When Cheesy's eyes finally shot open, he was fighting a raging headache. He pressed his hands to the cold hardwood floor, trying to find his balance. He turned around instinctively when he felt a hand on his shoulder, and another around him.

"Cheesy? Hello, Cheesy! Are you okay??"

Fan asked, holding his friend up for support.

Cheesy had to shake his head a few times to fully catch what Fan said, but when he did, he flashed him a smile.

"Ah...Hi! Heya. I'm alright."

"Then why are you on the floor..?"

Cheesy looked around, tapping his hand against the ground.

"Dunno."

He responded bluntly.

Fan put a hand up to his forehead, which made Cheesy flinch at his touch,

"Do you have a fever?"

"Hahaaah...Not that I know of! I feel fine, better than before actually!"

He gave Fan two thumbs up.

They were so close, he could feel Cheesy's labored breaths. He could also smell the booze on his breath.

"You don't have to lie to me, y'know. I- I should know better than anyone, I remember those 'don't drink and drive' PSAs I'd watch in school, so I think I can sympathize, Cheesy!"

He rambled.

"Hmm..."

Cheesy looked back and forth.

"This doesn't look like a car."

They both burst out laughing.

"I- Y-you know what I mean!! You tell me if you're tipsy! Y-you're on the ground, for goodness sake..."

"In my defense, I don't remember ever leaving that chair."

"That's worse, Cheesy!"

Fan lightly bonked him on the head.

"Ow! Ouch! I've been hit!"

Cheesy dramatically fell back into Fan's arms. His twig-like limbs struggled to support his weight.

"C-c'mon, sit down already.."

Fan dragged Cheesy back to the tall bar stools, and they both sat beside one another.

"Oh I've been sitting here long enough... How long actually? I haven't got the time."

Cheesy peered down at his wrist, despite not wearing a watch.

"It's half-past tell me what's been on your mind?"

Fan suggested, smiling.

Cheesy met his gaze, but had to immediately look away, lest Fan see his expression.

Since when is Fan so nice to look at?

"A-Ahaha! It's- I've been just- um..."

He stammered.

Fan furrowed his brow at the hungover piece of cheese.

"Cheesy...There must be a reason you got this worked up, right? What happened, come on? Is there someone I need to get mad at??"

He asked, trying to sound serious, but Cheesy caught him trying to hold back laughter.

"Ohh...You wanna get mad? You wanna hear what OJ did-"

Cheesy paused, realizing he sounded more angry than playful in his statement.

Fan's eyes widened slightly. Not with intrigue, but with horror.

"Huh? OJ?"

He abruptly leaned forward, putting both hands on Cheesy's shoulders. Cheesy did his best to not smile like an idiot when he leaned closer.

"Did he do something to you? Somethingbadorwhatwhatpleasetellme-"

He said all at once, almost completely illegible.

"Woaaaah! Slow downnn, man...It's nothing major.."

He tried playing it off to ease Fan's mind. The small paper man was breathing hard, eyes still wide as they could go.

Cheesy reached an arm around him, patting his back for comfort.

"OJ's no boogeyman. He's not gonna hurt ya."

Cheesy said. Fan's expression fell still.

"Me, however...Apparently! I committed the great sin of 'staying up past my bedtime'..."

He chuckled.

"And then, here comes OJ, and he..."

Cheesy dramatically held out one hand, and gripped it tight with the other. Fan gasped.

"He grabbed me, and just kinda gave me a dead stare. Like his head was full of lead."

Cheesy laughed, releasing himself from his own grip. When he looked down, the aforementioned hand OJ had grabbed seemed to have the slightest mark around it. Like his grasp had left a mark. He hadn't noticed it before, and leaned in closer to inspect it.

"And he HURT you!"

Fan took Cheesy's hand carefully, also inspecting the bruise.

"Pshh. No, I'm sure my dumbass did that just now with my little demonstration-"

Fan cut him off by pointing a finger right at his face.

"Watch that mouth!! No! He put his hands on you, and now you're picking up his sailor mouth!!"

