This is the last pre-written chapter of the story! All of this was posted on March 29 2024! :D
Anyway, original Summary: Chat dump.
I know I know the summary is amazing
Original Notes: >:( ao3 is being mean and glitching out. I posted this 3/23/2024 and it says I haven't updated since 3/15/2024. >:((((((
Anyway, on another note, Flower Ranchers have won the vote!
This took way too long. Been busy this week, so I mean, it's been 8 days...
Anyway, enjoy!
Scott was very much panicking right now, thank you very much. A great way to be spending his Saturday.
At least he had Lizzie for company; she had decided to ditch Joel for the hurt friends. (Joel felt very betrayed and was very dramatic about it even though he wanted to ditch his own car to come along with Lizzie and Scott). Right now, Scott was driving rather poorly onto the highway as Lizzie (who had taken the front seat for some reason? Maybe because Tango and Jimmy were hurt???) texted on Desert Duo Ship.
"Should we get food?" Scott asked, cursing his bad driving skills. Jimmy was surprisingly good at driving, and had drove the both of them to the ski resort. Scott, not so much. Maybe he could get Lizzie to switch with him later. On the way home, maybe?
"I'm hungry," Jimmy volunteered.
"You need to get to the hospital," Lizzie argued.
"Good point," Jimmy said, settling back down. Tango laughed and leaned back into his (unfortunately not the front) seat, trying to ignore the pain in his leg.
"Maybe after?" He suggested. "Hmm, how long do you think we'll be in the hospital?"
"Long," Lizzie said. "I broke my wrist once. You have to get a cast. Likely larger than the one I had. The process goes overnight, I think."
"You think?" Tango asked.
"I mean, I was asleep the whole time," Lizzie shrugged. "So yeah, I think."
"How'd you break your wrist?" Jimmy asked as Scott fiddled with the window-wiping feature. It was starting to snow. Jimmy's car was confusing.
"Funny story, actually," Lizzie replied. "So one day, you know, I was walking down the stairs, wanted to feed my pet axolotl-"
"You have a pet axolotl?" Tango asked.
"She does," Jimmy said. "I've met her. She gave me one too, for my birthday."
"We're seablings," Lizzie explained. "I named my axolotl Cherry, she was pink, and Jimmy named his-"
"Cod," Jimmy put in.
"I will never, EVER understand your naming style," Scott said, wishing he could get off the highway and pass the driving activity on to Lizzie.
"Why Cod?" Tango asked, rather nicely, actually. When Jimmy told Joel about Cod, he had screamed. However, that may have been just because Joel was Joel, and Joel was dramatic.
"He looks like a cod, eats a lot of cod, and overall gives off very 'cod' feelings."
"Jimmy, how does an axolotl give off 'cod feelings'? Also, Lizzie, can you drive?"
"Hmm, probably better than you," Lizzie said. "Get off the highway and we'll switch."
"Thank cod," Scott said. Jimmy, Tango, and Lizzie all started laughing. "What?"
"You said 'thank cod'," Tango explained.
"We should thank Cod, though," Jimmy said thoughtfully.
"It should be the new way of saying 'Thank god'," Lizzie finally decided. "Thank cod!"
"LIZZIE, YOU DRIVE LIKE A MADMAN!" Scott screamed as Lizzie slammed her foot on the gas pedal, before immediately lifting it after the car lurched forward dangerously.
"I like to think that I drive amazingly, thank you," Lizzie said, turning and sending everyone flying left.
"How did you even get a drivers license if you drive like this?" Tango asked, amused. He was probably the least motion-sick out of all of them, not counting Lizzie. Maybe even counting Lizzie, actually.
"I was better at driving a month ago," Lizzie said, making another sharp turn in the opposite direction. Scott actually screamed when he was launched right.
"LIZZIE, DRIVING A CAR SHOULD NOT FEEL LIKE A ROLLERCOASTER!" He yelled, trying to find anything he could find to grip onto for support.
"Not like you did any better," Lizzie said, turning again. Scott was beginning to detest this road. Why would anyone invent a road with so many turns? At least Lizzie wasn't driving on the highway. That would be SO MUCH WORSE.
"I DRIVE MUCH BETTER THAN THIS," Scott protested. He turned around. "You guys feeling okay?"
Jimmy was silent, but Tango piped up. "I can feel Jimmy's motion-sickness through the soul bond," Tango bit out. "Not a great feeling, honestly. I've never gotten so motion-sick before."
Ah. There it was. That pang of jealousy. Scott cursed his stupid brain and his stupid crush(es? This was very confusing. Help).
