chapter…
sixtynine….
…...nice.
Did I steal the name of this chapter from Diary Of a Wimpy Kid? No. You're insane.
Reviews!
Guest: OMG is that Sadfox729? Welcome back, I've missed you!
MoonTheMagical: Oh, that's cool that you have a yt! And yes, that's why I like Liz too :)
SomeRandomRobo: I know right? It's so sad. There should be a FNAF tv show just following the lives of the Afton fam. No murder required.
Qxr: Definitely the brains - or at least, that's what Michael thinks.
Chapter 69 (nice)
Cabin Fever
"Alrighty class, I want everyone to take out your devices or grab an ePad from the back, because we are going to be playing Kahoot!" Ms Diaz announced.
"YEAHHHHH!" The classes cheered, banging on desks and whooping. Ruby shot her arms into the air, thrilled. Kahoot was the best. She wasn't much good at it, of course, but it brought out the competitive streak in her and it was loads of fun watching the class play. And what made it even better was that Ruby's class and Tulisa and Josh's class had both combined! Unfortunately no Myah or Ducky.
They were playing Kahoot, Ruby assumed, because Ms Diaz hadn't been looking too good when Ruby had first walked into class. When asked what was wrong, Ms Diaz had answered in a tired and worn-out voice that Bill the repairman had been adding the PA system to their backup generator, but he'd been taking forever and the school had to pay a crap-ton of money for it. Ruby had smiled apologetically and given her a mini pretzel.
As Ms Diaz fiddled with the projector, kids rushed to get the code and their names in, furiously typing on the keyboard. Ruby wheezed as she read off some of the names.
"Foot emoji, REDCRAB, maegan (REAL!), two Ur Mom's and a Mommy, morgan the swag, Caleb with three hot emojis, Wombat Milk, Bakugo's Secret Fingernails with a wizard emoji, and Babygirl with a heart eyes cat face- where do people even come up with these names?!"
Josh laughed. "I don't even know. Their minds are an enigma. Wanna have matching names?"
"Sure," agreed Ruby, and they settled on their names with Josh having a moon emoji and Ruby having a sun. The two emojis faced each other, except they had messed it up so it looked like they were back-to-back like the cover of a spy movie. Tulisa, going for gold, set her name to Tulisa: winner.
"Confident, are we?" Ruby teased, wiggling her eyebrows. Tulisa rolled her eyes and shoved her friend playfully.
"Alright, everyone in?" Ms Diaz asked. Everyone nodded, and the game began.
The first few questions were very easy, simple trivia that anyone could get. So far Ducky was in ninth, Ruby was in seventh, Josh in fifth, and Tulisa in second. First place was- what the heck?! Abbie Mason? Ruby didn't know Abbie well (besides that one night, but Abbie wasn't exactly easy to converse with at that moment), but from her being in three of her classes, plus being a typical popular girl, she didn't seem like the sharpest knife in the block.
Ruby turned, seeing Abbie in the desk beside her. Wearing a tan tank top, gold jewelry, and white comfy sweatpants, a sharp contrast to her dark shiny hair and copper eyes, Abbie looked like she walked straight out of a Lisi Harrison novel. She looked rather proud of herself, a glossy beam on her lips.
"Yoooo, Abbie! So are you like the brainy one in the group?" Ryder, one of Matt's idiot friends, crowed from the back.
Abbie gave a little laugh. "Oh, it was a lucky guess." She turned away and untucked a curl of hair from behind her ears, the silky curtain shielding her bronze face. Ruby frowned, her reaction seeming off, but didn't mention it to any of her friends.
The next round, Abbie plummeted from first, sending Tulisa into her previous spot. Josh, Ruby, and Ducky went down a spot, and Ryder shot up into third. From behind them, Ryder and a few other equally idiotic boys banged on the desks like some kind of ritual chant, clearly happy with Ryder's performance.
The next question was something about hermit crabs, which the user REDCRAB seemed to do well at. Ruby, however, was not very educated on the subject and dropped to twelfth.
"Oh, my God. I almost had a heart attack. I thought I clicked green!" Tulisa gasped, clutching her chest with her cobalt-blue eyes wide and panicked.
"I regret thinking you clicked green and copying you," Ducky said ruefully, dark curls falling into his umber eyes. He frowned, glancing up at his hair. "My roots have been growing out for a while, I should really dye them."
