The Cubby Hole (IQ Testing Book 1) (9 page)

Marsilla stomps and sneers at Duchie. “You know the answers, the truth. Tell me?”

Lamis frowns with fury. “Duchie doesn’t know the answer. I don’t know the reason for a snow covered mountain inside the yellow color tone instead of a forest park with ants. I agree it was covered in fire ants when we visited there. Now it is not,” shrugs her shoulders.

Rincon exhales. “What about the status of Hatch and Jara?”

Duchie views Buffo who stares at the cave floor with sadness then Rincon. She says. “They are alive and snow skiing. They were having fun. We couldn’t bust down the colored barrier with our human strength nor couldn’t communicate with them with our human hands or tongues either. We tried tossing stones and bigger rocks to get their attention but they appeared far upwards into the mountain side. They did snow ski downwards looking happy and fun…”

Rincon drops his mouth. “Hatch and Jara do not know that they are trapped inside the yellow tone color for not passing with the 75 percent value. How will you tell them, Buffo?”

Marsilla sours with a sad frown. “Establishment does control your destiny.”

Rincon stands and shakes his locks, tapping the temple. “You control you own destiny. I have been studying my academic subjects, since talking. My BPs has guided my education helping me to succeed. Time to leave and test for the next color tone! Intelligence is knowledge,” twists from the teens, racing towards the exit.

I drop my mouth, viewing the floor then whisper. “Intelligence is knowledge,” swinging and seeing Rincon leave the cave. I race and catch Rincon inside the room. No one is there but us. I wipe rain off my wet face, saying. “My BPs told me the same thing. Why didn’t they tell us about the pink sparks, the orange dust, and the other towns which are all related within the Cubby Hole? I mean within the Establishment. We should have been informed too.”

Rincon exhales viewing his reflection in the mirror then Ketona. “Our BPs are not allowed to converse with us about the Cubby Hole or any related datum about the outer towns. This is our time to shine like a star or fizzle like a firecracker,” chuckles and winks. “I’m going to succeed. You’re going to succeed too, Ketona.”

I gasp in shock. “I…I guess so.”

He winks and grins at her. “I know so,” slides into the me-chee chair then drops into darkness.

I exhale with confusion wiping the water from my eyelashes.

Chapter 8

Red

I slowly rise into the red tinted room scanning for Hatch and Jara. I am the second me-chee landing back into the Cubby Hole. Rincon left a few seconds before me. He’s missing from his me-chee chair.

The fabric unwraps. I stand as the orange shielding dissipates from my body. I scan an empty room of red. I snap my fingers then smile and wave at the me-chee, saying. “May I please attend the girl’s bathroom for a bathroom break?”

The me-chee nods its silly red-colored metal skull with the silly painted smirk. “Welcome back, teen! You may be excused for three minutes and four seconds to relieve your bladder but come back for the next round of academic questions.”

I wave then spin towards the girl’s locker room colored with red walls too. I stomp through another empty room of girl’s locker then inside the bathroom stalls of red giggling and struggling out of the tight cat suit colored in orange.

I pee then dress. I stomp to the sink washing my hands with hot wash and soap then dry them.

I scoot to my personal locker then change out of the wet cowgirl boots. I slip on the dry and warm silver boots. The boots magically change into the bright orange, when I gasp then grin.

I figured out that the barrier is a captured electromagnetic field protecting each park place. The cat suits are somehow tied into the electromagnetic field too. When you slide into the new park place your cat suit changes color too. Thus, my boots are eating the same electronic ions from my dry and warm cat suit.

I walk to the full length mirror, staring at my beaten and dirty body. My hair is wet and partially drying. My cat suit looks very good on my short body. My boots are fitting nicely.

I cuddle my injured hand where the dampness and rain have wet and torn the growing healing pink scab. I quickly ponder for some first aid supplies but exhale. I’m a rough and tough girl. A little scratch won’t hurt me.

I swing around then jog out the archway.

Cubby Hole room.

I see Buffo. He walks around the room to each me-chee as I pass some females taking advantage of potty break time. I walk into his chest as he sweet breathes into my hair roots being taller. I whisper. “They will come…”

He scans the new me-chee chairs. “They need to come now. I gotta tell ‘em about the 75 percent value for advancing…,” snaps his fingers then smiles at Ketona. “I can use the cellie. It’s inside my locker,” spins and walks towards the boys’ locker room.

I exhale shaking my sorta wet curls then walk to my me-chee chair. I stand and stretching watching for Hatch or Jara.

