The Hubby Hold (IQ Testing Book 2) Read online

  Marsilla sneers. “The value 7.4 was the correct answer for the acidity in our blood, making me a better medical technician than Rincon, since I finished all my correct four answers, first. I landed, all alone, inside the green room with mirrors, first…”

  “Ya landed, first. I don’t understand,” Nephella shakes her curls, wiggling her body piercings over her face. She flings the burning cigar with the sweet smelling smoke around the air waves and away from the other teens. She scans the rows of flowers, the sky, and then Marsilla, saying. “Marsilla landed, first. That’s doesn’t make any sense…”

  Marsilla smirks and growls at Nephella. “I am smart, smarter than…”

  Nephella says. “Naw, I mean, reference the fear question on your electronic app for Citizenship Day. Why didn’t the current park place change into your fear answer of heights, like before, Marsilla? Ya won the honor of the first me-chee chair, inside the green room, for the green color tone. The current park place is most definitely low to the ground, instead of high in the sky, like the tabletop cliff. Most of the flowers cover the soil and overlay each other, completely overtaking the soil, the dirt, and other plants. I don’t understand. If Marsilla landed, first, then where is her fear factor of heights?”

  Rincon snaps his fingers, nodding. “I got it. There was a fear question. I addressed my fear questions by answering with ants. But, there was a love question, too. Remember, it went something, like this. What do you love to do, or see, or have, or enjoy, or smell, or feel?”

  I gasp, nodding with the other teens. “Yes, I do remember that particular question. It is a very difficult question, because…,” then I view the pretty flower, thinking of Buffo.

  Marsilla gasps then pats her bouquet, smiling. “I wrote down inside my love question that I love flowers.”

  Rincon smiles and nods. “That’s intriguing. Citizenship Day is turning into a day of shocking surprises and new revelations. I didn’t consider the simple question relevant towards our activities, within the Cubby Hole. And, my BPs didn’t bother to inform me, either…”

  Nephella nods. “My mama was very thorough with sharing all her datum about the Cubby Hole. I suspect that she didn’t figure out that aspect. My mama attended Citizenship Day and finished the Cubby Hole in some type of record time, if I believe her…”

  “Ya don’t believe your mama,” gasps Lamis, frowning with confusion.

  Nephella flicks the lighted cigar, allowing the flames to burn the pretty petals of the flowers, not under her feet, growling. “My mama’s the mayor. No, I do not believe my mama…”

  Rincon yells, tossing back his skull, claps, smiling. “Alright! We’ve discovered that the park place environment changes, when the first me-chee chair lands inside the room of mirrors…”

  “Wrong, as usual, Rincon! When I land, first, I caused the environment to change into pretty, like me,” grins Marsilla.

  “Are we both vain and arrogant, today, Marshmallow?” Nephella laughs.

  Rincon frowns at Marsilla then wraps his arm around Ketona, nods. “The park place environment changes based on the first me-chee chair landing, inside the room of mirrors, so the short story, here. We’ve exhausted all the fear questions from the leading four me-chee champs, including me, my girl Ketona, my new friend Nephella, and my number one snot rag Marsilla. Ketona was afraid of knives, done. I was afraid of ants, done. Nephella was afraid of lightning, done. And Marsilla was afraid of heights, done, too. So, we don’t have to worry about any more the fear answers from the four of us, since, next time, when one of us lands into the next blue color tone, then the environment will change into puppies. I wrote that I loved puppies on my love questions for Citizenship Day. Therefore, I will land, first, into the blue color…”

  Marsilla stomps into Rincon, sneering. “I will win the next color tone session, Rincon, being the smartest of the four of us…”

  Nephella exhales then says. “Guys and girls, we need to figure out how to get out of the current color tone, before we worry about whose or how’s to get into the blue color tone. Who’s get an awesome idea?”

  I scan the teens, frowning with annoyance. “Has anyone seen Duchie? Has she and her me-chee chair returned back into the Cubby Hole, without checking in with us?”

  Lamis frowns with confusion, saying. “No other teens have left this particular park place, either…”

  Nephella giggles. “They’re busy creating pretty flower jewelry, like hair bands, necklaces, and bracelets then trotting around, looking like silly love sick teenagers,” she winks at Ketona.

