Chapter Three: My Approval
Chad was sitting at his seat, waiting for his last class to start. One more class then I can go home… He turned to the door and found Johnny Parker putting a cup of water on the door with his gang. Johnny is the Captain of the Hockey team and the biggest bully in school. Not again… Then all of the sudden, a bunch of girls raced towards his side.
"CHAD, WE LOVE YOU!" The girls screamed, staring at him with awe. He stood up and tried to walk away but they kept on following him.
Shit… Can they just leave me alone? He thought. He walked backwards, unaware that he was moving towards the door. Meanwhile, Zelda walked towards her the same room alone. When she got to the door, she paused for a moment.
"When the new girl comes, the glass of water will pour on her." A voice said in the room.
A prank… She thought, she opened the door and the cup was coming down but she caught it. Not a single drop was spilled.
"She caught it…" Johnny said. Then Chad bumped into her and the water spill on her tank top. "Never mind…" The tank top was too wet that it became see-through. Her red colored bra decorated with black roses was showing. "Nice rack new kid…"
"Z, I am so sorry…" Chad said, blushing in front of her. Shit… I… Damn it… She tried to wipe it but it got worst. You can see her whole chest. She is such an idiot…
"WOW… SHE IS SO HOT…" All the boys screamed.
"It's alright…" Zelda said, smiling and covering her breasts. Then she let out a sneeze. "That was very cold water though."
"Come on…" Chad said, pulling her away. All the girls evilly glared at her as they walked out the room. He took her in front of the ladies room. "I am so sorry." He took off his varsity jacket and gave it to her. "You can wear this in the meantime."
"Chad, you didn't need to." She said, grabbing the jacket. "I will be right back." She walked in the ladies room and he waited outside.
She wasn't even embarrassed. She was so calm. She didn't even care of public humiliation. Chad thought. She grew up to be a weird girl. A few minutes have passed and she walked out the bathroom, she was wearing his varsity jacket. He stared at her for a brief moment. She looks good in it.
"Chad, are you okay?" Zelda asked, pinning her hair into a long ponytail. He nodded up and down, holding his nosebleed. "I am sorry that you have to give up your jacket."
"It's fine. As long you are covered up then I am okay." Chad said.
"So I didn't please you when I was wet." She teased. He tried to hold his nosebleed once more. "Oh Chad, you have a dirty mind."
"You are the one saying dirty things." He snapped. She giggled as he let out a sigh. "Well, we have to get to class. We are going to be late."
"Thank you Chad, you are so good to me." She said.
"It is because I am a good guy." He replied.
"Of course great one…" She said sarcastically. She then grabbed his hand. What am I doing? She moved her hand away.
"What's wrong?" Chad asked.
"I am sorry. I don't know why I grabbed your hand." She said, blushing. He then grabbed her hand.
"It is felt right… Right?" He said.
"Yes, I just don't know why." She said, smiling.
"Well, let's get to class." He said, walking with her hand to hand. I guess I can win her heart again.
"He is always with her." Nigel said, spying at them outside. "This is not good."
"Number One, why is it bad for your cousin to hang out with Chad?" Hoagie asked. "I mean they are both teenagers."
"Plus, Infinite and Number 274 were former teammates." Abby added.
"Still, I don't want him to convince her to join the teenagers with their cause." Nigel said. I don't know if I can handle being enemies with her. She is the only cousin that I don't need to fight.
"I think he is in love with her." Kuki pointed out.
"Yuck, cruddy teenagers with their cruddy romance and dating… Yuck…" Wally said, sticking out his tongue. "I think I am going to hurl." Kuki just giggle while watching his reaction.
"Chad is the only person that knows more about Zelda during her years as an agent of KND." Nigel said. "He will probably use his knowledge of Z to lure her to his side."
"Or just date her…" Kuki added. "It seems that Zeddy likes him too. They are holding hands."
"Whatever it is, he has to answer to me." Nigel said.
After school, Zelda was waiting in front of the school campus for her little cousin. I wonder where he is. I told him after school we head to Uncle Benedict's house. I hope he didn't forget. She was still wearing Chad's varsity jacket. Chad is very nice to me. She then sniffed the jacket. This scent though… It smells familiar… She then stared at her hand. And when I held his hand, it felt like I held it before and I didn't want to let go of it. He said that we were friends when we were kids but why can't I remember him? Why does it feel right being with him? Was Chad more than a friend to me? All of the sudden, there was a bunch of girls in front of her. "Hello…"
"Are you the new girl?" One girl asked. She had long blonde hair and blue shimmering eyes.
