Hey all, hope you enjoy this latest installment!
Alvin's Point of View:
One day left! Only one day left until of being in this insufferable body that doesn't belong to me. The neuro—transmitter is pretty much complete and all that's left to do is steal- I mean borrow- more of the special chemical that Simon's always going on about, a duty that somehow fell upon me. I can't say I'd recommend sending me in for something of this caliber, but with no guarantee of our luck being similar to the first time around, both Simon and I thought it be best (and easiest) sending me in. During school, no one would think twice if Simon went in, so while 'Alvin' distracted the TA who would no doubt be lurking in the lab, 'Simon' could siphon some more chemical. Now was that time. After a grueling day of not listening to teachers talk about subjects I couldn't care less about, avoiding Brittany's soft gaze that reminded me of our chat, and trying not to notice Jeanette's obvious mannerisms that weighed me down like an anchor, I was ready. Ready to end this travesty and make this right with everyone in our household. This atrocious nightmare had to stop. I deserved a dance with Brittany and dang it I was going to get one even if it killed me (which this whole experiment just might).
The whole chat with Brittany really got to me. We didn't talk long (for obvious reasons), but when we did talk -she did most of the talking- it was kinda harsh. It was, however, a real testament to her friendship with Simon. She was genuinely worried. It was uplifting at the same time it was upsetting. I didn't get that kind of treatment from her. Not nearly as deep anyway. Didn't some of my bad-boy actions constitute a cry for help? Sure, I've cried to her before but I've never gotten the same response.
"Ready?" Simon walked up behind me solemnly with my backpack strapped around his shoulder, "Remember, get in, pour formula X into the vial halfway -that's all we need- and get out. I can only distract the TA for so long before he gets suspicious – you don't exactly have the best reputation with the science teachers." He wasn't wrong. With my reputation, I guessed I'd have maybe 2 minutes to find formula X and siphon it before the TA got the idea that something was going on.
"All set!" I said, "Cheer up, Si. We're so close, I can almost taste it." We headed to the newly set up chemistry lab, mentally preparing myself for the relay race that was about to occur. What did the formula's bottle look like again? It was definitely yellow. I think… Called… Umm, whatever, Simon said it would be obvious, even for me. I tried remembering anything useful – were there any warning labels that stood out? Any ingredients? Woo… nothing…
As we approached the lab, voices emitted from the crack in the door. Crud. VOICES – plural! We haven't even started the plan and we've already reached problem one. Would Simon be able to distract the two (or more?) people blocking us from our salvation? Could NOTHING go our way?! Have we not worked hard enough? Not suffered enough through the awkwardness and stale, passer-by stares from family and friends alike? We didn't think distracting ONE person would last, let alone two. There was a much higher chance of being discovered now. I wish I could weep, but there wasn't time.
"Abort mission," I whispered to my brother, "Repeat: abort mission!"
"We can't!" Simon hissed, "It's now or never, there's no more time." The door creaked open and two figures, Mr. Crout and the TA, looked up from their work. Both seemed in happy spirits, which was good for us.
"Oh, hello boys!" Mr. Crout said, "What can we help you with?" The TA glowered down at me, then Simon, who dropped his pack and removed some practice problems. Taking the hint, I spoke.
"I was wondering if you could help my brother understand those problems. I tried explaining them to him, but it's hopeless. Think you could help?"
"Of course, no problem!" Mr. Crout bellowed and invited Simon up on his desk ignoring me completely. The TA circled the two, forgetting I was even there. Yes! This was going to be easier than I thought. Now was my chance. I sneakily approached the cupboard that Simon retrieved the formula from last time and immediately noticed the difference. It had been renovated. Uh oh. I slowly pulled it open making sure to check back to see if it was safe. Simon was talking the two instructors up like there was no tomorrow, doing a great job of pretending to be me. Although I silently prayed he wasn't making me sound too smart, nor too stupid for that matter.
Problem #2: The inside looked just as renovated as the outside. This looked nothing like the cupboard Simon shuffled through. Everything had been moved around and I saw no yellow bottle. And to top it all off, there were a LOT of shelves. Like, half a dozen, at least. What were the odds of it being in here? After doing a quick search I figured there was no way it could have been in here.
