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The door to Zooble's room had not budged since the incident. The toy-box character disliked Caine before, but after discovering he had the keys to each cast member's minds, Zooble was infuriated. Not just infuriated, but distraught, agitated, upset, the list went on forever. They felt a plethora of negative emotions, their head spinning with thoughts they didn't want to have.
There they stood, a mirror looking them dead in the eyes with pity. They put a hand on their pink triangular head, feeling the cold, hard plastic that was a part of them. Their fingertips ran along their face, wondering what god they upset to be transported to such a hellish world.
Their touch made its way up to their antennas, and such unique shapes they were. They swapped out their parts on the daily, but they haven't changed them in days. Zooble didn't see a reason to do so, as to them, nothing mattered in this world. They didn't have the motivation to get up and force themself to pick new parts they liked. Liking something was such temporary emotion, and they saw no reason to participate in such a useless activity in a time such as that.
Their right hand suddenly gripped the teal, zig-zagged head piece, with a strength fueled by hatred. With one swift motion, they yanked it out of place and threw it across the dark room, causing it to snap in half as it made contact with the wall. The plastic pieces fell to the ground, a harsh reminder of how their short-lived joy had been crushed in an instant. They repeated the same action with the second head piece, that time with more force. It hit the wall with a thud, and shattered into multiple pieces. Zooble brought their hands to their sides, clenching their fists in great turmoil.
The twenty-two year old didn't want to exist in that world for a second longer. They wanted to just shut their eyes and slip into sweet, sweet unconsciousness, never to be heard of again. They craved a slumber that they would never awake from, but that was basically impossible given the circumstances they lived in. There was no such thing as death in the circus. Only constant pain and suffering with no comfort. The closest thing they had to dying was abstraction, but that wasn't a thing you could just do on command. It was a mindset, but for some odd reason, there was something Zooble's crazed mind lacked that was preventing them from reaching that point.
They snapped out of their mind dialogue, the thoughts serving as background noise that wouldn't stop bothering them. They continued to move their cartoonish hands down their body, landing on their left arm. They yanked it out of its slot, the pain only lasting a moment. Zooble tossed the arm across the room, disregarding it entirely. The dull, red blanket spread across their bed welcomed them with open arms, a contrasting color to the vibrant hues plastered across the entire space. The walls had funky patterns and color combinations dancing along them, along with the interesting choice of decor. It all somehow came together to match perfectly, like the chamber had been specially crafted to fit Zooble. Except it didn't do that at all, in fact, its design only complimented their outer appearance.
Multiple mirrors reflected small beams of light across the area, but they only reminded Zooble's past self of how much they hated how they looked. The toy-box character was making great progress in reaching the highs of self love and appreciation, but none of that mattered to them after discovering it was all a lie. Caine could get into their heads and plant anything he wanted into them, so how were they so sure he didn't do that? All of that precious development gone within the snap of a finger.
The mirrors were just the beginning, as a stone sculpture of a beautiful woman lied just by the door. She looked like a goddess, with no internal conflicts going on within. She didn't have issues with her identity, she knew exactly what she was and who she was. Zooble would've actually killed for that kind of mindset. To know yourself in and out, what you wanted, when you wanted it.
As their back hit the mattress, they used the one remaining arm attached to their body to take both of their legs off. The left leg was the first to say its goodbyes, hitting the wall with a loud thump. Zooble then followed the previous action, instead with the other leg, but the flame of anger burning in their heart was beginning to extinguish. They weakly hurled it into their toy-box full of parts and pieces. Tears fought to escape the boundaries of Zooble's eyes, but the force holding them captive was too strong to battle.
As time went by, their head detached from their neck, and what was left of their body stayed dormant at their side. They then proceeded with the final action, launching their last limb into the air gently. That alone signaled the flame of vex within them had finally died. Free from the throbbing exhaustion of their body, they shut their eyes slowly, succumbing to the harsh emotional state that haunted them. Behind closed eyelids, one would expect to see complete and total darkness, but never a different universe filled with nauseating colors and patterns. Expectations are never guaranteed to be reality though, because in Zooble's case, that new universe was opening its gates just for them.
