An Ignorant, A Sore Loser, And A Little Bit Of Gossip.
Accompanied by the sound of footsteps, Adam passed through the hallways with Brandon and Orion.
"Where do I start…?" [Brandon]
Scratching his chin, he made a troubled expression.
"Just start with today." [Orion]
"Really? But Adam won't know the rest." [Brandon]
"Just do it man. No one cares about that stuff." [Orion]
Orion waved him off, urging Brandon to begin.
"Ugh... fine. So I was walking to school with Orion-" [Brandon]
"Hold up. You're not joking with me right?" [Adam]
"...What?" [Brandon]
"You? And Orion? You walk to school with Orion?" [Adam]
"We live literally a block away from each other. It's more convenient. Now can you just listen?" [Brandon]
"Oh… Uh… Yeah." [Adam]
Recovering from being cut off, Brandon continued with his story.
"While we were walking today, we got jumped." [Brandon]
"Jumped? Like… jumped-jumped? Or just jumped?" [Adam]
"Like we were attacked by a group. And we got folded." [Brandon]
"That was only Brandon. I didn't lose." [Orion]
Adam looked up and down at Orion, clearly not believing his words.
("That's some pride you got there…") [Adam]
"So who jumped you guys?" [Adam]
"Some kids from WhiteSeal Highschool. Orion used to beat the crap out of them during middle school." [Brandon]
"And it was amazing." [Orion]
"Amazing until they unlocked their abilities." [Brandon]
"Until they unlocked their abilities?" [Adam]
Adam scratched his head, unsure of what Brandon implied.
"Remember how we didn't unlock our abilities until highschool? Orion used to beat them in middle school with his bare hands." [Brandon]
"Wow. Orion, were you a bully?" [Adam]
"No." [Orion]
Orion denied it as quickly and bluntly as he could, making him seem desperate.
"The truth is… I was bullied in middle school. That was, until Orion came by." [Brandon]
Things began to click for Adam. He was finally beginning to piece the story bit by bit.
"So Orion beat up your bullies, and now they're back for revenge?" [Adam]
"...That about sums it up." [Brandon]
"Can't Orion just beat them up again?" [Adam]
"I did." [Orion]
"..." [Brandon] [Adam]
The two looked at him with blank expressions, but neither of them spoke up.
"A few weeks ago, they attacked us too. That was when Orion won. Today, they brought a new guy, and his ability level was 6." [Brandon]
"Level 6? Isn't that pretty high?" [Adam]
"Apparently, he was the boss of their grade." [Brandon]
"...You're kidding." [Adam]
"I know what you're thinking. It sounds like something from a television show, but even we have one at our school." [Brandon]
"Really?! Who?" [Adam]
"Felix." [Brandon]
"...Should've known." [Adam]
"Well, that's only for our grade. For the second year, we have Flora Evergreen. Third year, Jelia Corus. Fourth year, Yulia Scott." [Brandon]
As he listed off names, Adam found some of them familiar.
("Isn't Flora that one girl who winked at me?") [Adam]
"She's the one that was next to Luis Strotto. The one you fought." [Krino]
("...Was he the guy with a soul weapon that used fire?") [Adam]
"Yep." [Krino]
As Adam thought to himself, he couldn't help but notice the other names.
("Jelia Corus… Oh shit, that's the school president's name!") [Adam]
"Fitting isn't it." [Krino]
("But I've never heard of this "Yulia" person.") [Adam]
"Hey Brandon, how do you know all of this?" [Adam]
"He gossips." [Orion]
"I gossip." [Brandon]
He chimed in as if to confirm the statement. It was the first time Adam has seen them so in-sync with one another.
"Uh… Okay…? So are we going to jump this guy back or what?" [Adam]
"No, I'll get him back later." [Orion]
"What? But you lost." [Adam]
"I lost five versus one. If the other scrubs didn't get in my way, I would've won." [Orion]
"...Wow, not even counting me in?" [Brandon]
"Don't even say anything. You were downed in a single blow." [Orion]
"Chill… Don't fight right now." [Adam]
"Whatever man." [Orion]
He clicked his tongue as he walked. The loss appeared to have put him in a bad mood.
"Orion, over here. Nurse's office remember?" [Adam]
Almost walking past their destination, Adam called out to Orion.
"Hmph. Whatever." [Orion]