Secrets of Two is back! Sorry for the long wait, but it took me a while to finish this chapter. ^^' But alas, it's finally done and I've finally released it! Enjoy!
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
It was Monday, and to say that the weekend had been chaotic was… A very light way to put it.
Gumball and Penny both knew this well, especially having been at the sole center of it. Though their Friday night events had ended in a romantic scene, there was no denying the fact things weren't exactly the "old normal" anymore.
The feline had felt the big change practically shake the Watterson household. Nobody really knew what to really think of it. Was this really how things were now?
In the meantime since that evening, he had been cooped up inside, as both his mother's orders, and his own accord. He didn't need to be told twice why, being the direct cause of most of the town's initial frenzy of a night. It was just best to keep out of the public eye.
But now, it was Monday.
"Are you sure you want to go to school today?" Nicole stood by the bottom of the stairs, concern in her expression. "It's only been two or three days, and you still don't have any control over your powers yet either!"
Gumball let out a sigh, loosening his grip on his backpack straps. The bus pulled up to the street, giving off a looming dreadful aura. "I'll be fine mom, stop worrying."
Admittedly, the two weren't on the greatest of terms at the moment. After what Nicole had said that night, the younger cat hardly spoke to her, only doing so when required. All their short conversations felt nothing short of tense.
"Alright just.. Be careful-" Before Nicole could finish, the door slammed shut. Her shoulders sagged, as she glanced over to her husband, who resided on the couch. "..I don't get it.. I've tried everything I've could, and he's still.. This…"
"Don't worry honey, I'm sure it's fine." Richard replied, waving a paw. "Just give him time, he's still getting used to himself anyways."
"..I suppose you're right.."
Gumball hadn't thought this out too well.
The feline now stood in the aisle of the bus, officially face-to-face with most of his classmates. He was practically sweating buckets as he quietly moved, feeling all the stares glaring into his head. If anything, it felt like sheer torture, time slow and drawn out.
Spotting Darwin in the back by himself, he internally let out a sigh of relief, immediately taking place beside him. "..Hey."
"..You ok?" The fish gave a look of worry, noticing the cat's uncomfortableness.
"..Dunno. We'll.. We'll see how it goes.." Gumball sat his backpack into his lap, playing with the strings on it for distraction. "..I'm not that different.. Right?.."
"I'm sure they don't mean to stare, it's just.. A big change, y'know?" Darwin took a quick glance at the other kids. He frowned, taking notice of a couple whispers being tossed around. "They'll get over it. Just.. Maybe don't do any of that.. Telekinesis stuff."
Gumball scoffed. "You're acting like I can control that."
"You can't?"
"Not really, no. I just discovered it like three days ago dude, I'm not gonna suddenly be really good at it on a whim."
The goldfish gave a nod. "Fair point."
Silence soon cut between them, before Darwin decided to continue. "...So… I've been meaning to ask."
"About the family history junk?"
Darwin blinked in surprise. "Uh, yeah.. How'd you know?"
The cat shrugged. "Just figured. Had the feeling mom and dad never told you about any of it yet."
"Yeah.. They've been kinda weird after Friday…"
"Well I did just sorta break a huge long secret from a ton of old ancestors, so I guess they're gonna act weird for a while.." Gumball's words were a little awkward in tone. Admittedly he still felt quite uncomfortable about it himself.
"So… What are you guys anyways?.. They wouldn't exactly say.." Darwin shifted on his side of the bus seat, raising an eyebrow as he awaited a response.
"Here's what I know." The feline fixed his sitting position, facing more towards the other now. "So, most of our family are these guys known as Elmoreans. Basically a long long time ago, our old ancestor guys were living here when Elmore's first people showed up."
Darwin was listening intently, slightly leaning in. It felt baffling that this was family history. To him it felt more like hearing about a lost legend.
"We got named after the town, and for a while everybody was pretty cool with each other, until one day I guess Elmore kinda changed its mind because they were trying to push out the Elmoreans. Our ancestors were pretty bummed about it, so they disguised themselves to look-" Gumball made air-quotes with his fingers. "'Normal', so they could keep living here."
