The Great Dane made his way back down to the apartment's main lobby, nose twitching at the scent of fresh mozzarella.

There, he noticed a familiar face…

"Goober?" Scooby asked, ears perking up.

The fellow mystery-solving dog, wearing his signature beanie paired with a hoodie with the pizza chain's logo on it, looked up from the order receipt.

"Oh. Hey, Scooby," answered Goober.

"I thought you and the Ghost Chasers were checking out that haunted house on Barbera Street tonight?" Scooby tilted his head, curious.

"We were. Got off early. This is my second gig. Turns out solving mysteries doesn't exactly pay the bills," Goober shrugged.

"Preach," Scooby chuckled, already feeling the weight of his own dry bank account.

"Did you move out of your mom's place? I thought you still lived with her?" asked Goober.

"Nah, I'm at my girlfriend's place," responded Scooby.

"Oh right. That dog from the Amazon," Goober nodded, connecting the dots. "She's the one who helped you guys solve that Glowing Monster mystery?"

"She's the best," Scooby said without hesitation.

Goober glanced at the towering stack of boxes. "Looks like a party."

"Actually…Just the two of us," smiled Scooby. "She's already got the Doo appetite."

Goober let out a laugh, adjusting his beanie. "Heh. Sounds like you found your match."

Scooby's ears perked up slightly at the comment.

"Reah," he said, smile widening.

He grabbed the boxes and before he could forget, pulled out a crumpled wad of cash. Handing Goober more than enough.

Goober blinked. "Whoa, Scooby…this is like a lot."

Scooby just shrugged with a grin. "Hey, us mystery-solving mascots gotta look out for each other."

Goober smiled, giving the kind of tired-but-genuine look.

"Yeah…we really do."

A beat passed between them—two tired dogs who knew the thrill and exhaustion of chasing ghosts for a living.

"You still talk to Courage?" Goober asked after a moment, almost casually.

Scooby nodded, his voice softening a bit.

"He's doing good. Still living out in Nowhere, but…I wish I could see him more," he admitted.

"Long distance friends are rough," brought up Goober.

"We catch up on PlayStation whenever we have time. Our 2K games get pretty heated!" continued Scooby.

"Yeah, that checks out," Goober chuckled. "Tell him I said hey."

"I will," Scooby nodded. "Take care, Goob."

"You too, Scoob. Hey, we should team up together some time. Like you're gang and my gang," Goober called out.

Scooby grinned, welcoming the idea as he hit the elevator button.

"That would be fun…still probably scary, but fun! I'm surprised we haven't done that before," beamed Scooby as he departed into the elevator.

Ding.

The elevator doors slid open and Scooby stepped in, the smell of melted cheese rising with the steam off the boxes.

Back upstairs…

Scooby nudged the apartment door open with his shoulder, carefully balancing the stack of pizza boxes in his arms. His tail started wagging the moment the warm scent of parmesan and grease hit the air.

Brandy, still curled up on the couch, glanced up as he entered.

"Took you long enough. I know you can cook, but were you making it yourself down there?" she teased.

Scooby set the boxes down on the coffee table, kicking the door shut behind him. "Oh, I knew the delivery guy."

"Really? Who?" asked Brandy, raising an eyebrow.

"Goober, he's with the Ghost Chasers," explained Scooby, sitting down next to her. "It's his second job."

Brandy reached for a slice, her curiosity piqued. "So there are multiple mystery-solving groups around here?"

"Reah. And most of us are broke," Scooby deadpanned. "Besides, there are a lot of mysteries to solve."

Brandy giggled softly, stretching her long legs out until her foot found Scooby's knee. Giving it a gentle nudge.

"Well, I'm sure the others are just trying to keep up with you guys," she said with an easy smile. "Mystery Inc. set the bar."

"Heh…we try," Scooby blushed a little, ducking his head as he munched. "A little friendly competition."

A pause settled between them, just the soft rustle of pizza boxes and the quiet hum of the ceiling fan overhead.

Scooby looked over at her.

