped working too," said Anger steadily.
Fear laughed nervously.
"I'm fine guys, really," although her face showed anything but. She glanced up at the door she seen Riley retreat to and then pushed past the others to get to the ramp. Fear, Anger and Disgust were quick to try and stop her. Sadness remained in place, observing.
"Woah Woah Woah Woah! You cannot go up there!" said Fear.
"Why not?"
"She's a girl going through changes, Joy. I've read about them, when they get to this age the hormones kick in and everything goes insane!"
"I knew we should never have pushed that Poo-ber-ty button," grumbled Anger, "You can't go up there Joy, it's no use arguing with her, never try and do my job for me. In fact, I should go!"
"Oh please, you're way too aggressive for something like this," scoffed Disgust, pushing him aside, "I'll go, Joy."
"You?"
"Sure! Why not? I'm smart, helpful, I have an incentive- without me, Riley would go to school in a garbage bag!"
"No! No one is going up there!" Fear said using his hands as a barrier.
"I appreciate it, Disgust but I think I got this."
"Suit yourself. Just don't send Fire Pants over there!"
Anger bared his teeth. "I am NOT Aggressive!" he shouted, pulling Fear to the floor by his nose.
"Anger-I-I can't breath-"
"I think Joy should go."
"ISN'T ANYBODY LISTENING TO ME?!" wheezed Fear.
Everyone looked at Sadness who stood twiddling her thumbs, faltering as she realised she had attracted attention. "W-What I mean is, J-J-Joy should g-go because she's the most-"
"Why can't you do it?" said Anger, "isn't being depressed your thing?"
"Yeah but," she began to bury herself in her sweater like a tortoise shrinking into it's shell, "I-I'm not so good at talking about my problems. Can't we just leave her alone to cry until her eyes get tired?"
"Okay guys! It's fine! I volunteer, okay?"
"You could get hurt again!"
"Fear, come on! It's Riley we're talking about!"
"I don't know, sometimes it's the people you think you know who can be the worst."
"Yeah, maybe Riley isn't as great as you built her up to be" said Disgust, folding her arms, "can I get some more choc drops?"
"You are them all," grimaced Anger, "you can't keep your big mouth shut, if you aren't flapping your lip all the time, your stuffing it full of snacks!"
"Better then being an overbearing fat buzzkill!"
"You watch your language!"
"My language? You were the one swearing like a sailor yesterday!"
"Well, you're stupid!"
"Ohh, great comeback. If you're going to insult me, at least do it right!"
"Broccoli Hair!"
"Hothead!"
"Green Meanie!"
"Square Face!"
"Guys-" said Fear, quietly pointing upwards.
"Broccoli babe!"
"You already gave a broccoli related insult!" hurled Disgust, "and for you just call me "Babe?"
That threw Anger off as he suddenly looked worried, and stepped back slightly, "Uh?"
"Guys!"
"WHAT?!" they yelled on unison.
"Joy's gone," said Sadness pointing lethargicly, before Fear could get the words out. In frustration, Fear pulled his lids down, ran to the couch, grabbed a pillow and screamed into it.
Joy hesitated as she grabbed the doorknob, thinking deeply to herself. What if Disgust was right? What if Riley really wasn't who she though she was? Joy couldn't understand it-she had watched Riley from a baby, from an infant, to a young girl. She knew her better than anybody, maybe even more than her parents. Exhaling sharply and letting her diaphragm unwind itself, she knocked ever so slightly on the purple wood.
"Riley?"
She pulled it open, surprised it hadn't locked itself from the slam, peering through one eye, "Hel-ooo?"
She saw the girl was lying curled up into a ball on the violet-sheeted bed, her feet tucked in, head on her knees.
Joy couldn't help but swallow some tears. She hated seeing Riley so upset, all the emotions knew she had to leave the room whenever Sadness was working the control panel. "Hey." She went to sit on the side of the bed, Riley's form instantly lit by the glow from the being next to her.
"I, thought you might like some company," Joy offered, "just you know-"
She tried a different approach. "Hey! Monkey!" She contorted her face into a primate grin, but the girl just curled up even more. "Uh, hey Riley. Look at this! Blalala-ghh!" she pulled the funniest, freakiest face she knew, but still no response. Sighing, Joy decided to resort to Sadness' methods.
She reached out and put a glowing arm on Riley's shoulder.
Riley, who had been sitting hidden in the shadows for what seemed so long. The sudden bright light was a startling feeling, but the sudden warmth on her shoulder, made her knees lower. It felt nice, as though a hot piece of fresh clothing had been placed on it, that every weight that had ever been applied to it had been lifted.
"Riley, listen to me, please. I know this is a big shock for you, it is for everyone, us, especially your poor Mom and Dad. But, listen I want to help you..."
There was no reply. Sighing, Joy got up to leave.
"Why am I here?"
"Huh?" Joy stopped and nudged Riley's shoulder again. "Hey, come on. Sit up for Joy." Joy cursed herself mentally for talking to Riley as though she were still a baby. She couldn't help it, this was the same girl she had seen take to the ice like a penguin, created amazing worlds, told great stories and knew so many answers in class. She couldn't help but feel as though she deserved a little bit of family status. "Come on."