He soon let out a yawn. "Anyway long story short, here we are now. Pretty much we're cool striped things with our own powers. Not really sure why we have the diamond eye thing going on but meh. Only reason I know all this is 'cause it's apparently tradition for Elmorean kids to learn all that junk when they're like three or four."
"So.. Does everyone have telekinesis?" Darwin's eyes were wide, as he was rather interested yet overwhelmed by all the sudden information.
"What? Oh nah, that's just my thing. Every Elmorean dude gets their own powers, they get swapped out every generation or so."
The bus screeched to a halt, as the front of the school was in view. All the students began to make their way out, some taking a moment to side-eye the two boys while passing by.
"Aw man, school already? Well um.. Hope that caught you up on everything dude." Gumball stood up, slinging his backpack onto his shoulder. "And.. Sorry that we never told you.. Freaking stupid of mom and dad, y'know?.."
"Yeah, I had no idea you guys were so cool!" Darwin got up as well, giving a smile. Though, internally he felt rather.. Somber. He tried his best to ignore it, not wanting to worry his brother. "And hey, it's not your fault. You were just trying to.. Keep an oath I guess?"
Gumball nodded, as the two stepped off the bus. "I guess you could call it that yeah."
"Gumball, Darwin, hi!"
The boys looked to their right, seeing Penny waving at them in her new form. She looked rather nervous, her bag in hand, as she came over. Hesitating a moment, she leaned over to give Gumball a kiss on the head, smiling as she did so.
"H-Hey Penny, how uh.. How are you doing?" The feline could feel his face heat up, remembering the very real reality he was in. His heart practically still did somersaults whenever he thought about it. "Are you.. Holding up okay?.."
"..Doing my best." She pulled away, looking self conscious in the moment, as she held her bag to her chest. "My family's been freaking out all weekend.. So.. I'm a little on edge for.. What school might be like.."
"You're not alone on that, trust me." Gumball gave a small nervous chuckle, as he scratched the back of his head. "Everybody staring at me on the bus felt like torture."
"Oh um.. I should probably get to class.." Penny said, checking the time on her phone. "It starts in ten minutes.. See you next period?"
The cat smiled. "Yeah, for sure."
He gave a wave, as she walked into the building. For a moment he could've sworn hearts replaced his diamond pupils. "I can't believe it, Darwin, after all this time.. It's a dream come true!"
"Yeah well.. Maybe save the believing for later." The goldfish let out a sigh, dragging the lovestruck cat inside. "You know Miss Simian is going to kill us if we're late again."
As Gumball and Darwin walked into class, the cat could immediately sense that the vibes were off, a few looks thrown his way. Trying not to let it get to him, he simply followed his brother to their respective seats, not bothering to acknowledge it.
However, it was easier said than done.
Miss Simian took a sip of her coffee, scowling at him. "You better not cause me trouble today Watterson."
Gumball simply gave a slight nod. However, his mood soon perked up, as he spotted Penny entering the room. She looked downright nervous, slightly shaking as she made her way to her seat. Concerned, he gave her a small wave as she approached, making the fairy smile and return the gesture.
"Alright class, attendance. You know the drill." Miss Simian began to list off names in a rather monotone voice, the students responding about the same. "First Watterson."
"Here." The cat mumbled, just enough to be audible. He was slightly fidgeting with his hands, tracing his fingers along their cyan blue patterns, as he tried not to really do much. A part of him was worried about accidentally setting off the fire alarm with his powers or something.
"Fitzgerald." Miss Simian looked up, hearing a lack of an answer. "Penny Fitzgerald?"
"H-Here.."
The whole class turned to Penny's desk, shock and surprise on their faces, some even letting out gasps. It was then they began to murmur and whisper amongst themselves, some of it audible.
"Wait, she's Penny!?"
"She looks.. So different.."
Penny felt all the more worse, as all sorts of eyes landed on her. Unable to handle the stress, it was much to her horror that she shapeshifted into a mouse, making the environment all the more terrifying.
The other kids were all the more shocked, some even trying to get a better look at her, as the talking grew louder. Too loud. The fairy-now-mouse trembled at it all.