Honestly, he didn't even know who he was jealous of. That was the stupidest part. He had always had a crush on Jimmy, which had developed slowly over the years of friendship. Tango's was the opposite. They had met up at the amusement park last summer, rather recently, and it was crush(?) at first sight. The world was very stupid, Scott decided, as he almost fell out of his seat due to a poor maneuver made by Lizzie. She had already made a whole ton of those. Maybe he should ask for the driver's seat back.
"Lizzie, I just realized you never told us how you broke your wrist," Jimmy piped up, startling Scott out of his train of thoughts. "Avoiding the question?"
"No," she denied. "Fine, so what happened is I was going downstairs to feed Cherry when I tripped, reached out with my arm, and broke my wrist."
"Ouch," Tango commented, crossing his legs. "Must have hurt."
"Probably wasn't as bad as what you're going through now," Lizzie said, shrugging.
When they arrived at the hospital, Scott was so dizzy that when he stepped out of the car, he had to lean against it for support before he collapsed. He gave Lizzie a how are you not dead right now look before trying to walk.
"Jimmy, you okay? Tango?" He asked. Jimmy wasn't looking so good. He started to get out, but Scott pushed him back in. "Wait here. One, you're motion sick, and you'll probably fall on your face. Two, your leg is broken. I'm going to go call a doctor over, okay?"
"Thank cod," Jimmy said, settling back down. "I thought I was going to have to walk the whole way inside the hospital!"
[Grian]: How are Tim and Tango
[Joel]: I would like to say 'Tim and Tango' sounds very weird
[Gem]: Agreed
[Scott]: In the emergency room thingy I think
Not actually sure
They made us wait in the stupid lobby
"Should we get food?" Lizzie asked. "I'm really hungry now."
"Sure," Scott said. "Uhh, how?"
"Driving, of course," Lizzie replied, missing Scott's concerned look.
"Uhh, but, I don't really want to drive, and you drive kinda..." He trailed off, looking embarrassed.
"Fine, I'll go myself," Lizzie said, picking up her backpack (when did she bring that inside?). "Can I have the keys?"
"Here," Tango passed Jimmy's car keys over to Lizzie and settled back into his seat.
"Should we, like, leave or something?" Scott asked after finishing his burger. "I mean, you said they'll probably be here overnight, right?"
"Using Jimmy's car?" Lizzie said, raising an eyebrow.
"Good point, actually," Scott frowned. "Are we really going to be stuck here overnight? This stinks."
"Where are Jimmy's parents?" Lizzie wondered, to no one in particular.
"They were out of town for some fancy meeting thing, if I remember correctly," Scott said. "Pretty far away. Should be on their way to the hospital now, come to think of it."
"Then we'll stay until they come," Lizzie decided. "Then we can get someone else to pick us up."
"Alright," Scott replied, opening his phone to play video games. "Tell me when they're here."
[Scott]: GUYS
IT'S BEEN AN HOUR AND JIMMY'S PARENTS ARE STILL NOT HERE
[Grian]: Have you tried calling them?
[Scott]: Do YOU know their number?
[Grian]: ...
No?
[Scott]: Well, I don't EITHER
So there
[Lizzie]: Spring is finally here <3
[Joel]: I'm so glad we went skiing before spring
[Scott]: Ikr
Thank cod
[Impulse]: ???
???????????????????
In the hospital's waiting room, Lizzie and Scott both burst into laughter, drawing many funny looks.
"Go fish," Scott said, grinning.
"Aww, come on!" Lizzie said, throwing up her cards.
"Any threes?" Lizzie asked.
"Nope."
"WHERE ARE THEY?"
"Absolutely no idea."
"So how you play is that you try to add, subtract, divide, and multiply the numbers to try to get twenty-four-"
"Are you trying to get me to play math outside of school?" Scott raised an eyebrow.
"It's a game!" Lizzie protested.
"Looks like math to me."
"It's like, the one card game I know."
"What about poker?"
"I have no idea how to play."
"Bridge?"
"Nope."
"What about, uhh, Speed?"
"What in the world is Speed?"
"I dunno Jimmy taught it to me."
"Ahh. That explains it."
"Solitare?"
"No."
"I don't want to play Go Fish again."
"Me neither."
"Then what games do you know?"
"..."
"So?"
"Go fish..."
"ARRRGGGGGGGGGG!"
[Scott]: Guys I'm bored
Wait
JIMMY'S PARENTS ARE FINALLY HERE
SO LONG STUPID HOSPITAL
[Mumbo]: ...
Okay
[Jimmy]: Guys
Tango and I are out of the hospital
[Joel]: Huh
You didn't even miss a day of school!
