The Popsicle Stick Secret

That summer, an elementalist was studying. 

Outside his house stood his best friend, Matt, holding a slowly melting cherry popsicle. He looked up toward the window he knew was Deric’s room—the one whose curtain was shut. The front door was locked, and he had no hope knocking because he knew no one would answer. He sighed, knowing his nerdy friend was not going to emerge from his study hole for anything, not until he was done. 

Matt walked around the side of the house, hopping over their fence and climbing through the window, the one whose lock had broken a few years ago. He passed through the kitchen, going until he saw the staircase. He ascended to the second floor as quietly as possible. When Matt arrived outside of his room, he stood still for a few seconds, contemplating how he was going to scare Deric this time. He took a small bite of his popsicle before making his decision. 

He slowly heated the popsicle until it was nothing but a puddle of sugary liquid floating in the air, and carefully moved it through the crack under the door. He closed his eyes, picturing the structure of Deric’s room and where he could be. Matt continued to move the melted popsicle, waiting until it was directly above Deric’s head before letting go and waiting for the inevitable scream. 

Within a second, a shriek that rattled the walls resounded, followed by loud, stomping footsteps. Matt was leaning against the wall opposite the door, holding the dry popsicle stick, trying to read the joke written on it. He was about to read the answer when the wood was snatched away, replaced with seething blue eyes and sticky dark hair. Matt tried his best not to laugh, because that would just make Deric even more mad, but an uncontrollable chuckle burst from his lips. That laugh led to another, and then another, until Matt was holding his stomach and wheezing.

“You.. you… you look so funny,” Matt managed to squeeze out in-between his snickers. His grinning face looked up to see Deric’s, and the expression he saw only made him burst into more intense laughter. By this point, he was bent over on one knee, shoulders shaking, holding himself up with a hand on the wall. Deric looked down to Matt from his upright position, an unamused expression on his face. 

Looking away, a small smile broke out on his face despite wanting to remain serious. He shook his head, finding his friend’s usual antics annoying yet comforting. While waiting for Matt to calm down, he read the joke on the popsicle stick he took out of Matt’s hand. 

What does a wasp say when it wants to enter a door?

Buzz buzz.

Deric started giggling a little at how terrible the joke was. Those popsicle companies really put no effort into them, he thought. He looked to Matt, who was sitting with his back against the wall, elbows on his knees. 

“Hey, Matt, did you read this joke yet?” Deric asked, briefly forgetting about his sticky situation. Matt looked up, shaking his head. Deric told him the joke, and they both started laughing again.

“That’s a terrible joke.” Matt said, standing up. 

“I know, right? That’s what I said.” Deric replied, inviting Matt into his room. Matt entered, jumping onto Deric’s navy beanbag. “Hey, I’m going to go shower to get this,” he gestured to his head, “cleaned up. I’ll be out in a few.”

When the door to the bathroom shut behind him, Matt stood up and walked over to his desk. He glanced around the various papers, texts, and notes that lay strewn about on it. It seemed like Deric was studying for their school’s final exams. He sat down in the desk chair, spinning around a few times. Gazing around the room, Matt spotted a t-shirt crumpled in the corner. A devious plot came to mind, and he started grinning at the thought of Deric’s reaction. Or rather, when it’ll come. Deric isn’t the most observant of people. 

Matt lifted the shirt and carefully wrapped it around the lamp on the ceiling. He tied it into a nice bow, the dark gray fabric sticking out against the light blue ceiling. The last time he did something like this, it took Deric three weeks to notice. No joke. Matt laughed under his breath, wondering how long it’ll take Deric to notice this one—especially since the shirt contrasts so clearly from the ceiling. 

Deric came out of the shower, ruffling his hair with a towel. He put it down and said, “What are you doing here? I told you I’d be studying all day.”

“Ehh I was bored so I decided to pay you a visit anyway. There’s only so much studying you can do—you’ve already been at it for months, dude.” Matt said, tapping his fingers against the armrests. 

“Well, unlike you, I don’t just get this stuff. I need to study and review it over and over to understand it, much less remember it for a test.” Deric replied, arching an eyebrow. 

“Damn, sorry for being born a genius I guess,” he said jokingly, chuckling. “But seriously man, take a break. I know you’ve been at this all day.”

Deric sighed, shaking his head lightly. He was silent for a bit, thinking, before nodding and saying, “Alright, since you’re already here, let’s go.”

Matt grinned, hopping up and skipping out of the open door. Deric followed behind with steady footsteps. Matt asked over his shoulder, “To the convenience store for popsicles, right?”

“Yes, but this time let’s not cover me in one,” Deric said in a deadpan voice. Matt walked down the stairs, laughing in response and waving his hand in agreement. Deric took the keys to the house before locking and closing the door behind him. 

The bright, blazing sun beat down onto the sidewalk, the cicadas chirping from trees. Matt pulled his shirt from his skin, frowning at how hot it was. He pushed his curly hair from his face, but it just fell back to where it was before. He frowned again, sighing. Deric walked next to him, twirling his keys in his hand and whistling the tune to some song. 

