*In Jay's Workspace, now resembling a movie theater, we see RJ "Jay" Writing Ink, GIR, TFS Nappa, and Janna all gathered in the lobby looking up at the side of the wall at DAU Kermit, now clad in a Spider-Man costume.*

DAU Kermit: Have no fear. Spider-Frog is here! Yaaay!

Jay: Kermit, you already made this joke years ago in the DAU. Why are you bringing it back now?

DAU Kermit: I have no idea who you're talking about, citizen. I am Spider-Man, and I am here to run the villain's fade!

Jay: Kermit, this is a movie theater, and you're not a real Spider-Person! We're just here because we got tickets for Across the Spider-Verse!

DAU Kermit: I don't know, Jay. I mean, have you seen the previews? There's a Spider-Cat in the film, so who's to say that there isn't a Spider-Frog.

Janna: He's got you there, man.

TFS Nappa: Kermit, buddy! Listen, I love the costume! Now, if you're interested, I can get you a movie deal at Disney. Maybe we can have them make a Muppets parody of Marvel or something...

Jay: Don't encourage him, Nappa! All he cares about are big booty bitches, as he puts it!

DAU Kermit: Because they're important.

Jay: Look, I don't care if this is for the Spider-Verse film. Saying that you could be one of the Spiders is like saying there's a T-Rex version of Spider-Man.

DAU Kermit: Uhh...

*Lo and behold, Rex is standing behind everyone in a Spider-Man costume.*

Rex: FIGHT ME!

Jay:...I completely forgot about that, didn't I?

Janna: So, are we gonna loiter around here for a week, or do you guys wanna start the next chapter. Because this is gonna be fun. I even got this bucket of bottomless popcorn!

Jay: Right, right, right. This is one chapter I've been dying to get to. The Naysaya is one of Marco's finest moments in the show, and I wanted to milk it for all it's worth. Enjoy, everyone!

"So, what are you guys planning on doing this weekend?" Jackson asked as he stood beside the lockers alongside Karla, Alfonso, and Jonah.

"Meh, I don't know," Jonah shrugged as he looked at his phone. "I'm thinking of pirating some cartoons that Warner Bros took off Max. It's a good day when pirating turns out to be more moral than paying up to those corporate fatcats. No offense to fat people, Alfonso."

Alfonso shrugged and said, "None taken. I was thinking of hitting up the new Spider-Man film, which will be awesome!"

"You're going to see the new Spider-Man film?" Karla asked, more excited than usual. Can I tag along? Gwen Stacy is one of my waifus. Plus, that half-shaven hairstyle of hers is amazing! Plus, I was thinking of making a cover song of 'What's Up Danger.' That song is so metal!"

As the four friends chatted and discussed their weekend plans, someone watched them from a nearby hiding spot. That someone happened to be none other than Marcia Diaz, and she was nervous as Hell. Why? Because when she got up out of bed today, she decided that this would be the day.

"Okay, Marcia, you can do this," Marcia told herself as she hid behind the lockers. "You can do this, you can do this! It's not like if you screw this up, you'll ruin everything forever...right?"

As Marcia continued to try to talk herself into what she wanted to do, she didn't notice someone approaching her from behind...until it was too late.

"Okay, I'll bite. What the heck am I looking at?"

Marcia's heart practically leapt out of her chest as she struggled to repress a yelp. Acting on instinct, she got into a martial arts stance as she wheeled around, ready to defend herself against who snuck past her defenses...only to realize that it was just Brittney Wong.

"Brittney?" Marcia uttered as she felt her nerves remain frazzled. Despite being startled, she took a deep breath before willing herself to calm down enough to keep from acting on her training. "Dios mio, Brittney, don't sneak up on me like that. You almost gave me a heart attack!"

Brittney nervously stepped back to give Marcia a little space. She'd seen what Marcia was capable of in combat, and the last thing she needed was for her pretty face to get bruised. "Sorry, sorry, Diaz," she said apologetically. "But can you blame me for being curious? I mean, you've been hiding here and looking around the corner for the last five minutes."

