Here we go! This is the last chapter before we have another time skip ahead a whole week maybe 2. I dunno. Haha.

I've got a lot to cover once again. I hope this arc isn't feeling like it's at hyperspeed. It has to be fast so I can fit in everything I need to fit in.

Alvin gets a new outfit in this chapter! Not permanently yet, just as a disguise. The Clark Kent/ Superman vibes, am I right?

Anyway, enjoy this nice comedic last part, because the next story gets even MORE intense.

Special shout-out to the reviewer named Reader who correctly guessed that Final Drive Fantasy was meant to be a sequel to my favorite old videogame called Final Drive Fury. ;)

Genius Alvin's POV

I knew I had changed a lot, but Britt's words kept digging into me. Had I really changed so much that it was a struggle to think of me as Alvin? I didn't want a new name! I liked my name! I wasn't going to just change it to something new without a good reason.

I know Jeanette said I'm still me, even though I'm not the same me I used to be. People change all the time! But which changes are healthy and which ones aren't? Which ones will cause me to actually be a new person? Cuz those are the ones I wanna avoid.

Gah! I am stressing over this waaaay too much. Gotta focus on what's important. I need to find my brothers and make some…uhhh…shoot! What's the word? Amends? Yeah. Okay, I think that was it. I am slowly losing my brainpower, aren't I? I guess TV tropes was right after all.

I slinked into the house and walked upstairs with my head down and body hunched forward. It was the walk of shame. I felt terrible for the way I acted the past few days….maybe a week. I knew Simon was probably gonna be like Kevin and Cheesy and say that he needed an indefinite break from me. I wouldn't blame him.

I knocked gently on the closet door. Hopefully, Simon was inside his secret lab. "Si, I've got…something to say to ya."

Slowly the lab door inched open. "You have 10 minutes. Make them count."

"I'm sorry." I said, entering the lab. "I'm really REALLY sorry. I acted embarrassing and inappropriate and I tried to sucker people out of their money. It was very classic Alvin of me and, well,…I'm not sure I wanna be classic Alvin these days."

"Hey, no, no. You can still be classic Alvin." Simon dropped the wrench he was using to tighten some mechanical thing. I think it was some kind of attachment for the jetpack. "You don't have to give up everything you are in order to improve."

"Why not? You're always annoyed with him." I reasoned.

"That doesn't mean I want you to completely change who you are. If you aren't happy with who you're becoming, then you've lost your way." He reached out a hand.

"But if I don't change enough, who I am…is gonna be an Insufferable Genius, you know, with classic in the mix. It's kinda unavoidable." I explained.

"No it's not." Theodore squeaked, slipping into the lab through the half open door. "All you have to do is practice until you know when is a good time to say stuff. Jeanette said she told you, but you still don't get it, do you?"

"I'm TRYING to get it. Believe me! I am!" I moaned, putting a hand on my forehead.

"Like Theo said, it takes practice." Simon frowned.

"I feel so crummy." I sighed. "I mocked you for all this stuff…" I gestured at his lab equipment. "…and now I'm head over heels for it. I was wrong. Completely wrong. I guess my real talent is being wrong about everything." I muttered that last part, but Si still heard me.

And predictably, Simon hit me with a thinly veiled insult. "That's the most astute observation you've made all day."

I folded my arms and tapped my foot impatiently. "Look, I'm just trying to figure out where I fit in now that I have sub zero levels of popularity."

Theodore looked up at me. "So do you actually like science? Or is it just replacing popularity?" Urgh! I hate that question so much!

Did I? The answer was a lot simpler than I expected. "I like, no, LOVE science!" I blurted out. "I LOVE LOVE LOVE IT! I can't get enough!"

Simon furrowed his brows. "I still don't understand why you have to glom on to MY interests AND use them to annoy EVERYONE!"

WHAT!? I thought he liked having someone else to talk science with! "I can't choose what makes my brain go brrrrr!" I shouted.

He got out of his chair. "Brain go brrrrr? Very scientific." He snipped sarcastically.

"Also, uh, glom. That's a cool word. Never heard it before. What does it mean?" I asked, hopping that would make Simon less…mad at me.

