Disclaimer: I don't own Kim Possible or any of the characters affiliated with it, or the lyrics to the songs "Goodbye" by Everlife, "Wishes" by Superchic(k), "Big Girls Don't Cry" by Fergie, and "I Gotta Go My Own Way" By Vanessa Hudgens.
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Chapter 7: The Invitation.
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A calm silence had swept on the Seniors' island that morning, and this was a strange event to wake up to for the owner. No banging hammers, no clanging metal, no shouting, and no constant playing of Britina's greatest hits CD over and over. Senior had become accustomed to these noises over the past few days, what with the henchmen being busy with Junior's mysterious plan, the one he had yet to be let in on.
Though he understood that his son wanted to do this by himself (considering the last time he'd tried to be evil), the elder man could not help but wonder what he was up to. Evil plans tend to be a little unorthodox, yes, but what Junior was doing... something just didn't seem right about it.
Senior made his way to the front room, richly decorated in its style, with glass walls and an underwater view, making it possible to watch the various typical fish that swam around the island's surrounding waters. He always liked the front room; it had a particular evilness about it.
Almost as soon as he entered, a henchman came forward as if from nowhere, with a thick rolled up newspaper clutched tightly in his hand.
He panted lightly before speaking. "Mister Senior, today's newspaper."
Senior smiled lightly and took the object from the young man. "Thank you, Ted!"
Ted nodded gratefully before taking off again. At least Junior's father remembered his workers' names
Senior proceeded to his favorite chair, unrolling the newspaper as he went. But before he could sit down, he caught sight of the headline printed on the front in black, bold letters, and read it carefully. His aged eyes suddenly went wider than they seemed able to go.
"JUNIOR!"
As if on cue, the door swished open behind the villain, and in stepped Sr. Senior Junior, now styling his usual yellow pleather shirt and black pants. He was almost in a jovial mood; he jogged across the room, whistling an unfamiliar tone as he went.
Senior was quick to stop his son in his cheerful trek, stepping in front of him and holding up the paper up to his face.
"What is this, Junior?" he asked, his tone demanding.
Clearly confused by his father's actions, Junior wasn't quick to speak, but he already knew the answer to the question.
"That would be a newspaper, father!" he answered brightly.
But instead of the expected praise, all Junior received was a sharp smack in the arm as his father rolled up the paper again and proceeded to hit him with it. The young man yelped and grabbed his face, rubbing the spot tenderly.
"No, Junior," sighed Senior with annoyance as he opened the paper again, "I mean this."
He lifted the paper up again for Junior to see, quickly pointing to the headline on the first page. Printed in big, blocky letter were the words; Kim Possible Thwarted by Millionaire's Son Once Again: SSJ Escapes With 5000 Worth of Electronics from L.A Dance Club.
Junior grinned despite himself, for two reasons. One was that this was his second headline in the past few days, publicizing his victories against the dreaded teen hero. This was the kind of press given to the likes of Dementor or that blue skinned fellow... what was his name again?
Anyway, his second reason was that this newspaper had proved as a reminder of Saturday's events, and how they had led to the last step in his plan, the one of which he finished today.
Whatever evil pondering Junior had left, it was quickly interrupted by his father, who was not done with him just yet.
"Junior, really," stated Senior with worry, "wine bottles? Music? With all you are stealing, I am beginning to wonder if this is really an evil plan."
The young millionaire gasped suddenly, taken aback by the statement. "Father! You doubt me?"
He did doubt Junior. He always doubted his son's aptitude, however little he had, and whenever he saw him beginning a project, Senior couldn't help but concern himself about the true 'evilness' of it all. He loved Junior, but for the life of him, he always wished his progeny would prove to be more… skilled.
But the old man, honorable as he was, would never say this aloud. Senior turned his back to his child, folding the newspaper back up and tucking it into the front of his robe.
"I am just saying, Junior," he said, avoiding the question poised to him. "This plan does not have a particularly evil feel to it. It almost looks like a… date."
At that moment, our main villain went pale. It was a strange contrast to his usually tan skin tone, and looked rather sickening on him. The young man lifted his buffed finger nails to his mouth, biting down on them uncharacteristically, as though his was nervous. Senior was lucky enough to turn around and catch this look in his son's eyes.
He raised a curious eyebrow as he spoke again. "Junior, is there something wrong?"
