The Smart And The Sassy - Paw Patrol

Chapter 2: Casts, Stitches, and Trauma

Ryder and Katie left the room after checking Gasket and me with anything else we needed. When the door closed, there was an awkward silence between us. The only sound was a gust of wind outside and heavy rain on the windows. It was still dark out, and Katie shut off most of the lights. The only light was a decorative lamp on a stand between me and Gasket. I assume it's there to make our stay as homely as possible. Which it does to a point with its nice glow around us. I turn my head to Gasket, and she catches my gaze.

"So how are you doing?" I ask.

"I'm... alright, except that these casts are itchy and they make me uncomfortable." Gasket complains." Though... I guess if it weren't for you, I would also have had a big piece of metal struck through me."

"Thanks but, I was stupid and didn't use my pup pack as a shield instead, but anyway, how did you get up there?" I ask.

"A stunt went wrong. I did it with Hubcap's favorite toy and I tried to hold it on my nose, but my paw slipped and I ended up crushed underneath my bike." Gasket said.

"Is that what Hubcap wanted me to get from the bike?" I ask.

"Yep." She replies.

There was another silence this time but it was now broken by her.

"Where are Hubcap and Dwayne anyway?" She asks.

"No clue," I say.

"I have been with them for two years now, yet they don't care to show up." She says as I slightly recoil from her anger.

"I gonna give them a piece of my mind after this." She continues.

"Well, you might have to wait for that," I say looking between her and her casts.

"Yeah, right..." She says, now starting to look down.

"Something wrong?" I ask.

"I can't ride my bike anymore." She states. "That's my favorite, almost only hobby I have. Now I can't do much of anything for weeks.

I frown as Gasket lays her head back and sighs. 'She rode her bike with a passion. This is going to be a downer for her. Though... she said: almost her only hobby.'

"Hey, you said that was almost your only hobby," I say. "What other hobby do you have?"

She looks at me and sighs, "You'd laugh if I told you."

This slightly confused me, so I say. "I wouldn't, I promise."

She looks at me with a frown. "You're just saying that."

"I'm serious, I won't judge," I reply with honesty.

Gasket sighs again. "Fine, I sometimes like to create little inventions when I'm not riding my bike."

I look in confusion. "Why is that embarrassing?" I ask. "I do that too. Except that it's my favorite hobby."

"You do?" Gasket confusingly says. "All my life I've been told that it is stupid. But, I always had fun doing it so I did it without anyone else."

'It saddens me to see that she has been told that. That must mean that those around her didn't put her up on a pedestal. I've had good people with me. Ryder even helped me with tinkering since he liked it too. It helped me get better at it.'

"Are you good at creating things?" I ask.

Gasket huffs.  "Not at all, my drone I built went haywire. I think that you guys were there too. Hubcap wouldn't stop berating me for it being the most stupid thing."

'My memory clicks back to that call.'

"Yeah, I do remember that, I think your electric wiring started short-circuiting," I reply. "That's why I always have a killswitch on newer models with electricity."