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The J.A.M. a.k.a. Numbuh I: Totally, lol

Monday…

It was Monday morning and Rodrigo very anxiously made his way into the school building. He was dreading having to come to school all weekend, but he had no choice. He didn't want to fall behind his schoolwork and his parents would not appreciate him skipping class. Besides, he hadn't heard from Gino all weekend and he was hoping he would have some news as to who has been pranking him.

To make sure he wouldn't trip any traps, Rodrigo walked alongside other kids from the street and into the school. He made sure not to touch anything and walked in the middle of the hallway, making sure he didn't get near the walls and locker, while still walking alongside any student that was walking along.

When he arrived at his locker, he stood there for a second and gulped in fear. He turned both sides to see if there was anyone acting suspiciously or if anything was sticking out. He saw nothing suspicious or out of place, making him feel slightly better. Very carefully, he then put the combination and unlocked it. With much caution, he opened his locker door and quickly moved out of the way and braced for anything to come out. But...nothing happened. After waiting for a few seconds, Rodrigo slowly turned to take a peek, but not before looking his left and right to make sure nothing was coming his way. When the coast was clear, he very slowly began to take a peek inside his locker,

"Hey Rodrigo." Arnold then suddenly got close to him and greeted him.

"AAHHH!" Rodrigo exclaimed, getting startled and jumped and slammed right at his locker, nearly knocking him down.

"Whoa, are you okay?" Arnold asked.

Gerald was with his best friend.

Rodrigo, still startled and near panicking, got up as he breathed heavily.

"Uh...yeah." He nervously said. "So far." And he got up.

"Still getting pranked?" Arnold asked.

"Unfortunately, yeah." Rodrigo replied and still carefully tried to see if his locker was booby trapped, even going so far as to throw something inside to see if it would trigger anything. When nothing happened, Rodrigo finally let out a sigh of relief and began to get this things.

"I still don't know who is behind it." Rodrigo then frustratingly said.

"Sid wasn't much help?" Arnold asked.

"No." Rodrigo replied. "I asked Gino if he knows anything."

"Do you think that's a good idea?" Arnold asked.

Gerald remained quiet throughout. He had no curiosity for Rodrigo's well-being. As far as he was concerned, the prankster was probably some kid who wants to get back at him for imprisoning him.

"Not really." Rodrigo replied as he finished getting his things and putting his stuff away. "But I don't really have much options. And besides, I'm paying Gino for this service."

"Remind me; when did these pranks start?" Arnold asked.

"I'm not sure." Rodrigo said as the trio headed for class. "It started right after those pictures of me and Gerald were posted at school. I know those pictures came from the prankster. It's just too much of a coincidence."

"Are you saying the prankster intentionally created this tension between the two of you so you can end up fighting?" Arnold asked.

"Positive." Rodrigo said. "Which means he was present in both our dance battle and our basketball game."

Arnold then turned to his best friend.

"Gerald, do you remember seeing anyone suspicious?" He asked.

"Nope." Gerald replied with a dispassionate tone. "I was just focused on the game."

"Well, at least you got a break from him this past weekend." Arnold optimistically said.

"Think again." Rodrigo just grumbled. "He got me while I was on a date with Rhonda."

"No way." Arnold said, astounded.

Even Gerald couldn't help but be surprised.

"Oh yeah." Said Rodrigo. "Date got completely ruined."

"What did he do?" Arnold asked.

"Just as the movie was about to start, he triggered the fire alarm and sprinklers." Rodrigo counted the story. "The whole movie theater had to be evacuated."

"I'm really sorry, Rodrigo." Arnold sympathetically said.

"It's okay." Rodrigo said. "Thankfully, Rhonda isn't mad at me. After our ruined Friday date, she is just as eager to capture the prankster as I am."

Just then, a tall figure appeared almost out of nowhere can stood right in front of the three pre-teens, blocking their way.

"Gino wants to see you." The tall figure said to Rodrigo. It was one of Big Gino's associates.

Without saying a word, Rodrigo just nodded and began to follow him, leaving Arnold and Gerald.

"I'm curious to know what dirt Rodrigo has on Gino." Gerald commented.

"What makes you think he has dirt on him?" Arnold asked.

"You really think Gino would help him for just a few dollars?" Gerald rhetorically remarked. "He's a loan shark. He would wiggle his way into squeezing as much out of you as he can."

"Hmm, good point." Said Arnold. "I just hope Rodrigo knows what he is getting himself into."

Meanwhile…

Rodrigo continued to follow Gino's associate through the hallway and into another area that was devoid of any student, or teacher for that matter. The Latino kid didn't bother to ask the associate why Gino was summoning him. He quickly realized early on that Gino would not divulge information to anyone unless absolutely necessary. But he at least figured it must be his request he made to him last weekend.

Rodrigo entered the empty area and saw Big Gino standing close to one of the wall.

"Morning, Gino." Rodrigo respectfully greeted him.

"Morning Rodrigo." Gino greeted him back. "Sorry for the long wait. It took longer than I expected."

"It's okay." Said Rodrigo.

