Two Friends

Chapter 11

"So, I, uh... I finally found a job."
Chucky, who was seated in my lap, tilted his head curiously.
"It's just a part time thing, I thought I ought to start making a little money to pay for gas and all that fun stuff," I chuckled without emotion. "But, what I'm trying to say is... I'll have to be gone a little more often now."
His eyebrows turned up. "(Y/n) has to go away even more?"
My heart clenched. "I'm afraid so, buddy. I guess it's just part of... growing up. I have to start doing things I don't really like."
He hugged my stuffed dog he was holding tighter, looking down sadly.
I reached out to stroke his hair. "I promise, I'll spend every moment of my free time spending time with you, okay? Please don't be sad."
The doll looked up at me with a wary gaze. "We can still p-play?"
I smiled fondly. "Of course we can, honey. I'll always make time for you, don't you worry. I can never be without my best buddy for very long!"
He perked up a bit as I cuddled him, taking a moment to truly relax and relish the moment as I sank comfortably into the couch.
Abruptly, my phone buzzed from beside me, and I lazily reached down to grab it.
  Hey, (Y/n)! I haven't heard from you in a while.. what's up?
I clenched my jaw. One of my so-called friends was finally checking up on me after several months of silence.
I shut my phone off. Hugging Chucky closer, I let out a sigh. Chucky was the only friend I'd ever had that truly cared about me just as much as I cared about him. He was the only friend that never left my side, always willing to go above and beyond just for me. Of course, I was immensely grateful for him, but my lonely heart still wasn't quite healed.

"We've been waiting for nearly an hour! What's the hold up?"
I shrunk away from the angry man, glancing nervously behind him at his wife and two whining kids.
My coworker leaned forward so that he was nearly blocking me. "We're very sorry, sir, but you'll just have to wait a little longer."
The man let out a grunt, returning to his seat on the benches next to his wife.
I lay my head in my hands miserably.
"Hey, don't worry about people like that. It happens. Part of being a greeter is getting a lot of shit from angry customers," he murmured.
I muttered agreement, checking the time on my phone.
  I can't leave for another three hours?!
Frantically, I messaged my mom.
  How's Chucky doing? Is he ok?
She responded almost immediately.
  Yes, he's fine. He's just kinda walking around, not saying much. I know he obviously misses u but he's not freaking out at least.
I let out a little huff of relief. With some shifts being up to eight hours at most, I knew this was going to be yet another adjustment for him.
  "(Y/n), put your phone away, please," a voice spoke from behind, making me jump.
  My boss shook his head disapprovingly as he placed down a tub of clean silverware. I quickly shoved my phone in my back pocket.
  "When you have the time, could one of you go and bus some tables? We're filling up fast, as you can see," he ran a hand through his messy brown hair. He looked older than he really was.
  "Yeah, sure," I nodded, smiling politely.
  He wiped at his sweaty upper lip, lumbering away without another word.
  At the same time, one of the waitresses strolled up to our stand.
  "Why was I just given two tables to serve at once? I can only do one thing at a time!" she snapped.
  Shit. I knew I was pushing my luck when I let that family take that corner booth.
  "M-my bad. Table 44 wanted a bigger booth so I-"
  "Is that what we're doing now? Tell them to suck it up next time!" she interrupted, scowling as she stormed off.
  "Sorry...," my voice died away.
  "Man, fuck her. She's a bitch to everyone," my coworker whispered to me.
  I swallowed the lump in my throat and forced a half-hearted chuckle.
  Maybe so. But I can't afford this right now, not while I'm so fragile.

