Chapter Text
Pencil had…a very low tolerance for certain objects, and Golf Ball was at the very top of that list.
Goiky had just gotten its first snowfall of the season. About two or so inches worth, in fact. Pencil looked out her apartment window and, sure enough, it was time to get some stuff done.
“Okay, planner…planner…” Pencil dug through her beside drawer before pulling it out. “Planner…so, first off it’s my and Match's and my turn to take care of the snow shoveling first…then we're are going ice skating…I promised Ruby I’d help her build a snowfort…and after that, I’m finally breaking in that old electric fireplace again.”
Normally, this’d be the time others would get to work bundling up before heading outside. Not Pencil, though. It’s not like she didn’t mind the cold, she got cold easily in fact, but if there’s one thing she minded even more , it was looking weak.
Snowball often made fun of others for putting on thick winter gear around this time. Mainly since he was already made of snow and, deliberating fears aside, since this year was the snowball equivalent of walking outside with everything covered in flesh , he was completely immune to the cold season.
To combat this, Pencil, one December, walked right outside in her usual wear, just to make him look like a complete jerk. Was it petty? Yes, but it proved her point. She has refused to go in anything heavier than a very light coat since, just to stick it to him.
Golf Ball, meanwhile, was the complete opposite.
“Let’s see…-12.22 repeating degrees.” GB muttered to herself, looking at her electric thermometer hanging beside her bed, “Alright, time to get ready.”
You could barely see Golf Ball underneath all the layers she had. Two heavy coats, a toboggan situated just low enough that she could still see, a scarf covering her mouth and thick winter boots, with special seals to keep any snow from getting inside them.
Tennis Ball was waiting outside, only dressed in a light jacket. He was very much zoning out, until he saw GB open the door.
“Are you ready?”
“As ready as I can be.” GB muttered. “Did I mention I really don’t like winter, Trusty TB?”
“Every single time the temperature drops.”
GB just rolled her eyes at that. There really weren’t any days where she wasn’t moody, but winters were where she would be at her worst. She was especially grumpy, constantly both wanting to be near someone to huddle for warmth, but also at the same time wanting to be alone because other people were gross, always tired, hungry... and, if it got really cold, she would get mood swings. TB wasn’t sure why exactly, aside from just…really, really hating the cold, but GB was always a bit of a timebomb at this time.
Thankfully, it hadn’t gotten that cold yet (though if you judged the weather based on what GB was wearing, you would swear a blizzard was going on right now), so she was still just ‘very very upset’... as if that was comforting to know.
The hotel-turned-apartment-lobby wasn’t too busy. Most people were just inside their rooms, waiting out the weather, or already outside, enjoying it.
TB just watched her intently, wanting to keep her in check today…Golf Ball was squinting over her scarf…looking to see if anyone was there. Two was at the front desk, as usual. Stapy and Liy were talking in the hallway... holding a conversation that could have been in their own room , but whatever, and... oh, perfect . Pencil just had to be there, didn’t she?
Pencil and Match were talking at the moment. Match had her earmuffs and sweater on, while it seemed like Pencil evidently still thought it was Autumn.
“Is that really, like, all you’re gonna wear?” Match asked, giving her a look. She knew about the whole thing with Snowball, but she was surprised it lasted that long. Over a year and Pencil still seemed adverse to the idea of putting on a coat.
“It’s not that bad.” Pencil said, having become very good at the ability to stop her body from shivering... or at least keep it from being easily-noticeable. “It’s only, like, fifteen degrees.”
“Try negative twelve ...”
Pencil glanced over, looking down at GB... of all the people who could be out now. Not like Golf Ball was ever pleasant to be around, that was.
“What do you want, Bozo?”
“It’s negative... twelve .” GB repeated, gritting her teeth so hard, it was a wonder they didn’t break apart. “That’s what the rest of the world would call it.”
“Aww, but we’re not in ‘the rest of the world’ now, are we?” Pencil asked in a mocking tone. “Go bug someone else, Golf Ball. I’m not in the mood.”
“Okay, but... you really should bundle up more.” TB stated.
“I didn’t ask you either , Bozo Major.” Pencil turned to him with an annoyed look on her face. “I’ll be fine .”
“You’re gonna get sick if you’re not careful.” TB pointed out.
