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Sprout wasn't sure what the whole point of this was meant to be.
Sure, he'd seen the merch. Like any of the main characters, he was one of the first few to see the productions of the newest merchandise, and any new outfits they'd wear for whatever it was connected to. This time? With summer coming up, it was a couple of beachy themed pieces of merch; beach balls and other associated toys, towels, beach blankets, swimsuits with those for them to match the ones that were being sold. And maybe he should've seen it coming, then, that Gardenview Parks announced the artificial beach in the surrounding land around the museum was open, and they'd be a part of something to do with it. And he should've seen that he would be on teaching about beach safety with Cosmo, teaching about the proper precautions for such an event like wearing sunscreen, staying hydrated, how to escape a riptide—nothing any patron would have to actually worry about in the artificial beach at Gardenview, but they were selling the beach day experience. Any actual danger was expected to be nullified as much as possible to avoid actually bringing on a lawsuit. And he should've seen it then when he couldn't get the hang of swimming, his panicked brain trying to latch onto the careful words of instruction from Arthur after Sam had to jump in and pluck him out of the deep end of the pool when he couldn't pull himself back out from under the water, that he'd be far from the water on the actual day of, if anything providing just another version of picnics like he did in Gardenview, maybe even being an honorary life guard (he couldn't swim, he didn't expect they'd actually send him to help anyone who also got caught up and found themselves drowning.)
No, what Sprout didn't understand now, then, was why he was in the position he was in, why he was watching what he was.
From the dinky plastic chair in the shade of the lifeguard's post he got a clear view of the beach; The usual sight of patrons enjoying the sun and the sand with the soft waves from the mechanisms deep under the water really selling the idea that this was just any other beach day. But the very thing he fixated then was Looey, rather than being with the circus troupe, out playing with Connie in the water with a group of kids. With Connie, lingering far too close to him, shadowing him rather than paying any attention to the kids digging up panicked little sand crabs to show her. With Connie, in her pretty little beach outfit that came straight from the cover of a cheesy romantic novel coiling her ghostly tail along Looey's waist, small.
With Connie, her dull, ghostly eyes meeting his from a distance, a smug expression on her face, heart shaped seashell in her hands.
Sprout had seen one of the workers slip her the seashell earlier before sending her out. A pretty, clearly artificial thing. Too perfect, too smooth, no chips on it's form or it's soft iridescent finish, a soft, uniform pink color that wouldn't naturally occur. But he knew what it was clearly meant to give off the vibe of, especially as he watched Connie play off the idea that she had found it herself, bashfully giving it to Looey.
Sprout stood up too quickly, nearly knocking over the beach chair as he immediately stormed off behind the lifeguard post. It was an all too sweet moment, one that left a bitter, heavy weight in his stomach after everything. It had to be on purpose, he thought, with everything he'd seen, and the fact that they were intentionally sent out by the workers to be in his sight so he'd see this moment any of the older patrons could only interpret as romantic. Some sort of punishment, he thought, after Arthur looked less than pleased with both him and Sam; Upset with Sprout for being alone in the kitchen with Looey in a moment that was anything but platonic, no matter how much Sprout tried to play it off as just trying to cheer up Looey with something he cooked up just for him after a particularly bad day; Upset with Sam for their lack of intervention, for intentionally turning a blind eye and tucking themself far into their office in the back of the area, just enough to play off as watching them but to give Sprout the privacy he wanted in that all too tender moment.
The punishment was clear. Sprout was smart enough to know exactly what it was meant to be. What he then didn't understand was why. Why him, of all toons, was being punished? He could stomach it far easier if it had been as simple if regressive as Arthur being displeased with how close he and Looey was. It would still sting, but he would know then that it was to be expected; It would've been easier to waive it off as a consequence about him not being careful and getting them caught. But that wasn't it. And maybe it stung all the more then, that out of every change that came from within Gardenview—his own transition, the quiet phasing out of any previous mention of a second ghost among the Halloween toons when Connie became a part of their usual cast, the push for more merchandising showing Astro and Dandy far closer than any pair of friends were—that this was the only one Arthur didn't approve of.
No, the punishment was clear. This wasn't about them being together at all; This was punishing Sprout for not following the clear script provided for him and getting closer to Looey against Arthur's plans. And his punishment? Wasn't anything that anyone would be able to pick out, wasn't anything that physically affected him. No, it was the quietest reminder of how little any of them had a say in what they wanted, Connie and her feelings for Looey being only a vessel of the reminder.
Sprout had to leave before he kicked something out of frustration.
"Hey, where are you going?" Sam suddenly yelled, darting out of the post to catch Sprout before he got far. Their expression, however, softened when he turned to face them. They spent enough time to be able to read Sprout well, especially when he intentionally tried to mask how he felt behind smaller, more palatable emotions. But right now? No matter how mad Sprout actually looked, he still looked like a puppy who had been kicked down.
They didn't say anything. Didn't need to, not when they had the same unobstructed view as him, and Arthur had spent the past few days grilling them about how there were guidelines for a reason and that no matter how innocent the little moment between Sprout and Looey had been, they had a job to do and were expected to do it well.
"... look, if you... need a break, we're running low on waters. How 'bout you take the wagon and go to the train stop? I've already called in for more, you just gotta wait for them," Sam offered softly, giving Sprout a soft squeeze on the shoulder. He frustrated them to no end at times, but at the end of the day? How could they not grow fond for him with all the time they spent together? How could they not feel the same twisting feeling in their gut when he was clearly feeling so hurt and angry about a frustrating situation that made no sense and only served to make him feel helpless?
