And now, here we go with the next episode! Now, some of you may have noticed I debunked the 'Racing Mule' episode, mainly because Olga was here and the vote went into a bit of a majority to not waste money on one horse... now, while this episode's context doesn't happen within my version of the continuity, I'm sure the mule will be fine... maybe? Anyway, let's not talk about the whereabouts of the mule right now! We still have an arc to proceed with, and this episode! Well, anyway, enjoy!
Pretty soon, I looked at everything I could muster up for the garage sale as I looked at a shirt. "Say, Helga, you think I can get six grand with this?"
"More like two dollars." I heard Helga say in my mind.
I shrugged. "Well, it's a start..."
"Oh Rhonda..."
I yelped as I turned to see Olga giving a warm smile before noticing I was gathering stuff. "What are you doing?"
"Oh, well, I just thought I'd throw in my contribution to the garage sale." I explained as I laid down the stuff.
"You do know you're giving away EVERYTHING, right?" Olga said, looking down.
I paused as I looked down. "Oh, sorry... I guess I just wanted to help us out of our financial trouble..." I then muttered, "...preferably by late afternoon."
Olga giggled as she picked up some of the things I laid aside and said, "Don't be silly, Rhonda. We're not in financial trouble."
"Yes-we-are."
"What?" Olga asked as she turned to me in confusion.
"Uh, nothing." I paused as Olga nodded.
"Well, I'll just tag these and I'll put them up for you." Olga said as I picked up some of the stuff I laid out and put it back on my bed.
"Thanks, Olga." I said as Olga went out with some of the stuff.
I sighed as I laid down... noticing a certain diary and screwdriver that I just happened to lay out. Maybe I should...
I decided to distract myself momentarily to finally remove the staples from the diary... I picked up the diary and opened it to the staples as I carefully removed the next staple in line. Ah ha... there we go...
It was enough to loosen something as it slid out from the pages and fell right on the bed. I looked closely at the object... it seemed to be heart shaped and gold... I was about to pick it up to examine it... when I heard some footsteps coming from nearby. I put the object, the diary and screwdriver back in my backpack... I made a note to look at the gold, heart-shaped object later. I paused nervously as I smiled.
"Oh, Rhonda?" Olga peeked inside as I sighed in relief. "Just wanted to tell you that we're going to be setting up the banquet for Arnold's grandparents while the garage sale is happening."
"Oh, okay. That's cool." I nodded. "Thanks, Olga."
Olga nodded as she ducked out.
"Helga, does Olga get mad?" I asked Helga.
"Never seen her angry before, but I don't bother trying." Helga explained to me. "I mean, the only emotions I know of my Olga are happiness, due to how perfect and so much of a suck-up she is, and sadness, that's only if one thing goes wrong, like a bad grade. I have never once seen anger coming from her."
"Sheesh, I hate to see her angry side..." I said nervously.
"Please just tell the truth, you are wasting your time!" Helga growled.
"I could do that... OR..." I smiled, getting an idea.
"ENOUGH WITH THE 'ORS'! EITHER YOU WORK WITH ME OR... you're still going through with whatever crazy idea you have, are you?" Helga sighed in defeat as I was going downstairs to see what was up with the tags. Downstairs, I noticed Arnold was just finished with tagging all the items. As soon as he left, I pulled out a pen and started to get to work as quickly as I could.
"I can't believe you changed the prices of everything without anybody noticing." Helga said as I was peeking out the kitchen window to see the garage sale set up as people were looking around at the items.
"Yeah... it's a genius idea!" I said to her, figuring that it would be safe to just talk to myself out loud. "All I have to do is see if there are any..."
"Rhonda, nobody is going to buy a used lamp for a thousand dollars." Helga sighed. "OR try to buy eight hundred dollar screwdrivers."
"Well, it has been an hour... I'm sure..." I paused as I looked outside to see Phoebe and Nadine looking at some of the items... before examining one of the items. "Oh no! My friends are looking at the price tag."
I saw Nadine and Phoebe with unamused looks before I watched them go up to a concerned Arnold and Olga, along with a few others sitting down as they started to talk. After a moment, Arnold got up and examined the price tag on one of the items in stock.
"Aw man, he noticed!" I yelped as I ducked under the couch.