Marcia felt her face start to turn red, embarrassed at her behavior. When Brittney put it like that, it made her sound like some kind of stalker!

To be fair, that is technically what I'm doing right now, Marcia shamefully thought. With a sigh, Marcia finally calmed down enough to respond to her...friend? Were she and Brittney friends at this point? Acquaintances? They'd been spending more time together lately, and Brittney had been trying to be nicer to make up for the years of bullying...

No, no, you're getting off-topic. Focus, Marcia, Marcia said as she shook her head, much to Brittney's confusion.

"Look, Brittney, the truth is..." Marcia fidgeted with her hands as she tried to spit it out. "...TodaywasthedaythatIhopedIwouldfinallyaskJacksonoutandtobemyboyfriend."

Brittney just gave Marcia a blank stare in response before finally replying with, "What?"

Marcia felt her cheeks reddening once more. "I said that today was the day that I was going to ask Jackson out and ask him to be my boyfriend, alright?"

Failing to suppress a groan as she shook her head, Brittney responded with a question: "So, you're telling me that you still haven't made a move on Jackson Lee Thomas yet? It's been two weeks since the sleepover, Diaz!" she said incredulously. "Why have you been waiting so long for this?"

Marcia blushed even harder at this. "I know, I know it's been a long time now! It's just that...what happened at the sleepover was a lot for us to process," she recalled the faithful night. "I mean, you, Sabrina, and Aqua all admitted to liking Comet." Now it was Brittney's turn to blush, albeit in a more subdued fashion. "Comet admitted to liking Karla," Marcia continued. "Karla told everyone she likes girls! And then I...then I..." Just thinking about how she blurted out her crush on Jackson and passed out from shock was still embarrassing.

"Look, the point is that everything that happened was a lot for everyone to deal with," Marcia said as she finally got to her point. "I just thought it would be best to give us all enough time to process everything. Plus, I didn't want to make things awkward with Jackson."

Brittney groaned louder at this answer. "But two weeks, Diaz? Really?" Brittney judgementally asked Marcia. "Don't you think that's a bit excessive?"

Nervously glancing at anything other than Brittney, Marcia had to concede the point. "Look, I'm just crazy nervous about this, all right? I mean, this is a big step," she said as she started to pace back and forth. "I've been friends with Jackson for years. Now that he knows I've had a crush on him all that time, this could change our whole dynamic. What if he doesn't like me back? What if things don't work out? Then we might never speak to each other again, which could create a domino effect that leads to our friend group falling apart and me spending the rest of my life as a lonely spinster!"

Brittney groaned even louder as she watched her first friend go through a romantic-induced panic attack. Unable to stand witnessing this any longer, Brittney decided that now was the time for her to intervene.

"Look, Marcia," Brittney said as she placed both hands on Marcia's shoulders. "Do you still like Jackson?"

"Yes," Marcia admitted.

"And do you want to take that next step with him?"

"Yes," Marcia said once more.

"Then now is not the time for you to be doubting yourself," Brittney lectured the other girl. "Now is the time for action. Now you will walk right up to Jackson and ask him out! Got it?"

One look in Brittney's eyes made it clear to Marcia that the rich heiress wasn't going to take no for an answer. As nervous as she was, though she knew that Brittney was right, and it was time for her to take the leap!

"You're right, Brittney. I've been avoiding this for too long as it is!"

"Yeah, you have!" Brittney reminded her.

"I'm going to go out there-"

"Yes."

"-I'm going to go right up to Jackson-"

"You're going to go right up to Jackson."

"-And I'm finally going to ask him what I've been wanting to ask him for a long time!" As Marcia psyched herself up and out her chest, she got ready to walk out of her hiding spot and confront the menace of awkward, teenage romance right in the eye and...

"Ask me what?"

...and Jackson was already standing right in front of her. "J-Jackson! W-what are you doing here?"