Normally, a location like that would be headache inducing, but it was strangely... comforting. A feeling Zooble forgot about until then. An unfamiliar energy pulled them further into the paradise, and by them, that means their pink triangular shaped head. The body they once hosted didn't accompany them on the journey, but they weren't worried about that at all. They were being freed from the prison that they yearned to break away from. No more problems, no more noise, no more pain.
As they drifted further, imagery of their friends appeared as vibrant clouds. Greens, reds, blues, purples, any color that could be imagined. They looked around, seeing Ragatha... and then Pomni... and Gangle...
"Z-Zooble!" A high-pitched voice pierced through the artificial air, reaching Zooble's invisible ear canals with swiftness. Their eyes opened at a leisurely pace, like a butterflies wings opening and closing. When they slip back into the digital circus, they gaze over at the direction of the sound. To their surprise, it was Gangle. The ribbon-bodied woman stood in the doorway, letting the lights from the hallway creep inside. The tears on her tragedy mask kept flowing down her cheeks, dropping onto the ground in puddles.
Zooble hadn't had a proper conversation with Gangle for quite a few days, which was out of the ordinary for them. They were such dear friends, but Gangle's attempts to reach out to them after everything that happened were futile. The toy-box character adored Gangle more than anything, more than themself. They'd converse with her about their personal issues, and it would help a lot of times, but the circumstances seemed to have changed. Gangle was such a sweetheart, but she was totally different from Zooble. She had hope to heal, but they had none.
Gangle lunged forward onto the bed, grabbing Zooble's head in one quick motion. The water droplets in her eyes kept falling as she looked down at them.
"What the hell was that? Why do your eyes look like—! Zooble, please, just talk to me!" She sobbed, choking on her tears. Zooble was too stunned to even form a couple words, which didn't soothe Gangle's anxiety one bit. She took a second to compose herself before bringing Zooble's face to her chest. Her eyes squeezed shut as she embraced Zooble, the red ribbon arms wrapping around their head securely. She cried into the top of their head with despair. Zooble helped her through almost every last hurdle she had to face within her life in the circus, so why the fuck couldn't she help THEM?
The two stayed melted together for what felt like forever. The hug provided solace for the both of them, even if it was only short-term, it was still present. Subsequently, Gangle parted from the clasp, much to her reluctance to do so. She stole another glance into Zooble's cold, dead eyes, waiting for them to speak. To say it took awhile was an understatement, but eventually...
"I'm sorry." They whispered. In response, Gangle shook her head violently in dismissal.
"No, no, no, no, no! I should be the one apologizing! You've helped me so many times here, I put you on such a high pedestal! I should've tried harder to save you! I-I should've done something that made an impact on you! I failed you, you deserve better..." She cried out. Her sobs showed no signs of stopping, as her self worth crumpled in that moment. Zooble shook their head similarly to Gangle's previous movement.
"You didn't do anything wrong... and there was nothing you could do. I'm a lost cause, and that's all there is to it. All of my happiness here, every last emotion... how did I know that wasn't just a figment of my imagination. Caine can get into our heads, make us abstract at any given second, and as long as that can happen... well, I don't want to be here. I'm done tolerating this absolute shit hole." Zooble explained sadly. They sat in comfortable silence with Gangle for a small amount of time before continuing their speech.
"As much as I don't want to leave you, I feel like it'd be better for the both of us if I wasn't around. You and the others have the power to move on, do better, recover. I can't say the same for myself." They finished, looking to the side with misery and sorrow. Gangle went silent, too silent. She processed Zooble's words, which hit her like a thousand knives to the chest. How did she let her friend fall this far into the depths of gloominess?
She sat there with the pink triangle in her arms and thought. She thought for a good long while, as if it was the last thought she'd ever hear. When the quietness became too loud to bear, she gazed down at Zooble, and then around the room. The lights were turned off, and the area was beginning to turn cold. She looked to her left, and then to her right.
The left side of the room greeted her two more times, followed by the right... and then another time. She gently set Zooble down on the bed again, dragging her feet over to the door. She placed a hand on the fake wooded material, closing herself in the space with her friend. When the door clicked shut, she moved her ribboned hand over to the lock, turning it until the second and final clicking sound confirmed the door was locked. She then turned back to Zooble, looking down at them with a soft smile with undertones of melancholic intensity.
