The Watterson family below the balcony above were jubilant, Darwin being hugged by all of the family members surrounding him, with Carrie giving him a soft kiss on the cheek, which made him blush and smile in reaction to it.
Above on the balcony Tristan and Gumball were absolutely ecstatic in their excitement.
"YEAH! THAT'S RIGHT ELMORE WE'RE GOING ON A VACATION AGAIN! WE WON! YOU LOST! HA! HA! I DON'T HAVE TO SIT AT A DESK FOR THE REST OF THE SUMMER AGAIN! WOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOO!"
Tristan's eyes suddenly opened at the sight he saw while on his Dad's shoulders, promptly tapping him on the head frantically.
"Uh, Dad? You may want to stop doing that, heh, heh."
But Gumball persisted in his gloating towards all of the Elmore citizens present in the mall.
"YOU ALL HONESTLY BELIEVED GUMBALL WATTERSON WAS GOING TO BE THE SUBJECT OF LAUGHTER AND SCORN?! IN YOUR FACE ELMORE! I AM GOING ON AN AMAZING CRUISE IN THE SUNSHINE!"
As Gumball lowered his head again to look down from the upper balcony, the entire mall was silent and more than irritated at his boastful remarks, as silent murmurs and scorn could be heard.
The rest of the Watterson family below were silently chuckling, with Penny and Nicole desperately trying to hide their laughter.
"Ni-Nicole?"
Penny stammering the words to the blue feline standing next to her, as both of their faces were turning beet red from laughing so hard.
"Was Gu-ha ha-was Gumball always this vibrant as a kid in your home?"
Nicole now began to regain a bit of her composure.
"Oh Penny...Gummypuss was always like this ever since he was just an infant, it has never really gone away...but that's why we both love him so much...despite all of the antics and embarrassing situations he can put us through."
(If Good Vibrations by The Beach Boys is compatible/available on your device, please press play now)
The Watterson family convoy was once again on the move to the Elmore harbor the very next day, where the cruise ship was scheduled to depart for Hawaii. The evening sun and clear sky provided a beautiful backdrop, as Gumball lowered the sunroof of his convertible family sedan to allow the breeze and beautiful scenery to be enjoyed by Penny and the kids.
"What a view!"
Gumball stated as they were driving along the shore view of the beach side highway they were driving along.
"It truly is honey."
Penny then leaning on her husband's shoulder from the passenger side.
Gumball then saw his father's vehicle in front of them, which was leading the family convoy towards the cruise ship, which was just coming into view, as it crested over the hill on the horizon.
"Now THAT is one massive cruise ship! It's built like Fort Sumter!"
Gumball exclaimed, as the Watterson family vehicles were parking into their respective spots next to one another in the lot.
"Alright Penny, I'll take care of our bags, you and the kids can get yourself situated in our room aboard the vessel. I believe our rooms are directly adjacent to Carrie and Darwin's, along with Patrick and Judith's, while Mom and Dad are just down the hall. So we shouldn't get lost from each other and be able to keep tabs with one another...at least we SHOULDN'T get lost from one another, you understand how these situations usually transpire."
Penny chuckled from the adorable and awkward explanation her adorable feline of a husband gave.
"No worries honey, take your time and please be careful with the bags, there's some fragile items in some of them."
Penny then exited the car with Penelope and Tristan and made their way towards the vessel, Vlad and Anastasia quickly catching up with Carrie holding their hands.
Darwin, Nicole and Richard walked over, with Richard and Darwin carrying their respective bags as well.
"It seems we're pretty prepared for this vacation, judging by the weight of these bags!"
Darwin exclaimed in an exhausted tone, with Richard next to him also visibly exhausted.
"Well at least we have a few snacks packed, no trip would truly be complete without that!"
Nicole had a slight smirk and rolled her eyes at Richard, which gave him a slight unnerved expression engulf his demeanor, as he became slightly intimidated.
"I'm glad you're here too Nicole, you know that! Heh heh..."
Nicole quickly changed her expression to one of pleasure and happiness.
"I know Richard, I'm just messing with you, no vacation would be complete without you either! Remember when you caramelized the engine of our car with marshmallows when we went on that vacation with the kids?"
Just then Gumball and Darwin changed their expressions to that of terror when harkening back to the memory of that vacation, when they were under the assumption that they were all going to be eaten for dinner by the stranger who helped them.
