Lost In Purple

Chapter 89: Has Normality Returned? (Part 1)

Melanie's POV

Seeing Johnny exit his last door for the night has me feeling so elated. He's showing himself to be strong and happy with where he's at, while I'm over here on the sidelines tinkering away with the scream canisters and relieved to see him unscathed. That's no different than every other time he's entered the human world though. In fact, I'm always worried about him in one way or another. Thoughts about him being hungry or sore overwhelm me, and then there are lingering worries about him losing his voice or energy that send me into a panicked stupor. Those worries are always eventually proven to be just worries though; They never become reality.

I wait for Johnnys last completely full scream canister to become stationary within the rotating energy extractor and place it on the canister pallet I've been using. I haul several of his canisters towards the front of the scare floor so that maintenance can get the energy where it needs to go, and promptly head back towards Johnny's station. Since his station is right in the center of the scare floor, I'm able to watch as he casually converses with my dad and Chip. They smile and laugh away, letting anyone that looks their way see their commanding presence, buff physiques and white, jagged teeth. Their voices are also deep enough to send faint vibrations through the ground and up into my paws, but I don't think I'll ever speak about that out loud. That might be, um…kind of a weird thing to notice.

Everything I notice about people is weird though, especially when I'm observing Johnny and all his…perfection. His soft, dark purple fur shines magnificently under the pink glow of the floor's lights, causing him to look like a real demon due to the shadows his body's natural curves make. The darkness around his eyes and horns become prominent enough to create the illusion that he's spawned from the depths of hell, but I know very well that he's not here to cause such mischief. Well…he'll be mischievous when around me but… he'll be charming around anyone else. Aside from that, there's his sharp claws and thick horns that are polished to perfection. Those kinds of things are considered to be very attractive in society and I'm starting to understand why. Or…well…I don't know why, but… I think they're a handsome when guys have them. Then there's Johnnys tusks. They make him seem primal and…monstrous. I don't know…it's weird to notice all these normal things and give them in depth thought.

I seem to have severely distracted myself. I've stopped moving towards Johnny's station and began twiddling my thumbs while looking down at the ground. I feel as if I have shortness of breath, and my heart rate has increased to the point where I can feel it thrashing against my ribcage. I know it's alright to feel euphoria whenever I see Johnny, and I know it's alright to have this carnal desire to be near him, but to invade his space while he's talking is an inappropriate thing to do. I've been told to give people space by my dad plenty of times before, so I'll just wait for my turn. I don't think I want to seem clingy around all these important monsters either.

He's just so…pretty…standing there with his hands on his hips, that massive chest of his puffed out because he knows that he's the best and most important monster in the factory. Those stunning purple eyes scan over everything, making a judgment on whether what he's seeing is worthy of being noticed or not. That sharp tongue of his always knows what to say, when to say it, and how to say it. I wish I could look at him more. I wish I could be the monster he only looked at and talked to. I wish I could be a scarer like him… he would probably look at me like how I look at him like me if I was.

Some thumps ripple across the cement floor, causing me to awake from my cognitive dream.

"Waiting on me, princess?" Johnny asks with a raised brow while overwhelming me with this gargantuan presence.

He moves as close to me as he possibly can, towering over me with that cocksure grin and placing his hands on my hips. Since I've been craving his attention, I throw my arms around his torso and squeeze as hard as I can.

"OOPH…Hey I know I'm soft and cuddly, but I don't need my spine snapped in half," Johnny chuckles.

It was like he was asking for it with that comment, so I squeeze harder than before.

"HEY HEY…," He spouts in slight pain before forcing me off him, "What's with the death grip, huh? Did I upset you again?"

He said that while leaning forward and placing his hand to his heart. I was half expecting him to be angry but he's actually smiling and seemingly appreciative that I even thought of loving him to the point that it hurts.

"N-no…," I mumble while noticing all the other scaring assistants begin to leave the scare floor.

"…Hmm. Long day? Needed your scary demon to unwind?" Johnny inquires, still smiling.