“She, like, said, she’ll be fine !” Match snapped back, storming off with Pencil into the snow. Truth be told, she was a little worried herself whether Pencil really would be fine... but it was like she almost had a natural instinct to disagree with those she actively hated on literally anything they could say to her.
“Hmmmphh..” Golf Ball muttered something under her breath. It seemed she really, really didn’t like that answer. “I’m going after them.”
TB looked on confused, before quickly running after her. This…this was an odd choice for her. Were the mood swings happening early here?
“Um, may I ask why, GB?” Tennis Ball asked, wincing as the cold air hit his skin.
“I... well, she...” Golf Ball stammered, nearly tripping face first into the snow the second she got out the door. “I just wanna show her. Besides, there was... that time in the elevator.”
“Elevator?”
“I know she’s just gonna tell me I ‘owe her one’ at some point... and now, after this, I won’t owe a thing !”
It was about a week ago. Golf Ball was stuck waiting for an elevator. Her room was on the top floor and she had a very, very long day, so she did not feel like walking up several flights of stairs just so she could finally relax.
That was, of course, until she looked and saw who just stepped in with her.
“Mmngh, you know what? I think I’ll just take the...” The doors suddenly shut on GB... just as she was about to step out. “...stairs.”
Pencil rolled her eyes, the not-so-subtle insult not passing her by.
“I’m not gonna turn you to stone from being around you, Golf Ball.”
“I know…that’d actually be the
better
option, honestly. Besides, why
would
you? It’s not like I actually
want
to look at you right now.”
Pencil just scoffed, deciding this simply didn’t matter. Her room was only on the fifth floor, so it’d only be another few seconds before she could...
CRAACK !
Suddenly, all the lights shut off, the mechanisms grinding to a complete halt... right when the elevator was between the third and fourth floors. A few moments of uneasy silence lingered in the small box as the two objects stood frozen in wide-eyed horror, neither of them wanting to admit the harsh reality of their current situation.
They were trapped.
“Aaaagh, not now! Not with her !” GB shouted, banging her head against the door in hopes she’d somehow gather enough strength to knock them off their hinges.
Pencil seemed especially offended by that. Yeah, she knew GB didn’t like her, but she wasn’t a monster . If anything, she was the monster here... maybe even a cryptid , given how much time she spent holed up in her lab. She genuinely doubted GB even actually knew what ‘sunlight’ was ...
“Look, just calm down already, bozo...” She sighed. “It’s not, like, the end of the world or whatever.”
“Pencil, I am not okay right now!” Golf Ball said, her breath already increasing in pace as she desperately tried to snuggle herself into a corner. “I don’t... I-I don’t feel safe.”
For once, Pencil completely failed to drum up any possible insults she could sling GB’s way. Man, she seemed... really shaken up. It kind of reminded her of the stuff she had to help Match through sometimes, and... was that happening with her ?
Did she actually... need to comfort Golf Ball right now?
Ugh, gross . Oh well... as long as it couldn’t be helped. She could remember some statistic she read online once, anyways, and... Golf Ball liked statistics, right?
“I don’t think elevators actually just fall on their own, Golf Ball.” Pencil pointed out. “There’s only been, like, one case not long after they were invented and nobody died from it.”
She then waited for a response, folding her arms. Did she feel better? She couldn’t really tell on account of how dark it was... but her whimpering did get a little softer. She was unsure if it was because the statistic helped, or if GB just really didn’t want to cry around her.
“...I need space.”
“Huh?” Pencil asked.
“I need my space!” Golf Ball whined.
Pencil just sighed, backing herself up against the exact opposite corner that GB was sitting in as close as she could.
“There... I’m as far away as I can get right now.”
Golf Ball looked around... she couldn’t see her.
“O-okay...” Golf Ball sighed, curling up a bit as she struggled to take deep breaths. Inhale... hold... exhale. Inhale... hold... exhale.
“Put your legs against the wall.”
Golf Ball glanced over, unsure if she heard her right.
“What?”
“It helps calm you down.” Pencil smiled hesitantly, even if she knew she couldn’t see it. “I had to learn this stuff for, uh... reasons.”
She didn’t wanna say why , of course (GB would probably somehow make fun of both of them for it), but it was for Match’s sake. She often had really bad panic attacks, to the point she regularly had to take these weird dissolvable tablets to help her deal with it. It was when they became really good friends that Pencil finally started to look up some ways on how to comfort her online. Normally, the mere thought of studying made her want to punch a wall, especially after a few distant events that pencil still visited a therapist for, but for someone like Match... it was a necessity.
