AN: So, this new chapter of Adventures of the Smiling Critters would be short and simple compared to the last few chapters. Here, the Smiling Critters are celebrating Picky's birthday, but things took a turn for the worse when DogDay finds that he needs to find a replacement gift for his friend.
Chapter 12
Picky's Birthday
All of the Smiling Critters gathered around for a very special day! Today is Picky's birthday, and all of her friends showed up at her barn to celebrate. There were various party games, snacks on every table, and a banner that read, "Happy Birthday, Picky!"
As the party began, everyone gathered around a table, singing Happy Birthday to Picky. Once the song ended, Picky blew out the candles on her cake before everyone cut the cake into pieces.
"Thanks for the party, everyone!" Picky thanked, happy to have a wonderful birthday. "You guys are the best!"
"Well, of course we would throw you this party! Today is your special day!" Bobby exclaimed. "I hope you are enjoying your birthday so far!"
Picky nodded. "Of course! I'm especially excited to open my presents!"
In response, Bubba chuckled before he approached Picky. "There would be plenty of time for that, Picky! For now, let's wait until everyone finishes their cake!"
While everyone was eating, DogDay looked around to see that everyone was having a good time. He couldn't wait until they got to the presents and Picky got to see how amazing his gift to her would be.
"This party is really great, CatNap!" DogDay whispered to CatNap. "It's going to be even better when Picky gets my wood carving of her. She'll think the resemblance is uncanny!"
"I'm sure she would love your gift, DogDay!" CatNap grinned. "It appears that you have a real passion for wood making, especially with the firewood you had laying around."
At the mention of the firewood, DogDay stared at CatNap in confusion.
"What firewood?"
"The firewood that you kept in that bag. It was a little chilly at your house, so I used your firewood to warm up before we left for the party." CatNap explained.
It was at that moment when DogDay realized what CatNap was talking about. Grabbing his bag that supposedly hid his present for Picky, DogDay reached in, but couldn't feel anything.
"Really, CatNap?! You just used my gift for Picky as firewood?!" DogDay yelled, frustrated with his friend.
"Oh, that was the gift for Picky? It was no wonder why the firewood was weirdly shaped." CatNap commented.
The commotion caught Bubba's attention as he noticed DogDay arguing with CatNap. It wouldn't surprise Bubba if CatNap did something to anger DogDay again. He soon decided to approach DogDay and CatNap to see what was going on.
"Hey, you two. Is everything alright?" Bubba asked.
DogDay let out a frustrated sigh in response. "No, Bubba. Picky's birthday is ruined because CatNap decided to use my gift for her as firewood! Now, I have nothing to give her! This is Christmas all over again!"
"Relax, DogDay!" CatNap tried to calm DogDay down. "I said I was sorry."
"No, you didn't!" DogDay argued.
Before DogDay could say another word, Bubba stepped between the two friends before the other critters could find out about this.
"Okay, let's just calm down. I'm sure we can find a replacement gift for Picky." Bubba assured.
"But how? Picky would be opening her presents at any moment." DogDay pointed out.
The Smiling Critters gathered around Picky's table as they were excited to see her open her presents. Before long, DogDay thought of an idea, so he approached Hoppy and tapped her on the shoulder to get her attention.
"Hey, I really need to find a replacement gift for Picky. Do you think you can stall her until I get back?" DogDay whispered.
Hoppy nodded. "Just leave it to me, DogDay! I'll let the others know about your plan."
"Great! Thanks, Hoppy! Here's a walkie talkie so I can speak with you and the others." DogDay said, handing Hoppy a walkie talkie.
With that, DogDay left with CatNap and Bubba to find a new gift for Picky. As her friends left, Hoppy tried to think of a way to keep Picky distracted until DogDay returns. Before Picky could open her first present, Hoppy appeared next to her and stopped her at the last moment.
"Hey, before we get to opening your presents, I think I have an idea for one more fun activity!" Hoppy suggested.
"Really? What's that, Hoppy?" Picky asked, curious.
"How about a game of bobbing for apples?"
In response, Picky let out an excited gasp. "Bobbing for apples?! I would love that! Let's do it!"
At that moment, Picky set up a couple of buckets with water and apples in them.
With a smirk Hoppy said, "Alright, Picky! I think it is fair to warn you that I am super good at party games, so I won't go easy on you!"
While Picky was being stalled, DogDay, CatNap, and Bubba traveled through town in search of a good replacement gift for Picky. They unfortunately didn't have too much money, so they knew that they would have to choose wisely.
As they looked around, they were disappointed to find out that a lot of the stores were closed. The only stores that were open sold products that were too expensive, none of which that Picky would have been interested in anyway.
