On Kindness

Chapter 16

Stop moping! Spring break's almost over," Boomer complained, shoving a pillow into Brick's face. When Brick failed to respond, Boomer began hitting him. "I'm hitting you! Doesn't this make you angry? Don't you wanna punch me? Oh hey! What about your job?"

Brick mumbled something about having asked for the whole week off, so Boomer continued bothering his brother, "C'mon do something! Don't just sit there!"

"Give it up, Boomer. The guy's probably in a coma," Butch yelled, going through the fridge. "I still don't understand why he's so depressed."

"Weren't you there at the beach yourself? Why're you asking me?"

"You think I pay attention to that stuff? All I know is that Buttercup did not actually beat me. I hadn't eaten enough and I wasn't playing at my best, okay?"

"Dude, get over it. So she beat you."

"She did not beat me!" Butch howled, chucking a jar of mayonnaise at Boomer, who easily dodged.

"You're cleaning that up," Boomer shook his head.

"Whatever. So what happened?"

"Well Brick has a little crush on Bubbles–"

"The Powerpuff? Oh God, that's just weird."

"Eh, I'm not gonna judge. Well, Kelly told me–"

"Who the fuck is Kelly?"

"A girl from the party. I got her number," Boomer grinned, pointing to a piece of paper littered with phone numbers. "Although I'm not actually sure which one's hers..."

"Get on with it," Butch growled.

"So apparently Brick was kissing her sister–"

"What the fuck is wrong with our brother? I use to respect him for being the tough leader, you know?"

"Aww, Butch, you respected him?" Boomer cooed. "Hey Brick, Butch respects you, isn't that cute?" Boomer petted Brick's head, just narrowly dodging a jar of salsa.

"But now he's just like you."

"Hey! Despite your tone of voice, I will take that as a compliment," Boomer said haughtily. "Anyway, Bubbles got mad, flew home. Then Brick went to their place a few days ago and tried to apologize and Bubbles refused to talk to him and Buttercup beat him up–"

"She didn't beat me up," Brick interjected.

"Brick, it's okay to admit she beat you up. I understand– your wounded heart has weakened you," Boomer said sympathetically.

"Boomer, I will beat the living crap out of you. She said, 'I would throw you in a fire and toss you to the sharks, but I won't, because unfortunately there's no fire. And Blossom doesn't want me arrested.'"

"Then what happened?"

"I tried to talk to Bubbles, but she completely refused. Then Blossom told me that she'd try to explain everything to Bubbles, and that she was sorry."

"Guys, this is pathetic," Butch mumbled. "We're the fucking Rowdyruff Boys, and Brick is in a coma-like state, and Boomer is gossiping like an old lady."

"Hey!" Boomer objected.

"I have an idea that might cheer you both up," Butch offered.

–––

Ten minutes later, the three boys were standing inside Mojo's old observatory tower. Having been unused for years, everything inside had gathered a thin layer of dust, and cobwebs filled every nook and cranny. Caution tape and danger signs had been posted around the edge of the tower and the general area was deserted.