Thanks again and again to "NotAContrivance", "attitude_chick", "selma", and "Aaweth" for the reviews! It really means a lot how you guys have taken the time to read and review my chapters! (I forgot earlier to thank "NotAContrivance" and "goofy monkey child" for helping me with those small errors! Sorry about that.) I truly thank you guys who have reviewed recently for sticking with my long story…it's very assuring that I'm still keeping you guys interested in the story.
Chapter Twenty Three: Where Is The Mind?
Location: Gretchen's bedroom, it's around 7PM and she is with T.J.
Gretchen was mentally feeling back to normal but her emotional state was unchanged. She didn't tell T.J. about SAL yet since she was trying to believe it herself. T.J. continued to look around her room of electronics and gadgets while she paced around her room. She sadly confessed, "Teej, I'm sorry but this is a computer system I haven't dealt with before." T.J. immediately stopped looking around and focused on Gretchen with worry. She continued, "I never thought a machine would be well....smarter than me...."
T.J. couldn't understand what Gretchen was saying. He questioned, "Gretch, what are you talking about?!?"
Gretchen replied, with the same disappointment, "The SAL 4000....Teej! I mean this is a computer that can process my thoughts! Before I can even start a plan it already knows it!"
T.J.'s eyes bulged out. It was as if he was hearing something from a science fiction story. He exclaimed, "Whompin' Bobbula! You mean a computer that can read your mind?!?"
Gretchen slowly went on, "Yes T.J. I mean it had all my thoughts...on a screen. Whatever my mind thought of....it was right on the screen." She looked toward T.J. and in shame said, "Sorry T.J....maybe I was too confident...maybe I'm not that smart as I thought."
T.J. looked closer at Gretchen and in concern softly said, "Gretchen, you didn't have to do that for me. You're the smartest kid I know and definitely smarter than any adult I've seen! I mean I'm the one who should be sorry for putting you through this and all." T.J. couldn't help but feel guilty about making Gretchen feel so bad since she was questioning her strengths or if she really had them at all.
Gretchen tried to reassure T.J., "It's okay T.J.... I mean I should of been logical that I couldn't defeat such an advanced computer system."
T.J. was saddened seeing his friend going into a rut and didn't know how to really encourage her. There was a moment of silence between them as Gretchen questioned herself and T.J.'s mind was divided thinking about Gretchen and other ways to stop Ashley X. There were the sounds of their breathing and sighing. They looked around the room while their minds drifted off somewhere and sighed again.
Suddenly, T.J. stopped....he took another breath and an idea came to him. He nervously, knowing he was no where as smart as Gretchen, but with some enthusiasm commented, "Uh...Gretch? Could it be possible for you to do something but not actually think about it?"
Gretchen had no clue where T.J. was going, "Uh...." She was slightly thrown off but she remembered T.J.'s question again and said, "You mean something....without consciously thinking?"
T.J. eagerly replied with more enthusiasm, "Yeah! I mean is there a way to do something and not think about it? You know like breathing for example..."
Gretchen froze up and it was a whole new level of thinking she never even considered before. She had never considered about the unconscious mind and quickly rushed to her desk where she began to think and write down ideas. T.J. curiously tried to look around Gretchen. He never saw her so busy and in such a frenzy. He quietly interrupted, "Uh Gretch? What are you planning for?"
Gretchen put her hand near T.J.'s face and quickly said while scrambling to jot down her ideas, "Shhh! T.J.....I'm onto something."
T.J. guessed that whatever Gretchen was thinking was far beyond his level of thinking. He took a seat next to Gretchen, leaned back a bit on it, and whimsically commented, "Being unconscious...." T.J. teased himself knowing that it was something familiar to him in the past several weeks. "....I guess Gretchen....whatever you're doing must be better than that hypnosis we used to get Principal Prickly back."
Gretchen dropped her pen and froze up again. It was the perfect plan. She whipped around facing T.J. and excitedly said, "T.J.! That's it! That's the way to stop the SAL 4000!"
T.J. knew that following Gretchen's train of thought was difficult so he slightly bit his tongue and tried to think harder. He slowly questioned, "How to....stop SAL?"