  I growl. “Is Duchie, here, with us? Does anyone know, for shore?”

  Marsilla pats her bouquet. “I wanna take my arm of flowers to my mama…”

  Rincon frowns with annoyance. “They are killing the flowers,” he fingers the skyline. “Flowers are made with a specific design which encourages the transfer of pollen from one plant to another of the same species…”

  Lamis pats her arm bouquet, giggling and nodding. “I encouraged the transfer of pollen by shaking the picked flower over the growing one, inside the tall flower bush. I pollinated it, so it was grew tall and high for the next round of teens…”

  Rincon growls. “Mother Nature does not work like that, Lamis…”

  Nephella nods, saying. “Yeah, many plants and flowers are dependent upon many external factors for the pollination process, including wind, birds, bats and bees…”

  The black bumblebee flies near my earlobe, when I back step out of its flight path. It soars down into the flower petal, crawling its eight legs into the stigma, which contains the pollen tube of pollen. I study and admire the bee, attacking the flower, then say. “Has anyone eyeballed Duchie, here?” I swipe the second bee, flying to close to my earlobe, when it bounces off the flower petal. The bee rounds about the flower then flies towards me for a second assault. I gasp with angry then back step from the little varmint.

  Rincon fingers the flowers, saying. “The study of pollination by insects is called anthecology.”

  Nephella blinks her eyelashes then fingers the sky, yelling. “Up there! There’s a large black round pod of something, floating down near us…”

  Lamis gasps, studying the black object. “The large black round pod is a swarm of orchid bumblebee, coming down from the heavens,” she drops the arm bouquet. “They want the flowers. They are hunger for the pollen. The flowers are the food for the bees. That’s ‘the thing’ we gotta do, run from the attacking bees,” she yells, dashing back into the green room of mirrors.

  Marsilla gasps and drops her arm bouquet, running behind Lamis.

  Nephella laughs, pitching the lighted cigar into the flowers as it burns along with landing bees. She laughs then walks towards the green room of mirrors.

  I gasp, studying the swarm of bees then walk backwards. I grab the flowers with both hands, saying. “Pick some flowers then drop onto the ground. That’s ‘the thing’ we do in order to reactive the chair and then return back into the Cubby Hole…”

  Rincon studies the bees then Ketona. “I do not believe so.”

  I slow my pace then frown with annoyance. “Then, stay and find out, when your fanny gets burned by the stinging of the me-chee chair. Then, ya get to fight with the bees over the flowers, too. Are you afraid of bees?” I swing around, running. I pick and drop the flowers running towards the green room of mirrors, along with the other screaming teens.

  “Naw, only bee stings,” Rincon picks the flowers, running behind Ketona. He tosses them onto the ground.

  I hit the floor then slide into my me-chee chair, being parked near the wall of mirrors.

  Rincon drops the flowers, also, meeting the requirement of ‘the thing,’ exiting out of the current park place. He slides into his me-chee chair, on the other side of the room of mirrors, being second place to Marsilla.

  I giggle at his intense competitive academic thoughts then the chair drops into darkness. I scream with fright from the surprise maneuver.

  Chapter
6

  Blue color tone

  I slowly ascend into the room of blue, frowning with repeating annoyance of the Citizenship Day. I exhale, actually getting tired of the same floor space, with a different shade of color. I’m ready for Citizenship Day to end.

  However, Buffo is still missing from my life and Duchie is missing from my life, too, since they both are inside the orange color tone. They are, together, inside the orange color tone.

  My brain cells can’t stop thinking and repeating that sentence structure.

  Duchie has purposefully gotten 50 percent incorrect answers, out of the four questions, so she could drop from the red color tone, and then land into the yellow color tone, where Buffo is trapped.

  I sneer with fury.

  Through the orange barrier wall, I saw Duchie, touching Buffo on the sail boat.

  I snort with angry.

  Rincon slides from his me-chee chair, being last, emerging from the green park place.

  He stands then spins, smiling and waving at Ketona.

