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“So will you show up?” PKO leaned over KOs shoulder.
“I don’t know.”
“I think you should.”
“Why? Why should I go? I don't want to see Rad and Enid again, and i don't want to properly meet the new bodega employees-”
“Why not?” silence hung in the air as KO tried to think of a reason.
“I don't know!” KO suddenly burst out, exasperated.
“Sounds like a good reason to go to me.”
“I dont know.” PKO’s robotic fingers slightly twitched. After a moment of contemplation, he spoke.
“Can I show you something? Something I haven't shown Fink, Dendy, not even Dad or Boxman.”
“You better not show me some sort of human testing lab or something.” KO half-joked, though not putting it past PKO.
“No, no! Nothing like that.” PKO shook his head.
“Fine. lead the way.” KO stood up, shoving the letter into his pocket. He followed PKO through the halls, into a wing he had never explored before, much less paid attention to.
“I purposefully made this hallway look as uninteresting as possible using mathematical confirmation. For example, this type and shade of beige on the wall was engineered to be as boring and grueling to look at as possible. Same with this type of light, this type of tile… you know.”
“Damn PKO, what’s even in here?” KO shook his head as he came to a stop as PKO reached a plain white door. PKO took his lanyard and held it up to the keyhole. The door beeped as the doorknob folded into the door. The door shot up, like it was a standard metal one. It led into another room. More like a closet. “What, you gonna murder me?” KO laughed.
“Noooo.” PKO jokingly responded, pretending to hide something behind his back. “But no, this wall is actually a door.” He moved a pile of boxes to reveal a keypad. He inputted a code that even KO couldn't see. The wall seemed to open somehow and KO stepped through it. It was the Glorb sanctuary! Or rather, somewhere that looked like it. Replacing the one big tree from the original was rows and rows of little Glorb trees. They looked like saplings, hardly. Though, Glorbs still came from the trees.
“Oh wow.. Who have you told about this?”
“Like I said, nobody. I’ve been working on this project ever since I started living here. Granted, I could only start the actual gardening process after Fink and I inherited the building. Now that Dad and Boxman are at that vacation house, I can do whatever I please.”
“So, nepotism?”
“Suck the fun right out it, why don't you? Anyways, I plan to show this to Rosalina and Rosetta on their 13th birthdays!”
“They’re 8.”
“Exactly! It’ll be much more mighty by then.”
“So this is where you’ve been getting all your glorbs from.. I thought you'd just been consistently raiding the Glorb tree under the Bodega.” KO shrugged. PKO chuckled. They both stared at the Glorbs in front of them. The water extracted from the sanctuary peacefully waded. The sound of the iridescent Glorbs filled the room, though usually places were too loud to even hear them. “I think I'll go.”
“What?”
“I think I'll go to that dinner after all.”
“Alright. Close the door on your way out.” PKO nodded as KO left.
—————————————————
“Do you think he’s not gonna come?” TKO said quickly.
“Relax, TKO. if he doesn't come, he doesn't come.” Enid spoke calmly.
“Plus, if he did come, he would just bring the whole place down. You remember how he was.” Rad rolled his eyes.
“Rad, stop.” Enid elbowed Rad.
“I’ve never seen Mr Kincaid this worked up.” Charlie mumbled.
“If your brother was a villain, you’d be worked up too.” Ethan leaned on Charlie.
“Yeah but.. He’s usually all gruff and no-nonsense.”
“Family does things to people. Sometimes you just gotta roll with it. Or cut them off or something I don't know.”
“That was almost good advice.”
“TKO.” a voice from behind them spoke, causing all 5 people in the group to turn to look at the source. “Uh.. Rad, Enid.. Employees.” It was KO. TKO stepped forward, unsure whether to extend his arms for a hug or a hit. It seemed KO didn’t know either, as he slowly opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out. TKO choked back tears as he cleared his throat.
“err… rad enid, can you take the Bodega Men to our table..?”
“Gotcha. We’ll come get you in five minutes.” Enid started walking backwards as she reassured TKO, holding a thumbs-up on both of her hands, both employees following suit. KO craned his head around to make sure they were out of earshot, but TKO spoke before KO could.
“I’m sorry.”
“What?”
“I’m sorry. For all of it. For.. for leaving you out all the time, for shoving my workload on you all the time... and I'm sorry for being a jerk for like, ten years. I’m- i’m not asking you to forgive me, hell- not even to accept my apology! I just want you to know that I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done any of that, no matter how misguided I was.” KO looked at TKO- his brother- in slight shock.
“If you told me this yesterday, I would have spat in your face.” TKO shrunk, believing KO to be angry, however KO hugged him instead. “But it’s not yesterday.”
“I am so, so sorry.”
“It- it was just hard, you know? I didn’t have any friends- or- or anything like that. And mom was always telling me to ‘be myself’ but I didn't even know who ‘myself’ was. But I do now.” KO pulled away from the hug, but was caught off guard by TKO being slightly misty-eyed. “Are you crying?”
“No let's go to the table ok?” As he wiped his not-tears, TKO led KO to the table they were sitting at, where past friends sat. “Bodegamen, I don't think I've introduced you two to my brother, KO.”
KO smiled as he sat down. He was home.