"Yeah! I've never heard it either." Theodore added. "But that's true for a lot of words."

Simon closed his eyes. He searched deep in that incredible memory of his. Wish I had a memory like that. "Glom means to become stuck or attached to. To cling, basically."

"Ohhhh." My baby brother echoed. "To cling."

"Don't you see what's happening?" Simon pulled out his whiteboard and drew a picture of me with washable marker. "You lost your popularity and you're trying to make yourself feel better by pretending you're smarter." He drew an X through the crown he drew on my head and then drew a lightbulb above my head. "Really, you're just the same old Alvin. Only now you've memorized some physics facts. It's a cool party trick, but, uh, it doesn't make you "a genius." He set the marker down.

I was stunned. I was hurt. He still didn't believe me? "No. There's….There's more to it than that!" I protested.

"What more could there possibly be?" He snapped, rubbing his head like I was giving him a headache. "Look, Alvin, even though I said I wanted someone new to share my love of science with…. I meant someone who was ACTUALLY interested in science and not just faking it for clout."

"You should just be happy with who you are." Theodore said, patting my arm.

I tore away from both of them and ran out of the lab. "I AM interested!" I jumped onto my bed and curled up into a ball. "Why don't you believe me?"

Simon and Theo both followed me. The taller chipmunk shook his head. "No. You think you are. Really, you just want to SHOW OFF."

I curled tighter. They would never believe me. No one would ever believe me. Unless I told them my deepest fear, what drove my crazy behavior these past few days. "I didn't WANT to show off."

"Well, it looks like you did." Theo pointed out.

"The reason I kept annoying everyone with physics is because I feel like I HAVE to keep repeating stuff so that I don't forget." I hung my head in shame as I sat up cross legged on the bed. "I don't wanna lose this new brain. I love it too much." I put my hands on my head protectively.

"Alvin…" Simon began.

I wouldn't let him finish. I was afraid he'd once again try to convince me I don't know what I want. "I never told you this but, I've forgotten physics before." I squeaked, sounding very much like the little kid I was.

Theo's brown eyes went wide. "What?"

Simon's blue eyes did the same. "Huh?"

"I forgot it!" I stressed, fidgeting uncomfortably. "Probably like 5 times!" I took the physics book out from under my pillow. "I know that the second I stop studying it nonstop, it'll all drip away and I'll be back to exactly where I started. That's why I have to repeat it, inside my head, out loud, and whenever possible."

My younger brothers climbed up on the bed to sit next to me.

"It's okay, Alvin." Theodore hugged me.

"You've read so many physics books repeatedly that I doubt you'll forget everything." Simon took the book and flipped through it.

I frowned. "You underestimate me." I felt tears spring at my eyes again. "Besides, even you and Ellie said I'll lose it. Britt says this is just a phase. Even I know this is probably just a phase, but I don't WANT it to be a phase."

"I'm sorry I teased you." My brother in blue admitted. "I was just very tired and very annoyed."

Theodore rested his head on my shoulder. "I don't get this science stuff at all, but if this is who you are, then you shouldn't have to hide it."

"Just maybe…tone it down a little." Simon slid off the bed.

I followed him and I heard the soft THUD! of Theo following me. "I guess maybe Sheldon Cooper isn't the best guy to emulate." I chuckled, putting my hands behind my back.

Simon looked surprised, then he made that face he makes whenever he's figured out a really tough math problem. "You were purposely acting like him!? Alvin, he's a TV character. They have to be over the top and exaggerated. You don't."

"I don't?" Something about that didn't seem quite right. "But people LOVE Sheldon! He's like the most popular character on the show! He got his own spinoff!"

My brother in the blue shirt slapped his forehead. I assume he thought I said something else stupid. "People love him because they know he's just a character on TV." He explained. "If they actually had to live with him, day in, and day out, they would QUICKLY lose their sanity."

"I see. And that's why I've made you guys lose your sanity?" I rubbed my chin as I walked toward the door with Simon. I think Theo was still behind us.

"Exactly." My fellow genius bro continued. "If people get tired of Sheldon's antics, they can turn the TV off. If you asked someone in real life if they would be his friend, the answer is probably no. Or never in a million years."