Gretchen took a new sheet of paper and wrote down the instructions for the plan. She tried to make it as easy as possible for T.J. to follow for what he was about to do and gave it to him along with her pen. T.J. was completely lost now and before he could speak Gretchen said, "T.J.......you're going to have to hypnotize me."
T.J. yelled out at the huge task set before him, "WHAT?!?"
Gretchen confidently looked at T.J. and said, "There is no other way. I have made a list of instructions for you to follow and for you to, out loud, recite the instructions of the shut down procedure and you have to make sure that I have no recollection of this entire plan. Almost like I'm shutting down SAL while I am sleepwalking."
T.J. looked at the instructions as if it were a college-level science experiment. He was hesitant to even consider something like this. He stuttered, "But...Gretch...after what....SAL did to you and....", he took a deep breath seeing the instructions Gretchen wrote for him, "...what if I mess up the hypnosis?"
Gretchen forcefully responded, "T.J.! I have to do this!" Gretchen was determined to stop SAL not also for T.J. but to make sure she really could accomplish anything she put her mind to. She now knew that shutting down SAL was not a measure of intelligence, but a test of her perseverance. The test of a person's perseverance against incredible odds....even if it was a super-advanced computer that could read minds. Gretchen looked deeply at T.J. and said, "I have to do this T.J....not only for you but for me as well.....please...."
T.J. took a deep sigh and began to comprehend that need inside Gretchen. He took the pen in his hand and held it in front of her. He fumbled trying to find the location on the paper to begin. Gretchen smirked and pointed to it on the paper.
T.J. gave a smirk back and smiled, "Thanks Gretch......I guess um...." T.J. tried to think of something to say to Gretchen to cheer her up, but he didn't know what to say knowing that at the end of the hypnosis she wouldn't be able to consciously remember a thing about what he said and anything up to and after mentioning the plan. He bashfully said, trying to say the right words, "See you soon..."
Gretchen saw T.J. lifting up the pen to begin the hypnosis but she suddenly stopped him by grabbing his arm. T.J. was confused why she did that. She bit her lower lip and spoke, "T.J....before you start I have to tell you something so I won't forget it...just in case..."
T.J. gave a concerned look to her. "What is it Gretch?"
Gretchen feeling half-reluctant and half-pressured to tell, she started ever so slightly, "I wanted to tell you that I heard about what you said to Spinelli during that storm."
T.J. raised his eyebrows in shock. He stuttered, "A...a...what do you mean Grrretcch?" He felt the heating rush of embarrassment flow inside of him.
Gretchen admitted, "I gave Spinelli a small microphone to wear that day and I heard everything...."
She gave T.J. a look, a look as if he could feel Gretchen reading right through him. T.J. could feel that Gretchen had pinpointed his feelings right at the spot. He giggled nervously while he blushed, "Uh...yeah..."
Gretchen slightly teased and winked, "Should I include this in the 'experiment'?" She cleared her throat and became serious seeing how T.J. was almost trembling and apologized, "Sorry T.J....but a.....do you really feel that way for Spinelli?"
T.J. paused for several moments and thought about it deeply. He thought about that stormy day and at Tuesday how Spinelli took care of him. He felt emotions that were far beyond his years and deeper than he had ever experienced, but the words for them just did not exist in his 10 year old emotional vocabulary. He just softly said, "I don't know Gretch...."
Gretchen reclined back in her chair and T.J. moved the pen back and forth. Gretchen closely focused in on it and after about 10 seconds, she went into a hypnotic state and he began to follow what Gretchen had told him to do...
Near the end of the hypnosis, T.J. ended with, "....After you wake up Gretchen, you will have no recollection of this conversation or about shutting down SAL. You will wake up by the count of three. 1....2.....3...." T.J. snapped his fingers and brought Gretchen back. He felt slightly guilty as Gretchen looked around her room in confusion over what just happened.
She anxiously asked, "What's happening T.J.? I know you wanted me to shut down the SAL 4000, but I don't know how to stop it after today." T.J. breathed a little easier knowing that Gretchen didn't know about the plan...consciously at least. He was worried about Gretchen going back to meet SAL, but he knew that Gretchen wanted....and needed to do it.
All of sudden, Gretchen told T.J., "T.J. you're going to have to leave....I forgot something back at school."
T.J. looked at Gretchen strangely since what she was saying was not part of the plan. He cautiously questioned, "Uh...why, Gretch?"
