Disclaimer: I do not own The Mr. Men Show or any of its characters, but I do own Little Miss Music.
News of Little Miss Music's birthday spread quickly in Dillydale and as the day drew closer, more of her friends were wishing her a happy birthday and asking if she was going to have a party. She would tell them that Little Miss Calamity said she was planning something, but wouldn't tell her.
By her special day, everyone had wished her a happy birthday, even Mr. Rude who begrudgingly said," Have a good birthday. Or don't. I don't care either way."
She even thought Mr. Stubborn said happy birthday but he muttered it in passing and she wasn't sure that was what he said.
Everyone it seemed but one person had wished her a happy birthday and no matter how much she hinted at it, he didn't seem to know that her birthday was coming up. No mention of it from him or anything and it was driving her crazy. Did he forget? How could he? Everyone was talking about it. Little Miss Calamity invited all of Dillydale to the party! The party that she told Little Miss Music nothing about because she wanted to keep it a surprise.
And Mr. Grumpy didn't seem to know that it was almost her birthday! Didn't he care? She thought he loved her when he told Mr. Noisy that she was his girl, and part of her thought everything would change after that. She thought they'd become official and they would go on dates and be a couple. They still hang out but no more and no less than they did before. He didn't even mention the scene at the store where she thought he confessed his everlasting love for her.
She even thought he seemed a little cold since that day. Did he regret what he said? Did he wish she hadn't turned Mr. Noisy down? Did he not love her like she believed he did? Did he love her at all? If he did, when did it change? When did he stop loving her?
And this year was harder for her than any other year because around her birthday was when she first met her husband and they officially got together on Halloween which was only a few weeks after her birthday. This was the first year since she met her husband that she was celebrating her birthday without him. She missed him, and it hurt to think about him. And now Mr. Grumpy became so distant, she was worried he'll stop talking to her, too.
Should I tell him about my husband? she suddenly wondered. She never told him that she had been married or that she wasn't from this world. She told him about her grandmother and uncle passing away, and part of her wanted to confide in her Senpai and tell him anything. But she was afraid. What if he gets upset about her hiding the truth from him for so long and he never speaks to her again? She couldn't even think about him never talking to her again… She couldn't go on if he didn't love her anymore… She would have to leave Dillydale because she couldn't see him every day and know he doesn't love her… But where would she go? She can't return home. She's been gone too long. She'd have nowhere to go. She'd be lost…
"Stop it," she growled to herself. "Stop it; stop it!" She was in her room, overthinking as she got ready for the party and she was only making herself depressed, and she needed to get her mind off it.
She finished getting ready and was heading to her front door when she heard a knock. Surprised, she opened the door and jumped when she saw Mr. Grumpy standing on her doorstep.
"Hello, Miss. Music," he said, and she watched him carefully, desperate to see any trace of love for her in his eyes. He didn't seem unfriendly but there was no clear affection on his face.
"Hey, Mr. Grumpy." She tried to hide how worried and scared she felt.
"I know you're probably getting ready for the party, but I was wondering if you wanted to go on a walk," he said.
Did that mean he still loved her? Or was he trying to find a way to end things?
She forced herself to take a deep breath to calm herself. "Sure, Mr. Grumpy."
She stepped outside and closed the door. She looked away shyly when she realized how close they were. He turned and walked down the sidewalk. She hurried to catch up.
They didn't speak for a while. Finally, unable to take the awkwardness between them, Little Miss Music cleared her throat and said," So, did Miss. Calamity invite you to the party?"
He glanced at her. "She did." He looked ahead again. "You know I don't like parties," he went on. He was silent for a moment and then went on: "So I just wanted to get you to myself for a bit first. I know during the party everyone will want to talk to you and I'll probably be off by myself or something." He shrugged and she just felt glad that he remembered her birthday. And she felt touched that he wanted her to himself for a little bit.
Suddenly she felt guilty for lying to him all this time. She should tell him that she wasn't from this world, and that she was married and still kind of is since the divorce never went through before she found herself in Dillydale.
She was struggling to find the right words when she noticed where they were. They were at the docks where Mr. Grumpy brought her when he showed her around Dillydale the first day she got here. It was late in the day and the sun was starting to set, turning the sky a brilliant orange color. It was breathtaking and she remembered the first time she was here with her Senpai. Heartbroken, miserable, thinking she would spend the rest of her life alone, she stood in this same spot with the Mr. Man who just the day before she arrived in Dillydale, she didn't think was real.