"Oh come on guys! That was a complete misunderstanding, remember? Despite his rather...grisly and unhygienic appearance, he actually was a very kind and nice man!"
Gumball and Darwin then looked at one another and scoffed, before Gumball spoke up.
"Mom...didn't you run away as well with us when you also assumed he was going to kill and eat us for dinner?"
Nicole's eyes then widened at the recollection and realization that her son was right.
"Oh right...almost forgot about that Gummypuss, I think you two can forgive your mother for being afraid, and I do remember trying to be the voice of rationality."
Nicole, her husband and sons soon burst into a long bout of laughs at the memory, before joining for a group hug.
"Well we better catch up with the rest of the family...did Anais take the rest of your bags Mrs. Mom and Mr. Dad?"
Nicole then nodded.
"Richard and Anais decided to split the load of luggage between the two of them...plus she mentioned that she got a bit of practice by having to carry Granny JoJo's bag every time she would come and visit us when you guys were kids."
Darwin laughed, but noticed Gumball had an expression of horror.
"What's wrong dude?"
Gumball then slowly turned.
"Oh nothing dude...just mentally reliving having to greet Granny Jojo as a kid...*Shudders*"
Darwin fully understanding what he meant, decided to change the topic of discussion to deter from the clearly disturbing memory his brother had.
"Well I guess we better catch up to Anais and the others aboard the vessel, I'm sure everyone is making the necessary preparations in their rooms before they disembark!"
Gumball then had one last remark before the group moved onto the vessel.
"It seems everyone got into the tropical spirit for sure, judging by our attire!"
Darwin and Richard were wearing floral pattern Hawaiian shirts, along with shorts and sunglasses. Gumball wore shorts as well, but was wearing a polo shirt, with a distinct red and black pattern. Nicole on the other hand had a beautiful sunhat and sunglasses, with the former having a beautiful pink rose to accompany its design. She also wore a beautiful floral pattern summer dress that complimented her blue fur with a yellow pattern.
"Well we are going to Hawaii after all! It's only natural that we dress appropriately for the occasion! Say- Gumball? Since when did you grow an affinity for wearing sandals?"
Nicole remarked with her observation, as Gumball looked down towards his feet and smirked.
"Well uh- Patrick kinda provided a deal in one of the local shoe and summer wear businesses he had invested in...and this was the gift he provided as a present on my birthday..."
Gumball responded, as he scratched the back of his head slowly after his explanation.
"Oh that's so sweet of you Gumball! I know that sandals were not your choice of footwear as a kid...mainly because we couldn't afford the luxury of footwear- But I am so glad you are doing it out of courtesy to respectfully wear his gift!"
Gumball's eyes widened.
"Wait how did you-"
"A mother can always sense what her children is thinking..."
Nicole winked and pointed to her head as she said this, as Gumball chuckled a bit.
"Yeah...I've certainly witnessed Penny's ability to do that with Tristan and Penelope...I guess mother's really do possess that ability...Speaking of which, I guess I can understand your position better now for when you wanted to accept gifts and hand-me-downs from Granny JoJo in the past!"
Nicole suddenly shuddered at the memory of the numerous vases that were provided to her when JoJo no longer saw the need to keep them.
"Yeah...right Gumball."
Richard soon interjected into the conversation.
"No worries son! Your mother gave me these green flip flops as a birthday present, and at first I was not fond of them, but I soon grew an affinity for them considering it was a kind and loving gesture from your mother, so I'm sure the same will happen for you with your sandals!"
Gumball and Nicole smiled.
"Thanks Dad, I'm sure they will too."
Nicole gave a peck on the cheek to the pink bunny.
"That was very wise of you Richard...and compassionate."
The pink bunny then blushed, as Darwin soon dawned a confused expression.
"Uh guys? Is it just me or is the cruise ship...moving?"
All four adults were now gazing at the cruise ship, which was now blaring its horn signaling that it was making its departure away from the harbor.
"TIME TO PICK UP THE PACE!"
Gumball panicked, as all four were sprinting towards the vessel from across the parking lot, adrenaline pumping as the weight of the bags were negligible out of the sheer panic that the four of them would miss their vacation with the rest of their family.
"Look! One of the doors has not closed yet on the vessel! We're gonna have to jump to make it!"
