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.

Mr. Grumpy opened his front door and stepped inside his house. As soon as he turned the lights on, he heard his telephone ringing. He sighed and considered not answering. He looked to see Little Miss Aloof joining him and suddenly wondered if it was her father.

He decided to answer and was glad that he did because it was Mr. Apathy.

"Hello, little brother," he said, and Mr. Grumpy rolled his eyes.

"Hello, Mr. Apathy," he responded.

"How's Miss. Aloof? I've been trying to call you all day."

Mr. Grumpy looked up to see his niece walking by, giving him a curious look as she passed.

"She's fine," he told his brother, wondering if he ought to tell him everything that has happened since he left. Will he think Mr. Grumpy was a terrible uncle? Would he regret leaving his daughter with him? Mr. Grumpy frowned. He couldn't keep the truth from her father though. He sighed. "We had some trouble. But," he quickly added," I think we're good now. Actually, I'm taking her to the fair tomorrow night."

"Oh. What kind of trouble?" Mr. Apathy asked.

Mr. Grumpy hesitated, and looked over at Little Miss Aloof.

The young Little Miss looked back at him. Was he talking to her father? Why did he look so upset? She tried to hear what they were saying, but her uncle was speaking so quietly. Did he not want her to hear him? She leaned in closer and caught him saying," Ran away", "Unsure what to do", and "Mistake leaving her".

She frowned. It sounded like her uncle still didn't want her around. She turned and went into the bedroom.

"I've had a lot of help with her, and I'm feeling better about taking care of her," Mr. Grumpy told his brother. "Like I said, I was unsure what to do at first, and I thought you made a mistake leaving her, especially after she ran away, but she's safe and I'm really enjoying her staying here, even though she seems so lonely and sad."

"She's a great kid," Mr. Apathy said. "It's just been tough for her lately, losing her mom so young and the other kids her age teases her. I think it's because they don't know how to treat her. Most of the kids still have both of their parents. And I also think she's afraid she'll lose me too."

Mr. Grumpy frowned, not realizing how hard it was on Little Miss Aloof. And Mr. Apathy, too. "How are you holding up?" he asked his brother.

It was silent on the other end for several moments. Finally, Mr. Grumpy heard him sigh. Mr. Apathy never showed any emotion, happy or excited or sad. But that deep sigh revealed all his pain, and Mr. Grumpy wished there was something he could do to help his brother and niece.

"It's been hard," Mr. Apathy finally answered him. "Especially because I can tell how miserable Miss. Aloof is and it makes me miserable, too. But I don't know what to do to help her. I just try to be there for her. I think I protect her too much. Because I was shielding her when her mother died, she doesn't know how to make friends and at home, she rarely comes out of her room."

"That sounds rough," was all Mr. Grumpy said, unsure how to comfort his brother.

For several long moments, neither of them spoke, and Mr. Grumpy looked around, suddenly realizing Little Miss Aloof wasn't around anymore.

She must be in her room, he thought.

"Would you like to speak with her?" Mr. Grumpy asked Mr. Apathy.

"As long as she's fine, I'll leave her be," his brother replied. "But if she needs to talk to me, have her call my cell."

"Okay."

They hung up and Mr. Grumpy hesitated in the living room. He should go check on his niece. He headed to the room and knocked on the door. There was no answer. Worried she ran away again, he opened the door and looked inside. To his complete relief, the young Little Miss was still there, but she was laying face down on her bed. Listening closely, he realized she was crying.

Startled, he hurried over to her.

"Hey, are you okay?" he asked.

She looked up and wiped her face. "Y-Yeah," she stammered, but he knew she was lying.

Uncertainty, he said," I just got off the phone with your dad. He was checking on you, and he said if you needed to talk to him, you can call him." He paused. "Do you want to call him?" he finally asked.

She shook her head and buried her face in the pillow.

Mr. Grumpy wasn't sure what to do. Should he call Mr. Small and ask him to come over and help him? He was seriously considering that, but then he told himself that he can handle this.

He took a deep breath and sat on the edge of the bed. "Miss. Aloof," he began," I know we didn't get off on the right foot, but you can tell me if anything is bothering you. You're my niece, and I don't want you to hate me. I want us to get along, and I'm not sure what I'm really doing. Maybe your father made a mistake leaving you with me…" He had rambled on without meaning to, and when he spoke the last few words, his voice trailed off.

She looked up at him. "D-Do you really believe that?" she asked.

He blinked. "Believe what?"

"That he made a mistake leaving me here?" There was a sob in her voice. "Don't you like me?"

Alarmed shot through Mr. Grumpy. "Of course I do! I didn't mean he made a mistake leaving you here because I don't like you. You're family, and a really sweet kid. I… I just never watched a kid before, and I was worried I'd mess it up and I did. But it wasn't your fault," he quickly added. "I pushed you away instead of trying to get to know you, and now that I'm trying to spend time with you, everything I say is wrong." He sighed and looked away.

Little Miss Aloof stared at her uncle, seeing how upset he was. Maybe they both messed this up. But it wasn't too late to change things. She sat up next to him.

"Maybe we should start over," Little Miss Aloof suggested.

He looked at her. "Yeah, maybe." He took a breath and stood up, and Little Miss Aloof watched him head to the door, confused when he stepped out and closed the door. Then he opened it again and walked over to her. "I'm glad your dad left you with me," he said, a soft smile on his face. "We're going to have a great time together."

Little Miss Aloof grinned and got off the bed. "Yes, a great time," she agreed. "Thank you, Funcle." She hesitated and then asked," Are we still going to the fair tomorrow?"

"If you want."

She nodded. "Yes, please."

"Okay then." He glanced out the window. It was almost dark. "Let's go to bed. We got up pretty early this morning." He paused, eyeing her uncertainty. "Are you sure you're okay now?"

She thought about that. She was still a bit upset that her father wasn't here and she worried that her uncle really didn't want her here. But she was finally a little bit better, and tomorrow seems like a promising start over. "I will be," she told him.

He nodded. "Goodnight," he said and walked out of the room.

"Night!" she called after him, and climbed into bed. She didn't realized how exhausted she was and she was asleep almost immediately, her mind at peace for the first time since her dad told her that she was staying with her uncle.

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