December 21, 2016
School
By Rudi Galvez
Mom was combing my hair getting me ready for school. I was asleep in my chair. I'm not a morning person so I was dimly unaware of my surroundings. Anyway, I was peacefully slumbering when something furry touched my cheek. Moaning with resignation I woke up to find Simba propped on my lap. "Leave me alone Simba. I'm trying to get some sleep" I started to close my eyes again.
"In your chair?" Simba said confused.
"Yes," I slurred eager to end this discussion. Simba, however, took this as an invitation to keep talking. "So, what are you doing up early this morning?"
"I'm going to school!" I murmured irritably.
Simba's whiskers twitched curiously.
"What's school?"
Now fully awake I stared at the cub in surprise.
"You don't know what school is?"
Simba shrugged.
"I'm a lion and you're a human" he pointed out mildly.
I cleared my throat uneasily. How was I going to explain human stuff to an animal?
But it was worth a shot.
"Well, umm Simba…" I started.
"School is a place where kids like me go to learn things"
"Like what?" Simba prompted.
"Just math, English, science, and history"
"It sounds fun!" the cub's eyes widened in admiration.
"It's not really" I replied dully.
"Why not?"
Before I could reply mom stuck the toothbrush in my mouth. The minty scents gagged my throat.
My mom had put me on the bus and waved goodbye. I fell asleep during the whole ride. When the bus finally arrived at the school I woke up. Rolling off the ramp I gazed at the campus. Another cold day at school, I shivered at the mere thought of entering the building.
"So, this is what school is like!" a familiar voice exclaimed. I whipped around to find Simba behind me. And he wasn't alone. Sponge Bob came striding up from behind.
"Simba?! SB?!" I yelped. "What are you guys doing here? I didn't mean follow me to school!"
"I wanted to see what school was like!" Simba objected.
I glanced at Spongebob briefly. "And you're here because…?"
"Because I wanted to see what a classroom looked like" SB answered simply." Wow…" he looked at the scenery in awe. SB's gaze swiftly turned to two-second grade kids. To my surprise, SB started walking towards the children. My blood ran cold.
How will they react if they see a cartoon walk up to them in thin air? I thought worriedly. I couldn't let that happen. Taking matters into my own hands I rolled forward clasping Spongebob by the arm with my teeth. Luckily for me, I had a set of strong jaws.
"Ow!" SB wailed. "What'd you do that for?" he protested trying to wiggle free from my grasp. But I wouldn't budge.
"You're not going anywhere!" I said muffled. "Go home!"
"We're not going anywhere!" Simba objected. "We literally had to run and catch up with your bus. Furthermore, we'd also had to avoid the vicious dogs around this place" he shuddered at the last part.
I narrowed my eyes releasing SB to talk. "There are no dogs" I grumbled. Simba sniffed disagreeing.
"Really?" he said dryly. Simba then turned around to show a bare spot on his hindquarters where fur had been torn off by teeth of a dog. I gasped in surprise and SB winced in disgust. The cub licked at the bald spot. "Don't worry it'll heal" Simba reassured. "We're still not leaving though" he added stubbornly placing a paw down. I growled in frustration.
"Fine, fine!" I snapped. "You two can come" the toons jumped up excited. "But…" I warned sharply. "You guys are staying in my backpack. If any of you jump or sneak off or whatever heinous plan you got cooked up in your mind- "I was interrupted by a familiar voice.
"Hey Rudi!" my old friend Treyvian called out walking towards our path. Gulping nervously, I grabbed Simba and Spongebob and stuffed them quickly in my pack. By then Treyvian had caught up with me." Hey Rudi, did you hear about the new show on 'Disney Channel'?" he asked.
"What new show?" I said mildly distracted fidgeting with the zipper.
"'The Suite Life of Zack and Cody'" Treyvian said surprised. "You've never seen it before?"
I shrugged apologetically. "I don't have cable ya know?"
"Oh, right. Sorry" Treyvian muttered. "So anyway," he said changing the subject. "Are you psyched about the new movie coming next month?"
"Madagascar?" I said excitedly.
"Uh…no that's for little kids." He chuckled.
"Oh," I said trying not to feel insulted. "What is it?"
"King Kong. It's coming out next month."
"King Kong? What's that about?" apart from animated movies I didn't know that much about other genres of movies.