"I was headed to my next class when I saw you talking with Brittney," Jackson calmly stated. "I heard you mention me, so I thought something was wrong. What's the deal? Why are you hiding back here."

At that moment, as Marcia found herself standing just a few feet from her crush, every single neuron in her brain...came screeching to a halt. Her mind went blank, her body froze up, and all rational thought became nonexistent, save for one: run!

Whimpering to herself as she felt all the blood rush to her face, Marcia immediately turned her tail and ran away at speeds faster than a human being should be capable of accomplishing. All left in her wake was a very confused Jackson and a face-palming Brittney.


"UGGGGGGGGHHHH!" Marcia loudly groaned as she laid her head against the cafeteria table, weeping at her utter failure earlier that morning. "I. AM. SO. STUPID!" she whined as Comet, Brittney, and Jonah watched their friend berate herself. "I completely humiliated myself in front of Jacksooonn!" she said, tears practically welling up.

"Yeah, you pretty much made yourself look like an idiot," Brittney said, her voice devoid of sympathy. She didn't mean to come off as insensitive; she was incredibly disappointed in Marcia wimping out like that.

"Hey, hey now, Marcia," Comet said as he leaned over and softly rubbed Marcia's head. "It's not that big a deal. So you got a little tongue-tied. It's not the end of the world."

"Then why do I want to crawl into a hole and die right now?" Marcia mournfully asked Comet. "Face it, you guys. I just blew any chance I had of making Jackson my boyfriend." Marcia then let out a heavy, self-deprecating sigh. "I finally managed to confess to Jackson after all these years, but I still can't ask him out. What is wrong with me?!"

"I don't know, but I wish I could've been there to catch it in 4K," Janna shamelessly admitted. "Oh well. Guess you're going to get used to perpetual virginity." That last comment was enough to elicit a glare from Brittney, who had more than half a mind to get him canceled, reported to the Principal, or both.

"Jonah!" Comet hissed at his friend, his voice unusually harsh. "That was totally uncalled for, and not to mention inappropriate," Comet lectured him. Even an idiot like Comet had the common sense to know that wasn't something you said to a friend.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, jerkwad. I feel so much better hearing that." Marcia sarcastically told the bane of her existence.

Choosing to ignore Jonah's continued smirk, Comet kept her focus on Marcia, "Look, Marcia, I've dated a fair amount of people in my time-"

"*cough* playboy *cough*" Jonah muttered, while Brittney got a little upset as she heard this. Comet, though, didn't pay them any mind. Many of those girls just wanted him for the money and title of being a Prince.

"-and one thing I've learned is that asking people out isn't as hard as people make it out to be. All you have to do is stay calm, remember that they're just people like you and me, and ask them. That's it!"

"And that works?" Jonah curiously asked. Comet shrugged.

"It worked with me when I asked Tammy out, and she practically jumped when I did," the Prince of Mewni bragged.

"I'm sorry, who?" Brittney asked, her face laced with a hint of jealousy after hearing this.

Either choosing to ignore her question or focus on her own problems, Marcia sighed as she finally picked her head up from the table. "Thanks for the advice, Comet, but I think I'm going to try and do things my way, and that doesn't involve letting myself get tongue-tied." Pulling a slip of paper out of her pocket, Marcia gestured towards Comet. "Pen me, dude!"

Comet gave Marcia a pen, and she wrote down something on paper.

"'Dear Jackson, will you go out with me Friday night?' Perfect. Simple and to the point!"

"Boo! Hiss! Coward!" Jonah jeered to the side, only to get himself a slap from Brittney.

"Now, all I have to do is wait to meet Jackson, and then I can give him this. Problems solved!" Marcia said as she cheered at how clever she was.

"Oh, hey, guys."

And then Marcia's heart leapt out of her chest again when she realized that Jackson had walked right up to their table.

"J-Jackson! Hey!" Marcia shouted as she leaned forward onto the table, using her hands and elbows to prop herself up. "How's it going, man?'