"Hey can you guys leave her alone?! Stop trying to get into her personal space!"
Penny's eyes widened, as relief washed over her. Gumball was glaring at the others, an annoyed look on his face. Seeing how miserable she looked, the cat put out his paws towards her. Understanding the gesture, she quietly climbed on, as he held her up to his chest, whispering a few reassurances before giving her a small peck to the head.
"GUMBALL'S DATING PENNY?!"
"DANG IT!" Tobias cried out from the back.
"QUIET DOWN!" Miss Simian yelled, slamming her chart onto her desk. "Get out your books, we're working on page 57 today."
Grumbling, the class did as they were told, flipping through pages.
Gumball looked down at mouse-Penny, noticing her looking still pretty stressed out. As quiet as he could, he whispered to her. "Hey, it's ok. We can work together on this, I'll give you the notes later."
She smiled, as he propped her up onto his desk, flipping over to the page as carefully as he could. As Miss Simian droned on, the two were at work, with Gumball carefully guiding her along and writing down whatever she deemed important.
However, as the lesson continued, Gumball could sense something was.. Wrong. Sure, he still felt plenty of anxiety from everybody's perception of him as well as now Penny, but it felt bigger than that. His powers.
It was small at first, a pencil on his desk suddenly rolling off and onto the floor. Penny gave a look, as if she was starting to notice as well. Nervous, Gumball tried to stay calm, but not too calm. The last thing he wanted was causing worse than he did a few nights ago. However that worry was only fuel, as by now everyone was starting to notice various things moving on their own. Books flipping pages, bottles falling to the floor, and a couple posters flapping on the wall.
Miss Simian gave an annoyed sigh, as she turned around. "Watterson, stop interrupting class!"
Gumball grimaced, seeing everyone looking at him. "It's not my fault, I can't just turn it off when I want to!"
"Well try harder or I'm giving you detention!"
Suddenly, the ape's coffee flew off her desk, splashing onto her. Miss Simian let out a screech of pain, before angrily approaching the feline's desk. "You did that on purpose you little freak! You think this is funny?!"
Gumball couldn't feel any words form in his throat, as he looked at her with fright. Before he knew it, she was suddenly sent flying, crashing into her desk with a loud thud. The kids around him were very vocal at the moment, standing up in their desks as they looked upon the scene with bewilderment and shock, some awkwardly moving away from him to avoid getting the same fate.
The cat meanwhile was mortified, desperately trying to get it to stop. He could see the lights flickering, as several other objects were getting moved by themselves. It was getting worse. It was getting worse and his stupid self couldn't control it-
Gumball paused, as a tiny hand touched his. Slowly looking down, he saw mouse-Penny looking at him with concern, her small squeaky voice uttering words of comfort. Quietly, the cat let out a breath, feeling just as safe and secure like she had been with him. As he did so, everything stopped moving. The lights functioned normally, and it was all peace.
For a minute.
"WATTERSON!" Miss Simian stumbled slightly, standing up as steam was practically coming out her ears. She pointed towards the door. "Principal's office. NOW. You were annoying and stupid enough before you became a freak, but this takes it to a whole other level! And I do not get paid enough to deal with animals like you! This is a school, not a zoo!"."
The feline's eyes widened, feeling the verbal attack practically stab him in the gut. Without a word, he hung his head low, shamefully getting up and walking out of the room. He couldn't care less for the people staring at him right now.
As he approached the door to the all too familiar space, he could feel a knot in his stomach. Was Principal Brown going to insult him next? Before he could open the door, the furry slug did it for him, appearing in the doorway.
"Oh, Watterson." Principal Brown gave him that familiar stern look, though seemed slightly startled. The cat wasn't too surprised that he wasn't informed yet. "Come on in, sit down."
Gumball quietly sat himself down in the wood chair facing the desk, as the principal sat opposite of him. He could tell the man was observing him.
"Now, what is it this time?"
The cat sighed. "..I.. Lost control of my… Telekinesis in class.. So.. Miss Simian yelled and insulted me.. And sent me here.."