"Well, it's about…" Treyvian started but stopped looking in the distance. "Who's that racing across the playground?"
Instinctively I looked in the backpack and gasped. SB and Simba were gone. They must've snuck off while I was talking. I thought panicked. My gaze lifted to find the two characters running off to join some first-graders playing ball. With a yelp of alarm, I dashed off towards the play area. My chair slowed suddenly. Something had occurred to me. A fence was blocking the way! Darn it! Now how the heck was I going to get through? I figured the only solution was to run inside the school through the kindergarten hallway and out the playground. Which is exactly what I did. Bursting through the doors I realized I was too late. SB and Simba were already there talking to a pair of fourth graders. Before I could roll over to see what they were saying someone had grabbed my handlebar.
"Rudi it's time to go to class!" my aid Ms. Lakey said grumpily.
"But I have to get- "I started but got cut off.
"No, you cannot have five minutes. I'm already starting to sweat"
Not giving me a chance to reply Lakey wheeled me back inside. I glanced briefly to see SB and Simba still talking to the fourth graders. Whatever you guys do just please keep out of sight. I begged inwardly.
Ms. Thomas my teacher was discussing fractions or something. I couldn't bother to care. I was huddling in my winter clothes constantly keeping a lookout on the clock. I was hungry and ready for lunch. Secretly though I wanted to be outside again. The teacher still droning on about math I started to fall asleep. Instantly the moment I dozed off something snatched my scarf off. Grumbling crossly at my aid I turned towards the board. I started daydreaming about what my mom would bring for lunch. All in all, it was boring until I heard a soft shriek coming to the hallway. Everybody's heads turned towards the sound. I stared in surprise at what I saw. Two shadowy silhouettes (which looked vaguely familiar) dashed through the hallway so fast before anyone could make out the shapes. Without thinking I rolled quickly out of the classroom.
"Hey Rudi, where are you going?!" My aid called out, but I ignored her.
I dared a glance back. My nurse and aid didn't even attempt to get up from their seats. Classmates just gave off bewildered looks unaware of the situation.
Fine don't follow me too see if I care! I thought bitterly as I rolled out of sight.
"Now let's see if I were a cartoon character where would I go?" I said aloud to myself.
"Do you always talk to yourself?"
I turned to see who had spoken to me. A kindergarten kid with green glasses had gazed up at me curiously.
"Oh s-sorry about that I was looking for someone"
"Who?" The boy pressed. I looked down unsure of what to say.
"Umm-just some friends," I replied quietly.
The boy still stared with that mysterious gaze as if trying to read my mind. Uncomfortable I quickly rolled away before he could ask any more questions. I raced down the hallway and took a quick turn to into the second-grade hall to see if I would have any luck there.
Meanwhile, Simba and SB were at the playground checking it out. SB playfully played with the animal tiles that rotated revealing another animal part. Simba was practicing his hunter's crouch. The target was a butterfly drinking nectar from a daisy. The cub lowered himself to the ground to avoid making the slightest noise. Bunching his shoulders Simba prepared to leap. In the blink of an eye, Simba jumped and landed squarely the butterfly's wing tips caught in his claws.
"Gotcha!" Simba then let the butterfly flutter away. The lion cub stretched letting the sunlight warm his pelt.
"Hey Simba, come check this out!" SB called out.
"Later!" Simba yelled not bothering to get up. SB seemed to have gotten the message as of he didn't reply again. Simba was watching a beetle scuttling across the pavement when a strong gust of wind blew the bug on it's back. Out the corner of his eye was a flash of blue whipping around the gate entrance. A shadow appeared in front of Simba making him look up.
"Sonic what are you doing here?"
"Just running around," Sonic said casually. "I could ask what you and sponge boy over there are doing at Rudi's school."
"Well, I wanted to see what school was like," Simba sat up and started washing. "SB just came with me because he wanted to make some friends"
"I don't know why you bothered coming to a school" Sonic laid down on the gray pavement next to Simba. "It sounds boring if you ask me"
Simba stopped washing at this remark. "You think everything that doesn't involve running is boring,"
Sonic just shrugged not particularly bothered and closed his eyes. "What can I say? I'm a hedgehog of action," He murmured before drifting off to sleep.
Leaving the hedgehog to rest Simba went over to the swing set to see what SB was doing. SB was pushing a little girl on the swings while she giggled happily. "Higher!" She squeaked kicking her little legs up in the air. Simba watched them curiously when he heard a muffled voice coming from behind the third-grade trailers.
