…Continuing Transmission…
"Everybody, please pass last night's homework up to the front of the room, and ready for me to collect," Ms. Simon insisted cheerfully.
Numbuh 4, seated at the very back, tapped the boy in front of him on the shoulder. "Pst!" he hissed. "'Ey, Numbuh 2. Can Ah borrow yo homework for a sec?"
Numbuh 2 sent him a glace over his shoulder, his expression grim, still searching through his desk for his own homework. "As if. You've seriously aught'a finish your own for once." Finally, he managed to fish out his own piece of paper which was his assignment. He passed it up to girl in front of him, and she took it to pass to the boy in front of her, and so forth.
"Aw, come on," he whined, resting his chin on his desk. "Ah'm dyin' back here. Ya think Ah can handle another F? If this keeps up, Ah'll be all th' way down to a Z before ya know it."
"Another reason you should finish your homework," Numbuh 2 asserted. "You're just lucky these marks don't go on our academic records."
The Aussie moaned in distress in attempt to make Numbuh 2 feel sorry for him.
"Why don't you make up another excuse? That worked last time, and every other time."
Numbuh 4 lifted his head up off the desk, and a goofy smile replaced his phony agonized expression. "Hey, yeah! 'Kay, let's see." He trailed off in thought. "Hm… No, Ah told her Ah broke my hand two days ago. Uh… Nope, Joey gettin' sick was last week. Think, Numbuh 4, think."
Numbuh 2 rolled his eyes.
At that moment, to Numbuh 4's relief, a loud bell rang loudly throughout the Gallagher Elementary school building. Instantly, everybody was to their feet and squeezing past each other to get out of the room as quickly as possible.
"And don't forget, class," Ms. Simon called out over the sound of scrambling and chatting of apprentices. "Your book reports on 'Romeo and Juliet' are due on Monday." By then, the class was nearly empty. She sighed and began to do a reproduction of the story. "Romeo, Romeo. Where for art thou, Romeo…" she sang dreamily, nose in the air, hands clamped together in front of her.
Numbuhs 2 and 4 left the classroom blended in with the herd of students.
"Ah'm tellin' ya," Numbuh 4 proclaimed. "Th' day Ah leave this school, everyone's gonna remember me for my talent in gettin' away with incomplete homework. Honestly, don't ya think Ah'm gifted?"
"Yeah. It must be your irresistible charm," Numbuh 2 replied, witty sarcasm implied.
The Aussie nodded. "Well, what else can ya expect? These muscles don't form themselves, ya know."
They turned a corner, and then they stopped. Numbuh 2's expression showed slight surprised, and Numbuh 4 just cocked an eyebrow. Their minds pushed out all of the knowledge they'd just received in Ms. Simon's class and replaced it with perplexity.
Mark noticed them as well, much less surprised. "Oh, hey, you guys," he said. Hanging from his shoulder was a bag, but not a backpack.
However, being almost completely insensible of the discomfort in the situation, Numbuh 4 slapped on a smile. "'Ey Mark, what's goin' on?" he zealously said. He approached him with self-assurance, fist held in front of him in preference of the modern greeting. The Italian complied with his own fist.
Numbuh 2, still a little confused, came up to him. "Not that your not welcome or anything, but what the heck are you doing here? I thought I heard Numbuh 1 say that-"
"Oh, don't worry. I won't be staying long. It's just that Numbuh 3 contacted me over the P.I.P.E.R. and asked me to drop off her Stay-In-School Rainbow Monkey." He pulled out a yellow Rainbow Monkey with a pair of round glasses resting on its face and a green backpack hanging from its shoulders.
The Aussie huffed. "Typical Kuki-ness."
"You'd better hurry. Numbuh 1's pretty strict when it comes to rules. Plus, you know, you don't have to do things like that for Numbuh 3," Numbuh 2 explained. "Like, when I was staying home from school because I was sick, Numbuh 3 called me up during lunchtime and asked me to pick up her Chow-Time Rainbow Monkey and bring it back to the treehouse because he got a stomach ache."
Mark laughed. "Well, all you have to blame for that is the lunch lady. They should seriously start checking whether the food is raw or not."
"Tell me about it! That new Chilidog stand downtown? Don't even try it! The dog was practically still wagging!" Suddenly, Numbuh 2 was cackling uncontrollably. "Get it? Wagging!" He only notched up his hysterical laughter.
Numbuh 4 moaned with disturbance. To his astonishment, Mark decided to chuckle along with him. "Good one, Numbuh 2.
"And don't worry about the whole thing, you guys." Mark held up the Rainbow Monkey to view it more clearly. "I've got nothing better to do anyway. Besides, who can survive without a Stay-In-School Rainbow Monkey by your side?"