Golf Ball was incredibly skeptical. She was unsure whether or not this was just some dumb prank of hers... for all she knew, Pencil was gonna whip out a phone or something and start recording her looking utterly ridiculous. Regardless, she put her legs up to the wall, trying to focus on her breathing...
After a few minutes, she felt her heart rate slowing some... she was starting to calm down a bit... she thought. She still felt awkward being around her in general, especially now...
Pencil looked down at her, “Feeling better?”
“Myeh..."
“Good.” Pencil said. “Please just try and be quiet for now.”
“Pencil, you need to put something on!”
“What are you, my mom ? Back off already, bozo !” Pencil snapped, crossing her arms, before gesturing to the massive pile of snow on the walkway. “We have a job to do, GB.”
“What do you mean ‘we’?” TB asked, not seeing anyone shoveling beside her.
“Match is on break right now.”
Of course she was.
GB shook her head. “Do you not realize it’s only going to be a bit of time before-”
A-A-Achoo!
Pencil rubbed her nose, sniffling a bit.
“Great job, bozo…you better not have jinxed me!”
“Jinxing isn’t a thing!” GB snapped, “Ugh, you are such a child !”
“Sh-shaaaachoo!” Pencil sneezed again, covering her mouth with both hands. “Uuugh…”
“Maybe you should step inside?” TB suggested.
“Oh and…and make Golf Ball make me loog bad?” Pencil asked, already stumbling her words and sounding a bit congested. “Nod happening!”
She dug back into the snow again, purposefully tossing a handful in their direction. She missed, but it was still a good way to show her indignation as she continued working on the road. Turns out, there was no better motivator for Pence-Pence than good old petty spite .
“Rrrgh…” GB growled, angry at how stubborn she was being…
“GB, maybe we should just…” TB was about to suggest something, but GB was having none of it.
“ I’ll handle the shovelling!”
Pencil raised an eyebrow, “Wow…you sure?”
“Positive.” GB said, shoving her out of the way, “Go lie down…and I’ll make sure you do , because I know you’re sick.”
“Nuh, I… I won’d!” Pencil said, before letting out another sneeze. “I thing I’ll… go on a walk… j-jud to show you I’m fine .”
As she stormed off, GB huffed, lifting up the heavy shovel.
“Wow, that was… nice of you.” TB said, already knowing there were ulterior motives, though.
“This isn’t because I like her, TB.”
“I never said you-”
“It’s because she’s a stubborn idiot who can’t listen to her own inner thoughts and will probably mess up !”
TB looked down, seeing the path Pencil had already cleared. “How do you mess up snow shoveling?”
“Leave it to Pence-Pence, she’d find a way!.” Golf Ball mocked Match’s nickname for her, rolling her eyes as she tried her best to shovel the rest of the driveway. “I’ll get my mail later, okay?”
TB shrugged. “I’ll pick it up for you.”
Pencil wandered around in the snow for a bit before she reached the door, haphazardly tossing it open…oh wood , she still felt awful even in a warmer climate. She wasn’t sure if she was overheating or underheating or what… her body couldn’t make up its mind. She could hear her heartbeat in her skull, and she could barely breathe on top of it. Ughh, she just wanted to lie down for right now…just because she felt like it., though. Not because Bozo was right.
She rode the elevator up and began trudging toward her room…only to see her standing outside it, seemingly having waited there to see her for who knows how long.
“Ha, I knew it!”
“Ugh… leaf me alode , Golf Ball!”
“I told you not to go out without even a hat , and look what happened!”
Pencil tried to ignore her, her shaky hand trying to fit the key in the slot…ugh, her vision was blurred…she just weakly whined as she desperately struggled to unlock the door to her own room, unable to form very many words in her current state.
“Allow me!” GB stepped in, taking the key and sticking it in the slot… ugh !
“Thanks...” Pencil said dismissively, trudging in and flopping down on the bed.
GB decided to follow her in just to really examine her physical state, humming to herself at the eyebags and the way she was shivering. “You know…I might as well keep an eye on you.”
Pencil stared at her in both confusion and distrust.
“Why? So you can... snff ... k-keep making funna me or spid in my drink or whadever?”
