Chapter Text
There wasn't a day during which Lou didn't hate his existence, but today was undoubtedly the one that made him feel the absolute worst.
He knew he'd fail the Gauntlet, he wasn't made to succeed, but a tiny part of him still hoped that maybe, just maybe, he wouldn't. He expected the result that he got.
He had quite a few minutes to grieve his life as he spun in the washer. Those stupid uglies dared to throw him into the pits of literal hell - and no doll protested, no one had taken a moment to reflect on this poor decision. Everyone hated him now, it seemed.
He also knew that if he didn't get to his place in the next two minutes, something horrible would happen, and it surely wouldn't help his already ruined reputation.
He only ever told one doll about this one and only imperfection of his - he was a prototype for the previous Doll Type 12 design, one that was supposed to be a line of potty training dolls.
He knew that much, though he never found out what potty training meant. For him, it meant being the only doll with a weird and completely unnecessary function.
The first doll he met seemed puzzled when he mentioned having a funny feeling in his lower stomach, and not long after, Lou realized why that was. He didn't like remembering that.
That being said, he needed to get out of this stupid machine, pronto. He desperately pounded on the door, but none of the dolls seemed particularly interested in his predicament.
Except for Ox. He watched Lou from outside the washer, and Lou must've looked incredibly pathetic for Ox to have the robots stop the machine.
Lou felt dizzy, wet, ugly, and like he was about to wet himself, all in that order. His pants were already soaked, so it was hard to tell, but he was pretty sure he was leaking.
"Louis, I'm willing to forgive you, if-"
Lou couldn't afford to listen, so instead, he bolted right past Ox. Truthfully, he didn't feel happy about it, since he did care about Ox, despite how he had treated him in the past.
"Lou! Don't be like that!"
He ran like a wild animal, tripping over his feet, ignoring all the glares and comments made by the other dolls. There were things, or more precisely, one thing, that was more important at the moment.
He rushed inside and slammed the door behind him. He was about to sprint to his toilet (the only one in the Institute, after all why would there be more?), but he found himself unable to move, completely frozen in place with his legs squeezed together.
"No, this can't be happening, this isn't happening-"
He felt his sopping wet pants become somehow even wetter, and grossly warmer, but he couldn't do anything to stop it. He just stood there and watched it happen in shock and horror, a large puddle forming beneath him from both the water from the washer and the other liquid. His cheeks heated up as he winced in disgust.
He couldn't remember the last time it had happened to him. He always made sure to excuse himself even before he actually had to go,
but he made the mistake of not going before the Gauntlet took place and was suffering the consequences.
How dumb of him. He should've known better. Now, he was making a mess of himself. He didn't even feel relieved, as the entire situation with the uglies made him too nervous. He lost.
He jumped when suddenly, there was a bang at his door. "Louis! We need to talk!"
Ox. Of course.
Lou's panic deepened. He couldn't afford to let Ox see him like this, but more importantly, he still wasn't done. He groaned inwardly and uncrossed his legs awkwardly, waiting for himself to finish before he would move.
"g-go away!" Lou shouted back. Things just couldn't be worse.
The green doll stayed silent, and for a moment, Lou thought he actually left. The thought made him feel bittersweet.
Just then, his door suddenly flung open, and outside stood Ox. He took a step inside, then closed the door behind himself.
He stared at Lou, and Lou stared right back. For the first time ever, he was genuinely speechless.
Ox looked him up and down, then sighed. "Doesn't feel good, does it?"
"What?" Lou finally managed to breathe out.
"Being wet. Now you know how the other dolls felt."
...right. Ox thought he was completely soaked because of the washing machine. Not because he was a weird, one of a kind doll with a useless body function. Maybe not everything was awful, then.
Lou scoffed, stepping out of the puddle and muttering "gross" as he looked away from Ox.
"Why are you here, really?" He sighed, defeated. He wanted Ox out. He had to clean himself up, and mop up the puddle. He hated messes so much. Being near one was driving him insane, causing him to dig his nails into his palms.
"I want to be friends again."
"Why?" Lou asked with a confused and suspicious frown. This had to be a joke. "I thought you wanted to meet your kid?"
The other took a second to reflect, and Lou was sure Ox would turn on his heel and leave. He didn't.
"You're right. I am going to The Big World." Ouch. "But I can come back, can't I?"
Yes. "No. Once you go in, that's it. You won't see me, or Moxy, or any other doll ever again."
Ox laughed.
"You find this funny? You'll never see your friends again!"
"Lou, you can't lie when you're upset."
Lou blinked. How did Ox see right through him?
"I'm not lying." He muttered stubbornly. How did Ox-
"We asked the Robots."
That made sense. They weren't able to lie if you asked a simple and direct question.
"Well, anyway… I'm willing to be friends with you again. But, you have to apologize to me and all of the ugly dolls you've hurt."
Lou snorted. As if.
"We'll be back soon. You can apologize then. Bye for now."
And that was it. He watched Ox leave and close the door on the opposite side, leaving Lou feeling conflicted and confused.
He wouldn't apologize. He did nothing wrong. Only perfect dolls should be allowed into The Big World. Everything he did, he did for the doll’s own good. The Gauntlet was perfect. It prepared dolls for real life dangers, while his training helped them avoid messes.
Those Ugly dolls ruined everything for him.