Gretchen was pointing for T.J. to sneak out of the bedroom (which was on the 1st floor) window and casually said, "I forgot something at my locker...It's important!"
T.J. crawled out of the window and so did Gretchen. The warmth and security of the home was soon taken away from them by the cold November wind. It blew against them giving them cold, scratching sensations on their hands and faces. T.J. thought back to how going to the locker was part of the hypnosis plan but she wasn't to start shutting down SAL 4000 right now. T.J. was more concerned than ever, "But why now? Can't it wait? It's already 8PM!" Gretchen already ran off to school before he could get a hold of her and then he noticed the instruction paper that fell on the ground. He read it over again and again, seeing where he went wrong. He looked at one crucial step and his mouth hit the ground. He couldn't believe that he missed an important step. He cried out, "Whompin' Bobbula! I forgot about telling what time of day and which day for her to shut SAL down! She would have to go through that torture all over again!"
In a burst of energy he ran toward school to catch Gretchen. He had to stop her from going back so she wouldn't have to relive the sadness and gloominess all over again. By the time he caught a glimpse of her, from a block away, she just entered into the school and the school doors locked her inside. T.J.'s arms just collapsed while he was stunned. He couldn't catch her in time and Gretchen was now under the control of SAL 4000....
Chapter Twenty Four: It's Beyond The Mind....
Location: At Gretchen's locker in Third Street; the faculty and almost everyone else has gone home for the day except for Hank and a few other janitors; It's around 8:30 PM Wednesday...
Gretchen walked to her locker through the brightly lit hallways and she arrived at her locker. After putting in her combination, she opened the door and looked up to see SAL (with that teal colored light) about 10 feet away from her. She paused at her opened locker and forgot what she was going to get from it. She began walking down the hallways of Third Street to see the school again, but something inside of her was making her eventually lead to the basement again. She wasn't even slightly aware that eventually she would end up at the basement stairway.
Gretchen arrived at the door that led to the basement stairway, but it was locked. She constantly questioned and doubted herself on why she wanted to go downstairs when she knew that she couldn't stop SAL but instinctively she felt that she had to go downstairs. She saw Hank cleaning up the hallway with his janitor broom and quickly walked up to him.
Hank was too busy focused on his job to notice Gretchen and when she began to speak he was startled for a few seconds. He happily began, "Whoa!...Hi Gretchen how are you? But a....", he began to worry, "...how come you're here? Shouldn't you be at home?"
Gretchen impatiently answered, "I'm fine Hank. I just have to go down to the basement. Uh...um....right now!" Gretchen quickly silenced herself; she couldn't understand what was of such urgency to go down there.
Hank teasingly questioned, "Now why would you want to go down there? You don't even have class down there!"
Gretchen, without thinking, responded, "Well....you remember those math adventures we enjoyed last year right? Well, I believe there is a textbook down there which might be of some interest." Gretchen looked back and forth, she wondered if that actually did come from HER mouth.
Hank smiled recollecting the wonderful times they enjoyed pursuing math and smirked thinking about how the government and companies that wanted his extraordinary talent. Normally he wouldn't have allowed any student to go unsupervised, to the basement, after school hours but since they shared a common passion for math and became good friends he approached the basement door and unlocked it. He opened the door wide and while holding it open, he with courtesy, presented her the stairway downstairs. He warmly said, "It's all yours Gretchen!" and he threw the keys to Gretchen and she caught them. He reminded her, "Don't forget to tell me when you're done!" He soon walked back to where he left his broom and went back to the janitor's closet to take care of another task.
Gretchen looked at the keys in her hand. She had no idea on what to do with them since she never even planned to get a textbook in the first place. She looked back at the stairwell and she knew SAL was down there... She had the ominous, creepy feeling as if a monster was waiting for her. She fought with her mind over and over again on why she would have wanted to go back down there after her traumatic experience earlier today. It completely baffled her common sense, and she believed her mind was getting irrational...yet instinct was pulling her to go downstairs. She took a deep breath and ever so slightly took one step at a time following her clueless illogical pursuit to the basement pit of her fear.