"Ah right, your mother let me know about that." Principal Brown's expression slightly softened, noticing the feline looking more upset than usual. "You're not this quiet when you're sent here."
"Why would I be chatty today?" Gumball questioned, his tone bitter. "..You're probably gonna be really mad and kick me out of school."
"Kick you out? Watterson, I don't even know the details of what happened, why would I do that?"
The cat stiffened. "Because I could've hurt someone?.. Technically already did since... I accidentally threw my teacher.."
"You threw Miss Simian?" Principal Brown looked up, briefly pausing from the writing he was doing. Bewilderment riddled his face, as well as what looked like concern. "Is she injured?!"
"N-No.. Just.. Really mad.." Gumball tried not to remember what she had said, but it was becoming difficult. "I didn't mean to.. I couldn't control it at all.."
The furry slug let out a sigh, as he faced his attention to the cat. "Watterson, I'll tell you this. Let's be honest, you've done far worse to her. From my records, she was trapped in a freezer for days, lost teeth during a hallway chase, and was purposefully being injured on a highway. Today's incident seems to be nothing more than a simple accident you had no control over."
"So.. I'm not getting kicked out and.. Sent to a bad place or something?.." The feline was a bit surprised by this conversation.
"No, by all means it's not necessary. I'll be sending you to Mr. Small's office after school to perhaps learn a thing or two, so this incident hopefully can be prevented."
"...Um.. Okay.. Thanks?.." The cat blinked, as if the sentence was alien to him. The last thing he expected was Principal Brown actually giving him some help with a problem.
"So we're at an understanding." Seeing him nod, Principal Brown continued. "I'll write you a hall pass and then you'll be free to go."
Stepping out, Gumball felt rather confused and slightly upset with his day. Already it was becoming a nuisance, and he couldn't even stop it. Was this what he was going to have to deal with?
Thankfully, by the time he got back to class, there was only about five minutes left before recess. Miss Simian kept her eyes on him like a hawk, not once looking away. It slightly unnerved the feline, especially seeing how tense everybody else was. A part of him was relieved however, seeing Penny was back to her fairy shape, sitting at her desk.
She gave him a concerned look, before quietly and secretly passing him a note as their teacher screeched.
'Are you ok?'
Frowning, Gumball made a quick response, handing it to her under their desks.
'I guess. I'm not really in trouble apparently.'
Penny raised an eyebrow, to which the feline gave her a small shrug. Before she could question further on the note however, the bell rang, and everyone started to file out. Seeing the feline doing the same, she quickly gathered her things and caught up to his walking. "So hold on, you're not in trouble?"
He gave another shrug. "Principal Brown was a little off today, he was kinda.. More sympathetic I guess? And.. He just kinda told me to go to Mr. Small's after school."
"I suppose it makes sense, it wasn't really your fault." The fairy replied. The two went through the hallways, certainly catching a few eyes. If anything, the attention bothered Penny, who grimaced. "Is it going to be like this for a while?"
"Ugh, people don't act like this around Carmen and Alan." Gumball scowled, glancing around at the students. The kids shied away upon eye contact. "Okay fine I get it, we're apparently really weird, but the staring is completely stupid!"
Penny placed a hand on his shoulder, seeing a few lockers start to open on their own. Giving a warm smile, she couldn't help but feel happy seeing the feline melt at her touch. "At least I have my boyfriend here with me, just like I am for him."
He softly chuckled. "Wouldn't wish for anything else."
Arriving at his locker, Gumball parted ways, his girlfriend heading to her own. "See you later Penny, I love you!"
For a second he covered his mouth with shock, his face becoming red. The fairy giggled, making his blush deeper, as he slowly lifted his hands away, smiling fondly. The word felt like magic on his tongue now, and it was very, very real.
Putting his belongings away, he shut the locker with a thud, feeling in a better mood than he was earlier. Though, as he walked to the outdoor courtyard, there were thoughts in his head that just made him feel.. Uncertain. Like something tugging at him inside.
He could only do his best to ignore it.
