Gumball felt the world around him again. The soft sheets, the cool air, the warmth. The warmth of Nicole...
Nicole...
'Shit. What do I tell her?' He thought as he felt her arms around him.
He knew he had explaining to do. But how would he go about it? Casually, or bluntly? Either case, he knew it wouldn't be easy. The looks from Nicole that she had given him during their meals were more than enough to tell Gumball she knew he wasn't feeling himself.
'I hope she understands all of this when I tell her...'
Nicole slowly gained consciousness and fluttered open her eyes. She saw Gumball still in her arms. She was glad he had finally fell asleep. His seemingly degrading mentality and lack of affection to her was impacting her more ways then one; especially compared to their lifestyle only a few days ago.
As she felt him stir in her embrace, she then remembered his wound from this morning. Quickly, she checked the back of his head. Luckily for her, she saw it had completely healed. Despite this strange ability they had both apparently gained, it was nice knowing that this seemed to be a reliable thing; especially after what happened to him.
"Gumball?" She whispered softly to him.
He slowly turned to face her. She still saw tiredness in his eyes, but they seemed to have a hint of liveliness in them now.
"How do you feel?" She asked him, now able to stroke his soft hair.
Gumball seemed to think for a moment before replying.
"I...I think I feel better."
Despite being able to properly think now and not feel bombarded by his previous headache, he still felt partly clouded in a way. Sleeping only a few hours after what he had endured these past few days didn't seem sufficient enough for him.
Nicole stopped his hair play.
"Gumball. We need to talk. About these past few days. And about this morning..."
Gumball let out a small sigh. The time has come. He now had to tell her. No casual build up to the conversation. He would tell her bluntly. With that, he closed his eyes briefly before opening them and sat up on the side of the bed with her. Nicole reassured him by rubbing his back gently.
"It's alright sweetie. Take your time." She said quietly.
"I...I first couldn't sleep because of a headache I got from, I guess, straining myself a little the first night. But...the next day..."
Gumball paused. He knew this would be hard, but he had to do it. For her...
"The next day, when you wanted me to let go of my harsh memories of the past...I remembered something very bad."
Nicole leaned in every so slightly, keeping her gaze on him with full attention.
"What was the memory about?" She asked cautiously.
Gumball felt his temples throbbing, and his toes scrunching the floor tightly. He let out another small breath before continuing.
"The memory...was about you. You and Dad..."
Nicole stopped rubbing his back.
"Go on." She spoke, this time with a monotone voice.
"It was when I was a baby. I was inside a playpen or something in the living room. I remember hearing you two arguing in the kitchen before you came out into the room I was in. You kept talking about his food binges and how he needed help. He thought you needed help more for your outrages instead."
Gumball could feel her tighten her grip on his hand as he said that.
"When...Dad said he hated his body, he said he wanted you to kill him. He then charged at you, and you pinned him down. When he kept trying to let go, you didn't let him free. Then he asked you why you couldn't kill him..."
"What did I say?" She asked wearily.
"You...you didn't say anything back. You just looked up towards me. You looked so scared..."
Nicole let go of his hand and covered her mouth. She had clenched her eyes shut to prevent herself from crying. She had to listen to Gumball. She couldn't cry. Not now...
"Nicole? Are you alright?" He asked, rubbing her back this time.
"I...I'm alright. Keep going." She said, straightening her posture before letting him proceed.
"Well...when you looked over towards me, you loosened your grip. Dad...he pushed you off of him, and you sat on your knees and cried after he spoke more harsh words to you. Then...then he..."
Gumball felt the tears in his eyes start to trickle down his face.
"What did he do Gumball?" She asked, now with a very shaky voice.
"He slapped you. He slapped you so hard...you started bleeding..."
Nicole lowered her head and faced away from Gumball. She couldn't let him see her tears falling down. She had to be strong. Just for a little while more. With that, she wiped her face before turning back to him.
"I remember you heard me cry when he went upstairs, and you comforted me. You shushed me and stopped my crying. You barely seemed to notice your injury. You just focused on me. Then...you...you said you loved me..."
Nicole looked into his eyes deeply now. It all had come back to her. She...remembered. She remembered him gazing up at her with his beady little eyes. His innocent eyes. His eyes that had witnessed too much...
Nicole bit her knuckle.
"I remember..." she said, now looking away.
"You told me to let go of my bad memories, and I did. I let them go. All of them...except for one. That one." Gumball said, looking down.
Nicole then pieced it together.
"You thought of him when you broke the boards...didn't you?"
Gumball nodded, not looking her in the eyes.
"Last night, I kept thinking of you...how he hurt you. When you told me to think of something I hated to use to strike the board...I thought of him..."
Nicole wrapped her arms around him in a hug.
"I'm sorry...I'm so sorry you had to see that Gumball..."
This time, the tears came without resistance. She couldn't hold them any longer.
"I wish I could have stopped him from hurting you. I...I could have...I mean..."