"Hey, Jackson!" Jonah said as he got a wicked grin on his face. "Wonderful day so far?"

"You could say that yeah," Jackson replied with a soft smile. "So, Marcia," he said as he turned his attention back to the Diaz girl. "Did you want to ask me something earlier? You took off in such a hurry that you never got a chance to-"

"Yes! Actually, I did have something to ask you!" Marcia squeaked, trying her very best not to lose her nerves. "I, uh, I meant to give you this!" she said as she got up and passed the note to him. "It's something I've been meaning to say to you!" Marcia thought she sounded cool, but from everyone else's perspective, she was on the verge of a meltdown.

"Okay." Jackson then opened the note and read it out loud, "' Marcia covers up the mirror in the shower because she's insecure about...her body?' Whaaat?"

At this point, all Hell broke loose, and chaos reigned. Brittney looked at Marcia in shock. Comet looked worried. And Jonah?

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Jonah wouldn't stop laughing.

"WHAT!?" Marcia swiped the note out of Jackson's hands and quickly read it to herself. To her utter horror, that was exactly what she'd written on there. "No, no! That's not what I meant to say!" Marcia, whose face was turning a new shade of red, said to Jackson. "What I meant to say was that I...I put pads in my bra because I'm insecure about my chest size!"

"Huh?"

"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHA!" At this point, Jonah was now bawling on the floor in laughter. Comet and Brittney couldn't help but give Marcia sympathetic looks as the poor girl was on the verge of tears.

"I-I-I'M SORRRRYYY!" And with that, Marcia Diaz ran out of the cafeteria at speeds that would make the Flash and Sonic the Hedgehog jealous.


The SpongeBob Narrator: Later...

"WAAHAAAAAAH!" Marcia cried as she proceeded to bawl her eyes out in the hallways of Echo Creek Academy while Comet and Brittney did their best to comfort her. "MY LIFE IS OVER!"

"There, there, Marcia. It's not as bad as it seems," Comet said reassuringly.

"YES, IT IS!" Marcia kept crying. "I'M NEVER GONNA BE ABLE TO SHOW MY FACE AROUND JACKSON AGAIN!"

"Oh, Marcia," Brittney couldn't help but feel bad for the poor girl before looking at Comet. "Comet, I know it may not seem like that big a deal to you. You know, since you don't seem to let stuff like this get to you-but, do you know how embarrassing this can be from a girl's perspective? This can completely destroy a woman's self-esteem and scar them for life!"

"Oh, don't be so overly dramatic, Wong," Jonah said as he stood off to the side, now holding a bucket of popcorn. "All Marcia needs to do is get back out there and keep trying! After all, the show must go on!"

At this point, Brittney had had it with Jonah. Annoying people daily was one thing, but now he was being downright cruel. As she was about to give the young Filipino boy a piece of her mind, though, it seemed like Comet had reached his own limit, too. Before Jonah could react, Comet raised his Wand towards Jonah and shouted, "Mute Mime Transformation!" In a flash of monochromatic color, Jonah now found himself in the stereotypical attire of a French Mime, complete with face paint and a beret.

When Jonah tried to say something, he found himself unable to. No matter what he did, his voice would not come out of his mouth.

"Sorry, dude, but you crossed the line," Comet said before turning his attention back to Marcia. "Seriously, though, Marcia. What happened back there?"

Marcia let out a weary sigh. "I don't know, Comet. I know I didn't write that stuff down on that note. It's like-it's like every time I try to talk to Jackson, I keep blurting out the wrong thing. What am I, cursed?!" As Marcia rested her head against the lockers, something unexpected happened. Out of nowhere, Marcia felt a sharp, stabbing sensation in her neck. Pulling down the collar of her shirt to see what was wrong, Marcia began to cry out as the pain worsened, much to the other's concern.

"Marcia? Marcia!" Comet tried to grab ahold of Marcia as she started to fall onto the floor and writhe in agony.

