Kelp's Diary Entries

[Cephalobro]

I see Coral becoming a little troubled lately, he told me it's because of the newest Splatfest.

The Splatfest in question is about your go-to greeting, Handshakes vs Fist Bumps vs Hugs. I'm more of a Hugs kind of girl, in fact, I love giving Coral long hugs and he seems to enjoy it as well. But now he seems a little bit uneasy. He told me that choosing between these three is like choosing between the favorites with three people who had a positive impact on his life. He doesn't want to anger uncle, disappoint Clam, or hurt my feelings, he doesn't want to do any of the three.

But I don't mind if he picks either handshakes or fist bumps, I will still love him regardless. I will be on Team Hugs because hugging is what I love to do. I will talk to both Clam and my uncle to see if they are okay if Coral chooses a team that represents a greeting that they don't do. They will probably understand that despite the Splatfest team that wins, Coral will still keep doing all three, I'm sure of it.

 

[Deleted member]

((I have to say that this is one of the most awesome things that I have ever seen in squid boards ever))

 

[Cephalobro]

((Thank you))

 

[Deleted member]

((u welcome))

 

[Cephalobro]

Just recently, Inkopolis Square became open to the public again, could it have anything to do with that new connection with the subway?

Either way, this wasn't actually the first location on the surface I have visited, in fact, it was actually somewhere close to Inkopolis Plaza. At the time of our arrival, Inkopolis Plaza was mostly abandoned, which was great so we could build our own neighborhood somewhere nearby without being noticed, turns out we just built it somewhere between it and Inkopolis Square. Well, I say we, but it was the tentacle Octarians that did the building, we Octolings just provided the funds for the construction.

And despite my fear of Salmonids, every Big Run so far has been successful. Uncle Anemone basically makes a deal with Grizzco to deploy the Octoling troops as workers, often mixed in with Inkling workers who join in without him intending while he deploys the tentacle Octarians to clear away the Salmonids invading somewhere else. I still keep apologizing to Coral because of my fear of Salmonids, but he seems to be okay with that, even sometimes telling me that being scared of something can result in being brave against what is feared, maybe that's how he and Clam manage to defeat dangerous criminals every time, maybe these two brothers fear there won't be a stable future if they don't fight those wanting to cause chaos and destruction. Maybe that's how both Inkopolis Square and Inkopolis Plaza managed to stay mostly the same.

 

[Cephalobro]

There's something I have been meaning to write about Coral for some time.

His Splashtag has the title of Lonely Little Brother. Now at first, I didn't think much of it at the time, however, there was a feeling gnawing at me, like something was wrong with him. Though it is true that he has been through a lot, he's still surrounded by people who love him daily, myself included. So, is he really feeling lonely or I'm just thinking too much about this? I have seen some really inaccurate titles in other Splashtags, so this may be one of those.

However, if Coral really is feeling lonely lately, I have a few theories on why he might be feeling lonely, despite not showing it. The first theory I have in mind is that he really can't talk to his parents when he has a really bad day. I understand him completely, I remember when I wanted to see my own parents again ever since they left me and Ocean in uncle Anemone's care, and I did see them again. Coral however, lost his parents really early in his childhood, so the only older figure with direct blood relation he had left was Clam, and is really only two years older than Coral. But I have a second theory, maybe Coral is feeling lonely on the surface world, after all, there are certain days in which some people seem to become, let's say, aggressive towards people like him for particularly no reason, even though he's part of a majority. Of course it's not everyone, I just want to clarify that for my future self.

But if this is the case, then I can see why he would feel lonely, imagine you're fighting to escape a collapsing underground dome system, then carving out a life for yourself that you had to work for, only for the loud few to be aggressive towards you even though you haven't said or done anything to draw their attention, demanding that you give your attention to them or side with them. That's what Coral goes through on those certain days, he had a hard life already, and he doesn't need other people making it even harder for him.

Okay, my hand is cramping from writing a lot, so I think I'm going to conclude this entry by saying this: You never know what someone has been or going through, so don't be aggressive toward that person who's simply trying to go about her/his life, you don't know what that person has experienced or is experiencing.

 

[Cephalobro]

I promise this entry will be a lot shorter, this will be more of an update regarding Coral's wellbeing.

So, I asked him why he has that title on his Splashtag and the reason he told me is very heartbreaking: When he's not spending time with me, Clam, or Ocean, Coral has the tendency to feel lonely. He told me that a toddler seeing his parents die right in front of him is bound to have a negative effect on him for a very long time, and I can see why he's kind of like that, whenever I'm not available to do things with him, that he hangs out with Clam most of the time, and when Clam isn't available to hang out with him while I'm also busy, he spends time with Ocean.

When none of us is available to spend time with him, he tries to play a lot more Turf War than he usually plays, he tells me that it helps him take his mind off the loneliness. If only I could spend time with him all the time, then I could give him all the hugs and kisses he would ever want! I want to let him know that I am his very kind girlfriend who will help him every step of the way.

 

[Cephalobro]

Another peaceful day in our neighborhood, just the way I like it.

After spending more time with Coral yesterday, I came to understand more about him than I already knew. He often dreams about seeing his parents again, only for him to inevitably wake up to disappointment. He really loved his parents that much. When I asked about his mother, he said that just like me, she was very kind to him and would do anything to make him feel better after a bad day. Then I asked about his father, and Coral said that his dad was a great role model, he was strong yet understanding of the current situation and would help him accomplish the tasks while also teaching him how to do them.

After helping Coral feel better, I came to understand that his parents were great parents, both of them were very helpful to him in some way. This is why Coral treasures his Octo Shot so much, his dad had it and used it for great heroic deeds, the best of which was saving Coral's mom from the octonappers who tried to take him away from her.

