As Alex walked through the empty streets, she couldn't shake off the loneliness and jealousy that gnawed at her heart. it got more painful with each step closer to home. She knew she needed a way to cope with these emotions fast.
As she got home, she walked upstairs and decided to take Miss Hoover's advice to heart. She sat on her bed and began to take deep breaths and meditate so she could clear her mind of the jealousy that slowly consumed her.
As she took deep breaths, she focused on the inhales and exhales, clearing her mind. It was difficult at first to remove those everlasting thoughts of jealousy from her mind. However, the more she focused on her thoughts, the feeling of jealousy gradually faded away over time.
After she was done with her session, she knew some form of jealousy was still there. However, she knew it was not as severe as earlier. Trying to make herself feel calmer and more at home she walked over to one of her drawers, picked up a pink bottle of perfume, and sprayed it over herself.
As she felt the perfume envelop her, she felt the sweet comfort that she was dying for, the perfume she sprayed over her self-reminded her of the good times of the past, which made her smile, content with her thoughts she walked back to her bed and sat on it, she knew that the best way to get rid of the jealousy would be to talk to Allison tomorrow so that the jealousy wouldn't build over time where it's too late to fix. With that thought in mind, she sat on her bed and began to analyze her thoughts.
Lisa Simpson is the happiest girl in the world at the moment. She had a great day at school, having fun in class as usual. However, the thing that made her truly happy was that she finally made a friend, not just any kind of friend. But someone she could call her best friend and always be by her side no matter what.
As Lisa walked home with her friend Allison, she turned to her and said, "So Allison." Wanna have a sleepover at my place this weekend?"
Allison pondered momentarily," Umm… sure, I don't mind having a sleepover at yours, Lisa."
Lisa smiled, grateful for her friend's response. "Alright then, because it's Friday tomorrow, why don't we have a sleepover on Saturday?" she asked. "It will give you a day to prepare for it."
Allison smiled and nodded, "That sounds good to me Lisa. But it's time for us to depart since I have to take a different route home compared to you.
Lisa understood that her friend lived far away from her and extended her hand." I understand i can't wait to have the sleepover at mine. Bestie!"
Allison smiled, shaking her hand. "Yeah I can't wait too, bestie."
They both departed unable to contain their excitement for Sunday's sleepover.
As Lisa arrived at her front door, she was filled with excitement about her sleepover with Allison. Feeling like nothing could throw her off her stride, she opened the front door and entered the house to see Marge sitting on the couch.
Marge noticed Lisa's happy mood and said" Hey Lisa you seem really happy. What happened at school today?
Lisa clasped her hands together. "Oh Mom I had an excellent day at school today. Do you remember that Allison person I mentioned a while back?
Marge nodded" Yeah, I remember Allison. Isn't she also a saxophonist?"
Lisa nodded" Yeah, she's the one. Anyway, I asked her if she wanted to come to my house this Saturday so that we can have a sleepover and she said yes!"
Marge smiled proud of her daughter making a friend. "Oh, that's great honey. Should I prepare some brownies for the special occasion to make her feel welcome?"
Lisa said" Of course, that would be an excellent idea. The only thing I'm worried about, however, is Bart. What happens if he starts to play his pranks? What happens if one of his pranks goes too far and causes Allison to go home early? Mom, you know I can't live with that." She said worried about the pranks her brother might play.
Marge frowned" Well don't worry my special little angel, I will sort Bart out no worry, Bart hardly ever follows adults' authority, however, he always listens to me."
Lisa smiled appreciating Marge's support, but suddenly something hit her in the face. As the mysterious object hit her, she felt something drop from her head and fall onto the floor.
Marge looked at the floor. "Why is the floor covered in green and blue paint?"
Lisa looked to her right where the sudden blast came from to see her brother laughing, sitting on the stairs.
"Ha, ha, Lisa you should have seen your face," he said and carried on laughing.
Lisa sighed and wiped the green and blue pain from her face." I didn't know you were running out of ideas that badly that you had to resort to flinging paintballs at me using your stupid slingshot.
Bart stopped laughing" Hey I'm not running out of ideas for my funny pranks. I'm just trying out new things."
Lisa crossed her arms, dissatisfied with Bart's shenanigans. However, before she could comment further on the situation's stupidity, Marge gained Bart and Lisa's attention by tapping the couch.
"Lisa and Bart sit on the couch with me," Marge said. "Let's watch the news together and spend time as a family," Marge said gesturing for them to sit next to her.
Lisa and Bart groaned and sat next to each other. As they both sat on the sofa, they noticed something was missing.
Bart turned to Marge and said," Hey Marge, where is Maggie?"
Listening to Bart's words Marge began to worry about Maggie's whereabouts. "I'm not sure, let me find out here."
But as she was about to stand up and search for Maggie, she felt her hair move slightly. She looked up to see Maggie hiding in her hair.
