"And did you see the fangs on the werewolf? Each one was the size of one my arms!" Alvin recalled, excitedly. "And with those glasses on, it looked real-er than reality. I'm tellin' ya, I could practically FEEL the saliva dripping from his teeth. That was the best movie I've ever seen."
"EVERY movie we see is the new best movie you've ever seen," Simon said. "Every movie with something snarling or exploding anyway. And I hate those stupid 3D glasses. They don't fit over my own, and I can't take either pair off or the screen gets blurry. It's silly."
"Whatever. You're just grumpy 'cause you got scared."
"I got scared? You're the one who covered your eyes and shrieked every time you heard a loud noise. I'm surprised you saw enough of the movie to know what the monster was."
"I knew it was a mistake to take you boys to a movie like that at night," Dave said, putting his key in the lock of the knob as they arrived at the front door. "You're gonna have night...mares...." Dave's voice trailed off as he walked into the house. He was at a loss for words for what he saw.
"Theodore?" Simon said, almost as awestruck. "What happened to you?"
Theodore didn't hear them, as he was still dozing on the couch, snoring softly. His belly, now considerably less bloated but still quite flabby after the digestion of his snack a few hours ago, heaved up and down with his breathing.
"Theodore? Theodore!" Simon pressed, shaking Theodore from his slumber.
"Huh! Er...what?" Theodore jolted awake in a rush, rubbing the sand from his eyes. "Simon? What's wrong?"
"That's exactly what I would like to know," Simon said, placing his hand on Theodore's gelatinous gut and giving it a shake. "Did you binge while we were out?"
"Uh, n-no," Theodore stuttered, looking down at his newly layered frame. "I mean, I just made myself some cookies and—and...."
"There are four cookie trays here!" Alvin hollered from the kitchen. "You made FOUR trays worth of cookies? There aren't even any leftovers!"
"I-I...I...." Theodore's throat seemed to collapse around his words. The shouting and interrogation was sending him into a panic. This was not his favorite way to wake up.
"I know you've got an appetite, butterball, but did you have to eat ALL of the cookies?" Alvin said, stomping into the living room. "You're not hibernating for the winter, pal, you don't need that much blubber."
"ALVIN!" Dave bellowed, finally finding his voice again. "That's enough out of you. You don't speak to your little brother that way."
"Dave, if he's gonna make a pig of himself every time we go somewhere without him, we're gonna have to chain him up in the garage or something," Alvin said, seeming to think he was stating a cold, hard truth.
"I'm sorry," Theodore said, nearly on the verge of tears. "I didn't mean to...to...."
"It's okay, Theodore," Simon said, rubbing the chubby 'munk's back. "No one's mad at you."
"I beg to dif—FREMFUFFM." Alvin's mouth was muffled by Dave's hand before he could lose his temper again.
"That's it. We'll talk about this in the morning; everyone upstairs. It's past your bedtime anyway. And I don't wanna here a PEEP out of any of you for the rest of the night," Dave warned, emphasizing the point for Alvin.
The three brothers shuffled upstairs and to their bedroom in silence. They changed into their pajamas, with Theodore having particular difficulty buttoning his onesie. He managed to make it work, since his digestive system had displaced the cookies and milk from his stomach into fat around his body so it wasn't all concentrated in one spot, but his overall bulkier shape made it a tight fit. He looked like a chipmunk stuffed into a cloth disposable glove.
The trio got into bed without a sound. None of them felt like risking Dave's wrath tonight, especially not Alvin, who was already starting to feel badly about what he had said to Theodore. He made a mental note to apologize to him in the morning.
A few hours later, after the boys had fallen asleep, a ruckus downstairs stirred Simon to consciousness. He pushed himself up onto his elbows and put his glasses on, looking around the room. He noticed Theodore was missing.
Expecting the worst and hoping to be wrong, Simon padded downstairs as quietly as he could to investigate the noises he heard.
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