Rick and Morty: Smartest Morty in the multiverse

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Morty stepped into the Smith house and found it steeped in a strange, suffocating quiet the kind that stretched too long and settled too deep.

The usual background noise of Summer's music, Jerry's nervous muttering, Beth's pacing… all gone. Only the faint hum of the fridge and the low whir of the ceiling fan filled the silence.

And Ricksitting alone on the living room couch, slumped back like a man who hadn't moved in hours, eyes sharp despite the lazy sprawl.

"Come on, Morty," Rick called, voice even, almost too casual. "Sit down with your gramps."

Rick half-expected hesitation a flinch, a twitch, some flicker of the Morty he remembered. But Morty just walked over and sat down next to him, smooth, silent, like he belonged there more than Rick ever did.

"What're you watching?" Morty asked, glancing at the blank TV.

"Nothing," Rick replied flatly.

Morty's eyes drifted around the empty room. "Where's everyone?"

Rick shrugged. "Summer's in her room. Beth went out for groceries." His voice trailed off, the words hanging a little too long in the space between them.

Neither mentioned Jerry.

Neither cared.

Rick leaned forward, elbows on his knees, cutting through the dead air. "How'd you do it?"

Morty tilted his head. "Do what?"

Rick's eyes narrowed. "Don't play dumb. Chad. The hallway."

Morty stared at him for a heartbeat, unreadable. "Really?"

"You think I'm joking?" Rick snapped, more heat in his voice than he meant.

Morty's lips curved in something that wasn't quite a smile. "You know how many adventures I've gone on with you? How many people I've killed because you told me to? You really think I didn't learn anything from that?"

Rick opened his mouth but nothing came out not right away. He swallowed hard. "Chad died, Morty."

A slow blink. "I don't remember killing Chad."

Rick's jaw tightened. "He shot himself. After what you said."

"Huh." Morty leaned back, arms folding behind his head like he was kicking back after school. "That's what you're stuck on?"

Rick felt his gut twist. "That's your reaction?"

Morty met his eyes, calm, level. "Do you know Chad?"

Rick scowled. "No."

"Then why do you care?"

"Because my grandson killed someone in cold blood," Rick snapped.

Morty's expression didn't shift. "Not my first time."

Rick cleared his throat, leaning in closer, voice low. "You don't even feel anything, do you?"

Morty looked at him, slow and deliberate. "Do you?"

Rick blinked.

"Because I've seen you blow up planets. I've watched you torture people for answers. I've seen you laugh while civilizations burned. And you're worried about little ol' me?"

Rick's mouth opened… and nothing came out.

Morty shook his head, soft laughter curling in the corner of his mouth. "I'm just a reflection, Rick. Maybe I'm finally the Morty you deserve."

Rick felt a cold pit open in his chest. "I didn't make you this way."

Morty's eyes flashed with something Rick couldn't read. "Didn't you?"his tone filled with hidden amusement.

Rick swallowed hard, the weight of those two words punching through years of bravado. He ran a hand over his face, dragging out a long sigh. "I thought I was making you stronger… not colder."

Morty's voice dropped, soft as a whisper. "You didn't make me anything. You just stopped pretending I wasn't this way to begin with."

Rick sat back, the weight of it pressing him into the couch cushions.

Morty stood, slow and steady, stretching his arms over his head like he'd just finished a casual conversation, not dropped a verbal nuke in the middle of the living room. He glanced down at Rick with a quiet finality.

"Relax, Rick," Morty said, almost gentle. "You're still the worst thing I've ever seen. I'm just catching up."

Rick stared at him, throat dry.

Morty gave a small, humorless smile. "You wanna know the real difference between us?"

Rick didn't answer.

Morty leaned in, voice a soft, dangerous murmur. "You run from who you are. I don't."

He straightened, turning to leave and then paused, glancing back over his shoulder, voice cool and flat. "Besides… it doesn't even matter if Chad's dead or alive. There's infinite Chads out there. Doesn't matter if one died. Didn't you tell me that?"

Rick felt the words hit like a punch to the chest, but Morty didn't wait for a response. He walked toward the stairs, each step sinking deeper into the heavy silence he left behind.

And Rick sat there, alone, staring at the place where his grandson had stood, hearing his own damn philosophy thrown back at him like a loaded gun.