Tales of The Awkward: Embarrassment Central--TWO!
Barbecue Tongs!
"Bonnie... umph! Where the heck are you taking me?" A slightly peeved... well, particularly peeved Ron Stoppable asked the brunette in question. The blond boy struggled to release himself from the girl's grip and found it to be quite impossible. Either Bonnie was more physically fit than she had previously let on, or despite that one week of training from Kim, he was a far cry from a respectable level of physical prowess. In short, he was nearly sixteen, and a girl who had to be several pounds lighter than he happened to be dragging him around like a sack of beans. Embarrassing, much?
Forget embarrassing. It was maddening. In less than an hour's time ago, there he was on the cusp, the very cusp, of being proactive and letting his actions speak for him in dealing with Kim. Sure, his heart was punching a gaping hole through his chest, his palms grew sweaty and it took the effort of seven Stoppables (Jon, Don, Dom, Tom, Lon, Sean and Archibald) to struggle into uttering a complete sentence while he held the girl's hand, but worth it? Definitely it was. On the inside, it may have felt like he was going to implode, but at least he was a bit more direct about how he felt.
And if his anxiety-ridden eyes weren't deceiving him, Kim didn't seem to have any problem with it. Which was great... until certain interlopers reared their ugly heads.
To be fair, Bonnie was just about the furthest thing from ugly, but you get the idea. Speaking of whom, she still didn't answer his question as the brunette continued to trudge him along. By some temptation of fate, Bonnie had to have the same class as he did after lunch. So, after she dragged him away from Kim, here she was now, dragging him away to wherever... with a gaggle of onlookers watching them pass by, regardless of the fact that he was moments away from being late to class… again.
"Bonnie!" He cried. At long last, he untangled himself from the cheerleader's Kung-Fu grip. She appeared to be surprised when he broke away from her grasp. He darted away from her when she tried to reach for his hand again. "W-what..." He pulled away from another attempt of the brunette to grab his hand. "...are you doing? Bonnie? Why are you doing this?"
Bonnie looked at him as if he had been hit with a shillelagh of craziness. "Are you kidding me?" She asked him. "Do you even know the ramifications of what Possible did? That girl is a psycho! Haven't you been hearing what people have been saying about her?"
He scooted away from her again. "Who cares about what people have been saying about her?" Ron countered. "Kim is my best friend, and I don't care what anyone says about her!" He declared. "And, now since it's all out in the open, why is it your business to know about what Kim did?"
It was the second time that he asked that question to her... and the brunette really wasn't in favor of how Ron was talking to her. It was as if he was talking to her like he was equal to her—Perish that thought.
"So, you think it's just fine what she did?" Bonnie challenged again. "And you just forgive her just like that? So, you'll just forgive her when she tries to pull this again?" She added more before Ron could respond. "Because you do know she'll do it again..."
Now, it was very rare occurrence when Ron Stoppable lost his temper. But, it looked as if this was shaping up to be one of those times.
Occurrences by which Ron Stoppable would lose his temper:
1. A fight to the death with arch-rival Monkey Fist; It's arch-rivalry... it's justified.
2. When assorted villains forget his name; Justified, especially when his name is but three syllables long. Come on! Ron stop'puh'bul... Why is that so (bleep)ing hard to remember?
3. When a Lil' Wayne song plays on the radio. Definitely justified.
4. When folks constantly down his best chum, K.P.
"I got a better question, why does all this matter to you?" Ron wasn't just going to stand there comply with Bonnie's demands for an answer until he got one of his questions answered, and not floated over.
"Why does it matter to me?" She repeated the question. "Oh, I don't know. Does the name 'Tara' mean anything to you?"
Oh! Darn, Ron thought. He had completely forgotten about Tara. Now, if he remembered correctly, Tara was the one with blonde hair... right? Now, while he did go out with her the other day, nothing was set in stone, so why exactly did Bonnie bring her into the mix?
"If you didn't notice, Tara is a friend of mine... and for whatever reason, she likes you a LOT," the acidic brunette said.
"Yeah, but, what does she--"
"She saw you two in the hall on Monday. She was heartbroken." Bluish-green eyes welded a hole through his being. That, he did not expect to happen... what was she doing snooping around the halls anyway? He tried to think of why and at that very moment he was shot in the lower abdomen with guilt bullets; hollow-tip style.
"You think about that, because it's your fault, Stoppable." On one heel, Bonnie left his sight and disappeared into the school's many corridors.
Ron nearly felt sick to his stomach. In all of his haste to rush off and spill to Kim, he had completely forgotten about Tara. As uncoordinated and ignorant as Ron was to the ways of the opposite sex, even he knew that the blonde cheerleader had liked him... a lot. Now the young man was as conflicted as ever.