Sprout just quietly took the wagon handle as Sam handed it to him, slowly making his way to the train stop as they'd asked him to. An excuse to get away from the sight, if even for a moment, was more than appreciated. Even if the bitter feeling in his stomach remained as he waited there, knowing inevitably that he'd have to go back to the post with Sam, it helped him get his feelings under control for a moment, just long enough that he felt more comfortable knowing he wouldn't snap and end up taking out this hurt on anyone or anything around him. The walk helped him burn the burst of adrenaline, and as he walked back all he was left with was the bitter feeling in his gut.
That was, at least until he heard the shrieks from the edge of the water. The bitter feeling all but faded as his protective instincts kicked in and he abandoned the wagon at the lifeguard post, immediately darting to the edge of the water.
Though, he found himself freezing, just shy of the small crowd at the shore.
No one seemed hurt, not with the obnoxiously loud but familiar laughter coming from none other than Yatta. And when he got a closer look at the group, he noticed the confetti canon in her hands, the evident mess of tiny shreds of paper floating in the water and sticking all over the group.
And the source of the shrieking? Connie, seemingly having been the main victim of the confetti canon with the majority of it stuck to her, no thanks in part of all the water that she'd been splashed with.
"Ughe!! Yatta, what was that for?!" Connie groaned as she tried to wipe the pieces of confetti sticking to her, shaking her hands without much success.
Yatta just let out a loud laugh, clapping her hands together with the canon still in her grasp.
"Hey, come on!! It's a beach PARTY!!" Yatta laughed, playfully shoving Connie, being unusually unsympathetic to the fact she seemed pretty upset about having a confetti canon being blasted at her point blank.
Sprout didn't blame her too much. Even if he had been upset by the way she'd been acting earlier, the way she intentionally looked at him with that look she gave him, being covered in wet shreds of paper wasn't pleasant for anyone.
"... okay, let's... maybe not do something like that again," Sprout sighed as he walked up to Yatta, taking the now empty canon from her.
Yatta just gave another maniacal giggle, kicking water up everwhere as she ran from the disappating group, watching confetti covered kids run off no doubt to parents about to chastise them for the mess.
... Sprout realized perhaps a little too late he and Looey were the only two still at the edge of the water.
"... well, that was... a nice surprise," Looey laughed nervously, picking off a piece of confetti from their face, only for it to immediately stick right back onto them. Static electricity truly was their worst enemy. But they smiled at Sprout when they looked back up at him, their tail lightly splashing against the water as it wagged excitedly.
And even with how happy Looey was to see him? All Sprout could focus was on that stupid pink plastic shell in his hands, the bitter feeling that welled up in his stomach smothering any butterflies that they usually stirred in him.
"... Sprout?"
He jumped at that, his name so soft on Looey's lips.
"... Sorry- Uh, I don't know how she got a hold of that, she wasn't supposed to have something like that here with the kids," Sprout muttered, avoiding eye contact with Looey.
Unfortunately for him? Looey noticed exactly where he was looking, raising the small plastic shell in his hand.
"Oh, right, Connie was trying to show me. Looks just like one of the ones they sell in the gift shops, huh?" They said, holding up the shell for Sprout to see, "I think a kid left it behind. Sure sucks, these have been selling out fast."
Sprout just quietly stared at it, pursing his lips. He knew what it had looked like, what anyone else saw it as, but Looey? He was holding it to him like something he wanted to share with him, not a gift from someone who clearly had feelings for him. Had it been anyone else? Sprout would've likely said they were acting oblivious on purpose. But with Looey?
... Sprout wasn't any better, he really hoped this wasn't Looey just being oblivious, but consciously acting like this. That they took the shell from Connie, clearly a romantic gesture, even if set up by the staff, and didn't accept it for being what it was meant to be.
But to his surprise? Something he never expected—Looey gently grabbed his hand, pressing it into his grasp.
Sprout blinked, looking down at it in his hands. The little pink plastic shell, still cold to the touch, covered in the tiny scraps of confetti from the colorful mess Yatta had made moments ago.
"I... think we'd have to return this to lost and found, but if no one comes to claim this? At least you can have something to remind you of today, even if you've just been cooped up in the life guard tower with Sam." Looey's voice was quieter, their smile softer as their tail whipped against the surface of the water.
... God, Sprout felt like the waves that crashed against their legs would pull him under with how weak his legs felt.
"... yeah, you're right," He said softly as he looked back at the little plastic shell, much warmer in his touch all of a sudden. He had seen the workers passing it onto Connie, knowing the intent behind it. But in his hands now? The sweetest sentiment behind it, just the attempt from Looey to make him feel included despite everything? He didn't even want to play up the act about taking it to the lost and found, knowing there wasn't going to be some distraught kid looking for it. "Anyways, uh, I should... get back to Sam, I just abandoned them back at the post," He said as he quietly tucked away the shell in the pockets of his swimshorts, the light added weight almost grounding, "... go and have fun with everyone, alright?"
"Right, I will. I know I'll have you looking out for us!" Looey gave Sprout a playful little wink, likely not catching how weak it made him as he walked off, tail still wagging behind him from their little interaction.
Sprout still didn't understand what the point of this was, this unusual punishment confining him to the post as he watched Connie getting all too close to Looey while he was never supposed to get this close. But seeing him now? His smile, the way he kept him in mind, even with the physical hard distance between them? It wasn't something he needed to understand, not when it didn't seem to change anything between them.
