Chapter Twelve
|Arthur's Real-Life Nightmares|
"Whoa, Arthur, you look bad!" Buster gasped. Arthur muttered and shrugged; he had nothing to say, even to his best friend. "I…saw something online last night, but it looks like you already know. Why exactly are she and Naomi friends again?"
"I don't know and I don't want to talk about it," Arthur sighed, stepping onto the bus. Brain and Alex were talking through some English homework in front of their usual seat. Arthur realized he hadn't done much of his homework last night, but he didn't really care anymore as he took the window seat and stared out into the abyss.
"Well, I'll give you something better to think about. The cinema plans on showing all of the Bionic Bunny movies leading up to the live-action movie coming out on Friday. My mom is willing to buy us both tickets in exchange for some light yard work. You can probably get yours without any work at all," Buster chuckled, looking down to Arthur's big, blue cast. Arthur shook his head, "I'm not really up for any movies right now. That's what they're doing tonight, taking her daughter to the movies. It makes me sick."
"Arthur, if I may interject?" Brain called, turning around with Alex. Arthur nodded for him to continue. "I believe what you're feeling is normal. It reminds me of the feeling I had when my parents invited my ninth grade composition teacher to dinner without warning me. They'd been friends for years without me knowing, and I felt a little stunned. I believe you are simply in shock. The feeling will pass."
"I don't think so, Brain," Alex shuddered, looking Arthur over carefully. "Depending on where this friendship goes, Arthur knows he might be stepping into a nightmare. His feelings are justified," he said, and Brain shrugged, accepting defeat and settling down again. Alex remained, passing Arthur a scrap of paper with a URL address, "Here, it's for a free music channel. I suggest an escape of some kind, and music is good if Bionic Bunny won't do it for you. Buster, I could—"
"Mom specifically said Arthur, Alex. I'm sorry," Buster interrupted. Alex shrugged, turning around and returning to his original conversation with Brain. "Well, do you at least want to come over for dinner tonight? Even if you don't go, Mom would still like to have you over. She calls you her second son. I think it's funny," Buster giggled.
"I'll text my mom after school and let her know I'll be spending the night. I just really don't want to see Naomi today," Arthur muttered.
Buster nodded in understanding as the bus slowly approached the arrival/dismissal area. The doors opened as a limo pulled up alongside before sliding into the spot in front of the bus. Buster tried to shield Arthur, knowing it would be Muffy, but Arthur saw anyway, and he recognized the figure still inside the car.
"Goodbye, Muffy!" Naomi called, sticking her head out the open window. "Hi, Arthur! Have a great day at school!" she cried. Arthur shuddered and rushed inside with Buster tight on his heels. It was no use; that overwhelmed feeling followed him anyway.
"I changed my mind about the movies. And since your mom thinks so highly of me, do you think I could live with her instead?" Arthur whimpered, leaning heavily against the wall. Buster patted his shoulder sympathetically as Muffy sauntered past. She stopped at Sue Ellen, Francine, and Maria's group with a smile on her face. At first the girls were skeptical, then they all stood together like they'd always been friends. Arthur went pale as their conversation carried through the crowded room: They were talking about him.
"I think it's okay if we all like Arthur. It's his choice anyway," Francine laughed. Muffy nodded, "We'll help each other impress him. I hear he's still a huge comics fan!" she exclaimed. The other girls squealed…except Sue Ellen. She gradually slinked away, heading to a table where George sat with a few girls. She pulled out a sketch book and seemed to stare into its pages. This struck Arthur as important, but he was namely busy trying to keep his head above the drama to make it through yet another crazy school day.
|Lunch Woes|
At lunch, Arthur tried to take a seat at a crowded table, but he and Buster were pushed to a nearly empty one instead. The moment they sat down, Francine, Maria, and their teammates crowded the table. They kept asking Arthur questions, but Arthur kept his head down. Buster tried to help, but Francine wouldn't have it.
"What's wrong, Arthur? Are you still sick, 'cause if you are…," Francine said, pulling away. Buster shook his head, "He's not that kind of sick, Francine. He's a different kind of sick, a kind of sick you wouldn't understand."
"Why? Is she not a hottie?" Maria asked defensively. Francine nodded firmly, "Yeah, am I not a hottie or something?"
"We wanted a quiet lunch, girls. Can we give Arthur some peace for two seconds?" Buster asked coldly. Maria shook her head, "We all have date ideas if he's interested. Francine and I are going to the Bionic Bunny marathon with the team, and we were wondering if we could offer you two our extra tickets."
"Sorry, he's already going with me, ladies. Now if you'll excuse us," Buster said, standing and helping Arthur up. They moved to another table that just happened to have two empty seats. At the far end was Sue Ellen, her head buried in her sketchbook, at least until Arthur sat down. "Uh-oh, looks like Sue Ellen is on the prowl."
"She isn't like the others. She could care less, remember?" Arthur asked. Buster shrugged, "I never noticed. There's kind of a lot of girls after you right now, Arthur. I namely pay attention to that," he nodded, watching as Sue Ellen traded seats with the senior next to Arthur.
"I wanted to talk to you to reassure you I won't be befriending Muffy like the others. They think that because she's announced a group effort to have you, she'll be more nice or whatever. I know she's just trying to pull something out like a magic trick, and I'm not falling for it," Sue Ellen said firmly. Arthur nodded. "You know, you don't seem as bothered by me. You looked like you wanted to run away this morning."
"He did," Buster nodded, "before he even got here, actually."