Rincon enters the auditorium smiling and bouncing with a happy spring in his boots. “You came in second place again, I see.”

I exhale scanning the room. “I seem to think being the first or second sliding me-chee chair into the colored room with the mirrors or back into the Cubby Hole really doesn’t matter much…”

“Winning the golden job that really does matters much.”

I frown at him. “Rincon, our friends Hatch and Jara are in trouble. They need assistance. You have known them your entire existence. They need to hear our new datum. Now if they pop in before we start the next round you need to try to whisper the secret into their eardrums too. Do you hear me?”

Rincon tosses his arms, nodding and smiling. “I hear and obey, milady,” shifts and sits inside his me-chee chair.

More me-chee chairs rise from the flooring, not holding Hatch or Jara.

The me-chee host stands and raises his arms, saying. “Welcome back, teens! Please find your assigned me-chee chair and sit. We are beginning…”

Buffo gasps then exhales, circling his chair with nervousness. Hatch or Jara, either one has appeared from the darkness of the sealed floor. I stand at my chair scanning the room and scratching my wet hair, whispering. “I don’t understand. What’s happening?” Duchie rises from the floor belted into the fabric when I stomp into the smooth metal of her chair. I lean and growl into her face. “You forget to tell me something. Where are Hatch and Jara? Why are they not here? How can we start the new round without them?”

Duchie struggles with the fabric until it unwraps, sitting wet and smiling prettily inside her me-chee chair. “I tattled all my secrets to you and other teens. However I am smart enough to know this. One, the chairs are mechanical. Mechanics are run by computers. A mechanic me-chee chair is not going to come from one park place while a different chair is advancing into a second park place inside the single wind tunnel. Therefore if you’re dumb enough to miss your window of time then you’re dumb enough to wait for another opening as assigned by the operating me-chee computer. Hatch and Jara missed the window of time. Second, the me-chee computer is smart enough unlike you to corral like colors together as a unit such as the orange-colored me-chee chairs and orange-colored teens, who are trying to advance into the red tone color. Hatch and Jara are colored in yellow, not orange, Ketona, thus they are not here ever.”

I gasp then back step in shock.

The me-chee host says. “Please find your assigned me-chee chair and sit. We are starting…”

I jog to Buffo whispering and nodding. “Buffo, we are all colored orange, not yellow. We are all advancing into the color tone of red. Hatch and Jara are colored yellow, not orange.”

Buffo slaps his face then nods. He exhales sliding into the chair.

I slide into my chair leaning into the soft head rest. I feel so bad for my friends but they have time to make up the lost color tone into orange then red catching up with me and Buffo.

I turn to spy on Buffo when the orange shielding rises over my me-chee chair blocking his clear figure.

He’s worried and tense wiggling side to side inside his me-chee chair. He has to relax and answer six out of eight questions correctly to pass with the 75 percent value.

My me-chee chair glows in the color of orange again.

I close my eyelashes. I exhale then inhale calming my racing heart and active mind.

The me-chee stands and tosses his arms. “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 red. If you answer one-fourth or less, you will remain stationary inside the color tone of orange. If you incorrectly answer two-fourths of the academic questions, then you will slip back into the color of yellow. The first question, what is the color tone of the me-chee inside the Cubby Hole, presently?”

I say quickly. “My answer is…red.”

The thought me-chee says. “What is the average body temperature of a healthy human?”

“My answer is…98.6 degrees Fahrenheit.”

“What is the study of fish?”

“My answer is…piscatology.”

The thought me-chee says. “A vehicle averages 25 miles per gallon. The fuel costs $3.00 per gallon. The vehicle traveled 2,100 miles. What is the cost of the fuel for this vehicle?”

I gasp then open my eyelashes. I look at Buffo. He stares at the wall counting with his fingers then stares at his fingers. I whisper and stare at him between our double vision of orange shielding. “The mileage of 2,100 is divided by 25 which equal 84 miles. The miles of 84 times three dollars and zero cents equal 252 dollars and zero cents. Come on, Buffo! Figure out the simple math,” when a single motion catches my right eyeball. Rincon drops down into the floor. “O no!” I scan the room as more me-chee chairs drop into the floor.

The me-chee has adjusted the academic questions to the maximum tally of four questions, because the math numeric of three-fourths calculates precisely into 75 percent. Previously, within the other color tones the me-chee asked eight total questions in which six correct answers calculated into a perfect 75 percent value for advancing forward. Now the me-chee is asking four total questions in which answering three questions will calculate into a perfect 75 percent value.

I exhale with relieve, nodding and smiling.