They had been walking for upwards of twenty minutes now. Matt was counting the seconds till they saw the storefront. He glanced toward Deric, jealous of how his element, ice, could keep him cool even in summer. Unfortunately for Matt, the summer sun produced a type of heat that his fire powers did not take into account—so he would be fine standing in a burning furnace, but apparently the summer heat was a no-go. 

After a few more minutes of walking, they turned the corner and arrived at the convenience store. When they walked inside, a blast of cool air hit them. Matt sighed in relief, glad to finally be free of the intense sun. They walked over to the ice cream cooler and each took a popsicle out. After paying and walking out, they stood at the side of the building, eating their treats. They had some light conversation while finishing their popsicles. 

Except, they weren’t alone.

Matt and Deric turned their heads at the sound of some noise, and noticed a couple people standing a bit away from them. They were holding what looked like popsicle sticks in their hands. What grabbed Matt and Deric’s attention, however, was when they disappeared into thin air, one by one. 

Their eyes widened, and their hands, holding the popsicle sticks, dropped to their sides. 

“Did they just—” Matt stammered, not blinking.

“They did.” Deric responded, eyes fixed on where they used to be.

“But isn’t teleportation a really rare power—”

“It is.”

“Then how did all of them…?”

“That is a fantastic question. One I do not have the answer to.” 

They didn’t move for a long time, not looking away from the spot where those people disappeared. Wondering if they were going to come back or not. After a while of nothing happening, they looked at each other. 

“Let’s go there,” Matt urged. 

“No?” Deric responded, questioning Matt.

“But it could be something cool—” 

“Or it could be something dangerous.” 

“Please, just this once?” Matt pleaded.

Deric didn’t say anything, only looking between Matt and that spot, a suspicious and skeptical look on his face.

“I promise we won’t go for long, only a minute.” Matt asked again, eyes wide as a puppy’s. He stared Deric directly in the eyes, hoping to break him down until he agreed. Which he did.

“Alright, fine.” Deric sighed and shook his head. “But only for a minute—not any longer.”

“Got it, Cap’n!” Matt said, a smile on his face as he started walking to the spot. Deric followed behind. Both were still holding their popsicles, now nothing but wooden sticks with corny jokes. 

As they got closer, they slowed down, taking cautious steps forward. They brought their hands forward, ready to use their powers should the need present itself. However, when they got to the place of the disappearances, nothing happened.

The only sound they heard was the cicadas. They looked around, trying to notice anything that might be invisible. At some point, they realized there was nothing, and sank down to the ground, given up. Both were slightly disappointed. Even Deric, despite his earlier sentiments. 

“You wanna read the jokes?” Matt inquired, looking at Deric.

Deric looked up, asking, “Why? They’re all corny anyway.”

“I mean, yeah, but it’s not like there’s much else to do.”

“... You’ve got a point. Go for it.”

“Alright, Deric. What did the buck call his wife?”

“I don’t know, what did he call her?” Deric responded, voice at a slow drawl. 

“Deer.” Matt started laughing, but before Deric could blink, he disappeared. Deric paused, jumping up. His heart started beating faster, and he wondered where Matt could’ve gone. Matt had telekinesis and fire powers, he didn’t have the power of teleportation. Deric started pacing, thoughts racing through his mind—going through any possibilities he could think of.

Ten minutes passed and Deric had nothing. He had never heard of such a phenomenon before—where someone just disappeared into thin air. After some more thinking, he retraced what happened, hoping to find a possible trigger to his disappearance. 

Then it clicked.

Matt disappeared directly after he said his joke out loud. Deric thought that such a thing being the trigger was ridiculous, but at this point, he was desperate. Unless it was just a coincidence. However, Deric didn’t see why he couldn’t try the same thing and see what happens.

So he read his joke out loud.

And then he saw nothing but darkness.

When Deric’s senses returned, he opened his eyes only to see the last thing he ever expected to see. No, in fact, he wouldn't have ever expected to see this in general. Around him was an enormous room—one whose perimeter was filled with giant popsicles. 

The popsicles ranged in size, but even the smallest one could’ve been as tall as a two-story building. The ceiling was not visible—at least not to Deric’s eyes. The floor he was standing on was tiled and multi-colored. He looked forward, and at the front of the room stood a raised platform with a silver throne the size of a three-story building. On top of it, sitting with crossed legs and spiky silver hair, was a giant. One wearing a crown embedded with jewels the colors of the popsicles that surrounded the room. It seemed, thankfully, that he was asleep at the moment.

Deric had a hard time processing what he was seeing. He had never heard of anything like this—not even in the far-fetched rumors and tales that he heard kids telling each other at school. He didn’t move a muscle, instead looking around to see if he could find Matt. After a few minutes of searching, he spotted Matt, who was hiding behind an enormous red popsicle. Deric tried to silently get his attention, not wanting to wake the giant.

