I Own No Rights To Hey Arnold! Craig Bartlett and Nickelodeon Does.
The sun was starting to make its descent on the horizon, setting the sky on fire with reds and oranges and pinks. A light breeze stirred a young girl's long, dark hair as she neared her destination: a small store in the city of Hillwood. She ran up the wall of the store with the sound of her boots, and peered inside the glass door to see two employees getting ready to leave for home. A satisfied grin spread across her face. Excellent. She thought. As soon as those two morons leave, I'll be ready. But it took so long for them to leave. She was ready to turn around and leave, but they finally walked out the entrance door, locking it. The girl hid behind a trashcan, and watched them finally walk down the streets. She started taking deep breaths as she rounded the perimeter of the gas store. There was a large air vent at the base of the wall. As quietly as the vent would allow, she plucked out the loose screws that hardly secured the crate covering the entrance. She then crouched down and slowly eased herself into the open vent. Although it was small for an adult to go inside, a nine year old can easily fit in there such as the girl. Once she reached to the other side, she glanced all around her, trying to see past the aisles and any sign of life. She sighed in relief when nothing was there. But she froze as a bathroom door opened to reveal a customer stomping out. What is he doing here? She backed away quickly to let him pass the vent.
"Damn, they totally forgot I was here," he sighed in frustration and he unlocked the door, then left. He forgot to lock them again. The girl just rolled her eyes in annoyance and then began dashing between some aisles and peeking down others. After some moments of silence, she was satisfied that no one else was inside the store. As she strolled further into the store, she snatched food and drinks off shelves so it could feed her family. The point of this whole crime was because of her family, not just for herself. Her mother, Beatrice, is too lazy to get a job causing them to not afford any food. She cooled herself down as she felt herself slightly angered. After stealing all the food she needed, the girl climbed back to the air vent and left her destination. She began strolling down the streets during the night, walking away from strangers who walked right in front of her. They even casted annoyed glares at her when they thought she was the one who was walking in front of them!
One night, a teen tried mugging all the food she had in a bag. The girl did not had any muscles to defend herself but she did had a pocket knife in her pocket. Pfft, that was probably his worst experience since she cut his left arm opened and had to get stitches. But that's what she had to do is defend herself from strangers who dared touched her. When she realized it was suddenly night time, the girl began running down the streets. She stopped when she was outside by her door of her house. She hated it here more than anywhere else. Lots of crime, and it was filthy here. No wonder high class people looked down upon them. The door opened, letting rays of light hitting the ground. The person who stood outside was her fifteen year old brother, Alex. He wore a green sweater with black skinny jeans and his hair was a bit more messy than it usually is.
"So, how did it go Vanessa?" He asked her. Vanessa shrugged and walked inside her house.
"It went great, I guess. Nothing happen really. It's always the same routine." She answered back, putting all the food she stole on a counter in the small kitchen. Alex only nodded his head, not satisfied with her answer.
"I'm worried for you, because of that incident that happened several months ago Vanny," He muttered, putting his head on the counter. Vanessa felt her blood boiled in anger. Did he not trust me or something? Before she can snap at him, Alex said something that frightened her.
"But that's not really a problem right now, Vanny. You're starting school tomorrow." He left the kitchen and walked upstairs to his bedroom.
"Wait, what? How? Why am I starting school?" She started panicking. Vanessa has never been to school her whole life. The person who's like a teacher to her is her twenty-five year old sister, Sol. But since she got married back in July, Sol is moving to Beverly Hills, the place her father lives in. That probably pissed her mother off even more, because it's like Sol is leaving them with nothing. Well, if she get out of bed, then they wouldn't be in this situation! Vanessa began chasing her brother upstairs to ask him more questions. All he said was, "Sol signed us up." He slammed his door shut in anger and left her in awe and shock. School tomorrow? She wasn't ready! What school is she going to and how will the kids react to her? The clothes she wore were band shirts, and jeans that Sol and her husband bought for her and siblings. They'll probably seem strange to the kids, but Vanessa didn't care what they'll think. When she does go to school, Vanessa isn't going to make friends whatsoever. Her hatred towards others is too strong.
Vanessa stumbled downstairs to put all the food in the covers and fridge. Great, now she has to steal cereal for breakfast now?
Vanessa stood outside by her door with her two siblings, chewing gum. Jose, her six year old brother, was walking in circles mumbling something in Spanish as he waited for the bus to pick them up. Alex leaned himself against the brick wall with a scowl on his face while Sandra, her thirteen year old sister, just sat on the stoop daydreaming about how her day was going to go.
"This day is going to fucking suck," Sandra snapped, standing up from her place. Alex shot her an angry glare.
"Language, puta." He growled.
"Whatever. This is your fault too, you know. You agreed with Sol at the table and now we have to put up with everyone's shit at school. From what I heard, there's always drama," Sandra hissed as she turned away from her siblings. Vanessa rolled her eyes in annoyance. Sandra and Alex always had something to fight about. Whether it was about board game rules or anything like that, they always fought. Sandra blamed Alex for being one of the reasons why their father left them even though Beatrice was the one to blame.