"People like Sheldon actually do exist, Simon." My baby bro interjected. "And they don't deserve to be friendless. Your logic is weird." Ohoho! Take that, Simon! Theo knows stuff too!

"Okay, well, yes, but they still shouldn't constantly flaunt their intellect and babble about physics. Especially in the middle of the NIGHT!" He adjusted his glasses as we strode into the hall. "Too much of a good thing is STILL not healthy."

It was like the lightbulb Simon drew above my head earlier caused me to finally have a lightbulb moment. Suddenly, it all CLICKED! I COULDN'T use TV tropes to learn how to use my intelligence after all. But I could still use it for other stuff. "I get it now! I get it! Ohoho!" Then, I got a funny feeling in my stomach. "But, wait, Simon….can I ask you something weird?" I asked, as we started down the stairs.

"Sure." My taller bro helped Theodore down the steps, holding his hand so he didn't trip and fall.

Once we were at the bottom of the staircase, I dropped the biggest and weirdest question ever thought up. "What if I feel like I AM a TV character?"

"Well, you did want to be on reality TV this one time." Theo laughed. "Maybe you are kinda like a TV character."

"Hmmmm." Simon rubbed his chin. "Somehow, we have to make you stop feeling like a TV character and start feeling like a real person. And we'll start…with moderation."

"Moderation?" Theo and I asked at the same time.

Simon nodded. "Work on gaining control of your mood swings, work on making sure you know when to be quiet and when to add your viewpoint. It'll be hard, there's no sugarcoating it, but you do like challenges."

I was filled with unstoppable determination. "I can do this!"

"Mmmm sugarcoating." Theodore commented. "Aw man, now I want another one of those cupcakes."

I poked him in the cheek. "You need to lay off the cupcakes."

"It's not like I eat them every day." He gave me a mini glare. It's less intense than the Simon glare.

"I know." I smirked. "Just messin' with ya."

"So, Si, can I still be your science buddy?" I asked, wagging my tail. "Now that I, you know, have proven myself to be serious about learning."

He smiled at me proudly. "Of course you can."

My brothers and I all sat on the couch in the living room together and played a game of Mario Party. It was super fun! It's been a while since we all played videogames together. During the game, the physics facts finally retreated. With Simon assuring me I wouldn't lose them, I could finally stop thinking about them so hard. I was able to focus on the game and making memories with my favorite brothers in the whole universe.

When we finished the games and also dinner, Theo and Simon pushed me up to the door of Dave's home office. It was time to tackle the next hurdle of my journey. I was not ready. I tried to run.

"Alvin, come on." Theodore grabbed me by the waist. "You have to tell him."

Simon grabbed onto Theodore and pulled him, inching me closer and closer to the door. "Once you tell him, you'll be free. You won't have to hide anymore."

"I'll still have to hide from management." I reminded him, digging my shoes into the carpet.

"We'll take care of that another day." Simon assured me.

"Stop fighting us, Alvin." Theodore begged.

Finally, I stopped pulling away from them and, well, for every action there's an equal and opposite reaction. We all went flying at the door as Simon and Theo pulled backward without my opposing force fighting them. CRASH!

Dave opened the door and stared at us. "What are you doing?"

"Alvin wants to talk to you about his report card." Theodore blurted out.

My dad made a face that was a cross between confusion and worry. Then, he smiled. I was pretty sure he wouldn't be smiling so much when we were finished talking.

Simon handed me the report card in question. It had been delivered in the mail earlier and he'd swiped it for me. Bros looking out for bros. "Good luck." He whispered.

"Please back me up." I whispered back.

"We'll listen through the door and if things get ugly, we'll step in." He patted my back.

"You got this!" Theo whispered. I wasn't so sure.

I gulped and entered the lion's den. I climbed up into the chair that faced Dave's desk. He sat in his chair, hands on the desk, facing me. His eyebrows wiggling suspiciously like two giant fuzzy caterpillars. (I have been spending too much time with Jeanette. Wow.) Bottom line, he didn't know quite how to react to me.