"Why do you want to know?" Zelda replied.
"You were the one that is always with Chad Dickson." The girl snapped.
"Yes, he was kind enough to give me a ride to school on his bike and we basically take all our classes together." She replied. "Is there a problem?"
"Chad is mine, new girl, and I am not going to let you take him away from me." The girl said. "And how dare you wear his varsity jacket?"
"Who are you?"
"My name is Gwen." She said.
"Gwen, leave me alone. There is nothing going on between me and Chad. I just met the guy." Zelda said. But why do I feel that I should be with him. Nothing makes sense right now… "So leave me be and take your gang with you."
"Who do you think you are?" Gwen snapped. "Do you have any idea who I am?"
"A cheerleader?" Zelda asked.
"I am the Captain of the cheerleading squad and like always, the captain and the quarterback should be together." Gwen explained. "We are meant to be together." All of the sudden Zelda started laughing in front of them. "WHAT'S SO FUNNY?"
"That is the funniest thing I have ever heard." Zelda said, giggling. "I have no intentions of taking your Quarterback. Why will he want to be with me anyway?" She couldn't breathe because of the laughter. "I don't want to ruin the prophecy."
"SHUT UP!" Gwen snapped. She was about to slap her until Chad caught her wrist. "What the…"
"Chad…" Zelda said. She stopped laughing when she saw him. Why is he here? "You didn't need to do that." All he did was stared at Gwen viciously. He let go of her hand and then Gwen and the others raced away. "Chad…"
"I can't leave you alone for one minute." He finally said.
"It is not my fault that you are too popular." Zelda said, scratching her head. "Besides, I am waiting for my cousin. He is running late and those girls trying to pick a fight." Then a gang of boys came towards them. Not another group…"What do you want?"
"You made my sister Gwen cry." A boy said. "I am going to make you suffer. A little entertainment will be suitable for tonight." Then Chad walked in front of her. "Move away…"
"Stay away from her Johnny." Chad said.
"Chad…" Zelda said, staring at him. Why is he protecting me?
"I SAID MOVE AWAY!" Johnny screamed, throwing his fist. Chad caught it and kicked him in the stomach. "GET HIM!" Three boys raced towards him while another three went towards Zelda. Chad started kicking and punching them, pushing them away from her.
I can't let them hurt her… Chad thought. He was forced to move away from her. Zelda was all alone with the other three. Shit… One boy grabbed her by the collar and was about to punch her. "ZELDA!" He raced towards her aid and punched out the guy that was holding her. "Are you okay?"
"Yes…" Zelda said. The other two boys started punching her but she dodged it. Chad jumped in the air and kicked one guy on the face and punched the other guy on the stomach. In the end, all seven guys were on the floor screaming in pain. "Are you guys okay?"
I thought she was good in fighting. Chad thought.
"Z!" Nigel screamed, racing towards them. "What happened?"
"It is a long story but they started it." Zelda said. "Also Chad helped me…"
"We better hurry… We might get detention…" Chad said, grabbing his bike. They all raced before a teacher found out that there was a fight. After they were in the clear, they walked peacefully through the streets.
"Z, explain everything…" Nigel demanded. "I want to know what is going on here."
"Okay Nigey… Well, when I was about to go into my last class I overheard that I was going to be prank so I saved myself from a falling cup of water but Chad bumped into me and I got all wet. Zetta gave me his varsity jacket."
"How kind of him..." Nigel said, turning to Chad and giving him an evil glare. Trying to be the hero…
This kid… He acts that I need his permission to be near her. Chad thought, glaring at him.
"What happened next?" Nigel asked.
"I was waiting outside for you then a group of girls came towards me. One of the girls was Gwen. She threatened me to stay away from Chad." Zelda explained, giggling. "She is so obsessed with him."
"Yeah she is." Chad said. "I am not interested in her and I told her a thousand times to leave me alone but no, she is so persistent."
"You are such a ladies' man Chad." She teased.
"Don't even go there…" Chad said.
"Then what happened next?" Nigel asked.
"Well, I was about to get slap until Chad stopped it. He saved me…" Zelda said. "Then Gwen's brother came along and Chad protected me."