Now, Junior was, as proven, a terrible liar. No fib could leave his lips without him becoming a nerve-wrecked mess, and this is one reason he has never been good with villainy. He himself wasn't aware of this trait, or the fact that he acted this way, so it made moments when he did lie rather strange.
The young man pulled his fingers from his mouth and began twiddling them unconsciously, his eyes avoiding Senior's as he watched the ceiling. "Of… of course not!"
His father wasn't convinced, and now lifted both eyebrows. "This isn't a date, is it?"
The continuous prying from his father had left Junior in a state of pure nerves; he twisted his mouth about before speaking again. "…You will just have to wait and see like the rest of the world!"
The words came out in a snapping tone, one that he only used when he was trying to get away with lying, and it rather surprised Senior, but he didn't speak again as he watched his son take off toward the nearest exit.
"Now, if you would excuse me, father, I have to put the finishing touches on my plan," stated Junior curtly. He didn't stop as the doors wooshed open in front of him, and he stepped through, disappearing into the hallway as he left his confused father to ponder the new bit of information his son had so stupidly given away.
--
I'm better off…
Just pretending like I never really knew you
I gotta stop…
Holding hands with a memory I'm feeling
The song blared from inside Kim's car stereo, every drum beat and guitar rift rattling the frame of the vehicle, attracting attention from nearby drivers. They stared at the purple coupe with bewildered and pitying expressions, some just watching the melancholy teenager that sat at the steering wheel. She mouthed the lyrics soundlessly, barely moving her lips as she sank deeply into the song's message.
It had been four days since the break up, and Kim felt no better. In fact, she was pretty sure she was worse off since yesterday, when she had been forced to face Ron at school. She wasn't sure what hurt more, that fact that he wouldn't speak with her, or the fact that he pretended to be perfectly fine without her company. From what she had heard, he seemed to have spent the entire weekend catching up on old TV shows, beating his video games, and hanging out with his other friends, the ones he hadn't had as much time for when he was playing sidekick to the teen hero.
Kim's weekend had been more or less the same. She had hung out with Monique, gone shopping, and even watched a little TV, something she usually didn't do by herself. It was all very awkward, probably the most uncomfortable part of this break up, being alone when she did things that had so often been done with Ron at her side, especially crime fighting. It was like getting a whole new look on the world, and no matter what Kim did, she couldn't get used to it.
Can you feel it breaking into pieces underneath?
Someone's gotta say it; it might as well be me
Goodbye… it wasn't right this time… Goodbye
She took a moment to let the chorus sink in before pressing the "next" button on her stereo, hoping to find something less heavy for her mind. It quickly switched to the next song in her car's automated MP3 system.
The saddest thing is you could be anything…
That you could want
We could have been everything
But now we're not
Now it's not anything at all
No, Kim thought. She pressed the button again.
I hope you know, I hope you know
That this has nothing to do with you
It's personal, myself and I
We've got some straightenin' out to do
And I'm gonna miss you like a child misses their blanket
But I've got to get a move on with my life
It's time to be a big girl now
And big girls don't cry
"No," she muttered through clinched teeth, hitting the forward arrow once more.
I gotta say what's on my mind
Cuz' something about us doesn't seem right these days
Life keeps getting in the way
Whenever we try, somehow the plan is always rearranged
Its so hard to say, but I've gotta do what's best for me
You'll be okay...
I've got to move on and be who I am
I just don't belong here; I hope you understand
We might find our place in this world someday…
But at least for now,
I gotta go my own way
She sighed, quickly hitting the "off" button on her stereo. Suddenly, she didn't feel like listening to music anymore.
Maybe she just wasn't giving herself enough time. Break ups always took a little time to get over, she knew from experience. Walter Nelson, Josh Mankey, even Erik, who hadn't been real; she had felt a little pain from each departure….
But those were nothing compared to what she had going on now.
The hardest thing on Kim concerning the break-up was her confusion. She still didn't understand where Ron had come up with his 'cheating' story, and every lead she came up with denied ever fabricating the tale. Junior was her first choice, but he hadn't known a thing about the claims of her former boyfriend, so he was out (Kim was well aware of how bad a liar he was). Her second choice in suspects had come Monday, after cheer practice…
"Hey, Kim."
The words were venomous and snide, giving Kim no reason to turn around to guess who was speaking with her. She finished putting her pom-poms into her duffle bag before turning around with a sneer.
"Not now, Bonnie," she snapped warily. "I'm not in the mood."