"Well, Dave…" I began, my voice higher than usual. "I have good news and I have bad news. Which do ya wanna hear first?"

He rubbed his temples. "The good news, please."

"I'm passing my extralur…extracur….that extra bonus class with an A!" I boasted, forgetting how to say extracurricular because I was too excited/nervous. "And, my math and science grades are Cs!"

He stiffened his jaw. "Okay, now what's the bad news?"

"I'm failing, well, most of the other stuff." I rubbed my left arm with my right.

"What? Ohhh…." He groaned loudly.

Having been in this situation more times than I could count, I knew exactly what was coming next. I plugged my ears with my fingers and braced myself for the inevitable.

"AAAAAAALVIIIIIIINNN!" My dad yelled, loud enough that our neighbors could hear it.

When I was sure he was finished, I unplugged my ears. "Ya done now? Can I continue talking?" I asked, standing up in the chair.

His frown lines were very deep. "You're failing classes again!?"

"Yeah, pretty much." I jumped onto his desk. "But on the bright side, I'm passing physics! With an A!"

"How could you let everything slip again?" He looked disappointed in me. This wasn't what I wanted for my marking period either, Dave. "You were doing so well."

I held up the report card Simon gave me. "Did you not hear I got an A in PHYSICS! In PHYSICS! You know, a SCIENCE class! I think I've found another passion!" I continued to try and make my dad proud.

He wasn't proud. Not even a little bit. "You're going to have to take summer school unless you get those grades up. I'll call the tutors." He reached for the phone.

I knew there was one surefire way to make him pay attention to me. I yelled the way he usually does. "DAAAAAAAAAVIIIIIIDDD!"

"Alvin, not now." He had his phone book out and was flipping through tutors' phone numbers.

I climbed up his shirt and shook the report card in his face. Maybe THAT would make him notice it. "BUT LOOK AT MY GRADES IN SCIENCE AND MATH! They're higher! I'm not doing worse! I'm doing BETTER. I just gotta figure out, you know, how to do better in EVERYTHING."

Finally, it dawned on him. He snatched the report card and stared at my A in astonishment. "Physics class? I thought you took music appreciation!"

Ohhhh yeah. Forgot he assumed that. "….I lied." I squeaked out.

"What have I told you about lying?" He said sternly. Why was this guy so hard to please!?

I rolled my eyes. "Right, like anyone would believe I passed a physics class without proof! Think, Dave, think!" I replied.

That stopped him. He stood still like he didn't know how to proceed. "…..Okay, um,….So what do we do about your other grades?"

Phew! Finally! "I'll take care of it!" I promised. "Trust me! I'll find a system that works! It'll take some more practice, but I am gonna have Si and Jeanette and even Theo help me. And you too, if you want to. If you aren't busy." I didn't think the last part would happen, since he was usually busy. Really busy.

"I'll do my best." My dad said softly. "But you have to actually pay attention."

"I'll try! I can't say for sure that I will cuz paying attention is super hard sometimes, but I'll try." I put a paw on my heart. "So, that being said, how about my physics grade!? Aren't you impressed!?" Please say you are! Please say you're proud of me! I need to hear those words! Those tiny little words!

"Yeah…" Almost there, just a little more….and then Dave being the clueless guy he is, had to unintentionally ruin it. "But I'd be more impressed if you hadn't blown off everything else to focus on physics."

My ears drooped. He still wasn't proud. All that work for nothin. "So would I, Dave. So would I." Wait a second! It wasn't for nothin'. I was proud of me! And that's good enough! "But, but, I think it's a darn good start! Will you agree to that? It's a darn good start!"

He nodded. "Yeah. It is. I think you'll get somewhere if you keep putting in the effort."

"Ohoho! I will! Just you wait and see!" I vowed.

That's when my brothers entered the room.

"Little late, you guys." I jumped down and nudged them.

"Sorry, sorry." Theo squeaked. "Simon was trying to explain The Big Bang Theory to me and we missed our cue."

"The TV series or the actual scientific theory?" I inquired, that genius level curiosity kickin' in.

"Uhhhhhhhh…." My brother in green looked to my other brother. "Simon?"

