This was a short FanFiction story I wrote and posted on fanfiction.net a year and a half ago. It is set in Wreck-It Ralph, and features two original characters; Jerry Berry is mine, and Bubblina Gumdrop was created by another author.
I do not own the movie Wreck-It Ralph or any of its characters. I do not own the Rubik’s Cube. Bubblina Gumdrop is owned by Bubblina Gumdrop (on fanfiction.net).
It was a crisp autumn day in Sugar Rush. Jerry Berry sat on a park bench, fiddling with a Rubik’s cube in his hands. He was dressed in a blue jumper and dark blue track pants, and his gloves lay in his lap. Wisps of his black hair peeked out from under a blue-and-white striped winter hat.
He’d gotten the cube as a birthday present four days ago from his girlfriend, Bubblina Gumdrop. She knew he loved colors and puzzles, and the Rubik’s cube was the devious brainchild of both. He’d been working on it every spare moment he had, but to no avail. As he puzzled over the colors that refused to match, he barely registered footsteps in his direction. A pair of mittens covered his eyes as the mystery person giggled. “Guess who?” a feminine voice asked.
Jerry smiled broadly; he’d know that voice anywhere. To play along, he affected a puzzled tone and asked, “Umm, how many guesses do I get?”
“Hmm, just one. And you better get it right!”
Jerry jokingly mumbled, “Jubi-Ador-Crum-ermm…” Bubblina’s face was a picture of annoyance. Jerry hastily continued, “It must be the one they call Bubblina Gumdrop!”
Bubblina chuckled and hugged Jerry from behind. “What are you up to, Gummy Bear?” She slid onto the bench and leaned her head on Jerry’s shoulder. Jerry sighed and lifted the Rubik’s cube to her eye level.
“If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were trying to torture me with this gift,” Jerry playfully complained.
“Maybe I was.” Bubblina smirked.
“Bubbles, please help me,” Jerry begged. “I haven’t been able to get anywhere with this. The best I can do is solve one side.” Jerry gave her a wide-eyed pleading smile.
Chuckling, Bubblina took the cube from Jerry and looked it over for a moment. Her fingers danced over the colors, deftly bending them to her will. Before ninety seconds had passed, the Rubik’s cube had been restored to its solved position. The six colors proudly lined up on the six faces.
Jerry had been watching openmouthed as Bubblina almost effortlessly completed the puzzle. He took the cube back and looked it over, still dumbfounded. Enjoying her boyfriend’s befuddlement, Bubblina suddenly thought of something.
“Jerry?” she said. Jerry was still admiring the completed cube. “Jerry!” He blinked and returned his gaze to her face. “How about a little challenge?”
“What do you mean?”
Bubblina took the cube, and with a few deft twists, mixed it up again. She handed the now-jumbled cube back to Jerry and explained, “If you can solve the cube in one hour with your own hands without my help, you can make one wish which I will fulfill. If you can’t, you have to fulfill my wish.”
Jerry protested, “But that’s not really fair; I still have no idea how to solve the cube!”
Bubblina immediately put on puppy-dog eyes and a trembling pout. Jerry moaned, “Don’t, Bubbles.” Bubblina maintained her mask of cuteness. Jerry resignedly sighed. “Fine.”
“Yay!” Bubblina cheered and gave Jerry a quick hug before skipping off. She called back over her shoulder, “I’ll meet you back here in an hour!”
Jerry turned his attention back to the intricate little puzzle in his hands. His head ached. The Rubik’s cube had tormented him for four days; how was he going to solve it in just one hour?
He called up all the racers in Sugar Rush; no one seemed to have any idea. He briefly considered borrowing Felix’s golden hammer, but that would be breaking the rules. Plus, he wouldn’t be able to look Bubblina in the eyes if he did that. Still, he decided to pay a visit to Fix-It Felix, Jr.
He disembarked at the station and headed towards Felix’s apartment. He knocked twice on the door and a voice called out, “Come in!”
Felix and Ralph were enjoying some chitchat over a cup of hot chocolate. “Jerry! Nice to see you! What brings you to our game?” said Felix affably. Ralph pulled out a chair for Jerry as Felix poured another cup of hot chocolate.
“Thanks, guys.” Jerry gratefully sat down and took a sip of the delicious drink. He pulled the Rubik’s cube out of his pocket and set it on the table.
“It’s like this, guys. Bubbles challenged me to solve this Rubik’s cube in one hour with my own hands, or I have to fulfill a wish of hers. Do either of you know how to solve this?”
Felix and Ralph looked at each other before shaking their heads slowly. “I could get my hammer,” Felix volunteered.
“Thanks, but I don’t want to do it that way. It’s not fair.” Jerry declined politely.
