"Hey Jimbo, you won't believe this thing in the paper this morning," Mr. Neutron began ranting while enjoying his sugar-booger's excellent pancakes.
Jimmy grabbed a bagel from the table in haste and ripped a bite. "Not now dad, I gotta get going. It's the day before science fair judging, haveta get my project assembled at the school and guard it before Cindy gets there."
Mrs. Neutron begged for her son to stay at the breakfast table a little longer so they could have a nice family brunch together. "Wait honey, a nutritious breakfast will do a growing genius some good."
Jimmy rolled his eyes, "Mom, I'm a grown adult now." In his hurried state he dashed out, leaving nothing but goodbye left in his once occupied space.
Carl caught Jimmy on the rush off to school.
"Hey, you off to school, Jimmy?" Carl ran up to walk with his friend.
"Yeah, it's time to get this year's winning entry all sat up." Carl looked around for what he remembered seeing in Jimmy's lab but all he carried was his back pack over his jacket. "Well I couldn't possibly bring it all in one piece out in the open where Cindy is surely to see it and have a chance at wrecking it. I stored it in my hypercube." Suddenly recalling yesterday, Jimmy stopped Carl in his tracks.
"Hey Carl, are you excited about the 'Llamaman vs. Ultralord' movie?" He watched all signs in Carl's face for clues.
The accused responded with a dumbfounded expression. "I never heard about it."
Jimmy took a moment to process. Then rightly concluded it, topped off with wryly smile, "I guess that answers my question," then started on his way again on his skateboard (Neutronically enhanced of course) without giving Carl an explanation.
"Ah, Jimmy, back for one last year?" Principle White, the principle of Jimmy and his gang's school, greeted after observing Jimmy setting up his always impressive submission(s). The annual Retroville Science Fair has always been held at the three select schools; Lindberg Elementary, Retroville Jr. High and Lindberg High. Depending on what a challenger's grade level was, the three schools held the three separate divisions and a student would enter the designated one in their grade. The Lindberg High division has always been the most spirited and challenging one. For its reputation (which Jimmy and Cindy have unquestionably contributed too) many representatives from schools do, as suspected, secretly collect to observe potential applicants for their school's scholarships. "Looks very impressive, Mr. Neutron."
"Thank you Principal White," while attaching the correct gears and pulling out more components from his hypercube. The principle hadn't the slightest idea of what any of it was but was polite just the same. Near judging time, he would hobnob with the other judges and pretend he could comprehend.
"I don't see your friend's, Cindy's, submission yet. She is entering again this year, right?"
"Yeah, I wonder," Jimmy replied dryly. He suspected Cindy hadn't arrived yet because she was busy making designs on how to ruin his own project.
"Oh there she is," turning away to leave the boy genius, to greet the other challenger. Surprised Jimmy turned his body around to see. He witnessed his inept principle and the hazardous 'girl genius', sharing an ordinary conversation. Cindy wasn't acting out of place in the slightest; she didn't seem up to anything underhanded. It worried him and now she was walking over to him.
Cindy put up her best innocent girl front. "How's it coming along?"
Jimmy couldn't help smirking, but at least tried to stand his ground by staying on task. "Cindy, it seems every time I've been meeting up with you lately, you've been scheming on the sly."
"You can't prove it."
"No, but I can speculate," "You know you can't win now, I've got my entry here all safe and intact. They lock the doors to protect the submissions you know."
"Duh, I know that."
Jimmy rolled his eyes to go along with his grin. "Of course you do," he acknowledged.
"So since you admit I'm harmless, why not agree to let me help you out with that... uhh..." (Cindy still wasn't sure what it was she was going to attempt sabotage on),"…thing," she settled.
"You're kidding?" he gawked. "Being a genius doesn't mean I'm blind to the obvious. Besides, why aren't you working on your own submission?" Jim examined the room, "Where is your submission?"
"Its right here," she pulled out her headphones from her shoulder bag. She gave him the impression she was going to hand them over for him to examine. He thought so too, but she yanked them away before than. "Nuh uh. You won't let me see your gizmo so you don't get to see these. You'll just have to wait until after they award me with my trophy."
To her surprise, he agreed. "Your right, it would be unfair of you to share that. I'll just have to wait I guess." Cindy glared at her smart-alecky boyfriend.
"Your loss. I bet you're just dying to analyze the winning science fair project," she dangled. Unfortunately in her little act of temptation, the head phones swung to close to a certain bugging device and caused a brief high-pitched wine.
Jimmy shrieked, clutching his unfortunate exposed ears. "Ahh, what was that?" Cindy's cocky smile turned instant remorse by the sudden accident. Only she knew what caused the irritation so she tucked the headphones back in, hoping Jimmy wouldn't make a connection.
"Probably the stage manager adjusting the mic over there," the culprit pointed. Jimmy didn't take notice that Cindy was screaming guilty, the pain in his ears was enough of a distraction. "Well I got to go now, see you around," she backed away from the scene of the crime.
It wasn't her plan to trade in her project for a chance to get a hold of Jimmy's. Cindy just felt like making a little conversation, bad move however. Hopefully it would not affect her plans for tonight, which involved her stowing away in the gymnasium wearing night camo' to get passed the lock doors. Libby would tag along to assist but Cindy insisted on doing all the dirty, set up work herself. A role Libby didn't fight too hard over. So it was planned and the girls somehow found a place they could hide-out in, to only emerge that evening.
"It's that one, I saw Jimmy working on it." Cindy headed over to the awesome entry. "It really is incredible; to bad I'm going to sabotage it," she thought evilly.
"Where's that orb thing Carl and Jimmy talked about?"
Cindy examined the device and settled that it must be the helmet-y thing. "It looks to fit the description," Cindy suggested. "Let's get cracking." Out she pulled all the elements, including toothpaste, buckets, clear bags, wires, extension cords, alligator clips, tools and anything else they would need for this trap to be perfect and completely undetectable. Helping out with Jimmy down in the lab so often, taught her a lot about the intricacy of his work. She picked up on his lingo and much useful information that she was now going to use against him. After three long hours the girls were finished. It was a trial for Libby; she kept wanting too doze of, opposed to Cindy who was alive and alert the entire time (she was very determined). Cindy crept down her ladder, to see what she had accomplished from a nice, frontal view.
"Would you look at our masterpiece," arms stretched out in pride. Libby shrugged indifferently, too tired to care.
"I can't see how you can be proud of a trap that's going to wreck Jimmy's chances of a future."
"Nonsense, this will have the littlest impact. I can grantee it," she pledged. "I'm sure if he wasn't the victim here, he too could appreciate the craftsmanship of my work," nodded Cindy. "The only thing left to do is set the timer, but I can't do that until tomorrow. I couldn't find one at the store that didn't tick so I'll have to start it as close as possible to judging time.
"Whatever you say," wiping the gunk off her black designer outfit. "Now, how do we leave?"
Yes indeed, Cindy could plan and execute the craftiest of plans but was too busy to have ever thought of the obvious.
"That's a good question Libbs," Cindy laughed nervously. Libby was none too pleased.
"You don't mean we have to spend the whole night here!" Libby cornered her scattered brained friend.
"Well…", "…I didn't get that far, but at least the construction went like clockwork," she offered up fruitlessly, trying to make-up for the significant hindsight.
After a while of attempting to find a way out, the girls had no choice but to crash down next to other entries for the night. By morning when the school opened early and the doorman opened up the school doors, the groggy, teenaged girls snuck out when no one was looking. Although some citizens took notice of the two masked prowlers and were convinced it was another sighting of the notorious 'chicks n' black'.