Buffo only needs three out of four correct answers for the 75 percent value and then he will advance into the red color tone with me. Then we can figure out how to contact Hatch and Jara and warn about the entrapment of the Cubby Hole.

Buffo drops into the floor.

I smile and miss the ten second deadline for the fourth question. I don’t fear it since I have correctly answered three of the four questions for the passing 75 percent into the color tone of red.

I drop into the floor zooming towards the bright lights, screaming for fun. I can’t wave my arms and legs from the wrapping of fabric for safety.

Red room

I smile and giggle landing inside the red room with relieve. I am not worried about being the first me-chee chair anymore. I worry about Hatch and Jara being stuck a color tone behind me and Buffo.

I am ‘number something’ sitting inside the warm fabric among numerous me-chee chairs. I smile and exhale being alone inside the red room.

I wiggle my body parts releasing the tension and sorrow of the competitive and deceptive contest then smile at the wall. It is open.

The sun is yellow. The sky is blue. The land is flat. I smell salt within my nostrils. I feel warm heated air slapping my face. I see teens walking around outside wearing a cat suit and bare naked feet. I slide out the me-chee chair into the sunlight.

Chapter 9

Sea wall

I walk then sit on the pretty cream and tan colored wall made of rounded and shiny seashell wall swinging my boots waiting for Buffo. The hot sun is heating on my face and hands. I remove one boot wiggling my naked toes to dry off the sweaty water between the skin flaps. Then I remove the second boot wiggling both naked feet. I exhale and smile swing my legs. I peek into the red room.

Duchie bounces and stands beside Ketona not blocking the entrance of the room. “What is the study of fishies?”

“Piscatology.” I say swinging my legs and viewing the empty red room of mirrors.

She nods and plays in the white sand with her naked toes. “Dang, I missed that one. But I got three out of four questions for 75 percent, a passing score and standing right beside you in the sand. So I’m here too. Thanks goodness! Where is here?”

I exhale with annoyance of her presence. “Don’t know,” swinging my naked feet and watching for Buffo.

“Have ya seen the cliff?”

“No,” I stare into the room.

“Have ya seen the water?”

“No.” I stare into the room.

“Have ya seen…”

“No.” I stare into the room.

Duchie views the room then Ketona. “What are you doing?”

“I’m waiting for Buffo to land.” I nod and stare into the room.

Duchie nods and smiles. “O! I landed fourth. My me-chee chair was the fourth chair. Marsilla landed first. She was still sitting inside her steaming chair when I landed. I think the crazy ride gives her a stomach ache. I get a little dizzy at first then cool out for the ride. I like this game. Rincon landed second after her. He didn’t look happy being second. I guess he likes being first. I guess he’ll get the golden job, since he likes being first. That tall girl with no name who wears the colorful tattoos on her neck and all those body piercings on her ears, nose holes, and eyebrows she landed third before me. I’m impressed with her. What’s her name?”

“Don’t know.” I stare into the room.

“Do you know her?”

“No.”

Duchies sits beside Ketona swinging her naked feet off the seashell wall. She pats the smooth stones. “This park place is pretty. I’ve never seen any seashells by the sea shore,” giggles and scans the sand, the sky, and the trees. “It’s the bestest one, so far. There’re no giant ants or dead baby animal necklaces or…”

“You should go and play with the other teens,” I swing my feet and watch the room for Buffo.

“I sit and watch for Buffo too.” Duchie swings her naked feet in rhyme with Ketona’s.

“You should go and play with the other teens,” I sneer at her naked feet. We are both petite. She has more beauty than I, if you measure such things, a cute button nose and long shiny red hair and glowing pink skin probably from the nasty sewer fumes.

Duchie exhales. “Did you leave before Buffo? If so, then he could still be inside the Cubby Hole room?”

“No.”

Duchie frowns with confusion. “Did you leave after his me-chee chair? If so, then he’s here first before you…”

I jump from the wall slapping both hands to my legs. “Yes, of course, I saw him drop first. He was…,” studies Duchie then frowns with annoyance. “Okay, he’s with the other teens. Where are the other teens?” I walk towards the skyline.

Duchie nods and walks beside Ketona. She fingers the sky. “This park place is really cool. It’s a table top cliff both flat and long and hot. We’re almost touching the sun. I’m sweating buckets of water. Ya can see the entire blue sky and the entire water of blue too.”

I nod. “I see the sky and water smashing together as one. You can’t the difference in the far horizon over placid waves.” I halt then drop my mouth. “Wow! This is a high cliff of white rock leading right off into an ocean of blue. I can see the skyline forever and forever. It looks like the world is flat and I might just fall off the planet, but I can’t,” giggles and nods.