But the designated mean girl would not let her target go that easily. "Heard about your break-up with Naco-boy. Tough luck, but I knew you would get sick of him eventually."
The redhead slung the strap of her duffle bag over her shoulder, keeping a tired glare on Bonnie.
"Ron broke up with me," she answered plainly.
Bonnie gave off a mock surprised expression; clearly enjoying every tidbit of juicy information she was being given. 'Whoa, whoa, back up. Are you telling me that the captain of the cheerleading squad, the Kim Possible, was dumped by first class loser, Ron Stoppable?"
Kim tried her best to remain mutual-looking, but it was tough. Her mouth moved into a puckered expression, and she gripped her bag a little too tightly, but she did her best to ignore Bonnie's words, walking toward the gym doors.
Nevertheless, the snide girl pressed on as she watched Kim leave. "Though, it doesn't surprise me, after all, you were cheating on him."
It was a split-second later; Kim's head snapped back around, her teeth clinched tight enough to break, and her green eyes popping with absolute rage.
For once, Bonnie found herself at a loss for words. She bit down on her bottom lip and froze as she watched the redheaded girl charge at her in blind fury.
"You were the one who told him I was dating Junior, you snarky, evil, gossipy, love life-ruining-!"
…
Simply put it, what Kim said next didn't bode well with Bonnie, or Mr. Barkin, or Bonnie's mother for that matter. She was forced to apologize to her long time arch rival, who seemed to accept, but would forever use this event to her advantage. Chances are that by now, she had told everyone how Kim Possible had 'attacked' her in the gym.
Though, to the teen hero's defense, she was under a lot of stress, and Bonnie making such biting comments about the break-up (especially the one about cheating) was no help to Kim's mood
But sadly, her cold rage toward the girl had gotten her no closer to answers. Kim quickly learned that Bonnie had heard about the break-up from fellow cheerleader, Marcella, who had been at the dramatic scene during the fight. She wasn't entirely sure, but the redhead thought she might've seen the girl at Bueno Nacho alongside Hope. Things were still rather blurry from the whole day, and she hadn't been paying much attention to the people who had witnessed the fight.
So, here she was, back to square one, with no boyfriend and no idea why, trying to pick up the pieces of a lifestyle that she had built for two people, now only made to fit one. It was starkly uncomfortable, surprisingly boring, and very, very lonely.
And so far, it had been horrible for Kim.
Still blinded with her misery, Kim was almost robotic as she drove into the school's parking lot, stopped her car at the usual spot, then proceeded to unbuckle herself and grab her backpack from the passenger seat.
As she slipped out of the car and shut the door behind her, the teen hero stopped on the sidewalk, and suddenly noticed a powder blue moped parked next to her car. She sighed heavily. Her usual spot was right next to Ron's scooter.
With her heart weighing more than it should, Kim turned around and began making her way inside the school.
--
Maybe it was the four days he'd had to himself, but Ron was really starting to feel the true effects of his choice to break up with Kim.
It was rather odd, he had to admit, when he took off on his scooter this morning and ended up on the Possibles' street out of habit, as opposed to heading straight for school, or when he waited at his locker two minutes before realizing that Kim wouldn't meet him there.
And even now, sitting in Math Class, he felt very… distant, without his favorite redhead at his side, regardless of her cheating or not. It was like he was missing a piece of his life, though Ron wished he could deny it.
But he could not. Kim had been with him for twelve years and then some, as his best friend and then his girlfriend; to take her out of the equation was not easily done, and Ron had known that.
"Alright, class, turn to page 12," Mr. Barkin's sharp voice snapped Ron from his thoughts and forced him to focus on his studies. Caught under his elbows, he saw that his text book, still closed, as he had not touched it since entering the classroom. Frantically, he cracked it open and flipped to the desired page.
In the front of the class, Barkin began drawing out a complex diorama of math problems onto the chalk board, sending faint, grating squeaks of noise through the students' ears. They were all thankful when he finally pulled away, revealing a mess of numbers and white lines. Most were confused or terrified by the problem.
"Today, we will be reviewing the classic, long division," this statement was met with a few annoyed groans, "but, with a twist!"
Ron sighed. He hated division, particularly the long kind. And he hated it even more when Barkin put 'twists' on it. Math was already twisted; did it really need more of it?
"Now," Barkin continued, pacing back and forth past the chalk board. "Who can tell me the answer to problem A," he pointed to a jumble of numbers on the top corner, "Kim divided by Ron."
