Trapped in Time

Chapter 11: Hey, Bella!

Robbie finally decides to call now rather than wait. Everyone's asking if he can put the call on speaker phone, and he reluctantly agrees - as long as they stay silent.

The phone beings it's dialing, and soon after a female answers the phone.

"Hey, Bella," Robbie greets.

"Robbie, is everything okay? You're calling rather early." the woman, known as Bella, explains. Her voice is soft and angelic. "Yes, everything is fine enough. I wanted to ask something regarding Rottenella, though. I decided that I want her to meet my cousin and boyfriend... I know I wasn't planning on this and I told you that I most likely wouldn't do this but it feels wrong, y'know? I intend to keep her in my life and my cousin found out. Do you think that she's old enough to meet him?" Robbie worriedly speaks. Sportacus rests his hand gently on the villain's shoulder. "Oh," the woman chuckles, "Of course you can. I believe she is old enough, but... there is something that I've been meaning to ask you. It lines up pretty well."

The taller man looks concerned although Bella cannot see his facial expressions. She continues to speak, "You must keep this a secret from Rottenella. I haven't told her, but I've been ill. I went to the doctor and they have no clue what is going on. I don't want her to see it get progressively worse - if it does, and so I wanted to ask if she could stay in Lazy Town with you for a few months. I've just been prolonging telling you, and-" This time Robbie cuts her off, "Don't stress yourself, Bella. Of course she can stay with me as long as you need her to. I can even help pay for your treatments, if you want. Do you need me to pick her up? Or should you drop her off?" The villain seemed to be excited at the thought of his daughter coming to visit, but he couldn't help but feel a small pain in his chest. 

"I can drop her off tomorrow. I really don't want her to know about this, so please don't tell her. And I know that'd she rather stay with you over her stepfather." Bella finalizes her statement.

Robbie nods into the phone before speaking, "Of course. I'll, uh, I'll see you both tomorrow then."

With that, the phone hangs up. The other three men in the room stay silent, and Robbie looks towards the floor. "Let's go get the place ready, I don't want it being a mess when she gets here."

He attempts to keep his eyes averted towards the ground in order to not let anyone in on his sadness. Sportacus can see right through this act, however. He gently pulls Robbie into a tight hug, and the other two join shortly after. No one knows what to say. After the hug, they all scurry off in different directions, each one picking a place to begin their cleanup. The air felt thick, and the room was silent.

Number 9 and Glenn both decide that Sportacus would be the best person to talk to the melancholy man. The blue elf walks up behind Robbie and envelopes him in a soft hug, "Are you okay, babe?"

Robbie sniffles and gives an unsure smile. "I don't know. I really don't Sportacus. I mean, Bella and I weren't that close. We only stayed in contact because of Rottenella, so why does it hurt so much?" he questions. The athletic man doesn't know what to respond with.

"Do you think that maybe this hurts because you two may have been friends? Even though you two met under interesting circumstances doesn't mean that you weren't... somewhat close. You two talked and obviously care for one another. You don't just pay people's medical bills unless you want them to get better soon. You just used the excuse that she didn't mean anything to you because it was one night. You may not have loved her, but in reality you cared about both her and the kid." Sportacus smartly explains the method of his thinking to the slightly older man.  He understands that losing a friend can hurt.

"Sportakook, I think you're right. Don't ever tell anyone that I said that, but maybe I have been lying to myself about how close Bella and I were." Tears begin to stream down Robbie's face, and Sportacus rests his chin on the man's shoulder. "It's alright to cry," he softly speaks. Picking the villain up (despite their height difference), he carries Robbie into his room. After numerous attempts to escape Sportacus's grasp, and various choice words later, Robbie is thrown onto the bed gently. "Now we sleep." Sportacus announces, joining Robbie on the other side of the bed. 

They snuggle into each other, and Robbie decides that maybe he does want to sleep. He hates how this makes him feel better. "Damn you, Sportacute."