As she was walking through the basement hallways, through the storage room, and finally the last hallway...her pulse rate quickened at an accelerating rate. Heat sensations flowed throughout her body as she approaching the SAL 4000 control room....ever so closer....and closer....and closer... She knew that it was pointless to even head back knowing how SAL observed everything. She put her hand on the door knob that led to the control room and she could feel the icy, cold danger that seeped into her hand. She closed her eyes and opened the creaking metal door.
"Well good evening student Grundler. I'm surprised you decided to make a visit." said SAL calmly. The metal door slammed shut and was locked behind her.
Gretchen mumbled to herself that wasn't audible to SAL, "You're not the only one..."
SAL arrogantly questioned, "Has your pathetic, inferior mentality decided to try and defeat me?"
Gretchen shifted her body closer and closer until the robotic arms busted out of the opposite wall. Four robotic arms wrapped around her and lifted her up while a fifth one was placed over her head. The buzzing machinery placed her on an office reclining chair that was in front of the SAL 4000 controls.
SAL pompously observed Gretchen's condition, "I see that you are absolutely terrified of me student Grundler. HA HA HA! Your blood pressure is rising, your muscles are contracted, your breathing rate has substantially increased, and also there is your rapid eye movement. HA! But of course, I can always read your mind and understand the degree of your fear." Gretchen felt that the robotic arms were taking her into the mouth of monster....and that she would be finished...
Gretchen beat herself up again and again; cursing herself again and again. She felt that her instinct or gut feeling had betrayed her into entering mind-blowing terror. She could feel the overbearing presence of the SAL 4000 all around her.
SAL mischievously started, "Shall we begin...again?" SAL let Gretchen's hands be free but he still had his robotic tentacles around them loosely.
Gretchen felt like a lab rat being constantly monitored in a poorly lit room while being subjected to whatever mental agony SAL was capable of. She tried a few procedures but she knew it was absurd to even start again.
SAL condescendingly remarked, "When will you stubborn humans ever learn that you can't defeat perfection?"
Gretchen looked around and again beat herself up wondering why she was here....why she had to go through ALL OF THIS....again. After a few blinks, she gradually became sleepier. She didn't know what was happening to her...her mind became heavier, her concentration was not as focused, her eyelids became heavy. She tried to force herself to stay awake but she felt that she had taken a powerful sleeping pill.
SAL's voice bombarded her, "Taking a nap? Right now?!? Typical that your simple mind would be so exhausted..."
Her head leaned back on the chair and rested gently on it. Her arms were still on the controls. It was like as if she fell asleep on a computer, which wasn't that uncommon for Gretchen knowing how many times she used to stay up late working on her personal computer. She couldn't understand what made her to go to sleep so instantly....her mind traveled to a whole other world that was outside of her existence. She became more desensitized to her surroundings as she was entering into a new world...
Five minutes passed, 10, 20....and 30 minutes passed. SAL carefully monitored Gretchen's REM cycles, sleeping behaviors, and was even able to analyze her dreams to provide a visual of what Gretchen was experiencing. SAL concluded that Gretchen wasn't a threat anymore because of her condition and decided not to supervise Gretchen so intimately yet Gretchen was still wrapped up in his robotic tentacles and he locked the basement doors to prevent Hank and the other few janitors from entering into the basement. They were banging the stairway door to get it open; worrying about what happened to Gretchen downstairs. Another half-hour passed and still Gretchen was sleeping heavily; SAL became impatient waiting for Gretchen to wake up from her nap since it had an unconceivable processing speed and it decided to partially shut down some of its systems though still keeping surveillance on Gretchen for any signs of her waking up.
Gretchen slept on for another hour...and kept on sleeping except now her unconscious mind was taking over. Gretchen's mind was still off sleeping somewhere but her hands suddenly 'came to life' and they began typing away on the controls. Her hands seemed to instinctively know where to go, when to type, and what exactly had to be done. Her hands were moving in a blur all over the controls and midway through her procedure, SAL began to turn all of its systems on.
SAL angrily yelled in an almost demonic magnitude, "YOU! Little stupid brat! How dare you try to mock my intelligence!"
Gretchen was still asleep as if SAL wasn't even there. SAL was too focused on Gretchen's conscious mind to notice how her unconscious mind was already midway in shutting it down. SAL scrambled with all of his abilities to find a way to read or tap into her unconscious mind, but it was useless. SAL became easily frustrated and perplexed that her physical body and dreams were in no way similar to what her hands were doing. SAL again noted Gretchen's sleeping condition and it processed and concluded the notion that since Gretchen was sleeping the way it could have the advantage again was to wake Gretchen back up.
