The Cubby Hole (IQ Testing Book 1) Read online

  He says. “I always listen to the me-chee instructions and you seem to only concentrate on Buffo,” laughs then clears his throat. “The primary reason a me-chee chair does not fall after the correctly answered sixth question out of eight tallies, if you say an incorrect answer than you stay put inside the current color tone.”

  I gasp holding the plate, view him. “That’s correct. I forget about both the two-fourths and one-fourth rulings quoted by the me-chee host. If I had missed one question out of eight then I would pass into the yellow tone with 87.5 percent correction rate. If I had missed two questions out of eight I would have still passed to yellow with 75 percent correctness rate. If I had missed three questions out of eight I would have achieved a 62.5 percent correctness rate. Then I would have stayed in the pink…”

  Buffo waves and shouts, smiling. He stops at the edge of the bench presenting a bouquet of wildflower. “Flowers for you and food for me, I’m starving,” slides then bumps into Ketona, laughing and acting goofy. She sniffs the flowers placing them at her side as he helps her unload the food boxes. “Fried chicken. Potato chips,” he chuckles. “If someone kills then dumps me into the duck pond then I’m going to bloat then float right back up as some ugly fugly murdered evidence. So don’t bother entertaining that wicked idea, ya’ll,” he chews the chips and chuckles.

  Rincon chuckles and chews. “Buffolo can learn,” when Ketona kicks Rincon under the table with her cowgirl boot for insulting her dream man. Rincon feels it then laughs and winks at her.

  Java, Hatch, Lamis, Marsilla, and Duchie join the table.

  Hatch smiles, saying. “Food, I’m starving,” reaches and grabs food, sitting and eating as Java scoots beside him.

  Marsilla sips on the drink, scanning the mountains, the sky, the pond and the grass. “I’m full from eating all the nature nuts, pears and apples. I’ll pass. Where are we located geographically?”

  Lamis scans the landscape. “I would say that we’re south of Burrville between the crop fields and the mountains inside the valley.”

  Java says. “Why are there two walls of reflecting mirrors inside each landing pad or landing room or landing area?”

  Rincon says. “Prehistoric cavemen were fascinated with selfie reflections from glittering lake ponds and small rain water puddles but it was the Egyptains who created the looking glass from bronze, tin or silver minerals. The reflection of light is an important property of mirrors and is quantified by the ration between the amount of light reflected from the surface…”

  “…coupled with the face of Jara. The mirrors are for you to see your pretty face and sexy body, Jara,” Hatch winks and hugs his girl when the others chuckle.

  Rincon frowns with annoyance. “That is not the only purpose…”

  Marsilla nods. “It fits our purpose now.”

  Lamis asks. “What time is it?”

  Rincon views the skyline. “Based on the position of the solar sun it is between nine-thirty and ten o’clock.”

  I gasp. “We’ll been playing inside the Cubby Hole for almost two hours. We started at eight this morning. And we’re only posed at the second color tone. Ya know there are six colors with four more left,” chewing and shaking my curls.

  Duchie chews. “It will go faster, since the questions will get harder and the time of ten seconds will lap faster also.”

  Marsilla frowns with confusion at Duchie. “How do you know that information? As a matter of fact the questions have numbered eight with a maximum duration of two minutes and thirteen seconds. I have answered all the questions at hundred percent at a steady speedy rate of 4.6 seconds.”

  Buffo swallows then burps. “Two minutes and thirteen seconds, it seems like an eternal too me,” elbows with Hatch, grinning.

  Lamis laughs with the others. “How did ya figure out your personal steady speedy rate of 4.6 seconds?”

  Marsilla smiles. “The me-chee required precisely eight seconds to ask this particular long winded question with his mechanical rhythm. ‘The sum of the two roots of a quadratic equation is five and their product is negative six. What is the equation?’ I addressed the solution within 5.6 seconds dropping my average down from 3.2 seconds to 4.6 seconds.”

  Rincon chuckles with arrogance. “Ha! I calculated each correct answer at a speedier rate of 2.4 seconds which was clearly demonstrated today. I landed the first me-chee chair for the second color tone of yellow.”

