A little while after I had fallen asleep I wake up to it being pitch black outside, and I immediately rush to get ready.
" dang it why the heck did I sleep that long" I sigh as I rush out the door and practically trip over my own two feet to get to Branch's bunker.
"Branch!!" I say as I knock on the door that's placed on the floor of the forest and I get no response.
I growl slightly annoyed and pull out the extra key before letting myself in.
"Branch are you ok? I'm sorry I lost track of time..." I say as I look around the bunker for him.
"Hmm" I hear what sounds like a little chant and make my way over to the noise to see Branch sitting at a table, staring longingly at the card that's in his hands.
Just by looking at it, I can tell Poppy wrote it or maybe it was the dude who's basically a walking disco glitter pony.
I sigh before forcing a little smile on my face and then I make my way over pulling a chair up next to him.
"I didn't know you had a party animal trying to clawing its way out from inside of you" I say sarcastically and he quickly throws the card up into the air, clearly not expecting me before hiding it behind curtains.
"Nice try" I sigh before crossing my arms.
"It's not what you think" he says rolling his eyes.
"Really cause it seems like you wanna go" I push further into the topic.
"...believe me when I say heck no" he say with a frustrated tone.
"If you don't wanna go then please explain, so I can understand." I say nudging him with my foot.
He looks at me clearly debating on whether not he actually wants to tell me. Then, Branch just sighs before sitting back in his chair, rubbing the temples of his head.
"To be honest I don't even know why I keep those things, their loud and annoying...I guess I just like knowing that they think about me I guess" he says shrugging.
"Yet, I swear if I were to spend even a second around them I'd lose it!" He whines out loud and I chuckle.
"Sooo you care, just really disapprove of their choices and personalities?" I question.
"I guess ... like I said don't really understand myself and I am not even gonna try to understand, everything's ok the way it is, no bergen's around to eat me, there's the sweet silence of my bunker, and..."
I cut him off," a annoying girl, who you put up with cause she brings you bags of food everyday!" I tease and he lets loose a small chuckle.
"Hey like grandma says to win a heart you gotta first win the stomach"
"Ewww who would want your heart grumpy" I say and he rolls his eyes.
"Pleeeease your worse then me" he groans.
"Anyway what took you so long to come, you said you wouldn't be long?" he questions and I quickly try to think of an excuse then just as I was debating my life and it's choices, I decided to lie.
"I just lost track of time while cleaning up I guess I'm sorry" I say looking at the ground.
"You? Taking time to clean?" I punch his arm.
"Ohhh screw off" I say before going to the elevator of the bunker.
"Now are we gonna get to work or what?" I say and he slowly makes his way over.
"Yea yea" he says pulling the lever.
"Ohhh during the excitement of earlier I almost forgot!" I say and he jumps a little at the sudden raise in my voice.
I take my backpack off my shoulder and I open it, handing him a quilt.
"I-is that?" He questions reaching out for it.
"Uhh yea remember when I found those photos you kept of your grandma?" I ask and he nods.
"Well I remembered seeing one where she was holding you, with the quilt around you both and well..." I smile as I try to decipher how he's feeling about it.
"W-why did you?" He says completely at a loss for words.
"Cause...I know you lost it a little while ago, so I decided to make a new one for the memory of when we met" I shrug.
"Ever since I met you, you showed me that I am never ever alone in this cruel, screwed up world...and I know that you will always have my back.
"I don't know what to say umm...thank you" he says smiling.
"Still you should have spend more time helping me with the bunker then making it" he quickly scolds and I rolls my eyes.
"Don't flatter yourself it didn't take me long to make..." I lie as I look at the red and yellow quilt with the words seize the day sewed into it.
It took 12 hours of just learning how to even sew to begin with, as well as many bandages later since I constantly kept accidentally stabbing myself in the process of making it, but I don't know why I just had a lot of determination in me to remake it.
" ha still" he says and we make our way over to the work bench to see what else we need to do to make the bunker more secure. We begin discussing possible projects or plans for what we wanna do, joking around here and there when all of a sudden, we heard pounding on Branch's bunker.
"Huh who can that be?" I question and he chuckles.
"Do you really need to ask I thought you could taste the glitter when she shows herself" I mentally slap myself across the face for letting myself get caught off guard as Poppy continued to pound on the door.
Branch chuckles and sighs before making his way back up the bunker with me following behind him, as he opens the peep hole to see Poppy.
"What do you want, I told you I wasn't going to your party" he complains and I tilt my head, there was a party?
"The party is over, we were attacked by a Bergen!" Me and Branch look at each other and say simultaneously, "We told you so" before he grabs her arm and pulls her in before rushing to set up all the precautions.
I grab Poppy's arm pulling her with me to the back of the bunker and I cover her mouth to keep her from speaking, but she stubbornly licks my hand and I quickly pull it back.
"What can be so important..." I quietly growl as Branch backs his way up to us setting the last trap.
"The Bergen's are gone" she tries to explain and Branch cuts her off.
"You don't know that..." he says and she jumps up.
" I do know it took all our friends" I scoff, "our friends?"
"Yea, anyway Poppy, their your friends" branch says agreeing with me.
"Our friends!! But besides the point..." she takes a deep breath.
"I need your help Branch to save everyone and bring them back.
My jaw drops at her ridiculous request.
"Uhhh noo thanks I'd rather stay here and NOT be eaten thank you" he says crossing his arms.
"But Branch please" she begs and I just sit awkwardly watching the scene unfold.
"No, maybe this will teach you to listen to me next time I warn you about the bergens" he sighs and she grabs his arm giving him the sad puppy dog eyes.
"Please Branch I need you" she says and I don't know why but in this moment, I wanted to throw Mrs. Sunshine out of this bunker, but at the same time I feel bad for her.
"...I-i" I cut branch off and say, "I will help" they turn to me, shock present in their faces and at the same time they both say.
"YOU WILL!?"