In a thunderous voice, SAL began, "Okay student Grundler...let's wake your crummy substandard mind up!"
In a second, it changed it's voice to match Gretchen's parents and softly started, "Wake up sweetie! Time for school!" SAL began tickling and gently waking Gretchen up as if her parents were waking her up for school.
Somewhere in the realm where her conscious and unconscious mind met, Gretchen was in a tunnel of darkness. On one end she could get a small 'emotional glimpse' of what was happening in her consciousness and on the other a somewhat unclear, cloudy yet determined direction of accomplishing a goal in her unconsciousness. It was an out of body experience for her that baffled everything she knew. This time she didn't have the answers of how things were working here....she didn't have any....at all. She knew she was somewhere in her mind, but she asked herself how could she be thinking within her own mind? She began to ask the most outlandish, nonsensical, preposterous idea if she was her soul....
Before she could even begin to think about it, she looked back at her conscious mind and she could feel the warmth of her parents trying to wake her up...or so she thought. Before she could go in that direction, she heard a voice from the tunnel that told her to go to the other direction, toward her unconsciousness. Gretchen froze up as the voice seemed to whisper right behind her ear and travel around her. The voice was unfamiliar but it advised, "Gretchen! Gretchen! Don't give up and don't wake up just now! Hang in there!"
Back in the control room, SAL was becoming restless and more agitated that Gretchen wasn't responding. Gretchen's hands were already three-quarters finished with the procedure. SAL became enraged and with a fierce burning wrath tone, "You will wake up student Grundler! You are an inferior life form that can only tolerate so much..." SAL reprogrammed his method to wake Gretchen up...and this time it wouldn't be so pleasant.
Unaware of her conscious state behind her, Gretchen tried to rationalize again where she was and what the voice was. Her vast knowledge of science and how things worked were completely worthless because only her emotions seemed to have any sense of direction in this place. She couldn't think too deeply about it since behind her was her conscious mind that loudly alerted her about her physical condition. She could only see a 'window' of the torture SAL was inflicting on her from a far and then the tunnel had begun to tip toward that direction as it became steeper and steeper. Her senses and body were trying everything to pull her back but the voice spoke again and this time Gretchen could recognize it. It said, "Gretch! You just gotta hang in there! Whatever you do! Just hold on!"....It was T.J.'s voice during her hypnosis.
Gretchen couldn't fathom that the voice was T.J.'s and she fell backwards in that state of shock. She slid down further and further down the seemingly endless tunnel slide, but she was able to hold on somehow. This time the far distant window of her consciousness was as huge as a screen from a 'drive-in' movie theater and it was right behind her. She stared into the bright light and she could see how her body was struggling and giving everything it had while SAL was inflicting Gretchen with increasing electric shock pain from its robotic tentacles. SAL was doing everything it could to wake her up without making her unconscious from the heavy voltage. Gretchen could 'feel' the pain, the hardship, the body-wasting grueling conditions similar to how one 'feels' the heat from a fireplace.
T.J.'s voice pleaded and tried to cheer her on, "Hold on Gretch! Don't give up! DON'T GIVE UP GRETCH!" The tunnel began sloping higher and higher....30...40...50 degrees. SAL was getting desperate to awaken Gretchen as she was only a few more steps away to shut down SAL. Her body was being pushed to it's extremes. Her muscles were so constricted and squeezed up that her muscle fibers began to rip, her forehead was dripping with sweat, her heart rhythms seemed to slam on her rib cage repeatedly like a dodgeball....but that was nothing to what Gretchen was facing inside... Gretchen couldn't reason out what chaotic stuff was happening around her, but she only knew that her will-power could only save her. She tuned into T.J.'s words of encouragement and she held on tightly as the tunnel became steeper...60...and 70.degrees. T.J.'s voice kept on encouraging her, "You're almost there...hold on! HOLD ON!"
