Chapter 13: Months Later, Last Weeks
Several months had passed... In fact, it was already the last days of school in Kong Kollege's school year, and the vacations were already approaching. Diddy and Dixie had performed well during that cycle, unlike the group of bully children, who barely had enough grades to pass the school year.
Diddy was arriving at school normally; he no longer feared much for his evil classmates. In fact, in the wake of Dixie's arrival at school, Diddy had come to the point of seeing that quartet as just obnoxious classmates, rather than a great threat to him as they once were. He didn't even have nightmares about them anymore; it seemed that things had improved even a little. However, although those four children no longer physically mistreated him, they occasionally still teased him or made some joke or trick in bad taste.
Diddy didn't even hide when he got to school anymore and just passed by. Suddenly, someone else came by surprise and caused him a little scare. Of course, it was Dixie, who started laughing when she saw Diddy's expression after scaring him.
"Hey! Now you'll see!" exclaimed Diddy before lunging at her and tickling her.
"Let go of me!" Dixie replied with a laugh, and returned them. "Okay, okay," she added before stopping and finishing laughing. "Hey, Diddy, by the way... I found your notebook that you had lost. Take it."
Dixie took out of her backpack a notebook that was Diddy's, and that apparently had been lost days before. Then, she handed it into his hands.
"Hey, where did you find it, Dixie?!" Diddy exclaimed, taking it with emotion, before checking the pages at random. "I thought I wouldn't find it anymor-"
"Those four fools had stolen it from you to copy last week's homework," Dixie replied before noticing a paralyzed expression on Diddy. "What's wrong?"
Diddy, while looking at the pages of his notebook, noticed that on one of them he had the name Dixie written inside a heart that he had made himself a long time ago. He froze for a few seconds and only begged in his mind that Dixie hadn't seen it.
"Uh... Oh, n-nothing, it was..." Diddy replied before quickly searching for another random page. "Oh, yes, I saw this misspelling that Wrinkly corrected me last week," he added, showing it Dixie with a nervous smile.
"But those are math exercises," Dixie said with a few small laughs, to which Diddy looked back at the page and realized it was true.
Diddy didn't know what other excuse to make, and tried to think of another idea to divert the topic. When suddenly, the group of bully children appeared near them.
"Oh, look, here's the pair of stinky geckos," Mandrew said along with the rest of the group. While they no longer bothered them with blows, they continued to tease them verbally or call them nicknames from time to time.
"How long do we have to listen to your 'look, the pair of blah blah has arrived?'" Dixie replied, imitating them exaggeratedly. "Stinky you four, take a bath!"
"Take a bath," Melenky imitated her in a high-pitched voice. "Pathetic monkeys!"
"Quartet of fools, you are so annoying!" Diddy replied, looking at them in disgust.
Diddy and Dixie just rolled their eyes, and then ignored them so that they could continue to walk towards the classroom.
"By the way, can we ask you a question?" Rocky added, looking up.
"And now what do you want?" Diddy asked, pausing with a bad gesture.
"Are you two dating or something?"
Diddy and Dixie, faced with the sudden question, opened their eyes to the fullest and instantly looked at each other in a strange way.
"No!" they replied at the same time, simulating an expression of disgust.
"What are you talking about?" Diddy asked them, looking at them strangely.
"Oh, we said it because you always are together," Melenky said in a mocking tone and emitting a laugh with the group.
"So what? We're friends," Diddy replied, avoiding blushing at the awkward moment.
"Yes, but friends who are very close, from what I see," Mandrew added before laughing again.
"Hey, don't say stupid things!" replied Diddy. "We-"
Suddenly, the whole situation was interrupted when, for some reason, they heard a rather deep voice behind them.
"Good morning, students!" and that voice... wasn't from Wrinkly this time.
Everyone turned immediately, as it took them by surprise. They gasped when what they saw was a tall, strong, mustachioed middle-aged gorilla with neatly fixed hair and an elegant suit jacket and bow tie... But at the same time, with a hard look that was literally scaring Diddy, Dixie, and even the quartet of bully kids.
"I will be your new teacher for the time being," the ape announced. His voice was thick and sounded quite authoritative. "Now, everyone go to the classroom! Class is about to begin."
At first, everyone stood still for a couple of seconds while processing the image of that ape; they were too confused by that new presence. But then, they began to head to the classroom, not wanting to make eye contact with that male gorilla and walking tightly tense.
"And who is that ape?" Jemky whispered to Diddy and Dixie along with the group, trying not to shake his nerves.