Duchie nods. “Some of the teens are calling it, a cliff diving platform. See, each teen has removed their boots and then poses at the edge of the rock holding on with their toenails then jump into the sky. See, the teen drops then splashes into the water.”

I gasp with shock at the heart stopping teen maneuver. She drags me towards the edge of the semi-round rock cliff. I cuddle my arms around my breasts then hold my breath. I slowly lean into the air. I feel nothing between me and the air but fright. My stomach drops down into my pinky toes. I whisper. “It’s about 45 feet…”

Duchie laughs and leans into the nothingness air. “Naw, it’s more like 50 feet straight down into the water. Rincon was the first brave soul to do it. He’s a cool guy,” fingers Rincon on the other side of the cliff edge. “He’s over there directing the teen performance. I haven’t jumped yet. I’m getting up my courage since my nerves are hiding somewhere down near my ankles,” giggles with Ketona. “Did ya wanna jump now?”

I narrow my eyelashes then toss my hand over my eyeballs from the bright sun scanning each teen for Buffo. He’s tall, handsome and muscular among the other teens. I can’t miss his tallness. I exhale with worry. “I don’t see Buffo. Is there another picnic area with food baskets,” giggles. “Buffo likes to eat more than…,” giggles with my romantic thoughts of my dream man. I view Duchie. “Is there another spot with more teens?”

Duchie fingers the teens around the cliff. “Naw, all the teens are here except for Marsilla. She’s under the clump of shade trees. I guess her dark skin gets really heated from the hot sun. She sits against the foot of the shade tree watching the teens jump off the cliff.”

I bite my lips scanning the teens, the sky and the cliff rock. “Where is he?”

Duchie shades her eyelashes with her hand. “Ya said that Buffo left before your me-chee chair dropped.”

“Yes.”

Duchie bits her lips. “Ya said that you saw him drop from the Cubby Hole…”

“Yes.”

Duchie shakes her curls. “Do you wanna know where Buffo is?”

“Yes.”

Duchie frowns. “Do you really wanna know where Buffo is?”

I stomp my naked feet nodding and spitting saliva. “Yes, I wanna know, Duchie. Tell me what you know about Buffo before I get violent…”

Duchie twist her hands. “Well, I missed one question and I’m really smart from studying all the time since I was three years…”

I gasp then view the sand. I kick the sand. “No, it can’t be.”

Duchie nods. “It can be. I got three out of four questions correct. The last one, the word math problem was easy for a math person. But the fishes one was really hard I couldn’t answer it. I didn’t know the dang answer. The ten second time limit elapsed before I could say something about fishes…”

I toss my arms then twirl into a circle. “No, it can’t be. I saw Buffo struggle with the word math problem. So he might have missed one question.”

“But he could have missed two…”

I stomp my naked foot crossing my arms. I swing towards the shade trees since I’m burning up in both in physical hotness and mentally heat. Duchie follows me. I lean against the tree feeling the smooth bark of the palm tree. I view the tall tree with four big long green leaves barely shading the hot sands, saying. “Okay, help me puzzle this out. If you get three-fourths of the questions then you advance to the next color tone. Buffo was in the orange but he didn’t get three-fourths of the questions correct, because he isn’t here with me and you. Buffo got only two of the questions correct. I saw him struggling with the fourth question. He was having trouble with the word math solution then he and his me-chee disappeared from the Cubby Hole. So Buffo received two correct answers out of four which is fifty percent. So 50 percent is below 75 percent and above 25 percent, therefore he has remained inside the orange color. I solved the puzzle. Buffo’s stuck inside the orange color tone so I’m going to…”

“Naw, he ain’t,” Duchie frowns with worry, exhaling and shaking her ponytail. “If you get one-fourth of the answers correct you remain inside the current color tone which is 25 percent of the right answers. The last set of academic questions tallies four, so 25 percent times four questions is one…”

I exhale then stomp my foot. “You’re acting silly even a first grader can figure out that one-fourth of the total number four is the number one…”

Duchie winks. “I got some more analysis to perform so listen really carefully. One-fourth correct answer of the four posed questions is one correct answer, so you stay within the color of orange. If you answer two posed questions correctly you get 50 percent, so you stay within the color of orange also. If you answer three posed questions correctly you get 75 percent, so you advance into the color of red like us. If you got one answer wrong out of four questions then you descend into hell…sorry back into the color tone of yellow,” when I gasp and listen. She nods. “Because the me-chee states if you get one-fourth of the questions correct then you remain inside the current color tone. You must make an assumption that any answer totally wrong then you will not remain inside the present color tone. If you keep trying to answer the question hoping to get 50 percent or more then you get three answers wrong then you might descend back into the previous color tone. Our assumption assumes a larger tally of questions. However I will analysis the current posed questions for the red color tone. There are four questions. If you incorrectly answer two questions wrong then you receive 50 percent. The me-chee states if two-fourths of the questions are answered wrong then you will descend into the previous color tone. The me-chee clearly stated if you incorrectly answer two-fourths of the academic questions, then you will slip back into the color of yellow...”

