But then, as 12 O’clock at midnight rolled around like a bandwagon with four moons for wheels, I felt something silky burrowing under my arm, and then I felt some velvety snuggle under my other arm. When I opened my eyes, my vision blurry because of the amount of sleep, I saw the most adorable sight I’ve ever seen: Furaha and Orko, asleep next to me, tucked right under my arms, safe and protected.
The feel of Furaha’s silky soft fur under my arm felt like I’m being tickled in my dreams, while it was made even more comforting by the soft vibration of Orko’s tiny snores near my side. Being with the two friends felt so soothing, I fell asleep in no time, and I drifted into a dream as I fell into unconcious isolation land.
But here, I wasn’t alone. I was on a beautiful tropical island somewhere in Hawaii, and Furaha and Orko were with me. We had so much fun, running on the pure white sand, building sandcastles, making leis out of hibiscus flowers and splashing in the warm, mild ocean. All while I was dreaming, the loudspeakers were quietly playing a vintage recording of ‘Aloha Oe’. A little tear fell down my face as I listened, knowing Furaha and Orko would be there for me, even when Josh isn’t.
Because where would I be without him?
In one part of my dream, I dipped my hand into the sea, only for it to turn into that of Josh’s blue-coloured hair gel. When I woke up, I found myself in the hotel room again. The sun was shining through the window, blinding me like a sudden ray from a hospital light.
I looked to see if I really had dipped my hand in Josh’s hair gel, thinking he had left it behind when he thought it was Max Steel time…and oh would you look at that! Furaha was sucking on my hand, almost chewing on my fingers. Instead of reacting in pain, I giggled. Furaha always sucked on my hands to make sure she didn’t have a really bad dream. And on my right side, Orko was sleeping in a rather messy position. The pillows and blanket were all over the place, as if a hurricane had blown through the room overnight.
When Furaha let go of my hand, it was covered all over in sticky lioness slobber, which almost stained the bed. I leapt out of bed and went to the bathroom, using the tropical flower-scented handwash to wash my hands. Soon, my hands didn’t smell at all bad, instead of the place I dreamed about - colourful flowers, warm oceans, soft white sand…
“LAURA!” Oh. It was Furaha’s voice. Was she in trouble? After drying my hands in a quick rush, I ran into the hotel room to see Furaha and Orko sitting on the bed together. Furaha had a waterfall of drool trickling down her mouth, and her fur was all messy. Orko had armpit odor stains where his robe was, and there were eye boogers in his bloodshot eyes. Being the gentle, caring figure I was, I used a wet wipe to wipe the drool off Furaha’s face, and then gently brushed her fur with a soft-bristled green hairbrush.
Then, it was Orko’s turn, as he waited so patiently for Aunt Laura to give him some attention. Furaha felt a lot better now she was brushed and wiped. I took out a clean wet wipe scented of coral tangerine, and wiped his booger-filled eyes clean. He then had to go to the bathroom and wash. While Furaha and I waited, we talked for ages about what we planned to do today.
When I mentioned Pete, a determined look spread across her face. She began running and bouncing around the room like a wild little girl, talking about what she would do to Pete if he ever bullies her and her brother again. After a few minutes of planning, Orko finally came out of the bathroom squeaky clean. His voice was still in shadow, but now he was wearing a clean blue satin robe and hat instead of his usual red velvet hat and robe.
With that in mind, we went to the cafeteria to have some breakfast. It was quite a nourishing one to be exact - eggs, bacon, sausages and tomatoes. Orko called this breakfast “A real one, greasy, slimy and satisfying”, but I usually preferred congee with eggs and vegetables for breakfast. I didn’t mind however, whatever Furaha and Orko enjoyed, I enjoyed it too. Furaha also enjoyed colouring on the activity sheets the cafeteria offered.
After Furaha and Orko helped me to pack - Orko helped with his magic, unusually - we set off on the road to meet Josh, who just told me he was out of Max Steel mode once again. I just don’t get what the difference between Josh and Max Steel is, though if a certain company called Nerd Corps were to tell you about it, they were to tell you that they didn’t start the whole Max Steel thing in the process.