"Wrinkly has gone on vacation and said she would send a replacement to school," Diddy replied in the same tone.
"But she never said it would be someone... like he," Dixie added with the same expression.
Indeed, Wrinkly had taken a good rest. Cranky had decided to take a senior cruise vacation and, of course, took his wife as well. But Wrinkly couldn't abandon her teaching job, so she had made a temporary contract with another teacher to lead her students during the last days.
All the kong children were entering the classroom, although this time they didn't seem to be calm. Just looking at the new teacher caused the students to be stiffer than a stone, because he had all the appearance of being very strict. Everyone went to their respective seats without making a single noise, while the new teacher walked back and forth at the front of the classroom, throwing stern glances at the whole class.
"Well!" he said, tapping firmly on the desk after a long silence. "First of all, good morning again, sir students. Mrs. Wrinkly is absent at the moment, so she entrusted me to take care of you. I'm Mr. Pinky Kong."
Everything was absolute seriousness until they heard his name, which was funny to the children, making them about to burst into laughter, but soon after, the teacher noticed such a murmur.
"Silence!" the new ape exclaimed, making everyone quiet again. "Now I want to know your names so I can take your attendance later."
Although at first all the students looked at each other as if they didn't know what to say, each one began to get up from their seats and say their names with a trembling voice, while the teacher was marking the names on a sheet.
"Okay!" the new ape exclaimed again. "Now I want you to tell me what was the last topic you saw."
The students were still tense and none even wanted to answer the question at first. Everyone turned to each other as if wondering who dared to answer first.
"I just asked you a question!" replied the new teacher, raising his voice a little and earning more fearful looks from the students. "What was the last topic you saw?!"
"Uhh... the square and cubic root, m-mister," Diddy dared to answer in a nervous voice, to which the teacher only nodded in a serious way.
The new teacher, Pinky, began teaching the class. Even the group of evil children was fearful; and it's that with that appearance, that look and that tone of voice of that teacher, he made them think that at any moment he would punish them for the minimum cause. The new teacher taught the class and asked the children many questions about the topic they saw, which made them more nervous about answering.
Everyone remained still during class hours, even during break, since the teacher was keeping a fixed watch on them in any situation. The only thing that kept amusing the students was his name, since with that appearance and that attitude, they didn't expect him to have such a name.
During the break, like the other groups of children, Diddy and Dixie were in a corner. As expected, that new teacher was the topic of conversation of the day, even if he was watching the students with an expression that reassured even the most restless.
"Where is that new teacher from?" Dixie asked Diddy quietly as they looked at him sideways.
"Wrinkly said he's from a large community of teachers," Diddy replied. "She made a request for a replacement teacher and it looks like they've sent that one."
"But it seems that he's very... arrogant."
"Yes, he's scary. Luckily, there is little left for the end of the cycle, so we couldn't have any mishap with him."
"Anyway, it would only be like going with the flow if he keeps getting heavy," Dixie finished with a shrug. Then, they both started eating their lunch breaks. "Wow, I feel that this cycle has passed quickly. It seems like it was last week that I came, and now it's going to end."
"That's right. And the truth, it hasn't been so bad since you came, I mean... you're my only friend here," Diddy replied with a few small laughs. "And besides, those four fools haven't been so annoying anymore; they've been calmer."
"And by the way... you still don't think to tell Donkey or Wrinkly about that?"
"Uh, I think it's better to leave things there," Diddy said with a shrug. "I don't want to get us into any more trouble. Besides, maybe it's not long before we continue to see those four, so it may not be necessary anymore."
"What are you naming us for?" suddenly exclaimed another voice.
Both turned to look and saw that it was the quartet, who even bumped their shoulders and caused them a little scare.
"And what do you want?" Diddy asked them, looking at them strangely.
"We wanted to ask you," Rocky said quietly, "where did that big teacher come from?"
"Well, from a community of teachers, I suppose," Diddy replied with the same expression.
"And is Wrinkly coming back or not?" Melenky asked them.
"Yes, but not in this cycle," Diddy replied.
"Why? Are you also afraid of the new teacher?" Dixie told them in a mocking tone.
"Of course not," Jemky replied with a strange look. "Why should we fear that one?"
"Neither do I," Mandrew added in the same way. "We just asked."
"And by the way… so close together I see you two, huh?" Melenky told them, giving them little pushes along with the group... except for Jemky.
"Oh, the monkey couple!" Mandrew added in the same way as laughing. "You are dating!"
"Hey, what antics are you saying?!" Diddy replied, looking at them reluctantly. "Dixie and I are friends!"