"Johnny, Gwen's big brother. He is a womanizer." Chad said. "He is with a different girl in every day."
"He was the same guy that pulled the prank on me." Zelda said.
"He is going to pay for trying to hurt you." Nigel snapped. I guess I should thank him. He then turned to Chad. "Chad, thanks for helping my cousin." Chad nodded his head.
"Yes, thank you a lot. You helped me a lot today." Zelda said, smiling. "You didn't need to help me but I am very thankful that you were there for me."
"You're welcome…" Chad said lowly. Then she gave him back his jacket. She was still wearing her red tank top but it was still a little wet. Not again… He was covering his nose. It was bleeding severely.
"Thanks for the jacket." Zelda said. "Chad, are you okay?"
"Yeah…" He said, squirting out more blood. I need to be cautious around her. Her carefree attitude is worse when she is a teenager.
"Pervert…" Nigel said.
"What did you call me?" Chad snapped.
"If you didn't hear me the first time, I suggest you clean your ears." Nigel snapped back.
"Boys, I have enough action for one day. Let's just go to Uncle Benedict's mansion." Zelda said.
"Father…" They both said.
"Hmmm…" Zelda said, giving them a baffled look.
"I mean, why do you want to visit him? He can be very grumpy." Nigel said.
"Oh Nigey, I love him. He is such a sweetheart when you get to know him." Zelda replied.
"Sweetheart?" They both said. Are we talking about the same person? They made it in front of Father's mansion and she pressed the doorbell. The door opened and the Delightful Children from down the lane was in front of her.
"Can I help you?" They all said.
"Hi, you probably don't know me but I am Zelda. I am here to see your father. Is he here?" Zelda asked.
"Please come in…" They said. They walked inside and the boys felt uneasy about it while Zelda was smiling and humming away. "I will go get father."
"There is no need. I know that humming anywhere." A voice said. They turned and found a man in black walking towards them. "Oh my baby Zelda, look at you. You are so grown up and beautiful."
"Thank you Uncle." Zelda said, hugging him.
Did we miss something? The boys thought, staring at them. The Delightful Children from down the lane were shocked as well.
"Father never likes hugs?" They said.
"Children, this is your older cousin Zelda." Father said.
"I heard a lot about you. Bruce, Lenny, David, Constance and of course Angel… You two grew up wonderful and delightful." Zelda said, smiling.
"She knows our names." The Delightful Children said.
Well this is new… Chad thought. However…
"Number 274, your mission is to infiltrate Father's mansion and dispose his new weapon. We have reasons to believe he have developed a powerful weapon that can wipe KND. We need to prevent this at once."
"Yes sir…" I said, giving him a salute. "I won't fail you." I was nine at the time. I graduated from basic training in the Arctic when I was only six and became the most strongest, greatest, and smartest agent in the KND. I didn't have a team or a partner. I didn't need one. I burst through the front door of Father's mansion and he was waiting for me. "Alright Father, let's do this the easy way. Give me the weapon and I will not hurt you too bad."
"Did your parents teach you any manners?" Father said, letting out a chuckle. "Also, I am not going to be the one getting pain today. Oh niece, dispose of him but keep him alive. I need some information."
"Yes Godfather…" A voice said. I turned and found a beautiful girl with short black hair in a school uniform. Her pale face was emotionless and her eyes, for some strange reason I was allured by it. I shook my head when I noticed she was armed. She was holding a wooden sword.
"You have some nerve letting a kid do your dirty work." I said. I shot gumballs towards her but she sliced through all of them with her wooden sword. "What the… That's not possible."
"I delightful-nized her. Isn't she perfect?" Father said.
"How dare you do such a thing especially towards your own niece?" I snapped.
"She was a test subject for the real thing." He said. "Z, knock him out for me. I want to test my machine on him."
"Yes Godfather…" She said, dashing towards me. I kept shooting her but she was too fast. She did a sweep kick and it knocked me to the ground. She pinned me with her own body and her wooden blade was on my neck. She still had an emotionless face but I don't stop staring at her eyes. "Goodbye…" She knocked me out with her wooden sword.
She was a fighter back then but why didn't she put up a fight today.
"My dad and I missed you at dinner last night." Zelda said. "I made your favorite, oatmeal cookies with chocolate chips."
