The Amazing World of Gumball: The Truth

Author's Note: This is bad and unfinished.

One quiet evening in the Wilsons’ house, Tobias was in his bedroom writing a letter to his sister, who was busy at college. This was something he did frequently, once every month to be exact.

"Hey, Rachel!

Just wanted to ask how college is going. Middle school's okay. Still haven't gotten a girlfriend though.

Sometimes I wish you were still here, there's so much I wanna tell you in person. I'm also getting kinda worried that you're not writing back. I know we've never really had a healthy sibling relationship, but you're still my sister and I care about you. But I'm sure you're just busy with classes, right?

I hope I'll see you soon, I guess. And that school gets less hectic for you. Love you, sis.

Tobias"

Happily, he sealed it up in an envelope and headed downstairs. Before he could reach the door, his mother Jackie stopped him.

“Hey, sweetie, where are you going?” she asked with a smile.

“Hey, Mom! I’m gonna mail another letter to Rachel!”

Jackie’s smile faltered, and a worried look formed on her face. “Oh, u-um...okay, honey. Just be quick. Dinner is almost ready.”

“Okay!” Tobias went outside to the mailbox by the sidewalk. Just as he placed the envelope inside, a bright yellow light blinded him. As it got closer, he could make out that it was a car—and it was driving right toward him.

Tobias’ colorful eyes widened, and he dove out of the way just before he was hit. Stunned, he laid there on the grass, trying to catch his breath. Who on Earth was that? Granted, nobody in the town of Elmore deserved their driving license, but this driver seemed as if they had wanted to hit him. Ultimately, he decided to brush it off and go inside for dinner.

Half of dinner time was oddly silent. Tobias felt an unhappy energy coming from his parents, and both of them seemed to have their minds elsewhere. Finally, after what felt like ages, his father Harold spoke up.

“So...how was school today, Son?” he asked, a flawed grin stretched across his face.

“Oh, it was great!” Tobias beamed, his eyes lighting up. “I got to sit next to Penny at lunch! I’ve been working on how I treat people and I think she’s noticing.”

Jackie’s expression changed to one Tobias could not place. “That’s nice, dear. Did you talk with your friends?”

“Yeah, I did. Hey, Mom?”

“Mm-hmm?”

“Why doesn’t anybody want to talk about Rachel?”

Harold almost choked on his food.

“The only person who asked about her was Darwin,” Tobias continued, “but he didn’t say anything else.”

Jackie and Harold exchanged glances, and the former nodded, answering the latter’s silent question.

“Tobias, honey…” Jackie began in a soft voice, “there’s something we haven’t told you...”

“...But we think you can handle it now,” Harold finished for her.

“What is it?” Tobias asked, confused.

“It’s...about your sister.” Jackie’s voice began to tremble. “And why she hasn’t written back to you.”

“Well, she’s just busy, right?”

“Um..no.”

“She won’t be coming home, son,” Harold told him solemnly.

“What? Why not?!” Tobias exclaimed.

“Well...she’s…” Jackie gestured to her husband.

“She’s passed away.”

Tobias’ eyes dimmed. “W-What?”

“We only told you she was at college so you wouldn’t be hurt.”

“B-But…”

“That’s why she hasn’t written back,” said Jackie, placing a hand on her son’s shoulder.

“And why she didn’t say goodbye,” Harold added.

After a moment, Tobias’ face darkened. He screwed his eyes shut, lowering his head.

“Honey?” Jackie asked. “Are you all right?”

In an act so sudden it startled both parents, Tobias jumped out of his seat and ran upstairs.

“Jackie,” Harold started, “I don’t think he was ready for that.”

“But we had to tell him eventually!” Jackie argued in dissent. “We couldn’t just keep lying to him forever.”

In his room, Tobias let himself fall face first onto his bed. Now alone, he let out loud, anguished sobs. Even though they were muffled by his pillow, he was sure his parents could hear it from downstairs.

He rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling, replaying his parents’ words in his head. They could not have been telling the truth; he would never accept it. He glanced over at the framed picture of him and Rachel on his nightstand. He sat up and stared at it, heat rising in his face. He stepped down onto the wooden floor, and grabbed the picture. With all the anger coursing through his veins, he threw it across the room against the wall, smashing it into pieces. Panting, he stormed over to the pile of shattered glass and knelt down in front of it. He scooped up some of the pieces, and while most were reduced to dust, one was mostly preserved: the piece displaying Rachel’s face.

Tobias screamed in frustration, which only turned into a distressed wail as he threw the shards back on the floor. Hearing this, his parents rushed into his room and to his side.

“Honey, what happened? Are you hurt?” Jackie asked, concern evident in her voice and on her face.

Tobias stood up and whipped around to face them, tears pricking at the corners of his eyes. “Why the heck would you lie to me about my sister?!”

Both parents backed up in surprise. His father began to explain, “Son, we only told you that so—”

“I’ve been writing letters to nobody for EIGHT YEARS!” The tears were flowing now, creating small puddles on the floor. “How would you like it if I died and someone kept telling you I was at summer camp?!”

Taken aback by what their son had just said, Jackie desperately tried to change the subject. “Tobi, your hands…” Tobias had not even noticed the glass shards that were now stuck in his skin, and the blood trickling down from the wounds.

“I DON’T CARE!” he screamed. “That’s not the point! My sister is dead!” The anger on his face shifted to sadness, as the weight of his own words finally hit him. His parents embraced him, and he cried once more, this time much louder. They stayed that way for a while, just holding each other. In that moment, Jackie did not care how hard Tobias pulled her hair trying to bring her closer, nor did Harold how deep his nails dug into his back. All that mattered was the fact that their child was hurting—and that they had caused it.

Eventually, Tobias finally calmed down and pulled away from his parents. “I’m sorry…” he mumbled.

Both of them quickly replied, “No, don’t be sorry.”

“It’s our fault,” Jackie told him.

“We shouldn’t have lied to you in the first place, Son,” said Harold.

“I just want to know one thing,” said Tobias. “How did Rachel die?”

“Well, honey…” Jackie started, “you know Mrs. Robinson?”

Of course Tobias knew Mrs. Robinson; that nasty woman from two streets down.

“Yeah, what’d she do?”

“Well...your father and I were driving your sister home one day...”

“...And Mrs. Robinson came speeding toward us.”

“We didn’t even see her, honey.”