"...Sorry?"

"No! No, don't say sorry either! It isn't your fault!"

Fan sounded as if he was reprimanding Cheesy, but he didn't have the heart to raise his voice above its normal volume.

"I'm not gonna let him get away with it either!!"

"Wha- what are you gonna do to him?? Haha- no no it's fine. Picking fights with him isn't gonna do anything."

"I- I'll show em! I-..."

Fan trailed off.

Just thinking of him made Fan go short of breath. What exactly could he do to OJ, anyways? He was pissed for sure, but he had no way of retaliating against such abuse. He was such a small thing. Defenseless.

'Oh of course you can. Go on!'

He couldn't admit how badly he'd been humiliated, or more so how terrified he was. But Cheesy caught the look in his eye.

"Fan? Something wrong?"

The twins had just about enough confusion for one day. Reese was right after all, staying in bed all day was better than going out into that madness, or trying to make sense of it. They were laying on their bed, Cher snuggled under the covers, and Reese laying atop the sheets. She wasn't a fan of being covered by so many blankets, whereas her sibling was far more sensitive to the cold. All he needed to really get a good night's sleep was about 2 or 3 layers of covering, and he'd sleep like a rock. But even if she was spared the suffocating weight of the soft sheets, sleep couldn't come to her. Reese was busy having a staring contest with the horror that stood at the far end of their room.

Soap was staring at her.

She knew realistically she wasn't really there, Soap was in some hospital, rotting away in a bed in horrible pain. But the phantom of her guilty conscience had manifested itself before her, and had been doing so for the past few nights. At first, Reese would cover herself under the sheets to hide from her terrifying gaze, but now she just stared back. She didn't deserve the safety of staying hidden, she let the ghost look at her. This was as close of a punishment she could take for what she'd done, and she'd just have to live with it.

She lost the staring contest again, and blinked, rubbing her eyes.

When she opened them again, she could have sworn the figure was closer. Now, not obscured by darkness, Reese could tell she was wearing her signature oven mitts. Those gloved hands were reaching out to her.

She tried her hardest to not blink again, but after a while, it proved impossible. Once she opened her eyes again, Soap was standing just at the foot of the bed.

Please, just don't hurt him.

She pleaded with Soap. She could do whatever she wanted with her, just not him.

Reese blinked again, and Soap was sitting at the end of the bed now. Reese felt herself grabbing the edge of the blanket, and trying to slip under it. She felt like a coward. She blinked once more, and Soap was inching ever closer to her, reaching a gloved hand out, so close it could almost touch her.

Reese dove under the covers, wrapping her arms around her sibling. She shook like a leaf in the wind, and couldn't help but let out a few sobs. This woke him up, and he turned to face her.

"Reese! Reese, what happened??"

He put his little arms around her too, holding her close, patting her leafy head.

Whenever she would cry, Cher would have to hold back his own wails. He wasn't easily brought to tears, but seeing her deteriorating state had made him more vulnerable to sadness. He tried his best to keep calm and comfort her, but after a short while, they both sobbed underneath the covers, huddled in a shaky embrace.

"Ohh...Cheesy, what happened to this place...?"

Fan said somberly, twirling the glass in his hands.

He took a sip.

"Too much bad happening all at once. It piles up."

He responded bluntly.

He poured Fan another glass of iced tea.

"Thanks...A-and you're right."

He looked down into the glass, watching his own reflection.

"...I'm glad Test Tube and Lightbulb aren't here to experience this."

He shuddered to think about them feeling as he did at the moment.

"The only reason we haven't fully moved on from it is-...Well, y'know."

"Mhm.."

Cheesy mustered up the strength to put an arm around Fan. He gave him the sincerest smile he could muster at the moment.

"Hey, you don't have a roommate right? Neither do I! If you want, you can always crash with me. Anytime you need."

Cheesy offered.

Fan perked up at the statement.

"Oh- well! That's-"

He wanted to retort, to tell him that his roommate had in fact come back, but he couldn't quite get the words out. Something about them being this close, that sweet smile, he couldn't utter a single word.