Matt, noticing him at last, started waving at Deric. Deric took that as a cue to come over, so he began to creep closer, quiet as possible. He stepped carefully, glancing between Matt and the giant. What seemed like an entire day had passed, but what was likely just ten minutes, before Deric reached Matt.

“What’s going on? Who is that giant—” Deric’s frantic, whispered questions were cut off by Matt putting a finger over his lips. Matt stole a peek around the corner of the popsicle, making sure the giant was still asleep, before turning back to Deric and putting his hand down.

“I don’t know man. I got here an hour ago and I just hid here as soon as I saw that guy.” Matt said in a low voice. Deric had to stop for a second—wondering what Matt meant by an hour.

“Hold up—what do you mean an hour? You disappeared only ten minutes ago.” Deric said, eyes wide with shock. Matt’s jaw dropped, eyes widening. 

“Wait...it’s only been ten minutes for you? I’ve been sitting here this whole time trying to figure out how to get out of here.” Matt replied, explaining. They both stared at each other in silence, wondering what this all was and what it meant. At one point, they simultaneously poked their heads around and checked on the giant, heaving quiet sighs of relief when they saw he hadn’t moved. 

“So… figured a way to get out of here yet?” Deric asked in a quiet voice.

Matt was silent before answering, “Nope…”

“You wanna just… run and wing it?” Deric asked. Matt stared at him.

“Yup.” 

A few seconds passed, Deric and Matt gearing themselves up for a very long, very loud run. 

Then they ran. 

Feat pounded against the colorful floor, walls and scenery passed in a blur as their only focus were the tall, silver, double-doors at the end of the hall. They ran side by side, breaths coming out in sharp pants, arms pumping by their sides. 

However, they didn’t make it very far before they were teleported to the front of the room.

Right below where the giant was. 

The giant who looked wide-awake. 

Deric and Matt, panting sharply from the short but intense run, were scared beyond their wits. They didn’t know what fate lay before them, what end this giant would give them. They sat in silence, resigned. 

“My, my, who do we have here?” The giant’s booming, guttural voice rang throughout the throne room. His fingers tapped a rhythm into the armrest, eyebrows arched. Silver irises pierced into blue and brown eyes. “You two mice have been scuttering around for a bit now, haven’t you?”

Their breaths caught, surprised the giant noticed them. The giant noticed their reaction, letting out a small laugh. “What, you thought I was asleep?”

They looked at each other, then back at the giant.

“I was resting my eyes. Didn’t feel like having to deal with more humans today.” The giant answered their unspoken thoughts. 

“Um… what do you want with us?” Matt asked, voice taut. The giant glanced at his nervous expression, snickering. Deric and Matt wondered what the deal with this strange giant was.

“Just tell me a joke.” The giant requested.

Deric and Matt were silent, trying to decipher whether he was serious or not. 

“I’m serious, tell me a joke.” He repeated, continuing, “I’m the guy that comes up with all the popsicle stick jokes. So, at some point, I run out of jokes to tell, you know?” 

No response. 

The giant sighed. He added, “I’ll send you back home if you tell me a joke. One for both of you, how’s that for a deal?”

Deric and Matt looked at each other, shrugging. It’s not like they knew what else to do to escape. 

“Sure.” Deric said, determined. The giant smiled, giving a thumbs up.

“Great! I’ll give you five minutes to come up with one.” He said in an encouraging tone. 

So they sat there, thinking. Occasionally, they’d look at each other, trying to think of something that’ll lead to a joke that even the popsicle stick joke god hasn’t thought of. 

Suddenly, it came to them—an idea even a god couldn’t imagine. 

Matt gestured with his finger for the giant to come closer.

When he did, Matt said, “What’s great on the outside but terrible on the inside?”

The giant looked at him, tilting his head and frowning. “Social media?”

Matt stopped, nodding in agreement before shaking his head, saying, “I mean, yes, but no, something else.” 

The giant tapped his fingers against his chin, thinking. Then, his eyes lit up. 

“A popsicle!” He exclaimed, clapping his hands together. 

Matt jumped, saying in a loud, excitable voice, “Yes! Because when you finish the popsicle all that’s left is wood!” 

The giant laughed uproariously, clapping his hands. Deric and Matt looked at each other, both with small smirks on their lips. The giant stopped for a second, snapped his fingers, and then they were back in Deric’s room. 

The two teenagers started laughing uncontrollably, smacking their hands against their legs, heads tilted back. 

“I can’t… I can’t believe he really fell for that…” Deric stammered, wheezing out before he continued to laugh. 

“I know right? We got that terrible joke off the first search result online.” Matt howled, not believing they really escaped so easily.

“Alright, let’s never eat another popsicle again.” Deric said, calming down but still chuckling. 

“Deal. I don’t want to read a joke on accident and then get transported to the giant’s secret dungeon or something.” Matt replied. They continued to snicker a little, laying back on Deric’s bed. 

They stared at the ceiling, until Deric noticed the shirt tied around his lamp. 

“MATT—”