  I sit inside the green shield. I sneer then snort then snarl with my animal sounds and animal emotions.

  The me-chee stands, raising his arms. “Welcome back to the Cubby Hole, teens!”

  Rincon frowns with disappointment, not talking with Ketona. He winks and smiles then swings around. He scoots into his me-chee chair for the blue color tone questions.

  The me-chee says. “I hope you have enjoyed your fun in the sun. There is more fun to have, inside the rest of the color tones. Please sit back and relax into your assigned me-chee chair!” The green shields shimmer, around each teen, inside their me-chee chair. He says. “Close your eyelids! I will present the next series of academic questions for your individual answers. The time limit is fifteen seconds for each posed question. To remind, each schooler, again, for clarity of a proper verbal response, please state my answer is…then your vocal response. If you answer three-fourths, or more, of the academic questions, correctly, you will advance to the next color of blue. If you answer one-fourth, or less, you will remain stationary inside the color tone of green. If you, incorrectly, answer two-fourths of the academic questions, then you will slip back into the color of red. The first question, what is the color tone of the me-chee, inside the Cubby Hole, presently?”

  I hold my breath, flexing my hands into white knuckled fists then relax my hands. I scan the rear end of the me-chee chair in front of me, belonging to Marsilla.

  She is competing with Rincon for the first spot, inside the blue room of mirrors.

  I giggle with amusement.

  Marsilla should allow Rincon to land, first, since her love of flowers has been displayed or played.

  ‘Played’ is the correct word, here, since the Establishment is playing with our tiny minds and our teen hearts, with mean torture and wicked torment.

  My heart is both aching and breaking. My mind is furious with my mixed emotions of hate, love, sadness, gladness, and fear.

  Rincon’s fear was the ants. My fear was the knives. However, the first four park places were the simulated fears of the first landing me-chee chair, which was displayed within an individual park place. So, if Marsilla lands, first, then her fear will repeat.

  I toss my hands, without any answer. The Cubby Hole is a series of stray responses to illogical movements. I hold my kneecaps with my eyelashes open and my neurons active.

  Duchie is with Buffo inside the orange color tone.

  There is only one more color tone left for me, the blue one, and then Citizenship Day will end. I exhale, shaking my curls. I whisper. “Wonder if, Rincon is wrong. Wonder if, Citizenship Day doesn’t end with him reaching the gold color tone. Wonder if, Buffo can still reach it, too, then we can be, together, working, as me-chee whatever positions. I’ll worry about that later. Yes, Buffo has to try, too. Duchie, she will not allow Buffo to try. She wants him stuck there. She wants him trapped, there, inside the orange color tone. Duchie has family there, too. Buffo has family there, too. They will be trapped, together, there too.” I gasp. “Fifteen seconds is almost up. My answer is…is…is…red,” exhaling with my wrong color of the me-chee.

  I can’t believe, I say it. I say the wrong answer, for the first time, maybe, since the first grade while attending school. My BPs always smiled and clapped, when I got the correct answer.

  I am so relieved that my BPs are not present, or watching me, during Citizenship Day.

  So, I am 25 percent, negative. I need one more wrong answer, giving me a 50 percent, negative value, or meeting the rule of two-fourths wrong. Then, I will drop down into the red color tone.

  However, I am still one more color tone away from Buffo. He’s inside the orange color tone, without me and with Duchie.

  I snort with angry.

  The me-chee says. “Musical discs for your cellie costs $3.00, or $5.00. If 50 musical discs were sold to you for a total of $230.00, how many musical discs were sold at $3.00?”

  I exhale, smiling. I whisper. “This word problem is so simple. Buffo can answer this one, too. Yeah, he could. There are numerous methods for answering the correct response. The first method, if z represents the number of $3.00 musical discs sold, then 50-z represents the number of $5.00 musical discs sold. Then, the math equation is…”

  3x + 5(50-x) = 230

  3x + 250-5x = 230

  20 = 2x

  10 = x

  “So, the mathematical solution is ten musical discs were sold at $3.00. There is a second method, too. If each musical disc costs $3.00, then $3.00 times 50 sold musical discs equals $150.00. The remaining $80 of the $230.00 would be the extra $2.00 from the $5.00 musical disc cost. Therefore, 40 musical discs were sold at $5.00. So, the last 10 musical discs, not identified were sold at the cost of $3.00. The mathematical solution is ten musical discs, again.” I exhale. “My answer is…is…red,” giggling.