Ruby's eyes lit up. "You should let us dye them! Josh, you're good with hair, right?"
Josh shrugged. "Debatable. But I could try, if you're okay with it."
Ducky pondered it for about three seconds, then said "Sure! You guys can come over to my place on Sunday. I've got tons of dye - I'm thinking red."
Ruby nodded. "Vouch. Red is the best hair colour."
Ducky grinned. "Yeah, I must say your hair looks nice. Where did you get the dye?"
Ruby grimaced. That was probably her least favourite question, ever. Which she unfortunately got asked a lot. Hey, at least it was a compliment to her hair though.
"A basement in the middle of the woods." She decided wryly.
Ducky grinned, his tone light and teasing. "Ha, guess you're not going to tell me. Fine. Have your secrets."
Ruby would tell him why she had a tomato for hair, except that the middle of a noisy, nosy, gossipy classroom when she was next to Abbie of all people was not the best place to tell him stuff that she'd rather have kept a secret.
The next question came up on the screen, 'Who Wrote Scythe?'. Tulisa gasped, a spark lighting in her eyes.
"I know this one! If I get this, I win!" She grinned, awaiting the answers with anticipation heavy in her gaze. This was it. She could win the glory and respect of her classmates, or lose it all with one misclick.
Tulisa waited, index finger poised, eyes laser-focused on the board and the projection in front of her. The question prepared to load, the dial spinning, and-
Bringggggggg!
"UGH." Tulisa groaned, slumping in her chair as Ms Diaz turned off the projector on her laptop. Ducky smiled apologetically, patting her shoulder in an effort to comfort his friend. "Don't worry, you totally would have won anyways."
"I knowwww…"
The loudspeaker crackled and the principal, Mr Fox, began to speak.
"Hello Lakeview, please keep your ears peeled for the afternoon announcements."
Ruby hated it when people said that. Her ears were not an orange peel.
"Uh-" the sounds of keyboard keys clicking echoed through the loudspeaker. "I've just been informed that, due to the recent blizzard, cars and buses are unable to get to the school until tomorrow morning when the snowplows arrive."
There was silence in the normally noisy classroom as the information slowly sank in like an adventurer in quicksand. Ruby whipped her head to the side towards the window, and yeah, it was snowing, but she hadn't realized it was that bad. A bunch of kids stood up, chairs screeching, and dashed to the windows, murdering amongst themselves. Ruby and her friends were with those kids, pressing their faces against the frosty window.
Snowflakes tumbled down from the sky, little tufts of cotton collecting into an icy blanket that covered the grass. The sky was cloudy and dark, and filled with millions of the tiny flakes akin to dandelion seeds. The roads were full of it too, along with ice - both slushy and firm - that Ruby could only imagine would be a nightmare to clean up, let alone drive through.
They then realized that Mr Fox was still speaking, so everyone quickly hushed up.
"... grades nine and ten to report to the Blue Gym, eleven and twelve to the Gold Gym, where we will further discuss information. Kids who live in Saffron Falls or New Harmony, please report to the office. If you have a device, you may contact your parents, and if you do not, ask your teachers."
Ducky's eyes were as round as saucers. "Wow. I did not expect that at all. We're stranded!"
"Yeah, and I know this girl in my French class who's in Rock Climbing right now- they're at Lakeview Middle! So that class is stuck with the seven and eight classes." Tulisa explained.
Ruby winced. "Yikes, that sucks. Twelve and thirteen-year-olds are either horrifically brutal, weirdly into some obscure thing on Timblr, or actually kind of rad." She knew from firsthand experience, and she was one of the rad ones.
The four of them each took a moment to send a quick text to their parents - Ruby's mom had already heard from the school's Bookface page - and then turned back to each other.
Josh shrugged. "Hey, look on the bright side. At least things can't get any worse!"
And the moment he uttered those words, the lights flickered out. The blue lights of the projector went dark. And everyone turned to stare accusingly at Josh.
~lll~
"This is so crazy," Myah said, taking a seat beside Ruby on the gymnasium floor. The grade twelve classes had split into two, with Myah luckily in Ruby's group. "I mean, it was snowing a little before school, but even that was just a drizzle. And now it's like the Arctic up here! Or Canada!"
"Aw, it's not nearly as bad as either of those," Ruby scoffed. "At least we don't have polar bears."