"What is happening right now?!" Brittney shouted in concern. "Do I need to dial 911?"

Jonah, though, went back to eating his popcorn. He would still enjoy it if he couldn't laugh at this, especially with the dark clouds now gathering in the sky.

The trio of teens watched helplessly as Marcia continued to be in pain, something that no one expected happened. A lump of flesh sprouted out of the side of her neck like some sort of horrific, infected boil. Then, as if things couldn't get any weirder, the boil-thing grew slick brown hair, beady black eyes, large black eyebrows, and a cleft between his two front teeth.

As everyone proceeded to lean closer to look at the...thing, it looked back at them and said, "Hello."

...

"AAAHHHHHHHH!" Screamed Marcia.

"AAHHHHHHHHH!" Screamed Brittney

"AHHHHHHHHHH!" Screamed Comet.

Jonah just shrugged since he couldn't talk.

"WHAT THE HECK IS THIS THING!?" Marcia cried out in horror as she questioned her sanity.

"It's looking at us! It's looking at us!" Brittney struggled to resist the urge to vomit.

"Dude...I think you made a little Marcia Jr! Or would that be a Marco Jr?"

At this point, though, the little head began to talk. "Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh! Marcia Diaz likes to put pictures of Jackson Lee Thomas on her pillow every night before bed! And then she makes out with it" Marcia gasped at this before the head-thing continued. "And, and sometimes, she has this one dream where she and Jackson are living on a tropical island where they-"

Before the head thing could continue, Marcia covered it up with the collar of her shirt, her face struggling to keep from turning red. "No! No! Don't you dare talk about that dream!"

"I don't get it," Comet admitted, clueless. On the other hand, Brittney had a good idea what that head thing was talking about and knew it was for the best that Comet and Jonah didn't know about. She had dreams like that, too, sometimes.

"This is so messed up," Brittney said in disgust. "Marcia, did you eat anything weird in another dimension that could've given you this?"

"How the heck should I know?!" Marcia yelled. "What am I supposed to do now? I can't ask Jackson out like this!? Maybe I really am cursed!"

As the word "cursed" came out of Marcia's mouth, a light of clarity shone within Jonah's eyes. Ditching the popcorn, Jonah tried to say something...only to remember he couldn't talk and was a mime now. Frustrated, Jonah began to wave his arms around in a frantic attempt to get everyone's attention, but his efforts were for naught. They were too focused on Marcia's newfound parasitic twin.

"Hey, guys."

Everyone stopped what they were doing when they heard Jackson's voice from behind them...and Marcia began to freak out as she tried to cover up her neck. Thankfully, Brittney had the tact to shield her from Jackson's view by using her body. Comet quickly put himself between Jackson and the group, leaning against the locker with a grin that was meant to seem nonchalant, but looked more like a shit-eating grin.

"Yo, Jackson. What's up? You need something?"

Jackson gave Comet a bit of a confused look but didn't seem to suspect anything. "Um, did any of you guys get the homework assignment for English class? Also, why is Jonah dressed up like a mime?"

Realizing that Jonah was still stuck in mime form and was trying to say something, Comet looked back at Jackson and said, "Punishment. But I think he's suffered enough." Casually raising his Wand and pointing it a Jonah, he said: "Change now!" With a flash of magic, Jonah was transformed back to his normal self.

"Phew, that sucked," Jonah breathed a sigh of relief before turning back to look at Marcia and Brittney. "Hey, Brittney, don't you and Comet have that homework assignment Jackson wanted? I can show that mixtape I was talking about to Marcia."

Comet tilted his head in confusion, and he didn't know what Jonah was talking about. On the other hand, Brittney was quick to catch on...and it gave her her idea.

"Oh, yeah, that's right!" Brittney quickly said. "Ordonia, why don't you go show Marcia that...mixtape. Comet and I can talk to Jackson about that homework assignment."

"Um, what homework... oh," Comet suddenly realized what Brittney was getting at. "Yeah, don't worry about that, Jackson. I can show you over here!"