"Well, this is getting us nowhere. How can we find a gift Picky likes if most of the stores are closed?" Bubba asked.
"Don't give up, Bubba! Don't forget that we are doing this for Picky! She is our friend and she deserves a special birthday!" DogDay replied.
It was at that moment when DogDay heard a static noise from his walkie talkie. Curious, DogDay placed the walkie talkie up to his ear before a soft voice could be heard.
"Um, hello?"
"Oh, Crafty! How is everything going?" DogDay spoke into the walkie talkie.
"Well, Hoppy told us what was going on, so we all agreed to keep Picky distracted until you return with her gift!" Crafty explained.
"Thanks, Crafty! I just hope that Picky isn't too upset I left her party all of a sudden." DogDay hoped.
"Actually, she seems to be having a fun time! I can't say the same for Hoppy though."
At that moment, Crafty looked up to see Picky grabbing every single apple with her mouth. As for Hoppy, she struggled to grab even one apple. Frustrated, Hoppy emerged from the water to breathe.
"How is she so good at this?!" Hoppy yelled.
Back with DogDay and the others, they continued their walk through town with no luck on finding a gift for Picky. CatNap noticed that DogDay was getting stressed about the idea of going to Picky's party empty handed, so he did his best to calm him down.
"DogDay, you are aware that we don't need to find an expensive gift for Picky, right? Just give her something simple." CatNap suggested.
"Like what? Most of the stores are closed." DogDay pointed out.
"How about giving her that plate of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches." CatNap pointed towards a nearby bakery.
Everyone brought their attention to where CatNap was pointing at to see a plate of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches resting on a counter. There were so many sandwiches, even Picky might have a hard time eating them all by herself.
"Hey, that's a great idea, CatNap!" Bubba exclaimed. "Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are Picky's favorite snack, so this would be the perfect gift for her!"
It was that that moment when DogDay decided to buy the sandwiches for Picky. He made his way over to the counter where he was face to face with a giraffe critter.
"Excuse me, can we please buy this plate of sandwiches?" DogDay asked the giraffe. "It is for our friend's birthday and it is really important that we get them for her."
"Oh, of course!" the giraffe replied with a friendly smile. "That will be 50 coins, please!"
DogDay couldn't help but groan at how expensive it was. In order to even pay for it, DogDay had to combine his savings with the money Bubba and CatNap had on them. After handing DogDay their coins, they only had just enough to pay for the sandwiches. DogDay gave the coins to the giraffe before she handed him the plate of sandwiches.
"Thank you! Have a nice day!" The giraffe waved goodbye.
As DogDay took the plate in his paws, he gave a happy grin, knowing that he got the perfect gift for Picky's birthday.
"Alright! We did it! You know, I'm surprised by how easy that was." DogDay admitted. "Usually, we have to deal with some wacky over the top antics to get what we want. Guess today is our lucky day!"
With that, DogDay stepped forward to make his way back to Picky's party. Unfortunately, he didn't see where he was going and ended up tripping into a nearby cart. This sent him rolling down the road as he desperately tried to balance the plate in his paws. DogDay's screams faded in the distance as he was rolling further and further away.
"So much for avoiding wacky over the top antics." CatNap rolled his eyes.
"Let's go! We have to catch up to DogDay!" Bubba said before running after his friend.
Meanwhile at Picky's party, Picky and Hoppy were having their last round of bobbing for apples. Despite Hoppy's best efforts, she was unable to grab the apple with her mouth as she emerged from the water, panting from exhaustion.
As for Picky, she was easily able to grab the last apple. After emerging from the water, Picky raised her arms in victory.
"I win!" Picky declared herself the winner with her voice slightly muffled as the apple was still in her mouth.
The events of the game left Hoppy sitting on the ground, trying to comprehend how she lost.
Kickin then kneeled down by Hoppy's side as he said, "Are you alright, Hoppy? I can't believe how easily Picky beat you."
"M-Me neither. B-Bobbing for apples might be the one game Picky can beat me at." Hoppy panted.
After eating the apple in her mouth, Picky gave a satisfied grin. "Well, that was fun! Now, how about we get to the presents?"
"We can't!" Bobby suddenly yelled, much to Picky's confusion.
"Why not? And where are DogDay, CatNap, and Bubba?" Picky asked.
Bobby darted her eyes to the side as she wasn't sure how much longer she could stall Picky for. "Uh-"
It was at that moment when Crafty stepped in as she said, "DogDay, CatNap, and Bubba decided to get some more snacks for the party, but don't worry! They'll be here soon! In the meantime, let's play another game!" Crafty then took out a box of colored pencils, along with a couple of pieces of paper. "I'll make a drawing and you have to guess what it is!"