"Alvin," I heard the TA say, "Are you even in chemistry? I don't recall ever seeing you in class?" Yikes, busted! Throw in the towel, Si, I'll be right out.
"What are you talking about?" Simon said with absolute certainty, "How could you forget your coolest student?" Jeez, talk about milking it much? His acting improved though, compared to when all this started, so I couldn't really complain. Careful not to cause any disturbances, I switched cupboards. Time was limited and I was playing a dangerous game. Yellow bottle… Yellow bottle… where the heck was it?! Don't tell me it was one of the chemicals that caused the lab to close in the first place. If so, did they even still supply it? Ready to give in and abandon the plan for the second time, I hopped to the final shelf of the cupboard. Good news, bad news! The good news: I found the yellow bottle! Bad news: I found two… Reading the labels I discovered not only that the two chemicals had similar, yet at the same time very different, names, but also that there was NO way sciency words qualified as English.
"I'm sorry, Alvin," Mr. Crout sighed, "we really have to go." Simon replied in a panicked tone.
"But. But… My tiny mind needs your help! Don't deprive a young chipmunk of his education!" Watch it, Si. I liked being the one teachers feared.
"It's easy stuff, Alvin," Yeah fricken right, "If you show up to class you'll be a whiz in no time." Not gonna happen, buddy! I needed to hurry. I had one vial, and I couldn't mix the two chemicals together so I needed to pick. Now. What in God's name did Simon say the name was again?
/
"Time to go, boys." Mr. Crout said, "Hey, where's Simon?"
"Right here!" I exclaimed, having just shut the cupboard, "So is his grade salvageable? OR is he doomed?" Before the teacher could answer, I grabbed hold of my brother's arm and dragged him and my pack out of the lab.
"Any problems?" Simon asked, "You took longer than I thought you would." Well… #1: two people instead of one. #2: renovated inside. #3: I couldn't find the dang bottle! #4: Two yellow bottles. And in the end, when I finally decided which chemical to siphon, I accidentally overfilled the vial.
"No, not really?" I lied, biting my lip, "Let's go home and make sure the machine doesn't break again." Simon smiled. A real smile, not one of those fakes that he claims to be out of joy or pity. I know my own face. I know when I'm pretending to be happy just for other's sake. Finally, my brother shot my own signature grin back at me, a perfect mirror image of my usual self.
"This is it, Alvin." He said, "All we have to do is wait until tomorrow and we'll be back to normal. No more issues with Brittany or Jeanette. No more hiding who we really are." He was right as per usual. I don't think I could've been more ecstatic. I was so giddy with excitement that by the time we reached Dave's car I was practically jumping like a little joey. This must have prompted the weird stares from the others, another thing I wouldn't miss from the switch.
"Are you alright, Simon?" Theodore asked, "You look like you just had a lot of sugar."
"I just can't wait for the science fair tomorrow!" I answered eagerly. Under normal circumstances there was no way that sentence would ever escape my mouth, but I wasn't exactly speaking with MY mouth, now was I? First thing I planned on doing after we switched back: listen to myself talk and talk and talk…
"We'll be there to support you." Brittany said with an implied tone of concern for my health. She honestly thought I was out of it, didn't she? Hopefully Jeanette thought the same way so Simon could salvage his relationship. Brittany nudged her sister who shot daggers back.
"Yeah…" Jeanette said, "All of us…"
/
It was so beautiful, the now finished neuro-transmitter. I didn't bother learning all the scientific components about it, but it was still an awesome mish-mash of plastic tubing, glass, and the formula holder. Of course, there were the neuro-helmets that would transfer us back to our own bodies, and screen that would display our thoughts and the pods to stand in and blah blah blah. It looked so tempting.
"Tell me again why we don't just use it now." I demanded, turning to my brother who was packing up his tools, an early start to the long clean up. "Why wait for the fair?"
Simon sighed, "Having my machine destroyed at the fair looks a lot better than showing up without a project altogether, though not by much. I have my reputation as a scientist to think about." Seriously? I supposed I could let it slide. You know, let him keep SOMETHING, even if it meant staying in his body an extra 12 hours. "Know how to present 'your' project tomorrow?"