  I frown with annoyance. “Ha! I calculated all the correct eight answers faster than 2.4 seconds than Rincon when I landed first my me-chee chair on the first color tone of pink,” nods and giggles.

  “Second place now,” chuckles Rincon.

  I frown with annoyance. “First place next, buddy,” nodding and smiling my perfect grin. Buffo hugs and kisses my forehead with love and support, nodding and smiling too.

  Duchie fingers Marsilla. “Is she-bot really programmed?”

  Hatch chews then swallows. “How did you figure out the maximum duration time of the asked eight questions is five minutes and thirty-three seconds?”

  Rincon nods. “Marsilla is correct. Each question time allotment is ten seconds. Eight questions times ten seconds is a total of 80 seconds. The me-chee speaks one question at an average rate of six seconds. Six seconds times eight questions is a total of 48 seconds. When you add 80 seconds plus 48 seconds the product is 128 seconds. When you divide 128 seconds into the time standard of 60 seconds then the product is two minutes and eight seconds…”

  Duchie laughs. “A matching pair, a she-bot and a he-bot, when they married and mate they produce a me-chee. Now we all know the sexual procedure, folks,” laughs with the others.

  “Ouch!” Jara frowns with fury then lifts her leg onto the bench. “Dang, an ant bit it nasty fangs into my foot.”

  Rincon says. “You’re supposed to assemble in the matching boots with your silver cat suit which would have protected your naked feet against Mother Nature’s crawling critters, Jara.”

  Java frowns with pain. “Well, I didn’t. I like my high heels. They glowed with the silver material. I don’t know that I was going to be a rotating quasar of brilliant colors. Gosh, I wished my mama had tattled to me about freaking Citizenship Day…”

  Duchie laughs. “Ketona’s worn dull brown cowgirl boots clashes with the bright yellow.”

  I swallow the food then smile. “It won’t clash with the pretty orange which will be my next accomplishment, soonest.”

  A female schooler dashes by our table, yelling with fear. “Ants, the rear tables are covered in fire ants…”

  I stand, gasping. “The dirt soil is covered in red ants. They marching over the tables and benches and the picnic tables too.”

  Hatch stands, gasping. “Those are the biggest dang red ants I have ever seen…”

  Duchie stands and smiles. “It is rather a pretty picture with the swarm of red flowing over the green plants then the brown wooden tables. The whole picture looks rich midnight crawling blackness...”

  Rincon whispers and step backs from the table, shaking his curls. “I do not like ants.”

  Female: tall, short black hair, pale skin, skin tattoos; pierced ears, nostrils, and eyebrows. She stands on top of the picnic table, fingering the high mountains behind the swarm of red ants, saying. “The ants migrate down from the cool mountains then build a series of great big tall one story ant hills then lay their eggs. They hang around for about a month or two then retreat back home with their young’uns. We’re sitting and eating lunch within their private nesting territory,” squats then burns the single fire ant crawling upon her eating table with the lighted cigar. She laughs an evil tone as it fires then wiggles in pain.

  Marsilla leans into Ketona. “Who is she?”

  I frown with puzzlement. “One of the nasty schoolers from the outer cities,” I watch her light another crawling fire ant upon her picnic table as the poor creature burns and wiggles in pain. She laughs and rebel yells as I cringe with mental and physical pain for the suffering
insects.

  Buffo hugs Ketona whispering. “Time to go back and finish this and got our new jobs,” dragging her for safety.

  We swing away from the tables and ants jogging towards the opening of the pink room of mirrors.

  Lamis frowns with fear. “It’s time to leave and return to the Cubby Hole, ya’ll,” swings then jogs to the opening also.

  Yellow room of mirrors.

  The smart teens rush and race then slide into their individual me-chee chairs. Rincon and his me-chair drop first down the flooring when I laugh at his chicken stew performance.

