As Real as it Gets

Vacation and Relaxation (Chapter 6, Part 8)

Beth, Jerry and the kids came over to you in the parks. "Oh god, was that the talking tree?" Summer asked, sadness in her voice.

Rick took your hands in his, "Are you okay, Babe? I can carry you if you want."

You whipped a tear from your cheek, "I'll be okay. Let's get to the Space Port before dark."

-

A strong wind started blowing as you were making your way through the hills and meadows. Rick instinctively wrapped his arm around you to make sure you don't lose balance and fall over. "We're almost there!" he said.

Stepping in front of a small orange building, the wind finally calmed down. You got inside and Rick bought you all a ticket. Another door opened and outside you were met with a huge metal galaxy cruise ship. It left you in awe. People were standing in line and walking through what looked like a scanner.

Beth and Jerry walked through the said scanner, then Morty and Summer. You stepped through, "Go ahead." A short green alien directed you to the ship. 

You turned around and waited for Rick. He stepped in the scanner, but the whole thing started flashing bright red and a deafening alarm went off. The screen on the side said 'Maximum threat.' "Oh, Fuck me! Not again!" Rick growled. Metal hands came out from the sides and grabbed him by both his arms and legs.

"Woah! Hey! What are you doing?!" you panicked.

"He has above class C cybernetic augmentations." The green alien spoke, "He needs to be neutralized."

"What does that mean? What will you do to him?" you questioned. Jerry was heard laughing in the background, but you found nothing funny about this situation.

A syringe came out and injected a dark blue liquid into Rick's neck, he yelped in pain. "Synaptic dampener blocks all violent tendencies and controversial thought. He will now be an ideal passenger!" the alien said.

"Rick, Honey, are you okay?" you stepped closer to him and cupped his face as soon as the metal arms released him.

"I'm nooott! Brain hurty again!" he held his hand on his forehead.

"The fuck is this?!" you yelled at the short alien.

"Don't worry, ma'am. It'll wear off in six hours."

You took Rick's hand and walked up the stairs into the space ship with the family following you close behind. There was a big, long room with a lot of comfortable seats. Beth and Jerry sat down, the kids sat next to them and you sat with Rick on the seats across.

You noticed Rick was drooling a bit so you grabbed a tissue from a box that was located on a small table next to you. When he turned to you to wipe his face, you also noticed that one of his eyes was looking in the wrong direction, making him look derpy as all hell.

"How are you feeling, Honey?" you said with concern.

"I'm hungryyy... I want- chimichangas!" he smiled like a toddler.

You nodded, "I don't know if they have human food here, but I will ask." You stood up and asked if anyone else wanted something to eat.

"Oh no, I'm too on edge to even think about food right now, but thank you." Beth said and the kids agreed.

"I'll be right back, okay?" you smiled at Rick.

"Okaay!" He drooled some more, "I looovee youu!!"

"I love you too." You said before you went off to find the restaurant, or the kitchen, or a staff member.

-

After a while of wandering around the ship, you finally managed to find the dining area. You grabbed a tray and a plate with some cutlery and started walking around to see what the space-ship had to offer. A nice chef lady directed you to the section of the buffet with the food that closest resembled the one you tried to describe to her. There weren't any chimichangas though, but you did find something that looked appetizing. You took a little bite and were pleasantly surprised.

You said goodbye to the chef lady and went back to your seating area. A smirking Jerry and a grumpy Rick with crossed arms caught your attention as soon as you walked over. Beth and the kids weren't there so you were left alone with the 'grown men.'

"What happened?" you asked either of them.

"He's being mean to me!" Rick said and pointed his finger at Jerry, "He's making fun of me."

Jerry raised his hands in fear when you gave him an stern look, "I wasn't! I swear!"

You placed the tray on the table and met Rick's gaze with a soft expression, "Tell me what happened."

"He- he called me a stupid piece of shit and- and said that you don't actually love me and that you're going to leave me and I told him that's not true, but he kept saying it!"

"He said... what?" you turned to the middle-aged man with a gaze that would strike fear into the core of anyone's bones.

Jerry was visibly starting to sweat, "I'm sorry, that sounded a little rough, but I didn't mean anythi- "

"Yeah, yeah. Tell your excuses to Rick when he's back to normal and see how he's going to react." You spoke sternly, "Jerry, I don't like to be mean, but some things just grind my gears more than others. You seem so brave now that he's unable to talk back, but I wanna see you try that when those six hours are up. You won't, because you're not brave, you just like to pretend you are."

Jerry stayed silent. You turned your attention back to Rick to gave him his tray and sat next to him. Soon after that Beth and the kids returned from their little ship exploration trip.