It takes me a second to nod, but when I do, Johnny swipes me off my feet and carries me with no effort, letting my legs hang off his left arm while he supports me with his right. He tops it off by planting his lips on mine and maintaining it for five seconds. Once that's successfully caused me to blush, he turns around and brings me towards his door station. This gives me a good view of my dad and Chip as they both talk to their scaring assistants and finish all their duties. I'm then set down in front of the door control panel so that I can send his last door to the factory's door warehouse. We're lucky that the door portal was deactivated; The child Johnny scared would have waltzed right into the factory.

"So tell me, princess…," Johnny says softly and gruffly while crossing his arms, "Did I succeed in impressing you today?"
I press all the buttons I need to and send the door coasting along the rail. The door station detaches without any sighs, clanks or bangs, and powers down. This leaves me to deal with the arrogance of a Worthington. He knows what he's doing, but of course, he needs verbal confirmation about it in order to feel satisfied. Since this is the case, maybe I should have a little fun with him.

"Um…what if I said no?" I reply.

"No?! What do you mean no?! I thought I was on fire, Mel! I swore that I only took…a minute long break in between doors!" Johnny responds while taking the time to recall the time he spent in the monster world today.

"N-No, that's not what…that's not what I was referring to," I say, wondering if messing with him was now a mistake.

His confused look almost makes me laugh but I hold it back for his sake. Knowing my dad…or any of Johnny's rivals that shouldn't be rivals to begin with, they'll find a way to take this conversation and turn it against us. I would accidentally damage Johnny's reputation as a rookie scarer and end up dealing with the aftermath of that and…ugh, I'm thinking way too seriously about all of this. However, there is something I have been noticing on this side of the door. Fear Co's scream storing is more advanced than the ones at Monsters Inc right now. Scream energy can actually be put into multiple canisters from one door; After one is filled, it stores the extra in another. That's the whole point of the rotating machine next to the door stations. If Johnny could find a way to be even scarier than he is right now, he'll generate more screams in less time.

"I-I was actually thinking you could be…um…scarier?" I suggest rather quietly.

"Sca-I'm sorry, what?" Johnny asks with a developing scowl.

Before he gets any angrier, I place my hands on his chest again and keep my voice down. I should have said that differently, because that's basically an insult within this career.

"Y-you're worried about the speed at which you scare, b-but instead of thinking about that, you should try and scare more, um, powerfully…if that makes sense," I whisper.

"No, not really. I can't tell if you're saying there's something wrong with my scaring or not," Johnny answers seriously.

I place my hands on both sides of Johnny's head. "No, there's nothing wrong with your scaring. I, um…I just think you could do something big for each scare, like what you did during your last scare final. The more time you take with each scare, the more energy you'll produce. Think about it, how would everyone react if you started filling up two or more canisters with each scare?"

The gears in his head start turning while he grumbles to himself. I can tell that he's biting his lip a little too, but that's probably because I'm offering constructive criticism to someone who's never experienced receiving any before.

"I see… I'm not redefining scaring in a specific way; I'm just doing it faster than everyone else," Johnny states before letting that smile of his return, "You know what… you actually scared me there, Mel. I thought I lost my touch after only two months."

"Shh, we don't want anyone to overhear you say that," I jest quietly.

Johnny narrows his eyes and growls playfully. "Let them. It gives me a reason to kill them."

With a slight and swift movement, I'm able to mildly slap Johnny across the face. It's not enough force to make him feel any amount of pain, but there's enough force to create a 'wumpf' sound when my hand collides with his thick fur.

"Don't slap me! I would only do that if they truly eavesdropped on a lovely discussion between me and my amazing fiancé," Johnny adds.

"Ok, but there would be no lesson to learn. They'd be dead…unable to change or think through what they did wrong," I reply feeling fairly peeved.

"…God look at you, acting all smaaaart," Johnny jokes.

AND HERE COMES THE WIND UP FOR THE FIST OF DO-

"WOAH, HOLD YOUR HORSES, KILLER!" Johnny shouts as he reaches for my punch, "We all know you're smarter than me, so just relax! Come on, you know it wasn't sarcasm, it was a compliment! I truly believe that I never would have considered doing anything you said!"