Now, of course, this wasn't what Mr. Barkin actually said, nor was this what any of the other students heard, all except for Ron, who froze up suddenly.
The blonde's eyes widened two sizes, and he found himself unable to conjure the words needed to ask his teacher to repeat the question, not that it would've made a difference.
Thankfully, he wasn't the only one in the class at a loss for words. It was apparent that none of his classmates had the answer to the actual question. Barkin waited, then finally sighed and turned back to the chalk board, proceeding to drawing more numbers below the problem.
"To divide Kim by Ron, you simply multiply Kim by Junior, which leads to Kim cheating on Ron for three years, and Ron being a miserable slug because he left his girlfriend over something stated by a villain… yes, Stoppable?" Barkin suddenly stopped when he saw that the former sidekick was holding up a very shaky hand.
Ron spoke in a very raspy tone, his breathing rigid and eyes now freakishly wide. "Mr. B, can I get some air?"
--
Meanwhile, well across Middleton, Team Possible's computer genius was having his own problems.
Since the jewel heist on Friday, Wade had been monitoring the Seniors' island home and any strange activity on it, in case Junior tried to pull something else, or turned his one little heist into a big evil plot. He wasn't sure how one takes over the world with a few expensive odds and ends stolen from the rich, but then, the villains he'd seen Kim face off had been capable of making doomsday machines from an old vacuum cleaner, a few rubber bands, and some chewing gum, so Wade took no chances.
So far though, things had been very quiet that Monday. He hadn't heard a peep from Junior or his henchmen within the last day or so, nothing since the double robbery. It was rather odd, but not out of the ordinary for villains, they usually took breaks like this to throw off the heroes and give themselves time to finish their plans. They would appear a few days to a week later, when they thought it would be too late.
But then, most of them forgot about Wade.
The weekend had dragged on boringly for him as well, reviewing his hidden cameras and various scanners that he had set on the island. He picked up on a lot of hammering sounds, even the playing of Britina songs from her album, Oh… My Bad, but neither was off base for Junior.
And it went on like this, from Saturday into late Monday.
Wade had almost given up on getting anywhere with the case anytime soon, when Tuesday rolled in.
The first sign was on his hidden camera set up by the island's launch pad. At first it seemed like just another tropical bird to his tired eyes, but then he did a double take, and saw that it was Junior, promptly followed by one of his loyal henchmen. They stopped in front of the family's black helicopter, traded a few words, then the young millionaire proceeded to hand a light green envelop to his henchmen. The man nodded, then jumped into the open cockpit of the chopper, and started the machine up.
Very soon, the henchmen had flown out over the water and disappeared into the horizon. Junior watched him until he was out of sight, then smiled in satisfaction, and headed back into the house.
Now shaken from all boredom, Wade proceeded into a frenzy of typing, determined to track the whereabouts of the helicopter, the henchmen, and the mysterious package he had.
He worked well past the morning, and even into the afternoon, sweat beading down his forehead and fingers becoming sore with every key he punched. But he refused to give up, persuaded by curiosity and the welcoming light that there was a way to bring this annoying mission to an absolute close.
Finally, after many hours of endless work, Wade managed to get past the chopper's cloaking device and located its exact destination.
Sitting back and resting his fingers, he examined the coordinates displaying on the nearest screen. He was forced to do another double take, as the information seemed so unlikely. But there it was... strange as it seemed. And if that meant what he thought it meant...
"Better tell Kim. This is epic!"
Wade was already in the process of connecting with the Kimmunicator before he could finish his sentence, silently praying that the teen hero wasn't in class right now.
--
As it turned out, Kim was on her way to class at that moment, having just finished a quiet lunch, half-spent watching Ron from the other side of the cafeteria as he chatted with Ron Reger about a future where everyone lived underwater and owned robots. She swore she could've laughed at the fact that her Ron was only half-interested in everything Reger was saying, but knowing she couldn't share the awkwardness ultimately killed her sense of humor.
Monique quickly tagged along behind her best friend, carefully condoning to the silence until the redhead set out to break it. She had noticed just how badly Kim and Ron were doing since Saturday; how miserable her gal pal was without her ex, and how desperate the ex had become to distract himself from falling victim to the same misery.
While the whole thing was rather messy, Monique could understand why neither wanted to end this torrent of sadness.
