Lord of the nerds
A brand new day at recess is where we see our group of eight playing kickball against Lawson and his team. Right now Spinelli is the pitcher for her team. "Come on, Spinelli!" Dede cheers from her place on the outfield.
"Let's get this guy out." Paloma said, also on the outfield.
"Burn it through there!" Gus said.
"Uh, put some velocity on that stinking sphere!" Said Gretchen. Spinelli threw the ball at the fifth grade and he kicked it, only for Vince to catch it and send it to TJ on first base, effectively getting the kid out.
"Oh Yeah! Nothing beats a good old game of kickball." Vince celebrates.
"It's America's game, Vince, The sport no kid should miss out on." TJ agreed.
"Lucky out, det-whomper!" Lawson called out, stepping up to the plate.
"No decent kid, that is."
Spinelli pitched the ball to Lawson, who kicked the ball high in the air. "It's mine!" YJ started backing up to catch the ball, heading straight for the bench the Ashley's were sitting on.
"So I said, like, as if, and then daddy snapped his fingers and said, "wolfgang,
have this busboy fired."" Ashley A told her story making them all laugh before seeing TJ approaching them, screaming and running out the way.
"I got it! I got it!" TJ said but tripped over the bench, his friends, all being worried about him, ran over.
"Oh, TJ." Spinelli winced, seeing TJs arm in an awkward position.
"I blame myself!" Mikey cried.
"Oh, man, I can hardly look!" Lawson said also coming over. "He caught the stupid ball!"
Because TJ was injured badly the game was called off and TJs parents were called to take him to the hospital, though he wasn't out of school for long as he was back by lunch time, only this time with his arm in a sling.
"My doctor said I broke my collarbone." TJ explained while the eight friends were all sitting at a table, enjoying their lunches. "The less I move, the quicker it'll heal."
"How long is that gonna take?" Dede asked.
"Five weeks."
"Five weeks!" Spinelli responded in shock just before the bell rings.
"Well I can't help you beat the fifth graders at kickball, but at least I can come and give them the evil eye." TJ sighs as the eight got up to go outside for recess.
"And just where do you think you're going, young man?" Miss Finster said stopping TJ from leaving the cafeteria.
"Uh, recess?"
"Oh no, you aren't. School policy strictly
prohibits children With serious injuries from setting foot on the playground."
"But it's recess! Where else am I supposed to go?"
"Across the hall and down the stairs to room 51." This little bit of information made five of the other seven friends gasp. "You, there! Put down that banana!" Miss Finster quickly left to deal with another student that was going to take a banana outside.
"Now, don't that paint a purty picture." Lawson said walking up to them all smug like. "Det-loser spending his recess in room 51 with the pale kids?"
"Pale kids? Who are they?" Asked Paloma.
"The "Pale Kids" are the kids who actually choose to stay inside during recess." Vince answered.
"The uncoolest of the uncool." Said Spinelli.
"Uncooler than me?" Gus asked.
"And T.J. is gonna be their buddy. Why, I wouldn't be surprised if T.J. Became a pale kid." Lawson laughs.
"Don't listen to him Teej, he doesn't know
what he's talking about." Said Vince.
"Oh, yeah? Ever heard of tiny Sedgwick?"
"Who's he?" Asked Dede, having not heard that name before.
"Three years ago, tiny Sedgwick was a regular kid just like you and me, but one day everything changed."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The bell rang and kids all came running out of the school excited for recess. "It was a monday. The recess bell had just rung, and all the kids came out to play, then out limps tiny sedgwick." A small blond boy limps out out the door, though doesn't go too far. "The doofus had a busted leg from playing pickle with his shoes untied, So now instead of going out on the playground, Guess where
finster sends him..." Miss Finster stops the blonde boy and points back into the school where he limps off to. "To room 51. And they never saw him again."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"The pale kids got tiny Sedgwick, and they're going to get you, too, pale-weiler!" Lawson finished his story before walking off, laughing to himself. "Ha! Pale-weiler. I kill myself."
