Darwin walked out of the school and toward the playground tree. Penny followed. Darwin looked up into the tree branches. All he saw were leaves. “Gumball!” Darwin cried. “Are you still there?”
“Maybe,” answered Gumball.
“Are you going to come down? School’s over!”
"Is Penny there?"
Darwin looked behind him. Penny stood there, looking expectantly at Darwin.
“Yes,” admitted Darwin. He waved Penny back. She coughed, shrugged, and took three steps away.
“How about now?” asked Gumball.
“She’s still here, but a little farther back,” Darwin said.
“Not good enough,” said Gumball.
Penny coughed again, shrugged again, and took three more steps backward.
“How about now?” asked Gumball.
“Still here,” Darwin admitted. Penny rolled her eyes, turned, and started to skip off before she stopped.
“I hope he comes down soon,” she said. “Bye, Gumball!” she shouted to the tree. “I’ll see you tomorrow, I hope.”
“Not if I see you first,” said Gumball, but in a soft voice that Penny didn’t hear before she skipped away.
Darwin called up. “Okay. Penny’s gone.”
“I better stay here in case she comes back.”
"When will you come down?"
“Maybe never?”
Darwin sat at the bottom of the tree. All the other students headed for home, and so did the teachers. The minutes continued to tick by. “Mrs. Mom will be worried if we don’t come home soon,” Darwin warned.
“It’s safer up here,” said Gumball.
Darwin continued to wait.
Much later, Rocky Robinson walked up. He held an ax. “Excuse me, dude,” he said to Darwin. “I have to cut down this tree. Assistant Principal Brown’s orders.”
“Gumball! You’d better come down!” cried Darwin, standing up and then stepping away.
Gumball didn’t answer.
Rocky swung the ax.
THWUNK! The heavy steel blade dug into the bark. Wood chips flew.
“I mean it!” yelled Darwin to Gumball.
THWUNK! THWUNK! THWUNK!
Wood splinters flew as Rocky chopped away at the tree trunk. Darwin bit his lip. Then Rocky gave the ax one last mighty swing. The tree wobbled, wiggled, and then toppled over with a thunderous CRASH!
“Timber!” yelled Rocky.
“I think you’re supposed to say that before the tree falls,” said Darwin.
“Thanks for the tip, dude.” Rocky grabbed a branch and dragged the tree away.
“Are you going to come out now?” Darwin yelled at the tree as Rocky headed to the Dumpsters.
“No, I’m good,” shouted Gumball from the depths of the branches.
Back in his room that night, Gumball cowered under the covers of his bed. Darwin poked at him. “Come on, Gumball. Stop hiding.”
“But Penny might see me.”
“No, she won’t. She’s not even here.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes. Besides, you locked the door and then dragged your desk in front of it. No one can come in.”
Gumball peeked out from under the covers.
“You need to get a grip on yourself,” pleaded Darwin.
“Good idea.” Gumball gripped his arm and squeezed as hard as he could.
“Not that sort of grip,” said Darwin. “You need to get a grip on how you’re acting around Penny.”
“Oh,” said Gumball as he let go of his arm. “But how?”
“I have an idea,” Darwin declared. He unzipped the gym bag that lay by his feet. He pulled out a long light-brown dress. He slipped it on. It was almost the color of a peanut.
“Why are you wearing Mom’s dress?” asked Gumball.
Darwin dug into the gym bag again and removed the top of a coatrack. He balanced it on his head. It sort of looked like antlers.
“We’ll pretend I’m Penny, and you can talk to me,” said Darwin. “Then you’ll see how easy it is, and you’ll be able to talk to her at school. Then you’ll have confidence!”
Gumball stared at Darwin. His eyes widened. He shivered. When he spoke, he stammered. “P-Penny? Is that y-you?” Gumball screamed and flung himself under his bedcovers.
Darwin sighed and removed the coatrack from his head. He yanked on the bedcovers, but Gumball held them tightly over his head. Darwin heaved. Gumball held. After a few back-and-forth yanks, Gumball’s fingers finally slipped and the covers flew off of him. Darwin tumbled backward and the bedspread landed on his head.