"Yeah, you won't stop drilling it into my head." I groaned, "Have some faith, Si. I know what to do. Talk a bit, conveniently have you set up the machine as my assistant and boom, we're back to normal!"
"Good enough," Simon muttered, finishing up tidying our room. I would've helped, but I was much too tired after today. That's another thing I can't wait for – a real bed to sleep in again after a long day of being me. After tomorrow we'd have our space back. No more uncomfortable recliner to sleep on. This was gonna be the best Saturday ever (how sad). "Oh, by the way, I think it would be best if I held onto formula X until tomorrow." No argument there; I had no intentions of messing THIS up. I handed Simon the vial and he seemed pleased until he felt the full weight. "Alvin, I said I needed HALF the vial. H-A-L-F! What were you thinking? Mr. Crout better not find out!" Ohh, boy. If he was mad about THIS…
"Relax, it isn't that big of a deal." I sighed. "Let's just turn in early, the sooner we get to sleep the sooner tomorrow will come."
"Agreed." And so, like children on Christmas eve, we eagerly hopped down to our makeshift bed.
"Going to bed early, don't you think, boys?" Dave noted as I snuggled under the blanket. Dishes clinked and clanged and I suddenly regretted skipping dinner.
"Yeah, we were going to watch a movie." Theodore said, strolling in from the kitchen. I was about to reject his proposal for fear that I would never make it to tomorrow, when Simon broke in.
"You guys go right ahead." He said, "But we'll pass and sleep through it. We have a busy day tomorrow and need to be fully rested." Whatever, so long as they didn't watch anything loud, I could care less.
/
Guess what… I'm freaking CARING! I don't know what it was, but it couldn't have been at a higher volume. As the annoyance settled in I lifted my head from the large pillow, put on Simon's glasses and looked around. Dave had fallen asleep even before I had, snoring like an erupting volcano. Simon was fast asleep with Brittany (who must've joined him sometime after) resting her head on his shoulder and cuddling his arm (lucky munk!), dozing in and out, and Theodore and Eleanor were still going strong, fully involved in whatever the movie was. Jeanette on the other hand, looking disinterested, had moved to the coffee table with what looked like a diary.
"Well, I'm awake anyway." I muttered. "Heyy, Jeanette. What do you have there?" I spoke quietly so as not to disturb Theo and Ellie.
"Oh! Hi, Simon," She jumped, slamming the book shut, "Nothing. I thought you were going to bed." She turned away from me, clinging the book to her chest, "Couldn't sleep?"
"Not with this blaring movie and Dave's snoring." I joked and I think she stifled a giggle. "What are you doing up?"
"N-Nothing," She said, hugging herself tighter. I guess me talking to her wasn't exactly helping.
"So, tomorrow after the fair…" I started and trailed off, unsure where I was going, "Do you want to… hang out or something?" I figured I should give Simon a boost. Most of this was my fault, after all. Jeanette exhaled shakily, but said nothing, "Please think about it. I'll leave you to your writing." I hopped back to my place on the recliner and removed the glasses. Staring at the blurry purple and brown blob, I heard the calming sound of pencil scratching against paper, and as I turned over I could make out Brittany's bright, beautiful, beady eyes on me. However, underneath the gaze, spread across her face, was an overjoyed smile. As if to say "finally, things are getting better."
/
"Let's go!" I screamed up the stairs. Have the chipettes always taken this long to get ready? I swear they're doing this just to spite me, "We can't be late!" Whoa, did I just say that? Weird… Theodore was busy helping 'Alvin' carry down the contraption.
"Now, Theo." Simon said, "Be careful! No dents or scratches you hear me?"
"Jeez, Alvin," My youngest brother replied, "relax. You sound like Simon. Sheesh."
"Careful!" Simon shouted again as the two dropped another step and Theodore sighed.
"Can you guys hurry up?" I asked, crossing my arms.
"You know," Simon said, glaring viciously, "You could help, Simon."
"SORRY, Alvin," I shot back, "but at least I was ready on time. Now get your butts outside! Dave's waiting." Ignoring my brother's plea for help I decided to keep Dave company, who himself appeared a little impatient.
