"Hey, how's Plankton doing?" asked Patrick.
SpongeBob looks at Plankton, chest rising
and falling with snores. "He's sleeping," he
said.
"But it's the middle of the day!"
"Well, he just had his wisdom teeth out," he
explained in a hushed tone. "He's pretty out
of it. But be quiet, ok?" He turned his
attention back to Plankton, who had
somehow managed to dislodge the gauze
again.
With a sigh, SpongeBob carefully repositioned it.
"You're going to have to keep that in, Plankton,"
he said, his voice a gentle scold.
But Plankton’s head lolled to the side, his
snores growing louder with each breath,
drool seeping through the gauze.
"Look at him, SpongeBob," Patrick whispers.
"He's snoring."
"Patrick, shh. He's still recovering."
"Can I...can I poke him?"
"No, Patrick," he said, his voice a low
whisper. Patrick's finger was already
outstretched, hovering over Plankton. "Just a
little? I just wanna see if he'll snore louder,"
he whispered.
SpongeBob's grip on Patrick's hand
tightened. "Patrick, remember what I said
about being quiet," he reminded him.
Plankton stirred in his sleep, snores turning
to mumbles. Patrick was undeterred. He
leaned even closer to Plankton, his hand
hovering above the sleeping creature's
forehead. "You're okay, buddy," he
whispered, his voice a mix of concern and
glee. "Just rest up, and when you wake up,
we'll have the best party ever!" Plankton's
snores remained steady.
He reached out and gently poked Plankton's
forehead. "Wake up, little buddy," he cooed,
his voice a soft whisper.
Plankton's eye snaps open, his tiny body
jolting upright with a snort. The gauze fell
from his mouth, and he looked around the
room with a glazed expression, his eye
finally settling on Patrick's massive grin.
"Wha... what's going on?" he slurred, his
voice muffled by the anesthesia.
Plankton's eye narrowed, his head lolling
slightly to the side. "What happened?" he
slurred.
SpongeBob took a tentative step closer to
the couch, his heart racing. "You had your
wisdom teeth out," he said softly, his voice
filled with concern. "You're at my place, just
resting."
Plankton blinked, his eye focusing on
SpongeBob with a look of confusion. "Wisdom
teeth?" he murmured, his voice
thick with sleep.
SpongeBob nodded, his eyes never leaving
Plankton's face. "Yes, Plankton, remember?
You're all fixed up now," he said, his voice
soothing.
But Patrick couldn't resist the urge to add his
own twist. "And, you snore!" he
whispered, his voice filled with mirth.
Plankton's confusion grew. "I... I snore?" he
asked, his voice a mix of surprise and
mortification.
"It's nothing to be embarrassed about," he
assured, SpongeBob eyes Patrick with a
warning look.
"What's it feel like?" he whispered, his voice
a mix of excitement and concern.
Plankton looked at Patrick with
bewilderment. "It feels...weird," he mumbled,
his words slurred. "And my mouth is...numb."
Drool had formed at the corner of Plankton's
mouth.
Patrick couldn't resist pointing it out. "Look,
Sponge Bob, he's drooling!"
Sponge Bob shot him a look that was a mix
of annoyance and amusement before turning
back to Plankton. "It's okay, Plankton," he
whispered, his voice gentle. "It's normal."
Plankton's eye grew distant, his mind still
clouded by the anesthesia.
"Everything's...so...blurry," he murmured, his
words slurring together.
Sponge Bob and Patrick exchanged
glances, a silent communication passing
between them. "It's the medicine," Sponge
Bob explained, his voice calm and
reassuring. "It'll wear off soon."
But Patrick's curiosity was unquenchable. He
leaned closer to Plankton.
"Hey, Plankton," he whispered. "I... I don't
know," he mumbled, his voice groggy.
"Everything's all... wibbly wobbly."
"Wibbly wobbly?"
He looked over at Plankton, whose eye was
still open, staring at the ceiling with a look of
wonder. "Everything's...so...pretty,". "It's just
the living room, Plankton. You're still a bit out
of it."
