1'Today'll be another borin' day..'
That was one of the many things Wally Franks thought as he swept. He had just spent most of his morning on garbage rounds again because of Sammy's perfectionist nature. Now he had to sweep up the offices after Sammy had gone to complain to Joey about another minor inconvenience, leaving a mess of papers for the freckled janitor/handyman to deal with. Boy, that uptight music director really got on his nerves.
Allison Pendle had told the young man in the past that they were like chalk and cheese; Sammy was serious, strict and pessimistic while Wally was easygoing, kind and one of the friendliest guys anyone would meet. So it was natural that they would clash.
Wally's regular pranks didn't help remedy the issue, it only made Sammy despise him even more.
Allison was like a big sister to Wally; she always knew what to say. He'd often gone to her for advice or just to talk to when he was troubled. That's if she wasn't in the same room as Susie Campbell; they verbally sparred on a daily basis since Allison was slowly taking her place as the voice of Alice Angel - which Susie hated. She'd had been in her mid 30's when she got her big break as Alice.
Wally found it hard to get on with Susie; she had become a bitter, cynical version of what she once was when she first started voice-acting. She was the type of person who strived to be perfect, but her efforts were only in vain since she was nearing 40; soon she would be too old to play Alice. The only thing Susie couldn't disguise was her voice, which was starting to sound older and more mature. Although her arguments with Allison were hilarious, it was rather difficult to understand things from Susie's perspective.
Wally had often wondered whether Susie had some sort of medical condition that had gone undiagnosed but couldn't figure out what.
Thomas, a slightly older man who worked in the same department as Wally, often told the 20-something year old that he was wasting his potential. He firmly believed Wally was actually a lot smarter and a lot more skilled than he let his co-workers think he was; few people noticed that whatever new skill Wally tried, he was pretty good at it. So he tried countless times to enable Wally to put those hidden talents of his to good use. So far, no such luck.
Wally knew Thomas meant well but he had enough to do as it was.
'Some where beyond the sea,
Somewhere, waiting for me
My love, he stands on golden sands
And watches the ships
That go sailing..'
Wally's thoughts were halted as he heard singing coming from down the hall. From its soprano pitch, he knew the voice belonged to a woman. She sounded too young to be Allison or Susie; Allison was an alto-soprano while Susie was just an alto. And as far as he knew, none of the other female employees sang.
So the brunette went to investigate who the mystery singer could be.
It didn't take long for Wally to find the source of the singing; it was a young woman around his age sitting patiently outside Joey Drew's office. Her blond hair was in soft curls tht framed her delicate facial features perfectly, bordered by a blue hairband. Her dress was blue with a yellow skirt. Unlike Susie, she wore little make-up. Around her neck was a simple necklace. It seemed she hadn't noticed him yet, her attention being on the script papers in her hands - she had to be a new voice actress. Like Susie and Allison.
Wally couldn't help but stare as he listened to the woman's lovely rendition of 'Beyond The Sea'; she was beautiful.
The young woman, Lucy soon got the feeling that someone was staring at her. Looking around, she noticed Wally. The way he looked at her with brilliant blue eyes, it was new. She couldn't recall anyone looking at her that way. It felt like there were millions of butterflies fluttering about in her stomach. What a way to start your first day, huh Lucy? Say something!' she thought.
Finding her composure, Lucy smiled kindly at Wally. "Oh, hi. I didn't know that someone was listening. I'm Lucy" she introduced herself, holding out a hand.
Having regained his usual friendly nature, Wally shook Lucy's hand; which was small and soft. "I'm Wally" he replied. He had noticed how Lucy's amber eyes lit up as she smiled; it was the most beautiful smile he'd ever seen. "Ya new here?" He asked.
"Yeah, it's my first day actually…from today, I'll be voicing Doll the Flower Maiden" Lucy admitted.
Wally knew which character Lucy was talking about; the head animator, Henry & his wife Linda recently had a baby - a little girl. Henry had been inspired by his newborn daughter to create a character, Doll.
Susie had tried to pester Joey for the role but was told she was too old. Joey must've heard Lucy's audition reel and hired her.