"I can't believe I missed that. I was very busy. When you are a business man, you tend to have a full plate." Father said. He then turned to the boys. "I see you brought some people with you."
"Oh I brought Nigey and my friend Chad." Zelda said. "I hope you don't mind."
"I don't mind at all." Father said, glaring at Chad. That kid…
"Good job Z, carrying him to my office. I want to absorb the information out of him." I said, smiling at her. My little brother Henry was the first to have children in our family. Monty and I had children as well but they were too young to fight our battles.
"Yes Godfather…" She said, carrying the kid into my office. Then I got a call from the other adults and there was a meeting so I left her in charge to watch over him. But when I came back, I heard voices. I sneaked to my office and found her sitting in front of the chained KND agent.
"So your name is Z?"
"Yes…"
"So why do you call him Godfather?"
"Well, he is my Uncle and he doesn't like being called that so I call him Godfather since he is my Godfather." She explained.
"Well, you are pretty good with that sword." He said. "I mean, you must be very strong."
"My mother trained me when I was little, I am still learning though." She said.
"You kicked my butt good.. I never stood a chance against you." He said. "My name is Chad by the way."
"Chad, what a cute name…" She said. He started to blush.
"Thanks…" He said. "So is Z really your real name."
"I don't give my real name to strangers." She replied. "Godfather doesn't want me to talk to stupid kids like you."
"Really…" He said, letting out a sigh. "You don't need to do this. I mean, you are better than this." She didn't say a word. I walked in my office.
"It is futile to lure my little niece to your side." I said.
"Your niece deserves to be happy. She hardly smiles." He snapped. "A kid should be happy and free not be an emotionless doll."
Those words… It sickens me to the core. He didn't know anything. I love my niece. She was the reason that I wanted kids in the first place so I can love them to death and they can help me destroy the KND. It was my perfect dream. However, he escaped but I got him good. I got the data for Z to entered the Moon Base and destroy those kids. But that kid ruined everything.
"Z, take them all down."
"Yes Godfather…" She said, entered the base. All the children turned to her. "Hello Kids Next Door, I am the Perfect Niece from down the Lane. I hope you don't mind if I visit." Oh she was perfect. She was fast, strong, and good…
"She is one of Father's minions. Get her…" They raced towards her and she defeated all of them with only a wooden sword. "She is so strong…"
"That is not how you treat your guest." She said. She walked calmly through the Moon Base, beating anyone that stand in her way. She was making her Godfather so proud. Oh I wish she was my daughter. She made it to the safe to the KND secrets but that kid was blocking her away. "Chad…"
"Z, please stop this. You don't need to do this." He pleaded. "I beg of you."
"I like you begging." She said. "But I have to do this." She lifted her sword in front of him. "Number 274, get out of my way."
"Number 274, it is no use." One cadet said. "You can't change her mind."
"Yeah, she is a goodie two shoes after all." Another cadet said.
"No, she is different." He said. He dropped his weapon and walked towards her. "Hey Z, I know this is your mission but are you even happy?"
"If Godfather is happy, I am happy." She replied. Well said if I do say so myself.
"But if you take these secrets to him, you will never experience being a real kid. You wouldn't know how to have fun and…" Then an alarming sound filled the room. She pulled out a cellphone.
"Hey mom, what's up?" She said. "Yeah, I am doing an errand for Uncle Benedict. I see… Yes I am going to be there. I just got sidetracked. I am not scaring a kid… I know, I will be there in hyper speed. Love you…" She then hung up and let out a sigh. "Well, I am wanted at Home World."
"WHAT ABOUT THE MISSION!" I screamed.
"Mom is first in command Godfather. I can't say no to her."
"I guess you are right."
"It was nice playing with you all." She said, bowing in front of them. "But I have to go."
"You are not going to finish the mission." Chad asked.
"No…" She replied, walking away. "My mom said I have to play nice with the other children so that means I can't finish this mission. Also, I can't attack the Kids Next Door ever again."
"WHAT?!" I screamed.
"She listens to her mommy…" Another cadet teased. Z punched the wall so hard that it was crumbling to pieces. The cadets were afraid to be near her.
"I have to go." She said, walking away. "Godfather, I guess this is goodbye."
"I guess… I don't want to have an argument with your mother. I will see you at your Kendo tournament." I said, letting out a sigh. "However, do I still get cookies?"