How was he supposed to know that he would turn into a pimp-tastic playa so quickly?
He wanted to tell Tara that he was sorry if she felt that he was leading her on, then again, he also wanted, and rather badly, to let Kim know a few things about that night. Well, whatever he did... he had to do it soon... because he was seventeen minutes late for class as it was.
Kim Possible was down. Very down. Very down and uncertain to be exact. It had been two periods since she had last saw Ron, and heck, she kind of missed him already. She had a multitude of thoughts before and after Bonnie dragged the boy away from her, most notably, if she should kill the brunette cheerleader with fire... or decompose the body with acid. Who knew what type of scandalous, vile ideas that Bonnie was putting in Ron's head this very moment. After all, Ron was very impressionable young man. To add fuel to the tire fire, the silly rumors and gossip continued to swirl around her, and naturally, she was within earshot of every last one of them.
Kim buried her head on the desk. Boy, as if she couldn't regret what she did that night any more than she did the last few days. Now, it was like she was subjected to extra punishment. On top of the Liz Smith-ian gossip that continued to corrode at her psyche, but the possibility of compromising what she had with Ron. While not openly distraught to the point of the redhead biting her own fingernails, it was a struggle to concentrate on anything pertaining to school work.
Fortunately for Kim, it was still September; otherwise by the end of October, her grades would take a serious nosedive.
You know, like a B or (perish the thought) a B-minus.
"Daydreaming again, Possible?" Mr. Secant, resident Trigonometry teacher of admirable talent asked the embattled redhead. Kim stirred, and then stared toward the sky, as if it had already fallen upon her.
"Better than her stalking again, Mister S.," A random student quipped. Most of the class chuckled... well, maybe not Kim, but if she had more of a sense of humor, she'd laugh too.
"OK, class! Settle down!" Mr. Secant calmly warmed. Eventually the class quieted down, and the guy who told the joke got a few random high-fives. As for Kim, she was lower than when she was five minutes ago. She returned to her previous position with her chin on the desk. Mr. Secant didn't bother to reprimand her and he just continued with today's lesson. She cursed the day she decided to go off and stalk after her best friend and his date in a jealous rage. All of this drama could have been avoided if she decided to just take a load off that day... but, no... She was the one faced with a load of crazy nonsense, all because she spied...
What else was there but to sing the blues?
Kim Possible Performs the Smash-Hit Single "Because I Spied"
I was just a normal girl, until I spied (Ooh, ooh)
I could do anything in the world, until I spied (Lah, da-da)
Now I'm labeled a stalker, and I know why (Why, Kim?)
Because I spied, because I spied, because I spied
I could've had a B.F., until I spied
I would've put hickies on his neck, until I spied
Now I'm oh-so lonely, and I know why (Why, Kim?)
Because I spied, because I spied, because I spied
La-da-da-da-da-dah!
I got kicked off the cheer team, because I spied
They said the jealousy turned my eyes green, because I spied ("I've always had green eyes!")
Now I'm stuck in the house, and I know why (Why, Kim?)
Because I spied, because I spied, because I spied
La-da-da-da-da-dah!
I ruined my entire rep, because I spied
Now I'm watched with every step, because I spied
Now I'm below the chess club, and I know why (Why, Kim?)
Because I spied, because I spied, because I spied!
La-da-da-da-da-dah!
I lost my shot at romance, because I spied
I gave up my only chance, because I spied
So if you see me dating Shego, you'll know why (Why, Kim?)
Yeah-heh, because I spied, because I spied, because I spied
La-da-da-da-da-dah!
When the afternoon bell gave out a ring, it seemed as if all of the students of Middleton High rushed out of the classrooms and scurried out of the building like an important venture were just mere moments from now. Well, maybe not for Kim. The only reason she was glad the day was over was he fact she wasn't going to hear much in the way of heckles and childish quips. Not for another eighteen hours though.
Still, the Bataan Death March of her psyche didn't stop when the final bell rung, for this day was the first day of cheer practice. Forget the fact that Kim had little to cheer about, she was going to see more of Bonnie, and her urge to kill said cheerleader was already at Code Orange, and if she continued it would no doubt go higher. Heck, by now, the little witch probably spilled the big news to her cheer-mates.
She could just imagine the serious stink-eye that she would get from the rest of the girls... and Tara.
Then again, maybe it wasn't worth all of the trouble.
Kim glanced at the cheerleader uniform in her locker. Perhaps it'd be just better for her to sit out the rest of the day... heck, maybe the rest of the week. The exit was just a few meters away to the right of her and the locker room was directly to the left. Like a certain Mary J. Blige album, Kim didn't want anymore drama today. Thus, the logical way to go would be to the right.
