Chapter eight - Discovery

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As per Mr. Burns' request, Smithers took the next day off due to his stress caused by Sideshow Bob. He stayed at home with Hercules, his dog, and watched terrible soap operas. Not once had he gotten a single notification, let alone call on his phone, and it was slightly driving him mad. He was used to being busy, and active socially, at least online, but everything seemed so . . .  empty.

Mr. Burns had decided he was alright on his own for a day, and decided against hiring a temporary substitute. Going through paperwork was a task that only Smithers seemed to be able to handle, and Burns had soon succeeded at accidently tearing two pieces of paper apart in annoyance.

"Damnit," he murmured, searching for a stapler within the confines of his desk. After a few minutes of searching he threw up his hands in defeat. "Well, Smithers is bound to have one --- he does this kind of thing every day."

Mr. Burns got up from his desk, and made his way to Smithers'. Rummaging around his desk, Mr. Burns opened drawers, and mini - cabinets, but no stapler was found. He opened the last drawer on the bottom right, glancing over the contents. There was no stapler, but a piece of paper with his name on it caught his eye. He picked it up with curiosity, and squinted at the slightly messy and small writing.

"Ugh, I need my reading glasses . . ."

Mr. Burns took the piece of paper back to his desk, disregarding the lost stapler, pulled out his reading glasses, and sat down.

His eyes skimmed over the paper, and his eyes widened within the first few sentences:

Monty,

It's been a little while since I've written you another letter.

"Another letter?" Mr. Burns quizzed aloud. He shook his head from the confusion and continued.

There is currently the possibility . . .  of losing my job. You can't do that to me, Monty.

Mr. Burns scowled. How informal.

I honestly don't know what to do at this point . . .  you've never paid me any attention, and I'm starting to wonder; is this even worth it? I mean sure, love can be a wonderful, wonderful feeling, but if you've truly ever been in love, you'll know it can be so painful. I'm sorry. I really don't know what to do anymore.

-Waylon

Mr. Burns shook his head to calm himself down. Love? What did he mean by "love"? Surely, Smithers wasn't in love with him, was he? No, he couldn't be! And he never explicitly said that he did. It was probably irrelevant. Yes, that was what he would tell himself. Of course Smithers wasn't in love with him!

Mr. Burns carefully returned the paper to Smithers' desk, making sure nothing looked tampered with. He then returned, not even bothering with the stapler, and continued the paperwork.


A/N: Oof, and thus the main plot begins! Please feel free to vote and comment, and as always, thank you so much for reading!
-C

(Image credit: MissNeens, Deviant Art)

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