"Gumball. Stop..." Nicole said, nuzzling his neck. "There was nothing you could have done."
"It's not fair..." he wept, hugging her tighter against his shaking form.
"Shhh, I know it isn't sweetie. But life isn't fair sometimes. That's just the way it is."
Gumball seemed to suddenly stop shaking, before pulling back and looking her in the eyes.
"Was that the only time he did something like that? To hurt you?"
Nicole paused, before averting her gaze from his. More tears started to pour down her face.
"Gumball...I..."
"Please. Tell me Nicole. I want the truth." He said, grasping her hands.
Nicole let out a hard breath.
"No. No it wasn't."
Gumball felt his right hand squeeze tightly in an attempt to make a balled fist, but was still holding her hand.
"I know your angry Gumball. I know...but-"
"When did he hurt you?" He spoke, cutting her off.
"*sigh* It was after you were born. First it was simple arguments about who has to change your diapers for that day, to escalating into...that."
"Why didn't I remember any of the other times? Why just that memory of you two?" Gumball asked.
"Usually, I would put you away upstairs after dinner for you to get plenty of rest. This probably prevented you from witnessing our...disagreements."
Gumball pulled her close and kissed her cheek softly. He then met her gaze again.
"Why couldn't I remember seeing the wounds on you?"
Nicole stroked a stray hair away from his eyes.
"Gummypuss, when you have endured enough of something, you learn to adapt. In my case, I wore makeup, and non revealing clothes. I had work to go to. I had money to make. I had to support you. Without Richard's disability check and my paycheck, we wouldn't be able to live in our town. In our home..."
"She let out a shaky breath before continuing.
"Luckily, his...abuse, didn't last forever. We managed to get him pills to curve his hunger. It seemed to work. He seemed...so much nicer. I thought we had a chance...a chance to start over."
"That still doesn't excuse him for what he did to you!" Gumball practically shouted.
"Gumball, I know that now. But at the time, I thought differently. For a brief time in our marriage, I wanted to put the past behind us. This was around when we adopted Darwin. I felt...happy. He felt happy. We all did. But...after a while, it seemed to fade away again. Sure the joy of you two was immeasurable, but between me and Richard...it wasn't."
Gumball felt sorrowful that he shouted towards her. That irrational move seemed to have made her flinch before she spoke. Nicole seemed to sense his sadness, and proceeded to rest his head on her thighs. As Gumball laid there, another burning question came to be.
"If that was the case for you two...how did we get Anais?" He asked.
Nicole looked off into the distance for a moment before replying.
"After we hit a new low, the arguments started up again. It wasn't like it was before, but I feared it would be. I just wanted the happiness between us to come back. When we had Anais, I felt for a brief time that joy between us return again. We were a family. But this time...it didn't last as long as I had hoped. Maybe it was my fault. With the stress of work, caring for you all, the bills...I just..."
Nicole couldn't take it anymore. She broke again. Gumball seeing this, sat up and embraced her with wide and open arms. This time, she cried into his shoulder.
"I...I feel like I was trapped Gumball. It was all a big cycle. From highs to lows, to highs to lows...over and over, it just didn't seem to stop. No matter what I did...it didn't work..."
"Shhh, it's alright. It's okay..." he spoke softly to her comfortingly.
They both slowly rocked side to side. This went on for a few minutes before Nicole seemed to collect herself somewhat.
"Thank you Gummypuss...I needed that."
"You're welcome." He replied, rubbing her back gently. "Thank you for telling me that."
Nicole kissed his cheek.
"And thank you for telling me as well."
Gumball nodded, before seeing her get up.
"I...will be right back. I need to get a shower and get cleaned up."
"Alright. I'll be right here if you need me." He spoke, squeezing her hand in reassurance before letting her go out.
Nicole rested her head against the shower wall as the warm water washed away her dried tears.
'Why does every serious talk I have with Gumball seemingly end with me breaking down? Surely I'm stronger than that...right?'
As she washed her face and body, she couldn't help but feel so weak again. Mentally and physically.
'Maybe I need to train along side Gumball so we both can become stronger. I have been neglecting my exercises as of late because of me needing to be with Gumball for his training. Maybe a refresh would help me...'
Nicole seemed to agree with her wandering mind on that.
'But how could I train with Gumball if he's in a state like this? He's strained. He needs rest. But how could he sleep with a thought so vile lingering in his mind? I can't train him to forget with him in such a state. I need another option...'
As she thought long and hard, something came to her.
'What if...I can distract him? Make him forget about that memory of me? Just for a little while so he could sleep. But...how?'
A few ideas came to her, but they were tossed aside when she really thought about it.
'I'm not making him dance again now. I can't make him food at such a late hour, he couldn't sleep. Tic-Tac-Toe? Are you serious?!'
Nicole growled in frustration. Why was this so difficult? She knew he couldn't sleep soundly on his own after what they talked about just moments ago. He would be thinking all night about it if she didn't do something.