I don't know why, but I pout. My shoulders get all tense, and I cross my arms while pursing my lips like a child does when something doesn't go their way. Hmm…kind of sounds like Johnny actually. Is he influencing me to be some sort of snooty citizen? Johnny has to keep the teasing going though, and obviously, I let it get to me.

"Or am I perhaps wrong? I'm not hearing any confirmation that you are," He asks.

"No, of course you're not wrong! I just don't understand why you say that like I'm normally not smart!" I say while stomping on the ground.

"Oh that's because I like seeing you get annoyed with me," Johnny replies with a toothy grin.

My brows furrow even more than they were before. "Oh my god, just…why?!"

"Because then you can't get this handsome face of mine out of your head," Johnny winks while pointing to himself.

Struck with Deja vu, I imagine strangling that fat neck of his until it shrinks to the size of a string; Just absolutely squishing that oversized breathing tube to the point it weakens and flops over like a twig that's partially snapped off a branch. I obviously can't do that with these insignificant and weak claws of mine, so I must settle for striking Johnny in the gut a couple of times like he's a punching bag on gym day.

Pow pow pow! Wack wack wack! Wham wham wham!

"Um…," Johnny mumbles, surely feeling the pain.

Bang bang bang! Kapow Kapow! Smack Smack SMACK! HA HAAAAAA! HE'S GOING TO REGRET MESSING WITH ME! HE'S HAD IT COMING TO HIM SINCE THE DAY I MET HIM!

"Mel?"

Boom boom boom boom! Bop bop bop! BLAM! Blam…blam…splat…slump. Oww…my hands hurt…and I'm out of breath. And why is Johnny still standing here while holding me up? Does he still have that insufferable smile on his face while watching me gasp for any volumetric amount of oxygen?

"Um…my abs didn't feel flat to you, did they?" Johnny questions.

"Jonathan, stoooooop!" I shout weakly while slumping further down to the ground, nearly landing on my knees.

He reaches down to grab both of my hands before proceeding to lift me up into his arms. My head ends up atop his shoulder and he moves his head sideways so that it lays atop of mine and therefore trapping me. Ugh…why is he so fluffy and comfy…

"Alright, I promise I'll stop," He soothes while slowly swinging my tired body from side to side, "But only if you promise to let me annoy you one more time today."

"Wh-What does that mean? You know I can't handle surprises…," I ask while feeling severe paranoia.

Gravity does its thing when Johnny slides me off his body. The partial weightlessness I was experiencing vanishes once my feet touch the floor and the comfort of his fur is no longer there to calm my negative emotions. When I look up and into his eyes, I don't sense that mischief he had before, which only means that his request is a serious one.

While that does relieve me, it simultaneously makes me desire a personality where I could easily take his comedic jabs. Sometimes I wonder if I'm too sensitive for him and consequently not fun to be around at times.

"I never intended for it to be a surprise, but with how busy we've been it simply slipped my mind," Johnny responds.

"Wh-That doesn't make it any less of a surprise now! It's out of the blue!" I growl.

Speaking of surprises, Professor King shouts out from the front of the scare floor. "MR. WORTHINGTON, MISS EVERETT, LET'S GOOOO! THIS FLOOR HAS TO BE SHUT DOWN FOR THE NIGHT!"

I freeze up trying to think of an excuse. Everyone's left the scare floor at this point; Even my dad has wandered off to the locker rooms now, and I don't want to explain to the Professor that the whole reason we're still in here is because I was physically assaulting Johnny for being insufferable rich boy. It seems Johnny saves me once again though. He places both hands on my shoulders and turns my body to face the exit. I'm then gently pushed in that direction as he whispers to me.

"Go clean up and make yourself look pretty. We'll meet up at the café upstairs once we're both ready."

Johnny's POV

"Oh? Where are you taking her? La Petit Grr?" Ronan asks as we sit on the benches in between the many lockers, typing on his phone.