Right?
Oy, he was late again.
What was the word 'late' spelled backwards? Ah, yes. Etal.
As Ron Stoppable hauled copious amounts of butt to change into his uniform. He had enough responsibilities of being a high school junior, on top of being a world-defending crusader's... sidekick, but sometimes he felt that while the cheerleading mascot gig was great, he would gladly trade it in for a couple of precious hours of downtime.
Downtime would be nice... but, then he thought of the girls.
And then the cheer uniforms, which consisted of short skirts and exposed midriffs; which were followed by the pom-poms.
And then, the thought of Kim in that short skirt, with her midriff exposed... and those pom-poms
DIIIIIIIING! Twenty seconds of thought equals forty minutes of spontaneous reinvigoration! Let's see Red Bull do that! Ron dashed toward the gymnasium. He got there so quickly that to an bystander, it looked like the young blond of about sixteen had wiiiiiings.
But, no, it wasn't wings. It was just the return of less-than-wholesome pubescent thoughts. Not many people took notice of him as he took his usual position on the bleacher seats. A few minutes passed as Ron sat there. He wondered where Kim was at. She was almost never late.
He turned his attention away from watching the seven cheerleaders as they polished their new routines for the new school year. Where was she? He got up from his seat and walked toward the main exit.
"Hang on, take five girls," Bonnie, the squad's interim-acting captain, said before she took off. Moments later, before Ron could pull the door open, the brunette got in between him and his search, slamming the door.
"Where do you think you're going?" She asked Ron. Ugh, did Ron have to answer to this girl all the time? Seeing as how two women to answer to was more than enough.
"I'm trying to figure out where Kim went to. She's usually never late like this," Ron answered as politely as he could. "Now, if you'll excuse..."
"Who cares where she went? We have a routine to finish and we need you here!" She barked. Ron didn't relent.
"Since when do need me to finish practice?" He asked. The boy's patience with her was long over from hours of her annoyance.
"Since now!" Bonnie pressured, now physically placing herself between him and the door. "I'll tell you now, Stoppable. You leave out of here and you will regret it!"
"Right," he replied quietly. He turned away for a moment. Seriously, what foolish thing did he, Ron Stoppable, ever regret in his life? Well, other than telling that delectable red-haired girl how he might have felt a long time ago? Yeah, that was probably the only thing… that, and the fact that he saw Hancock.
Hancock. Most definitely regrettable without a shadow of a doubt.
He turned toward the door and Bonnie, who was still blocking it. As gently as he could, he jerked the tanned girl away from door, much to the cheerleader's surprise. As he ventured out into the empty halls, he almost chuckled in spite of the situation. Imagine him choosing between a room full of teenage girls wearing next to nothing, jumping and gyrating all about the place and his best friend.
…definitely the right decision!
It was Kim, for crying out loud! He couldn't just give her up… or let her down. And he most assuredly wasn't going to run around and desert her!
(Wait, did Tales of The Awkward just get Rick-Roll'd?)
"Who does he think he is?" A peeved Bonnie asked to anyone who would listen. She didn't expect Ron to do what he did. Everyone is supposed to listen to her, darn it!
"Grrr, come on, girls. Let's finish up." She told the rest of the cheerleaders. While no one really had a complete answer for the question that Bonnie posed, Tara had an idea. Ron didn't care who Bonnie was or what she stood for... the only thing he cared about was Kim... even after all she did. And if he could forgive that girl so readily, so could she.
Ron was still a quite guy, Tara thought with a wistful sigh. It was just a shame that she couldn't make him hers. But if they ever fell through... look out.
OK, if Ron was going to find where Kim disappeared to, he had to stock up on some serious snackage first. No use conducting a search on an empty stomach. Luckily for him, his favorite fast food shack was a block or two away. One he stepped foot inside good Bueno Nacho, he inhaled the sweet smell of fried meat and flat bread being cooked up just for him. Yes! Just for him!
He strolled on up to the cashier, ready to order his usual; Chimmerito & A Naco; 955 calories worth of pure bliss. After he ordered, he scanned across the small shack of a restaurant, he noticed a figure sitting in a booth that was usually reserved to himself and Kim. Well... it didn't have their names weren't on the booth so to speak, but they always sat there. He took his tray full of eats along with him to the occupied booth... or at least close enough to it so he could see who was there. Heck, maybe it was someone he didn't expect.
And it was... "Kim?" He nearly gasped at the sight of the redhead. He didn't mean to ask the obvious, but he went ahead and did it anyway as she whirled around to face him. "What are you doing here?"
Now Kim usually had a reason for everything she did and an answer for every question that was asked of her. This time, not exactly. "Hiding?" She replied, a sheepish grin tattooed on her face.