“Help! It’s a ghost!” cried Gumball. “A ghost that looks like my bedspread!”
Darwin lifted the sheet off his head. “It’s just me. But we have to do something. You can’t go on like this. You have no confidence at all.”
“If I had my hat, things would be different,” insisted Gumball.
“We just have to get you over your nervousness around Penny.”
From downstairs, their mother called for them. “Gumball! Darwin! Dinner’s ready.”
Gumball dove under his bed.
“It’s only Mrs. Mom,” said Darwin. “You don’t need to be scared of her.”
Gumball slithered out from under the bottom bunk. “I thought it might be Penny disguising her voice.”
Darwin walked across the room, where the desk blocked the door. He pushed it, but it didn’t move. “Can you help me move the desk back? It’s really heavy, and we should go down to eat.”
Gumball walked over to the desk and knocked on it.
“What are you doing?” asked Darwin.
“Just making sure it’s not Penny disguised as a desk,” explained Gumball as Darwin rolled his eyes.
Gumball wouldn’t enter the kitchen until Darwin assured him that Penny was not there. He sat down on his chair, ready to hide his head under a napkin at the slightest sign of trouble.
Get a grip! Gumball said to himself, squeezing his arm. As the family ate their spaghetti and meatballs, his knees shook.
“Anything wrong, dear?” asked his mom. Gumball hadn’t touched dinner again.
“Gumball has no confidence,” Darwin explained.
Gumball’s mom lowered her fork. She patted her husband on the back. “Look at your father, Gumball. You can learn a lot from him.”
Gumball’s dad shoveled three meatballs into his mouth, swallowed, burped, and wiped his mouth with his shirtsleeve. He put his arm around his son’s shoulders. “Do you want to know the secret to my confidence?” Gumball nodded. Mr. Watterson pointed to the red woolen cap he always wore. “It’s my lucky cap. Nothing can go wrong when you’re wearing a hat. You should get your own.”
Gumball leaned back in his chair and groaned.
The next day, Gumball hid inside a bush at the edge of the school playground. It was a small bush, and Gumball’s head stuck out.
“Let’s go talk to our friends,” said Darwin, pointing to the group of kids across the yard. He tugged on Gumball’s arm.
“No! Penny’s there! Go away!” cried Gumball.
“Actually, Penny's over there,” said Darwin, pointing in the opposite direction. She stood in a circle near the monkey bars with Carrie Krueger, Teri, Masami, Tina, and some of the other girls. “We won’t go near her. I promise.”
“Good.”
But then Gumball shrieked and pointed. Penny! Seeing Gumball looking at her, she waved to them and started walking over. “Hi, Gumball!” she cried out.
Gumball turned purple, then yellow, and then green. If only he had hid in a bigger bush! He looked at Darwin. It was his only chance.
Gumball leaped up and dove inside Darwin’s open mouth.
It was dark and cramped inside Darwin, and smelled like the oatm
eal they had both eaten for breakfast. Gumball kicked and elbowed his brother’s internal organs until they stretched just enough for Gumball to fit comfortably inside.
“Hi, Penny!” Gumball’s voice tumbled out of Darwin’s mouth.
“Hi, Darwin,” said Penny, who didn’t seem to notice Darwin’s voice had changed and that there were two eyes in his mouth. “I thought I saw Gumball with you.”
“Nope! Just me! Darwin!” said Gumball-Darwin, with a very wide and very fake smile. “I don’t know where Gumball is. He’s not here. Nope.”
“I hope he’s feeling better, since he wasn’t himself yesterday.”
“Not himself? Who else would he be? It’s not like Gumball would hide inside Darwin’s body,” said a panicked Gumball-Darwin.
Gumball cleared his throat. There was an awkward silence, and Gumball was desperate to fill it. “I had a dream that I went to school and the only thing I wore was underwear made out of ham. Have you ever worn ham underwear?”
Penny scratched her head. “No.”
“Me neither. Dogs might attack your underwear if they were hungry.”
Penny blinked in confusion. Gumball needed to keep his—well, Darwin’s—mouth shut! Ham underwear? What was he talking about? He had no idea what he might mention next.