Several other scarers are packing up for the day, applying all sorts of colognes and deodorants that leave them smelling rank. I would rather have a more natural scent like lavender or cedarwood, but I'm not going to cause a scene over it. My father would sometimes wear scents that people would consider to be exotic, one of them being 'rotting corpse.' It's still a mystery to me how we monsters aren't bothered by these scents, because the concept behind a smell like that is beyond morbid. But anyways, everyone's just finished going through Fear Co's newest sanitizer mist shower which is one of the things Professor King implemented here. For monsters with scales, it's an easy thing to go through. However, for monsters like Ronan and I, for monsters with fur, it leaves us with a sticky film that we must wash out with water. In other words, we basically have two showers. If we skip this step entirely then there's a chance that we expose the monster world to a devastating virus or bacterial infection and end up dealing with the CDA; They'll shave us down and legally assault us, so here we are with Chip as an extra, waiting for our fur to dry.

"You know about that place?" I question.

Ronan sighs as he lowers his phone. His partially narrowed eyes move to mine, and he combs a part of his soggy mane backwards. "Seriously Jonathan, I'm not some impoverished shut-in. I know the entire city by heart after being one of the only competent door mechanics in the last two decades. Even though I was employed by Scream Industries, I worked on doors and door stations here at Fear Co and even at Monsters Inc."

"They sent you to other factories?" Chip chimes in.

"Whenever they had nothing to fix, yes," Ronan answers, "I had lunch breaks like everyone else. I obviously didn't eat there, but I would look and see what they had from time to time. There's also a hardware store over that way, and I would pass the restaurant whenever I needed parts of other stuff. I've probably driven past La Petit Grr a thousand times at this point."

"Ah, well it's good to know that I can use you as a living map if I ever need one; But believe it or not, I did think about reserving a seat there. My father took me there plenty of times, and they do have some amazing appetizers and entrees. Although, I thought that the snobby atmosphere would make her uncomfortable," I reply.

"Well well well, never would I have thought to see the day when Johnny Worthington the Third would consider taking others where they want to eat," Chip chimes in again.

As much as I hate to admit it, he's right. I always had the final say in where the RORs ate, no matter the reasons or excuses. This is different though. This isn't a matter of not liking a certain kind of food, or not liking the décor or even not liking the seats you're provided. This is about making sure that Melanie can enjoy spending time with me outside of work, because only the gods above know how much I shove that down her throat on the daily. Like…I don't want her getting bored with me, nor do I want her thinking that the only thing I do in life is brag about my accomplishments as much as I enjoy doing so. I just figured that taking her to a place that neither of us have been to will make for a much more fun night out.

"She shuts down in those high society environments, Chip. Why do you think she tried to avoid us for so long?" I counter.

"Uuuuuuuuuhhh, good point," Chip chuckles.

Ronan joins in on the laughter but returns to messing with his phone. He has that stereotypical dad pose while sitting down too. His legs are spread apart while he hunches forward and has one hand pushing down onto his knee. "So where are you taking her then? Harryhausen's?"

I shake my head. "La Belle Èpoque."

"Ooooo," Ronan responds with a scrunched face, "I'm going to go out on a limb here and assume that you're paying?"

"Heh, who else would?" I laugh.

"And you're sure that you can afford that?" Ronan continues, setting down his phone.

"Ronan plea- don't worry about the money! You should know how much we scarers make, and honestly, I want Melanie to get used to this kind of life!" I reply.

He looks at me like I said something insane. "…The kind of life where people do everything for her?"

"Ok, we both know she won't let that happen. What I'm referring to is the life where she can go to opulent restaurants and eat food she's always dreamed of eating without consequence. I want her to get used to buying things she would consider to be expensive. I want her to be okay with being…you know, spoiled every now and again," I argue.

"So you want to turn her into a walking copy of you?" Chip chimes in for the third time.

"WILL YOU BE QUIET?!" I seethe through my teeth after twisting my body to confront him.

He takes a stand and leans against the lockers. "And what will you do if I don't? Kill me?"

I groan in frustration knowing that I can't and won't do that. It just bothers me that he talks to me like I'm the worst partner Melanie could possibly have. It's like everyone forgets that I'm the one who got her out of her hermit phase.

"Let's not fight, you two. We're grown adults working at a factory; Those days are behind us," Ronan berates like the father he is.

