WISDOMS ii
The car pulled out of the
dental office's lot, tires
humming against the asphalt.
"Hang in there
buddy," Patrick said.
Plankton's head lolled
to the side, a stream of
drool escaping the
corner of his mouth.
"Hey, Plankton, you ok?"
Sponge Bob asked
nudging him gently.
Plankton's only response
was a faint, "Mmph," as
his head grew heavier and
his body leaned in
to Sponge Bob's side.
Sponge Bob, ever the
gentle soul, adjusted
his position to
accommodate his tiny
friend, offering his shoulder
as a makeshift pillow. The
car's gentle sway and
the comforting hum of the
engine soon lulled
Plankton into sleep. His
breathing grew rhythmic
as he snored lightly.
Patrick leaned over
to whisper, "Aw, isn't
that cute?"
Sponge Bob nodded, a
soft smile spreading
across his face.
He knew Plankton had
been nervous about
the appointment.
They had all been
through a lot together
but this was the first
time Plankton had allowed
himself to be this vulnerable.
Patrick, ever the opportunist,
decided to take advantage of
the situation. He leaned over
snapping a photo with his phone.
"Look at this," he whispered
to Karen, showing her the
picture with a wide grin.
Karen rolled her eyes, keeping
her focus on the road.
"You do know he's going to get
you when he sees that, right?"
Patrick just shrugged,
his grin unwavering.
"It's just a little joke,
Karen. Besides, he's out
cold."
The car ride back to the
Chum Bucket was quiet, only
interrupted by the occasional
snort from Plankton's snores
and the soft murmur of the
radio. Karen's eyes darted to the
rearview mirror, watching the
unlikely companions.
Sponge Bob felt a strange
sense of peace, his arm around
his arch-nemesis-turned-friend
providing comfort and
support.
As the car approached the Chum
Bucket, Plankton's snores grew
louder, echoing in the small
enclosed space. Sponge Bob
couldn't help but chuckle quietly,
feeling the warmth and weight of
his friend against him. It was a
peculiar sight, the villainous
Plankton, usually so full of
energy and cunning schemes,
now reduced to a sleeping,
drooling mess. But in this
moment, all animosity was
forgotten. They were just
friends sharing a car ride
home after a long day.
Karen pulled into the Chum
Bucket's dilapidated parking
lot, the headlights casting
eerie shadows across the
rusted metal exterior. She
turned off the engine and
the silence grew thick.
Plankton's snores seemed
to fill the void, a gentle
reminder of the peacefulness
that had descended upon them.
Sponge Bob carefully lifted
Plankton's head off his shoulder.
"Hey, Plankton, we're home," he
whispered.
Plankton's eye fluttered open, and
he looked around, momentarily
confused. Then, he groaned and
rubbed his jaw. "Oh," he mumbled,
his voice thick.
Sponge Bob and Patrick helped him
out of the car, each taking an arm
to support him as he swayed on
his tiny legs. The anesthesia still
had a firm grip on him, making his
movements clumsy and awkward.
"Careful," Karen warned.
The two friends carefully
maneuvered Plankton
door of the Chum Bucket,
his feet barely touching the
ground as they shuffled along.
Plankton's usual meticulousness
had been replaced by post-surgical
disarray. Sponge Bob and Patrick
gently set him down on the couch.
"I got you some new
fresh gauze," Sponge
Bob offered. "Open up!"
Plankton, still groggy, opened his mouth
allowed Sponge Bob to place the gauze.
"Tanks," he murmured, his voice muffled
by the material. He leaned back into the
couch cushions, his eye drifting shut again.
Patrick and Sponge Bob exchanged a look.
"Do you need anything else?" Sponge Bob
asked, his voice gentle and concerned.
"N-no," Plankton stuttered. "Jush nee... tiwweeddd."
"Alright, we'll be right here," Patrick assured
him, plopping down onto an armchair. Sponge
Bob took a seat on the floor beside the couch.
Patrick, ever the one for a good laugh, couldn't
resist teasing Plankton.
"You know what they say, Plankton," he quipped.
"A picture's worth a thousand words!"
Sponge Bob shot him a warning look
but Plankton was already snoring again,
oblivious to the potential embarrassment
that awaited him when he woke up.
The two friends settled in for an unexpected
night at the Chum Bucket. The next morning
Plankton's the last to wake up, any trace of
anesthesia now gone.
He stirred slowly, his single eye blinking open
to the harsh reality of daylight filtering through
the grimy windows. His mouth felt like it was
filled with cotton, and his jaw ached. He tried
to sit up.