Numbuh 4, even being the naïve one, recognized the comical tease in his accent. He took the Rainbow Monkey from Mark's hands. "Ah don't get these things," he explained. "Ah mean, it's just a cruddy doll with clothes."
"I don't know, Numbuh 4. Who knows? You might grow into its huggable cuteness."
As Numbuh 2 taunted, the Aussie noticed a small circular red sticker where the bellybutton of the monkey was supposed to be. It had in white capital letters reading, "Press Me." Being the curious boy he was, he decided to give it a try. His finger pressed right into the Rainbow Monkey's bellybutton. Instantly, regret took over.
The Rainbow Monkey spoke loudly through the hall filled with students and even a few teachers. "Its fun to learn! Do you want to sing the ABCs?"
Numbuh 4 gasped. Kids in the hallways began to chuckle quietly and whisper to one another, pointing at him. The blonde boy blushed and hid the Rainbow Monkey behind his back. "Eh…Ah don't know who said that," he assured. This just made the kids silently giggle even more.
"A, B, C, D, E, F, G…!" sang the Stay-In-School Rainbow Monkey from behind him.
Numbuh 4 desperately attempted to muffle its voice. Ignoring the crowd of students, he turned his back to everybody and began to strangle the doll. "Shut up, ya stupid doll!" he shouted at him. The Rainbow Monkey did not comply, as it continued to sing, "…H, I, J, K…"
Numbuh 2 could not hold in the laugh that he did not even bother to try and hold in. However, his chortles altered as he caught sight of who else had heard and seen Numbuh 4's words and actions.
"Numbuh 4! How could you?"
Numbuh 4 turned around. He was frozen in the position of his hands tightly around the Stay-In-School Rainbow Monkey. The doll only sustained its singing, "…L, M, N, O, P…!" loudly. He saw Numbuh 3 at the end of the hallway, accompanied by Numbuhs 1 and 5. She was tapping her foot, the hint of anger growing in her eyes, as she stared at him.
"Leave Stay-In-School Rainbow Monkey alone!" she cried at him.
He did not even attempt to restrain gentleness towards the situation. "Yo cruddy Rainbow Dorky won't stop talkin'!" he shouted. "It ain't my fault!"
"…T, U, V…!"
"Ah know my alphabet, ya cruddy monkey!"
Numbuh 3 stomped her way towards, her fist clenched by her sides, and a look that set a warning. "Numbuh 4! That is not nice!" she shouted at him. As soon as the Rainbow Monkey was within reach, she snatched it away from Numbuh 4. She gave the doll a quick hug as he concluded the alphabet with the letters, "W, X, Y, and Z!" The Japanese operative then sent a small glare towards her blonde teammate. "Now apologize to Stay-In-School Rainbow Monkey," she exclaimed.
"What?" Numbuh 4 demanded in irritated astonishment. "No way! Ah'm not gonna apologize to a stinkin' Rainbow Donkey!"
"It's Rainbow Monkey!" She was practically screaming now. "And you're going to apologize, and you are going to be nice about it! Understand?" Her voice did not calm down one single bit. She held the doll in his face.
Numbuh 4, somehow, without moving his head an inch, managed to slide his eyes to face Numbuh 3's angry ones. In a dangerously low tone, he responded, "No."
Numbuh 3 took in a rapid breath. Her eyebrows lifted quickly. Her eyes grew three sizes bigger, until they reflected a small white light that glowed with the melancholy coming from her heart.
When Numbuh 4 was angry, he never had any regret for his responses. But somehow, this time, an awkward feeling overwhelmed him. Something he would never experience for anybody else in the same way.
Tears slowly overflowed the rim of her eyes. She held the Stay-In-School Rainbow Monkey close to her chest.
"Eh," Numbuh 4 began. He rubbed the back of his head, pondering on whether he should maintain his dignity in the crowd of students and hurt Numbuh 3's feelings, or say one or two small words to make Numbuh 3 her happy-go-lucky self again, and at the same time, destroy his pride.
Both choices seemed unreasonable. But he went with his second instinct.
Just before Numbuh 3 turned away, Numbuh 4 stuttered, "Ah'm sorry."
The Japanese girl looked up at him, snuffling a couple of times. "Really?" she stuttered, softly.
"Yeah, Ah guess," he responded, keeping his eyes on the fascinating tiles below his feet. "Ah never meant ta yell, anyway."
Numbuh 3 smiled once again, and the tears still trickling down her cheeks seemed to evaporate into the air. Even the Rainbow Monkey somehow brightened up the large grin on its face. A small cry of glee escaped her lips as she threw her arms around him. "It's okay!" she declared with hinted happiness. Her arms around him tightened because of Numbuh 4's slight struggling.