Nicole then cupped her paws to her mouth and shouted to one of the crew staff aboard the vessel who was about to close the door.
"HEY! KEEP THAT DOOR OPEN, WE'RE COMING ABOARD!"
"I'm sorry madam! But we are departing at the momen-"
Before the crewman could finish his sentence, Nicole had leaped from across the gap of water, separating the land from the vessel, and landed inside the ship next to the employee.
She glared at the crew member.
"I said, we're boarding the ship!"
As she grabbed a hold of his collar, intimidating the crew member with her gaze and frightening tone.
"Su-su-sure ma-madam! Whatever yo-you say!"
Nicole then let go of the orange humanoid's collar and looked back towards her husband and two son's desperately trying to keep up with the vessel, and running across the pavement, which was quickly reaching the ocean.
"Pass the luggage to me, I'll catch it! Then you guys can jump across!"
All three nodded at one another and threw the luggage at Nicole.
She caught some of them before being bombarded by the rest.
"Not all at the same time!"
Gumball then cupped his hands.
"Sorry Mom! But we really don't have time to be doing this in an orderly fashion, we're running out of parking lot!"
Nicole then nodded, as what her son stated was totally justified pertaining to the current circumstances.
"Alright! Quickly, jump over!"
Richard was the first to jump over, and caught the ledge of the door, and was helped up by Nicole.
"That diet plan really worked honey!"
Nicole softly chuckled as Richard smiled at her.
Darwin jumped over with ease due to his longer legs giving greater velocity and height in his jump.
Gumball was all that was left.
He quickly looked down at the space between the ship and the lot, and saw the water...oh how he loathed the water.
"Come on dude! You need to jump now or else you'll never make it!"
Darwin shouted, as Nicole and Richard gestured to their son to jump.
Gumball looked over.
"Well...here goes nothing!"
Gumball leaped across, and what looked like was going to be an easy jump for him, considering his feline agility, quickly turned out to be not enough as he looked down and saw that he was going to be just short, as a face of panic and sorrow soon flashed over his face.
"Oh no..."
Gumball fell down into the depths of the water, as Darwin, Richard, and Nicole screamed and gasped as they could see no trace of their lovable blue feline.
Nicole dropped to her knees, tears starting to form in her eyes.
"Gumball...no..."
Richard placed a paw and hugged his wife, as Darwin crouched and did the same, consoling the now grieving mother.
Suddenly there was a dripping of water that could audibly be heard as the family continued to cry.
"Next time guys...we talk on the ship instead of in the parking lot."
The family soon glanced up to see Gumball completely drenched and frowning, clearly showing that he was not very content in his current drenched state, his fur now giving an uncomfortable feeling to him being wet.
"Oh Gumball!"
Nicole screamed as she rushed to embrace her son, gripping tightly onto him, as Darwin and Richard soon joined in one of the Watterson's many signature group hugs.
"Uh-guys!? I'm being asphyxiated... by my own family... after nearly being drowned!"
The Watterson's quickly let go of Gumball.
"We're just so glad you're safe! We thought you were dead bro!"
Gumball had a slight smile.
"I'm a cat! I have nine lives, remember? Besides, for how many near death experiences I've had and survived, do you honestly believe that dying from a missed jump is going on my epitaph? That would be the most embarrassing and anti-climatic death ever!"
Suddenly the Watterson's pondered what Gumball said and soon began nodding and vocalizing in agreement.
"But, how did you get back onto the ship?"
Gumball then laughed at his father's question.
"Oh you guys will never believe it! I got in through the anchor hatch!"
Darwin then lit up with excitement.
"Well that's pretty convenient! Luck must have been on your side to land next to the anchor to be able to ride it onto the ship."
"Oh no Darwin, I landed ON TOP of the anchor!"
*Scene cuts to the flashback of Gumball hitting the anchor on impact with his head*
The Watterson family then flinched at the obvious pain such an event would cause.
"How did you maintain consciousness? Or as a matter of fact...how are you NOT dead?"
Nicole questioned as Gumball looked to her with a smile and put both paws to his side with pride.
"Well, I guess there are perks to being born with a big head after all! It spares you from severe head trauma and death!"
The group then laughed together and once again hugged.
"Well, let's go find our appropriate rooms and the rest of the family!"
