a shining gleam of determination breaks through the thick fog of betrayal and regret.
a boy.
a boy who plunged himself into sadness and regret when he was too frightened to face the truth. months of it all. weeks of it all. days of it all.
one year.
a year of hiding and pretending, just to try and reach a girl he once thought he knew, but who never truly existed.
then another year.
and another.
a girl.
a girl he once was friends with, who shined a light into his boring life. she helped him become more happy, as well as showing him how to have more fun, and she showed him that not everything needs to be thought out. play the game as it appears on the screen. one level at a time. but as it turns out, she played her game another way, always referencing previous levels and coating herself in layers of deception. the words she said were all empty, pre-written dialogue coded into her false identity. she tricked him. she never cared for him. so why does he care for her?
a boy.
a boy he never imagined getting close to. a boy who didn't shine a light into his depressing life, but a boy who led him out of it. he guided him through the levels, not just making it easier to reside within them. he told him that you need to move on, and can't stay stuck at level one. he told him that he needs to try again, and always keep looking for that retry icon. don't quit because of one bad experience. the boy hides himself behind a persona, programmed with rough edges. but inside him, past the shell, is a kind empath, someone that he needed. he needed someone like this boy, and now he has come. now he has come with him to take down each level, not alone, but now together.
now he has somebody.
his fog of sadness and emptiness being pushed away by a dazzling determination.
he realized the truth.
the truth releases.
it releases.
but, even as he overcomes his barriers, there are still many more.
because nothing and nobody is ever perfect. ups and downs are normal.
he just needs to acknowledge that.
Wake up, Pickle.
.
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warning:
this chapter contains...
rude/offensive people
mentions of character death
characters mentioning alchohol and drug addiction
cursing/offensive language
you have been warned...
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The notification ping snaps you out of your little rest that you almost had while standing up. You shouldn't have stayed up late last night. 'R3VIV3 B4LL00N.' It says. You watch as everyone's gaze turns to OJ. "It- I- It wasn't me!" OJ stammers, "I would never do that! Besides, Balloon was with Test Tube and her weird experiment for her collage!" What an odd debate to only hear half of.
Paintbrush glares at OJ, their bristles sparking, "Shut the hell up, OJ!" They pull down their scarf that they're wearing to show a nasty cut. Ew.. "Who did this then, OJ?!"
OJ takes a few steps back, "I... was fixing the lights-"
"How did you know this happened during the power outage, then?!" Paintbrush snaps back, holding their neck.
"G- G- G- G- Guys?" Bob asks, "D- During the power outage, Trophy and I were confronted b- b- b- by someone w- who asked us f- for a sharp thing a- and T- Trophy gave it to th- them... they didn't sound like O- OJ... their voice was... h- high pitched and s- scratchy..." Bomb hides amongst the crowds again.
"That could have easily been a voice changer," Nickel interjects.
"This doesn't involve you!" Paintbrush snaps.
"It... Could..." Tissues shrugs, rubbing his... nose... area. That sure made Paintbrush quiet down.
You remember seeing something earlier and you decide to speak up, "Guys! I saw Trophy leave before the notification came and also Paper came late! Could that be related?" You ask, folding your arms.
"I doubt it," Fan replies, fiddling with his bracelets, "Trophy could have done it, but Paper is a precious little soul who wouldn't hurt a fly since season one!"
"It could, though. P- Paper could, I mean," Mic rubs her arm.
"Right... But what does time have to do with it anyway?" Fan you to which you shrug. How embarrassing... it's like when you lose a round in a videogame to someone like Tissues. So embarrassing. You look downward and you fidget with your gloves. You're so embarrassed for saying something irrelevant. Everyone is gonna call you an idiot, probably. You mean, 'The Idiot' is sometimes kinda even your label on the Inanimate Insanity site that Fan uses all the time.
"So we can agree that this happened during the power outage?" Nickel glances around at everyone before nodding, an annoyed expression that you hate is plastered on the smug face of this used-to-be-friend, "Anyone wanna share what they were doing at the time? I'd love to know."
"I was in Cheesy's room, helping him clean up from the most recent skit," You offer to which Cheesy nods. You continue, still proud of your new and better self that Knife helped you reach, "Soap was there too."