Myah giggled. "Could you imagine? We look out the window and we just see these polar bears romping around in the snow, all casual. And, like, penguins sliding on their tummies down the hill!" She untucked her legs from under her arms, sitting cross-legged. Ruby noticed how their knees touched, which she of course wasn't opposed to.
"...yeah." She mumbled absent-mindedly, mind wandering to things that were mostly not Arctic-related.
Myah shivered, crossing her arms. She was only wearing white jeans and a dark brown top with thin tulle sleeves, she was probably freezing. "Brr, it's cold. I was expecting to stay inside all day- well, we are, but I at least thought it would be warm."
Ruby shifted around in her spot, face warming. "Do you, um, want my jacket, or something?" She was wearing two - her leather jacket, and a red flannel, a tight black tee-shirt underneath.
Myah's face lit up. "Really? Thanks!" She waited expectantly for what she probably assumed was the leather jacket, but seemed a little surprised when she got the flannel.
"...Oh, I thought you were giving me your leather jacket." Myah murmured, clutching the worn red fabric in her fists. Ruby looked at the ground uncomfortably.
"Uh, right. It's just that I don't really like...sharing it. It was my dad's, so it's kinda got a special place in my heart, you know? Sorry if that sounds cheesy.."
"No, no! It's totally fine, I get it." Myah hurried. "Sorry, I just...well, it's a nice jacket."
"You trying to steal it?" Ruby teased.
The smaller girl gasped, tugging the flannel on. "No way! I'm not the kleptomaniac here, Miss Can-I-Borrow-Your-Pencil! I'm pretty sure you still have it, and that was all the way back in November!"
Ruby gave a small laugh, too distracted by the way the large jacket, oversized on Ruby, practically drowned Myah in it, giving her adorable sweater paws and the bottom of the flannel just grazing the bottoms of her thighs.
"You look nice in it," Ruby told her, this time not ashamed to speak her mind. Myah flushed pink, a tendency Ruby had noticed she did quite a bit and found very cute.
"Thank you," She mumbled, glancing to the side. A moment of silence that was anything but awkward passed, till Myah finally looked up.
"You know, we should hang out sometime. The weekend's in two days, after all- I could text the twins and Ducky!"
Ruby grinned. "Actually, that's perfect. In Science, Ducky invited me and the others over to his place to dye his hair on Saturday - I'm sure he won't mind if you come as well."
"I've been to his place already. It's nice! It's quite crowded though, his sisters and his aunt like to stay over and his abuela lives with him." Myah explained.
Ruby laughed. "Sounds pretty cool. So yeah, we could hang out then, and there's a day off on Tuesday that we could all do something on."
Myah smiled. "Perfect."
Reaching for the strap of her backpack, Ruby pulled it towards her, unzipping the front and pulling out her phone. "I'm going to text the ghosts and tell them I'll be missing work."
"Shouldn't you test your boss?" Myah asked.
"Tch, he doesn't even care. I'm sure they can handle themselves for a night without me," Ruby said teasingly.
rubyred: stuck at school, i won't be at work 2night
fredbread: Sure, hope you're doing well!
bonniebell: Okay
mangarang: why r u such a dry texter bonniebell
chicachick: LOL your username is still set to that
bonniebell: S tea f you
bonniebell: I hate speech to text
chicachick: get gud
mangarang: did we ask
rubyred: just type it
bonniebell: I can't type it literally die all off you
mangarang: already did sorry
chicachick: I don't feel like it rn
rubyred: nty
fredbread: Stop threatening people, Bon.
bonniebell: No comma I will not period
bonniebell: ,.
bonniebell: I hate speech to text so much
fredbread: I can help type it if you want
bonniebell: No .
rubyred: oops teachers coming gtg
bonniebell: I respectfully hope you freeze
fredbread: Don't be grumpy
bonniebell: Your Mom period Elle oh Elle
mangarang: LOLOLOL
bonniebell: Die die die die die die die die die die die
Ruby smiled, pressing the power button off and looking around. Everyone had their phone flashlights on and were huddled in groups around the gym, and Ruby could just spot Ducky, Tulisa, and Josh doing some sort of odd handshake in a little circle.
Ms Diaz was now standing close to Ruby and Myah and talking urgently to Mrs Clarke, the vice principal.
"...Bill's trying to get the backup generator started, and we've got mats and blankets in the storage room... they can eat leftover muffins from the Foods class, maybe? And we have lots of granola bars in Storage as well." Ms Diaz was saying, wringing her manicured hands with worry. She glanced down and noticed Ruby looking up at them, who flushed and looked away.