"Now, where was I?" Miss Finster said as she came back. Ah, yes, room 51. March, young man."
"No, T.J.! Don't go!" Gus tried to stop him.
"Relax, guys. You don't got to worry about me. I'm having nothing to do with any pale kids." TJ said about to walk away.
"Not alone you're not." Dede said as she ran up to TJ.
"Dede, what are you doing?" Spinelli asked as they all looked at Dede like she grew a second head.
"You guys go and enjoy your recess, I'll stay with TJ and make sure he's okay. That's okay, isn't it?" Dede looked up at Miss Finster.
"Just don't cause any trouble." Miss From agrees before ushering the two of them out of the cafeteria.
"Why are you doing this Dede?" TJ asked, confused but also thankful he wouldn't be alone. "You don't have to spend recess inside with me."
"Simple. You're my friend. You should know I'd do anything for my friends" Dede smiles at TJ as they finally reach room 51.
As TJ went to open the door he hesitated as the two could hear laughter coming from inside the room. TJ looks at Dede, not wanting to go into the room but Dede just shrugged at him and opened the door, walking in, leaving TJ with no choice but to follow her. When the door closed behind the two they saw four other boys in the room gathered around a table. "Hark! An outsider!" Said the short round boy.
"Gandor primulan, outsider." Said the tall blonde boy as he did a sign with his ring finger crossing over his middle finger. "Live well and thrive. I am Frank. These are my comrades, Rodney..."
"Howdy." Said the only black boy in the gang. He wears a yellow shirt with a black alien silhouette, blue jeans and purple square glasses.
"Steve..."
"Aloha, amigo." The one to spot them first said. He is arguably the nerdiest one in the gang. He wears wide circle glasses, a blue lab-like coat and a bowtie.
"and Carl." The last boy Frank introduced just stuttered. Carl has braces and red hair that covers his eyes. "Steve, readings, please?"
"Boy-oy-oy-oy-oy-oy." Steve made a weird noise as he waved a toy around the two friends. TJ backed up not liking what Steve was doing while Dede subtly stepped in front of TJ to try and block Steve's brow of him. "It appears he has
fractured his clavicle. Though she seems perfectly fine."
"Hence his assignment to recess here to room, she must be here to keep him company. Very well, make yourselves at home, newcomers."
"Thanks." Dede said hesitantly while TJ tried going into a fighting stand. As the pale kids were shocked at TJs response Dede moved TJ over to the other table in the room.
"Anyway, back to Waterloo, where Wellington is holding off Napoleon's army." Frank said as the pale kids all went back to doing what they were doing before.
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At the end of the day the group of eight friends walked out of school together, finally having a chance to talk. "So what was it like, TJ, Dede? Did they try to erase your brain?" Gus asked as they started down the street.
"One of them seemed to be trying, but I scared him off." TJ said smugly while Dede just lightly laughed to herself.
"That's my man." Said Vince.
"Hang tough, Teej, Dee." Said Spinelli as she raised her fist. "Us is us and them is them and you two were meant to be one of us."
"I know, Spinelli, and don't worry. I got them right where I want them." Said TJ as Dede just shook her head with a fond smile at her friend's declaration.
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The next day Dede made sure to come to school well prepared with stuff to keep her and TJ entertained during recess. "Here." Dede said, as the two got to the same table they sat at yesterday, hanging TJ a senior fusion comic from her bag, while she also took out her unfinished copy of the second atomic Betty comic she was making.
"Thanks Dede, you're a lifesaver." TJ said taking the comic and started to read while Dede was continuing her work.
Over on the other side of the room the pale kids were all playing with some crystal block building things. "I'm designing a super-tech jet that reconfigures into a robot." Said Steve, showing off his design.