  I enter the room stopping inside the archway and panting for air from my swift job. I swing towards the landscape. The non-smart teens are tossing rocks at the ants when I exhale that the childish act. Now I understand. No teen will be harmed by Mother Nature as stated by both Buffo and Rincon. My BPs did not explain all the rules of the Citizenship Day making me both miffed and annoyed at the lack of datum information.

  I swing around examining the room. A room of mirrors. I giggle seeing my ugly red colored distorted face from both sweat and fear reflecting in the mirror. The design of the room peaks my kitty-cat curiosity then I view the landscape. The particular location of yellow park place peaks my kitty-cat curiosity too. I swing to the room again.

  The room is smooth and warm being heated from the steaming me-chee chairs, kindly familiar since the design duplicates the pink room of mirrors. I feel comfortable but bored.

  I swing to the landscape. The forest is pretty and duplicates the pink park place woodlands with tall trees, colorful wildflowers and low green bushes. However the invasion of the nasty teens inside the pink park place coupled with the march of the ants inside the yellow park place woodlands makes me feel both scary but thrilling.

  I clap then nod, whispering. “This is a psychological test too,” then I feel the hands around my shoulders.

  Buffo hugs and pulls Ketona towards the chair. “Do ya need to stop and rest before dropping down the floor? I can stand and guard the entire opening, darling,” winks at her. “No ant will get though here. I promise ya.” He spins then stands inside the opening holding his arms outstretched shuffling side to side for fun while keeping some of the teens out of the room. The teens sneer then pad around his tallness.

  I giggle and smile at my hero. “No. I feel safe from the ants since you’re here with me.”

  Buffo nods then skips to Ketona. He cuddles her, saying. “Okay, I’m your protector. Are ya ready to return to the Cubby Hole?”

  I finger the landscape. “There are some non-smart teens out there still playing with the ants. Are we leaving them behind? Will they return into the Cubby Hole also? I don’t understand. How does that work? Almost all the teens have returned into the Cubby Hole except for them out there and ones from the pink park place. I saw the missing chairs…”

  Buffo views the landscape and the ants. “Well, my daddy’s a me-chee programmer. He told me that each teen can return by transport of the me-chee chair anytime. So let’s get going. We got another set of questions to pass,” he kisses Ketona then scoots her into the chair.

  Chapter 6

  Orange

  The four walls and ceiling are orange-tinted in color along with the solo orange-colored me-chee standing under the color chart. My cat suit and my me-chee chair are yellow tinted. The missing me-chee chairs represent the teens probably fighting with the big ugly fire ants for some sick fun along with the first batch of teens probably cooking and eating the dead baby farm animal meat like savage barbaric beasts.

  However I was born and reared in the pretty and posh Colfax city. I will never socialize with these savage barbaric beasts again.

  I shake my arm and legs relieving the terrible images of the yellow and pink tone color theme park places then exhale. I scan the other teens inside their individual me-chee chairs. The mood inside the Cubby Hole is solemn and sour from the tough competition of the academic questions coupled with the serious invasion of the nasty insects and the more nastiest teens inside the past two park places.

  I shake my curls side to side concentrating on my golden goal, first choice job. I scan the room for Rincon. He’s glowing in yellow three me-chee chairs ahead of me. I will note when he drops during the orange color tone event.

  The me-chee raises his arms, smirking with the painted facial expression. “Welcome back to the Cubby Hole, teens! I hoped you had enjoyed your fun in the sun. There is more fun to have inside the rest of the color tones. Sit back and relax! Close your eyelids! I will present the next series of academic questions for your individual answers. The time limit is ten 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 orange. If you answer one-fourth or less, you will remain stationary inside the color tone of yellow. If you incorrectly answer two-fourths of the academic questions, then you will slip back into the color of pink. The first question, what is the color tone of the me-chee inside the Cubby Hole, presently?”

  I close my eyelashes concentrating on beating Rincon as first me-chee again inside the orange room. I say without hesitation. “My answer is…orange.”

  The thought me-chee asks. “What is the common tint color of tree bark?

  I say quickly. “My answer is…brown.”

  The thought me-chee says. “What is the product of positive 100 plus positive 200?”

