Riding down the wide streets and avenues, Pen could finally enjoy the fresh Goiky air. It had been a long time since he had entered the outside world, and even longer since he last rode a bike. He was still thinking about his recent experience with Pencil, and how it had almost ended his entire future, just because of a poorly executed joke.
Wonder how Blocky would think about that, he pictured his woody friend, and all the "funny doings" he would get into. Usually, it ended in someone getting arrested. Now that I think about it, I haven't received a message from him or Eraser, he realized.
As Pen pulled into the parking lot of the apartment complex he lived in, he noticed that Eraser's car was missing. That's a bit weird. Maybe Eraser's out getting groceries? He slowly dragged the heavy bicycle up the narrow staircase, squeezing through the small gap between the rusty bike and the plaster walls.
"I should probably consider getting a tetanus shot after that," he mumbled, finally arriving at the sixth floor. The hallway was dimly lit by a small window at the end. The brown windows looked as if they haven't been cleaned for at least a thousand years. It wasn't a great place, but it was the best they could afford. Pen had plans to move out soon with the money he'd earn from YoyleNet, but that was still a little down the road.
He arrived at the door, and turned the doorknob. It was locked. That's weird, Blocky never leaves the door locked when he's home.
"Hello? Anybody home?" He yelled, knocking on the door. Nothing.
Maybe I should call Eraser, he decided, pulling out his phone. Opening up his messages, he noticed that Eraser had not yet seen his message from that morning. Strange. He tapped on Eraser's contact, and called him. A chilly feeling entered him as he recalled their conversation last night. What was it about? He wondered. Was it carpeting? No, that doesn't sound right.
"Hey man, what's up?" Eraser asked, the sound of traffic and Fortnite in the background.
"Eraser, you picked up! Where the writer are you?" Pen asked, relieved.
"Well, I forgot to charge my phone last night, so I couldn't tell you this morning, and by the time we were out I had already forgot about you."
"Okay, so where are you?"
Eraser's voice suddenly got a lot more quiet, as if he was talking to someone else.
"Hey Blocky, where are we?" Pen was able to make out.
"Blocky is there too?" Pen inquired. It suddenly occurred to him where his roommates were.
"Yeah, okay. We're just about at the canal. You know that we're going-"
"Camping, yep, I've noticed."
"Uh, sure. Anyways, we'll be back in two days. If you need it, Blocky left $50 on the counter. You did bring a key with you this morning, right?"
Pen remembered his fatal mistake that morning. "Um, what if I said no?"
"Well then I'd call you stupid and irresponsible." Eraser laughed, then snapped back. "You're joking, right?"
"Not exactly," Pen admitted.
"Oof. Well, you could get a room at a hotel at something, but that's too expensive. And we're already too far to come back and get you... Oh, I know, you could check if you can spend the nights at Snowball's! He's usually decently nice to us."
The audio was progressively getting worse, telling Pen that they were losing signal.
"Thanks I'll ask hi-" Pen replied, being cut off halfway through.
"Well isn't my life just great," he sighed sarcastically. "Might as well call Snowball."
Unlike his rubbery friend, Snowball picked up immediately.
"Hey, Snowball!" Pen started.
"Stop talking to me, weakling! Oh, wait, it's you. Hi Pen." Snowball replied roughly.
"Listen, can I stay over at your place tonight? Blocky and Eraser are on a trip, and I forgot the keys."
"Woah, what an idiot!"
"Yeah, I've already been called that."
"Anyways, I'm sorry, but I'm busy tonight, and I don't trust you enough to let you stay in my house overnight alone. Do you want me to get you a room at a hotel or something?"
"No, that's fine. Excuse me for asking, but what are you doing tonight?"
"Oh, you know," the sound of club music flowing into the speakers.
"You're at a bar? At noon!? What's wrong with you?" Pen exasperated.
"Well, I've been dealing with a lot lately, and I needed to clear my mind."
"If this involves drugs or something, I'm not getting involved."
"Oh, no,no! I just got rejected, that's all."
"What do you mean?"
"I asked Needle out for coffee this morning, and she never got back to me." He said angrily.
"You, and Needle? For coffee? HAHAHA?" Pen burst out. "I'm sorry, but that image is just too funny to pass up on."
"You're lucky that I'm not there in person, otherwise I'd beat you up!"