"Yeah, I was trying SO hard to clean but CHEESY," Soap glares at Cheesy, and although it is a slight joke, it's still one of annoyance, "didn't tell me he had stains literally buried in the carpet that were almost impossible to get out! He didn't tell me about his bug collection either! It was so germy..." Soap looks away from Cheesy again and frowns, likely remembering how hard it was for her to clean. You saw her then. She really was freaking out. It was more scary than anything.
"Oh! Oh! I know some more stuff!" Fan excitedly starts listing things off, "Lightbulb was on the couch, Baseball was outside, and Knife was with Test Tube- but wait..." Fan thinks for a moment, still continuing to dominate the conversation which annoys you slightly, "Balloon was with Test Tube and Knife too! That means that the person who cut Paintbrush and the one who killed Balloon must be two different people!" Fan exclaims excitedly, before then realizing how much he was taking over the conversation and how unamused everyone else was. He then quiets down and looks down at the ground, fidgeting with hid bracelets, likely embarrassed just like you had been.
"Fan's right! Totally separate people!" Mephone4 nods, looking about as suspicious as Nickel does on a daily basis, "I am not involved at all!"
You then realize something, right then and there. You already covered how Paper came late and Trophy left early, but... It's more relevant now, right? At least, that's what you think. "Guys, remember what I said earlier? It's relevant now! Dude, the people responsible for Balloon's death could have been Trophy or Paper or-"
"Why can't we just stop being complete idiots and like, revive that worthless scum and see what he says?" Salt demands, checking her nails with a scowl on her face. Pepper is beside her, looking extremely uncomfortable.
You sigh and shake your head. Respawning Balloon to answer your questions isn't great, it could lead to Balloon getting overwhelmed and crying which everyone finds annoying, but it's all that all of you have got... right? After everyone agrees. Mephone4 hits the revive button on his screen. And slowly, Balloon starts to appear... And after a long minute, he is back... And he looks shocked. But then again, he's Balloon, and nobody cares so neither do you. "Balloon," Nickel addresses him, his face scrunched as he cringes at the name, "Who was it?"
Balloon shakes his head, muttering a small and quiet, "I... don't know..."
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU DON'T KNOW?!" Paintbrush snaps before stepping back and taking deep breaths to calm down and control their boiling anger.
"It's not important anyway, it's just Balloon. Let's worry about who attacked Paintbrush first and then worry about Balloon later," One of the Cherries remarks this and the second agrees with their other half.
"But what if the killer is out there?! What if one of us is next?!" Suitcase exclaims, worry obvious on her face for mostly Balloon but likely also the others too.
"MePhone can just revive us," You explain, "But that would be really scary and would hurt nonetheless..." You gulp, looking down, wondering who would do such a thing. This is terrifying. Nobody here even remotely would like to hurt anyone. If that anyone was just Balloon, then maybe half the people in this hotel, but if its not... No! Who would do that and why? Did they snap and fall so far like most antagonists in the videogames you play? Do they think this is okay? And if they do, how far gone are they to assume such?
You shudder. It reminds you of that monster, Taco, who could have done this, and that's terrifying. So, you ask a question that Paintbrush asked a few moments ago, though not as aggressive. "Balloon," You ask, "How do you not know?"
"I..." Balloon's eyes dart around the room,"I didn't see it- Oh come on, my back was turned!" Balloon exclaims, "I didn't see them! I'm sorry!"
"Sure you are," Nickel cringes, "Well, back to alibis we go... How FUN..."
"I... was in my room," Suitcase squeaks, or at least that's what it sounds like because of how shy and nervous she seems, "And I-"
"I meant to ask Trophy or Paper like Pickle said, you idiot!" Nickel lashes out, scaring half of the people in the room. You feel proud though, because they are listening to you.
"Well, Trophy left," You recall, having said half of this statement before, "So we should ask the Paper dude now and Trophy later, but I doubt Paper did anything.
Paper says nothing.
"Oh, dear Paper," OJ grins, "Please say something. We all know that you did it-"
"NO! I DIDN'T!" Paper snaps back, his eyes wide and angry. He breathes deeply, trying to cath his breath. Hmm... Violent and aggressive behavior... You think that's incredibly suspicious! He must be the one who did it! That is, whatever 'it' you're referring to here...