"Yup, you are still my Godfather after all…" She said. "And I love you…"
"OH Z, YOU MAKE ME THE MOST HAPPIEST UNCLE EVER!" I cried.
Chad was glaring at him as well. Well, if it wasn't for him I wouldn't have met her. Zelda end her contact with Father and everyone was glaring at her with fear. Clothes were tossed in the air and she was in a red ninja outfit. She put her wooden sword in the sheath hanging on her back.
"Agent Infinite, you are finally back from your undercover mission." Our Commander said, walking towards her. "Good work…"
"Oh it was nothing. It was hard to be a good but it was worth it." Infinite said.
"What? What is going on here?" I asked.
"Agent Infinite here is one of our best female agents and the only one that can get through Father's security due to her family relations." The Commander explained.
"But she got Delightful-nized?" I said.
"I did but it doesn't work when you are already a good girl." She said, giggling. "The Delightful-nized laser is still in progress though. It is only a matter of time before he uses it."
"So tell me, what is he plan?"
"He is trying to develop perfect and delightful children that are good and obedient. I have reasons to believe he might try it on our new recruits." She explained. "His purpose will forever end the Kids Next Door."
"I see… How inhumane… Forcing kids to be super good…" The Commander explained. "Well, good work Agent Infinite. It is good to have you back in the force. I hope you don't plan to leave again."
"Thanks but I am thinking of taking a vacation. Being good was rough work…" She said. "Well, I have to get to my Kendo Tournament so see you all later."
"Do you need a ride? I mean, we kind a wreck your ship." I said.
"Sure…"She replied, smiling. "I need to be at the tournament."
"YOU SMILED!" I screamed, blushing in front of her.
"Of course, I am not a doll." She said, giggling. Her pale face was full of life and expression that it made me blush even more. "Oh and by the way, my name is Zelda."
"Zelda…" I said, smiling back.
"Hey Uncle Benedict, are you okay?" She asked.
"Oh yes, I was just thinking." Father said. "Maybe I will host a dinner party for our family next time."
"That will be great. I can't wait." Zelda said. He patted her head and let out a smile.
"Remember, if you need anything don't hesitate to ask. As your Godfather, it is my duty to watch over you." Father said.
"Thanks Uncle Benedict, you are the best." She replied.
Now I see everything. Chad and Nigel thought.
After their amazingly non-violent visit, Zelda was humming while Chad and Nigel followed behind her, glaring at each other. "Stay away from my cousin." Nigel snapped.
"You don't have any right to order me around Number 1." Chad snapped.
"I know what you are scheming Chad. You are trying to lure Z into your team." Nigel said. "That's not going to happen."
"We are in the same team idiot. I am an undercover agent remember." Chad replied.
"I am not an idiot. You have an eye on my cousin the minute she moved here." Nigel said. "I don't like it."
"Maybe because she was…" He then stopped. He turned away and let out a sigh. "Forget about it…" Nigel paused when he found a frown on his face. "I think you are right. There is no point being with her if she can't remember me."There was a brief awkward silence between them.
"Hey you two, I got a day off today so let's do something fun." Zelda said, turning to them. "I mean we can go to the arcade or the ice cream parlor. Oh, we can go to the comic book store… There are a lot of places to go to."
"Ice cream sounds good." They both replied.
"Great, I want vanilla." She said, turning away from them and humming once more.
"But even if she can't remember me, I am not going to stop because she is still the same person." Chad said. "I am not going to let you stop me from being with her."
"Look, I just don't want her to get hurt. Z is like an older sister to me and I am happy that she is not with the Teenagers." Nigel said, letting out a sigh. "But if I were in your shoes, I will probably do the same."
"What do you mean by that?" Chad asked.
"You love her…" Nigel said. "You never gave up on her."
"Is it that obvious?" Chad asked.
"Well yes but I didn't want to believe it." Nigel said. "But then again, who wouldn't love her?" He then let out another sigh. "Zelda may be a teenager but she acts like a kid most of the time. That is why I am so worried for her to be at High School. I am afraid her inner kid will disappear. Just look at her… She is practically skipping like a six year old." Chad turned to her and found her humming and skipping away. "She is also naively trusting."
"Yeah…"
"Chad, just don't hurt her."
"So does that mean you are letting me with her?"
"Yeah for now…"
She then walked between them and hugged both their arms. "Come on you guys, can you two just get along?" She said.
"Sure…just for you…" They both said.