A/N: I DON'T OWN JIMMY NEUTRON OR ANY OF THE CHARACTERS OF THE SHOW. I AM MEARLY A FAN. (and a poor one at that mr/mrs lawyers, esq.)
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"Here you go, guys," said the rotund red head in his nasal voice, placing a tray of ice cream sundaes on the booth table.
"Gee, Carl, and here I thought you weren't working tonight," replied Sheen as he removed two sundaes from the tray and placed one in front of both himself and his smiling girlfriend.
"No, he ain't workin' tonight, he just serves us so Sam will let him try out the new flavor, right?" asked Libby, poking fun at their hefty friend. Two years ago, Carl's daily conversations with Sam about candy and ice cream flavors led Sam offering the teen a part time job – impressive because it was Sam's first worker since he first opened the Candy Bar. The job did wonders for Carl's popularity at school with people trying to get free goodies out of him. Surprisingly, he not only took to the job of serving candy and treats well, but his knowledge of the sugary confections led to some impressive sales growth as Carl started taking a bigger hand in deciding what candy to order and stock. Unfortunately for Carl, working at the Candy Bar also allowed him ample time to work on his ample stomach, and all the slimming he had done during puberty was being added back on.
"Well, I DID want to try this new Jungle Loving mix we got in yesterday… I mean it's Banana and Coconut frozen yogurt mixed with Macadamia nuts and it looks so yummy" grinned Carl as he picked up the yellow, white and green swirled treat on the end of the tray. "Although I don't know what the green is," he pondered as he dug in with his spoon; his comment causing looks of abject horror on his assembled friends.
Picking the last two sundaes off the tray for Cindy and himself – thankfully just vanilla hot fudge and not a weird creation – Jimmy passed Cindy her ice cream and scooped into his frozen treat. "Wow, it's been a while since it was just the old gang," he commented, looking at the group.
"You know, you're right," responded Libby. "Where are Nick, Betty and Heather?"
"Uhh, Heather is working at the cinema tonight," said Carl, grinning at the thought of his girlfriend. She had moved to Retroville two summers ago, and instantly became a friend of the group. After an extended bout of flirting on both parts, she finally asked out the shy Carl at the start of summer vacation before their Senior year. Four months later, they were both hopelessly in love with each other.
"Ya, and Nick had football practice for tomorrow's game…" started Cindy
"..pssht, of course, star QB…" interjected Sheen.
"..and for some reason Betty turned the offer when I mentioned who was going… she said something about not being in the moods for sweets," finished Jimmy, slightly puzzled at his girlfriend's response to the invitation.
"Watching her weight? Staying pretty for her boyfriend? Heck, not like she'd need to worry. She's got you wrapped around her little finger. You'd NEVER stray from her," grinned Cindy, playfully punching Jimmy on the arm.
"More like she didn't want to compete for attention with Cindy when Nick wasn't around," muttered Sheen half-under his breath. "Ooof!" he uttered as Libby elbowed him hard in the ribs. The comment went unnoticed as Jimmy and Cindy bantered back and forth about how devoted their appropriate significant other was to them. Also unnoticed to them was how the rest of the world saw the two of them, sitting side by side clearly enjoying the company of the other.
"Quiet, Sheen, keep it quiet," whispered Libby to Sheen. Her boyfriend had grown in the years since Lindberg elementary, and was much faster on the draw on much of life than he had been as a kid.However, his comments still came out at the most inopportune time. "Jimmy has Betty, Cindy has Nick, and they ALL are happy. No need wrecking things just 'cuz Jim 'n Cin happen to LOOK like a married old couple."
Rolling his eyes, Sheen whispered back. "Whatever Libs, I just see this crashing and burning like Ultra Lord's arch nemesis in episode number… OOF!" he cringed as Libby's elbow reconnected with his ribs.
"Hey you two, stop the flirting," joked Jimmy, finally noticing Sheen and Libby's huddled whispering. Completely oblivious to the irony of his comment, he continued eating his ice cream and enjoying the company of his friends.
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A/N: a little shorter of a chapter, just trying to get a little set up here. Lotsa confusion I guess on the status of J/C, hope this at least starts to clear things up. More to be revealed in future chapters. Oh, and is that a proper use of "ironic"? not sure. Read and Review please!
-Tim