"Because I know it will be good! We actually need education, so we'll be better people in the future! You think I want to turn out to be just like our mother?" Alex snarled at her. This made Sandra even more angry.
"We had Sol to educate us, you moron!" She shot back.
"Well, Sol is gone so we have to go to school goddamn it! At least Vanny and I do something to help the fucking family unlike you, Sandra!" He cursed. Vanessa glanced up as she heard her own name.
"Yeah, but what you two idiots are doing is a crime! At least try find a job instead of hurting other people. All you two is just steal, mug, and murder…" Sandra whispered the three words. The last one was what made Vanessa snap
"I am NOT a murderer! What made you think that!?" She screamed. Her eyes were shut tight and had her fists clenched. After a several seconds of silence, she opened her eyes to see why they suddenly had their mouths shut. Everyone was staring at her in confusion.
"Bus!" Jose pointed towards a large vehicle, that was heading their way. Everyone turned their heads to the bus and Vanessa felt fear running through her. If someone was to do something to her, she had her own pocket knife in her pocket to defend herself. Vanessa gripped her files tightly as she walked inside the bus with her siblings following her. Jose wasn't used to the loud noises, so he held his fists up his ears to cover them. Sandra and Alex were just giving each other death glares. Some of the kids on the seats stared at the family confusedly. Who are these people?
Vanessa desperately looked for a seat as all her siblings found one. She saw an empty seat and sat there as fast as she can. Two boys on the other side shot her glances and started snickering. One of them had a bowl cut hairstyle and wore glasses. The other kid had darker skin, and his front tooth was missing. If they don't shut up, then she might have to knock out another tooth from his. Vanessa looked out her window and watched her neighborhood disappear from a distance.
"Hi. What's your name?" A kid came up to her, and had his hand held towards her face. He had this football-head shaped head, and his eyes were bright green. For some odd reason, he was wearing a skirt with blue jeans underneath it. He was pretty weird-looking, but at least he's being friendly. Vanessa didn't really care, so she glanced away from him in annoyance. When was he going to leave her alone? He finally had his hand down and his smile collapsed as her face was filled with hostility. I know he was just being nice, but I'm definitely not used to people putting their hands in my face. It's pretty annoying, to be honest. This day better turn out to be great or else, she'll never go back to school.
"Hmm…" The principal at the desk in front of Vanessa muttered as he was looking through her information. He flipped pages, and had his pink tongue stuck out. Once in a every second, he would glance up at her with a curious look. He didn't really look young at all. What was his name? Vanessa glanced at the name tag that sat on his desk. Principal Wartz.
"Why is it that you never came here before?" He suddenly asked, breaking the silence. Vanessa didn't answer, but only glare at him with hostile eyes. "Well, it's nice to have you here, uh. Vanessa, is it? You're going to like it here, to be honest." He continued on. Vanessa began to feel annoyed.
"Yeah, I will alright. So, uh. Is anyone going to show me around the school or something? Because I've never been to a school before and um, I might need some help. Cause… I never been here before," she asked breathing hard. Being here was making her panic. Principal Wartz only shrugged and continued on reading her information. Help me, you idiot.
"So…" He smugly said, grinning a bit. "You used to be Daddy's Little Girl, huh?" Vanessa froze and felt her blood turn like ice. Is he taunting me on purpose? "But he left you. Now I can see why, huh? Your mother has no job, and doesn't have enough money to feed you kids. I can't blame him. We were actually good friends. Meeting with each other every Saturday, playing golf on Sundays, and drinking coffee on my breaks. But your mother came and ruined everything. He told me that he was sick of caring for you without her help and left you guys heartbroken," he chuckled to himself at the end. Vanessa was about to pull out her pocket knife and slice his throat open. But she was not a murderer. Not like what Sandra told Alex.
"Okay! Well, I read your information and I can see you're not used to a lot of people. I'll have you join a more lenient teacher," Principal Wartz walked out of his chair, towards the door with papers in his hand.
"I can handle a strict teacher. I'm no coward," Vanessa snapped back at him, angered slightly. The principal ignored her, continuing walking down the school halls. Man, is every teacher this ignorant? She thought in annoyance. Vanessa looked around the school in awe. It had stairs that go all the way up, and it was very bright out there. But why did they had lockers? I thought Junior High Students would only have lockers. The sound of Wartz's footsteps stopped as they came upon a door that had the name written, Mr. Simmons. Vanessa's eyes widened, and touched the name.
"Don't touch that!" Wartz swiped her hand away, scolding. Vanessa flinched. He pounded on the door which caused a silence in there. The door opened to reveal a man with a green, brown sweater with brown pants standing there. A smile spread across his face as he saw Vanessa standing there although he was sort of confused. He whispered something to the kids in there, and shut it lightly as he stepped out.
"Uh, beg your pardon Principal...Wartz. But can I ask? Who is this?" He asked with a shy smile. Principal Wartz pushed Vanessa to the side, nearly making her fall. She growled in annoyance and anger.
"This is Vanessa Ramirez, a new student from the wrong side of the city. She'll be joining your class for the rest of the year," Wartz introduced Vanessa, pushing her forward to the teacher. He only gave a friendly smiled at her.