Now she remembered everything that's happened since that portal opened and she found herself in Dillydale as a Little Miss. She's never been happier. There's been bad days but there's also been some really great days and every day she spent with Mr. Grumpy has been amazing.
I can't go on lying to him, she told herself. He needs to know the truth.
"Senpai," she started, turning to him. "There's something I–"
"What is that?" he asked suddenly.
She blinked. "What's what?"
"What you call me. Senpai, huh? What does it mean?"
She blushed and looked away, embarrassed. How was she going to explain this? "Well…" She nervously cleared her throat. "Senpai is a term in anime which is a Japanese cartoon…" She hesitated. "A Senpai is… is usually someone the main character in the anime… Well likes…. Or um… l-love…"
"Oh." He turned to stare out into the water. She noticed that he was blushing. She blushed too.
They stood there for a while. Then Mr. Grumpy cleared his throat and said," We should be heading to the party. It'll be starting soon."
Little Miss Music nodded and started following him. But then stopped. "Mr. Grumpy, there's something I need to tell you," she said in a rush.
He paused and turned to her. "What is it?"
She sucked in a breath and let it out. "I… I haven't been completely… honest with you…"
He looked taken aback. "What do you mean, Miss. Music?"
"Well… um…" It's now or never, she told herself. "My name isn't Miss. Music," she said. "Well, it is now but it wasn't always."
He stared at her. "What was it then?"
"It was Emily."
"Emily?"
She nodded. "And where I'm from, I wasn't a Little Miss."
He widened his eyes. "What were you then?"
She took a shaky breath. "I was a… human…"
"I… I don't understand…" He took a step back. "How were you–? How did you–? I'm confused."
She sighed and looked at the ground. "Almost a year ago, I was in my room… when this portal opened up in my closet… I went through it and found myself in Dillydale… as a Little Miss… I'm sorry for keeping this a secret for so long… Only a few people know the truth… I didn't want to go around telling people because… because I was afraid they wouldn't accept me…"
He didn't move or speak. Just stared wide-eyed at her. After several long moments, he finally asked, very quietly," Who else knows this?"
"Miss. Calamity," said Little Miss Music. She wasn't sure if she should confess anymore.
But Mr. Grumpy asked," Who else? You said a few people know," he reminded her.
She swallowed uncomfortably. "Um… Mr… Mr. Small and–"
"And Mr. Nosy?" he guessed. He was starting to visibly get angry. "You tell them the truth about you but not the person you supposedly lo– your Senpai, as you call me," he said angrily.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Grumpy!" she blurted out. "I thought you'd stop hanging out with me if you knew! Please forgive me."
He took another step back. "I… I need to think about this. I'll see you later." Quickly he turned and walked away, and Little Miss Music stared after him, too shocked to move.
She was lost in her misery, her greatest fear coming true. Mr. Grumpy would never speak to her again. The voice in her head returned, taunting her and snarling at her that she's completely alone and she messed up any chance she had with Mr. Grumpy.
She was so caught up in her own head that she didn't realize anyone was nearby until someone started shaking her. She blinked and saw her best friend, Little Miss Calamity, in front of her. She blinked again and the tears started flowing down her face.
"Whoa, what's wrong?" Little Miss Calamity gasped, wrapping her arms around Little Miss Music.
She sobbed for a while until she was able to say," I-I told him the truth."
"Told who?"
"Senpai– Mr. Grumpy," she cried.
"Oh." Little Miss Calamity hugged her tighter. "I take it he didn't handle it well."
Little Miss Music shook her head and buried her face in her friend's chest. Little Miss Calamity patted her back and murmured," Come on, let's get you home."
"What about my party?" she sobbed.
"Do you want to go?"
Little Miss Music forced herself to stop crying. She nodded and Little Miss Calamity led her to her house.
Angrily, Mr. Grumpy stormed toward his house. He trusted Little Miss Music. He even started having strong feelings for her. And all that time she was hiding a big secret from him. He wasn't even sure if he believed her. It seemed so impossible. Did she just tell him that ridiculous story to hide an even bigger secret from him? If so, what else was she hiding?
He didn't notice someone in front of him until he ran into them and fell backwards on his bottom. He stood up and rubbed his sore backside, not understanding who he ran into yet until he heard one of them asked," Are you okay, Mr. Grumpy?"
The blue Mr. Man growled under his breath and pushed between the two friends. "Go away," he snapped, but he heard them chase after him.
"Aren't you going to Miss. Music's party?" the light green Mr. Man asked.
"I don't think so," Mr. Grumpy muttered.
"Why not?" asked the small Mr. Man.
