On Nom's POV
My eyes narrowed, I was face to face with my mortal enemy. Something very tall, a fridge in this scenario. At the very top were two of those massive white balls Leo gave me, plus the half-eaten one I had yesterday. Leo called them jawbreakers, and they were delicious. Despite their hard exterior, the long-lasting flavor was perfect.
My resolve hardened, it was time to set my plan into motion. I gripped the chair's leg with my teeth, slowly dragging it across the floor.
With the chair working as a stepstool, I leapt onto the counter. A third of the way there, at this rate it would only be a matter of time before I reached the top.
Luckily, fate was on my side. The kitchen counter had glass jars and strange metal cans, perfect materials to build my staircase out of. Grabbing each item with precision, I stack them delicately on top of each other. It wasn't easy, some of the jars were hard to hold because of their size.
Eventually I was forced to stop, mainly because I ran out of material to build with. Hopefully it was enough, enough to get me to the top.
Each step I took was slow and precise, I couldn't risk falling from this height.
The tower shuddered as I reached the top, it turns out I was wrong. It wasn't tall enough, but I was out of building material. There was a small gap between my tower and the fridge, maybe I could jump the rest of the way. My body leaned forward, the tower leaned with me. With all my strength, I leapt through the air.
Time slowed down as I moved through the air, my eyes widened in fear as I realized my mistake.
Turns out I underestimated my jumping ability, which resulted in me slamming into the fridge. Luckily, I was able to latch onto the side before I slid off. A grunt escaped my mouth, using all my strength I pulled myself up and over. A tired wheeze escaped my mouth, but it was all worth it.
It was a struggle, but I did it. I've reached the top, now to claim my reward. My mouth salivated as I approached the jawbreakers, I'm gonna devour all of them right now.
"What was that noise?!" A voice questioned.
A voice I was all too familiar with, it belonged to Leo. Which meant I didn't have much time, I bolted toward the jawbreakers, but it was too late. Leo grabbed me by my sides, holding me up in the air . A disappointed expression on his face, one that was forming on my face as well.
"Did you do this?" Leo gestured to the floor.
All the cans and glass jars I used for my tower now littered the floor, most of them now shattered or dented.
Leo let out a sigh. "I'm really sorry about this Om Nom, but you leave me no choice." What did he mean by that?
___
Leo's POV
Om Nom let out a small whine as he pawed at the door. 'Wait, does he even have paws?' He has those tiny nubs, but do those even count as paws?
Either way, right now I needed to focus on cleaning up his mess. If I didn't clean it right now, well it would only be a matter of time before Om Nom cut one of his stubby little paws/nubs on the glass.
An annoyed grumble escaped my mouth, it was pretty easy to figure out what happened here. Om Nom wanted the jawbreakers on top of the fridge, so he built a makeshift tower out of canned corn and empty glass jars. If I'm being honest, I'm more surprised he was able to find them in the first place.
Though, this meant I had a new issue. My hiding spot was discovered, which means I need somewhere new to hide the jawbreakers. Can't leave them on the fridge anymore, he'd just build another tower. The real question is, where should I hide them?
Weird thing about The Gacha, it has a built-in one-way inventory. Well, at least that's what I could figure out. Every time The Gacha gives me something, it's automatically stored inside. Probably some kind of pocket inventory or something, but it has a major issue, it's one way. I can pull things out of it, but I can't put them back in.
It's the main reason why I've barely taken anything out, like Ghost's uniform, The Herb Set, or The Batgrapple. While the odds are low, it'd be hard to explain why I have a special ops uniform and an expensive high-tech grapple in my home.
A sigh escaped my mouth as I got back to work, I left the kitchen and entered the living room. It was kind of a mess, all the furniture was shoved into the center of the room, plastic tarps covered the floor, and the walls were only half painted.
Maybe just a little longer, I can check out The Gacha.
With a mental command, I activated The Gacha.
[Current GP: 1]
[1 GP = 1 Card (0% chance)]
[3 GP = 3 Cards (20% chance)]
[5 GP = 5 Cards (35% chance)]
[7 GP = 7 Cards (50% chance)]
[10 GP = 10 Cards (75% chance)]
"I should probably wait, but then again… Draw 1." Managing impulse control wasn't my strongest skill.
The Gacha screen emitted a faint multicolored light, dimmer compared to last time.
[Skill: Ron Swanson's Woodworking (Parks and Recreation)]
'Should've seen this coming.' Looks like my theory was correct.
My Gacha System is at only level 1, and the rewards match it. While it may have given me a few good things, like the Stimpak recipe, The Herb Set, etc. The only issue is that they either need specialized knowledge or something else to be properly used, like certain machinery or material .
For example, The Stimpaks. If I want to mass produce them, I need a steady source of material that isn't easy to obtain. Well, unless I owned a hospital.
Everything else, the templates, skills, and abilities. While some of the skills could be hard to learn, they don't exactly make me super human. Level 1 of The Gacha mainly consists of stuff that I would consider above human average, which isn't going to be enough against an entire gang that's probably armed with bats, knife, and the occasional gun
If I wanted to take them down, I needed to level up. Which is easier said than done, The Gacha hasn't exactly given me that many opportunities.
So far I've only gotten XP from quests, plus that time I tripped flash. The latter wasn't exactly a viable option, it's not like I can just go around beating people up.
Well, not yet at least. First I needed some sort of ability that makes me bulletproof, or at least hard to shoot. I'm in America after all, the land of bad healthcare and guns.
The whining from Om Nom grew louder, cutting my brainstorming session short. I'm starting to get worried, so I opened the door so I could check on him.