As I drove home from work that night, I couldn't help but feel utterly defeated. It seemed as though I messed things up everywhere I went, and that nobody had the patience to treat me with kindness anymore. A lonely, desperate feeling sunk into my gut.
I parked my car in the driveway and headed up the steps to my mom's house. When I opened the front door, I immediately noticed that Chucky wasn't in his usual spot.
Already on edge, my heart started to pound as I raced from room to room, frantically checking every corner for my companion. Tears started to pool around my eyes and I started to tremble uncontrollably.
I raced down the steps to the basement, dashing to my room. I swung open to door, prepared to turn the place upside down to look for Chucky.
But Chucky was beside my bed preparing yet another present for me. His head swiveled to face me when I burst in.
I barely suppressed a wail of relief and ran to scoop him up as he reached out for me with a growing smile.
  "(Y/n), you're-," the doll wasn't even able to finish his sentence as I squeezed him tight to my chest.
  "You scared me half to death! I couldn't find you at first," I half chuckled, half sobbed.
He hugged me back, nuzzling his head against mine.
"What did you make for me this time, huh?" I bent down and picked up the nail file with a little ribbon wove around it he had dropped.
"Oh, baby, it's amazing," I cried, hugging him close. "Thank you so much."
"I'd do anything for my b-b-best buddy," he replied with a grin.
I continued to dote on him as I went back upstairs to make myself dinner.
I stuck a frozen pizza in the oven, sitting on the floor and playing with the cats while I waited for it to cook. I waved a teaser above Cheddar's head, causing him to paw at the air.
Chucky sat in my lap, giggling at the orange tom. I curled one arm around him.
  I finished my pizza not long after, dumping the remaining crumbs in the trash. Chucky followed me patiently as I cleaned up after myself, his beautiful, glowing blue eyes fixed on me. Once I was done, he shuffled to my side and tugged on my pant leg, a signal that he wanted to be held. I gladly lifted him up into a cradling position, placing small kisses on his head.
  Taking him downstairs once more, I grabbed the coziest blanket on my bed and wrapped it around both of us before sinking into the large beanbag chair near my bed.
  I flipped through Netflix in search of a cute, lighthearted kids movie that Chucky would enjoy. Once I found one, I snatched the bag of chips I had brought and snacked on them as we watched the movie.
Engaging in such innocent rituals with Chucky helped me forget about my troublesome mental health. I had only recently come to terms with the fact that I was unable to socialize like a normal human being, and that I most likely was suffering from some other undiagnosed illness. Now hallucinations were not the only thing I had to worry about.
Is it just going to be me and Chucky forever?
The thought was saddening given the fact that every human should have more than one friend, or at least more than one person they have a strong connection to. Sure, I had other people I called my friends. I enjoyed their company, but part of me always forced myself to hold back, afraid of getting too close for fear of losing them.
I curled my arms around the little doll, burying my face into his coarse hair.
Even if it is gonna be just us forever, I'm grateful he's even here at all.
"You're my best friend, (Y/n)," Chucky piped up, snuggling closer.
My heart ached with affection. "No, you're my best friend!" I retorted playfully.
He giggled and rested his head on my shoulder. I played with his hair as the movie came to an end.
I checked the time on my phone. Although it was nearly midnight, I still wasn't quite tired enough to fall asleep right away.
"Do you wanna play something, hon? Or do you wanna go to bed right now?" I asked.
His face instantly lit up. "Can we play?"
"Sure, honey," I smiled. "What do you wanna play?"
Chucky thought for a moment, then gave an excited bounce. "Let's play truth or dare!" he squeaked.
I snickered at his enthusiasm, repositioning myself so that he was sitting in my lap, facing me.
"Alright, I'll start. Truth or dare?"
"Dare!" he chirped.
"Hmmm... I dare you to make the scariest face you can!"
He immediately narrowed his eyebrows and opened his mouth in a snarl, making a noise similar to that of an angry cat.
I bursted out laughing, tears of laughter blurring my vision as I gasped for breath.
"My turn! Truth or dare, (Y/n)?" he continued once I had regained my composure.
"Um, truth!"
He looked up at me with nothing but love in his eyes. "Are we b-best buddies?"
I chuckled fondly. "Oh, sweetheart, you already know what my answer's gonna be! Of course we're best buddies. We always will be," I cooed, taking him in my arms again.
I nuzzled my face against his, squeezing him close. He held onto me tightly, a smile still plastered on his face.
"Okay, truth or dare?"

  I finished off the last of my joint, tossing it into the garbage can. I leaned back against the side of the house and exhaled loudly.
  Who cares what that dumb psychiatrist thinks? If it helps get rid of these hallucinations, there's no way I'm giving it up.
  I could already feel the delusions and fear melting away, replaced with a sense of calm and collectiveness. I wasn't usually the rebellious type, but when I knew I was right I listened to no one.
  "(Y/n), are you done making your p-present?" Chucky's muffled voice sounded from the other side of the door.
  I chuckled softly, kneeling down to pluck a few flowers growing nearby. I then dug the ribbon out of my pocket and tied a neat bow around the flowers.
"Right here! Sorry it took so long," I cooed as I stepped inside. I knelt down and handed him the flowers.
His mouth pulled into a smile and he held them close, gazing up at me lovingly. I lifted his chin so that I could kiss the top of his head.
"Can we put them in the vase?" he asked.
"Of course, baby. Here," I gently lifted him into my arms and walked to my dresser. There, the large vase of water containing nearly every flower we had gifted each other still stood. Some were long since dead and brown, but I couldn't bring myself to throw them out. Every one of Chucky's gifts was precious to me.
   Chucky dropped the flowers into the vase. I nuzzled his cheek with my nose affectionately.

Later that day, I struggled to finish up the last of my homework. Even after I had finished, I spent the rest of the day running long overdue errands like getting gas and buying rats for Chester. It was a stressful, hectic day.
When I finally wrapped things up that evening, I quickly noticed that Chucky was no longer following me hopefully like he had been, in need of attention. I eventually found him sitting on the couch, looking a little sad. My heart instantly clenched.
"Hey, honey," I murmured as I knelt in front of him. "You okay?"
He looked up at me and blinked. "(Y/n) was so busy today... I didn't want to b-bother you."
"Aw, buddy, you'll never bother me. I know I had my hands full all day, but all I was thinking about that whole time was getting back to you, I promise. I'll never get upset with you. I want you around," I rubbed his cheek soothingly.
His goofy smile returned, and I scooped him up again with a giggle. I knew most of his fear of upsetting me stemmed from his previous experiences with Andy, who had always been annoyed at his presence and made it clear that Chucky's needs were to come second.
"C'mon, how about we go do something fun? We can draw in my new big sketchbook if you want," I cooed.
"Yay! I would love to draw with my best b-buddy!"
I carried him down to my room once more, rummaging around in my drawer until I found the brand new sketchbook, an 11x14" to be exact. I gathered a few utensils before making my way back to Chucky, who was awaiting eagerly on my beanbag chair.
I placed him in my lap, laying out my sketchbook in front of us. The two of us began scribbling away, drawing animals, movie characters, and practically anything that came to mind.
  "Ooh, who's that?" I pointed to a drawing Chucky had just made.
  "Th-that's the grinch!" he told me proudly. "The grinch is (Y/n)'s favorite Christmas movie."
  I gave him a squeeze. "Awww, you remembered! That's such a good drawing, too. I think I'll hang it up on the fridge so everyone can see."
  He smiled widely at my praise. I rested my chin on his shoulder as we drew in my sketchbook almost all night.