  I have provided, my second wrong answer, again. I’m standing at 50 percent, negative.

  The me-chee says. “Organisms, that convert nitrogen-containing organic molecules into nitrates, are named with what term?”

  I hum then grin, tapping my foot, slowly impatiently waiting for the elapse of deadline of fifteen seconds. I scan the room, looking empty, missing over 80 percent of the me-chee chairs and the associated teens.

  I see the shielding change into blue for Marsilla, in front of my face.

  Marsilla drops then disappears from the floor.

  I gasp, smiling and nodding.

  Rincon is missing, too. So, he dropped, before her. He is petting the puppy dogs, being the first me-chee chair, into the blue room of mirrors, if Rincon is telling the truth. His Citizenship question of fear was materialized, if I can use that word, inside the yellow color tone, in the format of gigantic snapping and hungry ants.

  Therefore, he is the first me-chee chair, dropping down from the Cubby Hole, so his Citizenship questions of love appears, inside the blue color tone, baby doggie puppies.

  I giggle, nodding with happiness for Rincon. Then, I exhale, shaking my legs with anxiousness. Rincon will notice, immediately, that I’m missing. I hope he isn’t angry, or mad, but I wanna be with Buffo.

  Therefore, I plan to dash around the red color tone and do ‘the thing’ then leap from the red color tone. I will land, right back, into the Cubby Hole then answer two more questions, incorrectly. Then, I will drop into the orange color tone, planning to beat Duchie black and blue with my folded fists, seriously clasping with the orange color.

  I giggle then snort.

  The me-chee says. “A pole 18 meters tall is perpendicular to the ground. A wire 20 meters long extends from the top of the pole down to the ground. What is the angle of elevation to the nearest degree down towards the pole?”

  I exhale, calming my racing heart and active mind. I don’t have to answer the fourth question, either, since I’ll be dropping down into the red color tone, pretty soon. I’m still one color tone behind Buffo.

  I exhale, tapping my right boot, fas
ter for the time expire, since the fifteen seconds are mentally clicking inside my mind and me-chee chair for the ending, without fanfare.

  I exhale, shaking my curls, whispering. “I know this answer, too. Buffo would know this answer, too. He just needs encouragement from me, not Duchie.” I wiggle back and forth with nervousness, waiting for the fifteen seconds to count down to zero.

  My me-chee shield turns bright red.

  I drop into the darkness, screaming for fun.

  Chapter 7

  Red room of mirrors

  My me-chee chair slowly ascends up into the dull lights. The chair halts with a jolt, sitting along the dark wall corner of the large room, almost in darkness. I frown with annoyance then scan the room, seeing numerous empty me-chee chairs, ahead of me in crooked rows and columns.

  I giggle, nodding.

  I’m the last chair, dropping down from the Cubby Hole then flying up into the red room of mirrors. I had waited for the me-chee machine to count down the full fifteen seconds, after each posed academic question, since I didn’t answer two of them, ensuring a failing grade.

  My BPs would not be proud, or happy, at the moment, but they ain’t here with me, or Duchie, or Buffo.

  Usually, I answer, immediately, almost within ten or eleven seconds, brilliantly knowing the answer.

  But, this trip is not about my academic question, it’s about my actually qualify of life with Buffo.

  I scoot out the me-chee chair, stomping with both attitude and determination into the exposed archway.

  The opening shows numerous vertical rows of tall and wide green plants for miles and miles about two feet high, covering the entire soil.

  Please note, I’m only five feet high in total math numbers, so that’s 40 percent of me.

  The sky is blue with a yellow sun, no rain clouds. This looks like a good park place, so far.

  I giggle, skipping between the narrow aisles of the me-chee chairs, studying the many columns of big green plants. I hear, whimpering from a person then halt. I view the wall corner then gasp. I dash then squat, saying. “Lamis, what ya doing, here, with me?”