Dinglehoppers

Sixteen

 16. Mickey Mouse randomly appears. How and why?

                                                            ☀ ☀ ☀ 

“Hello? Cobra Bubbles? Aliens are attacking my house… They want my dog ...Oh good! My dog found the chainsaw!”

-Lilo, Lilo and Stitch.

It was very unusual for Lionel to get sick.

Probably the only time he had gotten really sick had been back in the 3rd grade from appendicitis, which needed to be operated on.

Besides that, he usually got a cold every two years or so.

So on Monday morning when he awoke with a sore throat and heavy eyelids, he came to the conclusion that this was his annual flu.

But this year was different.

Last year, he didn’t have a pesky Junior girl chasing behind him every five minutes and demanding he learn his lines, he rehearsed his lines, he started looking for a wig and his costumes, that he run lines with her…

After her whole-hearted speech she had given him in the parking lot Friday afternoon, something had definitely gotten his attention.

Now, he didn’t want to quit the play as badly as before.

Besides, it wasn’t like he was doing it for her. No way.

He had missed almost three months of school last year, and he desperately needed community service hours if he wanted to graduate.

He found it a little strange that he could acquire them by participating in the play, but he decided he needed it.

He just never expected it to be some dumb fairytale, and he really never expected to be paired up with ‘The Disney Chick’.

Well, not paired up, but the way she’d been following him around for the past two months kind of seemed like she was his partner.

Before all this theatre class crap, Lionel had known Ellie just because she was his classmates’, Danny McGillicuddy’s younger sister. He’d seen her walking around the halls a few times, and only later did he learn of her Disney-related nickname.

Lionel had never really had experience with anything Disney, especially because he grew up in a household with two brothers –one younger and one older, hence him being the middle child- and he had no sisters to watch Disney movies with.

He personally felt Disney was more for girls than for boys, but to be honest he had had his share of Disney flicks.

Tarzan, Finding Nemo, The Incredibles, Treasure Planet, and one he could maybe honestly say he enjoyed somewhat and wouldn’t mind watching was Lilo and Stitch.

He just really couldn’t get enough of the little blue creature, and he honestly thought he was a super badass. And, now, Lilo kind of reminded him of Ellie.

Okay, who was he trying to kid? Lilo and Stitch was probably one of his favorite movies ever. He even had a stuffed animal Stitch doll accumulating dust somewhere in the back of his closet along with his old Max Steels’ and Hot Wheels.

Of course, he would never, ever, ever tell Ellie that.

Because if he did, a nuclear bomb would probably go off and he’d never hear her shut up about it every time he’d insult -or remotely make fun of- Disney movies.