"I heard you got pounced on on your date with Miss Rhonda." Gino said. "Tough break."

"Yeah." He said, not wanting to remember that night. "Did you find out who is behind it?"

"I did." Gino said with a very faint smile and then handed Rodrigo a piece of paper.

Rodrigo accepted the paper, unfolded it and read it.

"You have got to be kidding me." Rodrigo said, both shocked and angry when he read the name. "Curly? Curly's been the one pranking me?"

"You should not be surprised." Gino said. "He had a thing going on with Miss Rhonda. Or still has apparently."

"What do you mean 'has'?" Rodrigo asked. "Does he 'like' like her?"

"Yes." Gino replied, looking confused. "Didn't you know?" He asked.

Rodrigo just shook his head.

"It's common knowledge that little freak has strong feelings for your little Misses. Weird. I thought someone would have told you about him."

"No one did." Rodrigo replied. "Not even Rhonda. How long has he 'liked' liked her?" He asked.

"Pretty much since the 4th grade." Gino replied, much to Rodrigo's shock. "The guy's obsessed with Rhonda. He tried many times to date her, but Rhonda kept on rejecting him."

Rodrigo was briefly left speechless at the information he was receiving.

"Ugh!" He grunted. "So now I gotta deal with...whatever he is to her! Figures. Well, I know now what I need to do."

Gino was intrigued by that last comment.

"Which is?" He asked.

"Confront him and get him to stop." Rodrigo answered him while frowning.

"A most efficient way." Gino said, "But if I may," As he then got close and put his arm around Rodrigo, "That approach won't work with someone like Curly. In case you haven't noticed, the kid is a bit...off. And very unpredictable. Simply telling him to stop after what he sees as you taking someone away from him he is so passionate about, even with the threat of force, is not going to convince him. No. If anything, it might make him do the opposite. I'm afraid that only way you will get him to stop will to get confrontational with him."

"I'm betting on that." Rodrigo bluntly said.

"And while I agree you have good reasons to," Gino said, "As a friend, I feel I need to remind you about the risks involved."

"What risks?" Rodrigo asked.

"Well starters," Gino explained, "the kid kind of hangs around with Arnold Shortman and his group of friends. I'm not sure if they are good friends, but I'll bet that Arnold won't be too happy if he finds out that you beat someone he knows. The kid is not a fan of violence."

"So?" Rodrigo asked.

"So, do you really want to go against Arnold...again?" Gino said. "I mean, the kid is very well regarded here and I don't think the others kids will react too positive about you going against him."

"I don't care what other people will think of me." Rodrigo replied. "I never have."

"And while that is an admirable trait," Gino said, "need I remind you about the second chance you got after your little- let's call it - 'stunt'. All I'm saying is that you have more to lose than what you realize if you end up being seen as the bully. You may not realize it, but you are walking a fine line between being liked and between being hated. How do you think it will affect your relationship with Miss Rhonda if you become not only unpopular, but even a pariah?"

Rodrigo was a bit taken aback by Gino's willingness to offer him advice. However, he did bring up some good points, especially with his relationship with Rhonda. Nevertheless, he put his guard up for any surprises.

"Okay, so what do I need to do?" Rodrigo asked.

"My advice? Take a more indirect approach." Gino replied. "A nonviolent, indirect approach."

"I see." Rodrigo said as he thought about it for a second. "Such as?"

"Well, you could prank him back." Gino replied. "Other than that, I have no clue. That's for you to come up."

"Gee, thanks." Rodrigo sarcastically remarked.

"But, you're a smart kid, Rodrigo." Gino continued as he unwrapped his arm from him, "I'm sure you will figure something out."

"Thanks for the help, Gino." Rodrigo said.

"Don't worry about it." Gino replied with a small smile as Rodrigo turned around and then left.

As soon Rodrigo left, Gino's smile quickly evaporated and made way for a glare.

"Send a message to Curly." He said to one of his associates. "Tell him to hit Rodrigo as hard as he can. I will supply him with whatever materials he needs, but tell him to not let up! Got it?"

"Yes, boss." The associate said. "But why do you not want Rodrigo to confront him?" He asked.

"Because I don't trust Curly to keep his mouth shut." Gino replied. "He may hate Rodrigo, but if cornered, I don't think that little freak will hold up for long, so I need to play it safe."

"So then, what do you want Rodrigo to do?" The associate asked.

"To do the exact thing I told him not to." Gino replied with a mischievous smile. "That kid may be smart and wise, but he has a temper. I only told him not to get physical with Curly so as not to draw suspicion. But also to delay the inevitable. Eventually, Rodrigo will lose his temper, find Curly and pummel him into oblivion."

"But uh, won't that put you at risk on Curly outing you out?" The associate asked.

"Yes, but by that point, I'm betting that Rodrigo will have lost all sensibility and reason that he will pummel him to the ground before that little freak has a chance to say anything. It's a risk, but a calculated one. All we need to do is just keep an eye on him until he makes his move so we can record the event and broadcast it to the whole school. Then with Rodrigo completely discredited and out of the way, I can take over this school, like how I used to, he he he he!"