"Well, I'm sure this is exciting news for the class. Um, welcome Vanessa. I hope you make yourself comfortable in this room since everyone is soo crazy about new students." Mr. Simmons told her with a friendly grin. He was ready to open the door for her, but Wartz grabbed the knob the stop him from opening it. Mr. Simmons can only stare at him in confusion. "Uhh, what's the matter?" He wondered, slightly annoyed by this behavior.
"Mr. Simmons, Vanessa has never been to a school in her whole life and I don't think she's comfortable being here just yet. All I can have you do is please keep an eye on her for a few months and let's see if she'll make any progress of making friends," Principal Wartz added. Vanessa glared at him. I don't need friends! I'm able to take of myself.
"Oh, I understand. Well thank you for letting me know about this. Hopefully you'll be able to feel comfortable instead of feeling afraid. I'm going to make sure you feel special for the rest of the school year. Fourth grade will be great!" Mr. Simmons answered back and looked down at the girl who stood stiffly in front of him. Vanessa can only stare at him with eyes glinted like those of a dark animal. The smile on Mr. Simmon's face was slowly fading away as he stared at her face. Why does she look so angry? Wartz glanced at Vanessa to Mr. Simmons, then jog-walk back to his office relief that he was finished with her.
"So are you ready to learn, Vanessa?" Mr. Simmons wondered, throwing his fist in the air. Vanessa can only shrug at him. She tapped her toe on the floor as she waited for him to open the classroom door. Although she didn't want any friends, Vanessa did not want to be judged as the bad guy by other kids. The kids in her neighborhood were afraid of her because they know about her crimes, then they'll label her as "The Bad Girl." Mr. Simmons felt reluctant about having this student in her class. He was afraid of what the other kids might think of her. "Um, well I'll be out in a minute. I just need to talk to the class first, then I'll chose a seat for you." The teacher walked inside the classroom where it was filled with silence. The door lightly closed. Vanessa stood outside of the door, listening into the conversations within as she heard the teacher mention her name. They seem to get louder every second which frightened Vanessa. Then finally, the door opened to reveal Mr. Simmons. "Come on in, Vanessa." He whispered with a smile spread across his face. He pulled the door open wider, and her body stiffened. The anxiety she felt was replaced with fear. Everyone was staring at her with curiosity shown in their eyes. A girl by the windows had an unfriendly gaze in her eyes, her teeth gritted. But Vanessa didn't really care what she thought of her. She just wanted to get the heck out of there.
She took a step inside, Mr. Simmons pulled her inside. She stopped in the middle of the room, looking at each of the kids. They didn't really said anything, but could only stare at her.
It was silent.
Why are they staring at me like that? Have they ever seen a new student before? Mr. Simmons closed the door behind her, causing Vanessa to jump in surprise.
"Everyone, this is Vanessa Ramirez. Please welcome her and make her feel comfortable," Mr. Simmons introduced her to the whole class. He stood behind Vanessa, putting his hands on her shoulders. She tried to shake them off, but made no effort whatsoever. Everyone yelled out, "Hi Vanessa" with waving hands. This only made her cringe in annoyance. "Vanessa, you'll take a seat neeaar… Helga." He pointed towards a girl who had two blonde pigtails with a pink bow on her head, a pink dress, and a one eyebrow over her eyes. Helga glared back at Vanessa. Vanessa walked slowly towards her seat, and sat there. They were still staring at her as if they feel uncomfortable having her there.
"Um… Hi," Vanessa greeted wiggling her fingers. After saying that, everyone turned their heads towards Mr. Simmons who was ready to teach. "Now Vanessa, we were getting ready for some math problems but since you're here, we'll be getting to know more about you. Anyone can ask you any question. So if you have a question, raise your hand." Mr. Simmons wondered. No one raised their hand except for one girl who had short black hair. She wore a red sweater with a white collar and black tight pants. She looked pretty fancy, to be honest.
"Yes, Rhonda? What do you want to ask her?" Mr. Simmons grinned, pointing towards the girls. Rhonda smugly smiled and stood up.
"No offense or anything, but may I ask where you got your clothes? It looks you might have borrowed it from Oskar." Rhonda insulted her which caused some of the classmates to snicker from the insult. Vanessa rolled her eyes, trying not to let the remark get to her. Way to start a day. Mr. Simmons narrowed his eyes at Rhonda.
"What? You said any question, right? So I asked her a question." Rhonda started to giggle.
"How do you know a woman is wearing tights? Her knees swell up when she farts. I have a really good fashion sense but I'm just too poor to prove it." Vanessa insulted her back. Rhonda stopped laughing, and made everyone else in the room to laugh even harder. Mr. Simmons just stared at the class with disappointment.
Vanessa laid back, and smiled in satisfaction. This day might go well after all.
Not my 1st Hey Arnold! story. But this is just a story for my O.C Vanessa Ramirez. :) I don't know how many chapters I'm using this is just chapter 1. And my How Snakes and Bubbles Fell In Love, I might continue that. I just need to brainstorm it. Well, hope you enjoy this chapter.