"Oh, by the way, the gang wants to see you tomorrow. They were asking about you."

Brandy paused mid-bite, wiping the corner of her mouth. "Aww. Of course! I haven't seen them in a while."

"We've all been busy," Scooby said, leaning back against the couch. "But yeah, they wanna hangout and do something fun."

"Like what?" asked Brandy.

"Whatever you want to do, baby," smiled Scooby.

Brandy thought for a second, tapping her fingers on the edge of the pizza box. "Hmm…can we go to the Coolsville mall? I saw this skirt online that I've been dying to try on, and I mean…the food court's always nice bonus!" she suggested.

Scooby grinned. "Now that sounds like a plan."

"Great! It'll be nice to get out a little more," Brandy added, her voice a little quieter, a little more thoughtful. "Aside from our walks, I feel like I haven't really done much since I got here."

"I think you have a valid excuse. You're pretty much starting over from scratch," Scooby said, nudging her foot back under the table.

"I still feel like I have a lot to do," admitted Brandy.

Scooby reached out, placing his paw gently on hers. "That doesn't mean you're behind."

"Scooby, about earlier…I'm sorry for sounding so pushy," said Brandy.

"About moving in?" asked Scooby.

"Yeah, about that. I don't want you to feel like I'm pressuring you, sweetie," apologized Brandy.

"Brandy, don't be sorry. You've got a lot going on right now," responded Scooby.

"Tell me about it…But that's why I need you here," she insisted. "I can't even drive myself yet."

Scooby gave her hand a gentle squeeze, his thumb brushing the edge of her palm. "You'll get there. And until then, you've got me. Uber Doo can drive you to the spa!"

Brandy gave a half-laugh, but it faded almost as quickly as it came.

"I'm serious. I need you…not just being my personal chauffeur, or cooking for me, or giving me massages. I mean, yeah, all that stuff is nice…" she said, smiling faintly. "But I need you. I want you around all the time. Who am I going to hang out with? Those physicist dorks across the hall? No thanks."

Scooby's ears perked a little, softening at her words.

"What do you do while I'm gone?" he asked.

"Wait for you to get back," Brandy said sincerely.

Scooby was touched.

Brandy turned more toward him on the couch, tucking one leg underneath her, letting her hand linger in his paw.

"Scooby, being 'the girl next door' for you was fun and all for a few weeks, but I wanna be something more…I wanna be the girl you wake up next to every morning."

Scooby blinked, surprised by how gently it landed. How certain it sounded. His heart gave a little lurch in his chest.

"I'm not gonna pretend like that doesn't mean a lot," he said, his voice a little lower now, honest. "Because it really does."

She watched him closely.

"Baby, I wanna be here, but I'm not exactly breaking the bank," he admitted, his ears flicking back a little. "I don't want to be the freeloading boyfriend. You've already got a lot to worry about."

Brandy's expression softened even more. She reached out and ran her fingers along his ear, the way she always did when she wanted to reassure him.

"Listen, I know that money's a problem for you right now, but I don't want that to stop you from moving in. You will never be a burden to me," she insisted. "And it's not like my parent's inheritance money will be running out anytime soon. I'll be your sugar mama!"

Scooby chuckled, tail giving a slow wag. "You already kind of are."

Brandy raised an eyebrow. "Kind of?"

"Well, I mean…you did buy me a toothbrush for this place. And Lakers slippers," Scooby grinned.

Brandy smirked, leaning back into the cushions. "What can I say? I like keeping my man pampered."

He rested his head gently on her shoulder, voice quieter now. "I just don't wanna feel like I'm not pulling my weight."

"You are," Brandy said without hesitation. "You make me feel safe. You make me laugh. You do the dishes without being asked. And, not to brag, but you're an amazing cuddler."

Scooby smiled at that. "You're one to talk about cuddling."

There was a small pause before Brandy looked over at him again, more serious this time.

"I want this place to feel like yours too, Scooby. Not just mine. So when you're ready, I mean really ready…Your side of the bed will be waiting for you."

Scooby tilted his head up, meeting her eyes. "Can I have my own snack cabinet in the kitchen?"