Simon chuckled and then patted Theo's head. "The TV series."

"Wait, Alvin likes physics now?" Dave asked us all, scratching his head.

"I'm as surprised as you are, Dave." Simon jumped onto the desk. "Turns out, well,….Alvin is a lot smarter than he looks."

"Hey!" I did not take kindly to that dig at my AWESOME appearance.

It was like Dave was looking at me in an entirely new way. It felt so good and yet so weird. "How much smarter?"

Simon exchanged an uncomfortable look with me. Neither of us knew how to break the news to him.

So Theo did for us. "As smart as Simon."

Dave pointed a shaky finger at me. "W….W….What?"

I smiled awkwardly. "Yeah. You've got two genius kids now, Dave."

"I'm beginning to think Dr. Wilson actually DID fry his brain." Simon commented. I couldn't tell if that was meant to be a joke or not.

I shook my head. "Nah, he's just a really good teacher. The brain thing was probably aliens."

"Alvin, enough with the aliens." Dave begged. "Are we sure he's actually a genius?"

"Yup." Theodore nodded, climbing up to sit cutely on the red chair. "We're sure."

"Want me to write some physics equations on the walls to prove it?" I asked eagerly.

"Alvin!" Simon scolded me.

"No. No. I'll….uh….I'll take your word for it." Dave looked at my report card again. "And also this."

It felt great having my father aware of my new and improved self, but I still had a twinge of fear. Now that he KNEW how smart I was, I could never go back to just coasting by. I had the same sort of pressure to always strive for excellence that Simon complained about. I could feel it. It was tugging at my soul. I needed to come up with a system that could help me pass all my classes. At least I had my family and friends to help!

The next day, I joined my brothers and the Chipettes in class before school started. Eleanor was playing with her phone, Theo was eating gummy bears, Simon was double checking his math homework with a calculator, Britt was filing her nails, and Jeanette was petting something (Pippi I assume) that was in her backpack.

"So," No physics talk. No physics talk. Don't be like Sheldon. Be like Alvin. "Wanna hear how I whipped Simon's behind in Mario Party?"

Brittany let out a sigh of relief. "I would LOVE to."

"There I was, like 6 spaces behind him. We were both selected for a kickboxing mini game. He had my energy bar almost at zero, but then I just started hitting him with all I could muster! Wham! Bam! Smack! His bar hit zero and I advanced to the finish line!" I rambled.

"But I got more coins than Alvin, and I crossed the finish line second, so I won." Theodore reminded me.

I snatched a couple of his gummy bears. "Yeah, but I still beat Simon!"

Eleanor looked upset we'd left her out. I didn't even know she wanted to play. "Aw man. Dude, next time you play Mario Party, invite us."

"You know how much I love being Princess Peach." Brittany added.

Simon shrugged. "I didn't really care if I won or not. If I did care, you wouldn't have stood a chance."

"Oh really?" I stood on my desk. "Let's see ya put your money where your mouth is, pal! Rematch! Today, after school."

"I can't." He said. "I'm going to the museum with Jeanette."

"Can I come too?" I asked. "I like museums now!"

Jeanette came over to talk to me face to face. "It's just going to be me and Simon. Although, maybe you can join us at the next one."

"It'll be out of town though, so you'll need a disguise." Simon added. "Otherwise, the media will have a field day speculating why Alvin was in a museum."

I was HYPED! A day at the museum with my bro and the friend I'd recently grown much closer to. It sounded like bliss. Huh? No barfy feeling. Oh wait, yep. There it comes.

"A museum? Are you out of your mind?" I ignored the voice. From now on, the nerdy voice could have more influence on me. The other voice needed to stay back.

"I'm sure I can come up with somethin'." I said regarding the disguise.

"A museum?" Brittany stared at me in shock. "You want to go to a MUSEUM?"

"I'm a multifaceted individual, Britt." I smirked, taking my glasses off my cap and putting them over my eyes. "Deal with it."

She groaned and then turned her head away from me. Which was fine. She'd adjust. Someday.

"It's been a crazy crazy month, hasn't it?" Theodore asked nobody in particular. I think it was directed at all of us…and also the world.

