Getting the Family back Together (REVISED)
The sun shone through the curtains of the master bedroom of Gumball and Penny. Gumball, who had just finished a long treacherous shift the previous night, was anticipating finishing this one today; as it was his last before spending a "vacation" with his family. This mostly involved him taking them out for a small outing, but nothing too extravagant or extraordinary.
He truly felt ashamed to not have had anything big planned for his family, but he kept repeating in his mind that this time would be different.
Penny slowly opened her eyes, facing the open window with the glistening sun brightening her golden skin. She noticed Gumball was still fast asleep, his blue fur on top of his head in complete disarray.
"He really has a lot of mental fortitude, last shift was killer for him.." She thought, as she gently caressed his head to wake him up from his slumber.
The blue feline soon twitched an ear, before opening one eye.
"Wha-what?" He groggily exclaimed dawning a very humorous bedface, his fur flattened to one side; as he faced Penny.
Penny let out a chuckle.
"Good morning sleepy head!" She expressed, before continuing to smooth and fix his fur.
"What time is it?" Gumball asked starting to gain a better bearing of his surroundings.
"7:00 a.m"
Gumball didn't have to begin his shift until 9, but he always appreciated Penny waking him up so he could prepare; and also spend what minimal quality time he could scrounge together with his family in the morning.
"Thanks honey!" Before pretending to snore loudly.
This roused a sarcastic laugh from the yellow fairy.
"Oh ha ha!" As she proceeded to give him a playful nudge.
"Hey, that's not nice!" Gumball exclaimed.
He then leaned in to initiate a passionate kiss, along with the warm embrace of a hug.
"Excited for the last shift of the week before our vacation?" The yellow fairy's eyes filled with excitement and anticipation.
"More like hoping to survive the last shift..." Gumball stated, before rising to a sitting position in the bed against the cushioned material of the headboard.
"Just a few more hours honey, try to trudge through it." Penny then placed her hand on her husband's shoulder.
"Thanks, honey." Gumball sighed, before giving a heartfelt smile towards the love of his life.
Suddenly, there was a small knock on the door.
"Come in kids!" Gumball exclaimed staring at the door with a continued smile.
A blue feline and golden fairy soon entered, with jubilant expressions, before jumping on the bed towards their father and mother. Tristan, the blue cat who bared a striking resemblance to his father at his age, soon crept up beside him. His son also inherited the cunning and intuitive nature of his grandmother Nicole, which sometimes freaked Gumball out on occasion; as to how similar the two were.
"DAD! DAD! ARE YOU EXCITED FOR OUR VACATION!?" Tristan yelled.
"You know I'm excited little man! Dad should be able to get off early this time around as well! So it will give us plenty of time to pack our things in our suitcases this evening, and leave bright and early in the morning!" Gumball stated, before patting the top of Tristan's head.
Tristan had just begun his first year of elementary school, much to the surprise of Gumball, who only felt like it was yesterday when they brought him back home from the hospital as an infant.
"I'm super excited too dad!" A small voice soon piped up beside Penny.
"We know you are Penelope, we're going to make this vacation especially memorable this time around." Penny reassured the small golden fairy.
Penelope, who looked just like her mother before her, just began her first year of primary, but if one got to know her even further; would soon find that she was beyond her years in wisdom and intelligence.
"One more shift guys and we're golden!" Gumball expressed, before making a celebratory gesture with both paws raised into the air.
This received laughs and smiles from ear to ear as the family exchanged a group hug.
"Now, let's commence the day shall we?" Gumball said in a humorously exaggerated formal tone that received laughs from everyone once again.
The two Watterson children went off to their rooms to get prepared for school.
Gumball rose from the bed in his pajama shorts and classic red striped pajama shirt.
"It's amazing they still had that exact pajama set in men's!" Penny stated admiring the blue feline.
"I'm glad they did honestly, they're the most comfortable pajamas I've worn since I was a kid." Gumball then proceeded to stretch, as he made his way to the bedroom closet to pick out his work attire and tie.
Gumball took his outfit and proceeded to the washroom to have a shower and rejuvenate himself for the morning commute ahead of him.
Once exiting the washroom in his grey work pants and work shirt, he attempted to place the final piece; the Rainbow Factory company pin.
"Honey, would you mind helping me with this please?" Gumball pleaded, still struggling to place it on the right side of his chest.
Penny rose from the bed, walking over with the same warm smile that made Gumball's day a little better each time she expressed it.
"It always baffled me how you had no problem with fixing on your tie, but the pin was always a struggle for you!" The fairy said, quickly adjusting the needle into the lock mechanism of the pin.
"It's my paws and claws, they're not really made for small and intricate lock mechanisms! Plus my tie is a clip-on, Dad always told me it saved him a lot of hassle."
This made the fairy chuckle at the blue cat's innocence and still childish ways. It reminded her of why she loved him so much and expressed an immeasurable amount of compassion for him.
"Did I ever tell you that you look so handsome in a work jacket and tie?" The fairy said, pulling on the tie to have the cat face to face with the her.
The blue cat was at first stunned by the sudden action, but gained an immediate admiration for the fairy's captivating facial features and shimmering eyes; just as the fairy was admiring the light blue eyes of the blue feline.