"Brilliant, Steve, but regard this if you will, my robot turns into a flying dinosaur." Frank said, holding his up, pointing to certain places. "Note the receptors here and here for wing
regeneration spores."
"Groovy!" The rest of the pale kids said, impressed with Franks work, as TJ laughed quietly overhearing them.
"Red leader one, red leader one." Frank said, imitating a radio noise. Steve took his model plane and started to head over to the two fourth graders, imitating a jet engine as he went.
"Hey, there!" Steve said, coming up behind the two.
"Ah!" TJ exclaimed as he was given a little scare, not expecting Steve to just appear behind him, Dede looked up in time to see Steve drop his model jet from being shocked at TJs response.
"We were just wondering if you two wanted to play with us." Steve explained why he came over.
"Oh, sorry about your thing." TJ said, now feeling bad looking at the broken model on the floor.
"No harm done, half the fun of playing with a constructo-crystal robo-borg is
taking it apart and rebuilding again." Steve brushed off TJs worries as he bent down and picked up the pieces, putting them back together again.
"What's the other half?" TJ asked under his breath.
"Say, what are you two reading there?" Frank said as he came over.
"Ah, just a little something called "Señor Fusion." You probably never--" TJ was cut off as the rest of the pale kids all came running over.
""Señor Fusion"?" Exclaimed Rodney as he picked up the comic.
"You read "Señor Fusion"?" Asked Steve.
"Uh, yeah." Answered TJ.
"Look, he's got issue 417!" Rodney said, looking at the front cover.
"'adventure takes no siesta.'" Frank said.
"With the limited-edition hologram cover." Rodney moved the comic back and forth, showing the cover.
"Abra-cool-dabra!" Steve said before they all laughed.
"'Señor Fusion' is the greatest." Frank said, turning to the two fourth graders. "I have a signed copy of issue 57."
"True "fusion" fans, who'd have thought it? Who would have thought it?"
Dede sat back and just watched with a smile as TJ was talking quite animatedly with the pale kids about senior fusion. As she went back to working on her comic she was unaware of Frank as he stood looking over her shoulder as to what she was doing.
"Hey, what are you working on?" He asked, making Dede jump, thinking he was still talking with TJ.
"Uhh." She just looked up at him, other than her friends she's not really let anyone else read her comics.
"Dedes making her own comic." TJ informed the pale kids as they all came up to where Dede was still sitting. "She's working on her second issue but the first one was awesome."
"Your very own comic." Rodney exclaims. "What's it about?" And with that they spent the rest of recess talking about Dedes comic and the pale kids asking if they could eventually read the first completed comic at some point in the future.
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The next day TJ was actually excited to spend recess with the pale kids, having just brought the newest senior fusion comic that morning.
"Howdy, fellas, thought you might like to see issue 606 hot off the press." TJ said as he and Dede walked into room 51 and up to the pale kids.
"Today is Thursday, TJ. On Thursdays we play daggers & dragons." Frank gestured to the table behind him. "You're both welcome to join us."
"Oh, all right."
"Sure, sounds like it could be fun." Dede said, looking at the board on the table.
"We all have characters, see? I'm Yendor the barbarian." Rodney said, holding up his figure.
"I am Evets the cleric." Steve said with his before pointing over to Carl. "Carl is Larc the ogre." Carl stutters as he holds his up.
"I am knarf the sword master." Frank was the last to show his. "We got our character names by spelling our real names backwards, So, TJ, I guess your
character name would be JT, and Dede yours is Eded. (Edid) "JT, why don't you be our druid elf? And Eded, the paladin for you?"
"Uh, sure. I got nothing better to do." TJ agreed.
"Alright." Dede also agreed.
"The game begins. 'you are traveling
through the mystic woods. a forest sprite leaps from a bubbling mineral spring. In his hands he holds two items... a glowing blue bottle and an enchanted moaning slug.'"
