15Title: Tying Up Loose Ends
Author: D.H. Knightly
Rating: G
Summary: Goob and Lewis have a heart-to-heart talk on Louis' last day at the orphanage.
A/N: Ahem. I spelled Lewis' name wrong in my last two stories. I apologize. This was for Whimsical Sonata's contest, turned in at the exact last minute! Phew.
CONGRATULATIONS MEET THE ROBINSONS FANS! I don't know about you, but I sent in several emails to since the movie came out asking for a Meet the Robinsons section! WE FINALLY DID IT!
Give yourselves a pat on the back! We rock!
Tying Up Loose Ends
Thirteen year old Lewis soon-to-be Robinson glanced around the orphanage kitchen nostalgically, a small, whimsical smile making its way to his face as he made himself a peanut butter and jelly sandwich (the normal way). He wondered if maybe he should make one for Goob, his roommate whom was still sleeping (he never was an early riser) - and decided to be a friend and do just that.
Goob was unaware of the events that had happened during Lewis' brief stint with a time machine, and Lewis wasn't about to be the one to tell him of his almost-fate. In his opinion, such a fate was one that was better left in the past, or the had-been future.
Shaking his head at the horrid future that had been almost certainly awaiting him, he couldn't help but send a thankful prayer to the heavens for sending his one-day son Wilbur to help him. If Wilbur hadn't been so meddlesome, his future would have been horrifyingly grim.
However, He reasoned, getting out two glasses and filling them halfway with ice cold milk, The entire situation wouldn't really have happened if Wilbur hadn't left the door open…
He pondered that for a bit, before shrugging his small shoulders, getting out a tray to carry his food back to his and Goob's small bunker.
Oh well, He smiled at the thought that he was thinking about how good or bad his son was, Kids will be kids…
Balancing the tray with his lunch on it and trying his best not to spill anything, he made his way slowly back to his room, nodding his greeting to one or two of the other orphans on his way there.
"Goooob!" He bellowed as he entered the splintered wooden frame of their bedroom, using his foot to push open the partially closed door, "Gooooob, wake up Gooooob!"
Goob's form in the bottom bunk didn't stir, and Lewis' eyebrow shot up. Setting the tray on the end of the bed, he made his way over to the immobile figure in the bed, poking him softly.
Still nothing.
His lips formed an agitated pout, and he poked the boy in the bed harder, once again watching as the blanket-covered lump did not even twitch.
"Goob. Wake up. I brought you lunch!" He admonished, grabbing the other boy in the bed and shaking him. It was then Lewis noticed that 'Goob' was quite lumpy, and apparently dislocated at certain parts. And wow… his roommate certainly was taller than he remembered him being…
Slightly concerned, Lewis pulled the blankets off of the sleeping boy, only to find that there was no sleeping boy – only pillows.
"GOOB?!" Lewis' startled voice raised a pitch or two, and he glanced around, wondering if his roommate was playing some sort of trick on him.
NO… Lewis reasoned, Goob doesn't play tricks on people.
Straightening his posture and scratching his head, he pondered where his roommate might have gone.
He couldn't really go anywhere – he didn't really leave the orphanage unless it was for a baseball game or school…
Maybe he just wanted to think, He reasoned with himself, his overactive brain already picturing multiples of places that Goob could have gone, Where do you go to think?
Suddenly, Lewis had a light bulb.
"The roof!"
Lewis carried the tray (which was getting increasingly annoying by the second) up the stairs to the roof, kicking open the door lightly with his foot and emerging into the sunlight.
Sure enough, standing by the ledge of the roof, stood Goob, barely tall enough to peer over the brick wall that protected him from falling over the edge. Lewis couldn't help but smile at the smaller boy, making his way over to him as quietly as he possibly could, so as not to ruin the serenity of the moment.
"Goob?" He whispered, hoping not to spook the other boy, raising his voice slightly to manage a greeting, "Hey."