"Hm.."

He muttered.

The sentient block of Cheese noticed his stare. He moved a bit closer to look at it.

"Hey...? Don't tell me you're scared of little ol me? You know me, Fan!"

Cheesy chuckled, patting him on the back again.

"Well. Honestly, Cheesy, I feel the need to ask- why are you being so friendly with me?"

He asked, getting his composure back.

"Can't I be friendly to everyone?"

He retorted.

Fan rolled his eyes.

"Oh you know what I mean. I'm sure you have plenty of other friends, did you- did you start talking to me because I didn't have anyone else..?"

Cheesy tilted his head at that statement.

"What? Other friends?"

He chuckled.

"Fan, Fan Fan! I just like talking to you!"

He admitted.

What he wouldn't admit however was that he hardly had other friends. He would hang around people, but the sobering realization that he couldn't really call any of them 'friend' hurt like a punch.

Fan raised an eyebrow in puzzlement.

"But why? What do you like about me?"

He asked.

Cheesy leaned himself closer to the paper man.

"Do I need a reason?"

"I- I mean I would LIKE a- a reason! A- All the people I regularly talk to are off competing in I.I.-!"

"Aye aye? Are you a pirate??"

The two of them burst out laughing.

"Inanimate Insanity! I-it's abbreviated- Like-"

"-I know I know, don't worry...But are you sure you're not a pirate?"

He chuckled.

Fan kicked his legs a bit, pointing an accusatory finger at Cheesy.

"Why? Do ye want to steal me booty?"

Cheesy gasped, shaking his hands.

"No no! Why, captain, take me out to dinner first!!"

Fan's face felt hot, and he stammered in protest.

"HEY!! NO NO! Like treasure!! Cheesy quit it!! That's inappropriate!!"

He shook his head in embarrassment.

"Hehehehee!! I'm sorry- I know what you're sayin, sorry, sorry. Won't do it again.. Say Fan, can I ask ya a little something?"

"Hah- depends Cheesy, it has to be little. No medium sized or big somethings."

They were talking pure nonsense, but it made them chuckle. He was getting more laughs out of Fan than he'd ever gotten out of an audience, and it was pure bliss.

"Okay, then- the little something is..."

Cheesy paused for dramatic effect.

"Why does OJ always have a bad attitude?"

He whispered.

Fan shook his head, unaware.

"Because he's always SQUEEZING the joy out of everything!"

He chuckled.

"Get it? Hah? Because- Because– You squeeze a- to get uh- juice."

The joke wasn't funny, much less a pun. It wasn't even the little something Cheesy had wanted to ask him, but he was just desperate to hear Fan's laughter.

Despite the mundane jest, Fan leaned his head back and kicked his legs back, howling with laughter. It didn't even sound like a fake laugh, he was bursting with excitement and innocent glee. His laugh was infectious. It was like the angelic chorus of heaven. To Cheesy, that is. To anyone else, Fan's incessant laughter would seem really annoying.

He could listen to that sound all day.

Cheesy put a hand up to his 'ear' to listen more closely. That sound made him feel warm and fuzzy all over, and gave him butterflies in his stomach.

"Fan?"

Just as Cheesy was starting to really enjoy that sound, Fan stopped his thunderous laughter and turned to face Paintbrush.

"Hehehe-haha-haaah... Hi.. hehe... Phew, Hi! What- ah- what's up?"

He slowly stopped his little giggles, much to Cheesy's chagrin.

"What's so funny? Were you the one laughing just now?"

They asked.

The crab on their shoulder stared in Fan's direction.

"Cheesy- Cheesy is a riot, Paintbrush!"

Fan pointed to the aforementioned object. Cheesy's gaze lingered on him for a few more seconds, before he snapped back to attention.

"-Wassat? OH! Paintbrush when did you get back???"

He asked, dumbfounded.

The brush narrowed their eyes at Cheesy. They'd noticed his stare. They looked at Fan, then at Cheesy again. They smiled.