"Hey, come on, let me go!"
Surprised by the desperation in the voice Simba ran to confront whoever was in trouble. Passing by the track he rounded to find an 8 yrs. old boy surrounding a trembling figure. As Simba drew closer he was surprised to see that the trembling figure was none other than the Rugrat character Chuckie!
"Please, I'll give you anything, just don't hurt me!" Chuckie started to cry. The boy towered over the infant toon.
"Shut up ya ugly baby! What's wrong with you? Why are you so hideous? Did the people at Nickelodeon draw you while blindfolded?" The boy cackled loudly. Simba had seen enough. Without thinking he sprang forward and faced the bully.
"You leave him alone!" Simba snarled baring his fangs at Chuckie's pursuer. To show how serious he was Simba unsheathed his claws which pricked the ground. The boy, however, wasn't intimidated. Instead, he grabbed the cub's scruff roughly and shook Simba like a rag doll leaving him dizzy. Before he knew what was happening Simba felt himself being flung across and colliding with the wall. Pain shot up through his shoulder as Simba thudded to the ground heavily. Chuckie watched in horror as the lion cub tried to get up. The boy prowled closer to them the way a predator does before catching its prey. Suddenly a much larger figure came up overshadowing the boy.
"Is there a problem here?" The boy whipped around and screamed at the gigantic figure. Chuckie's heart lifted in relief as he recognized the toon.
"Alex!" The boy flustered ran as fast as he came after seeing Alex's fangs. When the bully was out of sight Alex checked on the two smaller toons.
"Are you two alright?" He asked checking to see if there were any bruises.
"Nope we're fine," Simba answered. The lion cub limped a little, but his head held up proudly. "I had it all under control."
"Yeah, I'm sure you did," Alex said with heavy sarcasm. Sometimes this cub could be so cocky!
"What are you and Chuckie doing here? Is it just me or is every toon coming to Rudi's school?" Simba gestured over to Sonic and SB on the other side of the playground. Alex just shrugged.
"Don't know. I was walking in the park when I saw you guys from the path."
"Wait there's a park close to the school?" Simba asked.
"Sure, there is. The path begins at a baseball court which lines up to the playground" Alex gestured towards the wired fence. Chuckie seemed eager to check it out. Simba, however, grew bored with the conversation and left. Alex was about to leave before Chuckie spoke up.
"Uh, Excuse, me Mr. Lion but could you show me the park? I'd like that." Alex hesitated a little before replying. His expression showed a sign of discomfort and unease.
"I think it's better if you went with Simba. He'll watch over you" Before Chuckie could object Alex was already halfway across the wired fence. Sighing disappointingly Chuckie let himself be herded away towards the clearing.
"I give up!" I shouted in frustration. I was in the cafeteria still looking for SB and Simba. I had looked everywhere. The gym, music hall, library, nurse's office, girl's bathroom, boy's bathroom when no adult was watching but still no luck. I was starting to wonder if they decided to go home like I said earlier. Maybe I was just worrying over nothing and probably should head back to class. I rolled in the hallway about to head back to class when a boy running at full speed bumped into my chair and thudded to the ground. I skidded back startled.
"Hey watch it! Whatcha do that for?!" I was beyond annoyed that the boy hadn't even watch where he was going. Come to think of it he seemed kind of frazzled as if he'd been running from something.
"S-sorry," The boy stammered. "I'd tell ya, but I don't think you'd believe me."
Something about his words unsettled me.
"What do you mean?" I asked nervously. The boy stood up and took a quick glance around to make sure we were alone. When the coast was clear he lowered his voice so only I could hear.
"There was this huge cat that came after me,"
"What?!" I jerked up in surprise. The boy quickly shushed me.
"Quiet! I don't want anyone to know!"
Lowering my voice, I said, "Sorry, but what did it look like?"
Something about this huge cat seemed vaguely familiar. When the boy finished his story I quickly realized who he was talking about.
"Alex!" I murmured to myself.
"What?" the boy snapped.
"Nothing," I said hastily. "Thanks for telling me, I'll keep a close eye."