Sitting at a bench, the feline watched the other kids going about their activities, making him rather uneasy in the process. It only reminded him of his dilemma. How on Earth was he going to control his power, let alone to a safe enough level that he doesn't send someone's stuff flying every two seconds?
Gumball paused, as briefly turning away his eyes landed on another spot. Penny was seen standing nervously, looking as if she wanted to join in on an activity but feeling too afraid to do so. The cat frowned and began to stand up to go walk over to her, but before he could, Leslie and Carmen approached her instead. Cautiously watching, he sighed in relief, seeing them talking and Penny beginning to smile.
"Hey, you ok?"
The cat flinched, soon finding Darwin sitting next to him. "Geez dude you could've let me know you were there!"
"Sorry.." The goldfish sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. Seeing his brother's expression soon shift, he raised an eyebrow. "Seriously though, are you okay?.. Miss Simian didn't hurt you that bad, did she?..."
Gumball stared at the blacktop, letting out a sigh. "I don't know man, today's just.. It feels like the whole world is watching me and judging me for every single thing I do. And.. Those words just.. Didn't help.."
"Hey, don't let it get to you. She's just being her same old self, y'know? I think she would've said that regardless."
Darwin frowned, seeing the other silent. Thinking to himself, he got up from the bench. "I'll be right back."
"..Kay." Gumball looked back at Penny. By now, she was talking and laughing with her cheerleader friends, and even waved to the cat upon noticing him. He was happy for her, but a part of him felt a pinch of guilt, knowing it only made him feel worse.
The cool air snapped him out of his thoughts. He grimaced, knowing who was floating beside him. "..Hey Carrie. I.. Take it Darwin brought you over?"
"Yup." Carrie gave a nod, though concern was in her expression. "Are you doing alright dude? He told me you were pretty.. Upset."
"Well yeah, course I'm upset!" His voice softened after his rather loud response. "..It's just.. My stupid powers.. I can't control them, and it doesn't help when everybody around me is so.. I dunno.. Weirded out.."
"It's telekinesis, right?" Seeing him nod, the ghost couldn't help but let out a snort. "Gumball, if you needed help, why didn't you just ask? I have the same power too man."
"Wait what? Augh!" Gumball smacked himself in the face, embarrassment riddling him. "How did I forget that?!"
Carrie chuckled, giving a small shrug. "Look, I get it. I wasn't exactly a pro at first either. When I was little, for a while I had to wear this sort of 'seal' ring, that would keep about ninety percent of my powers safely tucked inside it while I learned to control them. So believe me, you're not exactly alone."
Gumball couldn't help but smile at the reply. Thinking for a moment, he hesitantly spoke up. "Hey um.. If.. If you're.. If you're fine with it, could.. Could you help me learn to.. Control my telekinesis?.. It's just, you seem really good at it and-"
"Yeah sure." She replied before the feline could finish. She gave him a similar grin. "I can bring a seal ring to you tomorrow for starters. No offense, but I think you might need it."
"None taken. Last thing I need is accidentally throwing a chair at someone's head.." He let out another sigh. "Thanks Carrie, I.. Really needed this."
"No worries man, I'm here if you ever need me." The ghost playfully punched his shoulder, making him laugh in the process. "Don't get too caught up about everybody's reactions, okay? They'll get used to you with time."
The bell rang loudly, kids making their way back inside. Gumball gave Carrie a wave goodbye, as they parted ways in the building.
"Alright class BE QUIET! We're watching a movie." Miss Simian grumbled, tossing a VHS tape into the bulky TV box sitting in its stand. The class couldn't help but sigh in relief at that.
Gumball shared the same sentiment, placing one paw under his chin as the lights were flicked off. After the day he was going through, he was grateful to have something at least peaceful enough.
That was, until the elephant of the room showed up.
The feline blinked, the light in front of him following his actions. It was like a flashlight was being shined onto the tv screen, much to his annoyance. And it only grew worse once he realized where it was coming from.
Before he knew it, Miss Simian was glaring at him from her desk. "Turn that off Watterson."
Gumball blinked several times, but his eyes only continued to glow, illuminating through the dark classroom. "I can't."