His roommate, following his better efforts, didn't look surprised to see him, instead continuing to stare out at the street below, a contemplative look overtaking his features. He said nothing, which concerned Lewis, who barely ever had silence when sharing a room with him.
"I…uh… I brought you a sandwich…" Lewis managed out, placing the tray on the ledge between them and pointing obviously. Goob lifted his tired eyes from the street, fixing them on the tray carelessly.
"Thanks." He stated bluntly, picking up one of the sandwiches from the plate, "I appreciate it."
Lewis fidgeted, unsure of what to say. Instead, he picked up his own sandwich, taking a large bite as though it would help his thought process.
"So –" He started, before realizing his mouth was full, and Goob was giving him a slightly disgusted look. He swallowed, not sure why he was so nervous, before continuing. "So... what're you doing up here?"
Stupid question, he knew, but he was out of ideas. He felt like he owed it to Goob to at least talk to him and say goodbye before he left. Who knew when he'd be back to the orphanage again after he began living with the Robinsons?
Goob was silent for a few moments. Lewis watched as he didn't eat his sandwich, instead choosing to play with it, picking at the crust and putting fingerprints in the bread. Lewis couldn't help but feel a little insulted, having taken the time to make the sandwich for his friend, but chose not to say anything.
"Thinking, ya know?" Came Goob's childlike voice, "Just sitting and thinking. And this is where you come to think, I figured I'd give it a shot."
Lewis could understand that… needing someplace to think. And he did come up here quite a bit… it was a wonder the other orphans hadn't done as Goob did, just to see what was so fantastic about this spot.
"…Well…" Lewis started, wondering if he should just leave, "What're you thinking about?"
Goob stopped messing with his sandwich, tearing a small piece off of the edge and putting it into his mouth, choosing not to answer that question. Lewis couldn't help but feel slightly insulted once again, but for a completely different reason.
"So… how did your interview go?" He tried again, taking another large bite of his sandwich. He watched Goob's expression, which had previously been placid, drop into a pathetic frown, his eyes once again turning to the street. They appeared far away, as though thinking of something completely off topic.
A long silence passed, and Lewis began to get uncomfortable, especially when they were holding food, on a roof, in clear view of a large number of pigeons. He was just about to suggest they go inside, when his thought process was interrupted by Goob's voice.
"Ya know, it'd be pretty cool to fly." He stated out of nowhere, confirming Lewis' suspicion that he hadn't been listening to the question he had asked. He took another piece of his sandwich and placed it in his mouth, chewing for a short moment before finishing his thought, "You should invent a way to make people fly."
Lewis was completely caught off guard. His jaw dropped, his eyebrow rose, and he was sure he looked like quite the fool. That certainly wasn't the answer he was expecting.
"W-wha?" He questioned, unsure of where his roommate was going with this. Goob gave him a condescending look, as though he was the genius and Lewis was, in fact, a dunce in the corner.
"Instead of walking, people could fly. Not with wings or anything like that, but like something that can be made easily and then destroyed when you're done with it, ya know?"
Lewis's eyebrow, if possible, was practically off of his forehead, but he did manage to shut his mouth. He tried to compose himself enough to answer, only managing a few small words.
"What kind of something?" He managed, watching as Goob stared off into space, his eyes, underlined with bags of tiredness, far off and thoughtful.
"Bubbles." He answered simply, once again beginning to play with his sandwich, "Bubbles would be good."
Again, Lewis' mouth dropped, but not for the same reason as before. Bubbles… people getting around in bubbles… so that's where he got that idea! From Goob!
"I'll definitely try it out, Goob."
Goob nodded, his face expressionless, before going back to what he was doing, watching as the jelly oozed out of the sandwich and onto the ledge.
"So…" Lewis tried, figuring Goob might be in a better mood, "I bet you're going to be happy that there'll be silence at night in our room, right?"