I dashed forward into the fourth-grade hallway to enter the playground. To make sure no one saw I lowered my head to make sure I didn't arouse any suspicion. It was a lame attempt because the ventilator was loud and the wheels on my chair squeaked every time they moved. By the time I got outside the lunch bell had rung which meant it was time for lunch. I rolled quickly back into the building. The toons would have to look after themselves for a while.
Sonic was peacefully sleeping on the pavement when the bell had rung. The sounds of kids running around didn't bother him so much as the need for rescuing people. That job could get tiring after a while. Two kids who were nearby were playing ball when a shadow loomed over them. They looked up to see a giant bubble blocking out the sun. Another interesting thing was the kids noticed something inside the bubble. A small square like figure was inside laughing and gurgling.
"Hey Sam, what do ya think it is?" said the boy. He was completely stunned by what he was seeing.
"I don't know Jason," Samantha said squinting her eyes. "But if I didn't know any better I'd say it was a…cartoon."
"Cartoon?!" Jason exclaimed baffled. "That's ridiculous Sam everyone knows cartoons aren't real. It's probably just a- "
"I beg your pardon kid, but we are real," said a voice that wasn't Samantha's. A strong gust of wind whirled around the students catching them off guard. A figure appeared in front of them which made both kids gape in surprise. There standing in front of them was a cartoon character. And one they recognized very well.
"Oh my gosh, you're Sonic the hedgehog!" Jason exclaimed. The boy started smiling from head to toe.
"And you're actually a…" Samantha started but was in too much shock to finish the sentence.
"A real live breathing cartoon?" Sonic queried. "I'm real alright," Sonic then pointed up to the giant bubble "and that toon up there- "The hedgehog curled up into a spinning blue ball and zipped towards the bubble. As soon as his quills touched the surface the bubble exploded scattering soapy water everywhere. Not to mention a few students got drenched in the process. SpongeBob suddenly realized his giant bubble was gone and his body was just floating in midair.
"Hmmm," SB pondered. "If my bubble is gone then why am I still-" As if on a signal SB plummeted down the ground screaming. The sponge smacked into the hard concrete floor dazed. Sonic appeared beside him along with two kids SB didn't recognize.
"Is SpongeBob Square pants though I hear you kids talk about him a lot," SB heard Sonic talking to the kids. After catching his breath SB sat up straight. "Sonic! Why'd you pop my bubble?" SB whined. "It took me forever to make it-given lung capacity-but still!"
"Forever?" Sonic just rolled his eyes. "Yeah right," SB wouldn't openly admit it but sometimes it felt like Sonic was trying to scold him for not growing up.
"Whoa! That was some impact!" exclaimed Simba strolling up to the group. "What was that?"
SB tried to explain what happened, but the hedgehog got there before him.
"Sponge boy here," He gave the toon an annoyed glance. "Thought it was a great idea to make a gigantic bubble and fly in it"
SB ducked in embarrassment. Simba, however, was impressed.
"How'd you'd do that?" The question took SB off guard.
"Oh, it was easy," SB waved off the subject like it wasn't a big deal. A faint rumbling sound suddenly echoed from Simba.
"Oops," Simba covered his stomach slightly embarrassed. "It's been a while since I ate. Anyone hungry?" The cub licked his chops eagerly.
"I guess I could go inside for something." Sonic reckoned. "How about you SB?"
SB nodded eagerly, and the three toons headed inside.
"Wait for me!" Yelled Chuckie who had just seen the group leaving. He got up and hobbled quickly to rejoin. By the time Chuckie got to the door, they were already gone. The toddler jumped up trying to reach the handle, but he was too small to reach it. Growing tired and frustrated Chuckie slumped down and started bawling loudly. During his sobs, Chuckie glimpsed a group of kids walking in line heading inside. Acting fast he ran over to join them. Chuckie got in between two kids to avoid being seen by the human eye. When the group walked in Chuckie lingered behind letting the others walk by him undetected. Chuckie was in the elective hallway which consists of P.E and economy. Peeking at the two big doors Chuckie walked inside the gym and explored. A group of older kids was playing dodge ball and from the looks of it were getting competitive about the game. Their opponents which Chuckie assumed were another group of smaller kids probably first graders. The little team trembled at the bigger players who towered over them like buildings. At the sound of a whistle by the coach, both teams flung balls at each other. The balls ricocheted off the walls and slammed into students either injuring or knocking them senseless. Chuckie narrowly ducked in time before a stray ball flung itself at him and at the doors instead. The pandemonium unfolding was too much for the Rugrat, so he decided to leave. However, when Chuckie tried to run he slipped on his untied shoelaces and fell to the floor his glasses slipped off. Now seeing doubled and flustered Chuckie scrambled around for his glasses which had disappeared in the cacophony of the big kids. Not thinking straight Chuckie rushed into the game bumping in everyone's path. A high-pitched whistle echoed across the walls.