"Then close your eyes!"
He begrudgingly obeyed, darkness only greeting him. The tv was still playing sound, but now it was all he could rely on to figure out what was happening.
"Oh and class," Miss Simian cackled. "You better be writing notes, we'll have a pop quiz afterward."
Gumball couldn't help but quietly lay his head face down onto the desk.
It was now lunchtime thankfully, and the cat was doing a lot better after that movie incident. There weren't a whole lot of people sitting at his table however, and he honestly couldn't blame them.
Though it wasn't all doom and gloom, as his brother Darwin sat beside him, taking a bite of what looked like the cafeteria's excuse for a sloppy joe. "Don't worry, the day will be over before we even know it."
"Doesn't feel like it." Gumball replied, digging into his own tray of food. "It already feels like stuff keeps happening back-to-back. I mean c'mon, Miss Simian literally gave me a pop quiz knowing I couldn't see the darn video! How am I supposed to control my eyes from not being literal headlights?!"
He winced, hearing the sound of a soda can exploding somewhere in the room.
"Maybe you should try practicing your powers a little bit." Darwin pointed to a vacant ball from the outdoor equipment, the item sitting idly by the door. From the looks of it, it hadn't been touched since last recess. "That way, you kinda have more control!"
"That's perfect! Maybe then I can finally have everybody off my back!" Gumball excitedly faced himself towards the object. Letting out a slow exhale, he quietly focused, sticking his tongue out and squinting his eyes as he kept his paws resting on the table.
It slowly began to lift in the air, slightly wobbling as he concentrated harder. Just as he was doing a great job however, a piece of sloppy joe landed onto the table with a loud splat. Gumball grew startled, the ball reacting immediately as it shot off flying into a window.
"Gosh darn it! No, I can do this! No distractions!" The cat stubbornly turned towards his tray, spotting the small section of peas on it. Focusing once more, he pulled out his fork, ready for it to come closer to being catapulted.
However, instead of lifting up one pea, his entire lunch flew up into the ceiling, the tray landing back down with a loud clatter. Gumball groaned, covering his face with his arms. "It's useless.."
"Um.. Dude?.."
Feeling Darwin nudging him, the cat looked up glumly. "What?"
The fish didn't have to answer, as the sight explained for him. Gumball's shoulders sank, as he saw every single tray had been airborne, everything now a heaping mess all around the cafeteria. Everybody was looking at him angrily, not bothering to say a word.
All he could feel was shame consume him, and his self esteem lowered further.
By this point Gumball was barely making it through the day, trudging class to class with hardly any reaction to anything. He was trying so hard not to screw up, yet the universe only spat in his face. If anything, it just made him miserable.
Anais saw how upset her brother was, and even she could tell he was barely acting like his usual self. Unable to watch any more of this, she decided to finally go up to him in the hall, gently placing her paw onto his shoulder. "Gumball, liste-"
The cat turned around in complete startlement, causing his sister in turn to be sent flying into a nearby section of lockers. "Wha?! ANAIS!"
He immediately ran over, sitting on his knees as he took in the situation. The young bunny had fallen to the ground, a large dent in the place she crashed into. Bruises covered her, as well as what looked like a few cuts on her arms and legs from the bent locker metal. "I-I'm so sorry I-I didn't mean to! H-Hang on I-I'll get you to the nurse d-don't worry!"
Anais didn't respond, but the cat could see visible tears struggling to stay hidden. It only broke him further. Scooping her up into his arms, he raced towards the nurse's office, slamming the door open with his powers, for once it did something useful.
"What do you want? Can't you see I'm busy rethinking my life choi-" The bandage nurse cut off, seeing the bunny's state. Raising an eyebrow, she helped Anais onto a cot, before turning her attention back to Gumball. "What happened here?"
"I-It's not my fault I swear!" He replied frantically. "S-She just startled me a-and I-I u-used my powers on a-accident I-I didn't mean to h-hurt her-"
"Okay okay, I get it." Ms Markham turned away, grabbing a stack of bandages from her cabinet. "Look, just go back to class, she'll be fine. It just needs patching up."