"Easy, Theo." Simon said as they loaded the transmitter and its accessories. "Easy!" Geez, Si. It's not a baby. One scratch won't kill it. It's doomed to blow up any- Hey WATCH IT THEODORE SEVILLE! You drop and break it now, you die! Just then all three chipettes took tiny steps, stimulating each other's minds with small talk and all three smiling at once. Wow, haven't seen that in a while. At least now I know Jeanette can still smile.
"Finally!" I shouted out the window of the car and waving my arms in massive gestures, "What took you so long?! We're going to be late."
"Relax, Simon." Brittany laughed, "We're just messing with ya." Forget talking, the very FIRST thing I'm going to do after the switch is prank Brittany.
"Can we just go now?" Simon complained, having buckled in the project. I did one last checklist to make sure tis went perfectly. Transmitter? Check. Helmets? Check. Remote that controlled the machine? Check. Screen? Check. Formula X? I turned to Simon who read my mind and stuck his hands in his pocket, fondling the vial of formula I stole. Nothing could ruin this… I hope.
/
This is it. This is really it! Time to be myself again! Simon's project was all set up with each of us on either side, ready to demonstrate and waiting patiently for the judges and 'crowd' (this was hardly a fair).
"Okay, Alvin." Simon whispered, "It's almost our turn. You know what to do, don't you?" The crowd approached and I ignored his question, doing my best to stand as regal as possible.
"Ladies and gentlemen," I started, "You are about to witness something truly spectacular. Today, I will present to you what I call the neuro-transmitter-" A bunch of geeky looking guys chuckled, and I had no idea what it was all about. Seriously, what the heck was so funny about the name of the machine? "This machine will allow us," I motioned to my brother, "to read and experience each other's thoughts and feelings. All of which will be shown here on the screen." Everyone including Dave, Theodore and the chipettes displayed impressed faces, and the judges nodded their heads in approval. "It is at this time that I would like to ask my assistant to start the machine." On cue, Simon emptied half the vial into the transmitter and flipped the switch on the remote control. 'Ready for Use' lit up just like last time, and the lights on the helmets, which sat on stools in the pods, flashed. "Now, I shall step into one pod and strap the helmet on, and y assistant shall do the same." We did as I narrated and everyone seemed to be hanging onto each word I spoke. To be honest, I barely knew what was happening.
"All set." Simon said. Perfect! All that was left to do was to pull the knob on the remote. I watched Simon like an evil mastermind, my eye twitching every now and then. Could he be any slower?! Finally, it was time to be me again. Simon set down the remote outside his pod and we waited. Noises from the machine and helmets starting up. Everyone was staring up at the screen, and murmurs spread throughout the crowd. Something was wrong. Nothing was happening. While flashes of light flickered all around, I couldn't hear Simon's thoughts, and believe me, he was probably thinking a mile a minute. I pinched myself hard while looking his way to see if he felt anything. No luck. A warning noise, a loud horn, sounded from the box where Simon emptied the vial, the heart of the machine. Weird sensations started filling my body. This was it! This was our switch back! The horn buzzed loud and in shorter, faster bursts. Why couldn't I sense Simon? Through the smoke I could see him wearing the helmet, same as me, and everything was how it was the first time. Wasn't it? Smoke? Did I just say smoke?! At first panic struck in, but then I recalled the first switch. This had to be leading up to the machine exploding. Was all my worry for naught? Simon seemed worried, sweat dripping down his face as he though at light speed, eyes darting back and forth. He made no actions so I assumed everything was going according to plan. That was enough for me.
The heart of the transmitter screamed from being overheated, and a powerful rumbling built up from it. This wasn't the same familiar rumble from the first time. This rumble spoke to me, telling me it was angry and ready to crumble in on itself. Trust me when I say that I would know the roar of destruction. Come on, switch us already!
The rumble grew louder and louder, and bolder and bolder, until finally the pressure inside built up to an extreme. Simon's eyes went wide and he tried tearing off his helmet, but it must have been strapped on too tight. He struggled to remove the helmet until we were once again embraced in a not-so-fun explosion.
"This better work." I croaked before falling on my back, bathing in smoke and sweat and losing consciousness.