Over the next few weeks Dede and TJ ended up having a lot of fun with the pale kids, from playing daggers and dragons, to building thing with those crystal blocks, to even all sharing their comics, Dede even allowed the pale kids to read the first issue of atomic Betty which they all loved for the sci-if aspects.
Weeks have passed and Dede and TJ have definitely bonded with the pale kids, so much so that the weeks flew by very quickly as they were having a lot of fun. It was now a Thursday again and they were playing daggers and dragons again. "'you have neared the end
of your journey. An old woman reaches out to congratulate you, when, suddenly, a dragon appears from beneath her shawl.'" Frank read before putting a figure of a dragon in front of TJs character. "Roll the die, JT! Roll the die!"
TJ did just that. "77!"
"'Your sword bounces off the dragon.'"
"But I get a plus 7 for my cloak of wonder." TJ pulled out a card.
"JT Is correct, and factoring in his proximity to the vermilion castle then--" Rodney stated as he did the maths.
"The dragon is slain!" Frank hits the dragon out of the way. "You are master
of the ninth level." Frank puts his cape on TJ before joining the other pale kids.
"Gandor primulan, master JT" the pale kids all said doing their sign.
"Alright JT." Dede cheers as she held her hand up.
"Yes!" TJ high fives Dede, making his cast fall off.
"JT, your shoulder." Said Frank looking at the two fourth graders. "It seems hardly possible, but five weeks have passed. Your clavicle has mended."
"You're right." TJ said, rubbing his arm.
"In light of this, I ask you both to come with us tonight. We have a surprise for you."
"A surprise? Like what? What are you
gonna do to us?"
"If we told you that, then it wouldn't be much of a surprise." Steve said slightly ominously.
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That night Dede and TJ met up with the pale kids. "Regard, TJ, Dede, Comicopolis." Frank said as they led the fourth graders to a massive comic book store.
"Whoa! I never heard of this place." TJ awed.
"Yeah, it's massive. How come it's not well known?" Dede asked, looking up at the building.
"Yeah, well, they don't encourage business from just anyone. Advance." Frank said and led the two into the building. When they entered dede and TJ were unable to pick their jaws up from the floor, if they thought the outside was big, the inside was bigger, filled with all sorts of comics.
"It's like there's a whole world of pale kids!" TJ said as he and dede were gonna walk forward to join Frank when they were stopped by the shop owner.
"Hey, where do you think you're going, tan kids?" The owner glared at the two.
Before either of them could defend themselves and explain why they were there, Frank came in between them and the owner. "It's okay. They're with me."
"Knarf! Oh, forgive me!" The owner gasps. "I didn't mean to cross a level 42 sword master."
"I'll let you go this time, but watch out. The sword of ganymede now hangs perilously close to your skull."
"Thanks." Dede said to Frank as the owner ran off.
"You're welcome." Frank looks back at the two before gesturing to a bookcase off to the side. "But now, please examine that display. Pick something out. Consider it a gift from Rodney, Steve, Carl, and me." Dede and TJ both grabbed a comic each and looked at the pale kids. "A gift of parting and a gift of friendship."
"We shall miss you." Steve said.
"Guys, I'd be honoured, but only if you allow us to repay your kindness with a little surprise of our own." TJ said as he and Dede looked at each other.
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The next day with TJ begins back to full health, he and Dede finally joined their other friends as they walked out into the playground when the bell for recess rang.
"Ah." TJ inhales deeply. "Back with my friends in the great outdoors."
"Let's play kickball. Lawson's already waiting for us to stomp him." Vince said.
"You got it, guys, but hang on while our other friends catch up." TJ said as he and Dede stopped.
"They should be here soon." Dede replies as the other six turn to look at the two.
"Other friends?" Vince asked before the doors opened up again and the pale kids walked out.
"Wait a minute, you want us to play with the pale kids?" Said Spinelli. "I ain't playing with no pale kids."
"Oh, come on. They're not that different from us." Dede said, trying to change her friend's minds.