"All right! Break time!" The coach said.
The players departed to their teams giving Chuckie enough space to see that his glasses were in the middle of the floor. Wobbling slightly the Rugrat picked them up and was finally able to see clear again. A loud gasp made Chuckie spin around to see that the group of older kids had spotted him in the clearing. The Nick toon was caught. Had an adult seen him too? Chuckie looked side to side but saw no grown up. One of the kids a Hispanic boy stepped forward to pick up the toon by the shirt.
"What is this?" He murmured. It was not every day a cartoon character appeared out of nowhere to the boy. "Are you real or just a small person in a Rugrat costume?"
Chuckie struggled to try to free himself from the grasp. But the boy held him firmly. "I'm a real cartoon please don't hurt me!" Chuckie blurted out whimpering. The boy's expression softened a bit that put Chuckie at ease but there was still a mischievous glance. Then without warning the boy tossed Chuckie up in the air like a rubber ball. The Rugrat screamed arms and legs flailing and thudded heavily to the ground. Luckily Chuckie was a toon and couldn't be wounded severely like a real person but that wasn't enough to stop the throbbing impact that came when he collided on the hard-slippery floor. Chuckie looked up to see the older kids laughing at him. How embarrassing this was for the little Rugrat! First, he lost sight of Simba and the others (Who in actuality should have been watching Chuckie!) Second Chuckie just wanted to go to the park and watch the pretty butterflies and third he was starting to feel a little hungry. Could this day get any worse-?
Wait! What was that? Chuckie thought. Out the corner of his eye, Chuckie saw someone leaving the doors open. Thinking quickly Chuckie bolted upward and ran straight ahead. Just as he was exiting the crowd the infant felt something tug his collar on his shirt which yanked Chuckie back.
"Where do you think you're going?" The Hispanic boy said. The student stared menacingly at the trembling toon clutched in his grasp. "You know…" The boy began slowly. "I bet that if I hung on to you for a while you would cost a fortune to be bought…for a price."
Chuckie swallowed hard. He didn't like where this was going. "Or you could just let me go," Chuckie chocked on the last words as he was dangled up in the air again.
"Hey put him down!" A small voice yelped. Out of nowhere a dodgeball whizzed by and smacked Chuckie's tormentor up the nose. The boy dropped the Rugrat as he frantically tried to wipe the blood trickling out of his nostrils.
"Go Chuckie! Find your friends!"
Chuckie glanced back to see that the smaller group of kids had been the ones who threw the ball. Waving goodbye and saying thanks Chuckie ran back out into the hallway. He didn't know where he was heading but one thing Chuckie did know was he had to find the others before the day ended.
"Wow look at this place!" Simba whispered in awe. The toons were hiding underneath a table watching kids take a seat and waiting for food to fall on the floor. The cafeteria was noisy and busy, hundreds of smells made Simba's jaw drool. A stray hotdog had fallen on the floor two inches away. Before the cub could gulp down the tasty morsel Sonic whipped around and grabbed it. Simba's teeth closed on empty air when he realized nothing was there. He spun around to see Sonic gulping the hotdog down.
"Hey, that was mine!" Simba objected.
"You weren't fast enough for it," Sonic retorted.
The cub glared at the hedgehog his claws slowly unsheathing. Before this tension could increase any further SB crawled forward.
"Here Simba," SB held out his hand holding chicken nuggets. "There's enough for both of us,"
"Thanks, SB," Simba said before chowing down the meaty flavor satisfying his hunger.
Up ahead but safe from view the toons could hear kids talking. Sonic caught a glimpse of what they were saying.
"So, did any of you guys hear about Logan?" a kid said.
"Yeah," another said. "Heard he had to go to the nurse's office."
"Why?" the first kid asked.
"He was ranting on and on about cartoons being real or something."
