Disclaimer: I do not own The Mr. Men Show or any of its characters. But I do own a few characters in this story and the idea that Mr. Grumpy has a brother and a niece.
"Don't worry, Mr. Grumpy. She's right here, and she's fine."
As soon as Mr. Grumpy heard that, it felt like a huge weight was lifted off his shoulders. Thank goodness! "Can you please watch her until I get there?" he asked the small Mr. Man over the phone.
"Of course. See you soon." A clicking sound told Mr. Grumpy that the call ended, and he hung up as well.
Just knowing where his niece was and that she was safe made him lightheaded with relief for a moment; then he found himself getting confused. Why did she run off in the first place? And why did she go to Mr. Small and Mr. Nosy?
As he was pondering this, he realized that he wouldn't get an answer just standing around. He started heading to the front door, leaving his house behind to enter the darkness of the night.
On his way to the observatory, Mr. Grumpy was wondering how he was going to handle this situation. As the adult, he should at least have an idea of what to do, but he was still very new to all this, and he was just glad she was found before something happened to her. Should I still punish her though for running away? he asked himself.
He sighed. "I'm not good at this," he said out loud. "Why did Mr. Apathy think it was a good idea to leave her with me?"
Finally he arrived at the best friends' house. He knocked on the door and almost immediately it opened. The light green Mr. Man greeted him and invited him inside. Mr. Grumpy walked in, spotting his niece sitting on the couch beside Mr. Small.
She looked up at him, a frown on her face.
Mr. Grumpy knew he should yell at her for making him worry, but he didn't think he could bring himself to do it. Instead he hurried over to her and gently pulled her to her feet, bringing her into a tight hug.
"I'm so glad that you're okay," he whispered.
All Little Miss Aloof could do was stand there with her uncle's arms wrapped around her. She was shocked. She had expected a different reaction, namely anger. "You're not mad?" she asked tentatively.
He released the young girl and stared down at her. "Maybe a little," he admitted. "But I'm just really glad to see you safe," he quickly went on. "I was very worried."
She didn't understand. "B-But don't you hate me?" she forced herself to ask, and she noticed her uncle's eyes growing bigger when she said that.
"Hate you?" he echoed. "What makes you say that?"
Little Miss Aloof lowered her gaze to her feet. "You don't want me around," she said softly. "You think I'm some kind of burden. Why else would you have them take me for the day?" she questioned as she pointed to the best friends who now stood together in the middle of the living room, looking awkward as uncle and niece talked. "You even tried to get them to take me for the night," she continued, turning back to Mr. Grumpy. "I didn't feel welcome at your house, but I knew they would welcome me here. That's why I ran away. I made your job easier for you." As she spoke the last few words, tears started falling out of her eyes and she buried her face in her hands.
Mr. Grumpy stared down at his niece, not sure what to do. She was clearly suffering because of his actions. Guilt nagged at him. "Oh, Miss. Aloof," he started, and he stretched out his arms for her again. But he froze when he saw the best friends watching them.
As if he sensed that the grumpy Mr. Man wanted to be alone with his niece, Mr. Small turned to Mr. Nosy and pointed to their bedroom. "Come, Nose. Let's give them some privacy."
Mr. Nosy frowned but nodded and followed the small Mr. Man across the living room. Mr. Grumpy flashed Mr. Small a grateful look as they passed.
Once it was just them, Mr. Grumpy wrapped his arms around the young Little Miss. "I don't hate you, Miss. Aloof," he assured her. She lifted her head to stare up at him, and he wiped away her tears.
"Then why don't you want me around?" she questioned, confused. If her uncle didn't hate her, why did he seem so distant? Was that just how her family was? She didn't like it.
Mr. Grumpy sighed and took a step away from her. "I was scared," he confessed.
"Scared?" Little Miss Aloof was even more confused. "Scared of what? I don't understand…"
"I've never taken care of a kid before," he explained. "When your father asked me to watch you for a whole week, I was afraid of doing something wrong, and I was right to worry, because I have. I should have actually watched you like I promised Mr. Apathy I would instead of sending you away with them."
He gestured toward the bedroom, and Little Miss Aloof glanced in that direction to see the best friends peeking out at them. When they realized they had been noticed, they ducked out of sight.
From where they stood in the bedroom, the friends could still hear Mr. Grumpy talking to his niece. "Poor Miss. Aloof," Mr. Nosy murmured.
"Shh." Mr. Small wanted to hear the rest of their conversation.
