Spring Writes Stuff

49. Three words, eight letters.

It was just a simple phrase. Three words, eight letters. Yet Kubo has been having a tough time finding the right way to say it. Does he ask her to go on a movie date? A library date even?

Maybe go to an amusement park and shout the words out loud as they ride the rollercoaster. "That's a little overkill. Agatha doesn't like going on rides."

If not that, then a normal park would do. There's one nearby school, Kubo could take her there later. They'd have a small picnic, have small sweet talk. Then he could tell her those words. "No, that sounds too boring."

Oh! He could take her to a beach and have the picnic there instead, where they could bask in the bright rays of the warm sun, enjoy the sand rippling between their toes and melt away with the ocean waves.

Kubo paints a picture in his mind, of how he'll carry her in his arms as he walks into the water. She'll be squirming and complaining the whole way there, but still he could imagine the bright smile he loves plastered on her lips. He'd tell her those sweet words as the waves crashes against them, and it will feel like the Earth itself will celebrate their love.

Then reality comes in and reminds Kubo about the fact that going to the beach is expensive. It'd be even more expensive if you want to have a picnic while on the beach in the first place. Even if he's thrifty by nature, Kubo doesn't want her to show any money; that'd be too embarrassing for him. Especially in a moment like this.

"No," Kubo grumbles under his breath and runs his fingers through his hair, crumpling the idea in his mind and throwing it as far away from him as possible. All the ideas he had sounded like the plot of a cheesy romance movie with all the possible clichés put into a blender.

"Someone looks stressed," Eggs teases him before playing a simple 'ba-dum-tss' beat on his drum kit.

"Not helping," Kubo sneers as he scratches the back of his head. He almost forgot that he was stuck in his school's Music Room with his friends to practice their performance for an upcoming program in a few days.

"If this is about Mrs. Hencher, we're right there with you," Wybie says in a sing-song tone, making Eggs and Norman chuckle a bit.

"I don't even want to think about what other old song she wants us to perform next." Norman shivers.

"Same." Eggs points his drumstick to Norman while nodding in agreement. "Forcing us to do a rock version for 'Let It Go' last Christmas is where I draw the line."

Norman gives them a funny look, before he plays the first few notes of that song in the keyboard.

"Make it stop!!!" Wybie screams as he puts his hands on his ears as Eggs wholeheartedly laughs at him.

"Guys, can you be helpful for once by staying quiet?" Kubo barks at them, making the three boys fall silent.

"Easy there, buddy," Wybie cautions, catching onto Kubo's vibe of being genuinely frustrated at the moment.

"Since when did you become such a killjoy, Kubo?" Eggs on the other hand, can't read into mood changes very well.

Kubo snaps his head and glares at Eggs silently. The goofiness in Eggs's face disappears in an instant.

"Guys, let's not start things when Mrs. Hencher is still on her way here." Norman reminds them carefully.

"What's bothering you anyway?" Norman asks as he looks to Kubo.

Kubo gives it a moment. "It's nothing," he answers, hoping he'd sound convincing.

"It's not 'nothing' when your face looks like you're plotting murder," Wybie mentions as he form quotation marks with his fingers.