"Um, okay." Picky raised a confused eyebrow as Crafty took her hoof and led her to a nearby table.
While Crafty was keeping Picky distracted, Bobby let out a relieved sigh, happy that Crafty was able to buy everyone a little more time. Taking advantage of the extra time, Bobby grabbed the walkie talkie to speak to her friends.
"Hello? Is anyone there?" Bobby spoke into the walkie talkie.
There was static for a couple of moments before Bubba could be heard on the other end. "Bobby, I'm so glad you called! Listen, I have good news and bad news. The good news is that we found the perfect gift for Picky and we're on our way back!"
"Really? That's wonderful!" Bobby paused. "Wait, what's the bad news?"
"The bad news is that DogDay is rolling through town on a cart at an extremely fast rate and is trying not to drop the gift. Just keep Picky distracted a little bit longer and we'll be back as soon as we can."
With that, Bubba put the walkie talkie away as he and CatNap tried to keep up with DogDay. It wasn't long before they were able to catch up to the cart DogDay was in, both of them quickly running out of breath. Using what little energy they had left, CatNap and Bubba leaped onto the cart as they were all tumbling downhill.
"How do we stop this thing?!" Bubba yelled, desperately looking for a way to stop the vehicle.
"I don't know!" DogDay panicked as the speed of the cart started to increase by the minute.
"Well, we'd better think of something! This thing isn't going to stop anytime soon!" CatNap explained as the ride started to get bumpy.
The Smiling Critters held on for dear life as the cart began to rock and tumble. It got to a point where DogDay tightened his grip on the plate, making sure that not a single sandwich flies away. Before long, the cart sped by so fast, it carried DogDay and his friends all the way out of town.
Meanwhile, Picky continued to have her game with Crafty, who was scribbling down a drawing on a piece of paper. Once she was finished, she held it up for Picky to see.
"Okay, Picky! Try to guess what this is a drawing of!" Crafty smiled.
Picky squinted her eyes to get a better look at the drawing. "Is it some kind of moth?"
Crafty shook her head. "You were close, but it was actually a picture of a beautiful butterfly! Let's try again!"
Letting out a tired sigh, Picky rested her head on her hoof as she started to get bored. While Crafty was working on her drawing, Picky noticed something approaching in the distance. Confused, Picky looked closer to see a cart with DogDay riding at the front.
"DogDay?"
Confused by what Picky just said, Crafty said, "What? No. I didn't even finish my drawing."
At that moment, Crafty turned around to see the cart behind her as she now realized what Picky was talking about. Everyone watched in surprise as the cart was heading straight for a nearby tree.
"We need to jump!" Bubba told his friends. "On 3! 1, 2, 3!"
With that, DogDay, Bubba, and CatNap leaped from the cart right before it crashed into the tree. Unfortunately, the jump caused DogDay to lose his grip on the plate of sandwiches. DogDay watched in horror as the plate flew into the air.
Thinking fast, CatNap reached out with his long tail, catching the plate before it hit the ground. Now that the sandwiches were safe, CatNap gently lowered the plate on a nearby table.
"Hey, you guys made it!" Kickin exclaimed, approaching his friends. "You got the gift for Picky, right?"
Dazed from the ride he just had, Bubba stood up from the ground, trying to maintain his balance.
"O-Of course! Can't say it was easy though." Bubba explained.
At that moment, Picky approached the sandwiches in surprise. She knew that she would eat countless delicious meals for her party, but she never would have guessed she would have her favorite snack.
"A-Are all those peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for me?" Picky couldn't comprehend the endless amount of sandwiches in front of her.
"Of course!" CatNap stepped forward. "You can thank DogDay for that! These sandwiches are his gift for you!"
Touched by what DogDay did for her, Picky gave him a grateful smile, "DogDay, I can't believe you did this for me!"
"Well, I really wanted you to have a special birthday." DogDay explained. "I couldn't have done it without the rest of our friends though. It was thanks to them that we were able to keep it a surprise in the first place."
Upon learning about all that her friends went through just for her, Picky started to tear up in joy. She couldn't have asked for better friends. The Smiling Critters were soon surprised when Picky embraced them all in a tight hug that somehow made Bobby's hugs seem gentle by comparison.
"I love you guys so much!" Picky cried, feeling lucky to have such wonderful friends.
Throughout the rest of the party, Picky unwrapped her presents while devouring as many sandwiches as possible. It had been a tough day for DogDay, but after seeing Picky so happy, it was all worth it. In the end, this turned out to be Picky's best birthday ever.