Brandy smirked. "You can try. No promises."

"I was about to say," Scooby grinned, "because the last box of Scooby Snacks I got mysteriously disappeared yesterday morning."

Brandy bit her lip, playfully guilty. "Maybe don't hide things from your girlfriend who has twice the reach as you, alright?"

They both laughed again, melting back into each other in a cozy tangle of arms, legs, and pizza-scented air.

"Okay, you are too hard to pass up…but one last thing," Scooby said, his voice playful but cautious.

"What's that?" asked Brandy.

"What's my Mama gonna say about all of this?" Scooby asked, ears twitching a little.

Brandy rolled her eyes with a grin. "Oh please. I don't think we're going to get any pushback. Your Mama adores me."

Scooby scoffed. "You think I'm a mama's boy, don't you?"

"I didn't say that," she teased, but her voice softened. "I think it's sweet how close you are with her. Especially after…well, everything with my parents."

She glanced over at the framed picture of her mom and dad on the bookshelf, her expression briefly distant before refocusing on him.

"I just don't know how she's gonna react," Scooby admitted. "I'm kind of the man of the house."

"So let Scrappy take over," suggested Brandy.

"He's seven," retorted Scooby.

"He's mature for his age," she said with a smirk, making them both laugh.

"And sweetie, come on—we're both in our twenties. This is what adult couples do," she added, shifting closer on the couch. "It's not like you're disappearing. You're just moving in with your girlfriend, not across the country."

Scooby hesitated for a second, then remembered the promise he had made to her; that no matter what, he would always be there for her. To be the man that she deserved, the type of man that his Mama and sister didn't have.

He couldn't be afraid this time.

He nodded slowly. "Okay…we can talk to her about it tomorrow."

Brandy gave his paw a squeeze, her voice warm and steady. "Tomorrow's good. And how about this—we stop by your Mama's place first, then we meet up with the gang at the mall after?"

"That sounds like a good idea," he said, still a little nervous, but smiling.

"So I take that as a 'yes' to moving in?" Brandy asked, eyes bright with hope.

"Reah," Scooby grinned

"Yes, yes, yes! I knew I'd wear you down, Scooby Doo!" Brandy cheered, throwing her arms around him. "My boyfriend's moving in with me!"

"Baby, you're gonna wake the neighbors," Scooby laughed.

"Our neighbors," she corrected, booping his nose.

"Alright. We'll make it official tomorrow," declared Scooby.

"Good, because I didn't want to start threatening you," said Brandy.

"Threaten me? Really?" chuckled Scooby.

"Yeah, if you said no, you'd be sleeping on the couch instead of between my legs!" joked Brandy.

Scooby's face turned bright red. "Brandy!"

She just burst out laughing and leaned into him.

"Oh relax, you said 'yes' and that's all that matters to me," she happily sighed. "It's going to be so weird going from Mr. Whiskers to you as a roommate."

"Do you want me to start bouncing around like he does?" quipped Scooby.

"Start talking about monkey wax or some crackpot conspiracy theory and I'm chucking this throw pillow at you!" jokingly threatened Brandy.

"Aww come on, he wasn't that bad. You lived with him for years," brought up Scooby.

"I love him like a brother, but looking back I don't know how I kept it together until you showed up," admitted Brandy.

"Speaking of, where's he going to stay when he comes to visit?" asked Scooby.

"We'll get there when we get there. Right now, I just want to focus on moving you in," stated Brandy.

"I won't have much to move," noted Scooby.

"That's what I figured. So, I'll give you a whole drawer to yourself," proclaimed Brandy.

"That's it? A single drawer?" questioned Scooby.

"You know how many clothes I have! It's either that or all of your stuff goes into storage," said Brandy.

"Way to make me feel right at home!" sarcastically said Scooby.

"Fine. I'll give you a corner in the bedroom. That should be plenty," smirked Brandy.

"How about a shelf in your closet?" suggested Scooby.

"Now we're thinking big!" joked Brandy as the couple burst into laughter.