'It's not so simple Nicole. He's not a child anymore. You can't just give him a simple kiss goodnight and expect him to fall asleep! It doesn't wo-'
"Wait..." She said out loud.
'A kiss goodnight...'
Nicole started forming a plan in her head now. It was...controversial in her book, but it just might work.
'Am I really wanting to go through with this? Especially after what we just were discussing, and him still being in such a vulnerable state?'
Nicole sighed. This may be her only chance to fix what she started. She couldn't afford another sleepless night from Gumball. She had to do it.
'I really hope this goes right...'
——————————
Gumball laid back in his bed, thinking over their previous conversation. The way she described it...the abuse. It made his stomach churn. How could his dad have not realized what he was doing to her? To think she could have been happy with him only if he understood...
A knock on the door broke his thoughts as he looked up to see Nicole enter.
"Hey Gummypuss. Sorry if I startled you."
"Nono, it's fine." He said, smiling back at her.
Nicole made her way over towards her side of the bed. As she climbed in, she pulled Gumball close. She then peppered him in playful kisses.
"H-Hey! Stop that! No fai- Ahahaha" Gumball attempted to speak as he suddenly felt her tickle him.
Nicole continued her lovely assault on him until he seemed to cease his squirming.
"Feeling playful all of the sudden huh?" He asked breathlessly.
Nicole let out a soft chuckle.
"I guess I am. Perhaps talking to you let some pressure off my shoulders..."
"Hey, come here." He gestured, before leaning forward to kiss her. Nicole gladly leaned in for a kiss. They locked lips and lost themselves in the moment. Nicole pulled him deeper into the kiss. Gumball returned the favor by placing one hand on the side of her neck. As Nicole pushed him back into the bed, she began kissing and suckling his neck gently. Gumball moaned in pleasure as he wrapped his arms around her back.
"N-Nicole..." he moaned, closing his previously unfocused eyes.
She pulled back and faced him.
"I-I'm sorry Gumball. I guess I lost myself for a moment there..."
He opened his eyes, gave her a sultry look before pulling in for another quick kiss.
"I didn't say stop you know..." he spoke shyly.
Nicole returned his look with a lustful gaze of her own.
"Is that so?~"
With that, their lips pressed against each other again; fighting for dominance over one another. Gumball began to caress her back causing her to moan a chorus of her own.
After a few moments of this, Nicole used her free hand and pushed Gumball back into the bed, stopping their kiss for air. As she breathed heavily, she looked down at him. His tired form gazed lazily back up at her. His eyes seemed to now be filled with something she wasn't familiar with. She saw love...but also something else. Something more...primal.
As Gumball looked up at the looming Nicole before him, he felt something. He couldn't quite describe it...but it felt like he had experienced it before, albeit briefly. It was like his heart was jumping out of his chest. His stomach fluttered. His body felt like it was in overdrive. Especially his lower body. It felt like something there was gro-
'Oh no. Nononono, not now! This can't be happening! I feel so embarrassed...'
Nicole watched as Gumball suddenly turned beet red, and avoided her gaze. She questioned this briefly, before piecing it together. She slowly leaned near his ear and kissed it before whispering to him.
"It's alright Gumball. You don't need to be embarrassed. It's natural for men like you to experience that."
"Wait, how...how did you know?"
Nicole giggled, before kissing his nose.
"I read cues pretty good in people Gumball. But, if you wanted a different answer then that; you can say I'm a psychic."
Gumball rolled his eyes at that one.
"Heh, funny." He said sarcastically.
This made them both laugh. Nicole then wrapped him in a tight hug and rested his forehead against hers.
"Thank you Gummypuss. I needed that. Really."
Gumball looked up at her.
"No problem. Also...thanks as well. It felt nice to kiss you like that again."
"Hm, looks like I still am the best kisser, huh?" She said playfully.
"Indeed you are..." he replied, resting on her shoulder.
They both laid back down on the bed. Gumball rested his head on her chest, nuzzling deeper into her as she wrapped the warm blankets around them. As she also wrapped her arms around his body, he rose his head one final time to look her in the eyes.
"I love you." He said, giving her a exhausted smile.
"I love you too, Gummypuss." She spoke in return, giving him a warm smile of her own.
With that, they both started to drift off into blissful(and tired) slumber in each others arms and embrace.
——————————
As the clear night sky shined down on the park, a green cloud appeared above the darkened trees below. Then, suddenly, a green flash of light shot out of it, and made its rapid decent below. It impacted the dirt with a small thunk sound, impaling the dirt every so slightly. As the dust cleared, a small leathery and metallic object came into view. The faint sound of a whir could be heard coming from it. The faint glow that it gave off became increasingly bright. Then, it started to pulse small waves of green light around it, causing it to float in midair before remaining stationary, suspended above ground.
The faint sound of ticking could be heard.
Tick tick tick...