"Salutations, JT, Eded." Frank greeted doing their hand sign, before gasping as he looked at the rest of the group. "Gretchen Grundler, doughy queen of beauty!"
"She rocks my planet." Said Steve as Carl aagrees.
"Oh, my, I don't know what to--" Gretchen started, very flattered before a new voice cuts her off.
"Well, well, what do we got here? It's det-paler and his paleriffic pale-o-pals." Lawson said before he and his friends laughed.
"Great, now I'm starting to feel bad for them." Spinelli grumbled.
"Come on, Detweiler, Are you and your pasty posse going to play or what?"
"That's it. They're going down." Vince said as they all made their way to the kickball field.
"This is a kickball. All you have to do is kick it." TJ said as he shew the pale kids what to do.
"Aha. Thus the name 'kickball.'" Said Rodney.
"Steve, you're up first. Good luck." Dede said and Steve walked up to the base. Lawson was the pitcher for his team and as he threw the ball Steve missed making him fall on the ground, having Lawson and his team laugh.
"He tagged himself with the ball! Ha ha! You're out of there!" Vince got annoyed at Lawson's taunting and went up to Rodney, telling him what to do. As Rodney was up to kick he managed to do what Vince said perfectly but ran back to cheer with the pale kids instead of running to first base.
"No! Run to first base!" TJ panicked and Rodney did, though he didn't make it in time.
"You're out!" Lawson laughs.
"Perhaps the game should be called 'kickball and run to first base.'" Rodney said as he joined his friends again.
"Oh, no, Detweiler! No more pale kids! My team's going to die from laughing! Ha ha ha!" Lawson laughs. "Oh, man, that doofus in the glasses, what a riot! And then that loser friend of his! Ha! Knock it off, detweiler! No more!"
Dede was starting to get angry at Lawson making fun of her new friends, she however never got to do anything as Frank stormed past her. "That does it!"
"Oh oh! We got to stop that kid. He can't take on Lawson." Vince said but TJ stopped him.
"He's not just a kid, Vince." Said TJ as Dede calmed down. "He's a level 42 sword master."
"If you have a problem with my friends or me, then courteously tell it directly to me." Frank said getting into Lawson's face.
"Okay, I got a problem with you." Lawson said back.
"As it so happens, I have a problem with you."
"Well, good, 'cause I don't like you."
"Nor am I particularly fond of you."
"Oh yeah! Just look at you, you..."
"I see your kind,you, you..."
"Geek!" Both Frank and Lawson threw at each other, making others gasp.
"You're calling me a geek?" Lawson asked.
"I call them as I see them." Frank replied.
"All right, that's it." Lawson said, pushing up his sleeve. "I'm going to do to you what you did to tiny Sedgwick." This seemed to be funny to the pale kids as the three near Dede started laughing, making Lawson glare at them. "What's so funny?"
"You strange, confused lawn dweller. I am tiny Sedgwick!" Frank said, shocking everyone.
"But, tiny, you're tall!"
"I have thrived. I am happy."
"But how can you be happy hanging out with those guys?"
"They're my friends."
"Tiny would rather hang out with those guys than us? I need to lie down." Lawson's friends walked up to him and took him off the field as he was feeling faint.
Frank just shrugged his shoulders and rolled his eyes as he walked up to Dede and TJ. "I appreciate your attempt
to include us in your game, TJ and Dede, but to be honest I'd rather stay inside. Too many geeks like Lawson out here. Gandor primulan, JT, Eded." Frank did their sign.
"Live well and thrive, Knarf." Dede and TJ both said doing the sign back before the pale kids all left to go back inside.
"Well, apparently, geekiness is in the eye of the beholder." Said Gretchen.
"Yeah, there's just one thing I don't understand." Said Spinelli as she and the others were all trying to do the hand sign. "How do you do that thing with your fingers?"
"Well, guys, if you don't mind sitting out kickball, we'd be happy to show you." TJ said.