He then watches me as I shake my head and check if my fur has dried at all. It's still damp, but I think I could walk around the factory without being the cause of a major accident now. I take one of the fresh towels I have and glide it over every inch of my body. Doing this causes Ronan to check and see if his is dry as well, which it is. He just looks way fluffier than I do because each individual strand of his fur is longer than mine.

"Look…I'm glad you're taking her out, but I fear that she'll be overwhelmed and…and become emotional to the point where she'll believe she ruined your night," Ronan explains.

"You fear?" Chip asks, watching him shut his locker.

Those unblinking gloomy wolven eyes dart over to ours, seemingly battling between an agonized and blissful state. His nose crinkles and his stance becomes concerning. He looks as if he's about ready to lunge forward and strike but holds all those thoughts of doing so back.

"Yes, I fear. I live in reality, not some fictional planet where everything is magically okay at all times. And I'm not the only one; Melanie lives in that world too. She has things to hide, just like I did for nearly 30 years," Ronan fumes.

"But what would she have to fear during a dinner date? I would like to think she's completely safe with me," I counter.

Ronan digs his hands into his head. "I don't know, but there's a reason she hates being out in public and freaks out whenever she's exposed to luxurious ways of life. I fear that things won't go the way you want them to…Pfft…as if they ever have."

Within an instant, I tune out of the conversation. This sounds so familiar to me that it's already making me feel deranged. A monster that's very close to Melanie who's stating that she's hiding more than she letting on. Right…Ambrose was the last monster to say that to me. You couldn't possibly fathom what fear truly is unless you've lived through it. What has she lived through to make her father this worried about a normal outing? The answer to this question eludes me as I slide into my semi-formal shawl collar tuxedo. I snuck this into my locker for this exact occasion and figured Melanie would enjoy seeing me dress up like the 'rich-boy' that I am. I even brought a bow tie and quickly tie it underneath the tuxedos collar.

"-ut she knows we're not here to embarrass her or hurt her, right?" Chip asks Ronan.

"I don't know what she really thinks, that's the problem. She hides because that's the only way for her to heal. Whenever she was clearly not okay, she reassured her mother and I that she was. Whenever there was a choice for her to go out in public, she would decline; And if there wasn't a choice, I would notice subtle changes in the way she spoke and acted in order to conform and divert other monster's attention away from her. You might think I'm over exaggerating, but I can sense how badly she struggles. It's as if she thinks it's wrong being asocial when it's not, but there's nothing that will make her stop thinking that. It's her natural instinct to be thinking she's doing something wrong when nothing wrong had even happened," Ronan elucidates.

Oh…so that's what the problem is. She's afraid of what I might think of her if she does the wrong thing in an environment she's not comfortable in. It reminds me of myself actually, being afraid of what the world might think of me if I didn't live to match my father and grandfather. It pains me to hear Ronan say all this while knowing that Melanie is more than perfect.

"It's the one place where I failed as a father. I was able to teach her to be a kind and compassionate monster with grand ambitions and great work ethic, but I couldn't teach her that it's okay to make mistakes. All those awful people in school that were seeking grandeur got to her before I could. Ugh…Sorry…I went off on a tangent. All I'm saying is, I worry about her, and I worry that she'll make you worry," Ronan broods.

I adjust my tuxedo and slam my locker shut.

"Well, now I need you not to worry. I know exactly what she needs to hear," I sigh before walking towards the locker room exit.

We met up at the café like we planned. Ronan, Chip and I rode the elevator up to the lobby and found a bunch of faces we've come to know over the last few months of working here. We exchanged pleasantries and moved on so we could focus on the hum of a thousand voices echoing throughout the massive room. Some even asked if I had a fun night planned because of the fancy get-up, which I confirmed. It didn't take very long to finally find Melanie sitting at a table next to the glass walls with Professor King. They seem deep in conversation, and I only think that because Melanie is actually looking at him in the eyes. She only does that to people she feels comfortable talking to.

I calmly step towards the table so that I can place my hand on Melanie's shoulder and refrain from interrupting their conversation.

"Ah, there he is," Professor King states while uncrossing his legs and standing, "I was wondering if I was going to have to keep Melanie company until the night shift started."

"My dearest apologies. You know what that sanitizer does to fur," I chuckle.