"Crazy month? Try crazy marking period." Replied Simon, putting the calculator away.

"I like crazy." Jeanette returned to her seat.

I stepped down from my desk and sat in my seat too. "Hey, I know I'm not supposed to talk physics repeatedly, but I have one last teeny little fun fact to share with you. Is that okay?"

"Hey, the dog with a chew toy is back. Om nom nom nom nom. Wanna see the meme I made?" Eleanor teased playfully.

They all looked at me and everyone except Brittany nodded.

The pigtailed girl showed off the meme on her phone screen. Everyone had a good laugh at the golden retriever chewing on a dumbbell shaped chew toy. She had written "Alvin" on the dog and "physics" on the dumbbell. I sensed it was an attempt to make fun of me, but it was hilarious so I didn't mind.

"Go on." Jeanette urged, after the laughs concluded.

"Time freezes inside a black hole due to a little something called gravitational time dilation." I informed them, glad that they let me slip one little factoid in.

"Weren't we like….in a black hole before?" Theodore said, looking at Simon.

My taller bro looked embarrassed. "Something along those lines, yes."

"Oh yeah! From Simon's anti-gravity gravity collapser thingamajig. Hey, I know how that thing works now." Holy nuts! I actually knew how it worked! My voice trembled in fear. "Why would you make such a dangerous thing! Do you know what that could DO TO OUR WHOLE PLANET!?"

"Yes." Simon frowned. "I am aware. That's why I'm keeping it locked in a safe in our basement."

"But…but why even make it in the first place?" I asked.

Simon's ears drooped. "Because I could." He sighed. "I'm just a kid like you. I make dumb decisions too. Just….less dumb decisions than you."

"That's debatable." Jeanette commented, quickly adding. "But I don't want to cause an argument."

"Did Alvin fall into Simon's gene pool or something?" Brittany commented, in her sassy way.

"Essentially. Yes. Kinda." Theo told Brittany.

I just laughed. Nobody would ever fully get used to this, would they? But it was still fun. Enjoying something is the most important thing and I was enjoying being nerdy.

I strolled in Dr. Wilson's class feeling sad. It was the last day of class. I was gonna miss this place. My entire life had changed because I stepped foot in this classroom. How could I ever say goodbye?

"Got any more advice for me before I head out?" I asked my favorite teacher.

He looked down at me and smiled that wise all-knowing grin. "The universe has given you the gift of a bright and curious mind, but it's up to you to use that gift responsibly."

"How do I do that?" I wondered aloud.

He chuckled. "I would start by not terrorizing the other students with physics fun facts."

Oof. He knew about that. "Oooh, yeah, that was out of line." I responded honestly.

"But it's okay that you made that mistake, because you're still learning." He added. It is okay? WHOAH! I can't remember the last time someone said my mistakes were okay! Usually they say they're disasters!

"Thanks, Dr. Wilson." I jumped up to high five him. "You've really turned my life around."

"I look forward to seeing you next marking period. If you're interested." He winked.

WAIT! Hold the phone! "You mean I can take this class again?"

He handed me the sign up sheet. "The next level up, yes. We cover some pretty interesting theories and experiments. There's also a unit about physics throughout history."

"OHOHO! Sign me up now!" I wrote my name on the sheet eagerly. Ohoho! Another marking period of Dr. Wilson! Whooooo! My life was looking really promising!

On Saturday, I spent some time with Britt, like Jeanette had so helpfully suggested. I invited her out shopping, because I needed some new clothes, for multiple reasons.

"I'm thinking of….updating my look to reflect...the new me." I said as we walked along the sidewalk together.

Britt looked very worried. "Will you still wear red?"

"Obviously!" I told her. "Not to the museum because that would give my identity away, but definitely keeping the red shirt and yellow A. I wouldn't be me without it, you know." It was true. It was pretty much my trademark.

"You know, red goes really well with pink…" She began, fluttering her eyelashes.

She was really irritating sometimes. "Haha, I see what you're doing." I frowned at her. "No."

She pointed to a shirt in the display window of a shop we just passed. "You'd look so good in a red and pink checked shirt."

