6-Gruddy Buddies

                                    

                                          
This time, Squidward woke to the ringing of his ears and the pounding of his head. 
He went to rub his eyes but was only met with the restrains binding his arms and legs to a bed.
What happened? What is this? Where am I? 
SpongeBob.
"Hello?!?" He called out, but no one answered his call. The atmosphere was very strange, there appeared to only be a few lights around, and it was pretty cramped. It had seemed like the place he was in was build by someone recently.
He winced as a sharp pain on the back of his head surfaced as he tried to move. He was definitely bleeding; he could feel it. 
If only he could get out of the rope keeping him down. They were far too tight on his wrists, so moving around was very irritating on his skin. But if he could figure a way out of them, maybe he could get out of this place...wherever it was.
About an hour passed before he heard movement from what seemed to come from above him. And then, a latch opened. His stomach dropped as the accusations he made in his head were confirmed as someone climbed down a ladder and entered the room.
SpongeBob turned over to Squidward with an eerie grin, "You're finally awake!" 
"Spongebob?!" He motioned with his eyes around the room as Spongebob inched towards him.
"I've been wondering when you'd finally wake up. Now we can have some fun."
He began to climb on the bed where Squidward was being restrained. Squidward let out a noise of disapproval as SpongeBob snuggled up right next to him. 
"What in tarnation do you think you're doing? Let me go! Why did you murder Mr. Krabs!?" Spongebob's happiness was quickly interrupted by thrashing movements. He put a hand over Squid's mouth. 
"Keep moving, and I'll make sure you end up just like him."
Squidward's body went limp. It was as if everything stilled. There was no doubt in his mind that Spongebob had evil intentions, but what exactly those were, he was uncertain. 
"See? That's better." Spongebob returned to his position snuggled up to Squidward and breathed in deeply. He let out a loud sigh and simply said "You don't know how long I've waited to do this."
It had seemed Squidward's shaking only made him happier. The only thing Squid could do was lay there as he held back tears. If only he had noticed sooner, he thought. 
And that was when he realized. After all these months thinking Spongebob was acting just a little weirder than usual, he realized. He had never seen the signs until it was too late. 
——————
4 months ago
Spongebob's house was uncomfortably close to Squidward's. He would randomly pop up, and getting rid of him was like getting rid of the Black Death: impossible. 
Sponge had just secretly taken his vacuum, so Squidward fumingly marched over to his house in hopes to retrieve it. 
He banged on the door. "Spongebob! Open up!" But no answer. He started again "Spongebob!-" And the door quickly opened, leaving Squidward standing in front of a oddly pale sponge. 
"Oh...it's you. Are you ready?" he questioned. 
Squidward's eyebrows squished. "Ready for what?" He shook his head. "Spongebob, give me my vacuum back."
He pushed the door open and with one swift movement he was inside the house. "Where is it?" Squid asked as he raised his voice. That was when he noticed a sudden change in behavior. 
"I think you need to leave, Squidward." He said. 
Spongebob was only getting paler, and he began to sweat, but Squid didn't pay any attention to it at the time. His only focus was getting his vacuum back. This whole time, he had never taken a closer look at what was right in front of him. 
Nonetheless, Squidward marched around the house in search for his vacuum, opening every door he came across. Until he reached the last one. 
He put a tentacle to the knob and began to twist, but a shiver down his spine told him not to. In a moment, that shiver turned into Spongebob as he appeared like magic right behind him. 
"Squidward, I wouldn't do that." His eyes were cold and his stare heavy. They stood still for a moment. 
"Are you ready?," Spongebob asked. 
Squidward was only growing more confused by the moment. "What are you talking about!?" Panic started to creep up on him. 
That was when he remembered, Squidward had left his casserole at home in the oven. "I, um... have to go home now anyways. But I will be back to get what's mine." His grip on the doorknob loosened and he headed to the front door. 
Spongebob said nothing as he left. 
Moments like these began to happen more frequently, but it's hard to notice such things when you're already avoiding someone. If Squidward had noticed earlier, even just a little bit sooner, maybe he would have been safe. Maybe Mr. Krabs wouldn't be dead. 
The signs were right in front of him this whole time. Squidward wanted nothing more than to hide behind his ignorance once more, but he couldn't. All he could do now was wait and hope that sleep would take him far, far away.