"I just want to do my best," Mr. Grumpy was saying to the young Little Miss. "I'll try harder from now on; I promise. Please forgive me, Miss. Aloof…"
For a long moment there was silence, and Mr. Small found that he was holding his breath, feeling apprehensive about the answer to come.
Please forgive him… He feels awful…
Finally Little Miss Aloof spoke up. "Okay, Uncle," she said. "I forgive you. I'm sorry for running away," she added.
"Let's not worry about that." There was a short pause before Mr. Grumpy suggested," Why don't we just go home?"
"Okay."
Mr. Small shared a look with his best friend. Then they walked out of the bedroom just in time to see Mr. Grumpy and his niece separating from a hug. Mr. Small smiled at the sight. He was glad they were able to patch things up. He was sure Mr. Grumpy would keep his promise, and he hoped that would make Little Miss Aloof feel more welcome.
With his niece beside him, Mr. Grumpy walked up to them. "Thank you for everything today, but for the rest of her visit, I'm going to try to watch her by myself." He glanced down at the Little Miss.
Mr. Small tipped his hat to him. "Of course. But," he quickly added," our previous offer still stands. If you need any help just call us and we will do what we can. Right, Nose?" he asked his best friend as he turned to him, and Mr. Nosy nodded in agreement.
"Thank you," Mr. Grumpy responded.
Little Miss Aloof looked up from where she stood behind her uncle. She suddenly felt very shy, but she wanted to ask what just came to mind. She cleared her throat and tried not to freak out when everyone turned to her.
"C-Can I still see you?" She lowered her gaze to stare down at Mr. Small. "Can we hang out some more before I leave?" she clarified when the small Mr. Man looked confused.
Relief washed over her when he smiled at her. "Of course," he replied. "There's still more of Dillydale that we need to show you."
We, she thought, frowning when she realized that she meant him and Mr. Nosy. Well I didn't say just us…
"We better be getting home." She turned her attention back on her uncle when he said that. "Come, Miss. Aloof," he added as he started walking toward the front door.
"Goodnight!" Mr. Small called after them. "See you tomorrow, Miss. Aloof!"
Little Miss Aloof looked over her shoulder to see the small man and his best friend waving goodbye to them before closing the door. Then she turned back in front of her. She didn't say anything and her uncle remained silent as well.
It didn't take them long to get back to Mr. Grumpy's house, and Little Miss Aloof realized how she got lost. Even if I did know where they lived, I went too far and wouldn't have been able to find their house where I was.
Once inside, Mr. Grumpy closed the door and glanced at his niece to see her standing in the middle of the living room. "Do you need anything before we go to bed?" he asked her as he went to join her.
Little Miss Aloof seemed to think about that for a moment. Then she shook her head, and her jaws parted in a yawn. "I think I'm just going to go to bed," she announced, and she started heading to the guest room.
Mr. Grumpy stared after her, uncertainty eating at him. As if she could read his thoughts, she paused and said over her shoulder," I promise I won't run away this time." She continued to hesitate in the doorway before asking," What do you want to do tomorrow, Uncle?"
Her question surprised him. "Um... " He was lost for words for a moment. Then it came to him. "Do you like fishing?"
Her eyes lit up then suddenly turned dark and she looked away. "My dad and mother used to take me fishing," she murmured.
"Oh." Mr. Grumpy frowned, regretting bringing up his favorite hobby. "Um… we can do something else if you want," he quickly went on, wanting to distract the young Little Miss from her mother who has passed away.
To his surprise she shook her head. "No, I like fishing," she insisted. "We can do that tomorrow, if you want."
"Only if you want to." Mr. Grumpy didn't want to take her only for her to be sad the whole time remembering her mother.
"Sure." There was still a little sadness in her tone, but for the most part she looked happy. "Goodnight, Uncle." She turned to leave, only to freeze mid-step when Mr. Grumpy called her back.
"I don't like being called 'Uncle'," he announced as he walked over to her.
She blinked in surprise. "Uncle Grumpy?" she tested, looking a bit uncertain.
Mr. Grumpy shook his head. "No, not that either."
"Then what do you want me to call you?"
"Hmm." Mr. Grumpy thought for a moment. "Why don't you come up with a nickname to call me?" he suggested, half-smiling at her. "Whatever feels right. Take as much time as you need to come up with it."
Little Miss Aloof stared up at him. "Okay, that could be fun. Goodnight, Grumps." She turned to enter her room, murmuring as she went," No, I don't like that."
A smile on his face, Mr. Grumpy went to his own bedroom, making sure to brush his teeth before climbing into bed. As he settled down for the night, his last thought was, I guess watching her won't be so bad after all.
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