Sonic's right ear twitched briefly. Had he heard right? Had someone seen them when they weren't looking over their shoulders? Sonic was pretty good at keeping himself hidden but for clumsy toons like SB or Simba, there could always be a slip up every now and then. But for now, Sonic didn't let that worry him because unless if there was more than one human who claimed to see a toon then they were in the clear.
"Hey Sonic!" yelped Simba excitedly.
The hedgehog sighed already starting to feel annoyed. What did this bothering cub want now? Couldn't he bug sponge head sometimes instead of him? Sonic opened one eye just a slit to see Simba pounce on a ketchup bottle. The sauce landed on the hedgehog perfectly. SB laughed loudly and gave the cub a high five.
"Who isn't fast now?" Simba sneered.
The hedgehog glowered at Simba. The cub flinched and shrank underneath the fierce gaze and SB stopped laughing and stood ridged. Then to both toon's surprise, Sonic clapped slowly.
"Well played Disney toon," he laughed quietly. "Ya know you two keep surprising me just when I think I've got you." the hedgehog turned his back on the others pausing briefly. Simba and SB glanced at each other suspiciously. Since when did Sonic admit defeat? That hedgehog would fight to the death if you'd let him. Feeling his fur prickle Simba peered closer. It was then the hedgehog spoke suddenly.
"Well…think again!" Sonic whipped around and flung a big milk balloon at his targets. After a giant splash SB and Simba were drenched from head to toe in milk. Sonic rolled on the floor laughing hysterically.
"Not cool man!" Simba spat. The cub shook himself dry scattering droplets and spraying SB. Luckily the sponge was absorbent which means SB could absorb anything wet he came in contact with.
"Barnacles Sonic!" SB exclaimed. "You sure got us…again!" The sponge laughed feeling tickled.
Simba on the other hand (or paw in his case) wasn't amused in the slightest. His fur had fluffed up like a big golden fluffy cloud.
"You think you're so clever, don't you?" Simba snarled.
Sonic was wiping the ketchup off himself still snickering. "I know I'm cleverer than you,"
The snide comment was directed specifically at the cub. SB was making oohing sounds as if to say "Oh no you didn't!"
Bristling with anger Simba leaped forward to pounce on the hedgehog. A few good swipes oughta wipe that smirk off his face! Squeaking furiously Simba almost clawed Sonic before he darted to the other side of the table. The lion cub tried to stop himself but it was too late. Tumbling forward Simba's claws had instead swiped someone's leg. Someone on the outside! A high pitched scream soon filled the air. Simba tried frantically to drag his paw back the jeans the student was wearing the treads got entangled with the claws. Finally, with a massive grunt, Simba wrenched free from the jeans. A piece of cloth snagged on his claws which Simba was able to bite off easily. The cub looked up and gasped. Not only had he pounced perfectly the cub had also managed to do some damage. The kid's leg had long scratches that were slowly starting to bleed. Simba backed away horrified at what he had done.
"Lisa are you okay?" a deep voice said. Simba assumed this was a grown up.
"Something scratched me!" Lisa complained. Immediately the three toons tensed afraid they were about to be discovered.
"Who scratched you?" The man asked.
"Something underneath the table," Lisa whimpered.
The man crouched down to see. Simba's fur spiked up in alarm. They were gonna get caught. Luckily Sonic had a trick up his sleeve.
"What are you smirking about?" Simba snapped.
"Oh…you'll see," There was a sly look in the hedgehog's gaze.
Just as the man was about to peek underneath Sonic grabbed the ketchup bottle from earlier and squirted the man in the eyes. Surprised he banged his head hard on the surface and fell flat on. Sonic grabbed Simba and SB and made a beeline towards the exit. Children gasped and pointed at the runaways. SB heard shocked exclamations and confused jabbering. The toons had hidden behind a few of the plants scattered in the hallway. When the coast was clear Sonic gestured to the others to follow him in the library. As soon as the toons went in and made sure no one was there they slumped against the bookshelves in relief. After they caught their breath Simba sprang up and faced Sonic.
"This is all your fault!" He hissed.
"My fault? How?" The hedgehog towered over the cub.
"If you hadn't been showing off we wouldn't have been caught!"
"Me?" Sonic growled. "I wasn't the one who attacked a little girl and got our cover busted! Maybe you should learn to react faster!"
"Oh yes," Simba said spitefully. "You think you can do everything just because you can run faster than the speed of light!"
