To Be Proud: Revamped

Chapter 49: Proposal

~Thwok~

The moment I returned backstage with Pommy and Hoola, we celebrated. There was cheering, laughter, hooting and hollering—we were a rightfully joyous bunch. Hoola hugged Pommy while chanting, and I couldn't help but to laugh with them. We won, we roared as we danced around each other in proud jubilation, we won! I felt a hand on my shoulder, and I looked up to see the deep green eyes that I admired with a strong passion.

      "Ona!" I cheered as I held on to his arm. I felt his other arm reach around my back, patting it gently.

      "Thwok, hi," he spoke as he held me close. I rejoiced in his fluffy pink fur, enjoying his warmth. "How are you?"

      "I'm ecstahtic! How about you?"

      "I'm doing better," he replied while subtly diverting my attention to his eyes. They shimmered as they studied me, taking in every detail, and he smiled. "Much better."

      "That's goohd." I looked over at Pommy and Hoola, who were holding each other while laughing. At one point they connected their mouths together, almost like two magnets acting upon one another, which piqued my curiosity and intrigued me slightly. They glanced over at us, and in a matter of a second they pulled away.

      "So sorry!" Pommy exclaimed as Hoola exploded with laughter. I watched as the latter of the two collapsed on to their knees, wheezing and coughing from her laughing fit.

      "Oh my Torrt, your faces! I can't!" Hoola managed through her semi-manic cackling.

      "Hoola, you alwight?"

      "Oh, I'm great!" She fell back, holding her waist as she stared up at the ceiling and giggled with glee. I glanced up at Bona, who looked down at me with a shrug for an answer.

      "Hoola, honeycomb, c'mon." Pommy helped Hoola to her feet, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "Oh! You two remember the dance, right?" She looked over at me and Bona, and I couldn't help but to feel extremely confused.

      "The...dance?" Bona asked.

      "Yeah! The one later tonight."

      "Oh, we need to take them with us!" Hoola interjected as she bounced a bit. "They'd be so cute!"

      "Oh, absolutely, Hoopsy. Such a lovely pair!" Pommy looked over at the two of us. "You two should come with us!"

      "And...when is this dance being held?" Bona asked while placing a hand on my shoulder.

      "Tonight. It starts officially in between sunset and moonrise."

      "It's so pretty!" Hoola commented as she spun around in her red hoop. "The sun sets just as the moon rises, and when the moon is at its highest it looks down directly on the island. What could be more romantic than that?" I laughed, walking in between Pommy and Hoola.

      "We would lohve to join you two," I spoke, watching as the pair squealed and giggled. I laughed along with them, feeling the pure joy from both of them, but when I looked back at Bona his face had contorted to show visible distress.

      "Thwok, look out!"

A sharp pain stung in the back of my head, and I could hear the sound of fur being cut off. I yelped, jolting as I saw flashes of white in the corners of my eyes. As Pommy and Hoola jumped back from me in horror, I reached my arm back and wrapped my hand around something smooth and cylindrical. Spinning my arm back in front of me, I glared down at the singular eye frantically looking around. They looked up at me, and I could see the immediate regret in the contracting pupil.