"Just come out with it already!" Helga yelled as I started shaking from behind the couch.
A few minutes later, I heard the door opening and closing as I heard two people walking in.
"Rhonda!" I heard Arnold's voice.
"Rhonda?" Olga's voice called, in a not amused voice.
I yelped... as I decided to just heed Helga's advice. "Behind the couch."
Sure enough, Olga and Arnold's heads peered from above the couch as Arnold asked, "What are you doing behind the couch?"
"Shaking nervously." I said.
Olga sighed as she reached for me. "Get out from behind the couch, Rhonda. We know what you did."
"You do?" I said as I got out from behind the couch.
"Yes. Just tell us why you did it." Arnold rolled his eyes.
"I was just trying to get a little money... maybe six grand." I smiled nervously.
"Now why on earth would you want six grand?" Olga asked.
"I was trying to pay off Sharlene's bookie." I explained.
"What bookie?" Arnold raised an eyebrow in confusion as Olga gasped and covered her mouth.
It was then we heard the doorbell ring. I sighed. "THAT bookie."
Olga groaned. "Rhonda... we will be talking about this later..."
"Okay, what does a bookie have to do with our garage sale?" Arnold asked in confusion.
"Arnold, do I have to fill in ALL the blanks!" I sighed as Olga was about to answer the door. "No, Olga, please, don't answer the door!"
"Sweetheart, let me talk to the guy at the door!" Olga sighed as she walked off. "Maybe Sharlene's bookie has the answer."
Arnold decided to follow as I sighed as I peered my head through the door to see Arnold and Olga answering the door. "Welp, I lived a good life."
Olga answered the door to see a brown haired man with blue highlights on his hair, with a white shirt, black jeans and a small cane. "Miss Olga Pataki. Good to meet you in person. You know Sharlene, I'm her bookie, Choco, but just call me Mr. Little."
"Mr. Little?" Olga raised an eyebrow.
"Oh yes... you know, you sound different over the phone. You got a cold?" Mr. Little asked.
Olga shook her head. "No, I don't believe so..."
"Well, if you do, I would recommend trying this Theraflu. You have to mix it in water, but it works wonders, anyway... I'll just get right to the chase. You got the money?" Mr. Little said seriously.
Olga yelped. "What money?"
"Don't dick around with me, Olga, just give me the six grand and we'll call it even." Mr. Little explained.
"Wait... you think Olga made a bet with you, and now she owes you..." Arnold was glaring at me as I winced. "SIX THOUSAND DOLLARS?"
"That's what I said, kid." Mr. Little said as Olga was yelping in worry. "Come on, give me the money!"
"But Mr. Little, I don't have six thousand dollars!" Olga said in worry.
"Oh, you'll find it!" Mr. Little laughed. "Because if you don't find it... well." Mr. Little took a vase from the table. "Let's just keep it..." He let it go and broke it, making Olga yelp. "...hypothetical."
As Mr. Little left the house, I was already writing a will down. "I, Rhonda Lloyd, being of sound, mind and body, do hereby..."
"RHONDA!" Arnold and Olga both yelled as I looked up. I looked up to see an angry face on Arnold and a very disappointed face on Olga.
"Rhonda, I can't believe you used not only my name for gambling, but now you got me in a heaping load of trouble, little missy!" Olga frowned.
I looked down in guilt. Olga sighed. "I'm sorry, Rhonda, but... I just can't believe you would stoop that low to do something, but why would you do it?"
It was then that Mr. Hyunh, Mr. Potts and the Kokoshkas came in as Mr. Potts said, "Okay, we relabeled everything. Who changed the prices?"
"We rounded up the guilty party." Arnold said, pointing to me.
"Wow... I can't believe it... I expect this sort of behavior coming from... OSKAR..." Mrs. Kokoshka glared as Mr. Kokoshka smiled nervously. "...but I'm surprised at you, Rhonda."
"I'm sorry... you see, I overheard you guys talking about horse racing last week, and..." I started to explain.
"Oh yeah, the one where we had no say!" Mr. Potts frowned. "I still say it would have worked out."
"...and Olga mentioned Sharlene's bookie... I wanted to raise money using Olga's name, but in the end, I screwed up, and now we're going to be killed by a mob!" I said in worry.
