The Card Game Party

Mrs. Puff was having a game night party at her house, and she'd invited SpongeBob, Patrick, Mr. Krabs, and Squidward to play cards.

"Welcome, everyone!" Mrs. Puff said cheerfully. "I've set up a nice card table, and we're going to play Go Fish!"

"Go Fish?" Squidward scoffed. "That's a children's game. But I suppose I'll play. And I'll probably win."

They all sat down at the table and Mrs. Puff dealt the cards.

"Do you have any threes?" SpongeBob asked Patrick.

"Go fish!" Patrick said happily.

The game was going well until Squidward started losing. Mr. Krabs had collected three sets, SpongeBob had two, and Squidward had none.

"Do you have any sevens?" Mrs. Puff asked Squidward.

"GO FISH!" Squidward snapped angrily, crossing his arms.

A few rounds later, SpongeBob won the first game.

"Good game, everyone!" SpongeBob said with a big smile.

"It was NOT a good game!" Squidward said, throwing his cards down. "This game is rigged! The cards are unfair! Someone must be cheating!"

"Squidward, no one's cheating," Mrs. Puff said gently. "It's just a game."

"Well, it's a STUPID game!" Squidward huffed.

They started a second game, and this time Mr. Krabs won.

"That's because you got all the good cards!" Squidward complained. "This isn't fair at all!"

In the third game, even Patrick won before Squidward.

"THAT'S IT!" Squidward shouted, standing up. "I QUIT! This game is terrible and I hate it!"

"But Squidward," SpongeBob said kindly, "it's just for fun! Winning isn't the important part."

"Of course winning is important!" Squidward yelled. "What's the point of playing if you don't win?"

SpongeBob thought for a moment. "Well, I've lost lots of games before, and I still had fun! Watch - let's play one more round, and I'll show you."

Reluctantly, Squidward sat back down.

During the game, SpongeBob made sure to celebrate every good move anyone made - even when it wasn't his turn.

"Great match, Mr. Krabs!" SpongeBob cheered when Mr. Krabs got a pair.

"Nice job, Patrick!" he said when Patrick remembered to ask for the right card.

When Mrs. Puff won the game, SpongeBob clapped the loudest. "Congratulations, Mrs. Puff! That was amazing!"

"But SpongeBob," Squidward said, confused, "you lost. Why are you so happy?"

"Because I had fun playing with my friends!" SpongeBob explained. "Sure, winning feels nice, but being together and enjoying the game feels even better! Plus, when you're a good sport, people want to play with you again!"

Squidward looked around the table. Everyone was smiling and having a good time - except him. He'd been so focused on winning that he forgot to enjoy himself.

"I... I suppose I have been acting like a poor sport," Squidward admitted quietly.

"It's okay!" SpongeBob said. "Want to try one more game? This time, just have fun with it!"

They played another round, and this time when Squidward lost, he took a deep breath and said, "Good game, everyone. Well played."

"Squidward!" SpongeBob beamed. "You were a graceful loser!"

"I wouldn't say graceful," Squidward muttered, but he was smiling a tiny bit. "But I suppose it wasn't completely terrible."

Mrs. Puff brought out cookies and lemonade, and they played cards for the rest of the evening. Squidward didn't win a single game, but he complained less and less each time.

By the end of the night, he even laughed when Patrick accidentally showed everyone his cards.

"Same time next week?" Mrs. Puff asked.

"I'll be there," Squidward said. "But next time, we're playing a game I'm actually good at."

"Like what?" SpongeBob asked.

"I'll let you know when I figure that out," Squidward chuckled.

The End.