'And from what I heard, he made the right call. Susie may have voiced an 'angel' but this gal's practically the real deal' Wally mentally agreed.
Lucy then remembered the rumours she'd heard about Joey Drew prior to getting the job; despite his cartoon empire, he wasn't the easiest person to please and was quick to lose his temper if things didn't go according to his plan. Her smile faltered; what if none of her colleagues were as nice as Wally?
Lucy's concern didn't go unnoticed by Wally. She didn't know how terrible Joey could be to his employees or how harsh Sammy tended to be with new talent. It bothered him when someone wasn't smiling - after all, he believed that anyone who worked in cartoons should have a sense of humour. So he did what he usually did when things got tense; make them laugh. "Say, Lucy. What did the sea say to the shore?" He asked.
Lucy smiled a little. She knew Wally was about to tell her a joke; she loved jokes. "I don't know, what?" She questioned.
"Nothin'. It just waved" Wally answered. Lucy immediately started laughing, much to his delight. At least he knew she had a sense of humour; her laugh was like music - he could never get tired of hearing it, no matter how many times he heard it.
Even after she stopped laughing, Lucy couldn't wipe the smile off her face. The smile that was there because of Wally. Any unease she had initially felt was now gone. "Thank you, Wally" she thanked him softly.
Happy that he could ease the lovely blonde's distress, Wally tipped his cap. "Happy to help. If ya feel down or need to laugh, come find me" he offered. He was pretty good at making people laugh. With things as bleak as they were nowadays, it was important to find the good things in life - that included times when one needed to laugh.
"I'd like that" Lucy replied. It was sweet that Wally knew she needed cheering up. She knew that no matter what, she'd be ok as long as someone like him was there for her.
'You'll know when you fall in love with the right one, Lucy. If he makes you laugh, he's a keeper' Lucy's mother had once told her. And that's what Wally had done.
"Well, see ya around, Luce" Wally remarked with a final tip of his cap.
Lucy giggled at the new nickname, not minding it one bit. "See you around, Wally" she replied as she waved.
Wally was unable to stop grinning like an idiot as he went to carry on sweeping out the offices.
That Lucy was definitely something special. Not only was she a talented singer, she was sweet, funny and beautiful. Wally had never met anyone like her before. It would be nice having someone his own age around to talk to, he'd thought.
And that smile Lucy gave him when she saw him, it made Wally feel like time had stopped; he had found himself wanting the moment with the lovely blond to last longer. And the way she laughed at his joke, he wanted to hear it again.
Even in her prime, Susie hadn't been as lovely or sweet as Lucy.
The janitor/handyman knew one thing for sure; the people were definitely going to love Lucy. Almost as much as he already did - and he had literally just met the girl moments ago. "Holy cannoli, I think I'm in love" he realised. Good thing his best friend, Shawn (who worked in the toy department) didn't see him in such a state - he would tease Wally about this.
Lucy found that she couldn't stop smiling. "Well, what a great start to the day.." She said to herself. She had felt like time had stopped when she had locked eyes with Wally. She thought that only happened in the movies.
Sighing thoughtfully to herself, Lucy glanced back down to her script to resume reading through her lines. She had auditioned at the studio a few weeks ago on a whim; her father always said that she had the voice of an angel and that one day the world would know it.
Lucy hadn't expected for Joey to see her audition reel and decided she would be ideal to voice Doll. She thought it would take her at least a year to even achieve a supporting role - just like it had taken Susie a while to become well-known as Alice Angel. She had always wanted to meet Susie; she admired her dedication to voice-acting and resilience.
Lucy smiled wider as she thought of the endless possibilities that would unfurl just because of an audition reel she sang and read lines for. She thought of what her new co-workers would be like. And she thought of how Wally made her laugh. "I think I will like it here.." She mused.
Hello! You have read the first chapter of my Bendy & The Ink Machine story: Those Golden Days. This story is set prior the events of the game. I own nothing but the story, Doll & Lucy. Be aware, this is my story so please be considerate when commenting. Thank you and hope to see you in the chapter.