"Buster's right, but you're right too. You're not like them, and I really thank you for that," Arthur smiled. Sue Ellen smiled back before flipping open her sketchbook, "I found drawing helps me when I'm stressed out. I'd suggest that you try it, but you'd have to have the right work station because of your arm. The art classroom is always available with good spots if you're interested."
"I'll think about it," Arthur nodded, finally starting to eat his lunch. Sue Ellen made him feel better, and Arthur truly was thankful for her differences. He thought highly of her, and he wondered again if she could be the right girlfriend amid all of his crazed crush victims.
|Female Ally|
After school, Buster and Arthur went to the comic book store to browse the stacks, at least until they saw the Crosswire limo out front. They quickly changed their minds, opting to go to the book store instead. Inside, they found Sue Ellen browsing the Japanese comics. Buster decided to look at the food books, but Arthur decided to see what the Japanese had to offer.
"Have you ever read a manga before?" Sue Ellen asked. Arthur shook his head, but he noticed she was reading backwards. "Well, it's a little hard to get used to, but these things are so deep. In this one, a girl discovers she has powers that make her the last living heir to a demon, but she doesn't want to become evil. She wants to try to use her powers for good, but it's difficult because evil is so strong in her world."
"Wow, that sounds complicated," Arthur noted. Sue Ellen shrugged, "To an outsider, yes, but to me? It's just normal. These will help you escape as well. It's fun to see how crazy someone else's life is compared to your own, even if all of these are fiction. Do you want me to show you how to read one?"
"That's okay," Arthur said, looking over the titles. "There's too many here for me to choose from, and…looks like I can't afford to buy one of these anyway," he muttered, sliding a book off and on the shelf as he eyed the prices. Sue Ellen nodded, "What I like to do is find the one I like in stores, then I find it online and read it there. It's cheaper when you're not sure what you want. I'll email you with my favorite sites."
"Hey, Arthur, this guy made a cake out of candy bars and cookie dough!" Buster gasped, holding up a food book. Arthur nodded and Sue Ellen laughed gently as Buster was forced back to the food section by a cashier.
"I know the girls are trying to loop you in with the Bionic Bunny marathon, but I know how you can escape them," Sue Ellen whispered, looking around before pulling three special VIP tickets from her purse, "I got these because my father knows the owner. He and I will be sitting in one VIP box, and these two are for you and Buster. The regular tickets are sold out, and I can help you and Buster make a profit if you'll let me sell them."
"I don't even know if Mrs. Baxter has bought them yet. You might've just saved us," Arthur smiled as Buster approached. "Buster, does your mom already have tickets for the marathon."
"No," Buster muttered, his ears lowering in defeat, "She called an hour ago but they were sold out. Why do you ask?" Buster asked. Sue Ellen held up the VIP tickets, smiling as Buster's eyes grew wide, "Wow, I always knew those existed, but I've never met anyone who actually had them. Oh, there's only two…."
"I have my own. I'll be sitting with my father," Sue Ellen said, holding up the third ticket. Buster smiled, "That's so nice of you, Sue Ellen." Sue Ellen shrugged, eying her watch as she handed off the tickets. She then disappeared, leaving the boys happy as they slowly walked back to Buster's condo.
|Arthur's Crushing Make-Shift Date|
The next evening, the theatre was packed with people trying to get into the Bionic Bunny marathon. Arthur and Buster bypassed the lines with their VIP passes, and once they found their seats, they realized the only other people who could see them were the other VIPs located in boxes throughout the theatre.
As they ate popcorn, waiting for the show to start, Sue Ellen inched into the VIP box. But even when the lights lowered, she was alone. The doors closed below and the Bionic Bunny music began, but Arthur's eyes were on Sue Ellen's empty seat and the way she slouched forward unhappily.
"I think I want to switch seats during the next intermission," Arthur whispered. Buster shushed him, his eyes glued to the screen and its opening credits. Arthur shrugged, deciding to stick to his plan during the first intermission. He texted Sue Ellen, and she greeted him at the booth's opening.
"You noticed I was alone, huh?" Sue Ellen asked. Arthur nodded, following her up the stairs as Francine and Maria walked past.
"She's the one with him! How dare she!" Francine hissed. Maria agreed, angrily stomping to their seats. Arthur watched the commotion spread through the team. He felt hot under the collar, but he also felt something else: He was where he should've been all along.
"This is my favorite movie coming up," Sue Ellen whispered, passing Arthur her popcorn so he could grab a few pieces. Arthur nodded; the next movie was his favorite as well.
The two watched in silence as the movies sped by. Soon it was eleven, and the theatre cleared out below them. Buster texted Arthur that he could meet him in the parking lot, where Bitzi was waiting to drive them home. Arthur didn't want to leave Sue Ellen's side, especially when she led him out a back exit, but he knew he had to.
"I'll see you at school," she smiled, waving and pulling away. Arthur smiled, waving slowly. He was awestruck by this girl. He had found what he wanted, and he wished the other girls would let it happen without incident.
A/N: So, this is the end of "Naomi's World." I honestly forgot Arthur and Sue Ellen got together in the end, but I recently went back and read this part. Why? Because I'm writing a sequel! When will I begin posting it? After I publish all of "Arthur's Baby Problems."
"Arthur's Baby Problems" is the Prequel to "Naomi's World" and it covers the backstory of the twins, the move, and unfortunately Pal's untimely passing.
When I'm finished posting "Arthur's Baby Problems," I'll begin posting "Arthur's World," which I'm going to try to finish very quickly because I'm doing NaNoWriMo this November. I'll be adding info about that in my profile later today, but I am doing an Arthur fanfic again, so keep your eyes open for posts:)