"Okay, what's the-" Om Nom had a nervous expression, his stubby little feet tapping against the ground. 'Crap.' literally.
___
Good news, Om Nom was successfully able to use the bathroom. Bad news, it was number two. "Ew." Even though I treat Om Nom like a pet, he's not really an animal.
He's a sentient creature, one with dignity and self respect. Which meant that unlike most pets, he refused to go in the front yard. We had to make due with a cardboard box, like some sort of makeshift litter box.
Maybe I can buy him some sort of mini toilet, like the ones used during potty training.
I'd probably buy him one tomorrow. For now, I should probably get back to work. Finish painting the walls, maybe even adding a second coat.
"One room down." I took a quick glance at the kitchen, my bedroom, and the laundry room. "Three more to go." Not including my parent's room, I'm not sure if i ready to move their stuff around just yet
My body let out a small pop as I stretched, the kitchen and laundry room were smaller. Which meant I could probably paint both in the same amount of time it took for the living room, but there was one minor issue: the stove, laundry machine, and dryer.
"Hopefully the muscles Dexter's and Nolan's gave me are enough." One was buff from working in construction. The other one trained so he could kidnap people, it wasn't a good reason but it's a reason.
___
"The fuck?" Om Nom tapped the floor.
Om Nom and I were staring at what looked like a trapdoor, designed to blend into the tile floor. For some reason it was hidden underneath the washing machine, the amount of effort put into hiding kind of made me worried.
My hand felt around the edges of the trapdoor, spreading some of the dust around. Eventually I found a small crevice, so I started to pull. The door shuddered, probably stuck from not being used for a while.
Om Nom gripped my shirt with his teeth, using all his strength to help me pull. A grunt escaped my mouth, I pulled with all my strength. The trapdoor burst open, I nearly fell over during the process. Om Nom wasn't so lucky, he stumbled over his own feet and rolled away.
I let out a small laugh, shaking my head at his antics. Om Nom may be difficult sometimes, but he's always around when I need a laugh.
My eyes narrowed as I stared at the room below, it was too dark to see anything.
What could be down there? I wondered.
As it turns out, I wasn't the only one. Om Nom suddenly leapt into the hole, vanishing into the darkness. "Dammit, Om Nom!" I jumped in after him.
It was a stupid idea, but I couldn't just leave him to fend for himself. Who knows what could be down there, probably a rabid raccoon.
I landed with a thud, bending my knees on impact. The room was pitch black, like I had my eyes closed or something.
"Damn it, Om Nom, there better be a ladder down here. If I get stuck, then I'm gonna—" I suddenly tripped, face-planted into the ground.
An annoyed groan left my mouth as I dusted off my shirt and pants, I pulled out my phone and activated the flashlight. You've got to be kidding me. As it turns out, I tripped over a ladder.
If that wasn't ironic timing, then I don't know what is.
Clink
What was that? The sound startled me.
I flashed my light around the room, but all I saw were old boxes and gray tarps.
Bang
I frantically turned around, a tin can rolled by me.
What type of horror movie bullshit is this?
Snap
Something broke, the sound came from right behind me. Out of instinct I swung my fist, but I hit nothing but air.
Snap
Another snap filled the pitch-black room, I glanced down and saw Om Nom. Next to him was some bubble wrap, he raised one of his stubby legs and popped another bubble.
Snap
"That's some weird-sounding bubble wrap." I picked up Om Nom, holding him in my arms for safe keeping.
It was probably pure luck, but eventually I found what I hoped was a light switch. It looked pretty old-fashioned but I didn't have much of an option, so I flicked it. Two light bulbs lit up, though one instantly flickered out.
The room was filled with a bunch of old boxes, crates, and even a couple of barrels. What drew my attention was six massive structures covered in grey tarps, I yanked the tarp off and frowned. If video games taught me anything, it was a distillery.
What the? I took another look around.
Shelves littered with bottles, barrels that were probably filled with alcohol, wooden crates filled with jugs. Most teens would be excited at the idea of free beer, but I'm not most teens.
What the hell am I going to do with a basement filled with sketchy homemade liquor?
Then again, having a secret basement could come in handy. It could be used to hide any special tech The Gacha gives me, or turned into a secret lab. Maybe even a hiding spot—mainly for Om Nom.
On cue, Om Nom rolled past me on an out-of-control barrel. Damn it. The sound of him crashing into a shelf and bottles breaking filled the room.
A tired sigh escaped my mouth, the difficulties of being a pet owner.
___
A sense of exhaustion and pride filled my body. It took most of the day, but I painted every room (not including my parents') in the house. I also swept and mopped. I was gonna sleep like a rock tonight.
Om Nom scratched at the backdoor, probably wanted to go outside.
Today had been exhausting, maybe some fresh air wouldn't be so bad.
I took a step outside, Om Nom leaping past me. "Fuck." Om Nom tripped over some overgrown weeds.
The backyard was a mess, filled with weeds and dead leaves from last year's fall season. The worst part, the frantic noise of at least four dozen grasshoppers.
"Screw it, I'll do it tomorrow." I sat on the backyard stoop.
Despite everything, it was nice. Sitting outside, enjoying the nighttime air while Om Nom chased after grasshoppers and the occasional firefly.
"Om Nom!" Om Nom stopped mid-chase.
I called him over, moments like these were perfect. Grabbing a jawbreaker and a soda, soda for me, jawbreaker for Om Nom.
Om Nom sat beside me on the stoop, I popped open the soda and took a sip.
Nothing beats sitting outside after a long day, pet beside you, soda in hand.
Moments like that can make you forget, forget that you're currently living in a world where a giant can come and eat the planet.