Before Jackson could even ask what was happening, Comet and Brittney dragged him away by the hands, leaving Jonah alone with Marcia.

Taking the opportunity to finally speak, Jonah walked over to Marcia and said, "I think I know where I've seen your new friend before."


Jackson now found himself leaning against the lockers as he spoke with Comet and Brittney, still a little confused about what was going on.

"So...do either of you have that homework assignment, or...?"

"I actually don't have it, and I'm not that big of a homework guy," Comet admitted. "That might be why my grades tend to only be average," he said with a sheepish, uncaring grin, much to Brittney and Jackson's dismay.

"I happen to have it, since I care about my grades and don't want to disappoint my parents," Brittney said. "That aside, though, that's not why we dragged you away. Is it, Comet?" Brittney gave the boy a knowing look and hoped he'd get the hint. For his lack of academic skills at times, though, Comet had his own brand of smarts that let him figure out what was happening.

"Oh yeah," Comet said, agreeing with Brittney. "Jackson, we wanted to talk to you because of Marcia," he explained to the budding athlete.

"Marcia?" Jackson repeated. "You mean what she wanted to talk to me about? It sounded important, but she's been acting slightly strange today." Jackson then thought back at all of his interactions with Marcia Diaz throughout the day, most of them ending with Marcia either running away from him, saying or writing something embarrassing, maybe even both. "Is she alright, you guys?"

Brittney sighed. She knew what she had to say, though she needed to figure out if she had the right to do so. She didn't want to meddle in Marcia's life more than the young Miss Diaz felt was reasonable, but she also knew what Marcia was like. It was taking all her courage to take things to the next step like she was, and if this kept up, she would falter.

Screw it. Marcia will thank me for this later, Brittney decided as she went for broke. "Before we tell you, Jackson Lee Thomas, tell us this: what are you planning on doing with Marcia?"

"Doing?" Now Jackson felt even more confused.

"Don't play coy, Thomas," Brittney said as she doubled down on her offensive. "It's been two weeks since the sleepover, and you've had two weeks to process that Marcia Diaz likes you!"

Jackson started to blush as the memories of that night flooded to the surface.

"So why the hell haven't you done anything about it?" Brittney demanded to know. "You've had enough time to think things over, so why haven't you done anything about it?"

Jackson began nervously scratching the back of his ears as he felt his blush worsen. "Y-yeah, you're right...I've had two weeks now to think about that. It's still kind of mind-blowing that she likes me like that, to be honest," he admitted, his voice and face uncharacteristically flustered. "I guess I needed time to process everything, especially given what else got revealed during the sleepover." Jackson's gaze then knowingly shifted from Brittney to Comet. Now it was Brittney's turn to blush.

"D-don't change the subject," Brittney told Jackson. "If you've had so much time to think about it, then why haven't you acted on it?" she asked as she doubled down on her efforts. "Do you know how hard it is for a girl to confess to the person they like under normal circumstances? And Marcia has to deal with the added discomfiture of shouting it out while in the thrall of her emotions and not thinking straight. Even worse, though? You still need to take the opportunity to tell Marcia your intentions with her!"

"My intentions?" Jackson questioned aloud.

"Yes! You haven't taken the opportunity to acknowledge her feelings and give her a proper answer!" Brittney told him.

"How is that worse than him rejecting her, though?" Comet couldn't help but question.

"You don't get it, Comet," Brittney said as she turned her attention to the Prince. "For a girl in love, the worst thing isn't always getting rejected by the person they have feelings towards! Sometimes, it's the fact that they're uncertain as to whether that person will accept or reject them, and that uncertainty can eat away at them until they feel their self-confidence shattered!"

The way Brittney talked about this so passionately, Comet and Jackson couldn't help but feel like this was something personal to her. "Brittney, is it just me, or do you think you might be...projecting a little?" Comet still remembered the three-for-one confession he received from Brittney, Sabrina, and Aqua at the sleepover. In that regard, he was guilty of the same thing Brittney accused Jackson of doing to Marcia. It's not that he didn't like them or thought they weren't appealing; the more he thought about it, the more he could see how attractive the three girls were. It's just that after learning that Karla liked girls, Comet hadn't really thought about romance that much. He wanted things to develop organically on their own.