"I'm just joking! But in all seriousness, why Needle?"
"Well, we were both in Track and Field during high school, and she is really pretty."
"She was running 100 meter sprints and you were lobbing shot puts. Big difference. Also, are you sure that she rejected you?"
"Not exactly. She wrote something like 'I'll think about it', and never got back to me."
At this point Pen really just wanted to lie down for a bit, so in a brilliant moment he decided to kill two birds with one stone, and make up something to Snowball. He wasn't the smartest. Not only would Pen fix Snowball's feelings, hopefully he'd also be able to stay there for a night or two.
"Now hear me out on this, but maybe she was just too busy. You know how her father is, always getting her to do useless things."
"Hmm, I guess that does seem reasonable. Thanks, man."
"So can you get out of the bar now?"
"Um well, I got a "Drink-All-Day" card, and I don't really want to waste it, so nah."
"Well prepare to say sayonara to you liver."
"I'll be fine. Good luck finding a place to stay!" With that, the ball of crystallized water hung up.
"Well, at least I managed to kill one bird," Pen exhaled.
He wondered who to call next, while scrolling through the contacts on his phone. Most were previous job opportunities, some classmates from university, and for some reason a number to the local cemetery. Not many people who would let him stay a night.
All of a sudden, one name stood out. Pencil, he recalled. Maybe she'll let me stay at the office or something. Since there wasn't any other option, he concluded that it was his best shot.
"Please pick up, please pick up, please pick up-" He pleaded.
"Excuse me?" Pencil abruptly answered.
"What? Oh, hi boss!"
"You could just call me Pencil, you know."
"Good to know, Pencil. Anyways, can I request something of you? I know that I just got hired and all, but I could really use your help."
"Fire away. I still have a bit of time before the procedures are finished."
"What procedures?"
"I'm getting a van for the company. Didn't you have a problem?" Pencil answered sarcastically.
"Oh, right! So, my roommates went on this camping trip, and I forgot to take the keys with me this morning, so..."
"Let me guess, you want to stay over at my place tonight? Wow, you idiot. What kind of person doesn't take their keys?"
"I've been called that several times today." Pen grumbled, "Also, you'd really let me stay at your house?"
"What were you expecting, for me to leave my new employee out in the cold?"
"Really? Thank you so much, madam!"
"Yeah, I'll be over as soon as I finish up signing these papers. The guy working here is really fat and smelly. Also, don't call me madam."
"You know my address?"
"It was on your resume, wasn't it?"
"Oh, right, forgot about that. See you soon!"
She hung up, leaving Pen in the corridor of the building alone. Might as well get out and wait for her.
<=======>
Pencil slowly made her way through the traffic of midday Yoyle City, enjoying the music flowing from the fresh new radio. The van was a bit more than what she was expecting, decked out with color changing lights, a giant magnet for some reason, and heated seats. It was like they say, go big, or go home! Everything about it was great, down to the fact that it could be compacted into a small case the size of a burger box.
It wasn't a long drive from Spongy's dealership to Pen's place. It was rather amusing, actually. Spongy was known for selling planes and boats, but she saw an ad saying that he was selling a limited edition "Supervan". Pencil was intrigued, and hit him up.
As she neared Pen's complex, she began wondering if she had made a mistake by hiring the kind of idiot that would leave their keys at home. Everyone makes mistakes, Pencil said to herself, as she remembered how she overslept that morning and literally driving her previous van into a skyscraper.
Turning into the the parking lot, she noticed the blue-headed figure standing next to his bike. She parked on the curb and walked over to him.
"Hi Pencil!" He greeted, finally noticing her.
"Hello Pen. I was really expecting for us to meet a tomorrow, but here we are. Now shut up and get in the van!" She commanded.
Pen did as he was told, getting into the middle row of seats. Pencil followed him, and started supervan back up. The lights fired up again, and the radio began blasting the sounds of a tuba, a baritone, and a grand piano.
"Wow, it is bright in here. Is this the new van?" Pen asked, looking around the place.
"Yep sure is. Got a decent deal for it, too. You ready?" Pencil answered.
"I'm always ready."
"Good, because this van has no breaks. Also, my house is quite far away, so I might be going a bit fast."
"Wait wha- AHHHHHH!" Pen screamed as the van thundered into the city.