I awoke to the loudest scream I've ever heard. I almost fell out of my bed from the shock. I assumed that everyone else heard it too. Immediately, I tore off my sheets and ran to the source. I knew what it was already, though. That scream had originated from Paper's vocal cords, at the sight of OJ's shattered corpse and the stains all over the room. I wondered how he didn't hear the glass of his cup shatter in the middle of the night. Then I remembered. I had killed him. And I had pinned it on Pepper. And no one knew. Now OJ would only come back at Taco's will. And it was my fault.
I was near the end of the crowd, but about all of us could see what was going on in OJ and Paper's room. I saw the notebook sheet crying over broken glass and orange stains on the bed opposite to his, his body getting soggy from the tears. I felt horrible. I probably permanently ended a life, and ruined another, all in one night. I could feel the weight on my shoulders. It was heavy. Very heavy. But I had to ignore it, to keep the act up. I didn't want to be caught already. So I just stood there and watched like everyone else. Watched Paper sob over his dead lover.
"OJ...I'm sorry...please...I...I can't do...I can't...I can't do this...ALONE..."
That word struck me like a baseball bat. I stumbled backwards when I heard it. It reminded me...of me. Alone. I was only friends with about the most annoying object in the hotel, and I had OJ'S blood on my hands. Not physically, as that would get me caught. I was alone. I had no one to love. Only one to talk to. And he's just...weird. But that first one hurt me more. Love. Something I haven't felt since my childhood. And it was only my love for my mother. I hadn't felt anything for anyone here. I always had this weird feeling around some of the objects here, but never love. It hurt. I didn't want to be alone. Being alone is worse than death. At least when you died, there would almost always be someone else dead with you. But I knew that if I died, those someones wouldn't welcome me to the afterlife.
Minutes passed. Then hours. Everyone stayed in their rooms. Since OJ was out of the picture, Paper had become the new owner of the hotel. I had just layed in my bed, thinking. Thinking of all the lives Taco would have me ruin. All the ones I might have to kill. All the ones I would have to blame for my misdeeds. Pepper. I had blamed Pepper for OJ's death. If anyone found out, she...I don't know what would happen. Would they kick her out? Kill her? Trap her in the basement and torture her until she had no more vocal cords to scream with? So many horrible thoughts entered my mind about what could happen to the poor BCFF. At least she could be with Salt, like she always wanted. But that only made her more suspicious. I didn't want to do that. But it was either me or him. And I couldn't really feel selfless.
Cheesy entered the room, not in his usual perky attitude. I knew he was distraught by the sight of the dead owner.
"Cheesy, don't let that get you down. Someone needs to keep spirits high." I said from under my blanket.
"It's kinda hard to keep spirits high when you barely have any in the first place. Heh..."
Geez, something was really wrong. I knew it wasn't just OJ'S death getting him down now.
"Cheesy. What's really wrong. I can tell it's not because of that now. You don't have to hide stuff from me. We're friends."
"I...Trophy...this is kinda hard to say...but uh...I...kinda..."
"Stop stalling and just spit it out already."
"I KINDA FELL FOR YOU NAD I DON'T KNOW IF YOU FEEL THE SAME AND I DON'T WANT TO FORCE YOU INTO A RELATIONSHIP BUT I ALSO REALLY LIKE YOU AND I DON'T WANT TO BE WITH SOMEONE THAT'S NOT YOU SO PLEASE SAY YES PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE"
That...was a lot.
"Cheesy, calm down. I barely even know my sexual orientation yet. But I'm mostly certain it's not a no. At the very least, we'll still be friends."
"I...you really mean it?"
"Well, I don't feel like stopping you from making your jokes by ruining your love life. Besides, you're the first object besides my mom to love me. How could I not say no?"
As soon as I said that, Cheesy stood still for a few seconds. Then he dashed directly towards me, which was kinda unexpected, although not unwelcome. He pulled me into a tight hug while sobbing and celebrating, quiet enough for no one else to hear. I felt myself heat up a little, but not really caring that I was embarrassed. Someone finally unconditionally loved me. Besides my mom, of course. My dad was a drunk who, even while sober, barely cared about anyone but himself. He got himself killed in a car accident. I never stepped foot in a vehicle afterwards. Even if he didn't love me, I loved him. He was my father, after all. I was too young to know what was really going on. I don't feel like crying over my past, though.
Cheesy finally let loose after a few minutes, his tears covering my lower body. I wiped myself off with my blanket, as he wiped off his face with a tissue. After, he jumped back in his bed, bouncing around with joy. I couldn't help but smile. I was just as excited as him, but I was too tired to physically show it. All that running can really tire an object out. I ended up falling asleep from a lack of energy. I knew everyone was scared. To be honest, I was too. Taco could backstab me at any point, and that would be the end for me. Same for everyone else. At least MePhone was back. But everyone's recovery was in the hands of Taco, when she decided to disable MeLife. We all knew it had happened, since MePhone got locked out of the app.
So I just slept, hoping that there would be a way to fix all this, or at least survive this living nightmare. And maybe, just maybe, stop Taco. But for now, I had to help her. But I would find a way to stop her. I had to.