A loud chorus of, "Aw," sounded through the hallways. It was then that Numbuh 4, over Numbuh 3's shoulder, managed to catch a glimpse of the crowd of students that had formed around them. His eyes widened only for a second. Then the expression instantly turned into a glare. "Do ya mind?" He shouted. They all scattered, excluding Numbuhs 1, 2 and 5.
Numbuh 1 made a fake cough to bring back the attention of the rest of the team to Numbuhs 3 and 4. "All right, you two. Now that that's settled…Numbuh 3, do you mind telling me why you have your Rainbow Monkey here after I specifically told you not to bring it?"
Numbuh 4 was released and too caught up in recovering his steady breathing. Numbuh 2, however, froze in his spot. He turned towards Mark's original location. It didn't take him too long to learn that he was not there, nor was he anywhere in sight.
Before Numbuh 3 could reply, the 2x4 technology officer cut in. "Uh…actually, Numbuh 1, I brought it with me to school," he stated. "Sorry, I…uh…I guess I grabbed it instead of my textbook by mistake."
"You accidentally grabbed a soft, fluffy doll instead of a hard, solid textbook?" Numbuh 5 claimed in a questionable tone.
Numbuh 1 raised his brow at Numbuh 2.
"Um…yeah," he stated, unsuccessfully as confidently as he could. "Well, you know me." A nervous laugh came through as he purposely slapped his head with the edge of his palm. Just looking at Numbuh 1's firm expression weakened him.
Numbuh 3 did not catch on to what Numbuh 2 was trying to do. "But I called-"
Numbuh 2's quick reaction startled all four of them. He practically leaped at the Japanese girl and covered her mouth with his hand, productively keeping her temporarily silent. "Uh, she called me over the PIPER in class so I could return it. Right, Numbuh 3?"
She looked at him. He was staring at her over his shoulder, a look of plead in his goggle-covered eyes. Her guts told her that he was lying to Numbuh 1. But for some reason, her instincts told her to go along with it. After all, if she lied unknowingly now, she could always ask Numbuh 2 why she had to do so later.
She nodded her head in agreement.
Numbuh 1 kept his expression similar. "All right. But try and keep it out of sight, Numbuh 3. We don't want any of the evil teachers taking it away. I'm not in the mood to have another mission for a toy-rescue." Numbuh 1 turned around to head to his Mr. Frybingle's English class.
As soon as his back was turned, the two remaining male operatives swapped concerned glimpses.
The bell rang for next class.
"Ah can't believe ya, Numbuh 2!" Numbuh 4 exclaimed with hinted annoyance in his Australian-accented voice. "You, out of all people…"
"I didn't know what to do," Numbuh 2 responded, defending himself. "And it's not like you were any help."
"Well at least Ah'm not a liar!"
"Yeah, like you never told a lie before."
Numbuh 3 only listened. She did not know how to approach the argument. After all, the two of them still hadn't explained to her the situation. So her head only moved back and forth to each statement coming out of them.
"Ah've never lied in my life!"
"You have so!"
"Have not!"
"Have too!"
"Have not!"
"Have too!"
She wasn't able to handle the curiosity anymore. Plus, the quarrel was beginning to hurt her ears. So she shrieked, "Will someone please tell me what the heck is going on?" The scream drained out the tones of Numbuhs 2 and 4's bickering, also staggering them somewhat.
Numbuh 4 was first to respond to her demand. "Ah'll tell ya what's goin' on!" he shouted. He pointed forcefully at Numbuh 2. "Hoagie Liar Pants lied ta Numbuh 1!"
"I had to," Numbuh 2 retorted. "Mark would have been in hugetrouble if I told Numbuh 1 that he brought the Rainbow Monkey."
"So he did bring Mr. Stay-In-School Rainbow Monkey. I knew it!" For a moment, Numbuh 3 remained ignorant to the fact that Numbuh 1 was not told the truth about the doll. She kept herself rather busy assembling the pieces of who was the actual culprit.
Numbuh 2 reserved his self-protective stance. "I don't see the big deal. So I lied to Numbuh 1 about who got the Rainbow Monkey. So what? It's not like it's going to affect us in the future."
"Well-" Numbuh 4 stopped is angry speech abruptly. His mind trailed off. "Ah guess that's true."
"It is true! And even if Numbuh 1 ever did find out, Mark will probably be gone by then. So we wouldn't have to defend him."
Numbuh 4 cocked an eyebrow. "Defend 'im? Why would ya think ya need t' defend him?"
Numbuh 2 shrugged. "I don't know. I guess I just do."
"From what?"
He thought, and the conclusion was nervewracking.
"Numbuh 2, since when is Numbuh 1 a threat?"
...Transmission Interrupted…
Life can be found only in the present moment. The past is gone, the future is not yet here, and if we do not go back to ourselves in the present moment, we cannot be in touch with life.
