Submission (#3563) Approved

Hidden. Watching. Waiting.
Azure’s plan was coming to fruition, if not ever so slowly. This year, Azure was determined to master the art of surprise pranks on a nuclear level, and their poor prey was Adonis. Azure had asked their boyfriend Lotus to take Adonis out of the house for the day so that Azure may enact his scheme, and Adonis had yet to suspect a thing.
Almost exactly on time, Azure spotted Adonis and Lotus walking towards the market square, at the predetermined spot Azure had asked them to walk by, to confirm their plan was still in order.
Azure took off, suppressing any evil giggling and trying to not drop the suspiciously large bag they dragged behind. Entering their mutual house with ease, Azure set to work with haste. They opened the bag and sifted through the contents on Adonis’s bed. Boxes upon boxes fell out, laid out like a treasured bounty. Azure took one and ripped it, devilishly grabbing at its contents. Azure started with Adonis’s bedroom first, eyeballing the room swiftly before grabbing several more boxes and opening them. First the closet, then the closet door, then the window, and everything sitting out in the room, before taking the rest of the bounty off the bed, so Azure could get at it. Lastly, Azure carefully took their boxes of mass destruction and put it back in the bag, and shut the bedroom door.
Azure had asked Lotus to take Adonis out, but what Azure didn’t tell Lotus was that their boyfriend wasn’t the only person he was pranking. Azure snuck into Lotus’ room and with savage glee, began the same work. As Azure was about midway through Lotus’ room, Azure froze at the sound of voices.
'Were they back already?' Azure thought with a panic, checking the time, 'I thought I told Lotus to head back in two hours!'
Azure flattened himself against the floor, and silently scuttled out of Lotus’ room, abandoning the crime scene. As Azure approached the front of the house, the voices became louder, yet muffled still. But something wasn’t right. There were too many voices, and none that matched the familiar tone of Lotus or Adonis’. Gently rising up and peering out the front door spy hole, Azure breathed a sigh of relief at the sight of his neighbors and their friends, all approaching the house next door and entering. Dusting himself and shaking off that sudden dread, Azure sped back to Lotus’ room to finish the job.
Bringing Lotus’ door to a gentle close, Azure brought the bag to garbage, innocuously disposing of the numerous boxes of aluminum foil. Azure stretched and checked the time.
'About 40 minutes, pretty good time, if I do say so!' He thought to himself, 'wrapping two rooms head-to-toe in aluminum foil is a surprisingly taxing job, I deserve a rest.'
Azure made his way to the living room, relaxing on the couch. Just as he got himself comfortable, to his surprise, the front door opened and his lovers Adonis and Lotus entered.
'Just in time!' Azure thought to himself with glee, trying his best to remain unsuspicious on the couch.
“Did you guys have a nice time?” Azure asked nonchalantly.
“A very good time! We got something for you!” Lotus replied, disappearing into the kitchen with Adonis.
Confused, but intrigued, Azure slowly got off the couch and followed them, only to be caught in a sudden bear-hug grab by Adonis while Lotus pounced on him. In only a few minutes of struggle between the three, Azure was finally released, but as a stiff, plastic wrap mummy.
“How COULD you??” Azure accused playfully.
“Lotus snitched,” Adonis informed him, “And we couldn’t get to your room to get you back without you knowing, so this was the next best thing.”
“Well, this doesn’t seem nearly as equal,” Azure commented, trying his best to shimmy his hands free from his shiny plastic prison, to no avail.
“Don’t worry! You can help us clean up both of our rooms!” Lotus added.
“Both? How did you know I did both of your rooms?”
“We figured you would.” Adonis said in his quiet, but secretly loving way.
“Well! I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Azure said, shuffling closer to them, nuzzling them as best he could in his shining plastic armor of prank-gone-wrong.