The Gift: A TAWOG Story

Chapter 7: The Contemplation

Gumball swirled a spoon into his ice cream at Dinner Diner in the lower level of Elmore Mall. He rested his cheek on his other paw, and from the look on his face and his lack of talking, his girlfriend Penny sitting right across from him could tell that something was wrong.

"Is something on your mind, Gumball?" asked the glowing yellow fairy. Gumball had to keep his venture with his mom last night a secret, but he had to convey what he was thinking about somehow. He finally whipped up a question that would avoid spilling the beans.

"Can I ask you something, Penny?" said Gumball.

"Sure, anything," replied Penny, ensuring Gumball she was there for him.

"This might sound totally random, but, how come you instantly wake up whenever you die in a dream?" Penny looked at Gumball for a second, holding onto her burger.

"I can tell you the answer," Penny replied. "It's simply because your mind doesn't know what it's like to experience death, how it feels. That's why you're forced awake whenever you like, get shot or fall down a cliff in your dream or something like that. Did you have a bad dream, last night?"

"No, I was just curious," said Gumball.

"Because just the other night, I had a dream where a supernatural serial killer came into my room and stabbed me. I was so scared. The last I saw was the tip of the knife, and poof, I was wide awake. I looked around and realized I was all alone in my room and that I just had a bad dream." Gumball took a minute to process what Penny had just told him.

"Why would you have a dream like that?" asked Gumball. Penny just shrugged her shoulders to tell him she had not a clue why. "Any other examples?"

"Yeah," replied Penny. "I was gonna say, it's not just death. It can be loud noises or surprises too. Like, one time, I was out in the grocery store parking lot. This was another dream by the way. There were very dark gray clouds over me, and the wind picked up. All of a sudden, the scariest sounding tornado siren went off right above my head. I was so frightened by that noise I woke up. I still wonder what exactly was it my brain was trying to tell me. You know how you get that feeling when you wake up from a really weird dream and wonder if it's really your brain trying to tell you something?"

"Oh boy, do I," replied Gumball. "Well, I do know you've never liked loud noises. I mean, why else would you not go to basketball games at school if it weren't for the scoreboard buzzer?"

"Have you ever had a dream that startled you awake, Gumball?" asked Penny as she finished her burger. "Anything, like, really scary?" Gumball was so hesitant, because the first dream that came to mind was the recurring one he had where he tried to ask his mom why she was born the way she was, so 'evil.' At least now, Gumball had the answer to that nonsensical dream, but still, he was so embarrassed to tell Penny.

"Well, um," began Gumball. "Uh...," he looked down. Penny could tell one had come to his mind but he just did not want to share it.

"Well, what is it?" said Penny. "Tell me, Gumball."

"Look, I... I don't wanna talk about it, alright?" said Gumball.

"Gumball, I hope you know I would never laugh at you. She grabbed his paw over the table. "We know we always share with each other, no matter how embarrassing, I promise, you are always safe with me." Gumball hesitated, but then looked at his girlfriend right in her fairy eyes, and then proceeded. He told her about the recurring dream he had about his mother. He finished there, very careful to omit the part about actually exploring a dream with his mother. Penny took a moment to process what Gumball had told her.

"Maybe it's your brain trying to convey how you feel about your mom," said Penny. "She can be very strict. I've seen it. Not to mention, I hope you know I felt sorry for you when I found out about your mom going savage in the grocery store."