I cringed at the thought. "I'd look like an off brand Jeanette."

"What about stripes?" She nudged me and pointed to a striped shirt that was pink and red.

"Off brand Eleanor." I looked around. Where was that thrift store Dave always goes to?

Brittany giggled. "I knew you'd say that. Seriously, I don't even like stripes." We passed another shop. This one was rather hoity toity. "Oooh. I know. A dark red leather jacket."

"Like mahogany or deep cranberry?" I have a thing for being really specific about describing colors. It drives Simon crazy. To him everything is just light red, dark red, medium red. To me it's crimson, cherry, scarlet, vermilion…

"Yeah!" Brittany pulled my arm.

At last, I could see the thrift shop! "I bet that place has some cheap little clothes!" I said, tickling Britt's arm until she let mine go.

She frowned and followed me. "You don't want cheap."

"Yes, I do. Gotta use my limited allowance to buy a whole new wardrobe." Since I wasn't allowed to raise money by annoying people into paying me to shut up anymore. That was such a steady income too! It kinda sucked.

Brittany whipped out her phone. "Hmmm. That would make a good blog topic." She started to jot it down.

"Take notes." I pulled her into the thrift store. Looking around, I saw racks and racks of baby size clothes that would fit on me. Every color of the rainbow was present! "This is my world."

The diva beside me wrinkled her nose. "It smells like mildew in here."

"Nah, it's musty. Your nose will adjust." I told her.

"You better wash whatever you buy here….10 times." She said, plugging her nose.

I browsed through a rack of baby clothes and doll clothes. "Ooooh….I like this one." I held up a white shirt with a red videogame controller logo.

Britt shook her head. "White doesn't suit you, and it's too easy to get stained."

"Hey, look! They have one in black!" I held up a black one with a red controller that said "Game Over? Not On My Watch!"

"Oh yes, black is a must have." Her icey eyes were glistening. "I love you in black."

"How about this one?" I showed her a long red T-shirt with a rocket design and an earth logo.

She wasn't thrilled. "That's sort of….geeky."

"So?" I asked. I was over trying to not look geeky. At least for today.

"It's also oversized. It's gonna be huge on you." She pointed out.

As if my current favorite hoodie didn't already reach my knees! "I like long shirts! And rockets! I've always wanted to ride a rocket ship to outer space!" I hugged the shirt close.

Britt held up a black jacket while using her free hand to continue to plug her nose. It made her voice sound kinda dorky. "Try this one."

"That's a cool look…." I began, before something across the aisle caught my eye. It was a cyan hooded jacket. It practically glowed as the sunlight hit it. Coulda sworn I heard birds singing too. The jacket was calling to me. "I need this!" I grabbed the jacket and hugged it tightly along with the other geeky shirts I'd picked out.

Brittany was disgusted. "Oh, you don't want that. It's hideous. No one can pull off that obnoxious shade of light blue."

I stuck my lip out and began to whine. "But, I like this color….a lot. I think I can pull it off." Then, I couldn't resist being kinda sassy with her. "And by the way, it's not "light blue" it's CYAN."

"You're nuts." She grumbled.

"Can I please please try it on?" I begged.

"Go ahead, but, you're gonna hate the way you look. I guarantee it." She said seriously. I wonder if she knew she just parodied the slogan of Men's Warehouse.

I slipped the cyan jacket over my red T shirt with the yellow A. I felt POWERFUL! I felt like Superman! It's not quite the same blue Superman has, but it's close enough. Superman's blue is too close to Simon's anyway.

My friend gagged. She wasn't acting much like a friend at the moment. She took a picture of me with her phone and showed it to me. "See? Awful."

"Whoah…..I look great!" I said in astonishment. I really was servin' Superman vibes!

Britt was STILL disgusted. "What?"

I twirled around in my new jacket. "It makes my eyes pop."

"In a completely dorky way." Her disgust was now mixed with worry.

I stood my ground. "I don't care what you think." I said confidently. "Let's get to the checkout."

"It's the ugliest thing you've ever worn. You wear it to school and you'll lose any chance you have at being popular." She warned me.

