Chapter Text
MePhone3GS stood awkwardly outside the bay door of the MeMacG3. A gentle breeze stirred up the clouds that supported MeCloud Headquarters, causing bits to break away and lazily drift into the open sky. A piece of fog brushed against 3GS’ screen, obscuring his vision. He waved the cloud away, wishing he had a front camera to avoid scenarios like this. 3GS couldn’t afford to be distracted at the moment, or ever, for that matter.
Right now his attention was focused on MePhone4, who had refused to budge from his spot inside the ship for the past hour. He stood just inside the doorframe, frozen with his hands gingerly clasped close to his chest. 4 seemed like he was about to take a step outside any second now, but he had been that way from the moment that 3GS had walked out the door. 3GS could not foresee 4 following through with the action any time soon. He coughed politely. MePhone4 averted his gaze from where it had been fixated on the smooth plastic floor.
“You know... maybe I’ll just stay in here,” he blabbered, knocking on the doorframe. “The wind feels awfully blustery out there right now. I’d hate to fall. You seem good though, why don’t you go on ahead? Don’t wait up for me.” 3GS turned his attention to the clouds, assessing 4’s claim. Despite the wind’s previous assault on him earlier, the weather could not have been fairer. He went to relay this back to 4, who was suddenly extremely preoccupied with trying to tiptoe as silently as possible towards the MeMac’s control panel.
“Where are y-you going?” Inquired 3GS. 4 froze mid-step.
“I’m not going back to the island!” He defended, whirling around to face 3GS.
“I didn’t say you w-were, or that y-you couldn’t.” 3GS pointed out. MePhone4 looked abashed.
“I just… don’t think I’m ready to come back here to MeCloud. It’s just….”
3GS observed the shining glass building. The sun hit it at the perfect angle to make it appear as if it were glowing. More like blinding. That makes two attacks on his vision today. “T-too much?”
MePhone4 rubbed his broken arm slightly, looking down. “What if it’s changed?” He asked. 3GS had to strain a little to hear the question over the distance, but when it finally processed he found himself pondering over the implications. 3GS had been in that same storage closet for so long, he supposed he had forgotten to consider that the outside world might have been changing without him. He had admittedly not gotten the best view of the building as he rushed down the halls to where he thought Cobs might have parked the MeMac. But from what he had seen, nothing had really differed from his time. Still the futuristic white plastic, glass, and light wood that was so characteristic of the company.
3GS maybe found it a little ironic that a place so obsessed with inventing the future was so unchanging. Perhaps a brand aesthetic was more everlasting than the product itself. The MeMacG3 was certainly no exception. The ship’s teal clear plastic hull was iconic indeed, but MePhone 3GS knew that the style had been long out of fashion even by his time. What was it that Cobs had always said? Keep moving forward? Or maybe it was something about being the richest man in the graveyard. Irrelevant, but, whatever. MePhone4 eyed him nervously.
“It’s s-still the same place that y-you know,” 3GS finally answered. 4 deflated even further.
“That’s what I was afraid of,” he muttered. The low sun reflected on the cracks in his screen. 3GS’ hand drifted towards his own shattered glass. He hadn’t asked 4 how his cracks came to be, but if it had been anything like 3GS’ experience….
Maybe it would be better if they didn’t go back to Meeple. At least for a little while.
“We will s-spend our t-time somewhere else, then,” 3GS decided, climbing back up into the ship. 4 quickly stepped out of his way in surprise. “No use standing out h-here.”
When 3GS turned back to face 4, he expected him to appear relieved, not whatever it was written all over his face now. Worry? Fear? Some conflicting mix, perhaps. 3GS continued towards the controls. He wasn’t very good at emotions, but he knew that sticking around Meeple’s front lawn was far from helpful.
“Sit d-down, this c-could get bumpy.” 3GS had just initiated launch when a familiar buzzing rang out from behind him. He glanced through his back camera to see 4 attempting to keep as still in his seat as possible, an unknown number flashing across his screen.
“A-are you going t-to take that?” 3GS asked tentatively, trying to lighten the tension in the air. 4 jolted up as if caught-red handed and promptly declined the call.
“…No,” he grunted.
The two of them sat in silence for a moment, the only sound being the creaking of the steering controls and the dutiful whir of the MeMac’s fans.
The number called again, breaking the silence into a million pieces.
“Maybe you s-should take it.” 3GS offered. 4 sighed shakily and pressed the accept button.
“MePhone? Is that you? Did Fan get me the right number?” 3GS startled a bit as a grating voice blasted over 4’s speakers.
“Test Tube? What’s uh- what’s up?” MePhone4’s voice cracked as he struggled to keep his composure, frantically turning down the volume on the call.
“Oh golly it is you! I wasn’t sure if it was because you weren’t picking up, but I thought that you might do that anyway so I called again to make sure.”
“Uh. Right…” 4 trailed off uncomfortably, but 3GS couldn’t figure out what for. Another complicated emotion, most likely. “So why…?”
“Why did I call you? Right. Well I was thinking that you left with a cracked screen and broken arm with no real way to get it fixed- there was no way you would go to Meeple to get repaired - and you also had that other MePhone model with you who looked pretty dinked-up too. I have a little lab set up back on the island by the hotel that you could drop by to get all fixed up.” She seemed to sense 4’s hesitation at the idea and pressed on.
“It would only take a few days or so, and my lab is a little ways away from the hotel so I’m semi-confident you wouldn’t be interacting with anybody, unless they decide to go barging in unannounced like they always do….” That last part was said in a mutter that 3GS supposed Test Tube was used to being frequently interrupted in her solitude. “B-but I’ll make sure that no one comes to bother you two! Nobody has to know you’re there! MePhone, I know you’re not exactly on the best terms with the others right now, and I… feel some ways about it, but I’ll put it aside to know that you’re at least doing physically okay. It’s the least I can do. So… please come over? I’ll send my lab’s coordinates. Test Tube out.” A text notification pinged moment later with what 3GS assumed were Test Tube’s coordinates. 3GS peered at 4, who was curled in on himself a little.
“Shall I input the c-coordinates into the computer?” 3GS asked, awaiting his orders. When 4 didn’t respond, 3GS softened a bit. “It’s y-your c-call.”
“Full speed ahead,” MePhone4 grimaced. “We’re headed back to Inanimate Island.”