𓈊 A Cup of Coffee to Ease the Pain

7: The Peak And Relief

This chapter is a bit shorter just because I want to get something out since I haven't updated this in two months lol

Also, I use Celsuis instead of Fahrenheit, just so none of you are confused later in the chapter /lh

Otherwise, enjoy the chapter!

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Mumbo sat at his desk, unable to stop thinking about Grian. He figured Bdubs was doing something to him that was putting him on edge, but he was hardly able to leave his office with either Keralis or Tango standing in front of the door all afternoon. All he knew was that it was seriously affecting the poor avian.

Sighing, Mumbo glanced back at the paperwork he had left in front of him. The agency was being sued again by the Octagon for invasion of privacy. The agency had won every case so far and had yet to pay a single penny, all with the defense that OctaTown has no government or law enforcement to say they were breaking the law, but Mumbo had a feeling that one of these days they'll have to hand over more than the agency is worth if the Octagon keeps this up.

If only Xisuma would give us permission to investigate, he thought hopelessly.

Grian began to toss in his sleep, murmuring soft, distressed sounds. Mumbo only had time to notice before he was gasping and sitting upright.

"Gri-"

"It was Bdubs," the younger mumbled.

Mumbo frowned at the name. "What was Bdubs?"

Grian's breath caught in his throat as his face showed he was putting some sort of puzzle together. "Bdubs was talking on the phone earlier," he explained, standing up off the sofa to pace in a circle in front of Mumbo's desk. "He said something about being able to handle me as long as someone elss was able to take care of 'the mutt'" - he said this reluctantly, using air quotes - "which I'm assuming meant Ren because he knew Ren was coming to get me." He paused to look at Mumbo. "Whoever he was talking to did something so Ren couldn't come inside building. And they had to have taken him somewhere."

Mumbo nodded. "Okay," he said slowly. "So, who do you think could've done it?"

"I don't know," Grian sighed, donning a defeated look. "Tango and Keralis have been-" He stopped. "Tango and Keralis weren't here..." He thought for a moment. "It was one of the two."

"I won't bother you when Bdubs isn't around. He and Tango are the ones to look out for."

"It was Tango," Mumbo muttered, and Grian looked up at him. "It had to be. Keralis said he won't do anything when Bdubs isn't watching, so it must've been Tango."

Grian's brows furrowed together. "If he didn't do it, then where was he?" he questioned.

Mumbo sighed. Grian is known for always finding loopholes in other people's theories, and it's great for getting as much information as possible, but sometimes it's not so practical. Especially when the answer isn't in plain sight.

"Perhaps..." Grian trailed off. "God, if Bdubs would just let me out of this building, I could check outside."

"What do you need to check outside for?"

Grian sighed. "I don't know," he said. "Something."

Mumbo glanced at his computer. He still had several emails to respond to and cases to look over. It would take at least another hour to finish all of it, but he only finished answering emails it would be a lot quicker... "How long do you think you can hold out here?" he asked, looking back at Grian.