Goob stopped playing with his sandwich, before shrugging lightly.
"I dunno. I've kinda gotten used to the tinkering and tankering. It'll be difficult getting used to the quiet, I think, more difficult than getting used to the noise."
Lewis was surprised at this answer, and didn't say anything in return.
"I've gotten used to having you around, ya know?" Goob finished, surprising Lewis even further with his sentimental words. "I don't know what would'a happened if you hadn't woken me up during the game. I might'a gotten beat up or something."
Lewis nodded, but chose, once again, not to say anything. He watched as Goob took another small bite of his sandwich, and looked at him, as though waiting for him to take a bite of his. Lewis complied, before Goob continued speaking.
"So I hear they're gonna change your name. Something dorky like Promethius or Etticus or something like that."
Lewis nodded, smiling lightly at the thought that soon his name was going to be the name he would have for the rest of his life. He wasn't too happy with Goob making fun of it, but knew that he didn't really mean it, that was just the way Goob was.
"Cornelius." He corrected, a laugh in his voice as he took a small sip of his glass of milk, which was starting to become warm in the sun. Goob nodded, still looking out at the street.
"That doesn't bother you?" He questioned, breaking off a piece of his sandwich and throwing it to a nearby pigeon that had been eyeing him for a while, "That they're changing your name?"
Lewis shook his head fervently, breaking a piece of his sandwich off and throwing it to the pigeons as well, watching as they swarmed the small morsel he had tossed.
"No," He answered, "Changing my name is kind of like… leaving all this behind, you know? Starting a new."
Goob looked mildly insulted, turning away from Lewis and giving his full attention to the pigeon he was now over-feeding.
"I didn't realize we meant so much to you." He stated, the sarcasm sounding odd in his childish voice. Lewis scrunched up his face in thought.
"What do you mean?" He questioned, moving so that he was right next to his roommate. Goob looked annoyed at the sudden loss of personal space, choosing to scuffle over a few inches to prove his dislike. He was silent for a few moments, his small arms crossed across his chest, the sandwich he had been using as a distraction clenched in his tight fist. Lewis waited for a response, knowing that it was best to let him decide for himself what he was going to say.
"…Goob…I-"
"You think you can just leave the orphanage and that's that?" The words, coming seemingly out of nowhere, shocked Lewis into silence, as Goob dramatically gasped for breath before speaking again, "This place was your home! It's been your home for, like, your whole life! And then suddenly you think you can just run off and change your name and abandon everything and everyone! Including me!" He burst, throwing his sandwich to the ground in a fit of anger whilst he spoke. Lewis' face contorted in shock, and his mouth once again was stuck open.
Goob's face was flushed an angry pink, and he looked angrier than the time he had missed baseball practice because Lewis had shut off his alarm clock.
After his outburst, Goob turned back to looking over the ledge, his arms still crossed against his chest, his mouth in an angry pout. Lewis was speechless, opening his mouth to speak and only coming up with small, incomprehensible squeaks, finally giving up entirely and choosing to look at the ground, ashamed.
"You know what the funniest thing of all is?" Goob questioned, his face not completely losing its anger, but softening enough so that he looked approachable. Lewis shook his head, despite the fact that Goob wasn't looking at him, and waited for the smaller boy to speak again. "The funny thing is… even though you never played catch with me, and you kept me up all night with your stupid experiments, and all you ever needed me for was to hold your tools… I felt like we were family, you know."
He uncrossed his arms after saying this, and began fidgeting with his hands, his head bowed as though he was too embarrassed to look up.
"And you know… we were the type of brothers that weren't just brothers… we were best friends… that's how I always thought'a it."
Lewis truly didn't know what to say. He didn't want to admit that he had never thought of Goob as family, or even a friend, but now that he thought about it, he was more of a family and a friend than most would choose to be to him.
He had been willing to walk away and completely forget about him, without a second thought.
Well, he sure felt like the most horrible person in the time stream.