I kind of did want to wear it to school, but I had a better place in mind to wear it first. Despite Britt protesting the entire time we were at the checkout, I bought the jacket. It felt good to treat myself without worrying what anyone else thought. I should do that more often.

Sunday, I was in my room getting dressed in my disguise. I had my glasses on, my hair messed up, and the cyan jacket covering my letter A shirt. It was zipped up entirely. I kept my same jeans, but I had brand new shoes! My shoes were every color of the rainbow thanks to the designs I sketched and colored all over them.

Simon gasped when he saw my shoes. "Are those the brand new white sneakers Dave bought you!?"

"Um…." Was all I could get out.

"He's gonna be furious!" My brother in the darker blue jacket shouted.

I tied up my shoes and admired the numerous colorful waves and symbols. Hearts, flowers, stars, atoms, music notes, cupcakes, and more. They represented each one of my family members and friends. "Oh relax. They're called SKETCHers. Why would they be called that if you aren't supposed to sketch on them?"

Simon facepalmed hard.

"I think they look super cool!" Theodore was on my side at least.

Dave entered our bedroom. "Boys, it's almost time for breakf….."

I waved awkwardly. "H...H...Hello?"

"What did you do to your shoes?" My dad waved his arms at the "ruined" sneakers.

I lifted a foot and pointed to my shoe. "Are you blind? I colored. They look better now. Perfect for a hipster trendsetter like myself. I mean, come on! I have the glasses for it!" I slid my glasses down my nose for emphasis.

"Little update, Dave, Alvin's a "hipster trendsetter" now." Simon commented with his signature eyeroll.

"And he likes museums now too!" Theo squeaked.

Dave was still mourning my sneakers. "Do you know how much money I…." He shook his head in exasperation. "As long as you like them and get my money's worth….it's okay." Whoah. What's this? A change of heart!? Sweet!

"Thanks, daddyo!" I beamed like the brightest star.

Simon groaned. "You're really wearing those to the science museum?"

"I am a genius and an artist and I want the world to know!" I exclaimed proudly.

Theo reached up and patted our brother's shoulder. "Just let him do it, Simon. It's not hurting anyone!"

"Alright." My taller brother grabbed the museum brochure. "Anyway, we should get going. We don't want to keep Jeanette waiting."

"We don't wanna keep me waiting either." I gushed, overflowing with excitement. "It'll be my first time not being bored at a museum!"

"One last bit of business to take care of before we head out." Simon adjusted his round blue glasses. "You need a new name."

"I thought you said I can still be Alvin." I frowned.

He narrowed his eyes. "For your DISGUISE. You need an undercover name."

"Ohhh." I thought for a moment. Then the perfect name came to mind. "Call me Albert."

I hustled out the door and down the stairs. I heard Simon and Theo talking behind me about…something.

"Does he know?" My youngest bro was asking.

"He cannot possibly know." Simon replied.

Know what? What did they know that I didn't? Ah, forget about it. I was too excited about the museum to care anyway.

I answered the door and Jeanette was waiting there wearing a violet sweater and a plaid skirt in four shades of blue and purple.

She held out the museum tickets. "You look great, Alvin."

"Albert today." I winked. "I'm in disguise."

She giggled and held out her arm for me to link arms with her. "Well, Albert, I hope you're ready for a day of fun."

Simon joined us. "I can't wait to show you the perpetual motion machine."

"Oh yes! You will love it, Alv…Albert." Jeanette added. She held out her other arm for Simon.

"Sounds fascinating!" I grinned.

We walked together, arm in arm, all the way to the bus stop. Then, I boarded the bus and began my next incredible adventure. For the first time since the day I lost my popularity, I was actually looking forward to the future.

Whooo! That was a rough one. I have a huge headache now. Gonna get some rest. It will be probably 3-4 days before the next update. I need a rest. I've been cranking these chapters out nonstop it seems.

When I return, Alvin gets a headache for a whole different reason. You won't wanna miss it.

But for now, let's let him enjoy his new passion for science with Simon and Netta. He deserves some time without struggles.

Please remember to review if possible! Also, what do you think Simon and Theo were talking about that Alvin doesn't know? A juicy secret maybe?