After a few more seconds of uncomfortable silence, Penny looked over at the group of boys across the court. “I guess I’ll go talk to Leslie,” she said. “Say hi to Gumball for me.”
“Of course,” said Gumball-Darwin. “Because I’m not Gumball. Did I tell you about my ham-underwear dream?”
Penny skipped toward the other boys.
As soon as she left, Gumball jumped out of Darwin’s mouth. He wiped some saliva from his nose. “What was I saying? I’ve never dreamed of ham underwear. Now Penny will never speak to me again!” Gumball pulled on two of his whiskers in despair.
Darwin put his hands on his hips. “I don’t know why you’re so upset. She thinks I dream of ham underwear, not you.”
Gumball took a deep breath. “Oh yeah. Never mind.”
“This has gone on long enough,” declared Darwin. “I’m going to do something!” He stomped off toward their friends.
Gumball dove back into the bush.
"Why is Gumball hiding in a bush?" Tobias asked Darwin as he approached.
“He’s lost his hat and all his confidence,” explained Darwin. “And he needs your help.”
“Why isn’t he confident?” Penny asked. She sounded genuinely concerned.
“Because—” Darwin stopped. He couldn’t tell Penny the truth, but he hated lying. A bead of sweat dripped down his forehead. His mouth quivered. “Just . . . because,” he answered evasively.
“What can we do?” asked Idaho.
Darwin was grateful Penny didn’t probe further. “We need Gumball to do something heroic. And I have a plan.”
A few minutes later, Darwin strode back toward Gumball, who was still quaking inside the bush. “Gumball, hurry!” he shouted. “Penny’s in trouble!”
Penny? Trouble? Gumball stepped out of the foliage, plucking a few red berries from his whiskers. “What’s wrong?”
"Look!"
Penny stood on the opposite side of the school yard. She was tied to a tree with a jump rope. “Help me! Help me!” she yelled. It looked like she might faint.
“I’ll save you,” said Gumball, but he spoke so quietly he could barely even hear the words himself.
Hector the giant stood next to Penny. He was so tall that all Gumball could see were his large, furry multicolored legs rising up into the sky.
“Rescue her, Gumball!” yelled Darwin.
Gumball quivered. “I can’t defeat Hector. I’d lose a fight with his toe. He’s a giant!”
Darwin nodded. “Yeah. Okay. I’ll be right back.”
Darwin raced off and retuned in the blink of an eye. He pointed to Penny. "Save her, Gumball!"
Penny was still tied to the tree and calling for help. But now Carmen was standing next to her and growling.
Gumball shivered with fear. “Are you crazy? I can’t fight Carmen. She’s a cactus! Look at those thorns!”
Darwin sighed. “Fine. I’ll be right back.”
It took only a moment for Darwin to dash away and return. Again, Darwin raised his finger and waved it toward Penny. “Penny needs you, Gumball!”
“Help me!” cried Penny. She was still tied to the tree, but now Anton stood guard.
Gumball bit his nails. “Are you nuts? I can’t defeat Anton. He’s a piece of toast!”
Darwin threw Gumball a dirty look. “Oh, come on!”
Gumball continued his nail-biting. Darwin sighed and pushed Gumball forward. Gumball skidded across the yard, his heels leaving deep tracks in the dirt.
“Almost . . . there . . .” Darwin panted.
Gumball quivered. Darwin pushed.
Darwin pushed. Gumball quivered.
After several exhausting minutes, they reached the tree. Gumball shook as he stared at Anton. The crumbly piece of toast stared back. Penny yelled, "Help me, Gumball! Help me!"
Gumball continued to stare at Anton.
“Tell him to let Penny go,” Darwin suggested to Gumball.
“I’m too scared,” Gumball cried.
“I’ll untie Penny if you ask me,” Anton said with a friendly smile.
“Help me, Gumball!” Penny repeated.
“You can do it,” encouraged Darwin.
“Don’t make me!” screamed a frantic Gumball. He turned to sprint off, but Darwin held him by his tail.
“Will you just untie her already?” asked a clearly bored Anton.