"Oh, nevermind! I just- remembered I have to go- do something. You guys stay here."

They waved goodbye, turning to leave.

"Woa- what? Why- Where ya goi—?"

"-HEYYYYYYY HEY HEYYY EVERYONE MEET ME IN THE LIVING ROOM NOWWWWWW!!!! EMERGENCY HOTEL MEETING!!!!!!~"

Fan jumped in his seat, letting out an odd frightened noise.

"What the hell is that??!"

Paintbrush whisper-shouted. That voice was unfamiliar to them, but still gave them a sense of deja-vu.

Cheesy let out an exasperated sign.

"Ohh, ohh boy...OJ, OJ...What's possessing you today..."

Paintbrush looked perplexed.

"OJ?"

Microphone and Trophy ignored OJ's calls, and stayed persistent on their mission. Mic gently knocked on the bedroom door.

"Pepper? You in there?"

There was no response.

"Pepper?"

She said a bit louder.

Mic went to knock again, but the door creaked open. Pepper stared back at them, trying to form a smile.

"Like heyyyy...."

She gave them a little wave, keeping the door slightly ajar.

"Um...I'm like...All good now. Just uh. Y'know. It's whatever."

The other two exchanged looks.

"Can we step in?"

"Hehe... Sure.. It's safer in here than out there at OJ's meeting..."

She opened the door for them, allowing them to enter before shutting it again.

"So, uh- what exactly was it? Did we do something wrong?"

Pepper kicked the door shut again.

"Like...No. It's not with you two. It's just me."

She said, her gaze downturned.

"I uh...I've got like..just- stuff. Going on. Right up here."

She pointed at her own head, trying to sound more upbeat.

The other two nodded.

"You don't have to say...But if you need to talk about it–"

Mic started, but was cut off by Pepper's abrupt shift in attitude.

"-Like I'm fine!! What a bummer!"

Microphone could guess her outburst had something to do with Salt, and she just refused to share her baggage with the other two. She could understand it to an extent, they weren't exactly close enough to start pouring their hearts out to one another, but something about the outburst was too disconcerting to leave unnoticed.

"But thanks. It's like, so sweet you guys came running after me to-"

"I SAIIIIID EVERYONE COME HEREEE!!!!!!!!!"

Pepper yelped at the sound, and slowly turned around.

"Oh. My. Fucking GOD. What is his problem?!"

Trophy had covered his 'ears' at the sound, wincing.

"Is that- Is that actually him?"

He asked, unsure.

Pepper nodded, letting out a loooooong sigh.

"Oh, it is."

"HELLO!! HELLOOOO! EVERYONE Thaaaank youuu soooo much for being here!!!"

OJ beamed, doing his signature twirl. He went a bit too fast though, spilling some juice around the crowd.

The large crowd cringed and wiped the substance off themselves.

"OJ... Are you okay?"

Pickle piped up, looking concerned. OJ stared back at him, a crazed look in his eyes.

"I'm so so so SO OKAY. Even better than okay!!! I had some amazing ideas I needed to share with you all!!!"

He took the umbrella out of his head, spinning around again.

"Why are we here then..? What ideas?"

Cheesy spoke up.

OJ skipped to his side, opening the umbrella in Cheesy's face. This made him stumble back, more in bewilderment than surprise.

"I know how bad things have been!! That's why me and this lovely gentleman right here have decided to redecorate this place!!"

He pointed to Paper, who just waved back slightly.

"Redecorate?"

Cher asked.

"YES!! Redecorate!!! What's better than a change of scenery!? While still staying in the same place, no less?!!"

He folded the umbrella once more, spinning over to the nearest wall, bumping into it as he did.

"Haha! Ouch!"

He chuckled.

"I love this hotel! But change is a normal part of life too, right? So I say to HELL with it!! Tear down the old!!"

OJ casually punched his hand through the wall. It left an almost perfect circular mark, until he took his hand out, thus tearing out more of it.

"OJ?!?? Are- are you alright?!!"