  “My answer is…300.”

  “What is the product of negative 20 plus negative 8?”

  “My answer is…negative 28.”

  The thought me-chee asks. “What is the key virtue in Confucianism?”

  I gasp then open my eyelashes to the strange question. I close my eyelashes swiftly thinking about the correct answer. I exhale then say. “Filial piety.”

  “What do the two symbols of ‘AD’ represent?”

  I say. “My answer is…anno Domini.”

  The me-chee says. “The diameter and height of a right circular cylinder are equal. If the volume of the cylinder is two, what is the height of the cylinder?”

  I exhale calculating the math inside my mind then say. “My answer is…1.37,” then open my eyelashes. Rincon is still parked in front of me. I grin.

  The thought me-chee says. “The mass is composed of 14 percent hydrogen and 86 percent carbon. What is the compound?”

  I bite my lips with my eyelashes closed pondering the math into my mind. I say. “My answer is…one part carbon and two parts hydrogen,” then open my eyelashes, tossing my arms.

  Rincon is still parked three me-chee chairs ahead of me. I have answered all the eight questions quicker and correctly too before him.

  I feel the fabric wrap over my body then drop my arms. The chair drops into the darkness then zooms forwards towards the reflection light of the mirrors. I giggle without sickness and with giddiness from happiness being the first landing chair.

  Orange room of mirrors.

  I land against the side wall of mirror seeing another me-chee chair steaming with white smoke from the scary roller coaster ride in the middle of the room presenting as number one. I feel shock then angry.

  The girl with the short black hair, neck tattoos and body piercing slides from her me-chee standing and stretching her long limbs. She sees me then winks with a grin.

  I huff then slide out of the chair stomping to her nostrils being shorter than her tallness. “How in the heck did you answer all eight questions before me?”

  She winks at Ketona then walks towards the orange wall, saying. “I guessed each question in 1.2 seconds, doll!”

  The wall morphs into a woodlands of tall trees, low green bushes, colorful wildflowers, black sky, and heavy rain drops. The white lightning strikes across an angry sky.

  She gasps. “Lightning bolts…”

  I exhale then frown with annoyance. “Pretty lighting bolts withi
n a massive ugly rain storm, where are we located on the freaking planet that rains like this? The sky’s midnight purple. The rain’s almost black within the dark green forest. I have never seen a rain,” when it roars with thunder then brightens the dark sky with a series of white lightning bolts. I giggle. “A vicious thunder storm.”

  Two other me-chee chairs land inside the orange room.

  Rincon smiles then slides from the chair, standing. He frowns with annoyance at the violent rain storm as I giggle at his cute response. Marsilla is one of the other smarter schoolers when she stands and frowns also.

  I back step and finger the opening. “Well, the adventure action park place has changed its rhythm without any rhyme or reason. Who’s got an umbrella or a rain coat or a tram hidden inside their me-chee chair?” I giggle.

  Marsilla scoots backwards from the splashing rain drops, nodding. “We stay here in place then leave the room.”

  Rincon fingers his me-chee chair, chucking. “We yell a retrieve. I have seen, get splashed and savored the moment, ya’ll. Time to return and conquer the color of gold,” sniggers then slides into the seat. “Aww! Ouch!” he scoots out rubbing his fanny. “What the fudge...”

  The unnamed girl stares into the thunder storm, saying. “You can’t leave from here inside the chair until all the me-chee chairs inside the Cubby Hole have landed inside the appointed colored room from addressing the academic questions.”

  A new me-chee lands and steams with heated smoke. Marsilla was standing too close. She rushes towards the front of the opening, shouting. “Golly! That was too close…”

  Rincon frowns and stomps to the tall unnamed girl. “I am Rincon. You are who again? We saw you in the last color tone of yellow on top of the picnic table burning the poor fire ants. Tell me? How do you know that the me-chee can’t be reactivated and your name, miss…”

  “She was the first chair here.” I finger the unknown girl,” nodding and giggling when Rincon drops his mouth. I nod and say. “Someone else is vying for the golden job….”