Realizing that they were getting off-topic, Comet took control of the conversation.

"Jackson, Brittney isn't wrong," Comet admitted. "You've had enough time to process Marcia's feelings for you. So why haven't said given her an answer or asked her out?"

Jackson got an embarrassed look as he started to avert his gaze from the two teens. "Well, the thing is...I don't dislike Marcia like that," he admitted as an image of a smiling Marcia came to mind. "She's pretty cute, one of the smartest people in school, really good at being a leader, and since she can fight as great as she does, she doesn't have to take shit from anyone. Honestly, I'm not surprised that more guys haven't tried asking her out before." Jackson winced, though, as he thought about Jeremy Birnbaum. "Guys her age, at least."

Comet couldn't help but get starry-eyed as he heard Jackson say this. "If you think all that, why haven't you asked her out yet?"

Jackson let out a sigh as he heard this question. "Well, and I know I'm going to sound like a jerk when I say this, but...I think it might be better if Marcia asked me out." Brittney and Comet arched an eyebrow at this, urging Jackson to continue. "It's just that we all know how Marcia has issues regarding self-confidence. She may seem tough to you, Comet, but she wasn't always like that. When I first met her, she was super timid and shy. It's taken her years to become as confident as she acts sometimes, and even then, she still has a ways to go." Jackson then chuckled. "But listen to me ramble. What I'm trying to say is, I thought that letting her make the first move would do wonders for her confidence in herself."

"So...you're just waiting for her to come to you?' Brittney asked as a look of realization came over her face. When Jackson's nod confirmed this, Brittney said the first thing that immediately came to mind: "That's kind of messed up, Thomas."

Choosing to ignore that last part, Comet decided to go for broke and ask Jackson the million-dollar question. "Jackson, I wanna know: if Marcia were to ask you out, would you say yes?"

Jackson thought about this for a few moments before finally giving his answer. "If she were to do so, I think I would. Yeah, I would say yes."

As soon as he heard those words come out of Jackson's mouth, Comet's face lit up like never before! Finally, Marcia's chance at happiness was within reach! All she had to do was work up the courage to ask the question!

I just hope she doesn't let whatever's happening hold her back. She's so close to happiness that she doesn't even realize it!


"What are we doing in front of my locker, Jonah?" Marcia asked the Filipino boy. After Comet and Brittney had pulled Jackson away, she had reluctantly decided to follow Jonah after he said he knew something about the...thing on her neck. "I don't think we'll find the answers we're looking for here."

"Au contraire, brunette hair," Jonah smirked as he proceeded to go to work on Marcia's locker. Much to her dismay, she saw the beanie-wearing boy could open the locker with minimal effort.

"How do you even know my...?"

"I got it from your diary," Jonah shamelessly admitted. "And yeah, I picked the lock to that," he added. Again, he had no shame saying so. As she watched to see what Jonah was doing in her locker in the first place, she saw him reach towards the very back, and, much to her surprise, he managed to remove the back panel! As Jonah tossed the metal sheet aside, Marcia saw a small hole jutting out from what should've been a solid wall.

What was inside the hole, though, wasn't surprising, and several strange books were illuminated by the glow of a candle.

"Okay, I'll bite. What is this stuff?"

"Some of my personal effects," Jonah admitted as he reached back to grab a particular book. "The Principal put a lid on me bringing this kind of stuff onto school grounds because he thought I would use them to burn the place down. So I've had to hide it here-last place they would think to look."

There is so much wrong with what he just said that I can't even-Marcia shook her head. She could worry about Jonah's secret hiding place later; the talking boil on her neck was a top priority.