Paper ran to his side, but OJ just swatted his hand at him dismissively.

"I'm making a point, I'm MORE than alright!"

He shook the wall's debris off his hand.

"So...The hotel is gonna get remodeled? That's it?"

Paintbrush asked.

They were in complete shock at OJ's demeanor, just a while ago they had a mostly normal conversation, why was he being so erratic?

"No, that's not IT!!! There's something else!!!"

OJ sing-songed.

He walked more calmly this time, dramatically grabbing a blanket that was covered over an unknown something.

"Feeling lonely in these times..? Nobody to talk to....? Well, may I introduce you all to the brand new–!"

He pulled the blanket away, revealing a seemingly ambiguous wooden desk and 2 chairs. On the table, a piece of paper propped up on the table read: 'Complain HERE!'

"-Complaints Desk!!!"

OJ held his hands up in delight. He scanned the faces of the crowd. They were all very, very confused. Some objects tilted their heads in confusion, squinting their eyes, as if trying to see if they missed anything.

"What?"

"Huh...?"

"Um."

"Cool?"

"What's a desk?"

"I doint get it."

"Hm."

The desk was received in varying ways. None of which made OJ particularly happy.

"What?? What's there to explain?? If anyyyyyone is feeling a little bit under the weather, you can just talk to ME, HERE! Not to brag...But, heh- I think I'm pretty good at advice..."

Someone in the back of the crowd giggled. OJ instinctively turned to face them.

"Hehehehe!! Oh that's so funny!"

Pepper chuckled. Her other two associates stood behind her, also staring at the desk in confusion and bewilderment.

"Ohhh...Wait, wait- let me guess. It's called a complaints desk, because, like, YOU can keep complaining there."

She started laughing once more. OJ could hear a few other giggles from the crowd at her remark.

It would be such a shame if I ran up to her and knocked her fucking lights out right here.

He smiled back at her.

"Nope!! Not me, you! And everyone!! And if not me, Paper is also available to run the desk!"

He once again pointed to Paper.

Some objects turned to each other, nodding in agreement.

"Ohh! I like Paper!! But isn't complaining annoying? I don't wanna be annoying."

Cher stated, looking a bit disconcerted.

"Aww, no no! You'd never annoy me! And the point of the desk is for that! This is a safe, non-judgmental environment to let out your frustrations."

Paper smiled at the younger object. The little one smiled back, beaming. His conjoined sibling didn't so much as smile, much less respond.

Paper looked back at OJ, that sweet smile still on his face. They both stared at one another in sweet silence.

"Bullshet."

Tissues scoffed.

"Language-!"

Paper reprimanded.

A few more people interjected. OJ interrupted them to the best of his ability.

"So is this desk like a requirement, or–"

"NOPE!! TOTALLY OPTIONAL!!!" But it's HIGHLY encouraged!!!!"

OJ could feel his facade slipping, but smiled still.

"Can we pick which of you we can complain to..?"

"sssSSSSURE!!! SURE you can!!"

His stance had a bit of a wobble.

"What did you take??"

"Wuh?"

"I'll have what HE'S having!"

Cheesy slapped his knee.

"That wasn't a pun..?"

Paper commented, confused.

Of course you'd have it, you fucking miserable drunk, I got it from YOU.

"Wait- wait, wait. I'm confused."

Cher scratched his head, still side-eyeing the table.

"Why is this just out here? It isn't private. Out here everyone might as well hear us complain."

OJ gave a little twitch, and crouched down to the twins level. Cher took a step back, but Reese stayed in place.

"Buddyyyy...Why would anyone listen in like that??? Eavesdropping is so RUDE. I hope nobody here would ever do that!!"

Reese looked over at the hotel manager, unfazed by the crazed look in his eyes.

"He's not your buddy."

She said bluntly.

"It's not on purpose, either. People would just HEAR others talking at the desk. I hate it."

OJ turned 180 degrees to look at her, still smiling.

"Hate is...Hate is a strong word! You don't HATE it. You just haven't tried it!"