"OJ. Why are you accusing Paper?! Isn't he your partner or something? Why would you gang up on him? And, even if he did do this, why are you ratting out your own partner?" Suitcase asks, extremely confident. Suddenly confident. Strangely confident. Strangely... Suspicious...
You sigh, you're even suspicious for finding everyone else suspicious. As much as that makes no sense, nothing made sense since season one ended and Taco... Nevermind. You don't like to think about it anymore. Even if Knife is trying to help you come to terms with everything, you can't. It's impossible. Just block it out and pretend she never existed in the way she did. Just pretend she didn't want to make your life miserable. Just pretend and it will all be okay.
"I am accusing him because I know I am right... I have security cameras around the hotel, and a few in Test Tube's lab... After all..." OJ smirks. What on earth is wrong with him?! You frown as you look at the guy who won season one. The one who used the million dollars that he won to make this hotel and generously let everyone else from the show stay in it, free of charge, even if they weren't his most favorite, and as of recent, even if they were Balloon. What changed in him? Now he is spying on everyone too? What a weirdo...
This isn't normal anymore, you MUST acknowledge this and tell him how weird he is acting. He's acting like a twist-villain from one of your videogames or shows you like. Wait... but what if this isn't his fault? What if he's a drunk? Or addicted to drugs? What if he has brain damage? Or an illness? What else could be making him act this way? And what must you do to confront him without making him react negatively? You sigh, "You were spying on us."
OJ chuckles, his hands placed behind his back. MePhone4 steps back with a look of astonishment and fear in his eyes. What? Did you miss something important? Probably. You always miss the important things, having not noticed Taco's true intentions and also not having been selected to return to Inanimate Insanity, along with many other things. "I was," OJ smiles, "And I know what happened. Oh Paper, how upsetting is it? To have a peaceful life ripped from you like the tear Test Tube made in your head? To feel your alternate self pushing back into you? To have to see people fall, one by one, all because of an alternate you that you never let go-"
"STOP!" Paper cries out, tears springing to his eyes, "IT ISN'T MY FAULT THAT BALLOON HAD DIED, OKAY?!" He covers his face and cries into his hands, letting the room fall silent.
Soap looks sympathetically at Paper, noticing his pain, "Paper... Do you want me to help calm you and your alter down? I can... um... help to get you help, if you'd like it, to prevent you and others from getting hurt again..."
Paper sniffs back his tears, thinking for a moment before he calms down enough to respond, "Y- yes please..." He awkwardly holds onto Soap's hand, wanting protection, and she pats his back gently in response, wanting to help those in need.
You smile. It's nice to see someone accept help for once. Everyone here, at this horrid, cursed hotel, seems to push their issues down and hide them when they should really get the help they need - But you're not one to talk, you didn't exactly get help either, even if Knife encouraged you to move on and began to try to lead you out of pain. But this wonderful moment, of course, cannot last forever. And OJ speaks up, "So. Paper killed Balloon. And then who cut Paintbrush? I know it, but... I won't say just yet."
"I didn't..." Paper squeaks, his voice filled with anxiousness and worry, now hiding behind Soap and Mic. What a nice fellow. He doesn't deserve this.
You look over at OJ. What a weirdo. You glare at him. He meets your gaze and chuckles, "Okay, no more hiding. It was me." What the f##k...
"That d- didn't s- s- sound like..." Bomb frowns and furrows his eyebrows, confused, "T- that..."
"Didn't sound like me?" OJ smirks, finishing Bomb's sentence, "Oh, dear traitor, there is a new Meeple product that you may have never heard of... A voice changer." OJ takes out a box-looking speaker. It's small, with a speaker and a Meeple symbol. Huh. Exactly like Nickel suggested someone could have been using earlier. He continues, "It's a prototype."
Prototype? Then how did he get it? And now that you're taking a good look at him for once since he began to act differently, you see semi-translucent red-ish goop floating inside his orange liquid. Similar colors, easy to miss. You must mention this! Show everyone you're not just the one who was betrayed by the season one runner-up! Don't show them you are weak, but show them you are smart and observant and not gullible and stupid like they all said you were for believing Taco's façade. You've got this! You clear your throat and speak up, "How did you get a prototype if it's, well, a prototype and isn't out yet?" You comment, "And... your juice... It has some stuff in it..."