Gretchen's body was approaching the last button and her fingers were twitching as if they were scratching. SAL screamed in an almost demonic voice, "NO! Student Grundler if you turn me off...I will do the same to you!!" Meanwhile, inside, Gretchen slipped from the sloping tunnel and was falling into the bright white light of her consciousness. Her eyes bulged out seeing and feeling the immense magnitude of her senses....as she was falling, she could feel her senses becoming amplified as if she was going through an intense wind tunnel.
SAL shouted again, "YOU PATHETIC HUMAN! NO!!!!" Gretchen, inside, was finally overcome by the strong, consuming white light and then there was absolute silence and darkness both outside and inside of Gretchen....
In an instant, WHAM! Her desensitized self was awakened by the unconceivable pain that came rushing into her brain like a speeding bullet train. Gretchen screamed from her torture that seemed like an endless scream as it echoed off the walls. She was conscious and little did she know how much torture she endured. She opened her eyes in uncertainty and just glanced down at her arms. Her mind couldn't comprehend it and neither could her body with the seemingly endless stinging feeling on her arms....her arms had been burned badly by SAL. From her elbows to her fingers, they were completely covered in 2nd degree burns from the tremendous amount of voltage. Her arms where discolored in patches of red and pale white. SAL was doing everything it could to get Gretchen to wake up...and she could see that as it's robotic tentacles left a slight impression over where exactly the tentacles grabbed Gretchen's arms, like a hot fork would leave on butter.
The entire control room was shut off and so was SAL. There was only the flickering dim florescent light that somewhat illuminated the room. Gretchen looked around herself and she could see SAL's tentacles were lying on the floor...lifeless. She knew SAL was turned off, but she did not have a clue how it happened since she was not consciously aware of anything that happened in the room. In a sudden rush, she got up from her chair but she felt limbless because the pain in her arms did not go away. It felt as if somebody lit her skin on fire while ripping her top skin layer off at the same time. Her pain took over her breathing and she was irregularly panting.
She managed to open the doors that led to the basement stairway by leaning her weight on the door with her back and nudging it. When she finally arrived at the stairwell, she struggled to go up each step since SAL drained off all of her energy. She could hear Hank and 3 other janitors doing everything to unlock the door, since SAL left it locked before he was shut down. Her exhausted mind barely remembered the keys Hank had given to her and she knew the only way to unlock it was to use her hands. She took a deep breath and held it to muffle her pain. She quickly took the keys from her pocket and, in one turn, unlocked the basement stairway door. Her fingertips, that held the keys, started to bleed since they were burned and the normally smooth metallic keys felt like rough sandpaper. Her eyelids were halfway closed already.
Hank got the door open and he cried out, "Gretchen where...?" Gretchen tried to understand what Hank was saying with her exhaustion. He took another look again and the other janitors gasped in shock. Hank never saw Gretchen so worn out and when he observed Gretchen's arms, it terrified him. He worked one time at an industrial plant, and saw too many accidents...he instantly knew the severity of Gretchen's condition. He picked up a now lifeless, mindless Gretchen and hurriedly, yet carefully carried her out to get medical help.
Her mind drifted all over the place while Hank carried her through the halls of Third Street Elementary. She managed to think about what she had just faced and she couldn't understand how she could withstand such pain because she had no recollection of the battle inside of her or that she was hypnotized. To her, it felt as if she took a nap and magically SAL was turned off and her arms were burned. She was baffled how her mind could ignore the intensity of her extreme burns. She questioned herself, 'What just happened?' and a random thought enter in. 'Is this one of those times where the mind is stronger than the environment?' She remembered back last year how Gus took Ms. Grotke's advice on using mind visualization during the heatwave (from the episode "The Coolest Heatwave Ever".) She was confused about what happened to her body, but more so on where her mind was...
Chapter Twenty Five: More Unlikely Allies...
Location: The next day, Thursday in the cafeteria during Recess
The Ashleys managed to secretly leave school yesterday without being noticed. The four decided to make a resolution to finally get back at Ashley X, but they were terrified to go back to their Salon & Spa room knowing that Ashley X had something in store for them. Therefore, the Ashleys stood around the cafeteria. They knew exactly who to speak with to get back at Ashley X.
T.J. again was sitting at a lunch table looking at the playground and thinking how to stop Ashley X. This was bigger than anything he ever devised before because Ashley X had control of the playground and the school. She befriended most of the students and not even his gang of friends believed him about Ashley X's plan.