"Well Mrs. Watterson, you're looking especially stunning today as well..." He said as he finished this observational remark, both had engaged in one more passionate kiss.
"Come on mister, we have to get prepared for the upcoming day." The fairy then exited the room and proceeded down the staircase at the far end of the hallway, leaving the sight of the blue feline.
"Gumball Watterson, I don't think you realize how very lucky you are to have a wife like her..." The blue cat thought, still awestruck by the fairy's beauty.
He then gathered his work bag and proceeded to head down the stairs to meet his family at the dinner table. The house layout, almost identical to his original family home but without the wood varnish and better furniture, was comforting to the family and was more than sufficient to their needs. To Gumball Watterson, it was the perfect place to raise a family.
The family quickly finished their breakfast, which consisted of bacon and eggs made by Penny. Gumball checked his watch, and noticed the time: 8:30AM. He quickly said goodbye to his family, giving a hug to each of his kids and wished them a good day at school; before making his way towards the doorway.
"Wait!" Penny exclaimed, as she quickly rushed to her husband who was just about to turn the doorknob of the front door.
"Listen honey, I know it can be stressful at your job sometimes, I wish I could be helping contribute with my teaching job with kindergarten; but it was just super draining to have to deal with kids at your job AND at home." The fairy looking with a bit of shame.
The blue cat soon dawned a smile.
"Honey, there's absolutely no need to apologize, I hated seeing you so out of it when you came home in the evening depressed. I'm more than willing to take the responsibility of bread winner for as long as you need me to. It's the least I could do as your husband, and any other man of understanding would say the same thing. Remember Penny, I married you because I love you as a person and who you are; not the occupation or what your resumé states..."
The fairy almost felt the need to cry at these heartfelt words, but quickly hugged the slightly taller cat and rested her head on his chest. The two Watterson children were smiling at each other from this show of affection from the dinner table.
"Be safe at work today!" The fairy said, expressing deepest concern in her tone.
"I always am." The blue feline said, departing from the porch, opening the front door; and making his way down the patio steps towards their black sedan.
The Elmore school bus then pulled up to the curb across the street, and signaled the nearby children to hop aboard; extending the flashing red stop sign on the side of the bus.
"Hey kids, your bus is here!" The fairy motioned for the two kids to get ready.
"Hey Mom, do you think Dad knows of the surprise?" Tristan asked.
"He will, and knowing your father he will be absolutely thrilled!" The Mother fairy quickly hugging the blue cat and fairy.
Tristan and Penelope then walked to the bus stop, and boarded the school bus; excited for the last day before their vacation.
(If the song The Show is Free by Doc Walker is compatible with your device, please press play now)
Gumball drove through the suburbs and residential areas of Elmore, the sun and blue sky perfectly setting the mood for the last day before the long awaited family vacation; and he was going to make sure it was done properly this time.
He always enjoyed the morning commute, despite the sometimes congested traffic during rush hour. It always provided a bit of clarity in his mind before a day of endless paper work and numbers streaming at his face for hours on end. He enjoyed accounting somewhat, it provided a quiet working environment for him to think clearly; but the constant number crunching gave him mental fatigue very quickly. It also didn't help that he suffered from dyslexia when reading and writing his reports for his boss.
He soon pulled into the factory parking lot and made his way inside to the office department in the factory's interior. With much predictability, the day went as usual. On lunch breaks he would speak to Tobias and Banana Joe about recent events with their families, with sometimes bringing up past memories and hobbies they shared as students at Elmore Junior high.
Finally, the shift bell rang out as it did for the many decades the factory had been in operation, signaling the end of the work day. Gumball compiled and completed his evening report and checked out at the front desk, receiving his paycheck for the week. The evening sunset and sounds of the surrounding town provided a calming embrace for Gumball, he was finally going to provide the vacation that his family deserved.
As he drove up to the house, he noticed a band of cars parked out front.
"What the what?" Visibly confused by the abnormal number of cars in front of the house. He parked at the opposite side of the street, as there was nowhere to park in close proximity to the home.
He quickly noticed the lights inside the home had flickered off, with the front curtain shut, but someone was obviously peeking through a corner of it; before quickly drawing the curtain away in quick reaction.
"Something is afoot..." He stated, as he made his way up the patio steps towards the front door. He unlocked the door and shut it behind him and just as he did, all the lights in the room simultaneously turned on almost at once; blinding the blue cat temporarily.
When he regained his sight, his jaw dropped to the floor.
"SURPRISE!" The entire Watterson family shouted.
Gumball saw every relative and sibling he knew in the room, with Tristan and Penelope standing by his wife; Penny.
Standing in the middle of the crowd was a familiar face: His mother, Nicole, who was smiling with loving intent towards her son.
"Hello Gummypuss, ready to go vacationing?"
The blue cat still stunned, then mustered the courage and ability to formulate a coherent sentence from the shock and awe.
"Ni-ni-nice to see you again Mom! You mean everyone here is going to be together on this vacation?"
"Well of course! Penny and I arranged this a week ago when she told me you were going to have a few days off from work!"
The male feline then brandished a wide smile, with his left eye noticeably twitching.
"Well Mr. Watterson, how are you going to pull this one off?"
*END OF CHAPTER*