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Part 28: Not Mad

I woke up a few hours before curfew. I opened my eyes slightly and looked over at Howdy, who was still as the checkout. He was holding his head in his hands, looking down at a glass of water he had set on the table.

"Oh, Howdy, you goof. How could you say all of those embarrassing things so casually?! Ughhhhh.. I've messed it all up," Howdy muttered in a quiet voice to himself. He was clearly distressed. He sighed and leaned on the table some more. "What am I gonna do? They're going to be the death of me..."

I was quite concerned for Howdy. I carefully climbed out of my box, a particularly large blanket wrapped around me. I quietly trudged through nothing. My legs felt so heavy. I eventually reached Howdy. I looked up at him, my expression still sleepy.

"Howdy.." I mumbled. I hugged him, well, most of him. Howdy was much too tall for me, so I was mainly hugging his legs. Howdy seemed surprised at first, but he patted me on the head again.

"...Did.. did I wake you?" he asked nervously. I shook my head.

"No, no. I just missed you," I mumbled. I didn't actually miss Howdy. How could I? I was with him a lot. I just wanted to make him feel better.

I looked up at him slightly. Two of his hands were cupping his face as he looked away. His face was flushed again. I felt bad that I kept making him nervous.

"Sweet stars above," Howdy whispered to himself. He inhaled and looked back down at me again. "Is that so?"

I smiled and slowly sunk to the floor. Howdy stood up. He picked me up and placed me back in my box.

I gave him a thumbs up before falling asleep again. Maybe Howdy was the one who made me happy. He was always looking out for me, after all.

Wally had been asleep the entire time, so I had nothing to worry about.

The next morning, I found that I was the only one who had slept in. I leaped out of my box and looked around. Howdy was handing Julie and Frank some supplies. Eddie was hanging around by the door to the shop, waiting for the two friends.

I yawned and waved to everyone before leaving. Everyone in the shop waves back.

"Let's see... what do I have on my agenda today?"I said out loud as I thought. I didn't seem to have any plans for today. This day was going to be such a bore.

I entered my house, lingering by the front door. I didn't want to spend all day cooped up, but I had nothing better to do.

As if on cue, someone knocked timidly at my door. I opened the door. I looked up out of instinct, which was embarrassing because Wally was standing before me.

He was holding a lovely bouquet of roses and a gift box. I felt a chill crawl down my back again, its spiky legs making me shiver.

"Hello, Wally!" I tried my best to greet him, trying not to let him know that I had seen what he was holding. Wally's eyes flashed with a bright happiness.

"Hello, neighbor!" Wally awkwardly tried to wave. "Are you ready for our date...?"

My eyes widened slightly. How could I forget?! I had been forgetting a lot of things recently. I smiled at Wally. He seemed to be beaming with absolute joy.

"Of course!" I took the bouquet of flowers as he held it out to me. He slipped the gift box into his pocket. Wally thought he had been secretive, but he should have known that he wasn't the only one watching people.

In turn, I offered Wally my hand. He took it and looked down at his feet as we walked. His cheeks were quite red, and he wore a bashful smile.

As we walked, a slight feeling of warmth radiated through my body. Perhaps today would be good after all.