“I can’t!” wailed Gumball.
Darwin sighed. He grabbed Gumball’s arm and waved it toward Anton. It brushed meekly against Anton’s crust.
Anton fell over yelling, “Argh! You’ve defeated me!”
“You did it!” cried Darwin. “You knocked Anton out!”
“I d-did?” stuttered Gumball, staring at his hand, wide-eyed with surprise.
“Can I leave now?” asked Anton, lying on the ground.
“Shhh!” cried Darwin. “Not yet.”
Penny stepped forward, the jump rope falling away as if it wasn’t really tied at all. “You did it, Gumball. You're my hero!”
Gumball broke into a grin. “Of course I am! Did you ever doubt me?”
I don’t know why I thought I needed a hat.” Gumball strode home from school with Darwin, a zip in his step and a zing in his voice. “I’m pretty wonderful, hat or not.” He patted Darwin on the back. “What do you want to do this afternoon, buddy? Should we save people from burning buildings? Make lobster thermidor? Perform brain surgery? I feel like I can do anything!”
“How about having a snack?” Darwin suggested.
“An even better idea,” agreed Gumball.
Darwin smiled. “I’m just glad the old Gumball is back.”
Mr. Watterson sat on a rocking chair on the front porch. Their father jumped to his feet as the boys approached. He wore his lucky red knit cap on his head and handed an identical cap to Gumball. “Here, son. You can’t go through life without a lucky hat. Now you’ll always be confident. Like me.”
Gumball studied the cap before putting it on his head. It felt warm and sturdy. His head tingled. Everyone needed a hat, didn’t they?
With a deep gulp of air, Gumball puffed out his chest. He took off the cap and gave it back to his father. “I don’t need this.”
“Gumball has his confidence back,” Darwin explained.
Mr. Watterson gasped. “But Gumball! You can’t go through life without a hat!” He leaned closer and spoke in a near-whisper, sharing a very big secret. “Before my hat, I was a different person. I couldn’t keep a job. Some people said I was the laziest ma
n in all of Elmore.”
“You?” exclaimed Gumball. He couldn’t believe it. His father was the hardest worker he knew. “Lazy? Impossible!”
“Yes, son. It’s true,” said Mr. Watterson, looking off into the distance. “I had no confidence. I was about to be fired from my job. But then a miracle happened—I found this hat!” He tapped the red knit cap on his head. “Now look at me! I’ve been promoted at work. I can run a mile in under five minutes. I might even win a gold medal in the luge.”
“Do you even know what the luge is?” asked Darwin.
“No, but I’ll win it anyway,” said Mr. Watterson. He tapped his head. “I can’t imagine what my life would be like without my hat.”
“But Mr. Dad, a hat doesn’t give you confidence,” protested Darwin.
Just then, Sal Left Thumb ran past the house. He was holding a TV. “Stop!” cried Doughnut Sheriff as he gave pursuit, with one hand holding down his police hat as he ran.
The sidewalk was surprisingly busy that afternoon. No sooner had the sheriff passed than a soldier rushed by. He held a flag in one hand and kept his helmet steady with his other. A moment later, a cowboy ambled by with his Stetson bouncing on his head. Then a Viking hurried past. The horns on the Viking’s helmet twinkled in the sunshine.
Gumball looked at everyone rushing by, admiring each of the hats. Head wear did matter! He put the red cap back on his head. Maybe his father was right. What had Gumball been thinking? Maybe everyone does need a hat!
“Don’t do it, Gumball!” Darwin pleaded. “Hats don’t give you confidence.”
“Of course they do. Everyone loves a person with a hat. Look at me! With this hat, I’m handsomer. Funnier. And Penny likes me more.”
“No, she doesn’t, Gumball. You’re imagining all of that. You don’t need a hat to talk to Penny. Just be yourself.”
“Of course I will. But I’ll be myself with a hat, and that’s a much better me!”
Suddenly, a bluebird swooped toward him. Gumball ducked as the bird flew over his head.
Gumball’s father, however, was slower to react.
Once Upon a Time in Elmore: When Gumball Met Penny Page 3