"Oh, yes, buddies!" added Rocky with a mocking smile. "Buddies of those who like each other."
"Shut up, don't talk nonsense!" Diddy replied as he got up with Dixie and they walked away.
"Oh, you're leaving together!" they kept bothering them from a distance. "They are a coupl-".
"Students!" exclaimed the new teacher from the door of the classroom, with an authoritative voice that left all the children present still, the instant they heard him. "Break is over! Everyone to the classroom, please!"
Later, the break ended and the students returned to the classroom. Although the class continued normally, the new teacher kept throwing intimidating looks; it was as if he had a certain gift for imposing discipline on a group.
By noon, it was almost time to leave, and the new teacher had to give a final announcement.
"Sir students!" exclaimed the teacher in his authoritative voice. "As you know, your vacations are almost around the corner, but not before taking your final exam!" saying 'final exam' instilled more fear in them. The only thing the students imagined was an exam with such difficult questions. "But I want to tell you something: I won't take it to you" those words were of great relief to everyone. "But I will send you a school projectandthat will be the grade of the exam," he added, returning to a stern tone and making everyone immediately return the tension.
"And... what... are you going to send us... Mr. Pinky?" asked Rocky, almost stuttering.
"I want you to make a miniature pyramid with a nice finish on its top, it has to be some shiny stone, like a jewel, for example. You can make the pyramid with the materials you want," replied the teacher, before showing a small smile for the first time in the day and with a calmer tone of voice.
"Uh, and why don't we take the exam better?" Jemky suggested with a shrug, earning withering glances from the rest of the children.
"Do you just want to take the exam?!" said the teacher, returning to his threatening tone that scared the students again.
"No, no, no! We just want the school project," Diddy hastened.
"Well! So, you have two weeks to do your works. I will grade them on the last day of school, but you have to bring it done in advance to check if you are doing well, okay?"
The students nodded their heads, still with some expressions of some fear.
"Okay!" added the teacher, going to take his belongings. "You can leave, kids. The class ended today."
Minutes later, class was over and all the children left the classroom. The new teacher stayed to watch that every kid went home, which bothered the group of four bullies, but in turn, favored Diddy and Dixie, since the others wouldn't have a chance to bother them.
Before leaving, the four bully children stared sideways at Diddy and Dixie as they walked away, while these two smiled mockingly at them, as the new teacher was nearby monitoring the area like a guardian.
"They just simulate, but they're afraid of him too," Dixie said quietly, referring to the quartet.
"On that side, I'm glad that teacher had arrived," Diddy added. "I feel like he would give those four a good lesson... Although jokes aside, a punishment from him would be scary."
"And how are we supposed to make that pyramid? I don't know if I would have preferred an exam as well."
"I don't know yet. Oh, and you also have to get a shiny stone like said that Mr... Pinky," Diddy finished, emphasizing the name and making them both start laughing as they remembered it.
"Why would he be named that?" Dixie wondered, finishing laughing along with Diddy. "I mean, he looks too serious to have that name."
"No idea, what does it have to do with the color pink?" added Diddy shrugging as he began to walk along with Dixie, heading home. "Geez, and I don't even have any diamonds or anything brilliant to put on that pyramid."
"I think I have some at home; those could help."
"Anyway, we can tell Donkey if he can help us over the weekend. Although I would have to ask him well, since I think I remember that he was going to have an important date with Candy, you know: couple matters."
"Wow, they two do things together so much," Dixie said with a little laugh.
"Yes, that's how those two are," Diddy replied in the same way and shrugged. "They spend too much time together."
"Would you ever have a girlfriend too?" asked Dixie curiously, earning a strange look from Diddy. "I mean, if you'd be like that too?"
"No, I mean... I'm not thinking about those things," he replied, smiling and with the same expression.
"And for asking... Has any girl ever caught your attention?" she asked with a forced smile and as if she were looking at him sideways.
"What do you say? Of course not," Diddy added, looking at her more strangely and with a few slight laughs. "I don't care about those matters, really," he added, shrugging, before continuing to walk.
"Really... never, never?" Dixie asked again, looking at him sideways and curiously at the same time.
"Hey, of course not," replied Diddy, looking at her this time seriously. "I wouldn't be that 'cloying' with anyone," he finished as he went on his way, but at the same time... earning a look of disappointment from Dixie.
A/N: That new teacher who arrived is almost, almost also a OC. I don't have his design embodied, but I've imagined him as a mix between Bluster and Uncle Kong. Obviously, only in his physical appearance; his personality is so different.