Curious, Ralph picked up the little cube in his hands. He looked it over before setting it back down on the table. “Sorry Jerry, but I work full-time at breaking things. Fixing and solving isn’t my forte.” Ralph chuckled wryly.
“Break. Break!” Jerry exclaimed. “You just gave me an idea, Ralph!”
Ralph and Felix looked at Jerry in confusion. Jerry grinned at the two before quickly trying out his idea. A minute later, Felix and Ralph started smiling as Jerry’s plan became clear to them.
~o~
Bubblina sat on the park bench, waiting for Jerry to show up. She knew what wish she was going to make.
A pair of hands covered her eyes from behind. “Guess who?”
Bubblina chuckled and remarked jokingly, “Ralph?”
A booming voice replied, “Well, I’m here too,” and laughed. Bubblina twisted around to see Jerry, Felix and Ralph behind her. Jerry was smiling widely and had his hands behind his back.
“Well, did you manage to solve it?” Bubblina asked with an impish twinkle in her eye.
“See for yourself,” Jerry cryptically replied, handing her a small box. She lifted the lid to reveal the blue side of the Rubik’s cube, solved. She briefly glanced at Jerry before pulling out the Rubik’s cube; all six sides were in perfect order. She whipped her head back to look at Jerry. “How did you do that?” she asked quizzically.
She looked accusingly at Felix and Ralph; they smilingly held both hands up in a gesture of innocence and shook their heads. “This little genius did it on his own,” Felix said.
“Neither of us know how to even solve this doggone thing!” Ralph added.
Bubblina asked them, “Did he really solve it with his own hands?” Felix and Ralph nodded. “No magic hammer?” she continued. Felix shook his head. “No, ma’am. I offered to, but your man here is as honest as the day is long. He turned down my offer of the use of my hammer. I must say, he took an ingenious method to solve this.”
Giving Jerry a pat on the back, Ralph said, “He came over to our place looking for help, and we came with him to vouch that he really did it on his own.” With that, Felix and Ralph took their leave to return to their game.
Bubblina just looked at Jerry, who couldn’t stop smiling. “Alright, genius, spill the beans! How did you do it?”
“Oh, now it’s your turn to beg?”
“Stop it, Gummy Bear!” Bubblina playfully smacked Jerry on the side of his head, knocking his winter hat askew. “Now tell me!” she demanded laughingly.
Jerry took the Rubik’s cube from her hands and twisted one side partially. He snapped off a corner piece and placed it in Bubblina’s hand. She looked at him, dumbfounded. He smiled and nodded.
“You…broke it apart…and…put it back together?”
Jerry nodded again in confirmation. Bubblina had no idea whether to laugh in amusement, admire him for his creativity, or be frustrated.
“Come on, Bubbles; I solved it with my own hands. Doesn’t this count as solving it?”
“Well, it does, but- This isn’t the normal way!” she complained.
“Who said I was normal?” Jerry asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Fine, you’re special. Okay, you win. What’s your wish?” Bubblina conceded.
“Look in the box,” Jerry urged her. The box that previously contained the Rubik’s cube lay on her lap; she hadn’t noticed the slip of paper at the bottom. She unfolded it and read the words out loud. “Bubbles, I wish that you could join me on a picnic to the waterfall on your birthday.” She looked quizzically at Jerry.
“That’s all?”
Jerry nodded.
“I’d have asked for more, but, alright, sure.” Bubblina said. “Why did you wish for that?”
“Bubbles, the only wish I have is to spend as much time with you as possible. You are my dream come true already; I could wish for nothing else and nobody else.” Jerry said lovingly. Bubblina blushed and leaned closer to Jerry, and he kissed her gently on the forehead.
“By the way, what wish would you have wanted me to grant?” Jerry murmured, as they cuddled.
“Hmm? Oh, there was this pair of earrings that caught my eyes…but I guess I’ll have to keep wishing. Plus, when I went to Crumbelina’s shop earlier, she told me someone had bought them already.” Bubblina sighed.
Jerry chuckled to himself and pulled out a small box covered in velvet. He snapped it open and lay it in Bubblina’s lap. The exact pair of earrings sparkled up at her wondering eyes. “What a coincidence, hmm?” Jerry teased. He had gotten a tip from Crumbelina that Bubblina had her eyes on that particular pair of earrings.
Bubblina flung her arms around her boyfriend’s neck. “Thank you so much, Gummy Bear!”
Jerry merely hugged her back, smiling widely. She wasn’t that hard to figure out; just like the Rubik’s cube, an unorthodox approach helped.
This story was inspired by a friend of mine who took this out-of-the-box approach to solve the Rubik’s Cube, winning a bet with his friends.
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