[Jimmy]: ...
[Joel]: What?
Scott was looking in the library for a book about soulmates. (No, he isn't going to tell you why. So shut up.)
He took an interesting looking one off a shelf and opened to a random page. He managed to read CAN SOULMATES BE POLY- before immediately shutting the book and ignoring it for around ten seconds before picking it up again.
[Mumbo]: Guys stop bullying me about my thumb shifting in LIFE
[Gem]: YOU WHAT
MUMBO WHY DO YOU THUMB SHIFT
[Skizz]: Mumbo that's weird
[Grian]: Ikr!
[Lizzie]: I mean that wasn't how I designed the game so uhh
[Mumbo]: I'm holding a contest for who plays LIFE the weirdest! I'll say what I do first: thumb shift
[Joel]: Automatic weirdest
[Mumbo]: You haven't even heard the others yet!
[Cleo]: I play on the couch
[Scott]: How are you not dead yet
[Cleo]: I am dead
ZOMBIEcleo, hellooo?
[Grian]: I have some custom key changes...
[Pearl]: What r the key changes?
[Grian]: Why should I tell u
[Pearl]: Guys I bet it's something weird
[Grian]: NO IT'S NOT
Also I forgot to mention that my headphones are like very old
[Pearl]: How old???
[Grian]: Not telling u that either
[Joel]: I feel left out
I was not invited to Mumbo's freakshow
[Scott]: Do you play LIFE in a funny way?
[Joel]: I mean no but-
[Mumbo]: Guys
Etho just announced his setup
Wait @Etho, can you send a pic?
[Etho]: Why
[Mumbo]: Please?
[Etho]: Fine
[Etho] sent an image.
[Lizzie]: Etho how old is that tissue box???
[Etho]: 5 years
[Joel]: ETHO why is the desk UP TO YOUR SHOULDERS
[Mumbo]: You haven't even seen how he uses the mouse yet
[Scott]: ?????????????
[Etho]: I don't get what's wrong with a 90 degree angle
[Scott]: ETHO WHY
THIS IS LIKE, WORSE THAN CLEO
[Mumbo]: Actually, @Cleo, would you care to send a picture of your setup?
[Cleo]: Alright
Here
[Cleo] sent a picture.
[Lizzie]: Wait are those SODA CANS?
[Mumbo]: Oop gotta go Impulse is up next
bye
[Scott]: ...
[Joel]: I hate not being in the action, don't you?
[Scott]: yup
[Joel]: Stupid school
I hate this
[Grian]: Ikr
This is so stupid
[Jimmy]: Guys it's recess
[Joel]: Just because it's recess does't mean school isn't stupid
[Gem]: Why r u guys texting?
Ur literally siting RIGHT NEXT TO EACHOTHER
[Jimmy]: ...
Because they're texting???
[Grian]: We text because talking is overated
Right Joel?
[Joel]: Absolutely
[Gem]: You guys are weird
[Joel]: HEY!
[Grian]: GUYS
YOU WON'T BELIEVE IT
I GOT A PESKY BIRD FROM THE PET STORE
I NAMED HIM PROF. BEAK
JUST LOOK AT HIM
[Grian] sent an image.
[Scar]: Ooo cute
[Mumbo]: Don't u have a stuffed parrot called prof. beak?
[Grian]: OOP I FORGOT ABOUT THAT
[Scar]: how could you Imma go cry now
[Grian]: ok I renamed the stuffed parrot
his name is prof. birb now
[Joel]: ok
Also Prof. Beak looks like u
[Grian]: Joel
How do I look like a bird???
[Joel]: U just do
[Scar]: I agree
Doesn't Grian look like a bird?
[Grian]: I DO NOT LOOK LIKE A BIRD
MUMBO, BACK ME UP HERE
[Mumbo]: Hmm, I dunno
You kinda do
[Grian]: YOU GUYS ARE SO MEAAANNNNNNNN
[Joel]: Wait guys this is awesome
Wait for it...
[Grian]: ?
[Joel]: #Grianisapeskybird
[Grian]: ...
you know what, I'm leaving
goodbye, cruel world
[Scar]: Wait!
[Grian]: Hmm?
[Scar]: I haven't even used the # yet!
[Grian]: Well too bad
[Pearl]: You guys are taking too long
Just use it stupids
#Grianisapeskybird
[Grian]: >:(
Original Notes: We've hit 2k hits, 100 kudos, and 20k words everyone! This calls for a party! :D
One day, ao3 will be the death of me.
Or maybe it's my computer. Whatever :p
Anyway, hoped you enjoy! Now you have to wait for the next chapter >:)