AAOOOSC!: Gulls' Adventures!

After the game, the four roommates are back at the Monarossabergie House. They are about to have a lavish Swedish dinner with salmon, potato pancakes, and cucumber salad. It is a dinner well deserved!

Making eye contact with his three roommates, Max exclaims, “For the win as a new team!” He raises his glass of apple cider up in the air. “Skål!” Cheers!

Brandon, Joseph, and Nick raise their glasses of apple cider up in the air and with eye contact, they exclaim: “SKOL!”

They clink their glasses together in the air, lower them down to take a sip, and then begin digging into their plates.

Silence takes over the dining table with the exceptions of the silverware clanking against the porcelain plates and the chewing of food.

Max peers at his fellow teammates enjoying his food as he is chewing. He then swallows and begins to speak. “A goal for Brandon!” He points his fork at Brandon, who is gazing at Max with a confused look from his plate. “A hat trick for Nicholas!” He reverts his fork at Nick, who isn’t even phased that his name was said.

Max looks at all three of them. “Amazing!” He has a proud smile on his face with rosy cheeks.

“I got hits,” Joseph tells him haughtily while pushing a piece of salmon onto his fork.

“Not a goal,” Brandon cuts in with the same expression.

Joseph reverts his gaze at him. His eyes narrow. “I’ll get one soon.” He eyes an oblivious Nick. “Maybe even more than just one.”

Max pats his shoulder. “In due time, Joseph, in due time.”

Nick finally perks up from his eating. He turns to Joseph and tells him matter-of-factly, “Scoring is not that hard. You just look at where you want to shoot at and shoot.”

Joseph stares hard at him with a murderous mien. “I can’t believe I have to be stuck in this team for the rest of the season…,” he grumbles under his breath. He then quickly turns back to his food.

“If we work together, we’ll be a great team,” Max exclaims with his eyes on Brandon and Nick. “All for one and one for all!” He peers down at Joseph, who is extremely close to his plate. “Including you, Joseph!”

Joseph snaps his eyes up at him. “Yeah…”

Max turns back to the two. “Well, did you guys enjoy the dinner?” He places his interlaced fingers on his desk with a sweet smile.

Nick holds his cleared plate out at Max. “Can I have fifths?”

Max forces a pitiful frown. “Oh, I’m afraid that’s all I cooked.”

“Awwww…” Nick peers down sadly at his empty plate.

Joseph has his heavy-lidded eyes at the bear. “What? It’s not like as if you already ate ninety-nine percent of the dinner.”

Brandon turns to him with wide eyes. “Joey…!”

Joseph faces Brandon with a more crossed expression. “He needs to learn not take all of my food.”

“You cooked this food?” Brandon points his fork at the plate with raised eyebrows.

“I—” Joseph halts in his statement, processing that Brandon’s point has been well proven. The problem is that he does not want to admit it. Naturally. “It’s late, I’m going to bed.” He pushes himself away from the table, gets up, and storms off into the living room, disappearing around the foyer.

Nick peers at the other two. “Oh, I wanna go to bed too... Good night guys.” He then puts his plate down, pulls out from between the table and the chair, and lumbers off.

Now it is only the two formal Admiral players. They are sitting across from each other in silence. The room is illuminated by the light from above the table and the numerous lamps in the living room.

Brandon picks at his food with his hand holding head. He then flicks his eyes up at Max, spotting him finishing up his plate. “Maxi?”

Max halts moving his fork and knife. His blue eyes are on. “Yes, Brandon?”

“Why is Joey so rude toward Nicky?” Brandon straightens up, dropping the utensils on his plate.

Max purses his thin lips together in thought. Then: “I suppose I don’t know…” Following a shrug, he collects the dirty plates and utensils, stands up, and frisks over to the kitchen.

Brandon follows Max to the sink with his wide eyes. “You’re not going to…?”

Max dumps the dishes into the sink and turns his head to him. “What?” He swiftly switches the faucet on, picks up a dish with one hand, a soapy sponge with another, and begins washing the dishes.

Brandon has his eyes lost in Max’s dishwashing movements. “You’re not going to back him up?”

“Joseph?” Max asks without missing a beat of his dish washing.

Brandon snaps out his daze and perks ahead at Max. “No, Nicky.”

Max silently rubs the last plate clean and places it into the other section of the sink. He then states formally, “I think he can manage on his own.” He flicks the faucet off, pulls the dish towel out from the edge of the countertop, and throws it next to the sink.

He turns to Brandon. “I must go to bed now. Good night, Brandon.” He then promptly strides out of the kitchen, pass Brandon, through the living room, and disappears behind the foyer.

Brandon is now all alone in the front of the house. He sighs, drumming his fingers on the table’s surface with one hand while supporting his head with his other hand.

He sighs. “Where to sleep tonight…,” he mumbles. “I’m not even tired…” He then perks up as an idea enters his mind. “You know what?” He slowly stands up with a heroic mien. “I WILL FIND THAT BEDROOM.”

He then sprints off.

Brandon zips around the underlit one-story house, searching in every nook and cranny with determination: from the kitchen to the dining room to the living room to the foyer to the closet to the bathroom to the rec room, even the patio, floor panels, and ceiling.

Yet there is no sign of another room.

With a dispirited sigh, Brandon trudges back to his former bedroom. He slowly pushes the ajar door open and ambles in. He has the silly hope of his bed being unoccupied, yet once he passes the bend, he spots Nick peacefully slumbering in it.

Brandon turns away from the sight and gazes around the moonlight-lit room with pity that he has no bed. Suddenly, something glinting high up from the top left of his vision catches his eye. He spins around, his eyes landing on a silver handle protruding from the bend above the opened door.

With a face showing peculiar interest, Brandon slowly steps up to the handle. His head is craned up in order to have his eyes fixed on it. He tilts his head and thinks, ‘What is that for?’ His eyes then travel down, catching a similar glint that is to his eye level, between the bend and the door.

He pads over to it, noticing that it is partially concealed by the opened door. So he gently pushes the door away, revealing a ladder embedded in the wall.

“Huh…” he breathes out. His eyes travel up with his head as he follows where the ladder leads to: The ladder stops once it is parallel to the ceiling fan, leaving the climber to enter through a vertical, rectangular space in the wall.

Brandon glances at the ladder, then its handles, then up at the hole in the wall. With a nod of his head, he places his foot on the first step of the ladder, then heaves himself off the floor with the help of the handles. Step by step, he scales the wall until he reaches the top of the summit: the darkness.

He goes on his hands and knees through the passageway, crawling on a texture that is fluffy, strong, bouncy, and cool.

His eyes widen with joy at the familiarity of the touch: it’s the touch of a mattress!

Brandon runs his hands over the silky mattress, feeling its position. He detects that the mattress is laying out below him vertically, so in the position he is in, he lays himself on top of it.

Sure there are no pillows or blankets included, but with a happy sigh, Brandon drifts off into a pleasurable sleep on a genuine bed.


The End.

Notes

E.1 "Welcome To America's Finest City!"
Part 6/6
Episode 1/20