Patrick's eyes grew wide with fascination.
"Hey, Sponge Bob," he whispered, his voice
filled with wonder. "Look at his mouth!"
Sponge Bob turned his gaze to Plankton,
drooling more than ever. "Patrick, shh," he
scolded, his voice a gentle whisper. "Let him
rest."
Plankton's snores grew quieter for a moment
before picking up again, a trail of drool
connecting his mouth to the pillow.
"Is it...normal?"
"It's just his body's way of dealing with the
surgery, he can’t help it" he murmured. "It'll
go away eventually, all part of the process.
It's the stuff that makes you sleep through
the surgery, like a really deep sleep so he
won’t feel or remember.”
"But why does it keep coming out?"
"It's because his mouth is numb from the
dental surgery, Patrick, it's his mouth
muscles still asleep." "Can I...I mean, is it
okay to, like, nudge it?" He made contact
with the drool, sending a ripple through the
salivary puddle. Plankton's snores grew
louder, his mouth opening even wider.
"Patrick," he hissed, his voice a mix of
warning and amusement. "You're pushing
your luck." His eyes remained fixed on
Plankton, watching the drool pool grow and
shrink with each snore. He remained
blissfully asleep, oblivious to the
conversation happening around him
"What if I just...dab it with a tissue?" "I guess
it’ll help keep him comfortable." He gently
touched the tissue to the side of Plankton's
mouth, catching the drool before it could fall
onto the pillow. The moment the tissue made
contact with the saliva Plankton, who was
now snoring more heavily, his mouth
hanging open even wider, drool cascading
onto the pillow, sending a ripple through the
salivary puddle. Plankton's snores grew
louder, his mouth opening even wider., It
was a light touch, just enough to make the
saliva wobble like a gelatinous blob. It was a
tiny movement, but it was enough to make
Plankton's snores hitch.
"The anesthesia is wearing off, and his
mouth is just... reacting. The numbness is
normal." With each dab of the tissue,
Plankton's snores grew softer, quieted, his
mouth twitching slightly, his breathing even.
Then Plankton's face twitched slightly, his
expression shifting from remaining asleep
with breathing deep and steady, to one of
slight discomfort as the lingering anesthesia
began to wear off. Snores had turned into
soft whimpers of discomfort. "It’s normal he's
starting to feel the pain." He reached for the
medicine. “Just stay still, Plankton," Sponge
Bob whispered. Sponge Bob nodded, his
smile gentle. "It's just the start," he
murmured, his voice a mix of reassurance
and experience. "It'll take a bit for the pain to
go away."
Plankton's mouth was still slack, the drool
now a steady stream that pooled on the
pillow.
Together, they managed to get Plankton into
a sitting position, his legs dangling over the
side of the couch.
"Hey you need to wake up just a little bit to
take your medicine."
Plankton's head lolls back against the
pillows.
"Patrick, hold his shoulders," Sponge Bob
whispered urgently. "We don't want him to
fall over."
Plankton's gaze searched the room, his
thoughts clearly muddled.
"There you go," Sponge Bob whispered, his
voice filled with relief. He carefully laid
Plankton back down on the pillows, wiping
the last of the drool from him. Plankton's eye
remained open, blinking slowly as the world
swam back into focus.
"You did it," Sponge Bob whispered, his
voice filled with pride as he swallowed
medicine. "Now, just rest. The pain will start
to go away soon."
Plankton's eye drifted closed again, his
snores returning, though softer than before.
Sponge Bob gently let
Plankton's head back onto the pillow.
"He's okay now," Sponge Bob whispered, his
voice a mix of relief and pride. "Good job,
helping Patrick."
Patrick's eyes remained wide with wonder,
his mind still racing with the excitement of
the past few moments. "What happens
next?" he murmured, his voice filled with
anticipation.
Sponge Bob's smile was a mix of
amusement and reassurance. "Now the
medicine will kick in."