Chapter Twenty: Pumpkin:

Noiz sat at her desk, pouting. Mosh looked up with a concerned look on his face.

“What’s the matter?” he asked. “Don’t feel well?” His wife shook her head.

“Are you sick?” he asked. Noiz shook her head.

“A bad day?” Mosh asked. She shrugged her shoulders. The mouse tilted his head at her.

“What happened?” he asked.

“I got picked on,” Noiz wailed.

“What happened?”

The kitty flopped back in her chair. “The freshman girls gave me an annoying nickname.”

“What nickname?”

Noiz quickly shook her head, waving her hand back and forth. “No, I couldn’t…”

Mosh leaned in close into her face. “Come on! Tell me what it was!” Noiz sighed and lowered her shoulders. Her lips mumbled something under her breath.

“What is it?” Mosh asked. The kitty repeated her answer a little bit louder.

“What?” her husband repeated. Noiz’s cheeks began to burn.

“Pumpkin!” she shouted. “They kept calling me Pumpkin!” Mosh gave her a confused look.

“Why would they call you that?” he asked. His wife pointed down to her pregnant belly.

“Oh…” he said in a low voice. Noiz sat back, frowning.

“It’s not funny,” she mumbled. Mosh tried to keep from giggling.

“Actually, it kind of is,” he said.

“Shut up!” she barked. Mosh broke out into louder laughter. She threw a paper cup at him. He caught it in his hand.

“Okay, okay,” he said.

“Thank you,” his wife said. She picked up her pen and got back to work. Mosh looked down at her small dark hands.

“Although,” he spoke up. “It does sound kind of cute.” Noiz paused and glanced up at him.

“What does?” she asked.

“The nickname ‘Pumpkin,’” Mosh answered with a shrug. “I kind of like it.”

“Shut up,” Noiz muttered. Her husband put up her hands at her.

“Okay, okay,” he said. “Whatever you say.” Pumpkin… As she finished up her paperwork for the day, Noiz began plotting revenge upon her freshman girl students. She would still have time before maternity leave kicked in.