Angrily, Mr. Grumpy turned on them. "Miss. Music told me the truth," he growled. "Or well she said it was the truth, but I don't believe her."
They looked startled. "What did she tell you?" Mr. Small asked.
Mr. Grumpy rolled his eyes. "Some ridiculous story about once being a human named Emily. I don't believe that, but I do think she just told me that because she is hiding something else." He paused and muttered," Maybe she has someone else and decided I'm not her Senpai anymore…"
Mr. Small and Mr. Nosy exchanged glances before turning back to Mr. Grumpy. "I know it seems impossible, but what she said is true," Mr. Small told him, and Mr. Nosy nodded in agreement.
Mr. Grumpy glared at them. Little Miss Music said they knew the truth so she probably either lied to them too or convinced them to lie to anyone she told this story to.
Or maybe she's telling the truth, he thought. He was confused and angry. Even if it was the truth, why did she hide it from him for so long? Maybe if she had been honest from the start, he wouldn't feel so upset right now. He might have gotten over it and they might have been able to build a relationship. But now…
"True or not, she lied to me or at least kept the truth from me," Mr. Grumpy growled, turning his back on the friends. As he walked away, he called over his shoulder," And I'm not sure if I can ever forgive her."
He was aware of them watching him walking away, but he refused to turn around and he was glad when his house came into sight. He hurried on and shut and locked his door. He sighed, suddenly feeling his legs almost give out on him. He stumbled to his chair and sat down.
He'd been a fool for getting close to Little Miss Music. He learned long ago that if he showed any affection or positive feelings toward anyone, someone always gets hurt and usually it's him. This time is no different.
But this time he'd build a wall around his heart and nothing would make him let his guard down. He will not get hurt ever again.
When Little Miss Music and Little Miss Calamity arrived at the party, a lot of people were already there and when they walked through the door, everyone jumped up and yelled "Surprise!"
"Thank you," Little Miss Music said, walking into the room. She waved at people as she passed them, but she felt something missing and she knew what it was. Her Senpai wasn't here and it felt like a piece of her was gone. She sighed and walked into the kitchen. Little Miss Calamity followed her.
"Are you okay?" the accident-prone Little Miss asked.
Little Miss Music sighed. "I miss Mr. Grumpy. What if he never speaks to me again? What if he hates me forever?"
"I don't think he hates you."
"You didn't see the way he looked at me like a complete stranger. I never saw him look so upset, not even when someone is bugging him. It was a different look. He just looked… betrayed…" She sighed and sat down at the table.
Little Miss Calamity looked like she was about to say something when someone started calling Little Miss Music's name. The crowd parted and Mr. Small and Mr. Nosy appeared, running to her, stopping when they got to her.
"Miss. Music!" gasped Mr. Small. He was panting and struggling for breath.
Little Miss Music jumped to her feet. "What's wrong?" she asked, worried.
"We…" Mr. Nosy was out of breath, too. "We just… ran into… Mr… Grumpy…"
Little Miss Music widened her eyes. "What did he say? Is he okay? Is… Is he mad at me?"
Finally able to speak, Mr. Small said," Yeah. He's really mad. I'm sorry, Miss. Music. He told us that you told him the truth, and he wasn't happy."
"He said he might never forgive you," Mr. Nosy added, frowning. "Why is he so upset?" He glanced at his best friend.
"Because he feels like Miss. Music lied to him," Mr. Small told him. He looked at Little Miss Music. "I think you need to talk to him."
"I tried talking to him," Little Miss Music said, sighing. "He just got mad and stormed off. Should… Should I just give him space?"
"That might be for the best," Little Miss Calamity said softly. "Today is your birthday. Just enjoy today and worry about Mr. Grumpy later." Little Miss Music looked at her, not sure if she could do that. Little Miss Calamity grabbed her hand and pulled her to where most of the party goers were. She raised her voice so everyone could hear her. "Let's sing happy birthday to Miss. Music!" she called out.
Everyone gathered around and someone brought out the cake. Little Miss Music listened as her friends sang her happy birthday. She felt herself smile and she reminded herself that she still had friends. Part of her wished she hadn't told Mr. Grumpy the truth, but there was another part of her that was glad she told him, and all she can do is hope one day he'll forgive her and they'll become close again.
Until that day, she had other friends. She glanced at Little Miss Calamity, and Mr. Small and Mr. Nosy, and everyone else. She wasn't alone and she would stay in Dillydale, whether Mr. Grumpy forgives her or not. This was where she belonged. She finally sees that. Smiling, she decided to enjoy the rest of the party and spend time with her other friends.
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