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Conkers really needed to start checking his calendar better, somehow he’d managed to mix up the dates of merge night and Group A’s Halloween night… he wasn’t supposed to be in the studio today!
So naturally, as soon as he’d found out about the mix up, he panicked and hid behind some spare backdrops to avoid being caught by anyone as he attempted to come up with some kind of escape plan.
Unfortunately he wasn’t having much success, he couldn’t sneak out very easily due to his armour and he couldn’t just walk out due to the sheer amount of staff in the area.
“Oh god… what do I do?!” Conkers muttered to himself, peering out from his hiding place and scanning the area in hopes of finding some kind of opening he could use. “If I get caught I’m in so much trouble!”
The knight frowned as he was once again left with no opening he could use to leave, going back to leaning against the spare backdrop whilst attempting to keep his breathing calm. He really couldn’t afford to have a panic attack now.
Eventually he was pulled out of his panicked thoughts by the announcement of the next Mask to perform, Can of Worms… Conkers’ attention was caught immediately and he peered out from his hiding spot again, this time to watch the stage.
As usual Can of Worms looked dashing, confidently striding onto the stage like he always belonged on it and Conkers couldn’t help the dark brown blush that spread across his cheeks, briefly he imagined himself walking onto the stage with him, hand in hand.
That train of thought was immediately derailed by a shake of his head, internally scolding himself for getting distracted by his crush… he needed to find a way out of the studio, not stare at Can of Worms like a lovesick dork!
“But I haven’t been caught yet…” Conkers thought to himself as he glanced towards the ceiling, weighing his limited options with a quiet sigh. “Surely I can stay hidden for a little longer?"
Upon hearing the music start up, the anxious knight made a decision that he really hoped he wouldn’t regret. The idea was simple, he’d stick around to hear Can of Worms sing, see the results and then leave the studio, no harm in doing that right?
So he very slowly peeked out from behind the backdrop once more, just in time to hear Can of Worms start singing and oh, Conkers forgot just how beautiful his voice was… he made even a catchy pop song sound angelic, it was enough to make the blush on Conkers’ cheeks even darker.
When the living bundle of worms finished the song, the knight really wanted to cheer out loud. But he knew that would definitely get him caught so he settled on a very quiet applause instead, absolutely besotted as he watched Can of Worms bow before returning backstage.
“I didn’t think it was possible to fall for him any harder…” Conkers whispered to himself as he resumed his attempts to think up an escape plan, pulling out his journal to brainstorm some potential ideas. “But here we are-“
A few hours later, after failing to come up with a decent plan, Conkers found himself watching the stage again for the results. Watching with bated breath, he let out a sigh of relief when Can of Worms was announced to be safe before frowning at Gargoyles elimination.
“That’s a shame, she seemed nice… a little scary, but nice.” The knight thought before his eyes snapped over to the studio exit… there was a clear path, everyone was focused on the aftermath of the results, he could finally leave!
Moving quietly in order to avoid his armour banging together, Conkers managed to make it to the exit door undetected… or so he thought, right as he put his hand on the door handle a voice rang out behind him.
“Got your dates mixed up, did ya?” Gargoyle asked, seemingly unremorseful about the fact she’d just given Conkers a heart attack. If anything, she almost looked amused. “You need to check your calendar.”
“Don’t sneak up on me like that!” The knight managed to hiss out after his heart rate returned to normal, pressing his hand against the wall to keep himself steady. But then confusion overtook his fear… Gargoyle didn’t seem surprised to see him here. “Wait, did you know I was here the whole time?”
“Yeah, I did,” The living statue nodded in response to the question, chuckling at Conkers’ absolutely baffled expression. “Saw your little leaf thing poking out from behind that backdrop when I was heading backstage after my performance.”
“Did anyone else see?” Conkers asked nervously, rather irritated at the fact he could’ve saved himself a lot of trouble by just removing his helmet, but that irritation turned to relief when Gargoyle shook her head.
“Nah, just me,” Gargoyle reassured him as Conkers watched her lean casually against the wall before she crossed her arms, then the corners of her lips pulled up into a smirk. “Though I gotta say, I’m surprised Can of Worms didn’t feel like he was being watched.”
“W-Why would he feel that?” The nervous knight stammered out quickly, eyes darting back and forth as if he expected the aforementioned Mask to suddenly appear out of nowhere. “He has n-no reason to feel that!”
“You were staring at him for the entirety of the results,” Gargoyle pointed out as Conkers noticed her smirk widen… was he really that obvious about his crush? “I could see the hearts in your eyes from the stage.”
“I- um- oh gosh-“ Conkers was stumbling over his words at this point, covering his face in embarrassment at being caught acting like a lovesick fool… he really should’ve tried leaving earlier. “Ugh… this is humiliating!”
Luckily Gargoyle decided to take mercy on Conkers before he combusted on the spot and Conkers allowed himself to relax as he felt her gently place a hand on his shoulder.
“I won't tell anyone, I promise,” The punk rocker reassured him as he took a deep breath to compose himself. “But I will say that I’ve heard Can of Worms talking about how much he loves spending time with you.”
“R-Really?!” Conkers exclaimed in disbelief, someone as cool as Can of Worms enjoying spending time with him of all Masks?! That just didn’t sound right… but Gargoyle had no reason to lie to him and she’d been hanging out with the bundle of worms a lot, being in Group A with him.
“Really, I heard it loud and clear,” Gargoyle repeated with a nod of confirmation, stepping away from Conkers in order to open the studio door for him. “He’s been super excited for the merge because of you.”
Conkers could feel his cheeks heating up again, but he couldn’t stop a giddy, lovestruck grin from appearing on his face as he stepped outside the studio, he couldn’t wait for merge night himself.
“Maybe not checking my calendar properly was actually a good thing!”