Bath Time, Again?!

                Rubber ducky P.O.V :

My name is Squeakers (I didn't choose my name he did) and I am a rubber ducky. Most people only see us as cute and cuddly, and, of course, squeaky. But sadly, our life is anything but charming, and they can't see the pain behind our painted on smiles.

When your first purchased, everything's great! Now you have a home, and a family, and you think that your finally going to be loved. And you are ... at first.

You're placed in a bathtub, and are greeted by many other bath toys. My best friend was a rubber dinosaur, oh David, how I miss you. The sonorous vary for everyone but for me, this is how it went.

             Squeakers's Story :

I was purchased from a beauty-shop in the mall. I lived in the whicker basket on the counter, with a few other rubber friends. I was free, free! I knew I was worth so much more. The other toys were, okay, but I always dreamed of having my own kid to play with. The day I meet Charlie, I was so happy.

He'd been eying me all the while when he and his mother were in the store shopping. When his mother was finally finished with her shopping, she took her armful of beauty products to the counter to pay. The man working the cash register caught him staring at me and with a smile said, "You can pick one out if you want. They are free". Charlie looked up at his mother for approval, and with her quick nod, he stuck his hand in the basket.

He didn't look around long, no, not like most kids. He knew what he wanted, and that was me. He held me in his hand, and looked down at me. I stare back up at him with my usual beaky-grin, my red boy tie, sharp as ever. His hazel eyes light up when he first squeaked me. His toothy grin was heart warming, back then. The entire car ride back to Charlie's house, he held me tight and spoke softly to me. He regaled me with the tales of his other bath toys, and all the fun we were going to have. I believed him, oh how I wish I hadn't.

When we arrived home, Charlie asked his mom eagerly, "Can I take a bath with Squeakers!". "Oh alright", she said putting the groceries on the counter. She ran the bath for he son, and with every drip from the faucet, Charlie got more and more exited. "I can't wait for you to meet them all!", he told me, "We're going to play. It's gonna be so much fun!". I watched from the palm of the child as the water rose and rose until you could see the smiling faces of the other toys. It was a sea of them all different animals, and I was exited to meet so many new friends. When the bath was all full, and nice and bubbly, Charlie's mom untied his rob he was wearing, and plopped Charlie and I into the water.

With a splash, I was bobbing happily on the surface of the warm, inviting water. It was everything I'd ever dreamed of, the water just as warm as the'd said it would be. "Okay Squeakers", Charlie began, "this is everybody!". I looked among the crowds of smiling faces. There were dolphins, turtles, sharks, sea stars, and, best of all, rubber ducks. He began picking up each individual toy, and giving their names.

"This is Bitey", he said holding up a shark, then whispered, "Don't make him mad!". "This is shelly", he said picking up a turtle. "This is squeakers 1", he said picking up one of the ducks. I gasped, "Squeaker's one?", I thought to myself, "I'm not an original?". He continued going down the line in of bath toys, till he finally finished on Squeaker's 7". "And this ...", he said picking me up to address the crowd, "is squeaker's 8! Say hi everybody!". He then started making the toys move around and say, "Hello Squeakers 8!". "I guess it's a popular name ...", I thought to myself, "Ah well".

The rest of bath time was pretty good, I became the mayor of tub town, and there was a parade in my honor. But I only got worried after bath time had been ended, the water had been drained, and Charlie had gone to go put his PJ's on.

"Pst ...", I heard a tub toy say. "Um, are you talking to me?", I asked looking around. "Shh!", I heard him say again. I looked up on the shampoo shelf to see an older-looking steam boat staring back at me. "Yes", he said, his tiered old voice a rasp. He hopped down from his spot on the shelf, just barely missing me. "You're the new guy, right?". "Yep", I said, "Squeaker's number eight". The steam boat laughed a hollow laugh to himself and murmured, "Is that child ever going to done with that name?". "You probably think you're a pretty lucky guy, don't you Mr. Eight?". "Um, well ...", I said straitening my bow-tie, "I suppose so. Don't you?". "No!", he screeched. "Why not?", I asked raising a painted-on eye brown. "Because -", he began, "because the tub is a place of great danger!".

I looked up at the old boat skeptically and asked, "How is the tub a place of great danger?". He had a look of sympathy in his little-dot eyes and told me his tale.

Steam-Boat Steve tells his tale :

"I was once small like you, Eight", he began, "So innocent and eager to see new things, to have a kid of my own. I was purchased at a Bed Bath and Beyond when Charlie was still a wee baby. I was the first tub toy he ever owned. We played together, and I didn't even mind when he chewed on me, being still and infant. But, over time, things changed. More and more Toy's came, crowding my oasis. As he grew, he started to lose interest in The old steam Boat, and found the fun in marine life. But when I was played with me, now that he was older, he played rougher. He'd hold me down for so long, I thought I'd burst.  Then, one day, he didn't want me anymore. He tired to throw me away in the garbage!", he said looking over at the trash can sitting in the corner of the bathroom.

I gasped, "Really?". "Really", he said. "But with the help of my friends-", he said looking among the crowd of toys who'd probably heard this story time after time, "I managed to get back into the tub. But, I couldn't play with him anymore, so I've had to hide up there, behind a shampoo bottle", he said looking up at the shelf he came from. "Wow", I said sighing, "I don't know what to say ...". "Don't say anything", he said, "because someday, you'll feel that way I do. I'm starting to grow mold now ...", he said with triggered a few gases from the crowd, "and when they do find me ...", he said swallowing hard, "that'll be my tomb", he said grimly looking at the trashcan.

When he was done scaring squeak out of me, he went back to his hiding place, with some help. I was awake all that night, thinking over what I was told.

Squeakers Eight, one year later :

That wise old steam boat who I wish I could have called my friend, was found the next morning, and thrown away. I think he stuck out on purpose, that he wanted to be found, because he could no longer endure that pain. I made allies, over time, and watched those I cared about be thrown away. So many times, I've been held under water, till I thought I was going to pass out. You have to be strong as a tub toy, or you wont make it ...

I've learned how to survive this life with experience, and help from my friends. But every night, at around 7:30, he runs in to take his bath. His smile, which I once thought was a friendly grin, now more of a sneer. And ever night I hope he wont come back, but he does, and we all think to ourself's "Bath time, again?!".

   The End