**[WARNING!]**
**[THIS STORY CONTAINS: ABUSE, SELF HARM, AND GENERAL VIOLENCE]**
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Morning birds cawed as light shone into the windows of the living room. Balloon groggily sat up from the couch. 'I guess I fell asleep.'
Most of everyone was already awake at this point. Trophy was in the kitchen making himself a smoothie. Knife and Pickle were already playing games together, as Salt and Pepper ran off to the pool. Nickel had apparently wiped Balloon's artistic masterpiece from his face and was chatting to Baseball happily. Balloon's gaze turned to OJ, who was with Clover, Bot, Goo, and the Cherries, grabbing the car keys, seemingly going somewhere. Curious, he hopped from the couch and went over to greet them.
"Hey guys! Where are you headed?"
"Hi Balloon!" Bot waved happily. Goo wiggled with excitement and the Cherries simply ignored him. Clover also said her greetings, as OJ began to explain.
"We're taking these three to school."
"Can I tag along?"
The group exchanged a couple of uneasy glances, until Clover spoke up. "Of course! The more the merrier!" She grinned awkwardly, and the six of them set out on their journey.
Opening the car door, Balloon immediately smelled the scent of...cinnamon? He shook his head clear, climbing into the backseat. He buckled his seatbelt, watching as the others climbed into the car. OJ started the engine and they began to move. Balloon looked out the window, watching the cars and buildings speed by. The drive was quiet. Almost.
"OJ THE LIGHT!!!" Clover screamed at him.
"Shit-" OJ slammed on the brakes, unable to stop the car, zooming past, not one, but two red lights unscathed. He eventually stopped the car by the sidewalk, turning around to the kids in the backseat. "Don't repeat what I said."
Balloon stared on in utter shock.
"HOLY MEEPLE CORP!!! THAT WAS SO COOL!" The Cherries cheered, as everyone else in the car was frozen in place.
"I thought Meeple Corp was evil?"
OJ nodded. "They are. Cherries, don't say that."
They crossed their arms. "Darn."
The rest of the drive wasn't any better. OJ fell asleep at the wheel and nearly crashed onto oncoming traffic. He and Clover swapped seats as a safety precaution. Really, the only reason they survived was probably because Clover was with them. But then again, she gave her luck away to Nickel after her elimination on Inanimate Insanity Invitational, so I guess it was just the six of them who all were collectively very lucky in that moment.
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{ OJ POV }
I looked out the window, the bright sun beating down onto my face. It felt nice. Like a warm sunny day on the beach. Except I'm not on the beach. I'm standing outside the principal's office right now with Cherries. Who, on their first day, somehow succeeded in pranking half the staff and 5 poor students with a flock of angry hornets.
My hands pressed against each other, squeezing tightly as I sat in my thoughts, legs crossed in the uncomfortable waiting room chairs, until something, or someone, would break the silence. And yet nothing came. It just echoed on. Aside from the idle sound of a keyboard clacking at the front desk and the occasional footsteps trailing outside the office, that was it. I dug nails into my hands as I continued to squeeze, bouncing my leg anxiously. My eyes wandered around the room, trying to latch onto something, anything, interesting or curious enough to keep myself busy. I drifted from the paintings on the wall, to the newspapers beside me, all the way back around to the object in the front desk. Suddenly, a cold hand was placed on my knee, which nearly making me flinch.
"Please stop bouncing your leg, it's getting annoying." Clover asked kindly.
"Oh. Sorry."
I tried his best to stay still from then on, seceding to the confines of my mind and its old memories. But no matter what I did, I wanted to move. I NEEDED to move. So, I did. Bouncing my leg once more as I scratched at my hand. But it just wasn't enough.
Clover's words echoed in my head. "It's getting annoying. It's annoying. You're annoying."
I felt bad. I didn't want Clover to hate me, better yet find me annoying. I know she didn't mean any harm by those words, but they made me feel like I did something wrong. I forced myself to sit still as my body screamed to move, move, MOVE!
Just then, a tall, thin wooden bamboo object stepped out to let my group know that it was our turn to get berated by the head honcho. I sighed, internally, relieved. Standing a bit quickly, I nodded the Cherries along as Clover and Balloon stayed in the waiting room.
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{ Balloon POV }
Balloon watched worriedly as OJ and the two Cherries entered the principal's office. "Geez. How did they get a hornet's nest into the school anyways?"
Clover chuckled. "They do a lot of this kind of stuff back at the manor!"
Balloon frowned at that, not exactly excited to be facing any of their pranks himself. The silence dragged for a bit, before he spoke up again. He needed to get this off his chest. "Hey, uh, Clover?"
"Yes?"
"D'ya think OJ's acting a bit, I dunno, strange?"
Clover tilted her head. "What do you mean by 'strange'?"
"Well, this morning, he was up at 1am cooking. He kept...messing up the eggs? All the pancakes were undercooked too. He didn't really seem that well off. And this morning he almost crashed the car."
Clover laughed, which confused Balloon. "That's just how OJ is! Don't worry, he's fine!"
He laughed along with Clover, though his laughter held uncertainty and worry.
She smiled at him. "Don't worry about it Balloon. He's fine, I promise you."
He nodded. And yet, his head would stay at unease. Maybe he could keep an eye on OJ, maybe even lend a hand.
YOU ARE READING
Burnout - An Inanimate Insanity Fanfic
Fanfiction**WARNING! STORY CONTAINS THEMES OF ABUSE, SELF HARM, AND GENERAL VIOLENCE** Balloon's finally welcomed into Hotel OJ. After months of convincing and praying, he's finally out of the rain and living with the hotel denizens. As the days pass, he slow...