"I sure hate it."

Mic mumbled to herself.

Pepper glanced up at her, putting a hand over her mouth to stop from laughing.

"You have any other bright ideas, OJ? Or can we, like, leave??"

Pepper asked, still trying not to laugh.

OJ got up, taking a wide stance.

"NO!!!! NO! Actually!!! I have one more thing!"

Some members of the crowd groaned.

OJ snatched a clipboard off the complaints desk, flipping through the pages stuck to it frantically. He quickly read whatever was on them under his breath, inaudible to the audience.

"OKAY! It's come to my attention that we have some empty rooms, or people without roommates!"

The crowd went silent, the atmosphere around them suddenly tense and uncomfortable.

"So me and Paper have thought it best to rearrange things! Starting today, you'll all be given new assigned bunkmates."

Just as he said those last few words, the crowd erupted in more confused and angry noise.

"WHAT!? Why didn't we have a say?!"

"I don't wanna switch rooms!"

"You know those people will be BACK, RIGHT?"

"I'm not leaving my room."

"You're horrible!! How can you decide that on a whim?!!"

OJ just chuckled.

"I don't wanna hear a fuss!~ Nope, none of that! You guys will thank me later, okay?"

He did his best to drown out the angry mob, and kept speaking.

"So, I'll just read out the new pairs. First we've got Bomb and Pickle, then Paintbrush and Tissues...then, Trophy and the Cherries..."

The little cherry's eyes both lit up. They looked up at Trophy, both smiling with an intense and unbridled joy. Trophy took a moment to meet their gaze, but just smiled with uncertainty.

"Cheesy and Micropho–"

"Hey??? HEY! Stop it!"

OJ looked over the clipboard slightly, but glanced back a second later, not even bothering to check who was defying him at this point.

"And just who are YOU bunking with now OJ, hm???"

"I'll have you know I'm with Paper."

"OH!!! Oh so you kept your placement the same, you dick?!"

At this remark, he finally allowed himself to retort without a fleck of kindness.

"Because I said so, alright?? Can you let me finish?"

Someone scoffed, but he didn't care to look up at them.

"Oh OJ! Haha!! I think you're a little confused!"

Pepper giggled, making her way to the front of the crowd.

"I already have a roommate! And so does like, everyone here. And like soooo many other people, I'm just WAITING for her to get back. Kay?"

The crowd let her words simmer in an uncomfortable silence.

"Hey. I already have a roommate."

Paintbrush piped up. OJ met their gaze.

"How does it make sense to change it around when it's not necessary?"

They waited for a response. Like Pepper, they got none.

Cher raised their hand.

"I- I kinda like the new thing."

The crowd all turned to face the younger object. He stepped back, feeling their eyes on him.

"Of course yew do. You're with someone yew actually loik."

Tissues rolled their eyes. Paintbrush slowly craned their head to look down at him.

"What did I do to you?"

"I don't wanna see all that hair on moi floor. I just know yew shed like a cat."

"What???"

OJ clapped his hands in delight.

"SEE! You already have so much to talk about!!!"

"Oim not sweeping the hair off the floors."

"I don't shed."

"Oi don't believe that."

"What."

"I said oi don't believe that. See, see right there. Yew can't hear a damn thing. All that hair."

"They're bristles."

"Okay. Bristles. What is that? It's horse hair, some animal. No way. Oim not sweeping all that."

"OJ this isn't gonna work."

"Just– Clean your own room!!"

OJ gritted his teeth, tired of their back-and-forth.

"Nobody else has been sweeping the damn floirs since Soap left, OJ. GET A GRIP."

Tissues snapped.

"Wait- wait what? What happened to Soap-?"

Paintbrush asked, looking around frantically for someone to answer.

"You didn't hear??"

"Hey when did Paintbrush get back?"

"Can we not bring her up?? Please?"

"What happened?? Why isn't anyone telling me anything?!"