Marge laughed when she looked up to see Maggie peeking out of her fluffy blue hair. "Oh, there you are Maggie. You sure know how to hide? "Don't you?" she asked with a mix of amusement and relief.
Lisa and Bart joined in on the laughter, temporarily forgetting the incident they just had.
Lisa reached his hand up to Maggie's hair and stroked it. "Who's a good Maggie? Yeah, you are!" she said happily and stroked her hair.
Bart's eyes narrowed and he said, "Lisa, uhh… are you talking to Maggie like she's a dog? Do you know how weird you sound?"
"Actually, when I think about it, I see where you are coming from," she said and laughed sheepishly."
Marge picked Maggie out of her hair and cradled her; she picked up the remote lying on the couch next to her and used it to turn the TV on and change the channel to the news channel.
As they switched to the updated channel, news reporter Kent Brockman was sitting down ready to give out the news. " Hey, guys it's me, Kent Brockman. Here, our latest news story comes from the Springfield power plant, as safety inspector Homer Simpson is interviewed by our production team."
The family of 4 look at each other confused about what they heard. They turn their heads back to the TV and the channel cuts to a camera view of sector 7G, Homer's room at work. A news reporter holds a microphone for Homer to talk out of
The reporter with the microphone asks" So Homer, what are you planning on doing to change Mr. Burns' power plant, so that the environment is safer for everyone?"
Homer looking a bit nervous about being on live TV replied, "Well, I have been working on safety protocols for my fellow workers so that if they get into a dangerous situation, they will know what to do, and how to combat the problem.
The reporter continues: "That's a step in the right direction. However, there has been a lot of buzz recently about the power plants' effect on the environment. This includes the owner himself Mr Burns who is being sued over nuclear power leaks into the public. This has begun to negatively impact the environment.
Homer considered how to answer "Yes, we will stop the nuclear power from leaking into the environment, so Springfield and the oceans won't be affected by it. Also answering the other question about Mr Burns being sued. My safety skills will reduce or eliminate the case by getting workers to remove nuclear power leakage in the environment and improve the plant's safety."
As Homer talked to the reporter about nuclear safety, Mr. Burns sat on his chair. This is a throne at this point from his television, he watches over Homer.
Mr Burns turned to Smithers and said" Smithers, who is this Homer guy and why is he on the news talking about nuclear safety?
Smithers said" You see burns that's Homer Simpson who works in sector 7G, he is our leading safety inspector for the plant."
Burns slammed his hand onto his desk, saying "That Homer Simpson ay. He is destined to get it, hiding behind our backs saying we are trying to help the public. Ha, the public will never receive anything from us. Not a single dollar, not even a single penny. They will never get anything out of us, and I mean it, Smithers."
As Mr Burns was seething with anger, Smithers looked down at him with his hand behind his back and said" You know Burns, maybe investing our money into improving the plant's safety could be a good idea, we would avoid lawsuits and, making the plant safer and cleaning up all the nuclear power that is infecting the environment we live in would cost less money than being sued, so what do you think Burns?"
He clasped his hands together. "So you're saying if I pay for the improvements to the plant's safety and the environment's safety, is that right?" he asked. Then I would save money by avoiding the lawsuit?" Mr. Burns pondered for a moment letting it sink in. "Very well, Smithers, but I will only do it if it means that I can live my luxurious life still. Safety is good for business, but extravagance is good for my soul.
Smithers readjusted his glasses" because of the revelation Homer helped us come up with. Are you planning to promote Homer? He'll save us millions of dollars."
Mr Burns sat back on his chair and said" he's only liable to get a promotion Smithers if he can show us that he's a dedicated worker and will put his heart and soul into this business."
Smithers nodded, appreciating Mr. Burns' willingness to give this idea a chance. "Well if you do give him a promotion, it will be the first time in a while that you have actually given someone a promotion."
Burns listened to what Smithers said and nodded" That's because all of my workers are loud slobs who don't even do their jobs properly. Do you remember Smithers? I lost my plant a while ago because I had a bunch of yes men who refused to tell me the truth about how well I was doing money-wise.
Smithers replied, "That's true, but maybe you should thank Homer the next time you see him. It was his daughter who helped you repurchase the plant.".
Mr Burns frowned. "I am not willing to thank Homer for something he didn't do. I even offered 12 million to his daughter as a thank you, but she refused because she wanted integrity whatever that means."
"It was only a suggestion, Mr Burns. But now we will have to see what this Homer Simpson can do for our business," Smithers said as they watched the interview.
Back on TV, Homer promised the public that the power plant and public safety would be improved. However, it will take time to implement it.
The live feed ended, leaving the family sitting there with their own thoughts. She turned to her mom and said, "Wow, I didn't think Dad would apply the knowledge from the book so quickly. I'm glad he took all the knowledge out of the book and applied it in real life. If he keeps it up maybe, he might get a promotion."