Darwin stated, as the four of them made their way through the vast and expansive hallways that was a part of the vessel, the many staff and passengers walking past them, as they made their way to their designated cabins.
Soon the rest of the Watterson family came into view.
Penny and Carrie were standing by the Watterson kids, along with the rest of the Watterson adults.
"There you guys are! We were worried sick about you all! What happened?"
Richard, Darwin, Gumball, and Nicole all looked at one another, before Nicole finally went over and placed a paw on Penny's shoulder.
"No worries Penny, it will be a good story sometime when we're all around a campfire or dinner table."
Penny then smiled, as the Watterson family began filing themselves into their respective cabins.
Nicole then went over to Richard to help him with the bags.
"Well everyone! We'll see you at dinner later this evening, we're just down the hallway if you need us!"
Richard stated, as him and Nicole made their way down the hallway towards their cabin.
Tristan and Penelope soon ran over to their father, who was still drenched from head to toe.
"Dad! Dad! You got to see how big our room is! We have this massive bed, and beautiful view! You can see the entire ocean!"
Gumball smiled at the two of them before giving them a hug.
"Alright kiddos, no worries, I'll be there in just a moment."
Tristan and Penelope soon ran back into the room and audible laughing could be heard inside.
Penny smirked at her husband Gumball.
"Are you going to explain how you got yourself completely drenched before even stepping onboard?"
Gumball smiled and gave a hug and kiss to her.
"Don't worry, it will be a good story to tell over the course of dinner tonight, let's just get situated for now, it's been a pretty busy day."
Penny smiled, as both parents walked in on their kids having a pillow fight on top of their beds.
Both smiled as the sight of their kids happiness and anticipation for this vacation has been long awaited...granted with a bit of luck of course.
"Okay guys, I really don't want to rain on your guys' parade, but the monkey got to stop jumping in the bed temporarily until your mother and I can get our things packed away and situated.
Both kids let out disappointed sighs, but quickly turned to face the window.
Tristan was sitting next to his sister, looking out from the room window towards the sea, as the view of Elmore began to disappear further and further into the horizon, soon becoming just a tiny spec of land in the distance.
"Hey Dad?"
Tristan asked, as Gumball was next to Penny helping her place their vacation clothes into the nearby wardrobe and drawers.
"Yes Tristan?"
"Do you believe there are any uncharted islands out there that we haven't discovered?"
Gumball looked to Penny with a slight smile, and she gave a nod.
"Well...considering the amount of satellites we have in orbit of our planet, mapping every last nook and cranny, I doubt there hasn't been anything out there that we haven't discovered, besides the deepest depths of our oceans."
Tristan looked back to Penelope with a frown.
"So...you don't believe there's something out there?"
Gumball stopped packing for a second and looked to Penny with an expression that screamed "I do not want to crush his dreams."
He slowly turned back to his son, who was eagerly waiting for an answer.
"Well little man, the chances are rather slim...but who knows? Perhaps there truly is something civilization has not discovered!"
Tristan and Penelope soon gasped in wonder and awed at what their father said, as Penny leaned in close to her husbands ear to whisper.
"Good work Gumball, that was very smooth."
This soon got a smile from Gumball, as he always loved hearing the admiration of Penny ever since he was a young boy, and it certainly didn't change now as a young adult.
Soon evening approached, as Gumball and the kids laid down on one of the beds watching T.V, with Gumball having both of his arms wrapped around both, the sunset shimmering off the water outside the port hole of their room set the stage for a beautiful evening dinner.
Penny wore one of her casual sundresses for the evening dinner, as she emerged from the washroom after a shower and quick change of attire to freshen up.
"Sorry to keep you all waiting, but despite it being a rather casual dinner, I did want to look somewhat nice...heh."
Gumball soon turned to face Penny with a smile.
"Penny? You look absolutely stunning no matter what!"
Penny soon blushed and awed.
"Thank you honey! That's so sweet of you! Now, are we all ready and prepared for our evening dinner?"
The kids soon cheered, as Gumball quickly switched the T.V off, him wearing a polo shirt and beige shorts, and his now casual paws, instead of sandals or flip flops.
"Finally...a nice relaxing dinner and joyful cruise to Hawaii...should be very relaxing and tranquil...right?"
*END OF CHAPTER*