Slowly but surely Riley sat up, her sandy hair in tufts, her eyes raw from crying. At this, Joy tried to push away more misery.
"There ya go! Ooh, lemme just fix your hair for you-" as she went to touch her again, she flinched and leapt backwards, her back touching the wall, eyes full of uncertainty. "Woah, hey! What's wrong?" Riley said nothing, but her heart was beating in her ears.
"I won't hurt you," smiled Joy, "I promise."
It was strange, but it was these words that relaxed Riley a little and allowed herself to slowly come away from the wall, and to the side of the bed to allow Joy to set her hair back in place, and even kiss her on the forehead. "There! All better!" It was then that Riley put a hand to her scalp and took it away in an instant in surprise. "My...My stitches! They've gone!"
"Stitches?" Joy felt her good feelings drop to her stomach as she remembered Riley still hadn't been properly told about her situation.
"Oh, those. You mean you remember them?"
"Well. Yeah, course I remember. I was in a room, everything was shaking and moving, and I could hear traffic. My Mom and Dad were there...and then..." her face turned from sorrowful to terrified as something seemed to click. "W-Where are they?!"
"Now-no need to panic, but-"
That was what set Riley off, as easily as Fear or Sadness. "Where are my parents? Where are my Mom and Dad, what's going on?"
Joy grabbed a hold of both her shoulders, instantly throwing her into a state of calm. "Riley. I think it would just be best if I told it to you straight. You're in a coma. You have been for a while now, Fear reckons it was about eight hours ago you first crashed your bike."
Joy watched as Riley's eyes darted around but her body stayed perfectly still. "No..."
"I'm sorry Riley," said Joy, looking straight into the girl's eyes, "you hit that delivery truck full force. There was glass everywhere, even in those pretty eyes of yours. You suffered bruising on your head, and you seem to remember Mom and Dad with is, when we were being sewed up in the ambulance." Riley wanted but didn't leave Joy's face. She just shook her head, in completely silent disbelief. "You. You blacked out after that. Then our screen stopped working and our panel turned rock solid, as did most of your memories. But on the bright side, your core ones are okay. Sadness came up with a way that in case of emergency, they'd be filtered into a safe zone. You must have landed on it when you came to us."
"Why am I with you?" Riley questioned, eyes brimming.
"I, I don't really know either," admitted Joy. "But I'll tell you this, we're happy to have you! And as soon as we figure out how to get everything up and running again, I promise we'll all do our best to try and wake you up again."
Riley's heart was pounding so fast, she feared it might have burst. She felt herself, chest, shoulders, face, checked both the palms and backs of her hands. If she really was in a coma, asleep and shut out from the outside world, then why was she here?
"Why am I here?" she asked again, growing slightly impatient. "If I'm sleeping, shouldn't I be-well, sleeping?"
Joy smiled empathetically. "It's not as logical as you may think. Believe me, around here, nothing is. But Riley listen. You're still you. Well, not you you, but your true self. Your inner self. Just because the outside of you isn't working doesn't mean to say your true self hasn't still got some energy. If you get my drift?"
Riley nodded, but she didn't fully understand. "So, you're my "Joy?"
Joy beamed and her skin shone. "Atta girl! Now you're getting it! Hey, do you remember that time you and Meg went to jump rope and you tripped over and fell on your tush? And the n you both started laughing?"
Riley looked up, a smile returning to her face. "Yeah! That was funny! How did you know I had a friend called Meg?"
Joy winked. "I'm your emotion silly! Joy! Every time with Meg, was hysterical! Boy that girl could tell jokes! Every hockey match you've ever win, every game you've ever played, song you've sung or friend you've made-I was there Riley. I was standing right by your side, cheering you on. All of us were."
"Us?"
"The other emotions. Would you like to come back out? Meet them properly?" Riley sniffed before finally replying, "Yes."
"Great! Let's go!" Joy ran to open the door, but paused when she noticed how hesitant she was. "What's wrong?"
Riley was looking down at her knees again. "They won't want to meet me now. Not after what I did to you."
"Oh! Don't be silly! I'm fine, see!" She threw her arms up, but lowered them as tears began to spring from the girl's eyes.
"I-I don't w-want to be here!" she said in between cries, "I want t-to be with my Mom and Dad! I don't know how to find them! I just w-want to g-get out!"
Joy joined her at side of the bed, seeing her whole body shake uncontrollably. An atm found it's way onto Riley's shoulder, but this time,she didn't resist. Instead she threw her own arms around the spirit, who blinked in surprise, but wasted no time in returning the embrace. She thought about what Sadness had told her, about letting them cry it out. Joy tried hearing Riley's mother in her head. What would she say at a time like this? Joy remembered once when Riley had a boo-boo when she was younger. She had jammed it in a door during playtime, and was roaring. Mom had put cream and a bandage on and kisses it better.
"There, There," Joy soothed "it's okay. I'm here. Everything's going to be alright..."
*film where boy is stung to death: My Girl
This was excruciatingly hard to write, which is why I haven't updated sooner, my apologies! If you could take the time to write a longer review, I'd greatly appreciate it! :)