Gretchen slowly walked through the cafeteria doors and toward T.J. She received medical treatment last night for her burns on her arms (from her elbows to her fingers) and they were covered in bandages. The students in the cafeteria stopped whatever they were doing and looked at Gretchen in shock. T.J.'s face froze, and he couldn't believe his eyes. She was still weak but in much better condition compared to last night. T.J. tried to apologize for whatever she went through but Gretchen spoke before he could say anything. She calmly sighed, reflected over last night, and tiredly said, "I somehow…I don't know how…but was able to shut down SAL 4000 last night."
T.J. was speechless. He couldn't stop staring at Gretchen's bandages.
Gretchen noticed his staring and softly commented, and still in confusion over what happened last night, "Oh this T.J.?!? I got 2nd degree burns on my arms last night from….turning off SAL….I think. I still don't know what precisely happened…but at least SAL is shut down now….just like you wanted…" Gretchen teasingly moved her head to the side and smiled to get a reaction from T.J.
T.J. felt absolutely horrible that he made his friend go through so much to shut down SAL. T.J. was still trying to take it all in.
Gretchen curiously asked, "Uh, T.J.? Why did you want me to shut it down anyways?"
T.J.'s heart rate accelerated; he knew that if he told Gretchen the truth (to stop Ashley X) she wouldn't have done so since she only knew the one side to Ashley X. He felt extremely guilty not only for putting her through this, but that he would have to lie to her.
T.J.'s eyes looked around the room as if he was searching for an answer in cafeteria somewhere. He reluctantly started, and his speech was breaking up, "Uh….um…well, Gretch….", his face began to turn red, "…it's because…."
Luckily, Gretchen just whimsically brushed the topic off saying, "It's okay T.J., maybe it's for another prank?"
T.J. did not know how to reply to it because he couldn't tell the truth and he would never put Gretchen through so much if it was just for….another prank. He mindlessly tried to say something, but the words didn't come out. He took another look at Gretchen's bandages and it reminded him again of what Gretchen went through, that made it even more difficult to speak with her. T.J. took off his red cap, and scratched his head trying to think of what to say, he slowly began, "Uh…its for…", his mind was frantic to come up with something, "….something bigger…." After saying that, he felt so stupid that it was the reason why he wanted SAL shut down.
Gretchen normally would have asked T.J. to disclose whatever he was hiding from her, but the condition of her arms preoccupied her mind. She just smirked, and said, "Being the prankster prince and a crazy monkey boy….", she began laughing to herself, "…I know you have something cool, as they say, up your sleeve." Gretchen remembered her appointment with Nurse Kramer to check up on her burns. She said, before leaving the cafeteria, "Don't forget to include us in the prank T.J.! It's been too long since we made one with everything that has happened."
As Gretchen walked away, T.J. mumbled to himself in shame, "Yeah….something is up my sleeve alright…" He thought over how he just made Gretchen to believe a lie of what he was doing and it scared him. He was self-reflecting how he was becoming as deceitful as…. Ashley X. That he was using others to achieve his goals. His mind then tried to rationalize and console him that what he was doing was the best for his friends and the playground….though he still regretted having to make Gretchen believe a lie. Lying and being dishonest just wasn't who he was… especially when he idolized his favorite comic book hero, Senior Fusion… He wondered if there was another way to get around to defeating Ashley X, but he couldn't think of any other way knowing how SAL could hear and see everything in school.
The Ashleys saw that T.J. was finally alone and approached him slowly. They noticed T.J. busy both thinking over a plan and tormented by something, and as much as they did not want to associate with him they knew they had to. Before T.J. could get up to carry out his plan, Ashley A walked up in front of him and said, "Hey Detweiler what are you doing?"
T.J. blinked his eyes several times as his mind moved on from thinking about Gretchen and his plan to what the Ashleys have done over the past couple weeks. T.J. was still upset over the photo they took, and he snapped back, "Nothing that concerns you...."
The other Ashleys arrived and Ashley Q proposed an idea, "How about we like plan another prank on Ashley X, Detweiler?" The Ashleys were secretly desperate for T.J.'s help but they maintained their cold, prissy, uptight personalities to not show it.