"Goob..." He started, unsure how to finish that statement, "It's not like that… I…"
Goob's eyes, tired as they were, looked up at those words, glaring towards Lewis with a certain hurt.
"You have no right to call me Goob!" He exclaimed, dramatic as always, his arms flailing around as he spoke, "You should call me Michael! That way you won't feel guilty when you go off with your stupid family… and we'll never see each other again, just like you wanted!"
Lewis darted his eyes, trying to figure out how to get out of this predicament he was in. He'd never actually been in a fight with a friend before – Wilbur notwithstanding, and he wasn't quite sure how to go about it, especially when the fight was his fault.
"Goob-Michael…" He started, not liking the way the formal name felt foreign on his tongue, "You are my friend. More than you know, you're my friend. Who else but a best friend… who else but a brother… would be able to put up with me day and night?"
Goob seemed to calm down slightly, wiping his nose with his oversized sleeve before speaking, averting his eyes from the other boy.
"You are really annoying." He agreed, a small ghost of a smile etching onto his down turned face, "And sometimes you can be a real stupid booger brains."
Lewis nodded giving Goob a supportive smile as he moved closer to the other boy.
"Yeah, I can be a real booger brains, can't I?" He agreed, "But we're family. You gotta love me."
Goob's eyes turned to Lewis' face, a slight spark of disbelief shining in them. All thoughts of their fight seemed to have vanished from Goob's mind.
"You're not just saying that? When you change your name and leave, you won't be stupid and forget me?"
Lewis shook his head, rustling Goob's mousey brown hair. Goob batted his hands away irritably, trying to hide a small smile that had managed to flit its way onto his face.
"I never said I'd forget about you. I'll admit… leaving all this behind, that was a bad choice of words. I'd never want to leave you behind. If I move forward, you're going to come with me, whether you like it or not."
Lewis didn't even see it coming until it was too late – Goob jumped forward, catching Lewis in a tight, short hug. Lewis smiled, hugging back lightly.
"I'll miss you, even if you are a booger brains." Goob stated, pulling away from their hug and brushing himself off as though it had been something he had been forced to do. Lewis nodded, laughing slightly at Goob's antics.
"I'll miss you too, Goob." He countered, but put a hand to his hip, wagging a finger at the other boy, "But what makes you think you've seen the last of me?"
Goob's small smile turned into a smirk, and he turned to the forgotten tray of food, as though deep in thought. Still smirking, he picked up his glass of milk, emptying it over the ledge without a care of the people below. There were a few yells from the sidewalk, which caused Lewis's eyes to dart slightly; however, Goob looked unaffected, instead simply placing the glass back on the tray as though nothing had happened.
"That's good." He stated, his eyes wandering over to where a handful of pigeons were attacking the sandwich he had thrown to the ground, "We both know I'm the brains of this operation anyway."
"YOU?" Lewis exclaimed, a grin forming as he crossed his arms mock angrily. Goob simply nodded, looking smug as he gestured to the tray and the glasses that were neatly sitting on top.
"Yeah. You're just the muscle." He stated finitely, turning and beginning to walk over to the door back to the orphanage, "Who else would carry the tray if you weren't here?"
Lewis chose to stay silent, chuckling to himself at Goob's antics as he picked up the tray, avoiding the gorging pigeons as he, too made his way to the door, where Goob was waiting for him.
He realized, then, what Goob had known all along. Goob was like family to him, and always would be. He couldn't change that, despite the boy's younger age, they managed to complete each other somehow, working together better than most normal people do even on the worst of occasions. He decided then that yes, Goob was his best friend. And that wouldn't ever change, he hoped.
"Oh, and by the way," Goob's voice drifted up the stairs as Lewis struggled with the tray on his way down, "Some birds ate my sandwich. You'll make me another one, right?!"
Then again… his mind could always change…
A/N R&R Pleaaase. Thank you!