Bart shrugged and glared at the television. "It's about time the power plant sorted itself out. Milhouse and I have encountered toxic goo many times in the woods. I'm surprised no one hasn't died yet."
Marge chimed in" Yeah, I agree with you, Bart, my special little guy. They really need to get their act together and fast. I'm glad that Homer has proven himself to be a great leader of the plant."
Bart blushed and covered his face "Mom… stop calling me a special little guy, you know how embarrassing it is for me." He said and began to smile
Marge chuckled and said," Oh come on Bart, you will always be my special little guy no matter how tall or old you get." Marge said and turned to Lisa" Yeah Lisa I do agree, if Homer keeps this up and gets a promotion then that would totally help us afford the stuff we want in the future."
Bart nudged closer to Marge and said" Well if I am going to be your little guy forever Mom, then I will be the most fantastic special little guy in the world, not just in the world but the entire galaxy, I will be the best, and will not stop at nothing to be the most loving son ever." He said as he hugged his mom.
Listening to Barts's words Marge felt tears flow down her face as she was proud of her son. "You are the best son I could ever ask for."
Lisa watched as her mother and son entered a soft embrace and smiled at the sight. But as she watched the cuteness unfold in front of her, she realized she needed to plan her sleepover.
So, she got up from the sofa and said" Well it's been fun family hang out guys, but I need to start planning my sleepover this Saturday with Allison, so bye." She said and began to walk off.
But as she walked up the stairs, she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned around to see Bart. "Wow, Lisa, you're having a friend come over and have a sleepover?" Bart said.
Lisa nodded" Yeah Bart. Am I not allowed a sleepover?"
Bart smiled, "I'm not saying you can't have a sleepover. No, what I'm saying is that your friend will have to watch out. That's because when the Bart man strikes once, the domino effect starts, and she will crumble. One by one each prank will get her and BAM." He clicked his fingers together. "She will be prankified and Bart Simpson himself will be the last one standing."
Lisa's eyes widened, confused about whatever his brother was talking about." Are you sure you haven't sneaked into Dad's secret stash of Duff beer and chugged it all down? You are acting strange."
Bart laughed" No I haven't, but Lisa your friend better watch out because when Bart man strikes then…" but before he could carry on Lisa interrupted him" Goddammit Bart you sound like a broken record. Was school today really that boring?"
As Bart nodded, he told her, "Yeah school was boring today. I can't lie about it, today was boring. There is still a lot of energy left in me to use up. That's why I flew that paint at your face using the slingshot earlier because I needed to release some of that energy.
As Bart mentioned the slingshot Lisa looked down at the ground to see that some paint had dried on the ground. She looked up to see it dried in her hair.
She said, "Bart, I cannot be bothered right now with your antics. I need to clean my hair fast, so the paint doesn't stick onto my hair forever." She said and ran up the stairs, trying to escape his sight.
As Bart was about to leave, she heard Marge call him. He cringed and turned around to see why he had been called.
"You know, just because we had that sweet moment doesn't mean I'm willing to let you leave after messing up my carpet. Before you go upstairs, I want you to clean the mess you made."
Bart sighed and collected the supplies he needed to clean the floor. As he got the equipment, he started sweeping the carpet and after a couple of minutes, it was fully cleaned. Marge gave him approval to go upstairs, and Bart let out a sigh of relief and began his journey upstairs.
As the hours passed, the family members worked on their own separate activities. Lisa was planning her sleepover and wondering what drinks she should get and what movie she should put on to play for the two of them.
As for Bart, he was sitting in his room scheming out the latest pranks he could use to mess with Lisa and her friend. This was so he could entertain himself for the night.
As they were in the middle of their own planning Marge called them down for dinner. They joined Marge at the dinner table and began eating their delicious food. In the middle of the family gathering, Homer returned from work and joined the family at the table. He discussed the latest changes he plans to make to the power plant.
While Homer explained the changes he was planning to implement, his family watched him deliver his promises and smiled at him. They were proud of his sudden change of heart to help his family and the town in need.
After dinner, Bart ran back up to his room and continued his scheming while Lisa completed the last preparations for her sleepover.
Later in the evening, Lisa sat on her chair in her room writing in her journal placed on her desk." Dear diary, please let this sleepover be a success. This is the first and could be the last time I ever have one. I know I haven't asked for many things, but can this be the exception? Please let this be a successful sleepover." She wrote in her book.
She closed the journal and looked at the time on the wall. it was 9 pm and she knew she needed to sleep soon.
Lisa got up from her chair and entered the hallway. She walked over to the bathroom and opened the door to darkness. She flicked on the light switch and walked to the sink to grab her toothbrush. She squished a bit of the toothpaste, which landed on her brush.
She scrubbed her teeth for minutes. When she was done, she poured herself a cup of water and spat it out of her mouth.
She headed back to her bedroom and turned off the light, she lay in her bed, hoping that Saturdays sleepover was going to be a success.