Bobbie tossed and turned while trying to sleep. Why can't I be like normal 23 year old chics and just have fun? she thought, Why do I have to save the city? Why do I have to take on saving the world? Why can't I just be normal?
It was then she felt something crawling on her face. She slapped it off with her hand and felt another crawling on her stomach and still another on her leg. Jumping from her bed she felt a sharp pain in her foot. "Ouch!" she shouted as she reached for the light switch only to see her bedroom covered in bread ties. "What the..." she shouted as she ran from the room!
Minutes later Donny was there to see what Bobbie had called about. "This has to be the household item the Aliens learned to control," Donny said. "The one we read about in the files you snagged."
"So that explains it," Bobbie said.
"Explains what?" Donny asked.
"This happened once before when I went to sleep in the chair only they didn't find me that time." Bobbie answered. "When Carole got me up the next morning there was a trail of bread ties from the kitchen to my bedroom."
"You know," Donny said, "after I escaped and finally went back home there were bread ties in my bedroom too. I just figured I had one of those trade rats or something swapping things around."
"So let me get this straight," Bobbie asked, "are you saying you were somehow overpowered and carried from your bed all the way to Downtown Greensboro by a bunch of tiny wire ties?
"No," Donny answered, "but the wire ties had something to do with it."
Just then his cell phone rang. "You won't believe what just happened to me," Marikay said over the phone.
"You just got attacked by wire ties," Donny answered.
"How did you know?" Marikay asked.
"I'm at Bobbie's house." he answered. "The same thing happened to her."
"Is she okay?" Marikay asked.
"She's fine," he reassured Marikay, "Here, I'll let you talk to her. Bobbie, it's Marikay."
"Hello Marikay," Bobbie greeted, "was that not the strangest thing?"
"It sure was," Marikay answered, "The 911 operator thought I was crazy and threatened to have the officers arrest me for abusing 911 emergency services."
"Oh I try to never call 911," Bobbie said.
"Why not?" Marikay asked.
"Because if you call 911 the secret police tell the media you're a confidential police informant," Bobbie answered, "and all your friends hate you. Then you never get to have any fun."
Just then Bobbie's phone rang, "Gotta go," Bobbie said handing the phone back to Donny, "Hello, twist ties in your bed?"
"How did you know?" Carole answered.
"It seems to be common place," Bobbie replied, "are you okay?"
"I'm fine," Carole answered, "you?"
"My foot's a little sore," Bobbie replied.
"What happened to your foot?" Carole asked.
"I stepped on a twist tie when I jumped out of bed," Bobbie replied.
"When is the last time you had a tetanus shot?" Carole asked.
"I don't remember when I last had a tetanus shot," Bobbie said.
"Looks like somebody's going by the doctor's office in the morning before she comes to work?" Donny said.
"But I've got a bike to finish," Bobbie complained. "I'm almost done."
"And it will still be there when you get there." Donny insisted.
___________
"Would you mind telling me again why I'm crawling around in a cold storm drain in Greensboro in the middle of the night when I could be in Burlington in a warm bed with my wife?" Wooley asked.
"Because," Steve explained, "at night there's less light coming in from outside so any light we see is more likely to be man-made."
"You mean alien made," Wooley corrected.
"Yeah, that," Steve agreed.
"So how many miles of pipe have we searched so far?" Wooley asked.
"I lost track weeks ago," Steve answered.
"You know my wife doesn't believe this is really what I'm really doing out all night?" Wooley asked. "You know that, right."
"If I were still married my wife wouldn't believe it either," Steve said.
"She thinks I'm running around on her," Wooley complained. "Never mind the fact that I've been faithful for over 20 years even when I had chances not to be. Never mind that I love her more now than I did when I married her. Never mind the fact that no woman would want to get near me 'cause I'm soaking wet, freezing cold and smell like... Oh man, what in the hell did I just step in? Even sewer pipes don't stink that bad!"
"I don't know," Steve said, "but you'd better take you boot off right now."
"Why would I want to take my boot off down here?" Wooley asked.
"Because it's smoking," Steve answered.
_________
"See if you can move to a different tree," Abe pointed. "That one over there."
"Why would I want to do that?" Matty asked. "That tree's fat."
"Cause we need to surround the bear," Abe answered, "Start yelling and confuse him so maybe he'll get scared and run away."
"Think it will work?" Matty asked.
"I doubt it," Abe replied, "but it's the only thing I can think of right now."
"Beats climbing back down," Matty said as he and Abe both reached for the bigger trees.
Me, I just stood there wishing I weren't. You know, bears have really bad breath.
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