"A-Are you sure it's not bad?.."
She sighed, pinching the bridge of her non-existent nose. "Yes! Now please leave, it's already been a headache today with all this mess and I'd prefer not getting my office trashed."
Feeling all the more guilty, Gumball only gave a simple nod, quietly walking out. As he reached his locker, he could tell most of his class was still mad at him for earlier, some giving death glares that practically burned the back of his head. All he could do was ignore them as much as he could, slamming his locker shut once he grabbed his gym bag.
Upon making his way to his destination, he spotted Anais thankfully walking in the hallway again. However, she had a slight limp, alongside several bandages covering her.
Students came out to the pool area, most dressed in swimsuits and awaiting instruction from Coach Russo, who stood off to the side with her familiar stoic expression.
As soon as Gumball stepped out in his swim trunks, a few heads turned, some curious while others remained rather bitter. He only chuckled nervously, feeling rather vulnerable at the moment, as his patterned stripes were now in full view, an intricate diamond design seen on his torso.
Leslie sighed, waving one of his leaves around Penny's face, though it did not nothing to snap her out from her lovestruck trance. "Come on Penny, it's not that interesting."
He paused, taking another glance at the feline, but it was more like studying him now. "Then again.. You could certainly do worse.."
"Alright class, get in the water and swim 3 laps." Coach cut in, her voice deep and gravely as usual. She pointed towards the pool, the kids taking cue to jump in.
Gumball hesitated for a moment, before slowly crawling into the water, doing his best to attempt what the others were doing. Though, it wasn't going very well. The cat's head went under for a moment, the chlorine stinging his eyes as he glanced down at the pool's bottom. Annoyance soon began to seep in, as he realized they were glowing again, a painful cruel reminder of his day.
Frustrated, he grumbled bitterly, but frustration soon turned to horror, his mouth open and his air gone. Struggling to breathe, he desperately tried to swim back up, his head popping in and out of the water constantly. Meanwhile, the other students began to freak out, seeing the water suddenly trying to pull them under, as the lights overhead started to flicker rapidly.
Seeing the chaos, his mood only became worse. As fast as he could, he finally managed to get himself onto a pool ladder, climbing up and out of the water. The lights returned to normal, and the kids were able to pull themselves back up.
Thankfully the feline had walked away before he could see their reactions. He could feel himself shaking, tears threatening to fall from his eyes. Fearing the worst, Gumball sat himself in the farthest bench there was, covering his face with his hands.
"..Gumball?"
He slowly looked up, Penny standing before him with concern. "...Hi."
The fairy sat herself down beside him, her hands resting on her knees. "..Has your day been.. Really bad?.."
Gumball let out a sigh, his gaze landing on the wet floor. "Bad doesn't even begin to cover it. I.. I keep messing up.. A-And people keep getting hurt and upset because of me.. Heck, I nearly drowned half our class just now! There's nothing worse than that!"
He soon fell silent, as a thought lingered in his head. "...Maybe I should've just stayed regular ol' Gumball.."
Penny scooted closer, catching the attention of the feline. "There is no 'regular Gumball', this is you."
She took his paws, making his face turn a bright red in the process, as she showed a warm smile. "And I love you, for you."
A small grin formed on Gumball's face in return, though it soon vanished, as he turned to look at the other kids swimming around in the pool. "..I.. I don't think I wanna go swimming right now.. Not after all that.."
Penny gave a nod, placing a hand onto his shoulder. "It's okay, you don't have to. We can sit and take it easy."
"..We?" He raised an eyebrow, catching on to her words. "..But.. Aren't you going to miss out on that pool junk?.. I-I don't wanna be annoying or anything.."
"Yes we," She replied with a warm smile. "you're not alone, Gumball, believe me. I'm not going anywhere right now, and it certainly doesn't bother me at all."
"..Really?.." His smile returned.
"Really."
As the class went on, Gumball slowly scooted closer to Penny, placing his paw into her hand as he leaned onto her side. She didn't mind one bit, finding it rather adorable actually, as the two quietly sat and enjoyed each others' company.
Perhaps things will get better.