The entire meeting had devolved into nonsensical arguing and disputes, the sound so loud that Paper couldn't make out a single coherent sentence in its entirety. He wasn't fully on board with the roommate idea in the first place, but he had at least hoped the desk was accepted, a place where some tension could finally be released and resolve the building anxiety. Instead, it just worsened the ever present feeling of apprehension.

Paper's eyes fell on OJ, who looked on the brink of collapse. He swayed back and forth, blinking rapidly, trying desperately to keep a smile on his face. He took a few steps towards him, but stopped. Paper didn't know why, but something inside told him not to get close. Like some natural instinct of self-preservation.

"I don't wanna switch rooms!!!"

"I DO!!! I LIKE THEM!! I- I think it's a good thing!!"

"He does NOT speak for all of us!!"

"Reese, can you PLEASE tell him to stop agreeing with this baloney and we can go back to our rooms!?"

Reese did not answer.

"Oh come ON!! I- I wanna switch!! I- I have a great intuition! I think this'll be good for everyone!!"

The crowd groaned in frustration at the child's stubbornness.

"Says the guy that named himself after furniture."

Pickle retorted.

The cherry paused. His face went pale.

"Wait. Did you guys think I named myself CHAIR!????"

He cried in horror.

The crowd went mostly quiet.

"...Like..Yeah."

Pepper responded.

He stomped his foot in anger.

"NO!!! NO NOT CHAIR!!!! CHER!!!! LIKE- like- CHERYL!!"

"Omg like the singer???"

"That's a girl's name."

"Who cares?"

"Ohhh I get it. Cher-Reese."

"THAT WASN'T ON PURPOSE EITHER!!!!"

He looked like he was about to start bawling his eyes out.

"WHY. WOULD. I. NAME. MYSELF. CHAIR!?!!??"

"Because you're stupid?"

"You're a kid. Kids do stuff like that."

"In memory of Bow?"

"I kinda like the name actually. Chair. Chaiiiiir. It has a nice ring to it."

"NOOO!! THAT'S SO STUPID!!!!!"

"Hey. There's a lot of perfectly respectable chairs out there."

"Oh my god everyone SHUT THE FUCK UP!!!"

The crowd turned to face OJ. He shook his head, pointing down at the twins. Reese was seething with anger.

"Reese? You can't say cuss words."

The other cherry put a hand on their sibling's back, but she shoved it aside.

"Reese! Watch your language!"

Paper scolded them. She shot him a glare.

Paper's breath caught in his throat. That look reminded him of someone he knew.

"Reese."

He struggled to even say her name, his throat so dry the words felt like sandpaper.

"Reese you can't talk like that!!"

"Everyones already talking like that."

"Well-! Kids shouldn't be repeating those things!"

"We wouldn't say these things if nobody else did."

Paper couldn't speak sternly to them even if he tried. Reese looked so pitiful, yet so deeply angry. He couldn't tell why, though. He had a feeling the resentment was partially about herself, for what reason, he couldn't guess.

The other cherry turned to his sibling, who's anger subsided and was once again replaced with an unfeeling gaze.

"I'm not switching rooms."

"But Reese! Don't you wanna share a room with- y'know!!"

He pointed upwards at Trophy, smiling with admiration.

Reese's cold gaze followed his hand. Trophy and her locked eyes, to which the ladder felt incredibly perturbed. He'd never seen such a dead look on someone so young.

"No, I don't wanna share a room with him."

Fewer words had ever harmed him as much as those. Trophy blinked in surprise a few times, Reese simply looking away a moment later. He almost felt ridiculous for feeling heartbroken over something so small.

'Nothing wrong with this ol plane, Pilot! He's the best plane I ever flew!'

'He's an even better friend, Co-Pilot.'

Trophy let out a pathetic snivel, somewhat of a mix between a gasp and a sob. Pepper and Microphone instinctively turned to look at him, staring with pity at a man who was on the brink of tears. Pepper grabbed him by the arm, pulling him towards the stairs.

"Okayyyy~! This was like, sooo fun...But we're gonna go now! And, we are so NOT gonna switch up our rooms!! Besides I like, already picked out a new roommate!"