GB frowned at that... trying to act like she wouldn’t be worried of Pencil doing the exact same thing if she was sick. “I assure you, I wouldn’t do anything like that. Besides, it’ll show you just how nice I am. You don’t gotta just disregard me like nothing.”
“Oh what? So you canged back to, like... b-breaking through an elevator to ged away from me?”
GB bit her tongue. She didn’t think Pencil would care about that so much... Maybe the sickness made her more vulnerable as well? She’d better just change the subject.
“Want some soup?”
“Chicken noodle...” Pencil turned over, groaning weakly. “There’s... some packets in the cupboard.”
GB quickly began whipping up some soup for her. She looked back, and... Pencil was sitting up, eyeing her.
“I’m not going to spit in it, I was being genuine !”
“Uh huh... snff ... sure you were.”
Golf Ball flinched at that... she didn’t trust her that much, huh? She really thought she was going to contaminate an already-sick girl’s food... what kind of person did Pencil think she was ? In fact... what did Pencil think of her, period ? She never considered that... Truth be told, she just assumed Pencil never thought about her (or about literally anything in the first place), but to think that of her was... very humbling.
“Hmph... I’ll show you nice .” GB said, squinting a bit at her... the recipe just called for boiling water and adding the packet, but why stop there? Pencil watched as GB went to the fridge for a second, grabbing a carton of milk... that’d add to the broth’s flavor. She also saw something else.
“Hey, were you planning anything with these mushrooms?”
“Hm?” Pencil just flopped back on her bed. “Nah, you can have ‘em... they’re cheap.”
Perfect. In the pot they went. It started off small... but soon enough, Golf Ball was seasoning it the best she could. She occasionally read through culinary books (she needed to read just about anything to keep focus), and soon enough, she presented Pencil with a dish that looked rather appealing for how nearly all the ingredients came from a dollar store.
“Oh…thanks, GB…” Pencil was admittedly a bit stunned, sniffing a bit in curiosity. “Is that... ginger?”
“Hm... so you can still smell , huh? Yeah, I added some...” GB smirked. “Just because I’m so nice .”
If Pencil had the energy, she would have smacked the stupid, wide, toothy grin right off Bozo Brain’s bozo face. Instead, she just picked up one of the saltines and slowly picked up some noodles before placing it in her mouth…wow, that was good …really good even. The noodles and chicken were still cheap, of course, but everything surrounding her comfort food only added to it.
Golf Ball slumped back in one of the chairs, doing her best to give a ‘kinda-sorta’ glare as she watched Pencil eat her cooking. She got a pretty big bowl for her, mainly so she could throw in the whole pot’s worth... and Pencil finished the whole thing in about two and a half minutes.
“Is it good?” Golf Ball asked, smiling hesitantly at her.
Truthfully, it was the best thing Pencil ate that wasn’t from her own mom...
“It was alright…” Pencil said, laying back, “Ogay, you... snff ... you made your poind, you nice jerk ... you can leaf now.”
GB perked up at that... well, it was better than just being a jerk. She was a little confused at what Pencil said at first, but quickly realized... okay , it was her stuffed nose making it sound like something else to her. Nevermind.
“Are you certain you don’t want me to stay here and look after you?”
“Look, I... guess I like dis, but... snff ... I don’t wand you watching me sleeb , ogay?”
GB just sighed, “Alright, but I’ll be checking in the morning. Ya know, because I’m-”
“-so nice, yeah, whadever. Go !”
GB didn’t argue with that, making her way back up to her and TB’s shared apartment.
“Where were you?” TB said.
“Looking after the idiot.”
TB sighed. “Okay, I get she was sick, yeah... but why did you help her?”
“Because she’d probably die if she didn’t and I don’t want her to think I’m ‘in debt’ because she gave me some dollar store internet advice she uses on her idiot best friend.”
Tennis Ball just blinked at her. “You know, as your friend... I think that’s not the main reason.”
“Well... ugh, you’re wrong !” GB said, stomping away to her room and slamming the door.
Tennis Ball knew his friend had some... rage issues. He wasn’t sure what originally sparked her hatred with Pencil, aside from maybe the ‘facade’ of a sweet, angelic cheerleader she put on, but regardless... something was going on…
Maybe it was just his imagination. He’d check on her tomorrow.