Chapter One – Since the Age of Eight

Olives. It was strange that that would be the food he would always remember her by. Not the Halloween candy they'd shared and traded years afterward going trick or treating together, nor would it be her grandmother's potstickers the family had insisted he try, served alongside of grilled hotdogs at a Fourth of July barbecue he'd been invited to. No, the food he would always remember Wanda Li by would be olives, green pickled olives to be precise.

He'd been trying to impress her by breaking a school record. Impressing Wanda. That was always a challenge. But he'd wanted to. Ever since the age of eight. It wasn't that he didn't think Wanda liked him. On the contrary she'd told him on several occasions the opposite. "You're my best friend, Arnold" she'd often told him, and he knew she often sought out his approval on a number of differing decisions. But it never seemed like enough. When he was older, he knew why.

It never seemed like enough, not because Wanda was expressly hard to impress nor because Arnold had so much to do in order to impress. It was because the way he felt about her made impressing her seem so much harder.

When he was being most honest with himself, Arnold would admit that the inexplicable way he felt about her began with the olives. It began in the third grade with trying to impress her. With, inspired by the image of her throwing her arms around him in impressed congratulations, the overstuffing of his stomach, with olives.

"Arnolllllld," Wanda's exasperated voice broke through his daydreaming. "Come on. If we don't a move on we'll be late."

Arnold blinked. "Right."

She sighed again and reached up into his locker. "It's history next period. Did you forget?" She handed him his history book.

"Right," he said again shutting his locker. Halfway down the hall he noticed Wanda's bookload missing a book. "Where's YOUR history book?" he asked her.

"I left it at home, I was running a little late this morning and I forgot that I left it in the living room. Share with me?"
He smiled, "Sure."

"So, " she started when they were almost in front of Mr. Deranga's classroom where he taught history, "think you'll go on the end of the year class trip?"

"Been thinking about it, yeah." Arnold replied. "Any news on where it's to yet?"

"Well most of the rumors say it's going to be to the UK, you know, visit Tower of London and all that, everyone says that's why Mr. Deranga's been focusing so much on British History and Ms. Petrarcha's been focusing so much on British Literature. Say we'd visit Stratford Upon Avon and the Globe Theatre and all that. I'm definitely going, it sounds like a blast. And you know the best part?" She said, putting her notepad and calculus book down on her desk beside his.

"What?" he asked.

"Arnold, we'll be OF AGE over there. Eighteen. Think about it. Clubs, bars... we can be young and party LEGALLY and the escorts won't be able to do a THING ABOUT IT!" She practically squealed the last part.

Arnold laughed. "That's true," he responded. He, who had never been much for loud parties with alcohol wasn't nearly as excited about the party scene as Wanda apparently was though the thought of being able to drink legally on the travel trip had crossed his mind. He'd envisioned himself more times than he cared to admit, downing a tall glass of some drink to make up for his lack of proper courage and telling Wanda point blank how he felt about her, her response being that she'd always felt the same about him while throwing her arms around his neck and giving him a passionate kiss...

"Arnold did you hear me?" Wanda was saying.

Arnold flushed.

"Not another allergic reaction? I told you to stay away from Phoebe's experiments in the greenhouse."

Arnold flushed even deeper. "No, no I'm fine. Just a little warm in here's all."

"Yeah, they really don't seem to need the heat on quite so high." Arnold was glad she agreed. "Anyway, I said, I'm impressed you're going. You do know Ms. Frizzle's the backup to go with us if Mr. Deranga or Ms. Petrarcha can't go, right?"
Arnold felt all the color and heat drain out of his cheeks and wouldn't have been surprised if it all had kept right on going down to his toes and shoes, eventually sinking into the floor. THE FRIZZ? He was alarmed. But he refused to show it. After all, Wanda had just commented on his supposed bravery.

"Well," he rationalized out loud to himself, while trying to keep his tone light, " what're the odds both of them won't be able to make it? Besides," he added untruthfully, "I'm beginning to feel a little nostalgia for The Frizz."

Wanda laughed and Mr. Deranga called to the class to quiet down. Arnold barely paid attention the entire lesson. What with worrying over the Frizz, who he continually reminded himself would likely not be going, the possibilities for telling Wanda how he felt, and the fact that she was sitting closer to him than normal, so close he could smell the clean, slightly fruity scent of her shampoo was more than enough to distract him for a fourty minute history lesson.

The bell rang and Arnold, who had been trying very hard not to lean into Wanda's scent was startled into gathering his things hoping she hadn't noticed anything.

"Arnold, aren't you forgetting something?" Wanda called. He turned and she again handed him his history book, which he'd left on his desk.

He smiled. "Right. Thanks."

"No problem. But geeze, what is with you today? You alright?"

"Yeah, uh, just not much sleep."

"Poor Arnold, up late studying." She said simpathetically, patting his shoulder.

He flushed again, partly because he'd not wanted to admit the real reason he'd not been paying attention in class, and partly because the only reason truly hadn't got much sleep the previous night was because he'd spent the latter portion of it watching the porn channel that was sometimes less static and more... porn.

He swallowed, trying very hard to NOT envision Wanda in the lingere he'd seen on tv last night and said, "That's me, work, work, work."

She laughed, "See you around Arnold," she said, waiving to her current boyfriend who she'd seen walking towards her and running to join him.

"See you," he replied sighing to himself as she left and thinking he seriously needed to get a grip.

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