If anything was missing from Elmore, it was certainly not its diversity.
One could find, in the resident school alone, a balloon, a T. rex, a cloud, a living shapeshifting clay, a banana and many other kinds of students. Really, there was hardly more than one of a kind in that building.
This, of course, meant most of them held special skills related to their nature or that were special to them, like the local ghost being capable of possession and intangibility, a winged eye being able to fly and use telekinesis, among other abilities that made each one of them stand out.
And then there was Gumball Watterson, who, being a simple blue cat, was the outlier.
Indeed, poor Gumball palled in comparison to his siblings, Darwin and Anais, a walking fish and a genius rabbit, respectively, by being as average as the resident of such a town can be, not being capable of great acrobatic feats like his mother, also a cat, and the closest one in the family that he lived with that could relate to him was his bumbling father, but he was... not a great role model.
Yes, he might be relatively lazy and a cowardly idiot, but when you spend an entire life being unable to compare yourself to the feats of others and being treated as the universe's personal butt-monkey, you would find it hard to try doing much.
Nonetheless, though cynical and sometimes a bit of a jerk, Gumball remained a good kid at heart, and still showed his own hidden potential when sufficiently determined, such as the night he had to help his now girlfriend, Penny Fitzgerald, come out of her shell, going through hell and high water to calm her down and ensuring her how much she meant to him, earning his kiss with the girl of his dreams.
Speaking of the faery, they both had agreed to meet in the park that late afternoon for a nice walk, and Gumball had been waiting for twenty minutes in the agreed bench.
-Where is she? Hopefully Penny didn't forget... - Gumball quietly complained, trying to make sure his dumb mind didn't think of the worst possibilities like it sometimes did. -Maybe she had a surprise training session with the cheerleading squad? She could at least have sent a mess-
-Gumball! There you are! - A familiar voice shouted behind him. -Sorry for taking so long, I had forgotten part of my homework and had to quickly finish it. I hope you didn't get bored from waiting.
-Nah it's alright Penny, I am the most patient man alive - Gumball jokingly claimed, knowing his dear girlfriend knew he was not.
-Ha, right! Anyway, are we off?
Without missing a beat, the cat quickly put his legs to work, and they finally began their walk.
Now, in any other date in the park, the couple would either just appreciate nature's work or enjoy a nice picnic. This time, however, the faery had something else in mind.
She was leading them to a specific spot in the forest, where the trees formed a more secretive area that could allow them to remain hidden.
A specific trait that Gumball noticed, however, was that the area was also open enough for what he figured was what Penny was showing him.
-Are you sure nobody's followed us?
-I am sure, I hear nothing but our footsteps and the wind. Nobody to rat off what you are going to do.
-We, Gumball. What we are going to do. Together.
The cat became confused, and followed up her comment with a question:
-So, we are both going to fly? Are you sure about this? I don't know if I am light enough.
His girlfriend wasn't shocked that he figured it out, as he wasn't as stupid as some people made him out to be. It did make her wonder what she would say to reassure him, and quickly replied with:
-You aren't that heavy, dummy, I only said that that night because I wrongly wanted you to stay away from me. Besides, you do seem to have lost some pounds since the last time I carried you.
Glancing at the sides and blushing, he said: - Oh, please. I just run. A lot. Due to how chaotic life can be, y'know?
Penny smiled, and began laying down her things while spreading her wings, preparing them for her moment of freedom.
Gumball was doing the same, but much more slowly, shaking every so often, which did not go unnoticed.
-Let me just, uh, exercise my wings first, to make sure they are ready.
This simple sentence made Gumball stop his shaking and nod, sitting down on a nearby rock and attentively watching the smooth movements of his girlfriend, as she prepared to take flight.
And then, in the blink of an eye, she launched herself into the air.
Her sweet expression was visible even as she flew quickly through the calm forest air and its many trees, at least to her boyfriend, who had nothing but attentive eyes and a small smile on his face. The pure joy being poured into her period of freedom made her glow much brighter than she normally did, also leading to her increasing the speed at which she circled around the area.
Indeed, no ropes holding her onto the ground, no chains around her neck, no weight on her whole body.
Nothing but the moment itself was important.
And, though all moments end, this one was going to hold on for a bit more.
Gumball stood there, no fear left in his mind. As Penny made her landing, he threw her a bottle and let her rest her arm on his shoulder as she rested.
As soon as she was back on her feet, she spread not just her wings, but her arms as well, and unlike at first, the cat accepted and walked towards her with his back turned.
-Hold on to my arms, Gumball, and take a deep breath. This is going to be amazing!
-Just don't go too quickly, alr- Gumball tried to say, before she immediately went up, this time with a screaming guy on her arms.
In spite of having accepted, his preservation instincts were still kicking for a while, until his partner gasped in wonder, and out of curiosity, he began to open his eyes, only to witness the town of Elmore, the weirdest city in America, from above.
He had fallen from the skies before, but just the feeling of flying, in the context of doing it for the sake of it, was, much like his girlfriend, extraordinary. Her allowing him to taste this feeling further solidified how special it was, how much it made him know her own feelings about this sensation, this freedom. He had almost slipped from Penny's grasp had both of them not immediately grabbed tightly at the same time.
Though she could not see his smile, the faery still sensed that they were both sharing that joy, and though they could not go closer to the ground out of fear of being spotted, it nonetheless was one of the best dates they have ever had.
Gumball, without thinking, wrapped his small tail in his girlfriend's body, and it gave them an extra sense of security in spite of not covering enough.
-This is... amazing indeed. I can't believe you have the power to just do this anytime you want-
His mind blocked at that very moment. He just realized that she had access to her flight powers all the time, but he could not enjoy the same choice. As liberating as that moment was, a single chain remained attached to the cat's mind, as he knew that, no matter how fun it was, he could not do the same. He was still just a small, insignificant blue cat that was just lucky sometimes.
This thought dawned badly on Gumball, loosening his grip on Penny's arms.
-Well, you know it's not all the time, right? After all my father is still wary of my choice to leave the shell, he would die of a heart attack if he- the faery was talking, until her happiness turned into worry, as her grip had too loosened, and her boyfriend was now falling.
-GUMBALL! - She screamed in terror, as she flew down at the fastest speed she could manage, as the cat's blank face was too replaced with fear as he finally realized what was happening.
In a snap, he began slowing down his fall by opening as much of his body as he could, praying to God that she would be able to catch him.
He was unable to scream, or even open his mouth much, but still did not cease his attempts at survival.
The ground got closer and closer, his eyes closed, preparing for his final moments, when Penny managed to grab him and turn back up.
Both were breathing intensively, their hearts beating loudly and in unison. Both of them were grabbing each other with amazing strength, and did not let go until both managed to get back to safe ground that was also safely hidden. There they stayed, until both were calm enough to think correctly.
-I'm so sorry, Gumball. I didn't mean to- She began to apologize, before being cut off with a forgiving kiss from her boyfriend, as he wrapped his arms around her in order to calm her down.
They stayed in that state, eyes closed, for many, many seconds, until the cat began talking:
-Sorry for what? That was one of the best moments of my life! Besides, I am in danger most of the time, so I am used to it. - He claimed, making sure the faery remained collected and close to him at all moments.
Managing to connect her thoughts, she had barely avoided shapeshifting into anything.
-Are... are you sure?
-Yeah, it was all so... so... extraordinary.
Penny showed a big smile, as she leaned in and kissed her boyfriend on his smooth lips, crying the whole time.
Eventually, she took flight once again, this time without Gumball, to pick up their stuff that they had left in the zone, before returning and, given it was late, they made their return.