"All right, here it is," Jonah said as he pulled out a book titled "Paranormal Folklore and Witchcraft, 5th Edition" and flipped through the pages.

"Ah-ha! I've seen your little twin before-"

"Don't call it that!"

"-and lo and behold! Look at this!" Jonah held the book at a page with a drawing at the top. It was an old drawing that looked to be from the early 17th century. Marcia guessed this because the people in the drawing all wore the attire popularly depicted by New England Puritans. What was most surprising, though, was that drawing depicted a group of people looking shocked at a man on his knee in front of a young woman. And out of that man's neck was the same affliction that Marcia suffered.

"It's called 'The Naysaya. The Naysaya grows out of the neck of its victim.'"

"Ah yes," the growth on Marcia's neck said with a wistful smile. "That was Naysaya when Naysaya was younger!"

"It says here that it reveals itself the afflicted attempts to woo their true love, exposing the victim's deepest, darkest secrets for all to hear."

"And to judge," Naysaya admitted.

Marcia paid the Naysaya no heed, though. Her mind was preoccupied by something else that stood out to her. Out of the corner of her eye, Marcia had noticed a familiar-looking figure in the background of the drawing. A figure with three eyes and horns growing out of its head.

"That? Oh, that's a Demon, and the Naysaya is a total Demon curse."

"A Demon?" Marcia groaned. If a Demon put this curse on her, then there was only one possibility as to who was responsible. While she had met Jonah's minion, Black Frost, in the past, there was only one Demon that Marcia knew well enough.

At that moment, Comet came running up to Marcia and Jonah with an excited look. "~Oh, Marcia!" Comet said in a singsong voice. "~Guess what I just heard-"

Before Comet could finish whatever he wanted to say, Marcia held her hand up to stop that.

"Not now, Comet," she said, her eyes obscured by shadow. "I need to borrow your dimensional scissors for a little bit."

Comet blinked in confusion, unsure what to make of Marcia's request. "Why do you-?"

"I need to make a quick stop somewhere, and then I need to go have a word with someone." That was all Marcia was willing to say to the two boys as she took the scissors, and it was all she would say before stepping into the portal. Scratch that; she also told Comet to tell the teachers that she went home with an upset stomach. It was a flimsy excuse, but it was the best she could've come up with.

"Oh, man. I should've gone with her!" Jonah groaned. "This shit's better than most dramas on TV!"

*Back in Jay's Workspace, Janna's munching on her popcorn like crazy.*

Janna: My handsome twin's right. This shit's better than TV dramas!

Jay: I mean, I would disagree, but the whole popcorn thing is something that I pretend to do when watching dramatic shit, so...

DAU Kermit: You munch on popcorn while watching people's lives fall apart? That's messed up, man.

Jay: Hey, this is one of the only ways I could convince myself to watch House of the Dragon at first. I got burned at the end of Game of Thrones, so I refused to make the mistake of getting emotionally attached to any of the characters.

TFS Nappa: So instead, you sit back and laugh at how dumb the cast is acting? Still messed up, man.

Jay: Well, I'm not wrong, you know. House of the Dragon is a show about how the Targaryen ran themselves into the ground. Now, what did you guys think about how I handled the Naysaya...and Jackson?

Janna: I think you did a good job. I mean, you gave him more of a role than Jackie had in the episode, and you had him acknowledge the events of the Sleepover rather than ignore them.

Rex: Rex was not expecting the mean girl to take an active role in the story!

Jay: I didn't plan on it at first, but then I realized that it would line up with the character development I've put into Brittney. She's still trying to make up for the years of bullying she inflicted on Marcia and helping her step up and get the guy she likes would go a long way to easing her sense of guilt. Granted, she's more of the "sink-or-swim" friend in this situation. Now, with that settled, and while we wait for our movie, let's do the thing. It's time for

READERS...Reviews? Guys, there are only three people so far. What the heck? Man, the fandom is not what it once was. Oh well. I'll give it until the next chapter.

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See you guys in two weeks! And really, I'm hoping more people come back!