"Oh, nothing to worry about, Ruby. Just preparing for later." Ms Diaz said, her tone excessively cheerful. Ruby got the feeling that the teacher was trying not to worry her.
The PA system crackled - guess Bill adding the loudspeaker to the backup power worked out well after all - and suddenly the lights made an odd buzzing sound, then all of a sudden they illuminated the gymnasium! Everyone cheered, although a little blinded from the sudden light. Ruby blinked, letting the bright teal and magenta spots fade for her vision as she listened to Mr Fox speak over the loudspeaker.
"And as you all just saw, the backup generator has been restarted! I would now like everyone to please give a hand to Bill, our lovely repairman."
Applause broke out among both the Gold gym as well as the Blue gym. Cheers and whoops filled the air. The baseball team threw their blue caps in the air. Chants of 'BILL, BILL, BILL!' echoed and bounced down the halls. Ruby didn't know where Bill was, but even if he was on the other side of the Earth he probably could've heard them. The school could sure be deafening when given the chance to be.
"Now, we have several activities for you to do if you wish. Mx Loren is doing an art class in the art room. We have The Hungry Games playing in the Blue Gym, Motel Transylvania 4 playing in the Gold Gym, and Encanta playing in Ms Diaz's room. All previous after-school-clubs will be held except for sports practices, which will be postponed till better weather."
Michael KorsRuby spotted Tulisa, Josh, and Ducky running over, and she waved to them.
"So, what do you guys want to do?" She asked then. Ducky frowned, pondering it.
"Well, I've already seen Encanta, and I'm sort of done with the whole Transylvania series."
Myah nodded. "I haven't seen Encanta, but I'm going to watch it with my family soon, so I can't really watch it here."
Ruby stared at Ducky for a few moments, then snapped her fingers. "I've got it! I've always thought you looked like someone...you look like Camilo Madrigal!"
The others all turned to stare at Ducky, scrutinizing him through every detail. Then Josh nodded.
"Yeah...I think it's mostly the hair. If Camilo's hair was like, purple." He decided.
Ducky laughed. "I'm flattered. Seven foot frame, rats along his back…" He danced around the gym towards the Blue Gum doors, twirling around like a ballerina and singing an off-key version of Camilo's verse. Ruby laughed, following him into the Hungry Games movie, with Myah and the twins following close behind.
Ruby smiled, settling herself on top of her winter coat and sitting down, looking up as a few teachers pulled the screen down and connected the speakers. Perhaps it would be a long night at school, but at least it would be a fun one!
A/N
Sweet.
ANYWAYS I GOT THE FOURTH CLOSET GRAPHIC NOVEL SND FAVOURITE BOOK BY FAR EVER. The art style, Carlton, the lore, the characters, Carlton, the ENDING WAS SO HORRIFYINGLY SAD and poetic in a way
(spoilers+sad!)
-l-
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so like- Charlie discovering she's not even a human being? Elizabeth's story? CHARLIE FRICKING USING THE ROBOT THAT HER FATHER USED TO KILL HIMSELF TO STAB BOTH HER AND ELI?!1?!1!1!?1!1?1!1?1!1! WTF?!1!1!1!1 like sorry I'll be in my room sobbing! Idk how I didn't pick up on that while reading the book, but the graphic novel sure helped - that was insane! And then just her grave at the end with John and Charlie walking away-
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(Spoilers over!)
Oh, and did I mention Carlton?
"she looks hot" "she literally put your father in the hospital wth is wrong with you?!" best duo Carl and Jessica bros for life.
Carlton gives me life he's SO FUNNY and probably the only reason the twisted ones was my least favourite (still good) was because there was no Carlton like wtf? He's the best thing since sliced bread? Comedy GOLD!
Lamar getting kicked out of the series like: -_-
Michael Brooks being the 102863639291th Michael
bald William existing
The fact that Cassidy's design is different + Jeremy being absent from the MCI being my 13th reason
the fact that my Gabriel and Fritz designs were way off and the book ones could possibly by canon-
ok sorry that's enough ranting go read it srsly
Question/Challenge: who is your favourite character from the books? Can be from The Silver Eyes series or Fazbear Frights. Mine are Carlton (TSE) Mott NOT MATT (FF), and Millie (FF)
have an amazing day/night!
~ghost