"If you're leaving, I'm coming with you." She stated, not putting anything on the table for debate. Zooble's eyes widened.
"What? I don't—"
"Let's leave together, Zooble. You and me, just like it's always been." She said while collecting the scattered Zooble parts from the floor. They were completely and utterly dumbfounded. They wished to speak, to try and protest, but they couldn't do anything. Why?
Gangle set the pieces onto the bed, analyzing the broken antennas that usually rested atop of Zooble's head. One by one, she put Zooble back together again, her touch feather light. Each piece snapped back on flawlessly like a puzzle. Once Zooble's body was put back together, Gangle picked up their head. She placed the broken head accessories on top of them, and afterwards, attached their head to their body again. She looked up at them as she brought a hand to their face. She caressed the side of what would've been their cheek, and they leaned into the touch with no hesitation.
Gangle brought her face closer to Zooble's, inching closer and closer until there was the tiniest gap between the two. They stared into each other's eyes, and for a moment, they felt joy. True joy, not any that was simply planted into their brains by Caine. Suddenly, Gangle pressed her mask against Zooble's face hard. Both of them closed their eyes in unison, as if they were actually kissing. Zooble didn't have a mouth, but it felt like a genuine kiss to them nonetheless. Gangle's ribbons tangled around Zooble's body, backing them into a wall. They parted to catch their breaths, before diving right back in.
It was a sweet yet heated little moment. One that the pair would never forget, even when they inevitably stopped existing. When it ended, Gangle's head dropped to underneath Zooble's neck, nuzzling into it. Her hands found theirs, and so she gently grabbed them. They spent that next fifteen minutes talking to each other. Reminiscing on their time together, the harbored feelings, everything. Including a certain plan. When the life of the conversing died down, Zooble looked straight ahead, and then down at Gangle. They took a couple deep breaths.
"I wish everything didn't have to be this way. If we were back in the real world..." They trailed off.
"Hey." Gangle looked up at them, smiling through the agonizing mental pain.
"We can't change anything. I guess we were always destined to get trapped here, heh." She joked, and the two had one last laugh together. The pair looked at each other with both love and ache.
"Well, I guess it's time." Gangle spoke quietly. Zooble nodded in agreement. They looked over at their nightstand, which hosted a pair of purple scissors on the surface of it. Zooble untangled themself from Gangle's ribbons and approached the object, taking it into their hands with care. Their eyes darted over to Gangle, looking over their shoulder at her.
"Are you ready?" They questioned, wanting to make sure she wanted it. Gangle nodded in confirmation, and so Zooble walked up to her. They gently lifted Gangle's right arm up, opening the scissors up slowly. They brought the scissors up to Gangle's upper arm, and began cutting through the material. It took a while, due to the fact that the ribbons were rather tough to break through. Gangle winced throughout every movement, but not once did she have thoughts of backing out. Once the ribbon was off, Gangle let out a final wince, which almost made Zooble's heart break even more. Next, they pulled out the stepping stool by their nightstand, holding the ribbon in one hand as they nailed it to the ceiling. They turned to Gangle, offering a hand to her. She grasped it, and Zooble pulled her up onto the stool with them. They stretched the ribbon out and began wrapping it around the necks of themself and Gangle.
They took their time in tying, making sure the noose was as tight as possible. When it appeared to be complete, they focused on Gangle. Gangle, and nothing but her.
"We'll meet again, right? In another life?" Gangle inquired, hoping the answer would be a yes.
"In another life." Zooble replied.
The two worked together to kick the stepping stool away, and once it did, their oxygen cut off. They didn't need to breathe in the circus, but it still felt like they were suffocating. They both closed their eyes one final time, and the next time they opened, they were filled with various different colors and swirls. Zooble returned to the scene they had been in before Gangle entered their room, but that time, Gangle joined them. The two interlocked hands and floated to the end of the pathway, the plethora of colors and mesmerizing patterns guiding them. They reached a staircase, and looked to one another before climbing up it.
Together.