Part 62

It was long after midnight. Eddie had fallen asleep hours ago, leaving Gunter awake with his thoughts. When it first happened, Gunter had to fight to stay optimistic and jolly, because he knew Mr. Moon wouldn't like all the boo-hooing. He broke down in his hotel room and he cried with the others and at the funeral and occasionally with Eddie but Mr. Moon didn't like crying. He could count on one hand the times he'd found Mr. Moon crying, including when the theater had flooded.

It wasn't easy always having to be the happy one, to inspire hope in each other. Yet, he didn't want to burden everyone else when they were also suffering. But the longer he went trying to be the happy one, the harder it got.

Eddie ended up being the one he could turn to. He was afraid the sheep might hate him when he learned he and Buster had been together. Except he didn't. He just asked questions about the koala. Intimate questions that Gunter was happy to answer.

He sat up in their bed and rubbed his eyes. He looked beside him and realized he was alone. Had Eddie gotten up to use the bathroom? How had he missed it?

He got up and looked around the dark room. He wandered out of the bedroom and down into the main theater. He sighed and sat down.

"This is my favorite spot too." Gunter turned his head to see Buster sitting where he'd sat for the auditions. "Do you remember your audition?"

Gunter gave a strangled gasp. "Mr. Moon! How?"

Buster smiled. "It's called a dream. It's okay, Gunter. I didn't mean to scare you."

"Mr. Moon…. I… I… I'm sorry…" Gunter stammered. "I didn't know you were there." Just a dream. His lip shook. "What…"

Buster chuckled. "It's okay. I just wanted to thank you. I didn't get to say it and I should have. You were there for me when… well… you know. You always made me feel loved. And thank you for taking care of Eddie for me."

The hog fought to control himself. "I loved you, Buster. All I wanted was to make you happy, even though I knew… I want to help Eddie. To love him and help him learn how to love again."

The koala walked over to the stage and climbed the small staircase. He touched Gunter's hand. "I wish I could have loved you in the same way, that's what you deserved. All I want now is for you to be happy. You and Eddie." He looked around the stage. "Love the sets, by the way. Great concept."

Gunter blushed. "We're doing our best. It's not the same without you. It's not fair. This theater was your dream before we ever met you." He blew his nose. "You should be here."

Buster offered him his handkerchief. "I'm always here, Gunter. This theater is my home. I'm always watching over all of you. And I know it's in good hands." He sighed. "I know that none of this is what any of us planned but I'm happy. Hey, we played Redshore City. We put on the greatest show of my career!" He patted the pig on the back. "I lived a full, rich life because of you and all of our friends. Out of this World was just the perfect finale." He looked at his watch. "I have to go. I love all of you. And…." He kissed Gunter deeply. "Share that with Eddie, will ya?"

Gunter opened his eyes and realized he was sitting up in their bed. He touched his lips, still feeling the sensation. He looked beside him and smiled down at the sheep. At least he had Buster's blessing.

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While tying on his apron and putting on his hat, Lance hoped no one would notice that he wasn't feeling well. He'd been feeling strangely tired recently and his joints ached.

He stepped onto the truck and forced a smile. "Morning Tyler!"

Tyler looked at him. "Whoa! You look terrible." Okay so his attempts at pretending to be fine had failed. "What's up?"

He shook his head. "I'm just tired and achy, that's all. It's nothing serious."

The orangutan looked him over. "If you start to feel worse, let me know. I can call Gabriel or Ramone if you need a sick day."

Lance looked up with alarm. "No, no, I'm fine. I can't afford a sick day. I have bills to pay and kids to feed and clothe. I'm fine." He went to the window. "I can help whoever's next!"

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Marcus made breakfast as he did every morning, fluffy scrambled eggs and thick-sliced turkey bacon with toast. "Porsha, Nooshy! Time to eat. You leave for school soon."

Porsha bounced out of the bedroom while Nooshy came out in a slump, a thermometer hanging out of her mouth. "I don't feel good…" she moaned.

Marcus took the thermometer and read it. "130?" He asked incredulously. "Lightbulb trick?" He earned a sigh and a nod. "And why are we pretending to be sick?"

Nooshy shook her head. "No reason…. I just… the other kids at school say I'm supposed to… once in a while…" She stammered.

Marcus studied her for a few moments. "And that's the only reason? I'm assuming you would tell me if something was wrong, right?"

She nodded. "Of course, Big Daddy. I'm just trying to get the full teenager in high school experience and that includes faking sick." She grabbed her bag. "Come on, Porsha, the bus is here." They hurried downstairs to catch the school bus.

Big Daddy stopped Porsha on the way out. "Is there something going on that I should know about?" He asked.

The wolf shook her head. "Not that I know of. I'll keep an eye on her." She promised.

He nodded. "That's my girl. But remember to focus on your studies. Have a good day." He kissed her forehead and let her run off. He didn't think Nooshy would lie to him but she was also only just 16 and high school kids could be very cruel.

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As the morning went by, Lance progressively felt worse. He grabbed a napkin and coughed into it. He looked at the material and threw it away before washing his hands and returning to his job. "I can take who's next."

Tyler watched the porcupine. "Are you sure you can do this? You're starting to look pale." He observed.

Lance nodded while taking the payment. "Yeah… yeah… I'm fine…" He sat down in the chair that Tyler quickly rushed up behind him.

Tyler touched his forehead. "No, you're not. You need to go home and rest. Okay? Okay? Lance?" He realized Lance wasn't responding. "Crap!"

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When Ash got to the theater, she found Rosita going over the numbers with Miss. Crawly. "Wow, and this is just the opening weekend?" Rosita whistled. "Hey Ash, you look very happy today."

Ash nodded. "I am. Can I tell you a secret? You can't tell anyone. Especially not Lance." She pulled out the ring box.

Rosita smiled. "That's great, Ash! I'm so happy for you." She hugged the younger woman.

She nodded. "Yeah, I figured he's taking too long. Maybe he's waiting for me to make the move, you know. Because of what happened before." She put it away. "It's crazy. I thought I loved him once before but it's different this time. He's all I can think about. And those kids… I was anxious about it at first but I love them." She said as her phone went off. She answered it. "Hey, Lance. Tyler? What's wrong? What? When? Yeah, I'm on my way." She hung up. "Lance decided to try and work sick and he fell unconscious. He's on his way to the hospital."

AN: Short chapter but we have our inciting incident for the next big plot point. Warning: Really, I mean it this time. There is a character death upcoming.