"I do. It's an unfortunate but necessary step. Anyways, I won't keep you any longer, Melanie. Um, oh I need to talk to Ronan before he leaves. Be sure to say goodbye before I steal him from you," Professor King replies.

Melanie, in her enticing black and ripped skinny jeans, white flare dress and cropped leather jacket that remains unzipped, pushes herself out of her seat looking confused. She grabs her purse and turns around so that she can look at me up and down.

"Wh-…What's with the tuxedo?" She asks.

My hands move to my hips as I lean forward and come face to face with her. "How about I tell you after you say goodbye to your father? The both of you will have a conniption if you don't see each other."

"I don-Why am I being told to say goodbye to dad? Am I not…going home with him like I always do?" Melanie questions, clutching her purse.

"No, you're leaving with me today! How about it, huh? Isn't it exciting?" I respond ecstatically.

Melanie looks me up and down again, still as oblivious as she's always been. "B-But why do you need to wear a suit to go home?"

"Again, you'll receive the answers you desire once you say your farewells to everyone. Oh, and be sure to say farewell to Chip too. He worries about you just as much as everyone else," I say, shooing her and gesturing her towards her father.

She opens her mouth in dissent. "But Jo-"

Dang, she really doesn't want to just roll with the punches. I guess I'll just have to push her along like it's her first day of kindergarten. "Go on…I promise you will see your father again; In fact, you'll see him tomorrow."

"O-Ok," She mumbles, finally stepping towards her father as he converses with some of our scarer friends from the rookie floors.

Her ears lower and she tenses up with each small step taken away from me. She even looks back, expressing major uncertainty with everything that's going on, but I've warned her. I said I was going to be annoying one last time. She can hate me all she wants, but at the end of the day, I know how much she loves me.

When I see that she's made it fifty feet in front of me safely, I take the opportunity to ask the Professor a question. "So why do you need Ronan exactly? He hasn't done anything wrong, has he?"

"Geez, you guys are on edge today," Professor King snickers, "No, he's not in trouble. There just happens to be a certain opening that I think he might want to take."

"Oh, is he becoming a big shot like you?" I joke.

"Pffft, I'm really not that important, Johnny. Um, no, Monsters University has become interested in Ronan and would like for him to host some Door Tech and Scaring internships here at Fear Co. They, uh, basically would like him to give their students some high-quality real-world experience," Professor King remarks.

I shake my head in disbelief. "Well, it's about damn time people realize how much of a genius he is!"

Professor King looks out of the glass walls and to the world drowning in an amber glow. "Heh, I-I'm happy for him too. I don't think anyone would have imagined that MU would use him as the go-to person for professional door-tech stuff. Of course, that's up to him, but it's still quite the development."

"Never. All I imagined was him becoming a scarer, not Professor Knight 2.0," I add, "Speaking of which, couldn't he just become a Professor at MU or Fear Tech? He knows his stuff better than anyone else."

"Oh no no no no no no. He would be breaking the law at that point," Professor King answers.

I raise one of my eyebrows and feel my mouth open slightly. "How?"

His eyes close and talks in an annoyed tone, implying that he's heard what he's about to say a million times. "He's been involved in major criminal activity involving gang activity, and that gang activity is, as you know, closely tied to murder. Even if the government has cleared him from being a danger to people, that still makes him disqualified to be a teacher in Monstropolis. However, he can help teach while being supervised by Fear Co security and other various MU employees."

"Ah…well…regardless, that's amazing to hear! Does Melanie know about this?" I ask.

Several night-shift employees politely find their way past us, forcing the two of us back to the table. Geez, it gets really busy up here at the end of the day. This makes Professor Kings response easier to hear though. "No. Like I said, it's up to him. She won't heavily influence his decision if she doesn't know. Only he can decide if he's up for it."

Makes sense. Melanie shouldn't have a say in what he does with his time here at Fear Co. Also, what would be the point of telling her if he ends up choosing to not partake in an opportunity like that anyways?

"But yeah, don't worry about Ronan. He's exceeding expectations and gaining everybody's interest. It's all going down exactly how you told your father those few months ago," Professor King concludes.