Hearing Simba and Sonic spat venom at each other were too much for SB to deal with. Walking away from the argument SB found quiet at a huge desk on the left side of the room. But also, more surprised to find another toon sitting there and reading a coloring book.
"Chuckie?" SB said. The call of his name made the Rugrat look up and spot SB.
"SpongeBob!" Chuckie immediately stumbled to the sponge finally happy to not be alone anymore.
"What are you doing here?" SB asked. Apparently, he wasn't around when the Rugrat had sneaked in.
Chuckie had to explain that he had wanted to go to the park but instead ended up in the playground. When Chuckie finished his story, SB was staring admiringly.
"Wow," SB said. "Sounds like you had an adventure trying to catch up with us."
Chuckie nodded. "Yep and then I founded this library," Chuckie looked left and right as if he was expecting someone else. "SB, where's Simba? He was watching me but I hid from him because he always liked tackling me."
"Oh, he's with Sonic over there," SB pointed to the reading area where the cub and hedgehog were still arguing.
"What are they going on about?"
"Oh nothing," SB seemed eager to change the subject.
It was then a loud bell rang across the library that made all the toons jump.
"What was that?" Chuckie asked nervously.
"I think it was the lunch bell," Sonic said. The time must have flown by.
"So?" Simba grunted. "What does that have to with anything?"
As if by answer the two doors burst open. Teachers and students filled the area. SB grabbed Chuckie and hid under a table with the others. Kids went to the bookshelves picking different genres to read. Teachers talked amongst each other.
"Hey guys," Simba whispered.
"What?" Sonic snapped.
"I see Rudster over there,"
The toons turned their heads to the left and sure enough there I was sitting at a table close to a window reading an animal book. I always liked standing next to a window watching the warm sunlight. Since I lost sight of the toons I'd been wondering what they could have gotten themselves into. I figured they were probably having more fun than me. The only interesting thing that happened to me that day was I had Popeyes for lunch. Little did I know that my figments were just inches away.
"There she is!" Chuckie exclaimed. He crawled hurriedly to the other side but was stopped when Simba grabbed his loose shoelaces.
"Not so fast!" Simba scolded. "We have to make sure no one sees us,"
"But- "Chuckie started but Simba continued.
"When the coast is clear I'll signal my tail like this," The lion cub demonstrated by lifting and forming it into an arc shape. "That will mean you can cross the next until we get to Rudi got it?"
The three toons nodded seriously. Simba was the first to cross to the next table. As soon as he made it to my table Simba signaled with his tail. The remaining toons crawled rapidly to meet their destination. After they made it the toons took a minute before announcing their presence.
"So-uh-how do we get her attention?" SB asked. His question was met with silence. Then Chuckie spoke up.
"Like this," The Rugrat got up and climbed up on my leg and into my lap which caught me off guard.
"Chuckie?" I said surprised.
"Hi, Rudster,"
"W-what are you doing here?"
"Actually," The Rugrat pointed down the table and to my surprise, SB, Simba, and Sonic poked their heads out.
"Sonic you're here too? Who else is underneath there?"
"Uh, no one else," SB answered.
Chuckie stood up and looked at the book in front of me.
"Whatcha reading?"
"I'm reading about meerkats, wanna try?"
Chuckie shook his head. "No thanks I don't know how to read yet"
Simba sprang up and settled on my armrest while Sonic and SB got some seats to sit next to me. Luckily no one ever sat next to me, so I asked the toons what they'd been doing since my absence. Simba went on and on about how he 'fought' the bully tormenting Chuckie from earlier, but Chuckie had a different side to the story. It was actually Alex who just happened to be in the right place at the right time. Sonic hearing this just grunted disapprovingly.
"It's no wonder that kid was able to beat you," he sneered. "If that's the best you can do Simba you might as well stick with butterflies"
Simba glared at the hedgehog icily but to our relief, he just shrugged.
"I'll get better in due time," The cub murmured.
After the figments finished telling me what happened I couldn't help but feel a little jealous. These guys will never realize how lucky they got it. The school will always be a wretched place to me no matter how old I get. As I watched the toons chattering and playing around with the books I didn't feel quite so lonely anymore. When the day had ended my figments hid in my backpack until we got home. Ever since then more toons started coming to my school just to hang out or get into mischief (most of the time it was mischief). Either way school life was starting to get a little magical not just for me but for every kid in Harris Elementary.
The End