It was then Arnold's grandparents came in as Arnold's grandfather asked, "What's everybody doing in here?"
"Yelling at Rhonda." Arnold frowned.
"Oh, what did she do this time?" Arnold's grandmother asked.
"Well, she lost SIX THOUSAND DOLLARS in a gambling debt using my name, and now I owe Sharlene's bookie money!" Olga frowned... then sighed. "It's sort of our fault, Susan."
"Us?" Mrs. Kokoshka said in confusion.
"Well, us AND the boys. We're the ones who even mentioned gambling in the first place... we didn't know a little kid would be listening in... I knew how ideas go into Rhonda's head and never leaves them... and yet we were indirectly responsible for Rhonda's urges!" Olga explained as she kneeled down to me. "Sweetheart, I should be mad at you, in fact, I am, but I'm not. I'm just confused. Why would you do this?"
"I'm sorry, Olga. I was just trying to help the family..." I explained.
"By putting someone in debt?" Arnold glared.
"No, I just wanted to save the boarding house. How did you guys intend to make that balloon payment?" I said.
"What? THAT?" Arnold's grandfather laughed. "Little girl, you are so confused! We put aside money for the balloon payment a long time ago!"
"You did?" I said in confusion.
"Yeah." Arnold's grandfather laughed. "I may be old, but I still have my brain intact, don't I?"
Arnold sighed. "Rhonda, I told you not to worry about the balloon payment, and what do you do? You worry about it. You were fixing a problem that didn't need fixing!"
"Oh..." I looked down. "I'm sorry..."
Olga sighed as she said, "Fortunately, I think I know a way out of the debt, but I'm going to have to call my dad to do it."
"Is your father rich?" Arnold asked out of pure curiosity.
"No, but he does own a big beeper emporium. He's a rough, but fair businessman, I'm sure I can talk to him about a certain debt." Olga smiled as she pulled out a cell phone. "Rhonda, we will be talking more about this later. Just... go to your room."
I nodded as I walked upstairs.
A little later, up in the room, I was laying down on the bed, for who knows how long... maybe an hour or so. It was then I heard the door opening.
"Hey, Rhonda?"
I looked up to see a concerned Olga coming over to me. I sighed as I looked down. "Did the gambling debt get paid off?"
"It took a moment, but I did manage to convince Dad to make a check for six grand to Choco Little." Olga explained. "Listen, Rhonda, I know you were trying to do what was right, but you have to understand that even an action has a consequence."
"I know..." I sighed.
"Please, Rhonda, I'm trying to help you..." Olga sighed. "Don't bar me out."
I sighed as I turned to her, eyes locked in contact with each other's. Olga sighed as she said, "Listen to me, Rhonda. What you did today, maybe for the past week, was wrong. Now I know you intended to do the right thing, but you're doing the wrong thing for the right reason. Actually... I wish I had your spunk when I was younger."
I looked up. "Oh?"
"Yeah... I wish I had the trouble-making attitude most kids obtain... I mean, it helps that I was friends with one of those... and even though I participated in a few activities with Sharlene... it just didn't feel the same to me. I guess it helps that... well... I'm a parent now and I have to keep my eye on you. Knowing what I have to go through with you... I'm glad I'm raising you, Rhonda. It gives me a void in life that needed filling." Olga said as she hugged me tightly. "I love you so much, Rhonda."
I said nothing, but I did hug her back as I said, "Arnold?"
"Hm? Oh, he's a little upset that you worried over nothing, but he'll get over it. In fact... I think I heard him muttering something about wanting a small kiss from you..." Olga giggled as she got up. "Anyway, I need to help set up for Arnold's grandparents' anniversary. If you want to help, we'll be in the kitchen area."
I nodded as I said, "Okay, Olga."
Olga kissed me on the forehead as she walked out of the room. I sighed in immediate relief as I laid my head back down. At least everyone wasn't too mad at me... at least...
I paused as I decided to examine the object that fell out of the diary once more, opening up the backpack. I picked up the golden, heart shaped object as I examined it from the back. I then turned it around...
...to see a picture of Arnold's nine year old self right on the other side.
There's episode one hundred and fifty-five! How was it? Bet you're all probably guessing and or trying to figure this out, now, huh? Well, here's where it starts to get interesting! Anyway, read, review, criticize and suggest, folks!