After a long while of picking up rubber and scrubbing down the area of blood, the place was nearly cleaned up with only the remains of Balloon in a plastic bag to dispose of. Paper tried to remain calm, but it was difficult for him to. He knows MePhone always checks up every few weeks in case he needs to recover someone, but even so, it feels like a long time.

Paper takes deep breaths in an attempt to not have a panic attack as he picks up the plastic bag. He decides that it would be best to throw it in the dumpster in the back of the hotel. The only problem is that in order to get there normally, he has to go downstairs and into the lobby, then out the front or back door without anyone questioning what's in the plastic bag.

Fortunately for Paper, he has a plan.

Paper opens the window to his room. Thankfully, it's only one floor above the ground. He throws the plastic bag down, and then he dangles his legs out from the window. He then leaped out the window, floating down since he's a piece of paper. His plan was working until a cold gust of air came by and made him fly straight into a tree.

Paper tried desperately to get out but couldn't due to the branches in the tree threatening to rip him. He thought he was done for until he heard a familiar British accent.
"Well, it's nice to see you again, Paper."

Paper looked down to the ground. It was Taco, who had a smug look on her face. "I heard that you're in charge of the hotel momentarily," Taco said as she leaned against the tree Paper was stuck in. "That must be a big responsibility, hm?"

Paper watched as she began walking towards the plastic bag on the ground.
"H-Hey, don't open that!"
"Why not? Lil' gay boy has secrets from me?"
Paper immediately blushed.
"What did you just call me?!"
"Oh, come on, Paper, it's so obvious it hurts."

Taco grabbed the bag and opened it. She looked shocked at first seeing Balloon's remains in the bag but then smirked and let out a chuckle.
"Going down a life of crime, I see?"
"It's not what it looks like... please don't tell anyone."
"Don't worry your little head about it, you fruity patootie, I have no one to tell."

Paper sighed in annoyance, "What do you even want from me?"
"All I want is to help," Taco said as she closed the bag and tossed it aside.

Paper looked at her, puzzled. "You're actually going to help me out of this tree?"
"Yes, but under one small condition. You have to let me live in the hotel in secret forever."
"And why would you want that?"

"To protect me from this awful ice age of a winter before I freeze to death."
"How do I know you won't try to steal anything or hurt anyone?"
"Do you want to stay stuck in a tree until people find out what you did?"

Paper thought about it for a bit and then made up his mind.
"Fine, but please just don't hurt anyone."
"No promises."

Taco then climbed up the tree and helped Paper out of it, putting him on the ground.
"I will wait right here until you throw me some spare keys from your room. Oh, and if you try to tell anyone about me, I will personally make sure your death is excruciatingly slow."
Paper felt a shiver crawl down his spine when she said that.
"Ok, I won't, I promise."
"Good, keep it that way."

Paper walked away from her and went out to the back of the hotel, throwing the plastic bag into the dumpster and then walking into the hotel through the back doors. Thankfully, no one questioned why Paper had come in from the back doors without seeing him walk out of them. He went up stairs towards OJ's office where the spare keys were kept but bumped into a worried Suitcase.

"Oh! Uhm, hi Paper. Have you seen Balloon? We planned to do crayon drawing lessons with Paintbrush around this time..."
'It's ok, Paper, just play it cool,' Paper told himself in his mind.
"...Nope, I haven't seen him at all. Maybe he left the hotel?"
Paper wanted to tear himself in half. What was he thinking saying that?
"Why would he do that?"
"I-I don't know, good luck finding him!"

Paper then speed walked past Suitcase in the most not suspicious way he could, but of course still came off sketchy as fuck. He walked into the office, grabbing a spare key and then walked out to his room and towards the already opened window. Peering down from it, he saw Taco waiting patiently.

"Psst! Taco I have the spare key," Paper whisper yelled at her. Taco looked up at Paper, "About time, throw them down." Paper then threw down the keys and Taco caught them with ease. Taco smiled down at the keys now in her hands, "Thanks." Taco then walked off, presumably to camp in front of the hotel to wait for everyone to sleep to enter.

Paper yawned as he closed his window, climbing into bed and tucking himself in.

Tomorrow's another day.