As we rode down the chocolate river, we sat in peaceful silence. I was almost getting sleepy before Willy exclaimed to the Oompa-Loompas, "Wait a minute!"
They stopped, and Willy quickly exited the boat, turning around to take my hand. I again took it, and he pulled me close to him, whispering, "I must show you this."
He led me towards a door, and when he opened it, the smell of fruits and other sweet things wafted toward me. He pulled me down a hallway, and we stopped in front of a creme-collared wall. Multiple columns of assorted fruits were decorated onto it.
"What's this? It seems to be just some simple fruity wallpaper," I observed.
He nodded, and said, "But...?"
"It smells like actual fruit," I stated.
He grinned and explained, "Lickable Wallpaper. For nursery walls. For little babies and kids to occupy themselves with since they may not be able to have solid fruits yet."
He motioned me to the wall. "Lick an orange; it tastes like an orange. Lick a pineapple; it tastes like a pineapple. Go ahead, try it!"
I smirked and faced the wall, deciding to lick an apple. It tasted exactly like an apple would and should. "Oh, wow."
He smiled at my wonder, and I licked another fruit. "Mmm, got a plum."
He giggled lightly and he, too, licked a fruit. "The banana's my favorite. It was one of the hardest fruits to recreate a taste for, since the flavor isn't impactful that very instant it reaches your tongue."
He grinned pridefully, and I beamed at him. "It's fantastic! They all taste so real."
"Isn't it? Try some more. The strawberries taste like strawberries. The snozzberries taste like snozzberries!"
"Snozzberries?" I looked at him incredulously and burst into a fit of giggles. "What's a snozzberry?"
"Berries from Snozz bushes, Snozz trees, Snozz vines... a tangy berry-kind, at that," he laughed, playfully sarcastic. I grinned and rolled my eyes.
"Come along, come along!" He took my hand again.
I pulled his hand back and said, "Let me have one more lick."
I faced the wall and licked a banana, and smiled. He grinned and giggled at my childish ways. He then led me out of the Lickable Wallpaper For Nursery Walls Room.
"This room is far more interesting," Willy whispered excitedly. He pulled me around the corner of the hallway, and I gasped at the sight.
"Fizzy Lifting Drinks," Willy announced. He walked me towards the middle of the room, up to this odd metallic contraption that was blowing hundreds of bubbles out into the air.
"Where're the drinks?" I asked him, popping a bubble with my finger.
"Something very unusual in here. Bubbles, bubbles everywhere, but not a drop to drink. Yet," he murmured in a daze, finishing with a dazzling smile.
"What do the drinks do?" I wondered, leaning on the machine gently and crossing my arms.
"They fill you with gas, and the gas is so terrifically lifting that it lifts you right off the ground. Like a balloon!" he exclaimed with a light laugh. "Look up. Look, look!"
"Oh!" I gasped, looking way up and seeing a fan pull the bubbles up towards the sky. I gaped at the ceiling above me. "Isn't it high!
"Gosh! Can I try some?" I placed my hand on his arm, turning my gaze to him. He grew hesitant.
"Er, well... I dare not sell it yet. It's still too powerful... I'd rather you not," he murmured nervously.
"Oh, come on, can I try some? Please? Share a bottle with me!" I looked at him and grinned. He shook his head and broke into an anxious grin.
"No, no, no. Absolutely not. You'd be floating around all over the place. Come on," Willy denied, taking my hand in his. I pull away and ran around to the other side, grinning devilishly.
"Come on, Willy," I said flirtatiously, giving him a smirk. "Just a sip?"
He pursed his lips and raised an annoyed eyebrow. He finally sighed and walked around, grabbing a bottle off of the shelf.
"You're gosh darn lucky I lo—er, like you," he quickly corrected, coughing lightly.
I raised a brow at him, suspicious, but shrugged it off, watching him pop the cap from a bottle open. He held it away from him as the froth bubbled out of it, and he told me, "Let it breathe, first."
I nodded and took the bottle. With a deep breath, I put it to my lips and sipped a small sip. The drink sizzled and popped in my mouth, and I could feel the fizziness sliding down my throat, leaving a sweet aftertaste. I exhaled, handing it to Willy, "This is delicious."
He watched me with caution, and took the bottle, placing it onto a nearby rack. I felt a bit of an airy, light feeling grow inside me, and my feet left the ground. "Um, Willy?"
He faced me and gasped in shock.
"Mary!" Willy grabbed my hand and kept me from floating any higher. "I knew I shouldn't have let you take a sip..."
He pulled me down and wrapped his arms around me, walking out of the room.
"How do I... not float?" I asked.
He gave me a regretful look and replied, "I don't know."
"Crap," I muttered. When we were safely out of the Fizzy Lifting Drinks Room, he let me go, and I rose up to the ceiling. He stared up at me, and I giggled at his frustrated expression as I floated above him.
"I don't see how this is funny, Mary." He crossed his arms and gave me a minute glare.
"I don't see how this isn't funny," I replied. "I am for once taller than you, and I didn't even need a hat."
I laughed again, turning over in the air. I looked at him again when I rotated over, and I can see him fighting a smirk. He said, "You're really weird."
"So are you," I answered, doing a silly pose in the air.
"Not as much as you, though," he countered. I giggled and he finally smiled.
"Prove i—" I began, but I was interrupted by a burp. I covered my mouth, and Willy began a fit of giggles.
"You are as red as a snozzberry!" He doubled over and burst into a roaring fit of laughter.
"Shut u—" I burped again. He continued to laugh. "Seriously, stop."
I noticed that I was beginning to slowly float down, and I smirked. Willy didn't notice this because he was laughing so much, so I quietly placed my feet on the ground and snuck around him.
"Oh, you truly are a deligh—" he began, glancing around. "Mary?"
He rushed into the Fizzy Lifting Drinks Room and called for me again.
"Mary?!" he yelled, looking all around. The panic in his voice had risen.
I tip-toed up to him and leaped onto his back.
"Got you!" I giggled. He jumped at the sudden contact and nearly fell over with my weight.
"How—" he started, turning his head over his shoulder to look at me.
"Burping released the gasses from my stomach, I guess," I finished before releasing one final burp. I clung to him, and he exhales with relief.
"You genuinely gave me a fright," he said breathlessly, placing a hand on his chest to calm his breathing.
I let go of him and slid off of his back, feeling the secure ground beneath me. He suddenly turned around and wrapped his arms around me, hugging me tightly.
"I thought you floated to your death..." he whispered into my hair.
I hugged him back and said, "I wouldn't dare risk my life like that."
He pushed me away, and held my face in his hands. "You better not. I wouldn't know what to tell your family, or what I would do without you here..."
I studied his face, and his eyes started to glisten with tears. "Willy, I would never leave you. Not ever."
His tears spilled over, searching my eyes. I grinned and hugged him tightly. And without hesitation, he hugged me back.