At your words, MePhone4's eyes widen and he steps back, looking at OJ. MePhone4 speaks shakily, oddly different from his usual personality and appearance, "You're... working with..." This now explains why he's afraid...
"Cobs," OJ finishes his sentence with a grin, "And see my improvement? Where else was I to get a job to keep my hotel in business?' OJ chuckles and taps his glass face thoughtfully, "Oh what wonders he can do. if you must know, MePhone4, even though you got away, he has still so much more control on your life, ALL OF YOUR LIVES, than you think." And with that, he turns on his heel, and walks to the stairs.
You're frozen in shock. So Paper killed Balloon on accident, but OJ slit Paintbrush's neck and lower arm on purpose?! Huh?!
And only in a matter of seconds, the stressful situation only escalates as Trophy bursts through the door, followed closely by Knife with a limp Taco in his arms, and Test Tube close behind those three, limping as fast as she can with her crutches. "IT'S NOT MY FAULT!" Trophy yells immediately upon entering the room.
"SHUT IT! GOLLY!" Test Tube screams, shushing the two. Everyone seems slightly intimidated by her and her yelling. She wasn't really ever this scary before, just usually nerdy.
OJ turns around and smirks, "Oh! Test Tube! What a pleasant surprise!" He walks down from the stairs and takes out his phone, on which he scrolls on it until finding what he was apparently looking for. He turns it around, then showing it to Test Tube and everyone else, including you. It's apparently a video. It shows Trophy... Trophy running into a room and possibly killing Taco to presumably save Knife from her. You're confused. Didn't Trophy hate him? Maybe Trophy hates Taco more.
You're just glad that Taco is hurt and Knife is okay. But... Is Taco alive? OJ interrupts your thoughts by speaking, "Oh Test Tube. I'm so sorry about your experiment..."
"Oh golly, it was a disaster. I'll continue it later," Test Tube sighs, clearly disappointed in herself and uncomfortable with the fact.
"Good. Oh, Test Tube, that reminds me," OJ smirks to which Test Tube raises an eyebrow. He continues, "They'll explain to you later - But, oh... well, Test Tube, I actually had a little experiment of my own! I got you applied to that 'college' which totally exists. You'll never get in, Test Tube. The superiority and success is all in your head."
Test Tube shakes her head in disbelief, "No... I- Golly... I just-" She gulps, "This is... all your fault, OJ..."
"Cobs's fault," Nickel corrects her. Right. She didn't hear that yet. And wait... OJ and Cobs are responsible for even Test Tube's experiment? Meaning they're responsible for Test Tube coming here and accidentally tearing paper and... Everything. You're so confused...
OJ continues, a sly expression on his face mixed with a smug face that usually Nickel would make, "No, no, it's not my fault or Cobs's. We made the illusion, but the rest? It was all you, Test Tube... We created the imaginary goal, and you dashed blindly towards it like a gullible fish or naïve sheep. It's all you, Test Tube... You who never locks her doors, who dumped her friends for our illusion you so blindly followed, who-"
"SHUT UP!" Test Tube screams, her glasses growing foggy with tears of embarrassment and fear along with the anger heating her face, "GOLLY! YOU AND YOUR STINKY COBS RUINED MY LIFE!" She wipes her tears from her eyes, her glasses slipping, "You ruined my life... You made my friends leave... Golly, I... I just..." She takes a deep breath in and out, "Pardon my language, but I feel that this is appropriate. WHY IN HELL ARE YOU AND COBS SO FREAKING DEMONIC THAT YOU WOULD BOTH SEEK OUT PEOPLE'S LIVES TO RUIN?!"
And, as if on cue, Lightbulb yawns and sits up from the couch, "Wow! That was a great nap- OMGA... What's making y'all so grumpy like a grumpy gremlin? What? Did I lose?! Oh my oopsie daises ..."
You and the others sure have a lot of explaining and investigating to do...
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3320 words
14 june 2023