AAOOOSC! Wheatie Bits!

E. 7. "Swapping Powers" (1/6)

June 2017
A few days later...

"I'm so excited!" Kale exclaims.

He is in the dining room of his humble home in Brandon, Manitoba, munching on a plate of waffles.

Next to him, Reid is decked out in Canadian colours, including red and white sunglasses, a hat made up of a caricature moose's head, and the Canadian flag as a cape. "Because it's one day closer to Canada Day!" He pumps two bottles of maple syrup up into the air.

Kale chuckles at his enthusiasm toward their home country while cutting into his waffles. "Well, yeah, there's that, but also because it's day one of development camp!" He drops his utensils at the thought of playing in an NHL organization. "I'm so excited to play with the Kings again!"

Reid leans closer to him, throwing his pointer finger in the air. "It's the Golden Knights first-ever development camp!" He immediately straightens up and becomes frozen, completely astonished. "Whoooaaa."

"Hey, that's pretty cool!" Kale pops a piece of his waffle into his mouth and swallows. "Makin' history, eh?"

Reid whirls back to him, snapping from his trance. "More like WRITING history!" He snatches a napkin, pulls out a pen from his pocket, and writes the word history.

"See?" He lifts up the napkin to show his friend his pun. "I just wrote history!"

Kale instantly cracks a smile before laughing. "Hahahahaaa!"

Another person approaches the laughing defenceman. He stares down at him with an energy bowl containing a purple-coloured smoothie sprinkled with chopped fruit and seeds in his hands.

"What?" Nolan Patrick brusquely asks him.

Reid delightfully holds his punny napkin over Kale and up at the forward. "I wrote history because I'm in the first Golden Knights development camp!"

Nolan simply rolls his eyes before settling himself down next to Kale.

Kale begins calming himself down, taking in deep breaths while attempting to decrease his large smile.

Reid cracks a kooky grin at his response. "Hey, bad puns is how eye roll. I roll." He rolls his eyes playfully. "Eye roll." He then points across the table at him. "Get it?"

With that, Kale is launched into another fit of laughter.

On the other hand, Nolan appears utterly annoyed. "Make a pun out of this!" He leans across the table and slaps him across the face.

Reid immediately spins toward the direction of the strike, knocking off his sunglasses and hat.

"Ohhh man," Kale forces out wearily, slumping his chair. "I can never get tired of those...!" With a big inhale, he pulls himself back up to a straightened position. "Okay, whew!"

He then turns to Nolan, spotting him occupied with his breakfast. "Okay, um, aren't you, Pat, excited about development camp?" He returns to his waffles.

Nolan's eyes immediately sparkle at the idea of participating in an NHL camp. "Obviously, I am! It's my first NHL development camp. Now I can prove to everyone that I am second-pick worthy." He daintily takes in a spoonful of his smoothie.

Reid turns to him with raised eyebrows, wearing his accessories once again. "Not first-pick?"

The forward's eyes immediately turn sharp, narrowing at the other forward. "No, because a mistake was made before me in the draft, you dimwit!" He reaches out to smack him once again, yet Kale instantly distractions him:

"I hope I can prove that I can be on the Kings roster." He lets out a heavy sigh with sad eyes on his plate of half-eaten waffles. "Why am I not bigger?"

Nolan uses his raised hand to revert its direction to Kale. "You're not the smallest one out there—"

"I'm the smallest defenseman on the Kings," Kale states, turning to him with a dejected expression. "I really am."

"At least not in the league!" Reid is heard explaining from behind him.

Kale flicks his debilitated eyes at him. "I wouldn't doubt it..." He slumps in his chair.

Nolan gives him a subtle sympathetic expression with a slight frown and raised eyebrows. "I would sympathize with you, but I'm taller, so I can't relate." He continues eating his breakfast.

Kale shoots him an unamused expression. "Thanks for the effort."

Nolan then promptly places his spoon in his empty bowl. "Well, with that" —he rises to his feet, displaying his tall height— "I shall go!" He begins sashaying toward the kitchen. "I can't be late for my first day of camp!"

After placing his bowl and spoon in the sink, he whirls around and struts through the dining room to the living room, toward the front door.

Kale follows him with his eyes, now only able to see his back. "Bye, Pat." He straightens himself and gives him a quick wave.

"Bye-bye Doctor Pat!" Reid bellows, shaking two mini Canadian flags in the air. "Have fun!"

Nolan opens the door and twirls around to face his two friends. "Thank you!" He flashes them his large, dazzling smile. "Same to you! Toodles!" With that, he slips behind the door and closes it behind him.