T.J. brushed off their idea, "Last time I worked with you guys, you all went behind my back!" T.J. took out the photo from his coat pocket and showed it to them. The Ashleys froze, especially Ashley A. The other Ashleys looked at Ashley A in frustration over T.J. holding the photo that they could have used to start another great rumor.
The other Ashleys and T.J. looked harshly at Ashley A and she cautiously replied, "Well....this time we Ashleys, like, promise not to go behind your back. It's an Ashley promise T.J. We totally give you our word..."
T.J. looked at them, in suspicion, but then he saw them in a different light where they could help out with his plan. T.J. casually, but seriously said, "Okay...." He took the Ashleys to a corner of the cafeteria where the other students of Third Street couldn't hear.
Ashley B began, "T.J. we want to permanently destroy Ashley X! And like completely overthrow her government!" The other Ashleys could not believe Ashley B was that bold and daring to propose such an idea.
T.J. froze up for a few seconds. He couldn't believe that the Ashleys were that determined to get back at Ashley X and that their plan coincided with his plan to get rid of Ashley X's rule. He began to whisper to them, "Okay Ashleys! If we really want to overthrow Ashley X we have to convince the rest of the students that Ashley X is bad for the school. And knowing your specialties, I'm planning for you four to spread the word around. By second recess today, we begin the rebellion!"
Ashley Q silently questioned, "But like what about SAL 4000? You know about it, right? How it's like such a paparazzi!"
T.J. assured them, "Yes, I know about SAL 4000...but if you look at SAL's teal light…it's turned off. With SAL 4000 down, we won't have to worry about SAL watching over us. That way, Ashley X won't have any control over us!"
The four Ashleys shouted, "Scandalous!"
T.J. immediately tried to quiet them down, "Shhhhh! Quiet you guys! We have to do this secretly otherwise you know who will snitch…"
Before T.J. could finish his sentence, Randall cockily walked up to the five. He slyly said, having listened in on their conversation, "Well…Well…Well…Who would of thought that T.J. Detweiler and the Ashleys planning together?"
Ashley Q screamed, "Like ewww…..get away you snitch! You're such a loser!"
Ashley B shouted, "Yeah you worm…go back to your filth where you belong!" The Ashleys were sickened having to be near Randall.
T.J. whispered to the Ashleys, "Shhh! Guys! C'mon!" T.J. then focused in on Randall, he angrily questioned, "What do you want Randall? What are you gonna do now? Tell on us?" T.J. sighed harshly thinking over how he had not planned for anyone snitching on him.
Randall surprised, loudly answered back, "Are you crazy?!? Tell on you guys?!? I've been wanting to get back at Ashley X since she silenced Ms. Finster and had power over me since she could rule over the faculty!" Randall became steamed thinking over it. "I'll show her! I'LL SHOW HER!"
The Ashleys and T.J. just looked at each other. They had no idea Randall was so angry toward Ashley X as well. The six looked at each other in silence…they couldn't believe that the six of them were together…that with everything they had been through last year and how much they hated each others' company…they had a common purpose and goal. Suddenly, T.J. thought back to last summer how he and his five friends took down Dr. Benedict. Now he was floored trying to process in his mind, as difficult as it was that he was actually working these five, the Ashleys and Randall, to take down Ashley X.
Ashley Q broke the silence, "Like oh my gosh! This is like….wayyyy…too creepy!" She started to shake her hands and started taking a deep breath trying to shake off their unthinkable, improbable alliance. Ashley T began fanning herself attempting to ward off these creeping sensations.
Randall just breathed heavily and commented, "Oh boy…."
T.J. at a loss of words, slowly requested from Randall, "Um…..Randall. See if you can make the kids have their second recess outside today, with the faculty's help, at the blacktop because whatever happens will be big! And we need all the student support we can get to go against Ashley X."
Randall looked down on the floor and looked back up. He quietly said, "Okay, T.J."
T.J. boldly said, with increasing confidence, "Guys, we have to do this TODAY! Otherwise, Hank and the other janitors will have SAL 4000 repaired the next day! And it'll be impossible to stop Ashley X afterward!"
The Ashleys and Randall quickly silenced themselves and they understood the urgency of the matter. Ashley A ended their meeting, uneasily saying, "Okay Detweiler! Let's hope this totally works out!"
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To Be Continued…