Ron, stubborn as ever, refused to even listen to a voice of reason about his claims, as he still believed that Kim was a cheater. And Kim certainly wasn't willing to kiss and make up until he apologized for his ridiculous accusations.
And so far, it seemed that no one wanted to compromise on this either.
So, as it stood, the teen hero and her former sidekick were stuck in a rut, one of which neither were working to get out of, both too busy drudging through their pains to try.
And frankly, Monique was becoming more than a little sick of it. Now she was getting bummed simply because of hanging out with a very saddened Kim Possible all the time, and it really wasn't good for her complexion, and more importantly, her performance at work, which was beginning to slip due to her concerns over her best friend. And as much as Monique cared for her girl and felt her pain, she needed her job more. Somehow, she had to get these two to get past this stupid argument and go back to normal, so she could go on with things as well.
She was about suggest something to Kim that would hopefully convince her to go back and forgive Ron, when suddenly and unexpectedly, the Kimmunicator went off from Kim's wrist, snapping both girls from their thoughts. The redhead turned all business again, but even then, her unhappiness was reflected on her expression. When Wade saw her, he tried his best to ignore the uncomfortable weakness in her eyes.
"Wade," Kim started, clearly surprised. "You haven't called me since this weekend. What up?"
The thirteen-year-old was checking another monitor as he spoke. "Major break in the case, Kim! Junior's been quiet these past few days, but about an hour ago, he sent one of his henchmen out with a message, a hand-written letter, in fact!"
"Who sends letters anymore?" Monique asked rhetorically, amusement in her voice.
"Junior does, so it seems," continued Wade, now turned toward the front screen and typing against his keyboard, "and you will never guess where he had it sent…"
At this, Wade finished on his keyboard and a map appeared and took up the Kimmunicator's screen. It was small, but even if it had been otherwise, all Monique would've seen was a jumble of blue with red lines on top.
But Kim could see what it really was, and the result almost shocked her.
"But why would Junior send anything over there?" Kim quietly asked, attempting to make sense of the new information.
The computer genius shrugged, but right, both girls could see the sarcasm in the motion. He knew the answer.
"No clue," he stated, and then broke into a sly smile, "but according to my hidden cameras, the letter was addressed to "the love of his life"."
At this, all the puzzle pieces came together for our teen hero. Everything made sense… well, almost, but it was more of a lead than she could ever hope for. She gasped lightly and smiled in a way she hadn't done honestly in days.
"So, you think-"
"It would explain everything that's happened." Wade interrupted her, still grinning, as he was glad to see Kim in better spirits already.
"Ah, Wade, you're the best!" exclaimed the teen hero, grinning ear to ear now.
"No big, Kim," he said, shrugging modestly. He moved his line of vision to another screen quickly. "Now, I have a ride set up for Seniors' island, and it should pull up outside the school in about fifteen minutes tops. If my information is right, we will be able to catch Junior without a problem."
Kim nodded in agreement, letting this new development swirl around in her mind. Junior was either leading them on, or had just made a big mistake in this plan of his. And if it was the latter, she could very well salvage her relationship with Ron, as well as stop the bad guys.
Quickly, the redhead's mind was brought back down to Earth as she remembered that Wade was still on the line. She hurried to answer him, still a little frantic from the news.
"Good! I'll inform Mr. Barkin I'll have to skip, and get my mission outfit. Now more than ever, Wade, you rock!"
Wade shrugged again, leaning back in his chair with his arms placed behind his head. "All I can do is try. Good luck, Kim!"
Monique didn't even have time to see the Kimmunicator screen go dark as her best friend took off down the hall with a happy skip in her step.
She stood, dumbfounded and confused, very unsure what to make of all that had just unfolded before her.
I really gotta start expanding my circle of friends, less weird friends, she thought jadedly before following after Kim slowly.
--
So, what did Wade learn about Junior's plan? What does it mean to Kim? Where will Ron and Monique be during all this? And most of all, who is the mystery girl? All will be revealed in the final chapter of Ron Droppable!
Doesn't it just leave you on the edge of your seat?
Also, those of you that use iTunes can find Ron Droppable's iMix/soundtrack on there. I set it up just yesterday!
Thanks to reviewers CajunBear73, KittyKax, kaiokken, Kwebs, Darth Comrade, Ace Ian Combat, AryaMage Fire, Samurai Crunchbird, and Cody McArthur Fett for reviewing chapter 6!
Next chapter: Soul Set Ablaze.