 

[Cephalobro]

The Big Big Run was the scariest thing that has happened.

Well, what I mean is not only Salmonids had invaded Inkopolis, but they brought all three King Salmonids at once with them too. It looked like one of those apocalyptic movies where it was something too abundant whether they'd be zombies, robots, or even feral animals that used to be docile. It didn't help that the sky changed to red during the Salmonid invasion. While I was scared, Coral was bravely fighting against the Salmonids, which actually also got me to fight the Salmonids too. After all, our future of starting a family was at stake.

And us Octolings weren't the only ones fighting the Salmonids, my sister Ocean and the other tentacle Octarians were also fighting off the Salmonid invasion. Octarian-Salmonid war always occurs whenever a Big Run happens. Though this time, there were more Salmonids than before, I'm scared that the Salmonids might just take over Inkopolis and force the Octarians off the only place in which they could live peacefully without any outside intrusions. But I know uncle Anemone will think of something to force the Salmonids out of Inkopolis instead, he already thought of a backup plan in the event of a Salmonid takeover.

His plan is to get the Octarians inside of the neighborhood walls while the Octolings go far into the desert, basically tricking the Salmonids into thinking they won, then once they get their guard down, the Octarians launch a combined attack at crucial Salmonid targets, forcing the Salmonids to retreat to places in which Grizzco would set up, then the Octolings come to attack the Salmonids, with some help from the Inklings too. That's what he told me, assuring me that this would force the Salmonids back to the sea.

 

[Cephalobro]

Coral spent an awfully long time working for Grizzco a few days ago.

He joined when the job for Salmonid Smokeyard opened, and I didn't know how he did until he finally came back home. He simply decided to do that. Maybe it's because the Big Big Run actually threatened the Octarian neighborhood this time. So Coral could've possibly wanted to make sure the Salmonids wouldn't be able to launch such an attack again. I don't know, but I was really worried about him, and it was especially worrying when Clam kept going to the Grizzco building time and time again, hoping to see if Coral was okay.

Ocean was also worried, she constantly told me that she wished to have accompanied him, but given that tentacle Octarians are not allowed to join a Salmon Run, she was spending too much time trying to track every bit of his movements. According to the tracker, Coral has gotten splatted many times, something that happens all too often to those who have to face large crowds of Salmonids at once. I was also worried about him so much, I considered joining him, but my fear of Salmonids unfortunately got in the way of that.

Thankfully, Coral came back alive, he was bruised, but thankfully alive. Uncle Anemone was impressed by Coral's bravery and commitment to make sure the Salmonids regret launching an attack of this scale on us. It took a few days for Coral to recover, so I made sure to keep him in my loving arms for as long as possible. And in even better news, uncle Anemone reported that the Salmonids faced a lot of costly losses thanks to Coral's commitment to show them just a smidge of Octarian might. Now I'm just here taking really good care of Coral before he can join more Salmon Runs, making sure he fully recovers.

 

[Cephalobro]

I wanted to write this one quickly because Coral is about to wake up.

This is the day in which he fully returns to his house, and I have to say, it was great having him over, even though I did have to take care of him due to him getting hurt from facing the Salmonids. He's so sweet and adorable, okay I have to stop gushing about him before I write an essay about how cute he is. Anyway, so uncle Anemone came by 3 days ago for a visit, and he told me that my parents were coming over! I never expected that my own mom and dad were coming to visit me and Ocean within a week.

Initially, I was worried, because Coral has never met my parents, so for me to have to explain that I have someone they haven't met before in my house would make them scared. But then, I was relieved when I saw the bruises on Coral completely heal before next week. Coral decided to return to his house on his own, telling me that Clam is deeply worried about him during the mornings. That has at least relieved that worry, now I can properly introduce him to my parents, which is really exciting!

 

[Cephalobro]

Coral hasn't met my parents yet, but he will meet both of them in due time.

What I wanted to write today is the fact that Ocean started experimenting with rice to create brand-new recipes. I fully support her on that decision, so that's why I chose Team Rice so my big sister can see the support for her culinary pursuits. I have been looking forward to trying her new recipes too, I don't know how she does it, but she cooks the food so delicious that I wind up coming back for thirds. Hopefully, she will keep experimenting with rice to create even more delicious recipes.

Clam already decided that he will root for Team Rice too. I knew he was a great friend of mine for supporting my sister in her endeavors. Coral preemptively joined Team Rice because he's great friends with Ocean and he wants her to see that he supports her too. So it was decided, that we all support Ocean in her culinary experiments, Team Rice winning would make Ocean even happier, which will be great to see.

 

[Cephalobro]

I tried Ocean's rice recipes and they were so good, I came back for thirds on each one of them.

With Team Rice's victory, Ocean made a feast of rice recipes, the first one she made was of onigiri, and it was delicious. Coral and Clam were enjoying it too, but out of all of us, I actually ate the most. When Coral told me I looked like I had a fertilized egg that was halfway in forming a little Octoling inside of me, I giggled playfully, he's allowed to make jokes like that to me, he's my boyfriend after all. Clam was mesmerized by the taste of the onigiri, though, he thought an onigiri was a jelly donut at first.

With Ocean's newfound trove of recipes, Coral's meeting with my parents has a better chance of going smoothly. Back when I was younger, my dad was super strict about my interaction with boys, so I don't know how he will react when he finds out I'm dating Coral. My mom is super understanding of me though, so I hope she can convince my dad to accept Coral being my boyfriend. We will see though, and Coral is unlikely to give up on our relationship just because of my dad's possible disapproval.