"Wait- what? No, NO- you can't change the order NOW!!"

OJ ran after them, but the sway in his stride prevented him from actually catching up to them.

PMT scampered up the steps, not paying him any mind.

"I have a SYSTEM!! I need you guys to follow it!! It's easier!! It's ALREADY BEEN DECIDED!!!!!"

Pepper peeked back down at OJ momentarily, waving mockingly at him.

"Bye bye, Mimimimiiiiimosa!"

"Pepper?!! PEPPER!!!!"

He screamed, still moving with an uncontrollable teeter.

The crowd heard the sound of a door slamming, followed by some muted giggles.

Stop slamming the doors.

"AND STOP SLAMMING MY FUCKING DOORS!!!"

"OJ!! Language!!!"

Paper reprimanded.

OJ looked at him for a second, his eyes unfocused.

What a bitch.

"BITCH!"

OJ shouted once more, looking back up the steps, presumably directed towards Pepper. Paper, more than mortified by this behavior, ran up to the inebriated beverage and started pulling him away from the crowd. Some laughed, others were silent in concern.

"OJ for the love of god, stop talking like that!"

"Wha- what did I say?? I'm very cordial."

"No, no you're not! Your foul language is spreading around everyone!!"

"Paper, shattup. Look- I have a headache- thas all."

Paper's face crinkled up in disdain at OJ's slurred speech.

"That doesn't mean you can call people such horrible things!"

Oh, fuck. Did I say that stuff out loud?

"Ah. Did I say all that stuff out loud?"

"Yes. Yes you did."

OJ looked back at the crowd. He flailed his hand at them, as if shooing them away.

"Get outta here! I got nothing else for today!! Go on, shoo- shoo- scram."

Noone left. They stared blankly at him.

OJ nodded.

He then abruptly collapsed onto the floor.

Everyone flinched, some shouted in surprise, others running up to him. Most had expected to hear a shatter, or at least a crack. To their relief, there wasn't even a scratch on him. However, the contents of his head emptied out all over the floor, making some objects scamper away to avoid stepping in the breakfast beverage.

"Aw...That sucks. We're gonna have sticky floors."

Cheesy shook his head solemnly.

Paintbrush stormed away from the bewildered crowd. Fan spotted them out of the corner of his eye, and scurried behind them. They walked briskly out the door, Fan still trailing behind, and slammed the door shut just as he was out. He jumped in surprise, which alerted the brush to his presence.

"Oh- sorry! I didn't- I didn't know you followed me."

"Ah. You're good!"

He reassured.

Paintbrush let out a long, exasperated sigh, leaning against the side of the hotel's exterior. Fan copied their pose, trying to look casual.

"So! Complaints desk, huh? New rooms?"

He tried making conversion, but Paintbrush didn't respond. He awkwardly chuckled, trying to cut the tension once more.

"Aha...What um..What was his problem, right?"

Still no response.

Fan kicked one foot up in the air, pretending to stretch.

"..haha, sorry for all the um..all the laughing! Hah- I've caught a case of the giggles, cuz- well I heard this one really fun thing from Cheesy, it went- um..It went like–"

"-Fan, what happened while I was gone?"

Paintbrush cut him off, coldly stating what he had been trying to avoid.

Fan looked off to the side, biting at his hand anxiously.

"I'll...I'll tell you everything, alright? Just-"

He hesitated.

"Not here. I- it feels...wrong."

Paintbrush nodded in understanding.

"That works out actually...I promised someone I'd be somewhere once I got back."

Baxter crawled out from their hair, resting atop their head. The crustacean seemed to be glancing off into the distance at something.

Fan looked back up at them.

"Huh? Who- where? When and why?"

The two of them chuckled quietly.

"No, but really. I promised Test Tube I'd check on something in her lab."

Fan raised an eyebrow inquisitively.

"Lab?"

Neither of them noticed another person sneaking out the back door, tip-toeing carefully towards the circle of stones.