What I did know, though, is that this company called NTek started the whole Max Steel thing. If I were to give you their phone number, dial it right away and ask immediately.
Anyway, when we finally stopped to meet Josh, Furaha and Orko couldn’t contain their excitement. “JOSH!” they both shouted together, and they leapt on Josh, tackling him to the ground in the most playful manner I’ve ever seen. How I laughed, and Josh laughed as Orko and Furaha hugged and tickled him. I’ve never seen such a happy reunion in my life - and then, Furaha called, “Come on, Laura! Join us!” Of course, I just had to give in, and I leapt onto Josh, and all of us shared the softest, warmest hug together. Looking back, it was so emotional, it might make me want to cry, but it is also a very happy memory. Well, to me, obviously.
As we drove to the campus, Josh joked with Furaha and Orko about a variety of things, and, being the rebellious blonde-haired big brother figure he was, he kept calling out at truck drivers passing by, yelling things like “Oi! Stupid!” and “Cowface!” Furaha and Orko also joined in, laughing and blowing raspberries at the tough truckers, who I didn’t like either, but I preferred to calmly watch as I drove along the road.
When we approached the campus, Furaha and Orko were amazed by such as sight, but they concentrated hard with taking the boxes out of the car and helping us bring them into our dorm room. Orko used his magic to help, and Josh laughed seeing his clumsy and playful antics with his magic and how he does it in a variety of ways, such as making some of the boxes fly through the dorm window.
But then…came him. I was absolutely fearing for this moment. When Pete came, I reunited happily with him, and unfortunately that was the time Josh was called to resume his duties as Max Steel with Berto and Rachel. But then, Pete saw Furaha and Orko. Pete gave the two an evil look, and Furaha hid behind Orko’s back, shivering in fear. I felt like I would bite my fingernails until my fingers were worn to stumps, and then….
He shouted. All sorts of horrible things to Furaha and Orko. The horrible they were, the more hurt they were become, and the more shocked I was, until they ran into the building and all the way into my dorm room crying. When upstairs and hiding under the blanket of my bed, they heard me arguing with Pete feintly from outside. Furaha covered her ears and Orko did his best to comfort him, but realised even he needed some time to release his emotions, and he began to cry hard along with Furaha. Outside, down below, when Pete stormed off, I could hear Furaha and Orko crying from upstairs. Pete had a dorm separate from mine and Josh’s, but his words and actions were so harmful to Furaha and Orko that they had made them feel hurt and traumatised.
I quickly ran up to my dorm to check on my two friends, and there they were, hiding under the duvet and crying so much they would stain the white sheets. Pulling the sheets back, I saw Furaha and Orko feeling very upset and panicky. Furaha huddled near me and sobbed, while Orko floated down near my other side and comforted me. I apologised with a hint of mournfulness in my voice, saying it wasn’t my fault, it was Pete’s, and no matter how vulnerable they are to his harsh words, they can always find strength in her company…and Josh, if he had the time.
At first, Furaha and Orko weren’t sure what to make of it, but then they cheered up and I gave them the softest, gentlest hug. Furaha purred softly, while Orko smiled under his shadowed face. For the rest of the day, they helped me to set up my dorm, placing books, bags, boxes and photo albums and everything in between where they should be, and sometimes taking a break to play a board game or two.
I can’t actually tell you what happened that night, because it involved not only me, but also Josh (or Max Steel as if he were involved), Rachel, some guy with a creepy robotic face named Psycho and Mr Smith, his dad. It would involve high stakes trouble and violence, and this is a low stakes stream of consciousness story, so let’s skip to when I got back to my dorm to see Furaha and Orko. Orko had been doing a good job taking care of Furaha while I was out, and they were very relieved and overjoyed when I came back with Josh safe. Josh grabbed Furaha in a playful hug and tickled her, while I cuddled Orko, knowing I have a stronger bond with him than I did with little Furaha.