"Hiding, from what?" He asked, taking a seat next to her.
The heroine's mind began racing once her best friend sat next to her. This was odd; Ron usually sat across from her, never right next to her in their booth.
Kim sighed. "Everyone," she answered. "Come on, I'll tell you the whole story." She took a hold of the boy's hand and led him out of the restaurant.
"Whoa, K.P.!" He countered as he stopped her. "You can't tell me here? A-and, I've got a perfectly piping hot chimmerito and a naco waiting for me."
The redhead rolled her eyes. If there was one thing that always kept them from intelligent conversation, it was junk food.
OK... after the piping hot, scrumptious naco and chimmerito was consumed, Kim and Ron continued on their merry way. Ron did take notice that his best chum has remained quiet for most of their walk through the quiet Middleton streets.
"Uh... KP, what's wrong?" He asked. "You still haven't told me why you didn't show up at practice."
Hmph. He didn't feel like listening when he was inhaling his naco...
"You didn't hear all the stuff the other kids in school were saying about me?" She asked.
Ron took a quizzical look "Whoa... wait... all that stuff... they were talking about you?"
Kim rolled her eyes. Classic Ron: Sweet boy... but as observant as a tree stump.
"Yeah, they were." She replied. "I know I'm not supposed to care about rumors and reputation... but it's been going on four days straight..."
"They'll forget about it," Ron tried to console her.
"Have you forgotten about what happened that night?" She turned to face him.
Well... it was pretty hard to forget that night. He sighed. "I try to not think about it." He smiled almost too toothily. Boldly, he wrapped his arm around her shoulder. "I mean, you save the world almost on weekly basis, they'll forgive you."
Kim didn't know whether it was his arm around her, or his silly smile, or a combination of his actions and his words, but she felt much more reassured. She knew everything he said was true, but it just sounded better coming from him more than anyone else she could think of.
"Say, Ron… don't take this the wrong way or anything… but I've got another question."
"Sure," he replied. "Shoot."
Kim was a bit hesitant to ask, but she went ahead with it anyway. "Do you forgive for what I did?"
Heavy… The sidekick looked toward the sky thoughtfully as if it was going to give him a precise, concise answer.
"I don't know, K.P." He began. "I mean, you lied to me, you invaded my privacy, and stalked me in a jealous rage… I mean, you totally torpedoed your reputation and you greatly jeopardized the nature of our friendship by a hundred fold…"
Ron took a look toward Kim's direction and saw that the girl's eyes were brimming with tears that threatened to fall at a moment's notice. OK… Ron thought… so not the time for levity.
"But, yeah… of course I forgive you!" He exclaimed quickly, throwing his arms around the girl.
He wanted Kim to know that he was serious about his forgiveness of her, so he squeezed her a bit tighter as the moments continued on. A nagging thought slapped at him as he held her and as she held right back. Now, was the time, the voice told him.
"Ron... thank you," The redhead whispered, still in his arms.
Better time than any! Do it now! The voice continued to urge.
Ron took a deep breath before he opened his mouth again.
"In fact," Ron said as he held his friend for much longer than probably either one of them could imagined. "I was hoping that next Friday, I'd have to a chance to..." his nerve was cracking like a criminal under the hot light, but he still bought himself to look into those green eyes. "...show you how much I forgive you."
Kim's eyes widened to dinner plate proportions. Did he just say what she thought he had said? She pushed the boy away from her, and rubbed her eyes, just to see if what Ron said wasn't a product of some drive-by daydream.
It couldn't be. Could it? The confused look on his face... the way he was still holding her seconds ago. It just couldn't be!
"Ron Stoppable, are you asking me out?" She squeaked. The girl was dumbfounded, yet delighted at the same time.
User Account Control:
An identified program wants to have access to you.
The program 'Ron Stoppable' (rstop32.exe) is asking for access to go out on a date with you. (kp65.exe)
Cancel (R) / or Allow (A)?
Ron labored, and struggled, and grappled with his inner apprehensions. Heck, he got this far, why the heck not? It had been nearly nine months since this whole thing started. And to him, it felt as if it was more than two years and counting.
"Yes, Ms. Possible, " He answered, all fear seeming to leave his person for that very moment. He reached for any object with ballast to maintain his balance. "Ye-ee-s, I am," he trilled.
His answer came in the form of Kim's signature oxygen-trapping embraces. "Of course!" She said with the biggest smile he'd quite possibly seen on her face.
Well... that certainly changes everything. And even though anxiety just about gripped every capillary in his body... things just certain got a lot more interesting. In spite of his abdomen still doing the belly flops, he couldn't help to let expression warm as Kim practically skipped down the street.
Well, at least Kim was feeling better.
End of Chapter 15.
