012 - Anniversary (008)

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Song of the Chapter: Hipster Cutthroat - DotEXE; I don't know why, but I laugh every time I hear this (Glitch Hop/Moombahcore)

And by the way, I was reading this to my sweet younger brother and as I was studying 002 I realized there's a group of people in the back corner with a flashlight. I think I can see Mr FijiWiji and Varien (who was Halo Nova at the time) along with some others. Although I'm not going back to change the chapter, I think that's pretty cool and wanted to point that out.

(Monstercat's POV)

I can see that it's a concert. There's flashing lights, tons of people, and two people on the stage, acting as the DJs. I still can't hear anything, but as Tristam leads me right into the center of the people, I'm suddenly blasted with the loud music. Immediately, I'm filled with that overwhelming joy.

Tristam leaves my side and goes to join the two DJs - both of which I now recognize as Rogue and Stephen Walking. The crowd goes wild as Tristam steps on stage, and the party begins.

"Ya like that, don't 'cha?" one of them shouts, laughing.

"Do you like this song?" another yells, and the crowd goes crazy. I cheer and scream with them.

We're pushing our music to the limit, starting with Pegboard Nerd's Rocktronik. This is the life, isn't it? I wouldn't trade it for anything.

We go through a few songs before Tristam yells, "We'd now like to give a special thanks to Monstercat - "

The crowd stares at me and I freeze, unable to move. Then, slowly, they begin to clap. First one, and then another, until the whole group is clapping and cheering. The music starts up again and someone picks me up, giving me tons of glowing sticks. I see others with them around their necks and wrists, so I do the same, laughing and singing along to every song.

I look up at the black sky and smile. This is perfect. There's music, dancing, laughter, lights, fireworks, friendship. These people are joined together by something they feel in their souls. We're connected.

"Hey, Monstercat," someone says, their voice echoing around my head. "Get out of my bed."

I wake up with a start to see Noisestorm standing over me. I groan and roll over to see the alarm clock. It's past one o'clock. He gives me a shove to encourage me and I mumble, "Don't push me."

"Then get out of my bed."

I roll the other direction and notice that Phantom's on the other side of me, smirking while snuggled under the blankets. "Ugh, don't give me that face," I groan.

"You're a cat," Phantom whispers, so he won't wake the other two on the other side of the room. "Just cuddle with us."

"That's so weird," I hiss back. "If you want someone to cuddle, cuddle him." I point aggressively at Noisestorm.

... and cause an awkward silence.

"That's not how it works here," Phantom finally says.

"Yeah, it usually means that they ... you know ... " Noisestorm winces as he speaks. " ... love each other. Like ... couples."

Whoops.

"Sorry!" I squeal, completely embarrassed. "I didn't know!"

"It's fine," Phantom grumbles.

I climb out of the bed and grab an extra blanket from the closet. "I'll just sleep on the floor. It's okay. I'm just a cat."

"Well, now I feel bad," Noisestorm mutters.

"You kicked me out of your bed, now get in it!" I demand, sort of playfully. I spread my blanket on the floor and up. It's not nearly as comfortable as the bed, but I don't really mind.

In a moment, I can hear Noisestorm snoring softly, and a while after that, Phantom's breathing steadies and I know he's asleep, too.

I can't sleep. I already slept and had that weird dream. The hotel rooms, which were loud and excited only a few hours ago, are now silent - not an eerie silence, but a calm and peaceful one.

These people have done so much for me, I realize, even though we just met. I wish I could do more for them, other than lead them into something dangerous.

I have a collection of about four hundred dollars - although we're not going to ask where that came from - and that store Noisestorm got kicked out of, Wal-Mart, I think, is open really late. Maybe I can go get them something. Food is always appreciated. Phantom needs a new jacket. More explosives could be helpful. It's maybe two in the morning, and I can make sure no one asks questions.

Smiling in anticipation, I sneak out of the room, feeling pretty good about myself.

●•●•●•●

(Noisestorm's POV)

I listen as Monstercat leaves the room but don't try to stop him. I'm more worried about myself - being the Pizza King probably wasn't a good idea. But not only that ... I can't stop thinking about Eveelyn. I'm furious with her and the way she played with my emotions, but I don't think she had bad intentions. Maybe I should talk to her about it.

I quietly slip out of the bed, shivering as I leave the warmth. I glance at Phantom and wish he could help me, but if I told him about it, I'd never hear the end of it.

"Where are you going?" he mutters, half asleep.

"The bathroom," I lie. In reality, I'm going out into the hall to think. I always pace when I think.

"Mm-kay." Phantom rolls over and curls up, his shirt slipping up his back and exposing his burns. I wince when I see them. I wish that night could have started differently. All I do is hurt people.

I grab my hoodie and silently open the door, stepping into the hallway. I shove my hands in my pockets for a comfort and start to think. Almost all of my strange habits begin to show - I dig my hands through my hair every five seconds, drag my arm across the wall, bite the inside of my mouth, which is something I haven't done for years, and start thinking up jokes to calm myself down.

Focus, I tell myself, since my thoughts seem to be on everything except the topic I wanted to think about. You want to talk to Eveelyn and tell her how much she hurt you. She'll apologize and you can be friends again. I wish I had more punny friends, because they'd appreciate - FOCUS.

All at once, my stomach lurches and my head whirls. I spin around and throw open the door to our room, rushing into the bathroom as fast as I can. The second I get there, I throw up in the toilet. A moment later, I can hear Phantom laughing from the other room.

"Shut up!" I yell before feeling that horrible pull again.

I'm in a state of emergency, somebody please help me.

Thank you, brain.

You're welcome.

Although that song is great, it's not really what I want to think about right now.

Instead, I start thinking about my terrible decision. Why did I do that?

"Some king you are," Phantom calls.

"THE PIZZA KING DOES NOT GET SICK," I shout, lurching as the world spins and my stomach disagrees with my statement.

I'm there for half the night, listening to Phantom laughing and loudly cursing the Pizza King's weakness.

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