I gasp then worry. Duchie nods then circles around the sand dropping a chin into her neck, viewing her naked feet. I follow behind her.

Duchie continues. “The first question was too easy and too frequent, name the color for the machine. Buffo got that one correct. He stands at 25 percent. The second question was too easy also. Everyone knows the human body temperature is 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit. So Buffo stands at 50 percent. This is good. He got two-fourths of the four questions correct. Now the third question was very tricky and slick,” stops and views me, nodding. “I didn’t get it right. I didn’t know the answer, so I didn’t say nothing.”

“Nothing,” I frown with confusion at her.

She nods and grins. “Nothingness! I based my quick decision on the possibility that the other remaining questions were within my academic tenure so I could jack up my percent from 50 percent to 75 percent guaranteeing advancement into the red color tone. However Buffo does not known the true answer is piscatology like me. And Buffo says something close but not correct unlike me. So Buffo has two questions right and one question wrong. This gets complicated. He has two questions out of four correct for 50 percent, but he has one question wrong out of four for 25 percent. So, the me-chee averages the two scores. When 50 percent plus 25 percent is added the product is 75 percent. Then 75 percent is divided by the two variables the product is 37.5 percent which is below the 75 percent value for advancement…”

I stomp my foot and shake my curls and hands. “Ah, naw! Not right, not that. Wait! Let’s do this analysis again. Buffo has two questions correct for 50 percent. He missed the third question. I agree with your analysis since Buffo isn’t here with me,” exhales. “Buffo has gotten one question wrong. However the questions are weighted exactly the same at a positive 25 percent value,” nods and smiles. “Therefore the two correct answers are a positive 25 percent each, which is a total of a positive 50 percent. The third question is 25 percent too. Buffo got the third question wrong making the value negative 25 percent,” nods and smiles. “Therefore a positive 50 percent plus a negative 25 percent equals a positive 25 percent,” when Duchie laughs and fingers me. I gasp, saying. “The result of 25 percent is below the 75 percent value making the teen descend back into the previous color tone. The previous color tone is yellow which is the outer city of Dandine, the Dookie town,” dropping my mouth.

Duchie nods and smiles. “Told ya! Someone would be living and working in Dookie Town but not me. I’m breathing fresh sea air in the red zone,” giggles and slaps her cat suit.

I frown with fury then calm my raw nerve endings. I grin and nod. “However there is a fourth answer left to address from a tally of four posed academic questions within the red color tone for the advancement,” when Duchie drops her mouth and I smile and nod. “Buffo has answered the word math question correctly. It was a very simple math equation even a monkey wearing a ponytail could’ve puzzled it out,” when Duchie sneers. I giggle. “Buffo has three answers correct out of four responses which is 75 percent, the required value to advance into the red color tone…”

Duchie laughs. “He ain’t here, sugar.”

I nod shaking my finger in her smug face. “I know that fact, doll. Therefore Buffo did not say or voice or shout out an answer for question number four. I saw him struggling with the answer since he was upset about Hatch and Jara. They’re our friends since forever. We live on the same city street and attend each other’s birthday parties and holiday events and summer time picnics. Buffo wasn’t thinking clearly so he ran out of time eating up the ten seconds of allotment for question four. Therefore he didn’t answer question number four. I saw his chair drop before mine. I don’t bother answering question number four either since I got the first three correct, babe. I accomplished the 75 percent without any more brain work. Intelligence is knowledge. My daddy always quotes that good advice to me. So Buffo stands at two questions correct and one question wrong. Now, the me-chee does not use averages or percentages or mathematical relationships. The me-chee has stated three rules. If you answer three-fourths or more of the academic questions correctly, you will advance to the next color of red. Buffo did not answer three correct questions. If you incorrectly answer two-fourths of the academic questions, then you will slip back into the color of yellow. Buffo did incorrectly answer one question. If you answer one-fourth or less, you will remain stationary inside the color tone of orange…”