Now that I know Ronan's life won't spiral into chaos for the second time in his life, I take the time to check on him and Melanie. I scan through the crowded lobby and find them across the room. They both seem to be okay, laughing even.

"My father should really listen to me more. If I'm being honest, I saved this company from becoming irrelevant because of my natural ability of finding talent," I disclose.

"Holy…okay, that's a very strong claim to make, so I'm just going to nod and agree with you as to not make anyone mad," He says with his hands up in a defensive manner.

I shrug. "Hey he's the one always going on about having me become a great businessman. While he was busy living in the past, I was out there looking for the next greatest scarers. Now I'm four for four and have the general public fawning over us."

"Four for four?" Professor King questions.

I raise my hand and point up with my pointer finger to indicate the number 'one'. "Chip." Then with my middle finger for two, "Ronan," and then my ring finger for three, "Myself," and finally my pinky for four, "Melanie. We're basically the unstoppable quartet."

"I seeeee… maybe you should start getting serious about taking over the company then. Maybe someone like you, who has a fresh outlook on the scaring business and has an infinite supply of scaring knowledge could run the company flawlessly," Professor King replies emotionlessly.

"Ugh…yeah yeah. I still think that a CEO position doesn't suit me, but whatever…Maybe after a couple years of Scaring," I sigh.

Nothing is said after that, and I'm glad it's come to that. I've come to dislike talking about being the next 'heir to the throne' because of how much fun I've been having as a scarer. I originally thought that I would end up being on a scare floor for four or so years and then make the transfer, but I'm starting to realize how difficult that will be for me. I love the thrill, I love the sights, the sounds, and the love I get from doing it. To be honest, I probably won't make the change until I can't keep up and begin to feel old.
That's not something I need to worry about now though. Instead of worrying about the far future, I patiently wait with King for the two Everett's to finish their goodbyes. They go on and on about whatever gossip comes to their mind, and that eventually causes the Professor to shout out to them. "Miss Everett! Can I trade Johnny for your father?!"

As Melanie shrivels up in embarrassment, Ronan takes the initiative to herd her back towards us. They cautiously make their way through the busy lobby, swerving around any scarer, assistant, or random factory worker that unintentionally cuts them off. At least everyone can move on with their plans now; Mine included.

"Sorry! I'm still making up for all the lost time between us and rant like the old man I am," Ronan chuckles as he and Melanie get close.

Professor King walks up beside him, raising his arm and patting Ronan's back as if they were old pals. "No worries. I do need to talk to you though, and I don't want to have to keep you past your shifts end. I'm also not fond of getting a heavily worded call from Evelyn about keeping you late, so I kind of have to rush."

"Ooo, I forgot that she's done that to you before. Ok, Melanie, have fun tonight. There's no reason for you to be nervous, okay," Ronan soothes, giving Melanie a quick pet on the head.

She nods and perseveres through her uncertainty before shuffling over to my side. I gently place my arm around her, feeling her body perfectly fit up against mine, and begin the short trek out of the building. I also throw my other hand up in the air so that I can wave goodbye to the two wolven monstrosities that have been tearing up the scare floors recently. They reciprocate my gesture and begin their own journey to the offices above.

"John, can you please tell me what you're doing? It's becoming less annoying and more concerning now…," Melanie groans.

Some more scarers and various employees call out to me, offering me the praise I've always received, but I half ignore them. Most of their words have little meaning to me after years of hearing the exact same sentences be directed at me. Instead, I focus on responding the Melanie's question and decide to be annoying, just like I said I would. "Oh? You're saying you don't know what's going on after noticing my suit and old-timey bowtie? Man…and after all that talk about you being smarter than me."

"Ok, John, that's not nice and you know it!" Melanie hisses after planting her feet into the ground, winding up both of her arms and giving me a MASSIVELY…weak push.

We finally make it to the ramps that lead to the front entrance. Only a few more steps until the greatest weekend ever begins.

"Hey, we've been over this already; I'm the stupid one. You have to call me out on my hypocrisy," I playfully retort.

She scoffs and returns to brooding like she has all night. Here's to hoping that my plans will stop her from doing so.