Trapped in Time

Chapter 18: Night Time

A few hours later, it was night time. Sportacus was snuggled up next to Robbie, but he couldn't stop thinking about Robbie's words from earlier. How did he never realize that he had never met the children's parents? He had not even talked to any of the guardians whatsoever. How could he be so neglectful about the entire situation? Sportacus turns his head slightly to look into Robbie's eyes. "Can I ask you a question?" he asks curiously, but with a hint of sadness in his tone. The villain nods, "What is it, Sportababe?" Sportacus hesitates for a moment before saying, "Well, I wanted to ask you about the kids' parents. Today I realized that I have never met or even asked any of the children about their parents.

Robbie sighs softly before beginning to explain to his boyfriend. "Okay, fine." He nuzzles his face into the back of Sportacus's neck. "Ziggy's mom is a doctor in a town that's nearly two hours away. She never gets time off, but she does try her best... unlike some of the other parents around here. She does love and care about her brat."

Sportacus squints slightly, confused at part of the explanation. "If she a doctor, then how come she allows Ziggy to eat so much candy?" His boyfriend laughs in return, "That's only a little bit of my fault. I saw the brat crying... y'know. It was interrupting my nap time. I gave him some candy and from that point on he would beg his mom for candy." Sportacus nods. "She already feels bad enough for leaving him alone so much... and she also has a very hard time saying no. Typical. It makes him so happy."

Sportacus looks worried and lets out a soft sigh. "I feel kind of bad... what about the other kids, though?"

Robbie rolls his eyes, quickly realizing that he wouldn't be able to sleep for quite some time. "That kid, Stinky, is it? His mother and father are never home. Workaholics. They don't ever try to give him any love or affection for that brat – besides sending him money. They don't even buy him food, and they don't know that Lazy Town doesn't have any type of store. Little old me decided to set up an online system for Pixel to order stuff for Stinky, and the others, in return for a few bucks here and there."

Sportacus's eyes widen, and he feels guilt begin to settle in. Robbie continues, however, "The techno brat's parents are home, but they're addicted to their computers. They give him food and some affection... but they mostly just give him video games to keep him occupied... and out of their hair. Who do you think was the one to teach him about building or crafting stuff with said technology?" Sportacus laughs softly at Robbie's enthusiasm, but continues to listen, nonetheless. "He needs to have some sort of skill to use when he's older – to make money and all."

Sportacus thinks for a moment. "That's not as bad, I guess, but it's still not ideal. What about Trixie?"

"Aren't you full of questions?" Robbie teases his boyfriend. Sportacus shakes his head at Robbie's teasing attempt before urging him to explain further.

"Well, she has it worse. Her parents are home more than not... sadly for her." Sportacus seems confused, and Robbie is quick to pick up where he left off. "They are druggies. All their earned money goes to drugs and alcohol. Acting like she's not there and all... when they do pay any attention to her, it's never good. That's why I keep a first-aid kit with me at night, and at some point in the day she either needs food or some sort of healing..." Sportacus was shocked. He immediately felt saddened. "I'm sorry, I didn't know," Robbie quickly interrupted his worrisome boyfriend. "It's okay, Sportacus. You're not here to fix everything, remember? You're here to keep the kids active, or whatever it is that you do."

Sportacus sighed and put his head in his hands. "No, I'm a hero. I am here to help them in any way, shape or form, that they need me, Robbie. You call yourself a town villain, but in reality you are a better hero than I am. You are helping the children with real problems." 

Robbie gasped, "Don't you dare say that again. If I was a hero, instead of giving temporary solutions to keep the brats out of my hair, I would have made a store so that they wouldn't have to shop online. I would also try to bring more people into the town to actually run it and increase revenue. Maybe I could fix buildings, or maybe I could adopt Trixie instead of letting her live with those awful people. I could give so much more, but I don't. I don't want to, I'm too selfish. I don't really care to help them unless it benefits me. You help people because you want to. You don't care what you get in return... I'm a villain. You're a hero. Now go to sleep." Robbie finishes.

Sportacus smiles and decides to not press more into the matter. Robbie looks extremely sleep, so the hero leans in and presses a quick kiss to Robbie's lips. "Goodnight, Robbie."