"Whoa, easy," SpongeBob said, placing a
comforting hand on Plankton's shoulder.
"You had quite the nap."
Plankton's eye widened as he took in his
surroundings. He was in his own living
room, but Sponge Bob and Patrick were
sitting there, too. His mind raced as he
tried to piece together what had
happened. He touched his mouth
gingerly, feeling the gauze. "Wh...what?"
he croaked.
Plankton's confusion grew as the fog of
anesthesia lifted.
"You had a little dental work done," Sponge
Bob said with a smile. "Remember?"
Plankton's eye narrowed as
his only memories of yesterday
began to flood back. The dentist's
chair, the bright lights, and his mouth
open for wisdom teeth?
"You mean, I actually went through wivv it?"
he whispered to himself, hand shooting to
his mouth.
"Yeah, you did," Patrick said, his grin spreading
wider. "And you slept like a baby all the way home."
Plankton looked down, his mind racing. "How
did I get here?" he asked, his voice still thick
with grogginess.
"Well, you don't remember?" Patrick said
with a smirk. "We had to practically carry
you out of the dentist's office and into the car."
"What? You... you
carried me?" he sputtered,
indignation rising in his tone.
Sponge Bob nodded
trying to keep his
laughter at bay. "You
were pretty out
of it, Plankton."
Plankton's eyes grew as realization sank in.
"Wait, you thaw me wike that?" He sat up to
quickly, wincing as pain shot through his jaw.
"What did I do?"
Sponge Bob handed him a glass of water.
"Don't worry, you just fell asleep."
Plankton took the water
with a trembling hand, his
mind racing. "But... what
abou- my... my dignity?"
Sponge Bob chuckled. "Don't worry
Plankton. You've still got plenty of
that. You just needed a little help, is all."
Patrick couldn't resist adding fuel
to the fire. "Yeah, you were so out
of it, you didn't even notice when I
took a selfie of us all in the car. Sponge
Bob was being such a good nurse!"
Plankton glowered at the starfish. "You what!"
Patrick held up his phone, showing
the incriminating photo. Plankton,
mouth wide open and drooling, was
sandwiched between the two friends.
Sponge Bob looked concerned and
slightly amused, while Patrick was
grinning like he'd just won the Krabby
Patty secret formula. "I sent it to ourselves!"
"You... you..." he sputtered, unable to form a
coherent sentence. The sight of himself
drooling and vulnerable was so much. His
pride had always been his armor, and it had
been dented.
Patrick chuckled, enjoying the moment. "Don't
worry, Plankton. It'll be our little secret."
"You're lucky I don't remember thish," he grumbled.
Sponge Bob got fresh gauze
for Plankton. "Open up," he instructed.
With a begrudging sigh, Plankton complied.
His mouth was a cavern of pain. Sponge
Bob gently placed the gauze in, and Plankton
couldn't help but wince. "Thanks," he
murmured, his voice sounding even
smaller than usual.
The room was quiet for a moment, then, the
silence was broken by a notification from
Patrick's phone. He picked it up and looked
at the screen, his grin growing even wider.
"What?" Plankton asked
suspiciously, his pride still bruised.
Patrick couldn't hold it in
any longer. He burst in
to laughter, holding out his
phone to show the latest
meme he'd created from
the photo. It was the picture
of Plankton drooling onto
Sponge Bob's shoulder, with
the caption: "When you realize
you're too small to get your
own wisdom teeth out without
snoring through it."
Sponge Bob's cheeks turned pink
with laughter, despite his efforts
to remain serious. "Patrick, that's
not nice," he managed to say
between chuckles.
"What? He did," Patrick exclaimed.
Plankton's embarrassed. "I... I
did not," he protested weakly.
"Oh, but you did," Sponge Bob said, his
laughter bubbling up. He couldn't help
himself; the sight of Plankton all loopy
from anesthesia was to much. "It was
kind of adorable."
Plankton huffed, but despite his
embarrassment, he couldn't stay to
mad at them. They had been there
for him, and that was worth something.
He took a sip of water. "You two are
never to speak of this again."
Sponge Bob and Patrick nodded solemnly.
Eventually, Plankton's eye grew heavy again,
and he drifted off into a nap.
"Looks like he's out," Patrick said.
Sponge Bob nodded, still smiling at the thought
of Plankton's uncharacteristic vulnerability. "We
should let him rest."
Patrick stood up, stretching his arms. "Yeah, I guess
we've had our fun for the day. Time to let you get
back to your schemes, Plankton."
Sponge Bob gently placed a pillow under Plankton's
head. "Rest up, buddy. We can check on you later."