Chapter 66

A Plus

"Ahem! Attention, students!" Mr. Simmons waited until the class had more or less quieted down and then continued. "Now that that 'special' interruption is over, it's time to pass back your 'special' projects from last week!"

"Do you mean those retarded family projects?" Rhonda asked.

"Right you are, Rhonda! Those retar-er…'special' family projects!" Mr. Simmons took a stack of papers off his desk and began passing them around. "Rhonda, Curly, B plus."

"B plus?!" Rhonda exclaimed. "Rhonda Wellington Lloyd doesn't make B's."

"Well, I'm sorry, Rhonda, but that's your grade."

Rhonda turned her nose up disapprovingly and then glared at Curly. "This is all your fault, you little creep!"

"But, sugar, I thought you loved me!"

"Yeah, right, like I'd ever like a weirdo like you! I just said all that stuff in the flood because…because I-"

"Quiet please," Mr. Simmons silenced her. "Patty and Harold, D minus."

"All right! I didn't fail!" Harold cheered.

"Gerald and Phoebe, A."

The two smiled at one another and then quickly turned away.

"Lila, Brainy, F minus."

"F minus?! I'm ever so sure you made a mistake Mr. Simmons," Lila said, her sweet façade disappearing momentarily.

"No, Lila, I did not make a mistake, and frankly, I'm disappointed in you. You always make such good grades! What happened?"

"Oh, I'm ever so sure it was all Brainy's fault," she said kindly, her venom dripping with honey. "After all, Brainy is ever so not very bright."

"That, Miss Sawyer, is quite enough. I want you to apologize to Brainy right now."

"Okay." Lila turned in her seat to look at Brainy. "I'm ever so sorry you're not very bright."

"Okay, that's it!" Mr. Simmons said, trying to figure out where his star pupil had gone. "I'm sorry, Lila, but I'm going to have to give you detention."

The entire class gasped. Lila got detention? Was it even possible to use those words in the same sentence?
"Detention?" Lila gasped.

"That's right, detention. There will be no more discussion about it."

Arnold looked at Lila, a bit shocked. He had never known her to get in trouble before. She always just seemed so…perfect.

"But everyone makes mistakes," he reminded himself. "She's still perfect to me." Lila continued to argue with Mr. Simmons, while the entire class talked in excited whispers. "Okay, so maybe she's just having a bad day. That happens to everyone. I mean, Helga's probably having the worst day in her life." He sighed. "And it's all because of me." He turned around and looked across the room at Helga and was surprised to find her scribbling frantically in her poetry book. "Wow. She's not gonna give up easily, is she?"

Mr. Simmons finished passing out the rest of the grades, until the only one left was Arnold and Helga's.

"Arnold, Helga, congratulations! You get an A plus!"

"An A plus?!" Lila shrieked. "How could she get an A, while I get an F?"

"Well, you're project was lacking the creativity and teamwork that was required," Mr. Simmons explained. "In fact, some of the questions you left blank."

"Well…yeah…but how could they do any better? And not just a D or something, but an A plus?! I'm sure that's just ever so not fair."
"Helga and Arnold showed a tremendous amount of cooperation and understanding. I was actually quite surprised that they did so well considering that they…well…don't tend to get along most of the time. But actually, if they ever were to get wedded, it might be a very successful marriage! It just goes to show that-"

"Arnold and Helga sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G! First comes love, then comes-"

"Shut up! I do not have a crush on Helga!"

The room was suddenly very quiet. Helga immediately stopped writing and looked at Arnold in shock. She couldn't believe that he had said it. Sure, she had heard it before, but at least then he had tried to be understanding. At least he had felt bad about it. But now, now he didn't care at all. He had said it so firmly, so coldly. He almost sounded like he was mad at her.